Index: Click on
the attachment below for an index, alphabetical by topic, which will
help you scroll quickly through the articles below (in reverse
chronological order, most recent), to find a particular article or an
article addressing a particular subject. The list is not perfect or
guaranteed complete as I started it well after authoring the articles,
but you may find it quite helpful!
Fit-Tip Topical Index
6-5-08
It's Hot
Outside: Drink!...Water!
Summer
lovers and fitness friends and I hope all are both...!
Somehow
this topic just "hit me"...in the form of a bright sunny 90 plus
degree bike ride to campus..
I'd
visited the hydration topic before but can't overemphasize: if you
are exercising in the heat, the absolutely worse thing you can do is
allow your body to become relatively dehydrated. And it's easy to
do: just wait to drink until you are thirsty..
Even a
very small negative water balance will affect your performance, and
your mental state, and a major one will threaten your life. In point
of fact, reviews of deaths in hot weather endurance events trace the
cause invariably to dehydration, which robs your body of its ability
to dissipate heat and thus maintain safe core temperature, through homodynamics
(as your blood volume goes down) and sweating.
That
said, what to drink? WATER! H20! Gatoraide and other
sugar/electrolyte replacements are not poison but are seriously
oversold: If you are exercising less than an hour at a time there is
scant evidence they have any advantage over plain water, if under 30
minutes there is none. Your body has plenty of stored and blood
glucose to carry you that long or longer, the extra calories might
be one reason you are exercising in the first place, and the
electrolyte imbalance leading to cramping is nearly always the
result of a negative fluid...WATER...balance. If anything, just
incorporate enough potassium in your daily diet; a banana in the
morning won't hurt..
Now if
you are doing a 10 mile run or marathon, well, that's a "horse of
another color". (And probably lighter on his feet and maybe his
brain as well....!....)
My
blessings for a fun, active, safe summer!
5-22-08
Lose that
remote or lose your mind! (Inactivity and mental disorders)
This shouldn’t surprise you….
much. But hopefully it’ll get your attention:
Numerous studies have
correlated sedentary behavior with a higher prevalence of mental
disorders, from relatively moderate stress and anxiety to the real
“killers” of depression and bipolar disorder. But correlation
studies always leave open the question of which causes
which, or does some third item cause both. (Maybe people don’t
exercise because they are a bit off somewhere in the
head..? [I could go somewhere else with that but will stifle
myself, for now]…) However a recently published longitudinal study,
which followed over 10,000 participants for over six years, leaves
little doubt.
Subjects with a physical
activity above the group median had a relative risk of developing a
mental disorder of 25% less than the sedentary individuals. And
those who spent over 42 hours per week in front of a TV or computer
had a 30% higher mental disorder rate than those spending less than
10 hours staring at the screens. (The researchers attributed this
to its negative impact on physical activity; I personally suspect
that the nature of much of the garbage on TV and obtainable
from internet contributes to mental problems as well…)
An interesting “peripheral”
finding of the study: Participants with the highest activity levels
had the highest total energy intake (they ate the most food!), and
the highest alcohol intake. Though I wouldn’t recommend a high
alcohol intake for health conscious folks of any physical activity
level, both the higher food and drink levels undoubtedly reflects
the fact that the highly active are able to “afford” (and may
actually need) the extra calories, while a large number of
sedentary…and therefore overweight…individuals are chronically
cutting calories..
At any rate, this “message to
take home” is, of course, worry more about what you do,
physically, than how much you eat, and you’ll have less stress,
anxiety, and other mental problems to worry about!
Now put down the remote and/or
mouse and go outside and play!!
My blessings for a physically
active, mentally stable summer!
(and by the way, although my
schedule does vary a good bit in the summer, due to, amazingly to
me, popular demand, I will try to get off an occasional Fit Tip
through the summer months…so stay tuned!!”)
5-12-08
Enough is enough! (Fast foods and portion
sizes)
Our national obesity epidemic is undeniable,
along with the consequences. Two thirds of us
Americans overweight, half that number officially
"obese". (Technically, > 30 BMI but more
importantly the level accompanied by the most
serious health consequences, such as diabetes, heart
disease, stroke, orthopaedic problems, and such).
More alarmingly is the youth trend, quadrupling in
20 years to now include 17% of all 2-19 year olds!
Inactivity remains a
prime culprit, with population studies and
controlled research documenting strong relationships
as well as physiological processes. To say nothing
of nearly anyone's "casual observation" of all the
active people who "eat like horses" and remain thin,
while the rest of us (jealous) folks "look at food
and gain weight". (Yes those are direct quotes, from
numerous sources, maybe you were
one!)
But eating habits are
indeed a factor, and the same environment that
strongly discourages activity strongly encourages
overeating. In America, "more is better", especially
if it sounds like a better "deal".
Average portion sizes at
fast food restaurants have increased two to five
times in 50 years! Remember when we used to buy
bottled cokes in 6 1/2 oz bottles? Now a 32 oz "big
gulp" is one of the smaller choices! I saw
my first "all you can eat" buffet in the early 70's.
Today few restaurants don't offer that option.
A whopper, with more fat
than many of us should have in an entire day, isn't
enough anymore...not when you can get a double
or triple whopper for just "a little bit
more"! A quarter pounder is now the small boy
on the menu at Hardees.
If there's one thing
100% certain to sabotage your weight control plans
more than eating unhealthy food, its eating a
lot of unhealthy food. And of course even
healthy food becomes unhealthy if you eat too much
of it!
Perhaps our
parents/grandparents started us off in the wrong
direction years ago with the admonition to "eat
everything on your plate, because 'children are
starving in China'". But that was "small potatoes"
(pun intended!) compared to the mega-gulp/super-size
mentality we've been drawn (with not too much
resistance...) into today.
Want the most calories,
fat, sodium, cholesterol....heart disease, stroke,
diabetes...for the money? Then go right along!
Later one you can ponder
on what a "great deal" you got!
My prayers that your
meals, as your life, are filled with enjoyment...not
just filled to the max!
4-24-08
All I need is
the Air that I Breathe! (Second hand smoke)
or,
"yes, I do mind.."
and if you care at all about YOUR health, you should!
You're exercising, you eat better, you drink moderately or not
at all, and you don't smoke. But you don't want to be rude or
anti-social, you want to "fit in", or you just don't want to be
known as a trouble maker. So you be a brave and considerate and
kind, accepting soul and you tolerate "second hand smoke" in
your work, school, social, or recreational environment.
We'll, you're in good company! Or at least, a large
company!
