Use It or Lose It

Use It or Lose It.
Why Everyone Needs Resistance Training,

If you are 40 years old or older, if you ever plan to be over 40, or if you know anyone over 40, you need to read this.

For years we've been told that if we want to live long, we need to get our heart pumping with aerobic exercises at least three times a week. While this is great for your heart and waistline, recent research is revealing that it is only part of the story. More and more recent studies show the critical importance of resistance training to maintain the best health that you can throughout your life.

Most people think of resistance, or weight training, as the domain of the young. Doctors were scared to suggest that older patients lift weights. It was feared that large swings in blood pressure would lead to heart attacks and strokes. Besides, who wants to see grandma in a bikini or grandpa flexing in his speedo?

These fears have not materialized. In fact, The newest American Heart Association guidelines published in 2007 recommend moderate weight training in addition to aerobic training for all adults unless they have severe uncontrolled blood pressure, active chest pain known as unstable angina, symptomatic aortic stenosis, or a few other rare, serious heart conditions.

Now we know that resistance training is absolutely critical for older adults. Over the last several years, a mountain of evidence is forming to show that the group that benefits from strength training the most is older people. Weight training is not just for young people, everyone needs to do it.

Jeff Williamson, MD, a geriatrician at Wake Forest University school of medicine is adamant about the benefits of muscle building in older adults. "I like to say there are really only two reasons why older people end up in a nursing home. One is that their brains stop working, and the other is that their muscles stop working. Especially their leg muscles."

How old is old?
Some loss of muscle cells is inevitable as people age. People in their 40's and 50's need to take prompt action to preserve the strength they still have according to Dr Williamson. For most people, muscle loss starts shortly after age 40.

Sedentary people will arrive in their golden years with much less muscle mass than their active peers. This is critical, because low muscle mass is a leading cause of disability. People wait their whole life to retire, and because of poor habits early in life, they can't enjoy their retirement because of functional disability.

"We see pretty large declines in strength in people because they don't maintain activity," said Barbara Bushman, PhD, professor of health, physical education and recreation at Missouri State University. Lean muscle mass declines about 0.5 pounds per year between age 30 and 60. In one study, 45% of women age 46 to 64 said they could not even lift 10 pounds. But functional strength can be maintained or improved upon for most people throughout their lives.


Give it to me straight, doc. Is there hope?
Although muscle cell loss is inevitable over time, the remaining fibers can be made bigger, stronger and more effective by lifting weights. In addition, muscle endurance can be improved with aerobic activity. Multiple studies have shown dramatic strength increases of 50% or more from just a few months of strength training in older people.

Fountain of Youth.
All of our cells contain organelles called mitochondria, the "powerhouse" of cells. Scientists believe that mitochondrial dysfunction is involved in the muscle loss commonly seen in older adults. A 2007 study looked at the expression of genes in mitochondria of older people before and after a 6-month strength training program. In addition to measurable strength gains, researchers found a remarkable reversal of the genetic fingerprint. After training, the genes in the mitochondria reverted to an pattern similar to those seen in the younger adults.

Bottom line.
"Although the performances of marathon runners and weight lifters decline after 40, well designed and carefully administered training programs can provide dramatic evidence that age-associated atrophy, weakness and fatigue can be slowed," wrote John Faulkner, PhD, molecular and integrative physiology researcher from the University of Michigan medical school. "Master athletes maintain a high level of fitness throughout their life."

Keep active. Start now. No matter your current age, add resistance to your routine. In twenty years, you'll thank me.



Sources:
American Medical News, Sept 15th, 2008
Circulation July, 2007
ScienceDaily 23 May 2007.

Go Bananas!

"The Monkey Diet" (or "What will those crazy Brits think of next?")



What happens when you take a dozen Brits, lock them in a zoo for a dozen days, and make them eat a monkey-like diet? Someone wanted to find that out and televise it, so that is what they did. Researchers gave 12 volunteers a diet of 2400 calories a day consisting of raw fruits, veggies, nuts, honey, and cooked fish. "Overall, cholesterol levels dropped 23%, an amount usually achieved only through anti-cholesterol drugs statins. The group's average blood pressure fell from a level of 140/83 - almost hypertensive - to 122/76. Though it was not intended to be a weight loss diet (with a whopping 2400 calories per day), participants dropped 4.4kg (9.7lbs), on average." This is the type of food our bodies evolved to eat over many thousands of years according to the dietician who designed the experiment. It really makes you think about what you put in your body. Since returning from a New York fitness camp last summer, I've improved the types of foods I've been eating. Without watching calories at all, my body fat has cut down to the lowest level it has ever been in my adult life. The fuel you put in your body makes a difference.

Now if they'll just let me out of the zoo.

Go Bananas: The Monkey Diet.

"The Monkey Diet". (or "What will those crazy Brits think of next?")

