Exercise Benefits Are Not Just Physical

Regular exercise not only improves physical health, but it positively affects other areas of our lives as well.

Here’s how…

  

• A study from Perdue University showed that a 22% improvement in fitness level resulted in a 70% improvement in decision-making ability.  

• Multiple studies have shown that exercise reduces anxiety and stress.

• Reduced absenteeism, worker’s comp, sick leave,  and disability.

• According to a NASA study, regular physical activity improved work efficiency at the end of a full day by 12.5%. 

• Improved overall attitude toward work and improved work experience. 

• 27% reduction in mental errors requiring concentration and short-term memory. 

• Improved self confidence and self esteem. 

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Getting Our Priorities Straight

Recently one of my Twitter friends wrote a blog post about body image, diet and health. I totally understand her frustration and I agree with her to a point but I have some frustrations of my own, and I tried to comment on her post. Unfortunately, it's one of those sites that don't believe in paragraphs which makes for tough reading, plus it cut off much of my post (without telling me there was a word limit).

Anyway, you can read Brenda's article here Pretty in or Pretty Out?, then come back and read my response below.

Great post, Brenda! Now if you could get the rest of the country thinking that way. Regular exercisers who are overweight have lower risk factors for disease than sedentary stick people.

I totally agree about the bombardment of media images and their detrimental effect on us. That said, it's frustrating that so many people focus only on appearance when it comes to exercise.

I've been fighting this battle for 15 years now. The brochure for my gym says, "At Body & Soul Fitness Studio, the emphasis is on exercise as a means to improve the quality of your life." But which of my blog posts do you think get more attention- something on fat loss or something about the health benefits of physical activity?

Unfortunately, that mentality often continues even after someone sees tangible benefits from exercise. I've had women tell me they feel better since starting to work out, they're stronger, they don't get as winded, they're less stressed, their blood pressure is down, their energy is up, they sleep better, their back hurts less or not at all, they’re more patient with their kids, etc., etc., etc. and then too often comes the but. But "I haven’t lost any / much weight."

I don’t think most people in this country appreciate their health until they lose it. Sadly, too many Americans would rather take pills for diabetes or high blood pressure than make the effort to clean up their nutrition and exercise. Of course, we all know stories of someone who never smoked getting lung cancer or some healthy, active person having heart problems but most of the leading causes of death are at least partially related to our lifestyle choices. In fact, according to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the nine leading causes of death were strongly related to lifestyle choices: “what we put into our bodies and what we do with our bodies.”

Let me just end by saying that I’m certainly not opposed to anyone deciding to drop excess body fat, it’s a smart and healthy thing to do. I simply wish that people would start focusing on living a healthy lifestyle rather than obsessing over a number on the scale. As Jack Dixon says, "If you focus on results, you will never change. But if you focus on change, you'll get results."

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Exercise Even More Important For Those Over 45

Way too many people think that exercise is for the young. Way too many people also think of exercise only as a means to a hot body.

We need to change our way of thinking.

The U.S. population is aging, getting fatter and more inactive. Contrary to popular belief, you don't get weak and frail because you get older. The truth is, people get weak and frail because they do nothing to maintain their muscle and bone fitness as they age.

Because our lives are so less physical than in previous generations, we must challenge our bodies through exercise to maintain our health and fitness.

Without regular exercise that includes strength training, we gradually become less fit as we get older. And, according to a report in the October 26th issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, that loss of fitness accelerates after age 45.

Research has shown that individuals with poor fitness levels have a higher risk of a variety of diseases and have a harder time functioning independently. However, compared to sedentary individuals, those who are physically active, don't smoke and maintain a healthy body composition have higher fitness levels throughout their adult lives.


<== Not Annie. :-)

Annie, my 93 year-old Body & Soul member is a great example. She lives alone and still drives. That's possible because she remained active throughout her life and she still lifts weights three times a week. She's had her share of medical problems but she gardens and is able to do all kinds of things around her house because she has maintained her fitness.

