Now, I’m no fan of fad diets and/or workouts BUT, there is a workout video set that I was introduced to by my ex and that I AM a fan of, that helps with the variety - P90x. It’s one of those workouts that you do and don’t feel the next day, but 2 days later you feel it. Most fad workouts come and go, but this one seems to have people a little more converted than most. And most things you get sick of, but this one has such a variety of different disks, you don’t get as bored as easily. Here’s a little video taste of it:

I have been realizing the importance, as I had heard many times before, of having a variety to your workouts. Lately, I have been alternating between Zumba class, road biking, jogging, and my P90x workouts. I just do whatever I feel like that day, and I’ve noticed that I’m much happier. This might not make me a hard core 1/2 marathon runner, but as long as I look and feel good, who cares?  Tust do something every day and it will be a LOT more enjoyable!

Apparently, those with a BMI of 35-39 (moderately obese range) have a 21% increased risk of dying during severe car crashes, and those in the severely obese range (40+ BMI) have a 56% higher chance of dying in severe crashes as well. Interestingly, however, overweight individuals - NOT obese - (BMI between 25 and 29) had a decreased risk of death compared with normal-weight individuals. Also, underweight individuals (BMIs below 18.5) also had an increased risk of death because of the lack of extra cushioning.

The research suggests that having a little bit of extra body wieght cushions the impact of the crash. However, having a larger stomach puts the individual too close to the steering wheel. What also may cause complications is that usually obese people have other serious health problems that make surgeries after a crash far more difficult. Some are starting to advise that car companies also test their cars with obese crash dummies and make the seats able to slide back even further while driving.

The following is the formula to maintain your weight so obviously, consume less if you would like to/need to lose weight. (side note: I’m not a super fan of counting every single calorie one consumes – some people are and that’s awesome – whatever works for you is great.  I’m more of a glance at the calories and ‘holy crap that has so many I better not eat it’ kind of person – know what I mean? In other words, I think it has its place in helping us make better eating decisions)

1. Calculate your BMR = basal metabolic rate. This is the amount of energy our body needs to complete the basic functions of living. This is what about 60% of the calories we consume each day is used for. To calculate:   (the calculations are only for adults)

Women:
655 + (4.3 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) – (4.7 x age in years)

Men:
66 + (6.3 x weight in pounds) + (12.9 x height in inches) – (6.8 x age in years)

2. Calculate based on activity level:

• If you are sedentary : BMR x 20 percent
• If you are lightly active: BMR x 30 percent
• If you are moderately active (You exercise most days a week.): BMR x 40 percent
• If you are very active (You exercise intensely on a daily basis or for prolonged periods.): BMR x 50 percent
• If you are extra active (You do hard labor or are in athletic training.): BMR x 60 percent

3. Add this number to your BMR and you’re done!  This is the amount of calories that one needs to maintain their weight. As you lose more weight, however, you’ll need to of course adjust the formula.   My number is about 1900. What’s yours?

A study that was done in 2007 says that us Americans are getting worse and worse at eating our vegatables, despite all we know about how good they are for us, and the benefits of eating them. The study showed that fruit consumption has stayed about the same while veggies had gone down. Why is that?? And of those who did eat veggies, they tended to eat the same kinds over and over, instead of getting the recommended variety. I know for myself, I will sometimes go a few days without eating them at all. So how can we eat more of them?

Something that I like to do that helps beef up the veggie amount (whoops, I mean “beat” up the veggie amount – haha) is to take normal foods that we eat all the time, such as: mac n cheese, pizza, ramen noodles, etc. and add veggies to them. I put things like raw or slightly sauteed broccoli, onions, peas & carrots, zucchini, etc. in these. I get some criticism for this, but it’s a lot more delicious, too! Just give it a try:)

A few suggestions are given by WebMD where it states the study (click here for it) as well as from the New York Times. Some of them are:

*

I know that we’ve probably all heard these before, but I know that I tend to forget sometimes how incredibly awesome exercise is for us. And, as I’ve said before with smoking, I think it’s much more positive to focus on things like this than how bad obesity is for one’s body. Those who are overweight probably already know this and are maybe sick of hearing about it. So let’s talk about how great it is to get out there and start moving (these are from the Mayo Clinic:

1. It improves your mood – it stimulates the brain, calms you down, makes you look and feel better, giving you greater confidence and improving self-esteem. Exercise has been proven to combat depression.

2. It combats the chronic diseases that are the top killers of Americans today. It helps to manage and prevent hight blood pressure and high cholesterol. It also prevents heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosos, and certain types of cancer. If you already have any of these, exercising helps to lessen the effects of these diseases.

3. It helps to manage your weight. Even the little things, like taking the stairs & parking farther away help out.

4. It boosts your energy level & therefore makes the tasks of life easier. This is because of the improvement of the carrying of oxygen to all of the body’s tissues.