Second hand, or "passive" smoke, called ETS (environmental
tobacco smoke) by the Environmental Protection Agency, is
categorized as a Class I carcinogen, same as asbestos. It
contains 250 toxic chemicals and 50 known carcinogens, including
formaldehyde, benzene, ammonia, vinyl chloride, arsenic, and
hydrogen cyanide. It increases the risk of the exposed
non-smoker to coronary heart disease by 25-30%. It increases
the risk of exposed infants to SIDS, and children of all ages to
acute respiratory infections, ear problems, and severe asthma.
It makes blood platelets sticky, damages blood vessels,
decreases coronary blood flow, and elevates heart attack risk.
It kills 3,000 non smokers each year through
lung cancer, and another 62,000 to 65,000
through heart disease.
Are you avoiding it by choosing the non-smoking section and
avoiding obviously smoky environments? Probably not: A recently
issued report from the Surgeon General reported that cotinine, a
chemical indicator of ETS in the body, found in urine, saliva,
and blood, is present in 43% of all
non-smokers. It is estimated that 126 million
Americans are exposed to ETS in their homes, vehicles,
workplace, and public places each year.
Oh, yes, the Surgeon General's conclusion: "There is no
safe level of exposure; smoke-free environments
are the only way to prevent exposure."
"Good luck with that"...as they say!
My wishes and prayers for a weekend full of sunshine and
fresh air, and a lifetime of health!
(PS, if you are particularly interested in this topic, I have
60+ handy references with these and other amazing, and
disturbing, facts..)lternately title
4-8-08
Want to keep
your TEETH?
Greetings on a gorgeous late Tuesday afternoon...(or sometime later
with some other weather... :-)
Haven't
given much "lip service" to teeth :-) , but had some work done
lately, then ran across some eye-opening data (straight from Centers
for Disease Control in Atlanta, check it and other exciting health
news out!), so here it is:
How to
keep your teeth:
1. Yes,
spring and well water taste undeniable better, but one of the
greatest positive impacts on our dental health, and, in fact,
considered one of the greatest national health advances of the
twentieth century, was the fluoridation of water. So ENJOY it from
the tap, in good conscience!
2. Yes
brushing helps, but if you had to choose, flossing is actually more
important. The little pieces of gunk that hang around are the major
decay villains, not the dull color...
3. Yes
people with regular check-ups keep their teeth longer.
4. But
(and here's the new one on me...), good old across-the-board health
health opponent SMOKING is the possibly the greatest enemy your
bright pearly whites have!
Consider:
31% of
all 50 year olds who smoke regularly have maintained their natural
teeth at age 50
33% who
"smoke some days"
47% of
all who quit
and 59%
who have never smoked! Fascinating, but there's more:
At age
65, 41% of all daily smokers have lost all their teeth. As opposed
to 20% of non smokers.
70% of
all periodontal disease is a direct result of smoking.
And
some curious related factoids, I provide at risk of encouraging more
of those derogatory regional put-down jokes:
Kentucky (28%) and West Virginia (27%) have the highest smoking
rates in the country.
Kentucky (42%) and West Virginia (40%) have the highest rate of 50
year olds (and above) who have NONE of their natural teeth. (They
are also the ONLY states with a rate above 40%).
48% of
all West Virginian's over 65 have lost all their teeth. This again
leads the nation. (Only Kentucky is close.)
What do
we make of these incredible coincidences?
If you
are a smoker and can't seem to quit, at the very least brush, floss,
see a dentist regularly, and upgrade your dental insurance...
In Good
Health,
3-27-08
The best
friend your heart ever MET
Those
of you who either: a.spend some time on some fairly high tech
exercise equipment, or b. have taken a good Wellness or Personal
Health class lately, and/or c. consider reading through exercise
physiology "recreational reading" may have come across, if not
become familiar with the term "MET". (not the baseball team or the
opera...)
short
for, and the standard abbreviation for, "METabolic equivalent".
or, the
amount of energy that it takes you to do nothing but stay alive! (a
good plan, and my hearty recommendation!).
Quite
useful, when you know how to use it. Any aerobic exercise, at any
specific intensity level (e.g., any speed/grade combination on the
treadmill, any pace of walking or running, any combination of
resistance and pedaling speed on the exercise bike, a step aerobics
class using a specific step height at a specific cadence...) has a
specific energy requirement (amount of oxygen consumed per minute,
which equates to a specific number of calories burned per minute),
and thus a specific MET designation or rating.
Use it
as a "common denominator" for exercise: if you normally treadmill
at, say, 8 METS (and by the way if you do your are quite fit
already!), you can play with any speed/grade combination that is
comfortable to maintain the same workout level, or try one of those
cool elliptical machines (most now read METS). Or use a chart
(available at numerous on-line sources; zap me a request and I'll
share one with you!) to determine average MET levels of about any
exercise you can mention. (And some you wouldn't...)
As an
example, walking on a flat surface at a 20 minute per mile pace
requires 3 .3 METS. A 15 minute per mile pace about 4 METS.
"Moderate" racquetball 9 METS. "Light" SCUBA diving 4 METS.
"Heavy" cross country skiing 13 METS.
Now the
"punch line": increase your MET capacity just ONE little MET, and
you decrease your heart attack risk by 20%! Two METS, and it
decreases 30-40%. (No, you can't ever get it to ZERO, but that was
a good thought!)
Plus,
the higher your MET capacity, the higher MET level you can exercise
at comfortably, so, at the same effort level and in the same time,
the more calories you can burn per minute. Per hour. Per week.....
Pretty
cool, no?
(For a
more technical and probably less...if at all...useful explanation,
come by the office...)
Or just
keep it in mind as you play with your exercise routines!
With my
blessings!
3-18-08
Running Away
from Diabetes and Heart Disease: Steady Does It!
Beautiful day in "The Valley", go take a walk... a steady,
comfortable pace, and feel good about it!
It is no secret (at least from
my regular readers) that exercise is your best defense against the
development of our “new epidemics” of obesity and the closely
related adult-onset diabetes.
But does it matter just how we
go about that exercise?
“Somewhat” to “quite a bit”,
actually!
In a recently published
article (Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, official
journal of the American College of Sports Medicine…March 2008 if
you’re a “technical reader”….), the researchers found that among
their subjects (inactive, overweight men), those walking a steady 30
minutes each session improved their insulin sensitivity and
increased their use of fats as an energy source much more than those
who completed the exact same amount of exercise with “interval
training” (6 five minute sessions) at a higher intensity.
Our current “official”
recommendation for minimum exercise (straight from the
Surgeon General, reflecting data from the National Institute of
Health, and endorsed by the ACSM), is to “accumulate 30
minutes of exercise most days of the week.) This based on our
knowledge that: 1. there is a big difference in mortality and
morbidity rates (as in, who dies and who gets sick a lot…) between
that level and nothing, and, 2. It’s hard to get a lot of people to
do a lot more; this is considered a reasonable goal for the busiest
or most unfit individual.
