|
|
|
 Exercise and Breast Health (October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month) If you're a woman, you probably can't get through a single day without dealing with breast cancer. For some it's because they know a breast cancer survivor or, perhaps, one who didn't survive. For others it's because they have breast cancer themselves or fear getting it. Getting regular checkups and performing monthly self-exams are great ways to stop cancer in it's tracks, but don't forget about exercise. Can You Prevent Breast Cancer? You already know that exercise helps reduce your chances of heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes. It also helps you lose weight, sleep better and feel better. But, what about the effect of exercise on breast cancer? While it's not officially proven to reduce the risk of breast cancer, some studies show that exercise can offer some protection. Some studies suggest that exercise can reduce the risk of breast cancer in women and experts believe this is because exercise lowers a woman's ongoing exposure to estrogen, which is believed to contribute to cancer growth. The interesting thing is that exercise and weight control may work together in preventing breast cancer. Dr. Anne McTiernan, an internist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, found that the women in her study who exercised the most had a 22% decreased risk of breast cancer. While some studies have found a positive relationship between exercise and breast cancer, others have found no relationship at all. Either way, exercise is important for staying healthy and, when it comes to recovering from breast cancer, that's when exercise really becomes important. Can you Exercise if You're Recovering from Breast Cancer? If you're recovering from breast cancer, first of all congratulations! Second of all, you might be wondering what you can do to speed your recovery. Past studies have shown that exercise can be an effective treatment for cancer patients. About's Sports Medicine Guide, Elizabeth Quinn notes in her article, Exercise as Cancer Treatment, "...exercise had a positive effect on physical and psychological functioning of cancer patients while in treatment." Cancer patients who exercised experienced fat loss, a decrease in nausea and fatigue, higher self-esteem and better quality of life. After checking with your doctor first, consider taking a page from Jill Forrest's book. Jill Forrest, a breast cancer survivor, started Better Than Before Fitness, Ltd. which has created the first rehabilitative/exercise video for breast cancer survivors. The video takes you through the first day after surgery to six weeks later and all participants are breast cancer survivors. Visit their website for information about the video and to find answers to your questions about exercise. Whatever exercise you choose, remember that moving your body can help heal both your mind and your body. By Paige Waehner |
Can Wii Fit Get ME Fit? One of my dear friends sent me an unintentionally funny e-mail this morning. She wanted to know if she asked for a Wii Fit for Chirstmas, would she actually use it to get in shape and would it work? I almost fell out of bed laughing (not because it was a dumb question- but because the thought of her actually using a Wii Fit is hilarious). Sure, you can work up a little sweat playing some tennis or “running” in place. And the yoga and balance is fabulous. But you will probably get really bored with it rather quickly. And you won’t see big results very fast either. Chances are, you’ll have a little fun at first but then get discouraged. Just like everything else in life, if it sounds to good to be true, it probably is. If you want to see changes, you have got to get out there and MOVE your body and LIFT some weights! That being said, I am otherwise a HUGE fan of the Wii Fit. It shouldn’t be used as your primary form of exercise, but it can be excellent supplementation. For example, you wake up to a rainy Sunday morning, your routine pre-church run is shot, and there’s no time to hit the gym and make it to services. What to do? Play a quick Wii Tennis! Do some Wii Yogo! It’s great- you stay on schedule and you get a little workout in. Love it! It’s also something fun to do with your spouse, friends of kids. Anything that helps get you active with others is always a good plan in my book! So, while Wii Fit alone isn’t s a stellar fitness plan, it can definitely have positive uses in the home and help keep you on track in a pinch. |
Taking the First Step... I've thought it a million times myself: I have got to do something about my body. But there are always so many questions. How do I do it? Where do I begin? How much do I need to exercise? And how hard? For how long? What if I can't finish? I am here to tell you that it truly does start with taking the first step. Literally. Take the first step. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in order to LOSE weight, you have to take 10,000 steps a day. (That is, put each foot forward 5,000 times each.) In order to simply maintain your weight and not be classified as "sedentary," the most vile of terms in the weight loss world, you need to take at least 5,000 steps a day. In terms of distance, you would need to walk about 2.5 miles per day to simply not gain weight and 5 miles per day to lose weight. But what if you can't walk 2.5 - 5 miles at a time? Let's look at this a different way. There is nothing that says your steps have to be continuous. Every step you take in an entire day- from getting out of bed in the morning to climbing back in at night- counts towards those 10,000 steps to weight loss! Obviously you are not going to keep trick of each step yourself. Get a pedometer. Let it count the steps for you, and make it your goal each day to take those 10,000 steps. The pedometer will quickly let you know if you need to moving more in your daily life. Pedometers are generally rather inexpensive, ranging from $5 to $25. You can get them at any sporting goods store, Target, Wal-mart, and even some drug stores. They come in a hip clip form and even some wrist watch combos. Personally, I wear a light blue clip on from Target that cost me only $5. If you find you average less than 10,000 steps per day, start going on a daily walk, or add 10 minutes if you already do. Find sneaky ways to add in more steps, like parking further away or taking the stairs instead of the elevator. (If you work on the 30th floor, take the stairs to the 3rd or 5th floor and then jump on the elevator....chances are the lines will be shorter there too!) There are tons of ways to add steps to your day. You just have to put one foot in front of the other and you will be on your way to a healthier and skinnier you! |
|
|
|
|
|
