Sneak the veggies into the diet

Here are some great tips for slipping more veggies into the diet.  I know I'm guilty of not getting my recommended servings per day, sounds like good tips to try!

• incorporate veggies into breakfast
• sneak leafy greens into fruit smoothies
• creative appetizers (think carrots instead of chips)
• double the amount of vegetables on your sandwich
• add more veg to your pasta sauce
• ask for the vegetable of the day (instead of fries) when dining out
• go vegetarian one night of the week

This is a paraphrase of a report on Fox News

Keep the "re-gain" from happening

Fewer people regain weight after a successful diet and exercise regimen than you might think, and certainly less than the 95 percent sometimes cited. But there are certain behaviors and triggers you need to avoid in order to maintain the healthier weight you have achieved, Fox News reported July 22.

Consolidate your victories in the battle of the bulge by:

§ Dropping the “diet” mindset: You won’t keep the pounds off if you think of dieting as a short-term period of depravation or a test of willpower. Long-term success depends upon adopting healthy eating habits over your lifetime, starting by eating whole foods and a balanced diet.

§ Getting proper sleep: You need sleep for your body to repair itself, and lack of sleep can increase stress and related overeating. Sleep is as important as exercise and healthy eating for maintaining healthy weight — shoot for seven or eight hours nightly.

§ Reducing your stress: Chronic stress leads to overproduction of the hormone cortisol, which increases cravings for fat and carbs and slows your metabolism. Try some daily yoga, meditation, or exercise to help calm your mind.

§ Be mindful of the effects of aging: Hormone imbalances can increase as you get older and go through menopause, which in turn can lead to weight gain. Work with your doctor to develop a treatment plan that includes healthy eating, regular exercise and sleep, stress management, and hormone therapy if needed.

seeking the sun (safely)

Wearing protective clothing is actually one of the best ways to avoid sunburns and skin cancer, and more designers are incorporating sun protection into high-style couture, the New York Times reported July 18.

Led by fashion- and sun-conscious female designers, the fashion industry has come out with clothing lines like Parasol, Mott 50, and Cover that are specifically designed to protect against the sun’s UV harmful rays. Whereas a typical white t-shirt has a ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) of 5, this clothing has a minimum UPF of 50, meaning that no more than 2 percent of UV rays can penetrate the fabric.

J Crew and Target also sell clothing with UPF ratings.

“It’s taken awhile to educate people on what sun-protective clothing is and how it’s different from regular clothing,” says Anne Reilly, a founder of Mott 50. “But it’s been a labor of love because my mom had melanoma and I lost my aunt to melanoma.” Some women buy the clothing to protect against skin cancer, while others simply want to avoid the aging effects of the sun, such as wrinkles, spots, and moles.

“A lot of Americans use sunscreen and a lot of clinicians recommend sunscreen, but there’s good data that sun-protective clothing is a more effective way to protect yourself from the harmful rays of the sun,” says dermatologist Elani Linos, M.D., of the University of California at San Francisco’s School of Medicine. “This is a critical issue as we’re seeing skyrocketing rates of skin cancer — some call it an epidemic — particularly among young people.”

Yoga

Burger lovers, read on...

When it comes to topping your burger, sandwich or salad, there are good condiments, bad ones, and some that fall in the middle in terms of your health, Self reported July 5.

Healthy toppings include:

     salsa: which has lots of vegetables and fiber

     mustard: which has few calories and certainly far less than most salad dressings, for example

     hummus: full of fiber and few calories

     guacamole: a good source of healthy fats

So-so choices include:

     ketchup: typically loaded with sugar and calories

     relish: surprisingly sugary

     BBQ and steak sauce: full of sugar and sodium

     teriyaki sauce: sugar, sodium, and MSG

Worst options:

     sour cream: try yogurt instead of this fatty food

     mayonnaise: another fat-filled topping that can be substituted with yogurt or some lower-fat varieties

4th of July

Don't forget that we will be closed for the 4th of July.  We will reopen on Friday the 5th at 7am.  That means our first group class will be instructor's choice (which, by the way, will be a yoga class this week).  We hope you all have a safe and wonderful holiday!

Yet another reason for a little weight loss

Losing even a little weight can yield a variety of significant health benefits for overweight people with Type 2 diabetes, USA Today reported June 24.

The Look AHEAD (Action for Health in Diabetes) study, led by researchers at Brown University, found that diabetes patients who took part a diet and exercise program lost more than twice as much weight, on average, as those who were enrolled in a diabetes education class. They also enjoyed reductions in their risk of chronic kidney disease, depression and eye disease, and had better blood sugar control, improved quality of life, fewer hospitalizations, and took less medication.

However, modest weight loss alone was not enough to lower their risk of heart attack and stroke, the study found.

The findings of the study led by Rena Wing were presented at the American Diabetes Association’s annual scientific meeting.

new group exercise schedule

Be sure to check out our new summer schedule that begins today.  There are lots of changes that have occurred, especially in our afternoon timeslots.  These are in response to the many, many requests we have received from members to have certain classes available in the evening hours.  A few classes have shifted time slots and some have gone away due to low summer attendance.   The great news is that if you are not a morning person or are not able to leave for class over the noon hour you can now come to body blast and pilates after work.  They are great classes and really worth trying out! See our new schedule at http://www.grmc.us/events/WFCschedule.pdf

Please ask any of our wellness staff if you have questions about the new schedule or the classes we offer.