But this current study is
consistent with suggestions from previous observations and published
data, and a quite logical extension of what we do know: the longer
one gets into an exercise session, at a moderate level, the more one
begins to use fat, versus carbohydrates (sugars) as an energy
source. And we know that better fat utilization is correlated with
better insulin sensitivity (less insulin resistance), which results
in better blood sugar control and a reduction in the risk of
development of type II diabetes…along with better control once/if it
is developed.
So, while breaking down your
exercise into a number of shorter sessions will certainly improve
your fitness and overall health, and decrease your rate of (just
about any) disease and premature death (from just about any cause),
cranking out your 30 minutes at once will help you more with weight
control (burning as opposed to storing the fats) and both avoidance
of (type II, “adult onset”), and coping with (both types) diabetes.
Plus you will have a nice half
hour break to “lose yourself” in fresh air, scenery, reflection on
technical matters such as this…, prayer… or just an escape from
annoying jobs. Or people!
Oh, one more point: for those
insistent on dashing and gasping through your session, “have at it”
if you like, but the “ideal intensity” for the fat-utilization was
estimated to be around 65% of your maximum. Essentially a brisk walk
or, dependent on your fitness level, a slow jog. Those in the study
doing intervals at 95% maximum (essentially, a race…) improved
fitness but not fat-utilization or insulin sensitivity (they’ll be
more useful on a relay team but you’ll probably outlive them!). Of
course few (living) people could maintain 95% intensity for 30
minutes anyway…
So there you have it, or
can have it: a comfortable, enjoyable session, and terrific
health and fitness benefits!
My blessings for a
comfortable, enjoyable, terrific day and end of the week,
and a blessed
3-13-08
Doing Nothing
IS doing SOMETHING WRONG: cost of inactivity
I remember an old adage used
by (actually, several) former supervisors to comfort me after what I
felt like was a pretty costly, or at least pretty stupid, mistake:
“It’s no big deal, just remember, the only people who do
nothing wrong are the people who do nothing!”
Whether or not we can blame
all our mistakes on our incredibly industrious nature, and consider
them inevitable (and minor) consequences of all our vast and
wonderful accomplishments (that’s my choice, how about you???), it
is a comforting thought, no?
But in the case of physical
activity, it is far from the truth.
Doing nothing is the
mistake, and it’s a big, and often, fatal one.
And the consequences come a
lot sooner than you would think.
In an examination of large
population studies, involving over 13,000 subjects, it was
shown that just 6 months of inactivity produced significant changes in
all these areas, resulting in increased risk and incidences
of chronic diseases and conditions including diabetes, heart
disease, cancer, and other big nasties: higher body weight, waist
circumference, waist-hip ration, visceral fat, total abdominal fat,
LDL particle number, small LDL number, and total LDL (these are the
“bad” cholesterol guys..), and decreases in insulin
sensitivity and fitness level.
Just six months!
So, bad news, and more bad
news.
The good news? Most if not
all of these are countered by regular exercise. The
recommendation? Start with 30 minutes, “most days”, but adapt the
exercise to maintain your current (or appropriate) weight. (More is
generally better, but at some point you may have to also incorporate
the “push-away” exercise, as in “push away from the dining table..”)
30 minutes. Something. Most days.
Truly “no big deal”!
Unless, of course, you do
“do nothing”!
My prayer is that you don’t
make that particular mistake!
2-15-08
Two plus two
equals five: unequal effects of increasing or decreasing exercise levels
on body weight
Most of us go through periods where
we significantly increase, or (unfortunately, more often)
decrease, our amount of exercise. And we probably notice an
accompanying decrease, or (unfortunately, more often) increase
in our body weight. And we may further notice that, as time
moves on, the little needle on the scales has an easier time
going up than coming back down.
Well, feel "cheated" if it helps
you, but don't feel alone!
Reason would suggest, and science
seem to support, that the decrease in exercise
quantity enough to produce a gain of X pounds over Y period of
time would be off-set by the same amount of increase
over the same amount of time.
Real
life, however, is not necessarily subject to our "reasonable"
predictions based on our current "understandings" of "observed
phenonema". (A workable definition of "science" by the way..")
Recently published longitudinal studies of regular exercisers
provided one more interesting example: When dietary intake was
controlled (or accounted for), the predicted (we do know
what amount of what intensity of exercise burns what amount of
calories) weight loss from increases in exercise was somewhat
delayed (ye ole "set-point theory", perhaps?), while the predicted
gain from an equivalent decrease in exercise took effect almost
immediately (how how "fair" is that??!) Futher, and a tad more
discouraging, was the finding that in nearly all cases the gain was
slighlty greater than the loss from identical sized changes in
exercise quantity.
A
further finding with perhaps even more implications: the same
quantitative change in exercise had a more pronounced effect at the
lower levels. In other words, decreasing your exercise from say 2
hours per week to nothing will set back your weight control efforts
more than a decrease from 6 hours a week to 4.
Conclusions? Well, unless you are the rare individual who has found
their complaining actually does somehow change reality (for
the better, anyway..), you may find it more beneficial to
work with things the way they are rather than the way you
(and in this case, perhaps all of us), think they
should be.
Exercise regularly, and stick with it!
And if
(when?) you do experience periods where you must (always,
of course, unavoidable circumstances coming through no
fault of your own...) decrease your exercise output,
try decreasing your dietary intake as well. And when you
get back on track (this time due, of course, soley to your own
merits, against all odds!!!), give yourself time to "recover"!
My
blessings for an emotionally restful, physically active weekend!
2-8-09
Sick and Tired
worrying about being Sick and Tired? (Exercise, Aging, and Immunity)
Welcome
to a bright sunny Friday (at least from where I sit)!
Getting
older we can't help. But we're in good company: it is estimated
that by 2020 one in five Americans will be 65 or older.
Which
could be good or bad: we can be looking happily at a lot of free
time and the vitality to use it...or more dreary and compromised
years than our "more fortunate" predecessors. We can contribute to
our families and to society, or be a burden to both.
We can
be sick or we can be well.
The
immune system does tend to lose its ability with the
passage of time. And it is affected at any stage of our lives by
chronic stress. This we know. The devastating effects we try to
avoid knowing, or at least facing. Or, more importantly, doing
anything about.
Animal
studies show us that the detrimental effects on the immune system of
physical and emotional stressors (no, I don't know exactly how they
aggravate those little laboratory rats ..) are greatly reduced by
exercise, and that the detrimental effects of aging on immunity are
likewise mediated.
Simple
examples are much quicker wound healing of the exercisers (whether
little and furry and four-legged or tall and hairless and
two-legged). More important are lower rates of almost any
communicable disease. We can quantify specific chemical changes.
That means nothing to most of us. We can feel and see and live the
difference. That means a lot to all of us.
