For March 13, 2010

• Experts Warn: Ease Into Hot Weather Workouts
  Experts Warn: Ease Into Hot Weather Workouts

  WASHINGTON (AP)--For couch potatoes who begin an exercise program when it's hot, even working up a sweat takes practice.

  The practice is called acclimatization. It's the process of getting your body used to the special demands of hot weather. "You don't sweat as much until you are acclimated," said Dr. Janice Zimmerman, director of the medical emergency center at Ben Taub General Hospital and an associate professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

  Beginners should not feel alone in this. Even trained athletes who plunge into working out in hot weather could benefit from time to adjust, Zimmerman said. "A period of acclimatization is necessary from a safety standpoint for just about everybody," she said. The risk in not easing into exercise is in overexerting before your body has learned how to shed heat efficiently. The outcomes could range from having a less rewarding workout to, in the worst cases, triggering an underlying heart problem or fatal heat stroke.

  The body has two main ways of doing controlling heat, Zimmerman said. One is to dilate blood vessels near the skin. Blood that's heated in the body core by exercise can be cooled by radiating the heat through the skin into the air. Dilated blood vessels bring more blood to the skin. "It operates kind of like a car radiator does," Zimmerman said. The other method is by sweat production, which acts more like the car's air conditioner. Evaporation has a cooling effect. And when sweat evaporates, it gives up heat, which cools the skin. "The more you sweat, the more heat you lose," Zimmerman said. "As people get acclimated, they sweat more and lose heat better."

  How long it takes to become acclimated varies from person to person, Zimmerman said. Trained athletes, who already sweat efficiently, take less time than do untrained people to get used to heat. However, the technique of acclimatization is the same for the trained and untrained - starting at a comfortable level and increasing it gradually.

  Sweat output requires liquid input to keep the body's water level up. And people can lose water more easily than they realize. "The best way to say it is, if you just go by thirst alone, you'll probably underdrink by a third," said Mike Sawka, chief of the Thermal and Mountain Medicine Division, U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Natick, Mass.

  That's because the brain doesn't sense thirst until the fluid levels are already drawn down. The body then has to play catchup, drinking until the feeling of being thirsty goes away. As hot weather wears on and people become used to it, they become better at matching their liquid needs to their liquid output, Sawka said. But a person can lose 3 percent of body weight before feeling thirsty, Zimmerman said. And people may go through the summer in a continuous state of slight dehydration. This can account for the pounds that many people lose each summer, thinking they've been burning more calories by being more active, she said. "People are proud of that fact, but the reality is they are losing water, not fat," she said.

  People also can see their exercise performance drop without realizing it, Sawka said. "If I ride a bike and I'm not competing, I'll just notice I rode a little slower - or I might not notice," he said. An athlete keeping track of time or distance might feel thirsty but not care, focusing instead on the event, Sawka noted. And an older person might not notice thirst quickly, he said - age dulls the ability to sense thirst. This is especially a risk for older people because dehydration, which makes the heart beat faster, can trigger underlying problems such as heart disease, he said.

  For all exercisers, the way to head off trouble is to drink even when they are not thirsty, and water is the best drink, the experts said. Sports drinks that replace sweated-off carbohydrates and electrolytes are valuable only for people who exercise an hour or more, Sawka said. Some drinks should be avoided, Zimmerman said. Alcohol is among these, she said - it is a diuretic, so it makes you excrete water. Caffeine is a mild diuretic, so drinks with caffeine are "better than nothing," she said.

  However, a noted researcher sees value in some flavored drinks. The use of salt and carbohydrates, as found in sports drinks, stimulates thirst, said Dr. Oded Bar-Or of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. His research looked at children, but the results probably hold for adults as well, the Canadian scientist said.

  In Bar-Or's experiments, children who got a lab-prepared flavored drink with salt and carbohydrates drank enough to keep themselves fully hydrated. Flavored water alone left his test subjects slightly dehydrated, and plain chilled water did even less good, he said.

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• Dan Wirth - Part 1: Simple Guidelines for Effective Aerobic Training
  Dan Wirth - Part 1: Simple Guidelines for Effective Aerobic Training

  This is Part 1 of a 2 Part article. Part 2 will run tomorrow, August 2nd.

