Saturday, November 25, 2006
Stroll for health, boogie for fitness
"Walking is man's best medicine," wrote Hippocrates, the ancient Greek physician. It may be woman's best medicine, too. A new study shows that regular hour-long strolls -- which do little to improve cardiovascular fitness -- can nevertheless reduce a woman's heart disease risk by boosting her blood levels of high-density lipoproteins (HDLs), which help remove cholesterol from the body.
"We found that even low levels of activity are beneficial," says study leader John J. Duncan of The Cooper Institute for Aerobics Research in Dallas. "We're telling people if the shoe fits, start walking."
This is the first clinical study to show that exercise need not be vigorous to lower a person's risk of cardiovascular disease, Duncan and his coauthors write in the Dec. 18 JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION. Indeed, they say, the findings confirm epidemiologic evidence suggesting that HDL levels increase across a spectrum of exercise intensities.
To find out how a walker's pace affects cardiovascular health, the researchers recruited 59 healthy, sedentary, premenopausal women and divided them into four groups: aerobic walkers, who exercised at 86 percent of their maximal heart rate; brisk walkers, exercising at 67 percent; strollers, exercising at 56 percent; and a sedentary control group. The three walking groups traversed 4.8 kilometers per day, five days a week. Before and after the 24-week program, the researchers measured each woman's maximum oxygen consumption--an indicator of lung capacity and cardiovascular fitness -- and assayed her blood-lipoprotein levels.
Contours Express: succeed with the better idea in women's gyms!
Why should women use real weights? Angelina Morales used to ask that question. She enjoyed her workouts at a women's fitness center that used hydraulic equipment, but within two months she had "hit a wall" and was no longer progressing. Angelina was only able to move past her plateau when she joined Contours Express[R], whose 29-minute CardioFit[TM] circuit uses real weight-bearing equipment.
That's why Contours Express is the better idea in women's gyms. "We offer our members strength training machines with positive and negative resistance, unlike most other centers which only have hydraulic equipment," explains Bill Helton, president of Contours Express. "The focus for most women has shifted from simply wanting to lose weight to increased concern for overall health. Our workouts are specifically designed to address both goals, whether members are more experienced or just starting to work out."
Contours Express equipment is designed and sized especially for women and combines strength training with aerobic exercise for benefits that include fighting obesity, osteoporosis, arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, and depression. The Contours Express program includes personal trainers for motivation and support and a lifestyle-behavior modification program for weight loss.
LA Fitness seeks acquisitions as health club market consolidates
The health club operator LA Fitness revealed yesterday that it was planning a series of acquisitions in a bid to compete with the market leader, Fitness First, and other rivals. Fred Turok, the chief executive, said he believed the company was in the right shape to benefit from 'inevitable consolidation' in the fitness industry.
Mr Turok was unveiling LA Fitness's latest business strategy, following the company's delisting from the London Stock Exchange last month. The group was taken off the market in a pounds 90m deal with the private equity firm MidOcean Partners.
Although LA Fitness is one of the country's largest operators, with 68 health clubs across the UK, it is dwarfed by Fitness First, which has more than 400 clubs around the world. MidOcean aims to add to the company's portfolio by targeting both rival chains and small- time operators.
Just a third of the health clubs open for business around the country are owned by the major chains " including LA Fitness, Fitness First, Esporta, Cannons and Holmes Place " with most of the rest run by individual operators. 'There are certain to be casualties in a consolidating industry and the niche operators are going to find life increasingly difficult, especially the mom and pop individual outfits,' Mr Turok said. 'We are planning on LA Fitness being a vehicle for furthering this industry consolidation.'
Friday, November 24, 2006
Exercise as a Health-Promoting Activity Following Spinal Cord Injury
ABSTRACT
Spinal cord injury is a catastrophic event that immeasurably alters activity and health. Depending on the level and severity of injury, functional and homeostatic decline of many body systems can be anticipated in a large segment of the paralyzed population. The level of physical inactivity and deconditioning imposed by SCI profoundly contrasts the preinjury state in which most individuals are relatively young and physically active.
Involvement in sports, recreation, and therapeutic exercise is commonly restricted after SCI by loss of voluntary motor control, as well as autonomic dysfunction, altered fuel homeostasis, inefficient temperature regulation, and early-onset muscle fatigue. Participation in exercise activities also may require special adaptive equipment and, in some instances, the use of electrical current either with or without computerized control. Notwithstanding these limitations, considerable evidence supports the belief that recreational and therapeutic exercise improves the physical and emotional well-being of participants with SCI.