We've also found that older individuals are subject to a lot of
physical (things will eventually break down) and emotional
stressors. Adjusting to retirement, financial concerns, loss of
a sense of productivity to name just a few. So, high levels of
stress, less resistance to it; exposure to communicable
diseases, less ability to fend them off. Add that to the
increased prevalence of all those chronic diseases we talk about
so much (heart disease, diabetes, and such).
And the picture looks less bright than the weather outside.
Unless, of course, we choose to be in a different picture.
The passage of time I can't stop. Wouldn't want to, anyway...a
lot of really terrific things come my way. But growing
old..physically and emotionally, and sick, well, I
believe I'll see if I can't just pass a lot of that part by.
(On a bike, on foot, in a pool...whatever..)
What about you!
My blessings for a bright, sunny day...outside your home, and
inside you!
2-1-08
Salt of the
Earth and Fat of the Land: Hypertension Truths
I could entitle this "same old same
old, and then some", but I felt really clever with my little
word plays, so...
High blood pressure, someone elses
problem? Hardly, 1/3 of all Americans are now so afflicted. As
with diabetes, this chronic, lifestyle disease parallels
("follows" would be more precise) our eating and exercise
patterns.
The "usual suspects": a diet low in
fruits and vegetables and high in sodium, along with obesity and
lack of exercise.
Our usual approach? Ignore the
culprits and throw some expensive "magic pills" at the problem.
It's a lot easier.
Problem is, it doesn't work so
good. Proof? We have been throwing magic pills at it for 50
years. The simpliest and cheapest, 1957 variety diuretics, are
still about as effective, and much more cost effective, than any
other solution.
With the exception of lifestyle
changes: imrpoved eating and exercise and resultant weight
management.
Researchers and spokespersons with
the AMA (American Medical Association) and Johns Hopkins, in
reviewing the "results" of 60 plus of these fabulous "magic
pills" have reached that conclusion.
WOW, "who would've 'thunk it'"?
Why? Well, for one thing,
approximately 1/3 of all Americans and over 1/2 of those with
high blood pressure are especially "salt sensitive": the more
sodium, the higher the blood pressure. Virtually everyone's
blood pressure is affected...in either direction...by weight
changes. Fruits and vegetables help in many known (high fiber,
general health improvement, weight control) and highly
suspected/assumed (anti-oxidants) ways. And, face it, like the
old Coke commercial, "things go better with exercise"!
So quit looking for the "magic
bullet"...we already have it! It just doesn't come in capsule
form!
My blessings for a safe, cozy end of
the week (I'm looking outside at a sheet of ice) and a relaxing
weekend!
1-26-07
Go work out or
Go Crazy! (Exercise and Dementia)
Feel
like you're "losing your mind"? Well, we know the best way to at
least slow the rate of your loss!
A
review of longitudinal studies following between several hundred up
to several thousand (5925, specifically) subjects showed a strong
inverse relationship between exercise and cognitive decline, and
between cardiovascular fitness level and cognitive decline, in
every case. The researchers found also that the major
cardiovascular risk factors (blood pressure, cardiovascular disease,
hypertension, and obesity) were independently and positively related
to cognitive decline. And of course all these in turn were strongly
and negatively correlated with exercised and fitness level.
As far
as mechanisms, "the usual suspects" were again "indicted": exercise
promotes better blood flow to the brain (and everything else that
gets blood, which is to say everything else), better stress coping
and a generally better state of mind. In addition, they found
evidence of reduced levels of inflammatory markers (already accepted
to be related to cognitive as well as physical decline) and
suspected enhanced neuronal function as well (which has been shown
in animal studies and may actually include formation of new blood
vessels and neurons!)
So we
must now accept that it's not the crazy "gym rats", the "party
poopers" opting for an after work walk rather than an after work
drink, the nuts jogging before dawn rather than hitting the snooze
alarm another 4 times, or even the pain-recognition-challenged
bikers out in the minus something wind chill that are "losing their
minds".
It's
the rest of us!!!
My
blessings for a physical and thoughtful weekend!
1-10-08
Some is best,
more is a bit better!
While
we do have clear evidence, and I have constantly emphasized, that
the greatest gains in health status, life expectancy,
you-name-the-disease risk, life satisfaction, you-name-the-benefit,
come when we go from sedentary to "moderately active" (30 minutes,
consecutive or accumulated, of SOMETHING involving motion, on most
days), for those with greater ambition, higher pain tolerance,
and/or more time to devote, a bit more WILL make you, well, a bit
better!
We know
that sedentary versus active individuals have about twice the "all
cause mortality" rate.
But
"high fit" individuals reduce their risk another 20% or so from
"moderately fit" (the 30 minute of something folks...), and the
"highest fit" (bona-fide athletes, 5-10 mile at a time joggers),
decrease their risk another 5%.
And of
course doing a bit more has other benefits, such as an aid in weight
control, great for stress relief, can be a great social activity,
and you'll feel better and more alert...more of the time!
My
blessings for a fun, stress free, "feel good" weekend!
1-5-08
Fresh Starts,
and Other Fallacies (or, New Year's Resolutions and Lou Holtz)
Happy
New Year all!
Gotten
started on your "New Year's Resolution" yet? Your "fresh start"? In
golf it's called a "mulligan". In tennis your second serve. In
football a penalty may give you a replay after you fumbled or got
sacked.
In
"real life", however, with few exceptions, everything actually
counts!
Sometimes, you can repair some of the damage...to some extent. If
your first heart attack didn't KILL you, you may have a chance to
adapt to running fairly efficiently on one less cylinder (no, the
dead tissue does NOT come back to life, and damaged artery walls
remain highly susceptible to clogging and clotting). If you treated
someone unfairly or unkindly, be assured an unforced, sincere
apology will ALWAYS help. But damage has been done, and scars
remain. To blood vessels, to heart tissue, to lungs, to people, to
relationships.
Why not
just avoid the damage in the first place? Not always possible?
Acknowledged, but do a brief inventory on how many times it really
WASN'T!
If you
just did the right thing in the first place!
I
attended a high level corporate sponsored seminar on success once.
Speaker was Lou Holtz, one of our most successful football coaches
ever, now one of the most interesting (and amusing) sports
analysts.
Expected some deep and complex secrets of his extraordinary
success.
At the
very least, the key to maintenance of the exceptional energy levels
of an apparent workaholic.
What I
heard was the simplest, and most general, of messages. Repeated and
illustrated in his somewhat off-beat way, but all he really said
was:
1. Do
the right thing.
2. Do
the best you can.
3.
Treat other people the way you want to be treated.