  What is aerobic training? Any form of exercise that uses the large muscle groups of the body in a rhythmic and controlled fashion for a given period of time. Energy development and utilization is in the presence of adequate amounts of oxygen. Walking, Jogging, Swimming, Biking, Roller Blading, Stair Stepping, etc. can be forms of aerobic training if utilized at the specific intensity and for the proper duration.

  Fundamental Guidelines

  • Frequency - 3 to 6 times per week
  • Duration - 20 to 60 minutes per session
  • Intensity - See guidelines below

  Intensity guidelines - There are two common ways to estimate where your heart rate should be at when performing aerobic exercise.

  Method 1

  Age Predicted Max Heart Rate Method Train at 60% - 85% of age predicted max heart rate. (Ideal range would be 70% - 80%) example: 220 minus age = Age Predicted Max Heart Rate (APMHR) (APMHR) x .6 to .85 = Threshold Training Heart Rate Range 220 - 40 years = 180 (APMHR) 180 x .60 = 108 beats per minute 180 x .85 = 153 beats per minute Threshold Training Range is 108 to 153 beats per minute!

  Method 2

  Karvonen Method Train at 60% - 80% of age predicted max heart rate. (Because this approach to determining the threshold training heart rate tends to give a somewhat higher value compared to the APMHR the ideal range is 65% - 75%. This equation is a little more involved also :) This formula uses both your Age Predicted Max Heart Rate (APMHR)and your Resting Heart Rate (RHR). This makes it more individualized to you! example: 220 - 40 years = 180 (APMHR) 180 - 63(RHR) = 117 117 x .60 + 63 (RHR) = 133 beats per minute 117 x .80 + 63 (RHR) = 156 beats per minute Threshold Training Range is 133 to 156 beats per minute!

  What is anaerobic training? Anaerobic Training is higher intensity exercise that varies in duration. Energy development and utilization is without adequate oxygen delivery. The by-product of anaerobic exercise is Lactic Acid accumulation. Weight training, sprinting, basketball, and high intensity, short duration athletic events are all examples of anaerobic training.

  What are the benefits of aerobic and anaerobic training? Increased cardiovascular health, better appearance, reduced blood pressure and heart rate, improved blood profile, increased energy, improved body fat percentage, weight control, and enhanced athletic performance!

  Dan Wirth M.A., C.S.C.S.

  Fitness Director (Fitrex.com)

  Director of Strength and Conditioning

  The University of Arizona

  Part 2 of this article, covering weight training, will run tomorrow!

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• 4 Secrets to Looking Young
  4 Secrets to Looking Young

  Nutrition Anti-aging Secrets

  

  (MSN Health Channel by WebMD, October 4th 1999), By Elizabeth Somer, M.A., R.D. � Feeling and looking young is more within your control than you think. Much of what people have assumed are the inevitable consequences of aging -- wrinkles, memory loss, an escalating risk for heart disease, osteoporosis and cancer -- results more from the lifestyle choices you make than from the natural aging process. And our dietary choices are just as important as using sunscreen, getting exercise and other preventive tactics.

  Vitamins to Increase As You Age

  As you age, your body processes nutrients less efficiently, resulting in the need to increase nutrient intake. For example, vitamin D is a nutrient essential to the prevention of osteoporosis. Your body manufactures vitamin D when your skin is exposed to sunlight, but by your 70s your body produces only 40 percent of what it produced in third grade. According to the Food and Nutrition Board (FNB), an adequate dosage of vitamin D for people in their 20s is 200 IU; for people who are older, 400 IU to 600 IU is needed to do the same amount of work. It's impossible to say at exactly which age you should be getting this much, but because aging is a continuum, you should gradually increase your intake so that by age 60 or so you are up to around 600 IU.

