In his Autumn 2015 statement, the Chancellor pledges to spend £600m on mental health. Out comes the fan fare and heaps and loads of praise for him and his party on tackling the current unacceptable under funded mental health situation in England.

Let us, for a moment, step back and open the history books and look at mental health funding in England since 2010; the time when George Osborne, our Chancellor took office.

Funding for NHS trusts to provide mental health services has fallen by more than 8% in real terms since 2010, according to research by Community Care and BBC News. Figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act from 43 mental health trusts in England show that total funding for the trusts’ mental health services dropped in real terms by 8.25 per cent, or almost £600m (once inflation has been accounted for). Now, after a reality check has been taken of the situation should we still be showering the Chancellor with praise for his generosity?.

In real terms, the Chancellor has been cutting funding to the most vulnerable persons in society, the mentally ill by £600m over the last 5 years and now we expect them to be thankful that he's giving it back. What sort of society do we live in where we make the most vulnerable suffer by not providing adequate services for them?. All that the Chancellor has done is to put mental health in England back to where it was in 2010 when he became chancellor and society should be grateful for this?.

Gym In Motion provides fitness programs to persons struggling with mental health illness. What we've seen over the past 5 years is the impact that the taking of £600m in cuts from the mental health services has had on the most vulnerable in society. Front line services being strained to their maximum, long waiting lines to access therapy while the majority of people with mental health issues just don't get any help at all. Society is denying these vulnerable people assistance in the name of saving money. Not only have I experienced this from a supplier's point of view, but from first hand experience as I have a number family members who suffer or have suffered with mental health illness over the years. No where, has any government minister, employee or consultant, looked behind the scenes and seen that by denying services to a person with a mental health illness, in most cases causes their mental state of mind to worsen and so they spiral into deteriation.

These are the consequences that are just brushed under the carpet, the consequences that aren't mentioned at dinner parties for they force society to take note of their actions which is not a pretty sight.

Somehow, I don't think that those with a mental health illness will be heralding our Chancellor for giving back to the mental health services, what was rightly there's in the first place. If I'm a cynical person, I'd say that this whole announcement was just for our Chancellor and government of the day to get brownie points and be seen to do something about a dire situation which they created in the first place. The uninformed will be thankful, the informed will not be amused.

References:

http://www.communitycare.co.uk/2015/03/20/mental-health-trust-funding-8-since-2010-despite-coalitions-drive-parity-esteem/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-31970871

https://www.mind.org.uk/news-campaigns/news/mental-health-services-cut-by-8-per-cent.aspx#.VlbJ5b-jKpA

http://www.cityam.com/229537/autumn-statement-2015-chancellor-george-osborne-promises-to-spend-an-extra-600m-on-mental-health

Vitamin and mineral supplements from a bottle simply can’t match all the biologically active compounds teeming in a well-stocked pantry.

By focusing on the big picture, it’s easy to get plenty of the vitamins, minerals, and other micronutrients you need to keep you healthy and prevent disease. Here are some tips.

Fiber. It’s the part of plant foods that we can’t digest. Eating foods high in fiber helps reduce total and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, improve blood sugar control, and prevent constipation. High-fiber foods also help with weight loss by making you feel full.

There are lots of high-fiber foods to choose from:

• brown rice
• bulgur (cracked wheat)
• barley
• oats
• nuts
• beans and lentils
• apples
• blueberries
• carrots

Vitamins and minerals. Vitamins are organic substances found in plants and animals. Minerals are inorganic elements from the earth (soil and water). Both are essential for normal growth and optimal health.

Here’s a list of vitamins and minerals that are crucial for good health, plus the best food sources of each:

• iron — meat, poultry, fish, and beans
• vitamin A — carrots, sweet potatoes, spinach, kale
• vitamin B₁₂ — meat, poultry, fish
• vitamin E — nuts, seeds, vegetable oils

Phytochemicals. Phytochemicals are chemicals made by plants. They are not essential to life, but they do have a positive effect on health. Diets rich in phytochemicals have been associated with a lower risk of chronic diseases, such as cancer and heart disease. They are found in fruits, vegetables, beans, and grains.

The following is a list of key phytochemicals, plus the best food sources of each.