This article will examine multisystem decline and the need for exercise after SCI. It will further examine how exercise might be used as a tool to enhance health by slowing multisystem medical complications unique to those with SCI. As imprudent exercise recommendations may pose avoidable risks of incipient disability, orthopedic deterioration, or pain, the special risks of exercise misuse in those with SCI will be discussed.
Lean Plate Club; Nutrition and Health
Welcome to The Lean Plate Club, hosted by Washington Post health and nutrition writer Sally Squires . Share your tips on healthy recipes, meal plans, sugar alternatives and resisting overeating with other readers.
On Tuesdays at 1 p.m. ET, Sally, who has a master's degree in nutrition from Columbia University, leads a lively discussion for readers looking for new ways to eat smarter and move around more throughout the day. The Lean Plate Club is dedicated to healthy living -- whether you're trying to whittle your waistline or simply maintain it.
We want to hear your tips, strategies, meal plans, successes, setbacks and more. Of course Sally will be happy to answer questions and turn others over to the Club. None of this, however, is a substitute for medical advice.
Sign up for the free Lean Plate Club e-mail newsletter . The Lean Plate Club column appears weekly in the Washington Post Health section and is nationally syndicated by the Washington Post Writers Group .
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Getting in shape on a budget
Your commitment to lose weight doesn't have to slim down your wallet too. If you're hesitant to shell out the money for a gym membership, there are plenty of low-cost alternatives to help you get fit and stay within your budget. Health clubs and gyms offer a wide variety of equipment, but you can get the same results at home with a few low-cost exercise products. The Mayo Clinic suggests making modest investments in dumbbells, jump ropes and resistance bands, which will maximize your workout.
Used to strengthen your upper body, dumbbells are convenient because the small, hand-held weights come in different sizes. Jump ropes can give you a great cardiovascular workout; they are also lightweight and easy to travel with. Resistance bands can be used with an array of upper and lower body exercises that are a good strengthening tool for your body.
Another good investment are exercise videos. They can recreate the feel of a health club aerobics class in your own living room. Many are good for improving flexibility, strength and your heart. Choose a tape that matches your current fitness level so that you don't get discouraged by exercises that are too hard or too easy.
Cherish your weight-loss trigger
Many successful losers cite a single experience as their "trigger"--the final straw that made them drop extra pounds, says Michael Dansinger, M.D., a weight-loss researcher at Tufts-New England School of Medicine in Boston. Here, two Shape readers describe theirs.
* LISA JOHNSON, 38, of Eagle Lake, Minn., was at the hospital after her brother suffered a stroke. She and six siblings decided to go for a hike to clear their heads. "I couldn't keep up," Johnson recalls, and she knew her weight was the reason. She joined Weight Watchers and dropped an impressive 125 pounds.
* JEAN MUENSTER, 42, a Studio City, Calif., accountant, was on vacation in Alaska when she was turned down for both horseback and kayaking excursions because she was over the weight limit. Muenster lost 147 pounds by controlling her portions and working out.-K.D.
Have you experienced a weight-loss trigger? Write it down below.
Singles for bone health
The BAD NEWS is that osteoporosis afflicts more than 10 million Americans, and 80% are women. Every woman, particularly those with amenorrhea and/or a family history of osteoporosis, should be concerned about this disease. The GOOD NEWS is that exercise can help prevent the progression of the disease and to some degree even help rebuild bone mineral density.
The best form of exercise to combat osteoporosis appears to be weightlifting. The BEST NEWS is that two studies from researchers in Seattle and Japan may have the answer to enhance the effect of exercise on bone formation. As reported in the Journal of Applied Physiology and the Journal of Bone Mineral Research, animals that performed about 20 repetitions of a loading exercise (such as jumping) done without rest between reps had some enhanced bone formation compared to non-exercising animals. Even better, when each rep was followed by a 10-30-second rest period, bone mass was significantly greater than the non-rest group.
Scientists believe this effect may have to do with the constant loading and unloading of the bones. So if you would like to promote better bone health, try incorporating singles into your training routine once a week. To do this, find a weight that's challenging but allows you to perform 15-20 reps with a 10-20-second rest between each rep (rack the weight between each rep). Choose one exercise per muscle group--multijoint exercises are best because they load more bone tissue--and perform one extended set each.
Questions and answers about the new National Boards for fitness professionals
What is the National Board of Fitness Examiners (NBFE) and How Does It Work?
