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Vol. 12 No. 2, March-April 2010
Copyright 2010 by Wolf J. Rinke
mailto:WolfRinke@aol.com
http://www.WolfRinke.com
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IN THIS ISSUE
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1. NEWS YOU CAN USE
2. EXERCISE-YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT
3. HEAR WOLF "HOWL"--I MEAN SPEAK
4. HUMOR BREAK
5. ABOUT THE EDITOR
6. PRIVACY STATEMENT AND SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
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HUMEROUS INSIGHT BREAK
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Too many people confine their exercise to jumping to conclusions, running
up bills, stretching the truth, bending over backward, lying down on
the job, sidestepping responsibility and pushing their luck.
-Unknown
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1. NEWS YOU CAN USE
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Aerobic Exercise Keeps Your Brain Fit
A randomized clinical study of 59 elderly subjects found that the brain's
decline which starts at about age 40, may be arrested and even reversed
by aerobic exercise. As little as three hours of moderate exercise per
week, such as brisk walking, resulted in "significant increases
in brain volume, in both gray and white matter regions." According
to the researchers "these results suggest that cardiovascular fitness
is associated with the sparing of brain tissues in aging humans [and
provide] a strong biological basis for the role of aerobic fitness in
maintaining and enhancing central nervous system health."
ACTION STEPS
Read the article in paragraph 3 and get started on an aerobic exercise
program today.
Source: S. J. Colcombe et al., "Aerobic Exercise Training Increases
Brain Volume in Aging Humans." Journal of Gerontology Series A:
Biological and Medical Sciences 61: 1166-1170, 2006. (www.biomed.gerontologyjournals.org/cgi)
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2. EXERCISE-YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT
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In the Sep/Oct 09 issue of this eNewsletter I described easy to implement
activities that will get you to move and live longer and healthier.
In this issue we'll talk about how you can take it to the next level
and achieve fitness benefits such as brain health, increased muscle
strength and improved cardio respiratory capacity. To achieve these
benefits requires that you find a sustained aerobic exercise program
that you love. Only then will you stick with it and do it regularly!
Research tells us that for every hour of aerobic exercise your life
expectancy is extended by about two years. (Read that again.) Pretty
good return on investment, isn't it? Plus lack of exercise makes you
fat, sick and stupid. (I thought that would get your attention.) Studies
show that one of the best ways to improve your brainpower is by exercising
your body. It seems that aerobic exercise-the stuff that keeps you lean
and healthy-also provides you with a brain-booster, improving your memory
and concentration. Washington Post author Powledge, concluded "in
scores of human studies going back at least two decades, researchers
have demonstrated that exercise improves cognitive functions and the
moods that affect them." The reason is that vigorous exercise stimulates
brain cell production, reduces stress and combats the decline in brain
capacity. (See News You Can Use above.) Yet according to the Surgeon
General's report on Physical Activity and Health, fewer than one in
seven American adults take part in a vigorous workout at least three
days a week; and one in four get virtually no exercise at all.
And no, it's never too late. A 30-year study at the University of Texas
Southwestern Medical Center found that starting a moderately intense
but regular exercise program for six months-even for subjects who let
themselves go for 30 years-were able to restore their aerobic capacity
to levels they had when they were young adults. The study also showed
the disastrous consequences of inactivity at any age. For example, researchers
found that three weeks of intensive bed rest did more damage to the
subjects' aerobic capacity than 30 years of aging. In short, exercise
to become fit, your life depends on it!
Fitness, according to the American College of Sports Medicine (http://www.acsm.org)
consists of four components:
1. Aerobic Fitness
This is the ability of the body to take in oxygen and convert it to
energy, also called "cardio respiratory endurance." You can
achieve this fitness by doing intensive aerobic exercise such as jogging,
fast walking, swimming or cycling three to five days a week. Or you
can go to the health club and do 30 minutes on an aerobic machine. The
goal is that the exercise be continuous and increase your heart rate
to about 80% of maximum. This improves endurance and fitness while increasing
your ability to burn fat as an energy source. However, since aerobic
exercise cranks up your metabolic rate and energizes you, I suggest
that if at all possible, exercise first thing in the morning, instead
of in the evening. Otherwise it might keep you up at night.