I have other members in their 60s and 70s who continue to golf, bowl and play other sports. I've even had a few who participated in the Senior Olympics. Aren't those types of activities more interesting and fun than sitting around watching TV or complaining about your aches and pains?

The bottom line is that regular exercise improves the quality of your life. Period. You can find a partial list of the many varied health benefits of exercise here ==> Exercise Benefits (Scroll down about half way through the post.)

It's never too late or too soon to start. Get moving.

Reduce Your Risk of Disease With 4 Simple Habits

Anyone remember the old Outer Limits show? Here's a play on the opening...

Do attempt to control your life.

You control your weight.

You control your behaviors.

You control your diet.

You control your health.

O.K., well maybe you don't control your health completely but you can reduce your risk of developing a chronic condition such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or cancer by 78% through 4 simple habits. Here they are, in order of importance:

1. Maintain a BMI (body mass index) below 30. I have issues with using BMI (it's not always an accurate measurement of a healthy weight with some people) but the bottom line here is to dump excess body fat.

2. Don't smoke.

3. Exercise a total of at least 3 1/2 hours per week. (That's only 30 minutes a day.)

4. Follow a diet high in fruits, vegetables, and whole-grain breads and limit your meat intake.

As reported in August's Archives of Internal Medicine, starting in the mid-1990s researchers analyzed the health, lifestyles, and diet of 23,513 German adults 35 to 65 years old. They found that those who had more healthy habits were much less likely to get diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.

Researchers recorded and analyzed each person's height and body weight, food frequency, disease background, and how closely they followed the 4 healthy lifestyle habits over the 8 year study period.

After adjusting for risk factors that might have influenced the development of disease, researchers found that study participants who followed all four healthy habits had a 78% lower risk of developing a chronic condition such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or cancer compared to those who followed none of the habits.

Obviously, the best course of action is to incorporate all 4 healthy habits into your lifestyle. However, the study also showed that there was benefit from following just 3 of the rules and even some health benefits from following just 2 or 1.

So, if you need to, start small. Concentrate on 1 of the 4. When you've made that part of your lifestyle, start working on another. You'll feel better, look better and you'll reduce your risk of chronic disease.

Reduce Your Risk of Breast Cancer

According to Australian and Canadian researchers, physically active women decrease their risk of breast cancer by 25-30%.

The scientists recently reviewed 62 exercise research studies and found that in 85% of the studies, the more exercise the women performed, the greater their risk reduction. This held true even for recreational activities like walking. Even better, they found that you can begin exercising at any age and reduce your risk of breast cancer.


Reference:
British Journal of Sports Medicine 2008;42:636-647 Physical activity and breast cancer risk: impact of timing, type and dose of activity and population subgroup effects

Bad Economy? You Can't Afford To Quit The Gym

A couple of Sundays ago, my local newspaper ran a story about whether the economy was affecting gym memberships. You can read it here ==> Sweating through tough times
Resolutions to stay healthier keep clients rolling in to fitness centers, but will the economy let them stay?

In response, I wrote a Letter to the Editor, which they ran this Sunday, after I edited it by half. Here's the full version:

"If exercise could be packed into a pill, it would be the single most widely prescribed and beneficial medicine in the nation."

That’s not marketing hype; that’s a quote from Robert N. Butler, M.D. former director of the National Institute on Aging.

Although I own a fitness center in Lancaster, I certainly know that you don’t need to belong to a health club to exercise. That being said, through the years I have discovered that many people find they maintain a consistent routine better in a gym setting.

Are people really considering dropping their health club memberships to save a few dollars? What will it take for Americans to fully understand the physical, mental and financial value of regular physical activity? Frequent exercisers enjoy better health and lower medical costs, which is even more important in challenging economic times. Employees are paying an ever increasing percentage of their health care costs and many of these expenses are associated with treating diseases that are primarily caused by our lifestyles. Regular exercise is preventative medicine.

If you think times are tough now, what if you get sick and can’t work for a while?