Simple,
but profound. Totally familiar, no? (Although I trust he'll be not
sued for plagiarism by Moses or the New Testament writers :-)
Any
health educator can tell you one of the primary causes of stress,
and in fact most of what we blame on "bad luck", is the result of
doing what you really know is NOT the right thing. Anyone who
manages people can point to inevitable failure of those who give
less than 100 percent. And everyone wishes the "golden rule" is
applied to THEM...whether they recognize that THEY should be
accountable in applying it to OTHERS, or not.
Keeping
this in mind also can simplify your New Year's resolution, while
increasing it's value ten-fold:
Rather
than "be a thinner person", "be a more fit person", "be a more
well-read person", "be a wealthier person", "be a smarter person",
you can just make it a priority to be a better person!
That's
my plan, anyway, and I hope any efforts you put in that direction
are equally blessed!
Have a
best ever year in 2008...all the way around!
12-6-07
No your lungs
wont' freeze, BUT... (frostbite and other bad things!)
Hi and
welcome to WINTER! egad!
Had
another topic in mind but somehow on my bike ride to work, during
which the temperature peaked at about 22 degrees, this topic
occurred...
I had
earlier addressed the frozen lungs issue (as a review, no they
won't...)
BUT
your nose and toes and fingers just may!
Assuming you aren't out long enough to develop a fully grown case of
hypothermia, your greatest danger is frostbite. And ANY exposed skin
is highly susceptible. And unexposed skin as well if you are out a
bit longer.
Further, this can happen in minutes. Simply put, the fluid in the
tissues freezes. Resulting in temporary to permanent damage and
discoloration, all the way to amputation (think of those National
Geographic specials with the Arctic explorers).
Prevention? Mittens are by far the best for your hands, as the
fingers help warm each other. Wool socks for the feet, but not so
thick it restricts circulation. Remember your strongest ally
against the cold is your own wonderfully adaptive blood supply
mechanism, don't mess with it!
And
cover the rest of you too...if you allow body heat to dissipate
through, say, an uncovered head, bare legs, or a barely covered
torso, your body then has to compensate by further restricting the
WARM BLOOD flow to your little fingers and toes and nose so it can
direct more to your internal organs..so you can stay alive, in spite
of your folly. At the expense of some really cold, and maybe
frostbitten digits.
Keep
also in mind the body heat you'll build up; if exercising fairly
vigorously as opposed to say walking you'll of course wear less, and
use layers (and synthetics that wick sweat away), BUT you'll still
want to protect the skin, ESPECIALLY fingers, toes, and face.
So
here's my wish for some invigorating but misery, pain, and damage
free outdoor activity this winter!
11-20-07
Surviving
Holiday Eating: Look Down but Look Ahead
To all
of US eagerly awaiting the Thanksgiving day "food-fest":
Herein
I offer my annual, "surviving the Holiday eating" tips!
First,
as a scary reminder: the average American (and we ARE the experts at
weight gain, remember!), gains FIVE (5) to SEVEN (7) pounds between
Thanksgiving and New Year's! (Don't bother to ask me what percentage
of that is muscle...)
Another
curious "factoid": the AVERAGE American puts down almost FIVE
THOUSAND (5,000) calories at the single Thanksgiving dinner! (3,500
extra calories equals one extra pound...of fat...thus you have
probably added a full pound at one sitting, in addition to your
total energy needs for the entire day...)
If we
then proceeded to run a marathon (or two...) we could balance this
out. But more commonly...more TRADITIONALLY, we retire to watch the
'Skins take another embarrassing drubbing at the hands of the
central Texas show-boaters. While snacking on leftovers and sweets.
To work up an appetite. For more leftovers, in a few hours! (This
is if you don't have the obligatory 2nd or even 3rd Thanksgiving
meal, as there are so many kin to enjoy and/or please and/or
pacify!)
And
somewhere in there we get sleepy and probably nap. Is it the
magical tryptophan in the turkey, the "usual suspect"? Not really.
This chemical does tend to stimulate relaxation and even prompt the
release of our "feel good", "emotional stability" serotonin. (the
main ingredient, by the way and not coincidentally, in Paxil and
most anti-depressants...)
No,
that sleepiness is really more about just the body turning down
other processes to focus more exclusively on turning all those extra
calories into nice little chunks of body fat! Meanwhile, the chore
of digesting so MUCH at one time does in fact stress many of your
body systems unduly: as an example, your risk of a heart attack,
whatever it may be, is temporarily and significantly increased after
such a food-fest..
Then
again, no one gains five to seven pounds at one Thanksgiving and one
Christmas meal, even with one calorie laden (alcohol has 7 calories
per gram, right there beneath pure fat's 9...) New Year's
celebration thrown in. But we seem to adopt the "oh well, I've
blown it anyway, so I'll just forget any restraint until my New
Year's resolution) attitude.
Therefore, my specific plan to help you enjoy the holiday feasts and
festivities without paying so dearly later on:
"Look
down, but look ahead":
Look
down at the meal. Admire it. Savor it! Eat it slowly!
Satisfaction comes from the experience, not the pure mass taken in.
Look
ahead: How will those extra bites, extra drinks, affect you
right after the meal while you groan and moan and swear off eating
forever? Or the first of the year when you have 5-7 pounds to lose,
rather than 1 or two. Or another few months later when you feel
uncomfortable in your clothes? Several more months later when you
need new clothes (and not because you wore anything out?) Years
later when your doctor diagnoses bona-find diabetes or heart
disease???
My
memory being, in a beloved phrase of my grandma, "about an inch
long", I always look for little helps to remind me of such things,
so herein is my submission for the (near) perfect acronym:
What
activity relies MOST on the simple ability to look ahead?
Chess! CHESS. C.H.E.S.S....
Christmas Holiday Eating
Survival Strategy!
(It'll
work equally well for Thanksgiving, or, I suspect, Hanukah/Chanukah,
or any other holiday for which over-eating may be a
federally-mandated requirement, but I've yet to make a legitimate or
even readily pronounceable word from HCESS, RCESS, KCESS, etc...so
use it more generically if it helps)
So
accept my blessings for a wonder Thanksgiving holiday, as you LOOK
AHEAD to a great extended Holiday season!
11-8-07
Exercise, Weight
Control, and Diabetes: A little goes a LONG way!
11-9-07
Fit-Tips: Exercise and Diabetes
prevention: A little goes a long way!
We've known for some time that exercise
and weight control are critical to prevention of Type II
("adult onset") diabetes, and treatment of both Type I
and Type II. In point of fact, the dramatic increase in Type
II (essentially doubling in last decade; now
95% of all cases when it once was 5%...) almost exactly parallels
the rise in obesity (now almost one in 3 adults) and
overweight/obesity (two-thirds of all Americans). And that exercise
is the most critical factor in prevention of weight gain. And
that exercise also directly impacts diabetes development through
several mechanisms.
Now several recently conducted and other recently
reviewed large scale studies, published in ACSM's Exerise and Sports
Science Reviews, provides more specifics and points dramatically to
appropriate interventions !