2. Muscular Fitness
This refers to the strength and endurance of your muscles. To achieve
this fitness requires that you do resistance exercises such as lifting
weights or using a strength-training machine two to three times per
week. The easy way to achieve this is to do about 15 to 20 minutes of
calisthenics or using dumbbells and ankle weights. At the gym you can
accomplish this by lifting weights for the same period of time. Regardless
of how you accomplish it, the goal is to strengthen each major muscle
group-the arms, chest, abdomen, shoulders, back, legs, and hips.
3. Flexibility
This has to do with your ability to stretch your muscles through their
full range of motion and to flex your joints. The easy way to achieve
this is to incorporate five minutes of range-of-motion and stretching
exercises before and after your aerobic exercise program three to five
days per week. The goal is to stretch the muscles, not stress them.
Go the point when you feel mild tension-don't bounce-then hold the stretch
for about 10 seconds.
4. Body Composition
This refers to the proportion of fat to muscle tissue as well as other
tissues such as bones and organs. The goal is to decrease fat tissue
and increase muscle tissue. (To lose one pound of fat per week requires
you to burn about 500 calories per day, or take in 500 fewer calories
per day. One pound of body weight represents approximately 3,500 calories.)
Aerobic exercise makes your body more efficient at burning fuel, hence
you tend to lose more effectively when you exercise and at the same
time reduce the number of calories you consume. A 30-minute brisk walk,
15-minute moderate run or 30 to 45 minutes of gardening or heavy housework
such as vacuuming will burn about 150 calories. (That really sucks,
doesn't it?)
So get out of your chair, exercise regularly, eat a balanced diet,
reduce your intake of fats, and you will become fit and live a happier,
healthier and longer life.
Source: Excerpted from W. J. Rinke, Beat the Blues--How to Manage Stress
and Balance Your Life, (CPE Home Study Course Approved for 28 CPEUs),
Wolf Rinke Associates, Clarksville, MD, 2006, http://www.wolfrinke.com/CEFILES/cepd.html#C178.
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3. HEAR WOLF HOWL--I MEAN SPEAK
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These full day seminars maybe open to you if your company is a member
of the Institute of Management Studies (IMS). Contact the chairperson
for specifics.
May 13, 2010. San Francisco, CA. "Winning Management: Building
a High Performance Workplace." Contact: Ginny Von der Schmidt,
sanfran-IMS@pacbell.net.
Sep. 14, 2010. Philadelphia, PA. "Increasing Your Personal Leadership
Effectiveness." Contact: Joe Paesani, joe_paesani@verizon.net
I have other "in-house" presentations scheduled throughout
North America. Please let me know if you are interested to preview me
or bring me into your organization at reduced expenses when I'm scheduled
to be in your area. That way we can let you know when I'm coming your
way!
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4. HUMOR BREAK
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A female friend of mine felt that her body had gotten totally out of
shape, so she decided to join a fitness club and start exercising.
Here is what happened on her first day of her aerobics class:
"I bent, twisted, gyrated, jumped up and down, and perspired for
an hour. But, by the time I got my leotards on, the class was over."
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5. ABOUT THE EDITOR
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Dr. Wolf J. Rinke, CSP is a highly effective management consultant and
executive coach who specializes in building peak performance organizations,
teams and individuals. He is the author of 12 CPE manuals, available
at www.easyCPEcredits.com and 5 books including "Make It a Winning
Life: Success Strategies for Life, Love and Business" available
at www.WolfRinke.com. He is also an internationally recognized motivational
and management keynote speaker and seminar leader who delivers customized
presentations that combine story telling, humor and motivation with
specific "how to" action strategies that participants can
apply immediately to improve their personal and professional lives.
You can preview a live demo at www.WolfRinke.com. To take advantage
of Dr. Rinke's services contact us at 800-828-9653 or WolfRinke@aol.com
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6. PRIVACY STATEMENT AND SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
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