  The need for B vitamins increases with age as well. Three B vitamins -- folic acid, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12 -- are essential for keeping levels of a compound called homocysteine low in the blood; if allowed to rise, homocysteine contributes to heart-disease risk and possibly memory loss, according to a study in a 1998 European Journal of Pediatrics. As you age, increase your B6 dose from 2 mg to 5 mg; increase B12 over time from 2 mcg to 10 mcg, according to the FNB. Women should take 400 mcg of folic acid daily; pregnant women should take 800 mcg daily (to help prevent neural-tube defects in the fetus).

  Women, in particular, should be aware that their calcium intake should increase as they age to prevent osteoporosis: According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), during the middle years, 1,000 mg each day is adequate; 1,200 mg after menopause if you're on hormone replacement therapy; 1,500 mg if you are not. (Experts at the NIH also recommend that adolescent girls take 1,200 mg to 1,300 mg.)

  Consume "Anti-Aging" Produce

  People who consume diets loaded with fresh fruits and vegetables have lower disease rates, more energy and less risk for weight gain (which can lead to health problems) than those who skip these foods, according to numerous studies published over the years. What's the magic ingredient in fresh produce? There are several: With the exception of avocados, olives and coconuts, fresh fruits and vegetables have no fat, cholesterol or sodium.

  They are also fiber-rich: Eight servings of fruits and vegetables daily supplies approximately 27 grams of fiber, well within the daily target goal of 25 grams to 35 grams. Fiber-rich foods lower a person's risk for developing age-related diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and hypertension. Fiber-rich foods also are low in calories, yet satiating, so they help fill you up without filling you out.

  Fresh fruits and vegetables are nutrient-packed, providing ample amounts of calcium, iron, magnesium, vitamin C, beta carotene and folic acid, and they are low in calories (a heaping bowlful of greens supplies only 30 calories!).

  The National Cancer Institute recommends a minimum of five fruit-and-vegetable servings a day, but research shows that the more servings, the greater the health benefits. Therefore, to fend off the hands of time, you should try to consume at least eight servings of fruits and vegetables each day (two at every meal and two as snacks).

  Load Up on Age-Defying Antioxidants

  Fruits and vegetables also are gold mines of longevity-enhancing compounds called antioxidants; these include vitamins C and E and beta carotene. Antioxidants combat free radicals, oxygen fragments that attack and damage cell membranes, life-sustaining proteins and even your cells' genetic code. Antioxidants stop the radicals, preventing them from bringing about aging and disease.

  Diets rich in antioxidants may help prevent disease and premature aging. Antioxidants also stimulate the immune system and protect the nervous system and brain from the oxidative damage associated with age-related memory loss. A 1993 Harvard School of Public Health study found that adults who supplemented daily with at least 100 IU of vitamin E for at least two years had up to a 40 percent reduction in heart-disease risk.

  Make Every Bite Count

  Cut back on unnecessary calories, and you stack the deck in favor of living longer. Studies of small mammals have shown that in every case these animals have increased their lifespan from two- to four-fold by cutting back on food intake. Such animals have lower rates of all age-related diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, cancer, memory loss and dwindling immunity.

  Don't confuse reducing calories with malnutrition, however. Lower your intake of foods containing fat and sugar but continue to eat foods chockful of nutrients including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and nonfat milk products.

  Copyright � 1999 WebMD, Inc. All rights reserved.

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• Does Blood Type Affect Diet Choices?
  Does Blood Type Affect Diet Choices?

  December 16, 1999

  The Medical Tribune

  Q: Does a person's blood type indicate the type of diet he or she should follow?

  A: No. You may have heard of a diet based on the idea that blood type indicates whether your genetic ancestors were hunters, farmers or nomads. This in turn tells you whether you should eat meat, chicken, dairy foods, etc. Supposedly, eating appropriately for your blood type helps control weight while preventing cancer and other health problems. Although reports of such a diet may include vague references to someone's "research," no research supporting such claims has appeared in a scientific journal where it could be reviewed by experts.

  Any weight loss that results from such a diet is probably due to the menus prescribed by the diet. These menus often contain calorie levels that are quite low, and many foods are restricted. Most experts agree that long-term weight control is best achieved by unrestricted access to a variety of foods, with emphasis on portion control, nutritional balance and regular exercise.

  As for cancer prevention, a landmark report from the American Institute for Cancer Research concluded that a diet that emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains and beans is the best approach.

