News Taffy

My husband gave me an article from a medical journal that he found compelling, and we felt worth sharing. Inspired by the upcoming London Olympic games, a research group compiled data on the effect of inactivity on major diseases including heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, breast and colon cancer. Their findings showed that being inactive is as harmful as smoking or being obese and that an increase in activity would significantly improve one’s health, perhaps by as much as nine percent.

If you are inactive AND smoke AND are overweight, just think how much you are shortening your life span! This is further evidence that we are most often the cause of our own health problems. It is time to quit looking for excuses and to look no further than in a mirror to find the culprit.

If you have been totally inactive and already have health problems, talk with your doctor before beginning any exercise. Otherwise, get up and get moving! Set some small goals. Perhaps you could plan to walk 10 minutes on three different nights the first week, then increase it to 15 minutes. The next week you add another day. You could even do this on your lunch break since the fall weather is so nice. At least by the second or third week, make sure you aren’t just taking a leisurely stroll. Push yourself to walk fast enough that you are a little breathless. A friend is always a good motivator to keep up the exercise plan. Because it is safe and climate controlled, not to mention free, many people walk at the mall. I favor getting outside as much as possible because I’m old school and believe the fresh air and sunshine does a body good.

Walk With A Doc is still going though I’m ashamed to say that participation is spotty. It appears that people either don’t care enough to try to help themselves or they are afraid to come out and get started. If the latter is the case, don’t worry. There are no great athletes at these walks. The purpose is to get people moving and to provide an opportunity for the community to talk with a doctor while they walk. Yes! An opportunity to ask questions of a doctor for free! The walk starts at 7:30 a.m. at the Mall At Turtle Creek in the food court on the second Saturday of the month. My husband did meet a woman this past weekend who said she came once and has been walking more often ever since. See, it works!

Most people won’t stay with an exercise program if they don’t have a friend, trainer or a class to keep them motivated. However, another time to squeeze in some exercise is at night in front of the TV. Jog in place, do a few pushups or sit-ups during the commercials. Every little bit helps. You just might feel better.

Until next week,
Lisa