Wanted- Safe Nutrition and Physical Activity for dangerous times!

Wanted- Safe Nutrition and Physical Activity for dangerous times!

'Why Nutrition and Exercise go Hand in Hand'

Nutrition and physical activity go hand in hand. The working body demands energy-yielding nutrients to fuel activity. And, it needs protein plus supporting nutrients in order to build lean tissue. Exercise requires the body to dip into its stores of fuel- namely, fat and glycogen (sugar). By using up fat and building lean tissue, exercise pushes body-composition toward lean and thus, raises the body's rate of energy expenditure (metabolism).
To the contrary, a lack of exercise, or an "exercise deficiency" can lead to accelerated development of the diseases associated with sedentary life- cardiovascular disease, obesity, intestinal disorders, apathy, insomnia, accelerated bone loss, etc.

By, Natalie Pyles

Fitness & Weight-loss Expert, Author, & Speaker

Call for your FREE Nutrition & Physical Fitness Test Today 1-800-681-9894 0r 480-212-1947 or visit WWW.MyFitnessElements.com

'3 Forgotten Laws OF Personal Training'

3 Forgotten Laws OF Personal Training
Natalie Pyles

Why Metabolic Syndrome Is Something You Need To Be Aware Of...

AS Personal trainers we have the opportunity to do more than just help people then train and become more active. Physical activity should not be the only approach to encouraging a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Our team is prepared to also help our clients implement lifestyle behavior changes related to stress, family history of coronary heart disease, obesity, smoking, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

A look at what is being called metabolic syndrome will help you understand why, even though increasing physical activity levels is the overall best thing you can do for clients, there are other ways to guide them to healthier lifestyles. Sometimes you may be able to help them make the changes yourself, and sometimes you will need to refer them to another health professional like a doctor or dietician for guidance. Either way, knowing how to help them or when to refer them to someone who is more knowledgeable is important. So first let’s get familiar with the syndrome and the clinical criteria that the doctor uses to diagnose it. Our goal is then to help the client or clients understand and make the necessary changes, so that they don’t progress to cardiovascular disease and the almost certain heart attack that will be the end result.

Cardiovascular disease is still the number one cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States, and much of this burden of disease can be linked to poor nutrition and a dramatic increase in sedentary lifestyles, leading to overweight and obesity. This increase in weight leads to an increase in the incidence of type 2 diabetes and blood pressure and cholesterol problems, which are all well established cardiovascular disease risk factors. The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Adult Treatment Panel (ATP) III has updated the recommendations for the evaluation and management of adults dealing with high cholesterol, renewing its emphasis on the importance of lifestyle modifications for improving cardiovascular risk. The NCEP has coined the term “therapeutic lifestyle changes” (TLC) to reinforce both dietary intake and physical activity as crucial components of weight control and cardiovascular risk management.

As well as focusing attention on the LDL or "bad" cholesterol levels, the NCEP also identified the metabolic syndrome as a secondary target of therapy. The importance of lifestyle modifications in the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease has heightened and caused growing awareness of this condition. The metabolic syndrome (also called insulin resistance syndrome and syndrome X) is characterized by decreased tissue sensitivity to the action of insulin (pre-diabetes), resulting in a compensatory increase in insulin secretion. This metabolic disorder predisposes individuals to a cluster of abnormalities that can lead to such problems as type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease and stroke. According to Daniel Einhorn, MD, who is co-chairman of the American College of Endocrinology (ACE) and the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) Insulin Resistance Syndrome Task Force and medical director of the Scripps Whittier Institute for Diabetes in La Jolla, California, the prevalence of the syndrome has increased 61 percent in the last decade. He says it is crucial for medical professionals to identify patients at risk and follow these patients closely and counsel them about making lifestyle changes to lower the risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

According to the NCEP, the criteria for metabolic syndrome includes at least three of the following five clinical factors:

Risk Factor


Defining Level
Abdominal Obesity

Waist Circumference:
Men >40 in (>102 cm)
Women >35 in (>88 cm)
Fasting Triglyceride Level >150 mg/dL
HDL Cholesterol Level
Men <40>130/>85 mm Hg or taking antihypertensive medication
Fasting Glucose Level >110 mg/dL or diabetes

*Source: Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults. Executive Summary of the Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (Adult Treatment Panel III). Bethesda, Md: National Institutes of Health; 2001. NIH publication 01-3670.

Using 1988-2008 data (NHANES III), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that at least 47 million Americans have metabolic syndrome. And in 2000, more than 97 million adults were considered obese, and more than half the population is now overweight. This epidemic is not likely to plateau because childhood obesity is also increasing at an alarming rate. The explosive increase in the prevalence of obesity observed in the past decade suggests the current rate of metabolic syndrome is now likely higher than that estimated by NHANES III.