The NBFE was founded in 2003 as a non-profit organization for two principal purposes. First, the NBFE will address and define a series of prescribed "scopes of practice" for all fitness professionals. Second, the NBFE will determine the "standards of practice" for various fitness professionals, including floor instructors, group exercise instructors, general personal trainers, specialists in areas such as youth and senior fitness, and medical exercise specialists.
"Standards of practice" are a set of skills and a body of knowledge that a fitness professional is expected to master in order to meet the highest standards of the field. The first formal standards of practice to be issued by the NBFE will focus on personal fitness trainers. Based on these standards of practice, the NBFE will go on to generate standardized national examinations for personal fitness trainers in collaboration with a leading international testing organization starting in March or April 2005.
A "standardized" national exam is one that measures the same body of knowledge, skill and competence in the same way for all test-takers. Thus, everyone who successfully completes a National Board exam has proven that he or she meets the same national standard of excellence, regardless of where he or she lives or which courses he or she has taken.
The first exam will be titled "The NBFE Personal Fitness Trainer Examination." By passing the exam, a fitness professional will be permitted to use the title "NBFE Registered PFT" (National Board of Fitness Examiners Registered Personal Fitness Trainer) and will enjoy the prestige and confidence that will come with being registered with the NBFE.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Fitness knows no age limit - Leisure & Aging Society
The National Blueprint: Increasing Physical Activity Among Adults Age 50 and Older was developed by 46 national organizations with a shared interest in promoting physical activity among people age 50 years and older. The blueprint, which was released in May 2001, is intended to serve as a guide for organizations and agencies to inform and support their planning and work related to increasing physical activity among America's aging population. The blueprint identifies barriers to physical activity in the older adult population and proposes strategies to address these barriers.
Nineteen grants of up to $25,000 will be provided to organizations or coalitions in support of local community projects designed to advance the goals of the blueprint. Applications are invited from local agencies wanting to improve the health, function and quality of life of adults age 50 and older.
The hydrorider - Fitness Trends
What it is A cross between water aerobics and a group cycling class. You navigate imaginary hills while sitting on a partially submerged stationary bike. No bathing suit is required; you can wear shorts and a tank top or water-biking shorts. Special shoes are generally provided.
The benefits As with regular stationary cycling, you'll tone your legs, glutes and abs while burning calories. But the resistance that water provides minimizes stress on your joints and cools your body so you're less likely to overheat and tire early. "When you're working in water, your heart rate doesn't rise as much as it does on land," says trainer Heidi Hill, who created the Hydrorider instruction manual.
Where it's available now At Crunch Fitness in New York City and Atlanta as well as some Life Time Fitness locations.
Monday, November 20, 2006
Escapes: take your fitness to a new level - Getfit
Sometimes the best way to get in shape is to get out of the gym. Equinox Fitness Clubs is offering active vacations in close-to-home destinations like Red Mountain Spa in St. George, Utah, as well as faraway locations such as Costa Rica, Machu Picchu and the Galapagos Islands through its new travel program, Trip Equinox. "Anyone can kick up her conditioning level a notch by taking her workouts outdoors," says Equinox travel consultant Rhonda Smith. And you don't have to be an Equinox member to sign up.
On these three- to 14-day vacations, you can do everything from hiking and biking to rafting and kayaking -- or just relax. "All the trips offer opportunity and flexibility," Smith says. Still not convinced you'll be able to make it through one of these excursions? Once you sign up, Equinox's top trainers offer pre-trip home and gym conditioning tips so you feel confident outdoors.Sunday, November 19, 2006
Yourself! Fitness
Yourself! Fitness is surprisingly competent as a workout routine, and it’s so detailed that in your custom nutrition plan, it will give you an advanced description of things like “corn flakes and banana slices,” if for some reason you need one.
The music is the only area where Yourself! Fitness fails. It sounds like your virtual trainer Maya’s internal music protocols and her torture-all-humans protocols crossed a wire. The soundtrack was clearly made by forcing some poor audio engineer with a microphone to run into the center of a terrifying battle between drum machines and xylophones. You can track ahead to different songs in the Pause menu, but with music this awful, the only change that’s recognizable is that maybe you want to scream instead of die. That said, it’s kind of cute when the song changes and the ever-perky Maya insists on stopping for a second to find the new rhythm.
It’s definitely a better workout than most Xbox titles, and although its longevity is infinitely better than a normal human workout video, it’s not as motivating or, more important, as sexy. Plus, it’s likely that too many people have seen Terminator to put their health in the hands of a robot.
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