Obesity: Statistics Speak for Themselves

There is a tremendous discussion going on in the media across the globe about losing weight. Each story the media brings seems to bear conflicting information and it’s small wonder that people are confused about what’s healthy, what’s junk food and what’s not. Having said that, there are growing concerns worldwide about obesity. The statistics speak for themselves.

Approximately 280,000 adult deaths in the United States alone are attributed to obesity annually, compared to 35,000 deaths due to guns, and 25,000 due to car accidents, in other words it looks like the foods we eat by our own selection or choosing, kill far more of us than guns and automobiles combined.

Overweight individuals have an increased risk of developing one or more of the following conditions:

• heart disease and stroke
• hypertension
• non-insulin dependent or type 2 diabetes
• osteo-arthritis
• sleep apnea and other breathing problems

The 1996 Surgeon General’s Report on Physical Activity and Health shows that more than 60 percent of adults are not participating in the recommended 30 minutes a day of moderate physical activity most days of the week. The report stresses that physical activity need not be strenuous to achieve health benefits. As recently as 1990, 10 percent or fewer adult residents (in certain States) were obese now report levels doubling this. In the latest edition, three States estimate that a third of all adults are obese.

Many believe this problem is tied to increased consumption of snacks, soft drinks, and fast foods, increased sedentary activities - such as watching TV and playing video games - and decreased opportunities for exercise and physical activity.[32]

Renewed emphasis on academic achievement in the educational system has reduced the time and space available for active play as well as for structured physical education. Long workdays and single parent households limit time for physical activity.[33]

The state action plan addresses six key interventions: increase consumption of fruit and vegetables, increase physical activity, increase breastfeeding, other dietary concerns, decrease TV/computer screen time and parental involvement.[34]

And while most of the major preventable causes of death showed declines or little change since 1990, deaths due to poor diet and physical inactivity increased 33 percent.

Diabetes is another of those unfortunate circumstances which has brought about drastic changes for 150 million people around the world. What is even worse, the number of sufferers is expected to grow each year. Diabetes is another disease of the affluent and reducing obesity can control the risk.

Obesity doesn’t happen overnight, it happens over time, when the energy we take in by eating is out of balance with the energy we burn doing physical activity. There are things we can do to prevent overweight and obesity, but perhaps these people are in need of not only regular exercise. A situation, a trauma, buried so deep - can cause any amount of heaven knows what kind of psychological problem inside us, that drives us on the one hand to withdraw and comfort ourselves and on the other to destroy ourselves in this way.

30 minutes most days of the week is good, and will help to prevent and treat obesity. Keep it fun and safe. Physical activity does not need to be strenuous - it just has to be for us to enjoy a long and quality filled life.

[32] http://assembly.state.ny.us/member_files/051/20030716/
[33] http://www.dhs.ca.gov/cdic/copi/html/problem.htm
[34] http://chfs.ky.gov/dph/ach/ns/cdc+obesity+grant.htm

How To Keep Your Triathlon Training Plans

You need to know that no matter how good your triathlon training plans are, they will never be more than plans until you take action and make them a reality.

Anyone can come up with a good plan, but few people have the willpower to see those plans through. If you’re going to compete in a triathlon, you must have determination. If you aren’t determined, you will never achieve your training or race day goals.

When you’re planning for a triathlon, you need to get to know your strengths and weaknesses; you want to make the most of your strengths and reduce your weaknesses, both physically and mentally. By following a proper training routine, you will learn more about yourself and develop a strategy for improving yourself all the way around.

It all starts with your triathlon training plan. When you work out, you need to have achievable goals set for yourself.

When you reach small goals continuously, it is more likely that you will be able to see your plan through. When you train for a triathlon, you will not only train your body, but also how your mind deals with fatigue and the negative voices in your head that tell you to quit.

How long will you be training? That largely depends on the type of triathlon you’re competing in. A few months will probably suffice for a mini triathlon. But if an Ironman Triathlon is more what you have in mind, you’ll need at least a year or more of training.

Due to the fact that a triathlon included three different events, it is no surprise that even die-hard athletes take a long time to prepare for their races. If you have a weakness in one of the events, it is essential that you focus on that particular sport. Once your weak sport catches up with your strong ones, you can focus on improving all three.

Because you’ll be switching sports in a triathlon, you need to ensure that your triathlon training lets you practice the transitions. The hard part is getting your body adjusted to quickly switching to using other muscles.

Just as an example, if you go from swimming to running all of a sudden, your body will need time to recognize that different muscles are being put to use. You need to know well in advance what this transition is going to feel like. It’s also important to know the order of the events so you can plan correctly.

About the Author:

Before you start your triathlon training, make sure to read our Triathlon Training Schedule, and Triathlon Training Programs.

Pilates Benefits Achieved In 10 Easy Sessions

Joseph Pilates, the man who created the Pilates group of exercises was a sickly child. He suffered from rickets, asthma and rheumatic fever. But his poor health became his inspiration. At age 14, he took the solution to his fitness problems into his own hands by engaging in exercise and body building.

Pilates is a fitness regime designed to balance, stretch and strengthen the body with particular emphasis on the deep torso muscles. It also uses the mind to improve movement, efficiency and muscle control, which why it is often said that Pilate exercise somehow improves one’s mental state. Read more

Making Exercising More Fun

Nothing beats waking up in the morning with the thought of going to the gym to lift weights or jog on the treadmill. After a hard days work, the gym is one place you don’t even want to think about. Sometimes, even the thought of exercising at home with your own equipment can be less than desirable.

Sometimes, just trying to get and stay motivated to exercise on a regular basis can be a challenge. No matter how you look at it, exercise can be downright boring and even tedious at times.

So, you may be wondering just how you can get the motivation you need to exercise on a regular basis. If you’ve been wondering what you can do to make exercise more fun, you’ll find some ideas below that just may help to make exercise more fun and a little
bit easier.

First things first, you should exercise with a friend. You can challenge each other, help each other out, keep each other motivated and on track, make each other laugh or just make a game out of your exercise programs.

You can also try something different. If you go to the gym each and every day and use the same piece of equipment or use the same piece of equipment at home, you should try mixing things up. Reverse your routine or just change the order of your exercises.

Go to a city park that has playground equipment and use the slide, climb on the monkey bars, do pull-ups, hang from your knees, just let your imagination guide you. You don’t always need to follow a strict routine, just get out there and have fun working
your muscles.

An outdoor circuit in the park is also something you can try. There are some parks that have circuit courses set up with a planned course where all you have to do is walk or jog to each station and then follow the instructions. If there isn’t a planned course, then you should do a combination of jogging and walking, picking a distance of a couple hundred feet. Jog 100 feet then drop and do a couple of push-ups, walk the next 100 feet and then drop to do sit ups.

You can also ride a bike around your neighbourhood or hike on a hiking trail. A walk in the park or around your neighbourhood is also a great way to get some exercise. Doing yoga in the park or on a beach is also a nice and relaxing way to exercise both your body and your mind.

Playing a competitive sport is also something you can try. A lot of cities have team activities such as softball, volleyball, tennis, soccer, and so on. These types of activities will not only provide you with good exercise but they will also help you to meet new people as well.

When you exercise, try to picture your muscles getting bigger. Research has shown that if you focus all of your thoughts on the muscles that you are working, they will respond better. Try to watch them work with each repetition as your muscles contract and relax.

As you can tell, there are plenty of ways you can make exercise more fun and interesting. You don’t need to follow the same routine day after day, as you can do many other things to get in some exercise.

The important thing is that you should always try to incorporate exercise in any various form into your everyday life and make these habits the kind of habits that will last a lifetime.

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