Millions of Americans at risk for metabolic syndrome can sharply lower their chances of getting this disease by adopting a healthy lifestyle (stop smoking, low fat diet, weight loss/maintenance and increased physical activity). Diet and exercise are the cornerstones of treatment in patients with metabolic syndrome. According to Dr. Robert Chilton (November/December 2002 issue of Men’s Total Health Digest), without diet and exercise modifications, most patients will eventually fail and progress to type 2 diabetes within a decade and experience a heart attack about 10 years later. Dr. Chilton recommends a diet reduced in saturated fats (<7 percent), low in cholesterol (<200 mg/day), high in fiber (20-30gm/day) and reduced in simple sugars. Weight loss of only five to seven percent (less than 15 pounds) can make a big difference in health markers like cholesterol and blood pressure. A program that includes exercise daily reaching 85 percent of heart rate for age is reported to benefit the patient as well (who out there is surprised??!!). However, Dr. Chilton says, any exercise is better than none, and a target of 30 minutes every other day is a reasonable level for most patients.

A study by the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), which was discussed in the October 2002 issue of Type 2 Diabetes Digest, found that there was a reduction of 58 percent in progression to diabetes when moderate lifestyle changes were made. These changes were directed toward getting people to lose eight to 10 pounds and becoming more active, mainly by walking briskly for 150 minutes per week. Other studies have been done by the DPP using a medication called metformin. It reduced the progression to diabetes by about 30 percent but was not as effective as behavioral interventions, and it didn’t work in all groups. On the other hand, the behavioral intervention worked across the board, regardless of age, body weight or race and ethnicity. Another drug called acarbose has also been tested and found to reduce progression by about 33 percent. So, there are medications that can be beneficial, but nothing was as effective overall as the behavioral intervention used in the DPP. Consideration also needs to be given to the potential side effects of a medication used to prevent diabetes compared with lifestyle changes.

According to Frank Vinicor, MD, who is the director of the diabetes program at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, the behavioral interventions used in these studies was quite intense and involved 16 interactions with individuals during the first year, with a whole series of very innovative and creative follow up meetings. The interventions are being explored further to see if they can be made more practical, more feasible and more economically possible. Another point is that, even within the DPP, a physician did not deliver most of the behavioral interventions. New recommendations from the CDC will call for involving trained nurses, dieticians and other community health workers in the process.

Also according to Dr. Vincor, about 90 percent of people with diabetes receive their diabetes care from the primary care community, and there is no reason to anticipate that things will be any different with pre-diabetes or metabolic syndrome. He believes the primary care community (internists and family practice physicians) will play a pivotal role in both the identification of people with pre-diabetes as well as the initiation of therapy. And again he emphasizes, that does not mean the primary care doctors themselves have to do the counseling and behavioral intervention. Instead, he anticipates they will make appropriate referrals to others in their communities.

As a fitness professional, hopefully you are not asking yourself “so what?” but are instead seeing an opportunity to educate and motivate some of your current clients and to use your knowledge to help attract future clients. The medical community is good at diagnosing this syndrome but not necessarily equipped to provide patients with the tools to be successful with the lifestyle changes they recommend. There exists a wonderful opportunity to build a partnership with physicians in your area. Most physicians will gladly refer patients to you for help with the all-important exercise and nutrition portion of the treatment program. In many cases, you have more knowledge in this area than the physician who has been trained in tertiary, not preventative medicine. (Most MDs know very little about diet and exercise since they are not taught this in medical school.) Often times, all you will need to get a referral is for the doctor to be aware of your existence and to give them an easy way to get the patient to you. A short introduction letter outlining your qualifications and showing your desire to help people make lifestyle changes is a good start. A personal visit to your primary care doctor and others in your area is even better. But be prepared to take up just a few minutes of their time to introduce yourself and your idea and leave your letter and cards.

Now more than ever we need to really come together and stay educated!

References: Tammy Peterson

Forwarded By, Natalie Pyles

Call Me For Your FREE Consultation Today! 1-800-681-9894 or e-mail fitnesselementsassociates@yahoo.com
WWW.MyFitnessElements.com

"Learn How To Eat with your stomach, not your eyes"

"Learn How To Eat with your stomach, not your eyes"

It's halfway through January and your initial enthusiasm for those fitness resolutions may be waning.
People grappling with diets often eat until their plate is clean, rather than when they feel full.

People grappling with diets often eat until their plate is clean, rather than when they feel full.

After maintaining an austere, healthy diet for a few weeks, the desire to eat a juicy cheeseburger proves too irresistible for some dieters.

"It's natural that most people when they are following a New Year's resolution or any program to change something in their life, that they will fall off the wagon or they'll have a setback or a failure," said Jillian Michaels, a personal trainer for NBC's show "The Biggest Loser."

Rather than beating yourself up after having a setback, learn from the missteps, experts say.