5. It promotes better sleep – this also translates to more energy, less depression, better concentration and mood. Getting exercise can help you fall asleep faster and get a deeper sleep.

6. It can be fun! Make sure to do something you enjoy for exercise. There are lots of options, even for those who have a tight budget.

Some other benefits from WebMD: stronger muscles, improved skin, increased relaxation, better immune function, clearer thinking

So there you have it. Hopefully that motivates you to go out and get started! Just do the best you can and go from there. Be consistent and spread the exercise time throughout your day if you need to.

To check out the CDC’s newest recommendations for the amount of physical activity you should be getting, click here.

Yes, yes, and yes. I have found that I’m pretty passionate about this subject, and I personally believe that soda should just be done away with. But, instead of just giving you personal opinions, I will share with you what I’ve found. First of all, on WikiAnswers (if you’re the type of person that will count that as a source) it had an interesting explanation of what soda does to your body:

“Within the first 10 minutes, 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. This is 100 percent of your recommended daily intake, and the only reason you don’t vomit as a result of the overwhelming sweetness is because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor.

Within 20 minutes, your blood sugar spikes, and your liver responds to the resulting insulin burst by turning massive amounts of sugar into fat.

Within 40 minutes, caffeine absorption is complete; your pupils dilate, your blood pressure rises, and your livers dumps more sugar into your bloodstream.

Around 45 minutes, your body increases dopamine production, which stimulates the pleasure centers of your brain – a physically identical response to that of heroin, by the way.

After 60 minutes, you’ll start to have a sugar crash. Not to mention carbonated drinks prevent your body from absorbing minerals…And too much phosphorus in your body leads to a reduction in calcium and magnesium, which are vital for a normal heart rate, nerve and muscle function, blood clotting, good bones and teeth.”

Interesting, ‘eh? Well, since this source is wikipedia, let’s look at what another article says, at nwwellness.org, which is talking about a study that was done: in this article, they mention that soda has the ability to decreas the oxygen in blood by 25% for up to 3 hours after drinking a can of soda. They also say that the high fructose corn syrup used in most sodas has been associated with higher rates of obesity, hypertension, tooth decay, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, heart disease, and kidney disease, as well as drawing calcium out of our bones. It also talks more about hte harmful effects of the caffiene in soda. Also in searching this topic, I found a lot of sites that talked about the evils of diet sodas as well. So, grab that water, and throw the can in the can! (trash can, that is)

According to Katie Couric’s article on CBS, the answer is yes. Well, so far the answer is yes for rats, at least. A study was done at the Scripps Research Institute in which they took a group of rats and fed them a steady diet of nutritious foods, while another group was fed unlimited quantities of high-fat foods, such as cheesecake and bacon. It was no surprise that pretty soon, the rats became obese and hardly physically active at all. But, the surprise came when the researchers replaced the junk food with healthy food and the rats stopped eating completely, and opted to starve themselves instead of eating the healthy foods. The message of the article was for us all to realize that “snack is whack” or that junk foods can be comparable to drugs in the fact that they are addictive and the food industry is trying to keep us all hooked. So just say no to twinkies!! To see the article, click here. Also, to see the scientific study done by the research institute, click here.

This research made sense to me when I read it for my own personal life. I know that when I go through a “healthy eating spurt” then I crave healthy foods more often, and stay away from sweets. But, when I go to an event that has sweets and begin eating them again, then I crave sugary foods and think about them more often. Does this happen to anyone else?  Even if the addiction to food is not quite as strong as the addiction to drugs, I think that this is still a really important point to be brought out in the obesity discussion. This makes me wonder how much the food companies know about this, and if they try to make things worse for you so that they’ll taste better and be more addicting? Sounds like another type of product, doesn’t it? – cigarettes!

I thought about this the other day as I got a shake and a burger from In-N-Out. As I drove home, munching on my newly-purchased cheeseburger, it occured to me that I had no idea how bad for me the food I was eating was. But, this is about to change – in section 4205 of our brand new health care bill, it will now be the law that standard menu items at chaing restaurants must list the calories of each food item, much like the picture on the left shows. To see the actual wording of the law, click here. It says that this menu labeling will apply to drive-throughs, menus, menu boards, as well as on vending machines all throughout the nation. I have seen this menu labeling done myself, but in very few places that I have gone. My personal view on this is that it’s a great idea. I know that for me (and maybe this is just because I’m a public health major) that it does affect my decision to compare calories between the different foods on a menu. I feel like this is good too, because it doesn’t affect the personal freedoms of the people - if they still want to get the food, they will, it just better informs them of what they’re getting. However, I think there are other things besides just calories that are important to know your food contains, such as fat, saturated fat, and sodium.  

Would this change the choices that you make when you go out to eat, seeing the calorie content? Some research suggests that this is effective with reguards to changing people’s food choices. It also states that this effect is enhanced when besides just calorie content, the daily total recommended calorie amount is included as well. See the study here.