Layoffs are a fact of life. Hopefully, you won’t lose your job but if you do and you’re overweight, your search for a new one could take longer. Like it or not, employers often discriminate against those who are obese. Fairly or unfairly, they assume that overweight workers are less productive, will miss more work due to illness, and will incur higher insurance costs than leaner applicants. On top of that, studies show that overweight people, especially overweight white women, make less money than those of normal weight.

I’m totally confused by some people’s priorities. Healthy, fresh food is “too expensive” but they eat out multiple times a week. A $20 - $40 gym membership gets the ax but they continue to pay over $100 for cable TV. People are absolutely entitled to spend their money any way they see fit but shouldn’t health take precedence?

Getting and staying fit should not even be close to the top of the list of budget cuts. I was happy to read that few people were actually dropping their memberships at the gyms in your article. That’s a good sign because we all need to take more control of our health.

You can’t afford not to, in any economy.

Mickey Glick
Owner, Body & Soul Fitness Studio
Lancaster, PA

Treating Depression - Exercise vs. Pills

Researchers at Harvard University have found that strenuous exercise results in a 50% reduction in the symptoms of depression. Shockingly, that’s the same amount of relief that patients experience through the use of antidepressant drugs and psychotherapy. Millions of Americans seek medical care for this problem. How often is exercise prescribed, even in conjunction with medication, in treating depression?

The mental, physical and emotional health benefits of regular exercise are too numerous to mention here and come with no troubling (or possibly fatal) side effects.

It’s been shown time and time again that regular physical activity and proper nutrition can positively affect everything from cancer risk to self esteem to diabetes. So, when will more doctors and patients stop automatically turning to drugs to treat every health issue?

The Fountain of Youth is Made of Iron by Joseph McCaffrey, MD, FACS

This article should be required reading for every doctor who only advises his/her patients to walk for exercise and for every person who thinks walking, running, biking, aerobic classes, and other cardio exercise is all they need to be healthy.

The Fountain of Youth is Made of Iron
By Joseph McCaffrey, MD, FACS

Aerobic exercise (walking, jogging, bike riding and such) has long been the darling of the wellness folks. For years, these people wouldn't consider lifting weights. They somehow thought they'd morph into a bodybuilding freak if they so much as touched a dumbbell.

As if…

They also didn't think that muscle mass and strength had much to do with health. More and more evidence shows the error in that way of thinking. A recent long-term study reported in the British Medical Journal adds to this body of evidence.1

In this study, researchers followed 8,762 men between the ages of 20 and 82 years of age for an average of 18.9 years (as I said, this was a long-term study).

When the men signed up for the study, their comprehensive evaluation included measuring upper and lower body strength as well as their performance on a treadmill.

Adjusting for age, the risk of death during the course of the study was highest in the weakest men and lowest in the strongest. This difference persisted even when other factors such as lifestyle, family history, and other medical conditions were allowed for.

The difference persisted even allowing for cardiovascular fitness. That is, the men who were both aerobically fit and strong did better than men who were equally fit aerobically but not as strong.

(Emphasis mine.)

As I said, this ties in with a lot of other evidence supporting the importance of strength training.

It used to be taught that losing muscle mass and strength was an inevitable part of aging. We now know this isn't the case at all.

Training with weights minimizes the strength loss that would otherwise occur. Studies show resistance training benefits even nursing home residents.

The image of an ideal exercise program has shifted dramatically in the last decade. Gone are the long hours of repetitive aerobic exercise sessions at 60-80% of maximal heart rate.

The new model rests on shorter, more intense, and highly varied exercise periods. It definitely includes resistance training.

Body weight exercises such as squats and pushups are a great beginning. And you'll find many good fitness programs recommended here on the pages of Total Health Breakthroughs. The main thing is to begin. The "use it or lose it" maxim definitely applies to muscle mass and strength.

Reference

1. BMJ. 2008; 337:a349.

[Ed. Note: Joseph F. McCaffrey, MD, FACS is a board-certified surgeon with extensive experience in alternative medicine, including certification as a HeartMath Trainer. His areas of expertise include mind-body interaction and cognitive restructuring. Dr. McCaffrey strives to help people attain their optimum level of vitality through attention to all aspects of wellness. For more information, click here.]