• flavonoids — blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries
• carotenoids — orange vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes, and winter squash
• lycopene — tomatoes
• isoflavones — soy foods, such as soybeans (or edamame)
• resveratrol — red grapes
• catechins — teas

Be creative

Adding finely grated carrots or zucchini to pasta sauce, meat loaf, chili, or a stew is one way to get an extra serving of vegetables. Dip vegetables into hummus or another bean spread, some spiced yogurt, or even a bit of ranch dressing. Slather peanut butter on a banana or slices of apple. Try mashed avocado as a dip with diced tomatoes and onions, or as a sandwich spread, topped with spinach leaves, tomatoes, and a slice of cheese.

To find out more about nutrition contact Ronald on 07929256856 or @GymInMotion

Image: iStock

You might be eager to leap into your exercise routine and get on with the day — but don’t just dive in. Starting a workout with “cold” muscles can lead to injury. It’s important to start each workout with a warm-up and end with a cool-down — and that goes for true beginners, seasoned pros, and everyone in between.

Warm-up

Warming up pumps nutrient-rich, oxygenated blood to your muscles as it speeds up your heart rate and breathing. A good warm-up should last five to 10 minutes and work all major muscle groups. For best results, start slowly, then pick up the pace. Many warm-up routines focus on cardio and range-of-motion exercises, such as jumping jacks and lunges. If you prefer, you can do a simpler warm-up by walking in place while gently swinging your arms, or even dancing to a few songs.

Cool-down

After your workout, it’s best to spend five to 10 minutes cooling down through a sequence of slow movements. This helps prevent muscle cramps and dizziness while gradually slowing your breathing and heart rate. An effective cool-down also incorporates stretching exercises to relax and lengthen muscles throughout your body and improve your range of motion. To get the most out of these exercises, hold each stretch for 10 to 30 seconds. The longer you can hold a stretch, the better for improving your flexibility. As with the warm-up, it’s best to flow from one stretch to the next without rests in between.

Your bone strength and size peaks by age 30. After that, bones tend to become less dense, making them more fragile and subject to breaks. Bone strength in later life depends upon your peak bone mass in youth. An active lifestyle in youth can increase maximum bone density.

Even if you’re older, exercise is still a great way to protect your bones. The physical stress placed on bones during exercise stimulates the growth of new bone tissue. The type of exercise you do matters. To bolster your bones, you need to get regular weight-bearing exercise. This includes weight lifting and resistance training, as well as any type of activity that forces you to work against gravity by standing or carrying your body’s weight, including running, walking, dancing, and stair climbing. Activities such as swimming or biking aren’t weight-bearing and thus don’t build bone. Generally, higher-impact activities (such as running) or resistance exercises (such as strength training) have a more pronounced effect on bone than lower-impact exercises, such as walking.

Only the bones that bear the load of the exercise will benefit. For example, running protects bones in the hips and legs, but not the arms. A well-rounded strength training plan can benefit practically all of your bones.

Because exercise improves your overall strength, coordination, and balance, it also makes you less likely to fall, which means less opportunity to break a bone.

To read more about the many benefits of exercise and learn how to start an exercise program that works for you, contact Ronald on 07929 256856.

The next time you have a check-up, don’t be surprised if your doctor hands you a prescription to walk. Yes, this simple activity that you’ve been doing since you were about a year old is now being touted as “the closest thing we have to a wonder drug,” in the words of Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Of course, you probably know that any physical activity, including walking, is a boon to your overall health. But walking in particular comes with a host of benefits. Here’s a list of five that may surprise you.

1. It counteracts the effects of weight-promoting genes. Harvard researchers looked at 32 obesity-promoting genes in over 12,000 people to determine how much these genes actually contribute to body weight. They then discovered that, among the study participants who walked briskly for about an hour a day, the effects of those genes were cut in half.

2. It helps tame a sweet tooth. A pair of studies from the University of Exeter found that a 15-minute walk can curb cravings for chocolate and even reduce the amount of chocolate you eat in stressful situations. And the latest research confirms that walking can reduce cravings and intake of a variety of sugary snacks.