What happens when you take a dozen Brits, lock them in a zoo for a dozen days, and make them eat a monkey-like diet? Someone wanted to find that out and televise it, so that is what they did. Researchers gave 12 volunteers a diet of 2400 calories a day consisting of raw fruits, veggies, nuts, honey, and cooked fish. "Overall, cholesterol levels dropped 23%, an amount usually achieved only through anti-cholesterol drugs statins. The group's average blood pressure fell from a level of 140/83 - almost hypertensive - to 122/76. Though it was not intended to be a weight loss diet (with a whopping 2400 calories per day), participants dropped 4.4kg (9.7lbs), on average." This is the type of food our bodies evolved to eat over many thousands of years according to the dietician who designed the experiment. It really makes you think about what you put in your body.

Since I've started getting involved personally in fitness, I've improved the types of foods I've been eating. Without watching calories at all, my body fat has cut down to the lowest level it has ever been in my adult life. The fuel you put in your body makes a difference.

Now if they'll just let me out of the zoo.

More on diabetes and exercise

Keep checking in here to find out about the new Project You:Type 2 diabetes lifestyle solution. It is due out in August. In the meantime, here's some more support for the preventative effects of exercise. If you have diabetes, don't wait for PYT2. Get another great workout video from Beachbody, go take a walk, or jump on your bike. Just get moving. It is one of the best things you can do for your diabetes and for yourself!

From this morning's AMA Morning Rounds Newsletter:

Researchers say lifestyle changes may delay onset of type 2 diabetes.

In continuing coverage from a previous edition of Morning Rounds, MedPage Today (5/23, Neale) reported that "[i]n patients with impaired glucose tolerance, eating healthier and getting more exercise reduced the risk of diabetes for up to 20 years," according to a study published in the May 24 issue of The Lancet. Guangwei Li, M.D., of the China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing, and colleagues, randomized "576 Chinese adults who had impaired glucose tolerance...to a control group (138), or one of three intervention groups (438) -- diet, exercise, or diet and exercise -- for six years as part of the China Da Qing Diabetes Prevention Study." The researchers found that during this time, "there was a 51 percent lower rate of diabetes in the intervention group than in the control group." After an additional 14 years, the authors discovered that "80 percent of the patients in the intervention group had diabetes, compared with 93 percent in the control group." Essentially, patients "in the intervention group delayed the onset of diabetes by an average of 3.6 years."

Get off the Couch! Give me 20!

20 workouts in 30 days.

It's that easy. Once you commit and do 20 in 30, you'll have made exercise a habit, and a regular part of your life. Not only that, you'll start to see RESULTS that will make you want to keep going even more!


Here's Doc's easy 4 step program for success:
1. Pick out your favorite Beachbody workout.
2. Go to WOWY and schedule your workouts for the month.
3. By the end of the month, make sure your WOWY calendar has at least 20 X's.
4. Repeat.

Do this and you can't fail.

-Doc

The CEO and the Hairstylist

Carl Daikeler, CEO of Beachbody says that if he were a Beachbody coach who worked as a hairstylist, he'd put his before picture front and center on the mirror in front of his chair. When his customers come in for a haircut, they'll see the photo and ask about it. It will start a conversation about Beachbody and Carl's fitness goals. He'll tell his clients that every thirty days he will post his progress pictures.

That accomplishes 2 things. The first is that it takes away Carl's safety net. Now everyone knows he's working hard to eat right and get in shape. He can't fall because everyone is counting on seeing his results! The second thing, because his clients want him to succeed, want to be supportive, and want to see if he can do it, they'll book their next haircuts with him! He'll get in great shape AND get more business! It is a congruency of purpose, and it is a very strong motivator.

When you make every aspect of your life support the other, you will achieve greater happiness and greater success than if your goals are at odds with each other. Beachbody Coaching provides a way for you to create more congruency in your life. You may have goals of better health, losing weight, being there for your family, or setting a healthy example for your children. You may want to start earning more money, or to be your own boss.
Becoming a Beachbody Coach helps you achieve all your goals: better health, ability to help other people, to be around for and support your family, and to be a healthy role model. Exercising brings you health and fitness. Then, your new weight loss, improved energy, and enthusiasm makes people ask what you are doing to be so happy and look so good. This helps you build your business, which makes you even more motivated to be healthy which brings you more business.... it is a vicious cycle of health, wealth, and happiness. Not a bad cycle to get yourself stuck in!

Know Sweat, The Fit Doc's blog

Welcome to Know Sweat, The official blog of The Fit Doc!

Here The Fit Doc's crack team of investigative reporters (er, that's me) uncover the latest Beachbody news and bring it to you live and uncensored! (Well, as soon as I know about it, at least!) You'll find the latest on new workouts, exercise and motivation tips, and whatever else I'm thinking about at the moment! Check back often because you never know what will pop up on these pages!