Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Share healthy living habits.
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Harriet
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Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby Harriet » Wed Jun 01, 2016 1:53 pm

We live in a brave new world of health and fitness knowledge.
When I started this work more than a decade ago, I thought the answer was to train the trainers, educate the profession. But with the democratization of information, doctors no longer hold a monopoly as gatekeepers of knowledge about health. When it comes to safe, simple lifestyle prescriptions, I'm realizing it may be more effective to empower individuals directly. - Michael Greger, MD, founder of nutritionfacts.org, writing in How Not to Die


What healthy habits are interesting you lately? What are you learning?

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Nancy
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Re: Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby Nancy » Wed Jun 01, 2016 2:35 pm

I walked ddog today plus I have done walking at the grocery store shopping. Also have gotten the last of three trees pruned the suckers from underneath them.

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Harmony
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Re: Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby Harmony » Thu Jun 02, 2016 8:26 pm

I've learned a fairly new way of eating, have made that another habit. I don't know yet how the sodium drink I make is working for me; however, I do know it stops the muscle cramps DH gets, and fairly quickly, so I know it has the right things in it. Whether or not it works for me, I won't know for a long while so I can only hope.

I'm down another pound. I never know how to count that if it comes off on the last day of the month or the first day of the next! I usually count it the month ahead, so it's a June pound and I'm off to a good start!

Speaking of health, DGS who will be here has been tested for his swallowing problem and after a lot of testing have found it's a milk allergy that swells his esophagus. I will have to cook dairy-free for a few days. That will be a challenge!

I have learned just how much mental effort is required for any health challenge, including weight loss. It is the last thing I think about at night and the first thing in the morning when I get up. Give me strength!

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Harriet
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Re: Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby Harriet » Fri Jun 03, 2016 12:52 am

I am learning a mile-a-minute reading the best-seller, How Not To Die. It's a boatload of info on the top 15 serious health concerns that are taking our lives (or minds, or quality of life) too early in developed countries. It is an amazingly large resource. Only reputable scientific research studies are discussed. OR he makes it clear if he mentions a new one that is interesting but needs more research. The citations at the back go on and on. (and on) He's meticulous.

There are eye-opening studies that prove other countries simply don't have people dying of the things we have people die from. Did ya'll know that in China and Africa, in areas where large populations can be studied eating their historic diets still, with high daily fiber and very moderate to low sodium, there is just no high blood pressure? Bp gradually reduces there after a person's 40s - reduces without any negative health effect. So a gradual lowering is the probable normal bp progression for humans. But almost everyone in developed countries believes that harmful higher bp just happens with aging, and can't be helped. Without higher bp, whole categories of causes of death just don't happen.

Also it is a shock to me to learn that people in developed countries are not exactly living longer the way we think. From 1998 to 2006 we in the US, for instance, gained a year of life expectancy, BUT we lost 2 years of expectancy of functional ability. That means that the year we gained, plus another year, became part of the time we can't expect to do things like sit for 2 hours without lying down, or stand unaided. So it's like 1 step forward, 2 steps back. And if we continue with the current rise in disease rates, life expectancy will plateau soon and today's youth will live fewer years than we will.

I had no idea medical anthropologists identify several major eras of human disease by what people died of during that time. They start with the "Age of Pestilence and Famine". Guess what our age is called? "The Age of Degenerative and Man-Made Diseases". Ugh.

Did I get everyone's spirits up? Sorry! There is a lot of good advice, too, though.

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Nancy
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Re: Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby Nancy » Fri Jun 03, 2016 3:54 pm

Walked today w ddog who packed her own poo bag, (double bagged in plastic and paper bags) back for me. So she is out of the dog house now.

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Re: Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby LadyMaverick » Sun Jun 05, 2016 8:40 am

Harriet - I am finding your discoveries very interesting. Do they focus just on the food or also on the life style? i know some countries are more active than we are. They walk more and physically work more. Continuing to think upon this....

I finished my first 7 days of logging food. I was brutally honest even when it was not something I wanted to admit to myself. I didn't diet but ate regular food. I didn't have a set # of calories I was trying to achieve. However, I did find myself opting to not eat more because I didn't want to record it. So just the commitment of logging my food did have a positive affect on my choices. In the past 7 days I averaged 1680 calories a day resulting in loss of 1.15 lbs. Part of me wants to restrict myself to 1500 calories a day, but the other part of me doesn't want to be on a "diet". For now, I'm going to just continue logging foods as honestly as possible and observe the results. Good or bad.
1. Know what you want.
2. Go after it relentlessly.

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Harriet
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Re: Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby Harriet » Sun Jun 05, 2016 3:22 pm

I've never seen such large recommendations for exercise in a popular health book, LadyM. Dr. Greger believes we've been given exercise recommendations that are way too low, because authorities have fallen into the trap (he calls it) of recommending what they think may be achievable, rather than simply informing of what the science says and letting everyone make up our own minds. He says the science simply doesn't back up the current, lower physical activity guidelines that work out to about 20 minutes a day of moderate aerobic exercise. He says the previous recommendation of 30 (in US) was much better.

So here is how simple moderate walking (compared to sedentary), breaks down :
Overall mortality rate reduced by 7 percent at 20 mins per day.
Overall mortality rate reduced by 14 percent at 40 mins per day.
Overall mortality rate reduced by 24 percent at 60 mins per day.

I understand that only about half of Americans even make their recommended 20 minutes a day, so the authorities are just hoping to nudge people in the right direction. It's like the dietary guidelines advising us to "eat less candy". If only they'd just give it to us straight.


Now, if you figure you already know he's going to be tough on suggesting exercise, there's more. Turns out there was a 2011 "meta-analysis of physical activity dose and longevity" that found that the equivalent of about an hour a day of brisk (4 mph) walking was good, but 90 minutes was even better.

So, if you're braced ;) , here's what he prescribes:

(editing to note - divide into parts through the day unless you really want to do it all at once)

Serving Sizes:
90 minutes of moderate-intensity activity
(or) 40 minutes of vigorous activity

Daily Recommendation:
1 serving per day


He gives a tip from another study - eat watercress a couple hours before exercise and you'll avoid any oxidative stress from the activity. Actually, many plant foods would probably give that benefit, but the study used watercress, and he's a stickler for telling exactly what the studies show.

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Nancy
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Re: Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby Nancy » Sun Jun 05, 2016 5:02 pm

I shopped and walked to the corner for my exercise today.

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Nancy
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Re: Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby Nancy » Mon Jun 06, 2016 10:34 am

I walked w ddog @ 7:20 today need to start earlier to beat the heat.

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Re: Health and Fitness, June, 2016

Postby lucylee » Sun Jun 12, 2016 12:21 am

I've walked approx 2 miles, 4 days per week, for the first two weeks of June.
Unfortunately, I've also been eating like a total idiot so weight is up a bit.
I am pleased with re-establishing some form of better habits with the walking. For the first three weeks of May, I only made it out to walk THREE days total.
It's like I'm finally getting a handle on MY life since dmom is FINALLY showing some improvement in hers! I certainly hope it can last.
Tomorrow is another day.


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