3. It reduces the risk of developing breast cancer. Researchers already know that any kind of physical activity blunts the risk of breast cancer. But an American Cancer Society study that zeroed in on walking found that women who walked seven or more hours a week had a 14% lower risk of breast cancer than those who walked three hours or fewer per week. And walking provided this protection even for the women with breast cancer risk factors, such as being overweight or using supplemental hormones.

4. It eases joint pain. Several studies have found that walking reduces arthritis-related pain, and that walking five to six miles a week can even prevent arthritis from forming in the first place. Walking protects the joints — especially the knees and hips, which are most susceptible to osteoarthritis — by lubricating them and strengthening the muscles that support them.

5. It boosts immune function. Walking can help protect you during cold and flu season. A study of over 1,000 men and women found that those who walked at least 20 minutes a day, at least 5 days a week, had 43% fewer sick days than those who exercised once a week or less. And if they did get sick, it was for a shorter duration, and their symptoms were milder.

Mobility — the ability to move purposefully around your environment — is vitally important to health and well-being.

Nearly one-third to one-half of adults ages 65 and older experience impaired mobility. At first, it may not seem like a big deal — many people with impaired mobility learn to just move a little more slowly and a little more deliberately. Some people work around the problem by relying on a cane or walker.

That’s why it’s important to intervene to either prevent future mobility impairments or reduce existing ones.But taking impaired mobility “lying down” can cause your health to spiral downward. As you move less, pounds may start to creep on. You might withdraw from social relationships and activities that challenge you mentally. Exercise may become difficult, and lack of activity can worsen many health problems. This cycle of physical, emotional, and mental decline further restricts mobility.

For most people, the ability to rely on their own bodies, skills, and mental agility is a crucial part of living a satisfying life. Having full mobility helps you fully engage with the world and fosters a sense of self-sufficiency that can help you live independently well into your later years.

Learning to focus the mind can be a powerful antidote to the stresses and strains of our on-the-go lives. The ability to pay attention to what you’re experiencing from moment to moment — without drifting into thoughts of the past or concerns about the future, or getting caught up in opinions about what is going on — is called mindfulness.

This basic mindfulness meditation exercise is easy to learn and practice.

1. Sit on a straight-backed chair, or cross-legged on the floor.
2. Focus on an aspect of your breathing, such as the sensations of air flowing into your nostrils and out of your mouth, or your belly rising and falling as you inhale and exhale.
3. Once you’ve narrowed your concentration in this way, begin to widen your focus. Become aware of sounds, sensations, and ideas.
4. Embrace and consider each thought or sensation without judging it as good or bad. If your mind starts to race, return your focus to your breathing. Then expand your awareness again.

The effects of mindfulness meditation tend to be dose-related — the more you practice it, the more benefits you usually experience.

A less formal approach can also help you stay in the present and fully engage in your life. You can practice mindfulness at any time or during any task, whether you are eating, showering, walking, touching a partner, or playing with a child. Here’s how:

• Start by bringing your attention to the sensations in your body.
• Breathe in through your nose, allowing the air to move downward into your lower belly. Let your abdomen expand fully. Then breathe out through your mouth. Notice the sensations of each inhalation and exhalation.
• Proceed with the task at hand slowly and with full deliberation.
• Engage your senses fully. Notice each sight, touch, and sound so that you savor every sensation.
• When you notice that your mind has wandered from the task at hand, gently bring your attention back to the sensations of the moment.

Fruits and vegetables contain vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that are essential for good health. That’s one reason why a plant-based diet that includes lots of fruits and vegetables can lower your risk of developing life-threatening diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers. And when you pile on the produce, there’s less room for the unhealthy foods.

Dinner is typically the largest (and latest) meal of the day, and it’s a good opportunity to make sure that you meet your daily quota for fruits and vegetables. Here are five easy ways to work more produce into dinner.