Which are simpler than you might
think!
Firstly, a moderate exercise and
reasonable eating program was shown to reduce diabetes over twice as
effectively as the current "state of the art" medication
specifically for that purpose, Metformin. (58% versus 31% reduction
in new cases). This also indicated the importance of even modest
weight losses, as the "lifestyle" group lost only an average of
about 6 pounds over two years!
Other studies actually isolated the
effects of the exercise alone, exclusive of dietary changes, and
found over 70% less risk of diabetes among the exercisers!
In point of fact, all studies reviewed,
involving a low of hundreds and a high of thousands of subjects,
showed diabetes rates reduced by around 50% or more for the
exercisers. This was invariably accompanied by unintentional, modest
weight losses.
Conversely, a "control group" of middle
aged men, over 6 months of just continuing to be inactive and eat as
before, actually gained an average of 1% body weight (doesn't sound
like much? do the math over a few years..), and showed significant
worsening of nearly all the known "risk factors" for diabetes: body
weight, waist circumference, visceral fat, abdominal fat, fasting
insulin, insulin sensitivity, fitness level, LDL number and size.
(Keep in mind this "control" group is
simply the average, "apparently healthy" American...YOU, perhaps?)
I use quotes for "control" because control groups are not supposed
to CHANGE...but in this case we learned as much from THEM as
the treatment group!
So what exactly is the "message to take
home" (or maybe, to the gym?!!)
An overview of all these studies shows
that, as you might reason before any analysis, to prevent becoming
the latest member of a huge and disastrous epidemic, you need to
simply exercise enought to prevent weight gain. Or,
to keep your risk from increasing, enough to prevent
further weight gain. Which
tended to be around the equivalent of 8 miles of walking per
week for most subjects. About 2 total hours
of brisk exercise of some type. In essense, just about our current
recommendations of "30 minutes of something most days of the week".
More for some, less for some. Watch the scale. CONTROL your
eating. But mainly, get your body moving!
By the
way, there are 168 hours in a week. Two hours is just over
1% of your time. If you find a more
"cost-effective" use of your time, please let us all know!!!
My blessings for a healthy,
disease-free weekend.
Year. And LIFE!
10-18-07
"Salt of the
Earth"?
Salt...spoken of highly in the Bible. Used in many
analogies, usually positive.
Before
refrigeration, an absolute necessity as a preservative. Still does
the job quite well, still one of our TOP preservatives.
Also,
and most relevant to this little message, great to spice up foods.
Since
it's such good stuff, why do all the nutritionists, Heart
Association folks, fitness folks (oops) and others make such a fuss?
Simple:
we just go way overboard!
Most
foods in their natural form have NO salt. So adding it made sense.
Most
processed foods today have plenty. Read the ingredients list and
nutritional breakdown ("sodium") on the labels of most any canned
vegetable, most any frozen entree, most any cracker or chip. It's
already "filled to the brim".
Then,
of course, we just "pour it on"!
I've
often been amused watching this phenomena at fast food restaurants:
The
french fry guy throws another batch from the deep fryer to the hot
surface, and dumps enough salt to, I'm sure, kill about 200 slugs,
or totally BURY half that many.
The
patron takes his order, sits down, and, without tasting them, grabs
the shaker on the table to "finish the job". I keep thinking there
must be some limit to how much salt can even stay ON the fries, but
I suppose the GREASE keeps it there.
And so
it goes.
Some
folks can handle it better than others, a little bloating here and
there the only apparent result.
Others,
as much as 30% of the population, are moderately to highly "salt
sensitive".
As the
salt intake increases, so does the fluid build-up, blood volume
rises dramatically, pressure in the vessels increases. Result:
kidney problems, maybe kidney disease. High blood pressure, maybe
stroke, maybe heart attack. Not good things.
American Heart Association AND American Dietetic Association agree
about 2400 mg (2.4 grams) is plenty.
That
goes a long way as a sprinkle here and there on an otherwise
"innocent" food, say a nice ripe tomatoes.
On the
other hand, eat one dill pickle and you're almost there.
Or a
couple order of fries, and you get the bonus of all the grease! So
the extra you DUMP on will stick!
Couple
practical suggestions:
1. Get
rid of the salt shaker at your table. After the initial shock,
you'll actually start tasting the FOOD again!
2. Use
more pepper, and other spices. Gives variety. A few we even suspect
of having anti-oxidants. Garlic may decrease coronary risk. At
minimum, they won't HURT you.
My
blessings for a spicy, but HEALTHY, happy weekend!
0-11-07
Sugar: How Sweet
it ISN'T!
Got
some thanks for (more or less) defending some favorite vices last
few times, but, alas, today I can offer only a double edged sword.
With one edge perhaps a bit sharper than the other...
Sugar...whether refined, brown, powdered, under some other name
(suspect anything on the label ending in "ose")...your body doesn't
much care (even honey, by the way, works just about the same in your
system): A little here and there will, at worse, promote tooth
decay. A bit mixed in a beverage will indeed improve your
performance in an hour or more endurance event. But a heaping
helping with breakfast, whether as the primary component of the
waffle syrup, the mound on your breakfast cereal (or in the case of
most kids cereals, the even BIGGER mound within), will have not so
tasty consequences:
High
consumption of simple sugars triggers a higher production of
insulin, which helps you store more of those calories in the form of
FAT. Your body then burns less fat as fuel, and you produce more
triglycerides (another form of fats that is suspect in clogging
arteries...). Your appetite actually INCREASES. Your energy level
may surge initially, but later in the morning will dip below its
normal level (your insulin working extra hard to bring down the
blood sugar. so you can LIVE!). These are the mechanisms, published
studies confirm that subjects consuming more breakfast sugar, versus
complex carbohydrates, will indeed eat significantly more for lunch.
And generally, voluntarily, exert less energy between breakfast and
lunch.
There
you have it. "By any other name it TASTES as sweet". But it doesn't
necessarily treat you that way!
Enjoy
your breakfasts AND the rest of your weekend!
With my
blessings!
10-4-07
Environmental AND
Physical Health
Probably you can guess MY personal suggestion for Environmental
Awareness Week. Month. Year. Forever:
Keeping
in mind that private auto travel is one of our WORSE polluters, one
of our GREATEST users of "fossil fuels", and clearly our LEAST
efficient form of travel...
Keeping
in mind that INACTIVITY is one of our GREATEST health risks (and I
can give you many stats that support it as THE GREATEST cause of
premature death and disease among Americans)..
Why not
"kill all three birds with one stone"...
The one
stone that will keep YOU alive?
BIKE to
work, if at all possible. If not, car pool..leaving early enough for
you and your buddies to enjoy each other's company on a pre-work day
brisk walk!