It's a matter of attitude, Michaels said. Learn from the setbacks and view "a failure as a point of learning, an opportunity to see what works and what doesn't."

For those grappling with diets,striving for moderation is a constant battle.
House Call
Learn the top changes you need to make or break bad diet habits in 2009
8:30 a.m. ET Sat. & Sun.
see full schedule »

"We eat with our eyes, not out of our stomach," said Dr. Melina Jampolis, the diet and fitness expert for CNNhealth.com. "It's much more difficult to control serving sizes."

People have a tendency to keep eating until their plate is clean or the container of cookies is empty.

"A lot of people eat too much and their clothes feel tight. You shouldn't have to unbutton your pants, blouse or unzip anything after your meal," said Cheryl Forberg, the nutritionist for "The Biggest Loser." "You lose sight of your body's natural hunger cues."
Don't Miss

* Nine nutrition essentials for 2009
* Steps to trim calories and waistline

To become more attuned to your body, avoid eating while standing up, sitting at the desk or inside a car, she said. Dedicate time for meals and snacks.

Rather than viewing meals as an obligatory part of the day, "learn to enjoy the process. At the same time, you begin to stop eating when you're comfortable, instead of when you have to unzip your jeans," Forberg said.

Avoid stocking problem foods like cookies or ice cream in the house if you know you can't resist them.
Health Library

* MayoClinic.com: Weight maintenance -- keep the weight off permanently
* MayoClinic.com: Eating and exercise -- time it right to maximize your workout

"When you know you have a weakness with chocolate or cookies, you probably shouldn't keep it in the house if you know you can't stop at one," she said.

One way to retrain the body is to divide snacks by portion sizes.

"Those 100-calories packs retrain people to the eye and decrease the snacking," Jampolis said. "It's more expensive and not environmentally friendly, but you're much better off getting a 100-calorie pack rather than eating out of container."

"If you're on a budget and you want to be more environmentally friendly, make your own. Every Sunday, measure 100 calories into seven Ziploc bags," she said. You can even recycle the bags.

References:

CNN- Madison Park
Forwarded By, Natalie Pyles

Fitness & Nutritional Expert, Author, Speaker

Call Me For Your FREE Consultation Today! 1-800-681-9894 or e-mail fitnesselementsassociates@yahoo.com
WWW.MyFitnessElements.com

"How To Train Teens Through Exercise & Eating"

With the increasing concern of rising obesity levels, more and more attention is being turned to encourage young people to become physically active. Here, we look at the differences in physiological response to exercise between young people and adults.

Many adolescents already take part in physical activity or sport regularly, and are already reaping the benefits of being physically fit at a young age. Such benefits include:

• An increase in bone density
• Increased likelihood of participation to continue into adulthood
• Having a lower incidence of injuries
• Weight management
• Improvement in asthma symptoms and cholesterol levels
• Being physically fit enables an athlete to maximize their potential in sport

With greater numbers participating in more than one sport and taking part in competitions frequently, of concern to many fitness professionals, parents and youngsters alike is the amount of training young people of this age are undertaking. We all know their bodies are undergoing rapid change, and consequently we need to be particularly cautious about ever increasing intensities in sports competitions. A number of different factors need to be taken into account before any training program is designed for these athletes and below are a few helpful pointers to guide fitness professionals in the right direction.

Exercise and Growth

Boys and girls have different growth spurts whereby girls undergo their adolescent growth spurt and peak velocity height about two years earlier than boys. However, boys experience longer growth spurts that are more intense than girls2 and they tend to overtake the growth period of females during this life stage. Training therefore needs to take into consideration these differences and fitness professionals need to ensure that individual recognition takes place where no child is undertaking a program too strenuous or intense for their physical development.

Energy and Fluid Needs

Although there is mounting evidence among adults that daily energy requirements are related to total amount of training, there is a limited amount of information in this area for children participating in specific sports. Of the available research, when energy cost is calculated per kg body mass, walking or running at any given speed is significantly greater in children than in adolescents and adults, and this relative cost is higher the younger the child. For example, a seven-year-old child who is walking or running at the same speed as a young adult would need as much as 25 to 30 percent more energy per kg body mass.3 As a result of their greater energy needs while performing physical activities, children also produce more metabolic heat per unit body mass than adults. Consequently, fluid intake must reflect such production and as core body temperature during dehydration increases faster in children than in adults,4 it is vital for coaches and trainers to try to prevent dehydration in child athletes. An ideal approach is to introduce fluid breaks every 15 to 20 minutes during prolonged activities.