1. Roast vegetables. Roasting is a great way to let the deep, rich flavors of vegetables shine through. Bake cut vegetables at 375° F for 20 to 25 minutes or until they’re lightly browned. You can roast any vegetable — from mushrooms, onions, eggplant, and zucchini to tomatoes, broccoli, and carrots — so don’t limit yourself. Enjoy roasted veggies as a side dish or toss them into pasta dishes and other recipes.
2. Poach veggies in low-sodium chicken broth and white wine. To poach, boil enough liquid to cover the vegetables. When it boils, add the vegetables. Turn down the heat to just below boiling and cook the vegetables for about five to seven minutes, until they’re brightly colored and tender-crisp. Add garlic, basil, or tarragon for a flavor bonus. To retain nutrients, keep a watchful eye on the pot, or set a timer so you don’t overcook.
3. Smuggle fresh cut vegetables into main dishes. Try adding mushrooms, peppers, zucchini, onions, or carrots into pasta sauce, casseroles, soup, stews, scrambled eggs, and chili.
4. Have a salad with dinner most days. Stock your salad with dark green leafy lettuce and toss in petite peas, tomatoes, onions, celery, carrots, and peppers. As an added benefit, starting meals with a salad can help you consume fewer calories at the meal, as long as the salad is no more than 100 calories. A healthful salad consists of about 3 cups of dark green lettuce, 1⁄2 cup carrots, a tomato, 1⁄4 cucumber, and 1 1⁄2 tablespoons of low-calorie dressing.
5. Choose fruit — fresh or frozen, stewed or baked — for dessert. It all counts toward your daily produce quota. Dried fruits are healthy but high in calories, so eat them sparingly.

If opening jars becomes more difficult because of painful hands, or if climbing stairs produces pain in your knees, “arthritis” is often the first thing that comes to mind. The two most common forms of arthritis—osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis—can cause similar aches and pains, but there are a few key differences between them. For example:

Onset. Osteoarthritis occurs when cartilage (tissue in your joints that cushions your bones) wears away. Pain occurs when bone rubs against bone. This type of arthritis pain tends to develop gradually and intermittently over several months or years.

Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis affecting 27 million Americans. Many people believe it’s a crippling and inevitable part of growing old. But things are changing. Treatments are better, and plenty of people age well without much arthritis. If you have osteoarthritis, you can take steps to protect your joints, reduce discomfort, and improve mobility — all of which are detailed in this report. If you don’t have osteoarthritis, the report offers strategies for preventing it.

Rheumatoid arthritis, on the other hand, is an inflammatory condition in which your immune system attacks the tissues in your joints. It causes pain and stiffness that worsen over several weeks or a few months. And joint pain isn’t always the first sign of rheumatoid arthritis—sometimes it begins with “flu-like” symptoms of fatigue, fever, weakness, and minor joint aches.

Location. Both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis can affect the hands. However, osteoarthritis often affects the joint closest to the tip of the finger, whereas rheumatoid arthritis usually spares this joint. And while rheumatoid arthritis can appear in any joint, its most common targets are the hands, wrists, and feet.

Type of stiffness. People often describe vague muscle aches as “stiffness,” but when doctors talk about “stiffness,” they mean that a joint doesn’t move as easily as it should. Stiffness may be prominent even when joint pain is not.

Mild morning stiffness is common in osteoarthritis and often goes away after just a few minutes of activity. Sometimes people with osteoarthritis also notice the same type of stiffness during the day after resting the joint for an hour or so. In rheumatoid arthritis, however, morning stiffness doesn’t begin to improve for an hour or longer. Occasionally, prolonged joint stiffness in the morning is the first symptom of rheumatoid arthritis.

Medications make a difference — generally a positive one — in the lives of many people. Insulin keeps blood sugar under control, cholesterol-lowering drugs can reduce the chances of having a heart attack, and thyroid medication can restore a normal hormone level. These are but a few examples.

At the same time, all drugs carry side effects, and can interact with other medications. For many medications, one or more side effects affect balance. And that can increase your chances of taking a fall. How? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, common problems include vision changes, dizziness or lightheadedness, drowsiness, and impaired alertness or judgment. Some medications may damage the inner ear, spurring temporary or permanent balance disorders.

How do I know if this is a problem for me?

Some of the commonly prescribed medications that can affect balance include:

• antidepressants
• anti-anxiety drugs
• antihistamines prescribed to relieve allergy symptoms
• blood pressure and other heart medications
• pain relievers, both prescription and nonprescription
• sleep aids (over-the-counter and prescription forms)

Sometimes the problem isn’t a single drug but the combination of medications being taken together. Older adults are especially vulnerable, because drugs are absorbed and broken down differently as people age.