My
blessings for a environmentally and HEALTH friendly end of the week
and weekend,
9-278-07
In defense of
Eggs and Peanut Butter
To all
my health-seeking friends, a happy end of (hopefully) another good
week, happy start to (hopefully) another great weekend!
Last
week we defended coffee. Well, more or less...
This
week we defend another two of my all-time favorites: The HIGH
CHOLESTEROL bad guy eggs and the HIGH FAT bad guy peanut butter.
Eggs
first: Yes they are higher in cholesterol than many foods. However
most of us get many times the cholesterol in those juicy steaks,
hamburgers, hot dogs, and such as in the otherwise near perfect egg.
And it has been well demonstrated that saturated fats in the diet
have a much more profound effect on blood cholesterol than does
actual dietary cholesterol itself. In other words, the bacon, the
sausage, your NON-DAIRY creamer (full of coconut oil which is twice
as high in saturated fat as, say, LARD....) which you use to help
LOWER?? your cholesterol, and likely as not your healthy-looking
granola look-alike snacks are causing the real damage. Average egg,
213 mg cholesterol. A couple a week or so works just fine with an
overally healthy eating plan. Great protein source. And if you do
run borderline high cholesterol and this is a legitimate target for
further reduction, just use the whites...also high in protein, no
cholesterol, virtually no fat.
Peanut
butter? Great protein source. Plenty of fat but mostly
unsaturated, and NO trans fat. Also high in fiber. Admittedly high
in calories (140-170 calories for a two tablespoon dollop, which
will give you one fully grown sandwich) but quite filling.. just
don't sit down and eat the jar.
In most
instances, Mom was right. In this case, so are the kids!!!
Enjoy
your breakfasts and lunches this weekend, with my blessings!
9-19-07
Perking up with
Coffee?
A
plethora of studies have been conducted on coffee. As an athletic
performance aid. As a culprit in heart disease. Even as a
potential carcinogen. You name it.
No time
or space to even give you an extrememly general review of the
results. So here's what I believe, based on all
we KNOW:
If you
have no heart problems, no blood pressure problems, and are not
prone to anxiety, 1-3 cups a day almost (there's that "out
clause"..) certainly won't hurt, and may well help by increasing
your alertness, or calming you down. We suspect it has
anti-oxidant properties (we suspect that of a lot of foods, by the
way). And it may slightly increase your metabolism,
temporarily. (No, don't count on that for weight control, the amount
you'd need to make a difference in the scale would make a more more
significant difference in your heart and in the wrong direction...!)
It may help your performance in very long (over an hour)
endurance events. (or not...) And there is no evidence of a
cancer relationship.
And if
your emotional state requires it, whether due to physical or
psychological addiction, it's a far cry better than a lot of other
drugs...
But it
does tend to raise blood pressure, in some cases and for some
individuals by 10-20 points systolic and/or diastolic. It will
raise your heart rate and can irritate your cardiovascular
system and even precipitate abnormal beats. Can raise your anxiety
levels (and you drink it to calm you down...), can keep you
from sleeping, and can keep you running to the restroom. Which,
although generally only moderately annoying and maybe even funny,
can indicate a developing bladder and even kidney problem, related
to you abusing them both with chronic diuretic overdoses..
So
don't throw it out or swear it off right away, just keep it under
control. And make sure, based on your health status and reaction,
you know what that means.
To you!
In Good
Health and with my Blessings for a great end of the Week,
9-13-07
Metabolic
Syndrome be danged, just EXERCISE!
Aha,
now that I (hopefully) have your attention, I must back off that
bold statement.
But not
FAR off it!
"Metabolic Syndrome" describes a combination of ("either/or")
obesity and dyslipidemia: high cholesterol, low HDL ("good
cholesterol"), high triglycerides, and maybe a few other out of
whack metabolic markers which happen to be rather strong CARDIAC
RISK FACTORS.
It's
not real in the sense that its not a specific disease or condition,
but it IS real in the sense that it can hurt you. Badly.
For
example, in the overall population, those WITH "metabolic syndrom"
have over TWICE the risk of developing, and dying, from
Cardio-vascular disease. And a 30% increased risk of dying,
prematurely, period. (I.e., a 1.3 times normal "all cause mortality"
rate).
However
(and this is a really really BIG HOWEVER), the same statistical
analysis of the same mega-study showed that among the 'fit"
individuals, both cardiac risk and all cause mortality were
essentially the same between those WITH and those WITHOUT the
metabolic syndrome.
So if
you exercise, you shouldn't be concerned with your lipids and body
fat? Of course you should. All risk factors are real, and other
studies (and probably follow up analysees of this one) will clearly
indicate that even the most dedicated exerciser has much to gain,
and nothing to lose, from controlling those other factors. (i.e.,
'behaving!')
But it
DOES mean that, if you DON'T exercise, you SHOULD be concerned.
Period!
My
blessings for an active, healthy, disease-free year!
5-8-07
Summertime and
the Livin' is Easy... (keep active!)
Or
maybe not, but at the very least it offers balmy weather and, for
(hopefully!) many, if not most of us, vacation time, fun trips, and
at least a bit lighter workload.
Which
is a GOOD thing, no doubt, for your mental AND physical state.
So make
it even BETTER...keep up the exercise habit. Or maybe even TAKE IT
UP. If nothing else, the days are longer...!
The
problem with any change in routine is, well, just that...even if
it's a desired change it gets us out of a routine that serves us
well, such as a daily (or at least regular) pattern of exercise. And
probably eating. And maybe reading, and study, and such, but that's
for another day. (If not another author... :-)
Here's
something that may help you BRCC folks with adhering to, or
developing, your positive health habit: at (very...) long last, we
are indeed ready to open our little FITNESS CENTER for business.
YOUR business!
Starting with an open house: Friday, May 25, 11-1:00. Workout and
general health and exercise advice, assistance with any intimidating
looking machines, and, of course, free munchies!
In the
meantime, visit the fitness center link to my website (which you can
click on below). There are instructional video's for EVERY station,
as well as written info to help you get the most out of your
exercise time. And, of course, the Release form that you'll NEED to
download and sign and return to my box so you will not be
beaten with a wet carp and hung up by your heels for non-compliance.
(Not really, but it IS a requirement, for obvious reasons...!)
(For
you fitness friends afar, you'll at least be amused with yours truly
bopping about the machines..)
Hope to
see many of you Friday, the 25th... you can use the lower, back
entrance directly into the center (shortens your walk, we don't want
to OVERdo it the first day, do we???!)
In the
meantime, get excited about this great opportunity and enjoy God's
beautiful bright sunny day's we're suddenly blessed with!
PS:
Keep in mind that over the summer I won't have access to the Fit-Tip
channel on a regular basis...but I'll get in and zap you a reprimand
or encouragement "here and there"... So I haven't forgotten you, and
trust YOU won't forget to take care of yourselves!!!