  Copyright 1999 Medical PressCorps News Service. All rights reserved.

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• Fen-Phen Loses Major Case in Court
  Fen-Phen Loses Major Case in Court

  (MSNBC News, Aug. 6 1999) � A Texas woman who suffered heart-valve damage won a $23 million jury award Friday in the first verdict involving the diet-drug combination fen-phen.

  MEDICAL RESEARCHERS have warned for a long time that the diet drug fen-phen could cause heart problems but it was not until Friday that a jury put a price tag on the injuries a person has suffered from taking the drug. In Texas, a jury awarded more than $23 million to Deborah Lovett, 36, who claimed her heart valves were injured after she took the diet drug combination called fen-phen. The drug�s maker, American Home Products, said it would appeal, but the verdict is a damaging blow and there may be many more to come.

  �We have made a statement that they can�t do this to people like me and you,� said Lovett, following the announcement of the verdict. The verdict is a big legal defeat for American Home Products, whose drug division made one of the pills in the fen-phen pair. Texas jurors agreed with Deborah Lovett�s lawyers, who claimed the company failed to warn doctors that fen-phen could cause heart damage. �If the doctors would have had any idea, I wouldn�t have been on the medicine in the first place,� said Lovett.

  The company, vowing to appeal, said Lovett had heart trouble long before she ever started on fen-phen. �She had a pre-existing heart valve problem that had been going on for almost seven years before she first took any diet drug medication,� said Bob Schick, a company lawyer. But Lovett claimed taking fen-phen made her heart trouble much worse.

  MORE THAN 3,000 CASES

  The fen-phen drugs, taken by millions of dieting Americans, were pulled off the market two years ago after medical researchers discovered that the combination could weaken heart valves. Since then, nearly 3,000 fen-phen users have sued the American Home Products, whose drug division made the pills.

  Several of those cases have been settled. But legal experts say the company�s big loss Friday, against a woman who already had heart trouble, means future settlement will cost much more. �They will pay more money to settle the meritorious cases that have been filed. It increases the size of the plaintiff�s likely demands,� said Ellen Pryor, a professor at SMU Law School.

  The company still hopes it can settle most of the remaining cases � possibly by working out a deal with fen-phen users that could even include paying for regular medical checkups for those who took the diet drug and haven�t yet developed any heart trouble. But recent federal court decisions have made it harder to work out big nationwide settlements. And Friday�s verdict makes the company even more vulnerable to lawsuits.

  DRUG HISTORY

  Fenfluramine, the �fen� part of fen-phen, had been sold since the 1970s but became widely used in the 1990s when doctors prescribed it in combination with phentermine. When taken alone, phentermine was never associated with health problems. It remains on the market. Lawyers for Madison, N.J.-based American Home Products argued that Lovett was seeking compensation for a health condition she had before taking the drug and said her obesity was a bigger threat than the drug.

  �Obesity is a serious health risk,� attorney Joe Piorkowski said in closing arguments. �This is not a dangerous product. The fact that it is not on the market (now) doesn�t mean it was a dangerous product at the time. The benefits outweighed the risk.� But Lovett�s lawyers told jurors that American Home Products was motivated by profit and hid evidence that its diet drugs caused valvular heart disease.

  Attorney Kip Petroff said the company knew of dozens of reports of heart damage in patients taking the drugs, but did not warn the FDA or doctors. �They did wrong and they hurt her,� he said.

  The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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• Ten Gym Mistakes Beginners Make
  Ten Gym Mistakes Beginners Make

  And How To Avoid Them

  Originally featured in: Men's Fitness

  Being new at the gym is awkward enough, but starting a workout program without knowing what you're doing is far worse. In our attempt to impart enlightenment for the weight-room initiate, we present 10 common mistakes you should know about -- immediately.

  Using incorrect form while bench pressing (dumbbell or barbell):

  Regardless of whom you see doing it at the gym, don't pick your feet up from the floor when you bench. Some people tell you to keep your feet up so you don't arch your back during the movement. But if you have to arch your back, you're benching way beyond your abilities. Switch to a lighter weight to ensure that your feet are always solidly planted. This will keep you from toppling off the bench and injuring yourself or others.