If you are concerned about how your medications may be affecting your balance, call you doctor and ask to review the drugs you’re taking, the dose, and when you take them. It is never a good idea to just stop taking a medication without consulting your health care provider first. Doing so can create even more health risks.

The prostate is can be a troublesome little gland. It is prone to painful infections and inflammation (prostatitis), enlargement that interferes with urination (benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH), and cancer. Prevention is the best medicine, something exercise can help with. Exercise has also been shown to help treat various prostate-related conditions.

Although relatively few studies have looked at the impact of exercise specifically on prostate health, the ones that have suggest that regular physical activity can be good for this walnut-sized gland.

BPH prevention. In the ongoing Harvard-based Health Professionals Follow-up Study, men who were more physically active were less likely to suffer from BPH. Even low- to moderate-intensity physical activity, such as walking regularly at a moderate pace, yielded benefits.

Prostatitis treatment. Italian researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial (considered the gold standard of medical research) in men with chronic prostatitis. Those in the aerobic exercise group walked briskly three times a week. A comparison group did non-aerobic exercise (leg lifts, sit ups, and stretching) three times a week. At the end of 18 weeks, men in both groups felt better, but those doing aerobic exercises reported less prostatitis pain, less anxiety and depression, and better quality of life.

Prostate cancer progression. In a study of more than 1,400 men diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer, men who walked briskly (not leisurely) for at least three hours a week were 57% less likely to have their cancer progress than those who walked less often and less vigorously. In an analysis from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, men diagnosed with localized prostate cancer who engaged in vigorous activity at least three hours each week had a 61% lower chance of dying from the illness, compared to men who engaged in vigorous activity less than one hour a week.

How to get started

A well-rounded exercise program that includes a half-hour of physical activity on all or most days of the week delivers solid health benefits. And you needn’t perform this activity all at once; you can break it up into three 10-minute segments.

As always, talk to your doctor before beginning an exercise program. He or she can help you develop a routine based on your health and fitness level.

Your body depends on the mineral potassium to help control the electrical balance of your heart as well as metabolize carbohydrates and build muscle.

Low potassium levels can cause muscle weakness and heart rhythm disturbances. On the other hand, too much potassium can cause dangerous heartbeat irregularities and even sudden death. If you have heart failure, you need to pay close attention to how much potassium you get each day. What’s more, some heart failure drugs can cause your body to excrete too much potassium, while others can cause your body to retain too much potassium.

Your doctor can tell you how the medications you need will affect your potassium levels. You’ll likely need to have your potassium level checked regularly to be sure it is within a good range for you.

If you need to raise your potassium level:

If your potassium level is too low, the solution may be as simple as taking potassium supplements.

If you need to get your potassium level down:

If your potassium level is too high, you may need to cut back on certain foods (see the table). These tips can also help:

• Soak or boil vegetables and fruits to leach out some of the potassium.
• Avoid foods that list potassium or K, KCl, or K+ — chemical symbols for potassium or related compounds — as ingredients on the label.
• Stay away from salt substitutes. Many are high in potassium. Read the ingredient lists carefully and check with your doctor before using one of these preparations.
• Avoid canned, salted, pickled, corned, spiced, or smoked meat and fish.
• Avoid imitation meat products containing soy or vegetable protein.
• Limit high-potassium fruits such as bananas, citrus fruits, and avocados.
• Avoid baked potatoes and baked acorn and butternut squash.
• Don’t use vegetables or meats prepared with sweet or salted sauces.
• Avoid all types of peas and beans, which are naturally high in potassium.

If you have diabetes — or for that matter, nearly any other chronic illness — exercise is one of the most powerful tools that can help you control your weight and blood sugar. And it can help you feel great, too.

The list of exercise benefits is long. Exercise helps control weight, lowers blood pressure, reduces harmful LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, raises healthy HDL cholesterol, strengthens muscles and bones, and reduces anxiety. Exercise can help regulate blood sugar and increase the body’s sensitivity to insulin. Both are important for people with diabetes.

Many studies have documented that exercise is a strong ally in treating diabetes. Here are a few examples:

• All forms of exercise — aerobic, resistance, and a combination of both — have been shown to be equally good at lowering HbA1c values.