Exercise Myths Busted!

Some familiar fitness canards are not just wrong but can be downright dangerous, Men’s Health reported June 9. Here’s some advice that you may here in the gym but should ignore:

Go big or go home: Trying to lift too much weight is a recipe for injury. Go slow and steady — work toward incremental gains. Train to technical failure: make the first rep where your form breaks down your last rep.

Push through the pain: There’s a difference between soreness and pain. Ignoring the latter risks serious injury. If it hurts to do an exercise, stop and look for an alternative that can work the same muscles without pain.

Protect your spine with crunches and abs: Actually, too many abdominal exercises can hurt the spine. Try stability exercises instead, like planks or those involving an exercise ball.

Instructor's Choice June 7th

Hello Everyone,
Come ready for a fun filled core workout! I hope to see you there!

walking with arthritis

Research shows the people with arthritis can benefit greatly from low-impact exercise like walking, but two out of three arthritic adults don’t regularly go for walks, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

MedPage Today reported May 3 that 53 percent of people with arthritis told pollsters that they don’t take walks at all, and another 13.1 percent said they walked less than 90 minutes total per week. Even so, walking was the most common type of physical activity reported by people with arthritis, with 5.3 percent saying the walked for 90 to 120 minutes, 5.6 percent saying they walked for 120 to 150 minutes, and 23.2 percent reporting walking more than 150 minutes weekly.

The Arthritis Foundation’s Walk With Ease program can help people with arthritis get more active; it entails walking three times a week for 30 to 40 minutes over a period of 6 weeks. “Walking is a low-impact, acceptable, convenient, inexpensive, feasible, and proven physical activity intervention that can help reduce arthritis pain, improve function, and move persons with arthritis along the continuum of physical activity,” according to the CDC.

The research was published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Memorial Day

In observance of Memorial Day, Grinnell Regional Wellness Services at the PWA Fitness Center and Postels Community Health Park will be CLOSED

Monday, May 27th. 

 

We will re-open Tuesday, May 28^th, with regular hours. 

 

 

Thank you and have a great holiday.

Bike to Work Week

May 13-11 is Bike to Work Week.  For those of us that need a little incentive to get a little more activity in their week, here's an opportunity to participate in a city-wide program.

In years gone by Grinnell has had an amazing representation for Bike to Work Week.  We have even put larger Des Moines area cities to shame.  It's not to late to register!  Visit  www.imaginegrinnell.org  to sign up and check out the events that are happening all week long. 

Instructor's Choice May 10th

Hello Everyone,
Come ready for a total body workout before the weekend starts! Hope to see you all there!

Town Hall meeting

Last night I (Jen) went to the town hall meeting.  The results from the Community Health Needs Assessment given and the presented information was pretty interesting.  One of the statistics that I didn't previously know was that Poweshiek county has a little bit higher rate of death from cardiovascular conditions when compared to the state average.  So here are some tips for better cardiovascular health.

Know your numbers.  Cholesterol and blood pressure screenings can provide vital information to you heart health

Stay compliant with your medications.  Make sure you follow the doctor's orders with your medications.  How many of us know a person that tried to reduce or even go off their meds on their own with negative results?  I certainly do.  Those medications are designed to keep your heart working in it's best state. 

Stay active.  Get your heart pumping in your recommended range at least 5 times a week and really every day is even better.  Don't remember your range?  We can help you find it!

Be mindful of your diet.  Make sure that you are eating those "heart healthy" foods while avoiding some of our less healthy choices as often as you can.

Instructors Choice May 3rd

Hello Everyone,
Come ready to work on your cardio. We will be jump roping, and other fun activities. Come have a great workout before the weekend starts!!

Unused drug disposal

Turn in your unused or expired medication for safe disposal

Saturday, April 27

10 am-2 pm


Spring street side of the Grinnell Public Safety Building
1020 Spring St.

visit www.dea.gov for more information

Get rid of that jelly belly

A flabby waistline isn’t just unattractive — belly fat has also been identified as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and other illnesses. As Fox News reported April 15, it takes more than sit-ups to get rid of abdominal fat, including:

§ Interval training to burn off the fat and show off your abs

§ Eating on a regular schedule, because skipping meals causes your body to raise levels of the stress hormone cortisol and store fat

§ Avoiding sweets, which mess with your blood sugar and — when consumed in excess — get stored as fat

§ Eating more healthy fats like those found in nuts, avocado and olive oil, which will give you a sense of fullness and increase your metabolism

§ Getting a good night’s sleep

§ Relaxing, which will decrease cortisol levels and prevent stress-related weight gain

Instructors Choice April 19 2013

Hello Everyone,
Come for a great circuit workout to start your weekend! Hope to see you there.

Strength Training Study

More repetitions with lighter weights will make you stronger over the long term than lifting more weight but fewer reps — and you’re less likely to get hurt, too, says Stuart Phillips, professor of kinesiology at McMaster University.

The New York Times reported April 5 that research shows that lifting 30 percent of your muscle capacity to the point of failure (usually 15 to 20 repetitions) can add the same amount of muscle as lifting 80 percent of your maximum with fewer repetitions. However, lifting lighter weights also builds endurance, burns more total calories, and results in fewer injuries.

If you get to the point where you can lift a weight more than 20 times, then increase the weight incrementally.