Cardiovascular Responses

Sub-maximal cardiovascular responses are different between children and adults, with children tending to work at a higher
heart rate at sub-maximal levels of exercise. Children have smaller hearts and less total muscle volume than adults and therefore any such cardiovascular training should account for such differences. Oxygen extraction by the tissues (a-VO2 diff) also tends to be slightly larger in children than in adults, so it is important to remember that if exercising on hot days, children's core body temperature will increase more rapidly. Ensuring children are fully hydrated will help reduce the negative effects of such increases.

Aerobic Power

After the age of 14, girls' aerobic power can be as much as 15 percent less than boys. However, the effect of endurance training programs on VO2 max on both genders has proved inconclusive.2 This may be due to other growth factors playing a more significant role, such as greater musculature or larger levers, which dominate the effectiveness of aerobic activities.

Anaerobic Power

As expressed per kg of bodyweight, anaerobic capacity is much lower in children than adults and increases progressively with age in both boys and girls. It is important therefore to be aware of the intensity of exercise regimes, as it is not the duration but the intensity of exercise that could lead to more harm. Appropriate activities would include long-distance runs instead of vigorous short sprints, as these may also aid in meeting appropriate body composition requirements.

Strength

After the adolescent growth spurt, muscle development is influenced by hormones and, since testosterone production is greater among males, they will become stronger and faster than females. For such boys, however, it is important to not put too much strain on the body. Two times per week has been proven to ensure significant changes, compared to more frequent sessions where no further improvement was found.3 Activities should be based on individual bodyweight and restrictive weight exercises on machines should be avoided.4 Below are a few recommendations of how to incorporate strength training into young athletes’ regimes. The exercises should be progressive: starting at one and, as the adolescent develops, moving them up through to five.

1. Obstacle courses: rope pulling, climbing
2. Vertical strength: standing push-ups, hanging exercises
3. Bodyweight exercises and medicine ball-based activities/throws
4. Horizontal strength: push-ups, pull-ups
5. Single leg squats, step-ups, dumbbells and barbell exercises

Skill Development

All sports, no matter what discipline, require a high level of skill in order to excel. However, specialized training too early on in adolescence can actually have more of a negative than positive effect. Movement skills such as balance, agility and coordination which would usually be developed as part of a broader based program become neglected and as a result can leave the young athlete with little competency outside the speciality.

Peak Velocity Height (PVH)

Sports scientists believe that it can take up to 12 years of training for a young talented athlete to reach elite status. The use of athletic models to develop these athletes has been successful in recent years. However, due to differences in physical, cognitive and emotional development, research states that age is not a good indicator on which to base athletic development models for athletes between the ages of 10 to 16. Instead, the onset of peak velocity height (PVH) is recommended, which is the point where a child reaches their maximum growth rate. This is affected by genetic and environmental factors (climate, cultural and social) and can be an advantageous reference point for training program design. PVH for girls is usually around age 12 and for boys, age 14. By taking basic measurements (standing height and sitting height), PHV can be observed and specific training programs can be designed to match the child's development.

Recommended Activities

Much debate has surrounded the question of whether young sportspersons should specialize in particular sports at an early age. Current evidence suggests that adolescents should participate in activities that develop overall capacities rather than specialized programs. Furthermore, research has found that when development of strength, power and flexibility is undertaken gradually, higher levels are achieved and the maintenance of such factors remain for longer periods of time. Since growth rates of male and female adolescents vary considerably, it is important that a comparison between athletes is avoided. Certain individuals will improve rapidly on some exercises, while others who have not gone through a particular growth phase will often lag behind. On a personal level, young athletes may also feel confined to the realms of one sport if they specialize too early, which may have a negative effect on participation levels. By experiencing a range of activities and training programs, the young person is more likely to develop a range of athletic abilities, which will increase their options to specialize later on.

References:

1. Borms J (1986), The Child and exercise: an overview, Journal of Sports Sciences, 4, 3-20.
2. Drabik J (1996), Children and Sports Training: How Your Future Champions Should Exercise to Be Healthy, Fit, and Happy , Island Pond, VT: Stadion Publishing Company, Inc.
3. Overend T, Paterson D, Cunningham D and Taylor A (1985), Interval and continuous training: A comparison of training effects. A paper given at the Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association of Sports Sciences, Laval University, Quebec.
4. Rushall B, Marsden J and Young C (1993), A suggested program of foundational conditioning exercises for age-group swimmers: a manual for coaches, NSWIMMING Coaching Science Bulletin, 2(1), 1-23.
5. Stahle S, Roberts S, Davis B and Rybicki L (1995), Effect of a 2 versus 3 times per week weight training program in boys aged 7 to 16, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 27(5), Supplement abstract 648.
6. www.evolution-sports.com
7. Tara Finnerty

Forwarded By, Natalie Pyles

Fitness & Nutritional Expert, Author, Speaker

Call Me For Your FREE Consultation Today! 1-800-681-9894 or 480-212-1947 e-mail fitnesselementsassociates@yahoo.com

WWW.MyFitnessElements.com