• Resistance training and aerobic exercise both helped to lower insulin resistance in previously sedentary older adults at risk for diabetes. Combining the two was better than either one alone.

• People with diabetes who walked at least two hours a week were less likely to die of heart disease than their sedentary counterparts, and those who exercised three to four hours a week cut their risk even more.

• Women with diabetes who spent at least four hours a week doing moderate or vigorous exercise had a 40% lower risk of developing heart disease than those who didn’t exercise.

If you have diabetes, generally it is best to exercise one to three hours after eating, when your blood sugar level is likely to be higher. If you use insulin, be sure to test your blood sugar before exercising. If it is below 100 mg/dL, eat a piece of fruit or have a small snack. This will bump your blood sugar up and help you avoid hypoglycemia. Test again 30 minutes after your snack to be sure your blood sugar level is stable. It’s also a good idea to check your blood sugar after any particularly grueling workout or activity. If you’re taking insulin, your risk of developing hypoglycemia may be highest six to 12 hours after exercising. Experts also caution against exercising if your blood sugar is too high (over 250).

A medical alert bracelet should be part of your workout wardrobe. It should indicate that you have diabetes and whether you take insulin. Also, keep hard candy or glucose tablets with you while exercising in case your blood sugar takes a nosedive.

To learn more about how to live a healthy life with diabetes and ways to keep your blood sugar in check and avoid complications, contact Ronald @gyminmotion 07929 256856.

Even the healthiest people can find it hard to stick with an exercise regimen — and if you suffer from the joint pain of arthritis, moving your body may be the last thing you want to think about. But regular exercise not only helps maintain joint function, but also relieves stiffness and reduces pain and fatigue.

If you have arthritis, you want to be sure your exercise routine has these goals in mind:

1. A better range of motion (improved joint mobility and flexibility). To increase your range of motion, move a joint as far as it can go and then try to push a little farther. These exercises can be done any time, even when your joints are painful or swollen, as long as you do them gently.
2. Stronger muscles (through resistance training). Fancy equipment isn’t needed. You can use your own body weight as resistance to build muscles. For example, the simple exercise described below can help ease the strain on your knees by strengthening your thigh muscles. Sit in a chair. Now lean forward and stand by pushing up with your thigh muscles (use your arms for balance only). Stand a moment, then sit back down, using your thigh muscles.
3. Better endurance. Aerobic exercise — such as walking, swimming, and bicycling — strengthens your heart and lungs and thereby increases endurance and overall health. Stick to activities that don’t jar your joints, and avoid high impact activities such as jogging. If you’re having a flare-up of symptoms, wait until it subsides before doing endurance exercise.
4. Better balance. There are simple ways to work on balance. For example, stand with your weight on both feet. Then try lifting one foot while you balance on the other foot for 5 seconds. Repeat on the other side. Over time, work your way up to 30 seconds. Yoga and tai chi are also good for balance.

Arthritis doesn’t have to keep you from enjoying life.

From fast food restaurants and delis exploding with high-calorie sandwiches to salad bars stocked with high fat and high sugar salad add-ons — lunchtime can be a minefield of temptation for those trying to eat a healthy and balanced diet.

But a healthful and enjoyable lunch can be done. These simple tips can help.

Your meal should include lean protein, whole-grain carbohydrates, and produce. Roughly half of your plate should be vegetables or fruit; one-quarter should be lean protein such as fish, chicken, turkey, tofu, beans, or low-fat cottage cheese; and one-quarter should be whole grains, such as one slice of whole-grain bread, or half a cup of brown rice, whole-wheat pasta, or quinoa. You might include a small amount of healthy fat, such as a tablespoon of oil-and-vinegar dressing on your salad.

Salad can be a good way to go, but you need to be careful. Regular salad dressings, cheeses, and mayonnaise-based salads (such as tuna, chicken, and egg salads) can contain unhealthy fats, hidden sugar, and salt. Not to mention lots of calories. Here’s the trick to a healthy and satisfying lunch salad.

Step 1: Build a vegetable base. Load your plate with leafy greens and raw or grilled vegetables.

Step 2: Add some protein — a few scoops of garbanzo or kidney beans. Beans are an excellent source of fiber — and they’re filling! Other good selections include grilled chicken, low-fat cottage cheese, or chopped eggs. Go light on the cheese. A sprinkle of a strongly flavored cheese like feta or Parmesan can deliver flavor with fewer calories.