This article appears courtesy of Early to Rise's Total Health Breakthroughs, offering alternative solutions for mind, body and soul. For a complimentary subscription, visit www.totalhealthbreakthroughs.com

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Study Shows Exercise is the Fountain of Youth

Everything that gets worse with age gets better with exercise.
The fountain of youth is in your health club.
~Dr. Karl Knopf

According to a recent study of the lifestyles and cells of 2,401 twins published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers found a big difference between the cells of regular exercisers and those of their coach potato counterparts.

The cells of the active participants displayed a slowing of the changes associated with the aging process. In fact, their cells looked liked the cells of inactive people who were 10 years their junior.

There are a ton of
benefits from regular physical activity and this is just one more. Most of us want to live healthy and productive lives and maintain our independence as we age. Just a few hours of exercise each week will help you accomplish that.

It's never too late to begin exercising and you're never too old to experience the benefits. Numerous studies have showed people moving from walkers to canes and those who were using canes to walking unassisted. Falls are a major concern for older folks and weight training can make your stronger and improve your balance.

The oldest member of Body & Soul Fitness Studio is 91 years old; she joined when she was 86 and had never lifted a dumbbell in her life. Just the other day she told me again how good she feels and that she can tell a difference when she misses workouts (on those rare occasions).

If you want to improve the quality of your life - at any age - get moving.

To read more about the study:
Exercise Slows Aging Process
Sedentary Lifestyles Mean Aging Faster

Why You Need To Strength Train

It happened again!

Even though Body & Soul is a women's fitness center, I do also train men; often those whose wives or significant others are members or clients.

Last night, two members and I were discussing how one of their husbands had recently met with me to learn a strength training program he could do at home. I asked the other member if her husband did any weight training and she replied that he didn't need to because "he has two hollow legs".

Aaaaaaaarrrrrrrrgggggggghhhhhhhh!

That's the sound of my head exploding. Just kidding...sort of.

It is so frustrating to me that with all the information out there about the benefits of regular exercise that even intelligent, educated, regular gym-goers often view it almost exclusively as a weight management tool.

Yes, the majority of Americans are overweight. Yes, regular exercise along with healthy nutrition, will help people shed pounds but that is not the only reason to lift weights.

I'm all in favor of people dumping excess body fat but the physical, mental and emotional benefits of regular physical activity absolutely dwarf the weight control aspect. Studies have shown that inactive people of appropriate weight are at higher risk for many diseases than active people who are overweight. Just because someone is thin doesn't mean they're healthy and fit.

Besides improving body composition, lowering body fat and boosting metabolism, below are some of the many benefits of strength training:

* Increases bone density (helps prevent osteoporosis)
* Lowers blood pressure
* Improves glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity (reducing your risk for type 2 diabetes)
* Elevates mood (reducing the risk of depression)
* Increases muscle strength (without resistance training, adults lose about one-half pound of muscle per year)
* Reduces gastrointestinal transit time (helps you be more regular)
* Improves joint health (reducing arthritis pain and stiffness)
* Boosts your immune system (you'll get sick less often)
* Increases your blood level of HDL (good) cholesterol
* Improves sleep quality
* Lowers your resting heart rate (your heart doesn't have to work as hard)
* Improves flexibility
* Increases tendon and ligament strength
* Improves posture
* Decreases your risk of injury
* Improves self-esteem, confidence and self-worth
* Increases energy
* Maintains or improves lower back strength
* Improves balance, mobility and stability (which helps prevent falls)
* Maintains or improves mental sharpness (helps prevent Alzheimer’s and dementia)

The bottom line is that strength training improves your quality of life. It reduces the risk of injury and assorted diseases. Stronger muscles make everyday chores easier and help you maintain your independence as you age.

So, if you don't already, start lifting weights. You'll feel better, you'll look better and you'll be healthier, whether or not you need to shed any weight.
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