  Holding your breath:

  This may seem ridiculously obvious, but remember to breathe when you lift. Sometimes, when an activity is new, you concentrate so much on doing it correctly that you forget to let your body do its natural things, like breathing. The breathing pattern for lifting is to exhale on the positive phase (pushing or pulling the weight) and inhale on the negative (lowering the weight). Holding your breath can raise your blood pressure and, if you hold it long enough, cause fainting.

  Not using collars:

  Always use collars on the bars when you're working without a spotter. Everybody has a weaker side of the body, and this weakness is exaggerated in the initial phases of weight training. During a lift, the bar may begin to lean imperceptibly toward the weaker side of the body. As it tilts, the plates slide downward until they suddenly spill off the bar and the opposite side drops in a quick seesaw action-- accompanied by a loud clanging of iron. You're left standing or lying red-faced, not physically hurt, perhaps, but definitely diminished in the pectoral pecking order. Use collars.

  Fearing that you'll get too big:

  Don't ever say this in the gym, or you'll instantly be branded a gymbecile. The reality is that few people put on as much muscle as they want; most settle for a physique better than the one they started with, but hardly the one they idealize. Remember: A pound of muscle is approximately the size of a baseball, while a pound of fat is about the size of a softball. In other words, you can add plenty of lean muscle before your biceps burst through your shirt sleeves.

  Spotting incorrectly:

  Hang around a gym long enough and, sooner or later, you'll either be asked to spot or need one yourself. If you suspect you're going to need a spot, ask for it. Gym rats are always more than willing, and it's much better to ask quietly for a spot than to scream loudly for help once you're in trouble. If you're asked to spot a guy who's benching 500 pounds and you know you couldn't roll that, much less lift it, be honest and say so. To fail as a spotter and endanger someone is unforgivable.

  Trying to spot reduce:

  There's no such thing. If you have a belly, wearing a plastic suit or some sort of gizmo around your stomach as you exercise won't transform your legendary flab into equally fabulous abs. Neither will doing 20,000 crunches a day. The only way to develop and see your abs is to exercise and watch your diet. You can have the strongest abs in the world, but if they're swathed in fat, no one will ever see them.

  Starting too heavy:

  Resist the temptation to lift as much as you can the first few times in the gym, even if the smaller guy next to you is lifting more. While your muscles may be able to lift the weight, your connective tissues probably aren't ready for it. Go for high reps the first few times and gradually work your way heavier, especially in pushing exercises such as the bench press and any of the shoulder exercises.

  There's no sense in building stronger muscles without corresponding strength in the connective tissue to avoid injury. And there's no sense in trying to outlift that smaller guy if you shorten your limbs in the process.

  Playing a personal stereo too loudly:

  Wearing a personal stereo is a good idea if you don't like the music in the gym. We all know music picks up spirit and energy, but remember to keep it low. Headphones regularly emit more than 100 dBA. Sustained exposure to sounds over 85 dBA can cause temporary damage or permanent hearing loss. If you can't hear somebody speaking to you in a normal voice, turn it down. No sense becoming buff and deaf.

  Not drinking enough water:

  Your blood is 85 percent water, your brain 75 percent and your muscles 70 percent. Drink lots of it. If a muscle is dehydrated by 3 percent, it loses 10 percent of its contractile strength. Drink before you're thirsty. By the time you're conscious of thirst, you're already partially dehydrated, which can adversely affect stamina and concentration. To keep from becoming a stumbling, mumbling gym zombie, drink water. It's even calorie-free.

  Wearing a weight belt:

  Don't wear a weight belt when you're just starting out. The weight you use shouldn't be so heavy that you need a belt to lift it (if you have back problems, see a doctor before starting). Wearing a belt can cause you to develop poor lifting habits, such as not consciously tightening your abs as you lift. If you have to wear a belt, remember to loosen it between sets. A tight belt can raise blood pressure and cause ulcer-like symptoms, such as heartburn or abdominal pain. Remember, the belt is designed to help support the lower back, not act as a girdle.

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