MINDFULNESS CAN TRANSFORM YOUR FITNESS TRAINING Mindfulness has lately become a hot topic. Actually, though, it’s rooted in ancient traditions—it was originally conceived as a way to ease suffering and cultivate compassion. There are various descriptions of mindfulness, but in short, it’s living in the moment. It’s a conscious effort to be completely present—to take your attention away from the past or future and simply focus on what’s happening with you right now without interpretation or judgment. I’ll talk about mindfulness in general and then how we can use it in our fitness training. The Mayo Clinic cites studies that...
A TRIATHLON TALE I finally participated in a triathlon this year. It was the Carpinteria (California) Olympic Triathlon a week ago Sunday. Earlier in the year, I’d missed out on two other triathlons and a marathon because of injuries or flu—the latest being the Santa Barbara Triathlon in August with a pulled calf muscle. I arrived at Carpinteria State Beach and the triathlon transition area early. I found my spot, racked my bike and placed out my gear for the 3 segments of the event and had plenty of time to pull on my wet suit. Then I sauntered down...
SILVER SNEAKERS FITNESS I write Generation Fit for seniors 50+, but this week I want to talk about SilverSneakers, which is restricted to those 65 or older (or otherwise on Medicare). If you’re younger than this, it’s something to look forward to or you may know someone older who is unaware of the program. Spin class with instructor SilverSneakers® is the nation’s leading fitness program designed exclusively for older adults. It’s available at no charge by many insurance carriers for members of their Medicare Advantage plans. Some Medicare Supplement insurers and plans with group retirees also offer the program. Carriers...
MIGHTY NEAT Reading my latest issue of IDEA Fitness Journal, I came along an article called The Smart Way to Move by Terry Eckmann, PhD. This fascinating piece is about NEAT, which stands for non-exercise activity thermogenesis. This is the energy we expend each day for everything that is not sleeping, eating or exercise-like activities. Thus NEAT is specifically all the non-exercise activities we perform on a daily basis such as doing yard work, washing dishes, walking from the car to the grocery store, etc. I researched NEAT online and found that the term and the theory originated from James...
SHOULD YOU TAKE A CPR TRAINING COURSE? I finally took a CPR training course in July. For years I’d been asking myself how I would respond to someone having a sudden cardiac arrest emergency. Probably helpless! I took definite action after I read that this someone could very well be a family member—spouse, parent, child, grandchild—or a good friend in my own home because something like 4 out of 5 cardiac arrests happen at home. I checked out the American Red Cross website (www.redcross.org) and found they continually offer CPR training courses combined with AED and basic first aid nationwide....
ARTHRITIS EXERCISE PROGRAMS I subscribe to the Mayo Clinic Health Letter and every few months there’s another article relating to arthritis. No surprise, more than 45 million Americans are affected by it, myself included—in my knees and in my hands. These days, the Mayo Clinic and just about every other health letter or valid health website strongly recommends an arthritis exercise program. Osteoarthritis common inflammation locations Arthritis is inflammation of the joints, affecting one joint or multiple joints. There are more than 100 types of arthritis but the most common by far is osteoarthritis (OA) followed by a much smaller...
NEVER GROW OLD FITNESS PROGRAM I’ve mentioned in previous posts that I attended the 35th Annual Idea World Convention in Las Vegas for five days in July. My most fulfilling experience at the convention was an all-day workshop titled “Functional Aging Specialist Certification Course.” This interactive workshop gave me an introduction to the tools and skills necessary to implement functional training techniques, strategies and movements important to seniors. Cody Sipe, PhD Cody Sipe, PhD, gave the workshop. Cody is an award winning, 20-year veteran of the fitness industry, a professor of Physical Therapy at Harding University, exercise specialist in exercise...
Live Your Healthiest, Most Delicious Life P.K. Newby, PhD I attended the 35th Annual Idea World Convention in Las Vegas for five days in July. Among the lectures and workshops I sat in were two given by Dr. P.K. Newby: Nutrition Myth Busters, Science Fact or Fiction and Guiding Others to Create Their Healthiest Most Delicious Life. I’m saving much of the “Myth Busters …” lecture to a future post. In this article, I’ll mainly write about her “Guiding Others …” lecture and adding in some very interesting material from Dr. Newby’s website, www.pknewby.com P.K. Newby received her PhD in...
RUN FOR JOY—LONGER & INJURY FREE Senior Couple Jogging In Park If you’re a runner, you should enjoy this article. If you’re not presently a runner and determined not to be (perhaps from bad experiences in your youth or past injuries) you’ll probably skip reading it. Perhaps, you’re considering adding running to your physical training schedule? You should find tips here to help you run injury free. I took up running again back in 2000. I found it enjoyable and over the years slowly increased my distance from 3 miles up to 13 miles and then up to 26 miles....
Why We Eat More Than We Think I attended the 35th Annual Idea World Convention in Las Vegas for five days in July. The Convention brought fitness professionals—including personal trainers, coaches and health club managers—from across the country and even from abroad. I attended 18 lectures and workshops on fitness and nutrition. In this and coming articles I’ll share what I learned. Jim Painter, PhD, RD I’ll start with what I gathered in an entertaining 90-minute lecture on food psychology presented by Dr. Jim Painter, Adjunct Professor at the University of Texas School of Public Health. His current areas of...