4-24-07: Take a
little walk for your mind, body, and soul!
Greetings
to all my healthy-minded* friends!
( *no,
that's not really a requirement for receiving this, just your
indulgence!)
It's a
beautiful time, what a blessing is this recent weather.
And
also a stressful time...for we "academians" it means "crunch time"
with final exams, papers, projects to grade, grades to average,
final student "pleas" abounding, (they just realized they had things
due...weeks ago...and such..!?), grades to average, preliminary
plans for upcoming term(s).
And for
nearly all of us the trauma of the Tech tragedy. Closer to some of
us than others, but impacting nearly all of us.
You've
noticed (I hope!) you haven't received a Fit-Tip for a while; yes my
mind, and heart, has been in Blacksburg as well. (Between my
parents, siblings, children, and daughter-in-law we count around 13
Virginia Tech degrees; I had a brief teaching tenure there as
well..)
No,
putting this out of mind, or even on the backburner, is the last
thing I would recommend. In fact, I would request instead you keep
up your prayers, and any other tangible way you can think of to help
anyone more directly effected than yourself. For as long as you
can; for the families of victims this will never end.
But I
do suggest you remember to take a little exercise break...loosens up
the body, invigorates the mind, increases the alertness while
reducing the stress response, and we could all use a little uplift
from the "natural high" of those endorphins.
Enjoy
the weather as well, God's beautiful creation is always soothing for
the soul!
(Now
back to work? :-)
God
Bless,
4-4-07
More Good News:
Something is Good, Something More is Somewhat better!
Steven
Blair, past president of the American College of Sports Medicine and
one of the (in my opinion THE, and I've heard a number of his
presentations live!) top exercise physiologists in the country (if
not world), reported at a recent conference the findings of a 25
year follow up with over 2000 men (so rule out any
"coincidence" explanations):
Dividing the men into four groups based on level of fitness, he
found that, in comparison to the most fit quartile, the 2nd quartile
had a 1.6 times higher mortality rate at 25 years, the 3rd quartile
a 2.8 times higher rate, and the 4th, lowest fit, a 4.5 times
greater mortality rate! Scary stuff, but really GOOD news: of all
the cardiac and general (he looked at death rates from ANY cause, by
the way, not just heart disease...) risks, this is the one thing we
can do the most about! Cholesterol and blood pressure respond to
lifestyle changes but have a genetic component, as does diabetic
risk, and the Y chromosome effect (the "more male" you are, whether
a male or female, the worse off you are) is totally out of our
control.
But we
can ALL exercise, and the top 25% fitness level of a group like
this, or the population at large, is within everyone's grasp.
We just
need to start grasping!!!
My
blessings for a beautiful day, with at least SOME of it outside in
the sun and at least some of it involving "reaching and grasping"
for health!
3-28-07
Now the "Good"
News!
Other than this beautiful weather, I'd promised some GOOD news on
our National health status, to balance all my dark warnings, so here
it is:
Basically, the good news is that the bad news is not quite so bad as
it has been!
Life
Expectancy: it was 47 in 1900, its now 77.6. Most is attributed to
our control of infectious disease, and our decrease in infant
mortality (averaging all those 0's into the data bank really pulled
the average down). However, a significant part is a relatively
recent decline in deaths from coronary heart disease and stroke!
(Some of that, admittedly, due to us keeping victims barely alive
but really sick through medical technology, but a good bit is due
to actual prevention..i.e. lifestyle!)
Speaking of which, smoking use overall is down significantly...in
1965 over half of all men and 1/3 of all women smoked; those numbers
are now 1/4 and 1/5, respectively. Adults account for all of this
improvement, the teenagers continue to start at an alarming rate.
(Here's an interesting factoid: if you haven't started by the time
you are in your early 20's you almost certainly never will. If you
are over 30 and smoke there is a 90-95% chance that you wish you
didn't. Too bad we trap and condemn ourselves before we have
developed a useful brain....!)
Cancer
death rates finally began decreasing in the 1990's. Early
screening makes a difference, but lifestyle changes contribute in
large measure. Thanks and good work, folks like the Clean Air
Coalition (NIH, ACS, AHA, and others who care about human beings),
and congrats wellness-oriented humans, the beneficiaries! By the
way, Cancer is still our #2 killer (and heart disease still holds
1st), and American Cancer Society estimates that over 75% of all
cancer deaths are preventable, so too many pats on the back may be a
bit premature...
Diets
are better: fate intake averaged 40% total calories in the 60's, now
its about 33%.
We're
drinking less alcohol. About time! (Again, the young people,
especially students, have become the greatest problem...)
Blood
cholesterol levels are (finally!) dropping: in the 60's 1/3 of us
were in the clearly "high" level (over 240, that number is now under
20%.
We are,
however, fatter than ever (2/3 of all Americans overweight or
obese), the vast majority still don't exercise enough (which would,
as I've repeatedly emphasized, have a tremendous positive impact on
virtually every other health problem), smoking continues to
kill us at an alarming rate, and we have more stress-related
illnesses than ever.
What's
the message? Clearly, wellness efforts, on a corporate and
individual level, work. Just as clearly, we have a long way to go.
MY message? Please let's at least head in the right direction!
Here's
an idea for a step in that direction: God has blessed us with some
gorgeous weather, bless yourself with a little physical activity out
in it!
3-22-07
Tai Chi: "Try it,
you just MAY like it"!
An ancient
martial arts form highly regarded for centuries in the Eastern world,
and gaining popularity in "leaps and bounds" (or, rather, slow flowing
steps and arm movements) in the Western world, its regular adherents
will tout its myriad physical and psychological benefits. But are
they real, or just a "mystic-in-your-mind" old tradition and new fad?
How does it compare to, say, more traditional exercises and health
improvement regimens?
Well, these are
strong words coming from a "show me the hard data, forget the
'touchy-feely nonsense' exercise physiologist":
But, in short,
and in order, yes, and, quite well, thank you!
Until the last
few years, at least for it's practice in America, the "documentation" of
its "benefits" consisted of primarily anecdotal stories and testimonies
by those peculiar folks who's almost comically slow, apparently random,
movements on public green areas amused us "real fitness experts."
But suddenly
research published in exercise physiology journals began to focus on
this "alternative" exercise form. NOW I'm interested. And
controlled studies were consistently documenting statistically
significant improvements in such areas as strength, flexibility, balance
(minor surprises) as well as blood pressure and even cholesterol (major
surprises). NOW I'm SOLD. In fact, researchers in more than
one credible study showed greater improvements in balance with Tai Chi
than with specifically directed balance programs for older folks.
Stress levels and
stress coping also tend to improve, as do certain measures of quali