Step 3: Add a small amount of healthy fat. Sprinkle on the nuts and seeds. They are high in heart-healthy unsaturated fat and healthy protein, give you a feeling of fullness, and help food stay in your stomach longer. You might also opt for a dash of oil and vinegar.

Step 4: Whole grains and fruit make a nice addition to a creative salad. Look for whole grains like barley or bulgur wheat to sprinkle on top. Or add a few slices of fruit.

If you want to learn about other effective strategies for healthy eating contact Ronald on 07929 256856

One night, you're in a bad neighborhood. A grungy thug comes out of nowhere and starts chasing you down the block. Suddenly, you are able to run faster and longer than you thought you ever could. And this is because your sympathetic nervous system has taken charge, which stimulates your adrenal glands to work harder.

But say you have a work assignment that is due the next day, the baby is crying even though you need to get dinner ready for your guests, your other child is screaming at you, and the TV is on full blast in the other room. Your body still interprets this as being under severe stress. The sympathetic nervous system has a hard time shutting off, the adrenal glands are overworking, and problems occur. Unfortunately, modern life often has overstimulation and a lot of pressures and difficulties that keep the sympathetic nervous system in fight-or-flight mode continually.

So where exactly are the adrenal glands? The kidneys are located in the lower back region, right around the second lumbar section of the spine just under your waistline, depending on the person. The adrenal glands are situated right above the kidneys.

The body is a whole universe with an extensive communication network. The body's nervous system breaks down into two parts: the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system. The autonomic nervous system is part of the peripheral nervous system. The autonomic nervous system is responsible for involuntary movements and actions. It controls heartbeats, breathing, digesting, sweating, crying, etc. It is divided into the sympathetic and the parasympathetic nervous systems.

The sympathetic nervous system controls the fight-or-flight response. This means how your body responds to emergency and stressful situations. When the sympathetic nervous system is switched on your parasympathetic nervous system is switched off so that your body can cope with the emergencies more efficiently. When the sympathetic nervous system is on your heart rate increases, you sweat, your pupils dilate, and your body shuts down your digestion system so that it can focus on dealing with the emergency.

The parasympathetic nervous system kicks in when the sympathetic nervous system switches off. Your heart rate returns to normal, your digestion system starts back up, and body functions return to normal.

Although the nervous system's main communicators as neurons, the endocrine system's main communicators are chemical messengers known as hormones. Hormones are carried in the bloodstream to specific areas of the body, including organs and body tissues. Some of the most important endocrine glands include the pineal gland, the hypothalamus, the pituitary gland, the thyroid, the ovaries, and the testes.

When the sympathetic nervous system has been in flight-or-fight too long, it affects the hormones of the adrenal system. Too little or too much of the hormones can lead to adrenal fatigue and because of the way this fatigue impacts the body, it can lead to illness. This process of adrenal fatigue does not happen all at once. Instead, it is a gradual breakdown in the body.

The Three Phases of Stress

In 1956, endocrinologist Dr. Hans Selye developed a key concept in the study of stress and its effects on the body, which he termed, the general adaptation syndrome. In the general adaptation syndrome, the body passes through three phases in the way it copes with stress:

1. Alarm Phase
2. Resistance Phase
3. Exhaustion Phase

1. Alarm Phase
In the alarm phase, the adrenal glands increase the amount of hormonal secretions in an attempt to maintain homeostasis (normal functioning of the body). The sympathetic nervous system is in excess. When the sympathetic nervous system is on and the parasympathetic nervous system is off, there will be a deficiency with digestion, the sex organs, the urinary tract, and less energy is being sent to these systems in order to deal with the more immediate crisis. That means blood is shunted away from hands, skin, feet, and the digestive tract (stomach and intestines) to the brain and the immediately important organs in the torso like the heart.

This can cause those raised knotted shoulders, tight upper back and neck, chills along the spine, clammy hands, cold feet, increased heart rate, a tight locked pelvis, and tight leg muscles. A good example of this is in someone who has just had a car accident - a hugely stressful event. Just as their body responds to stress by causing the upper back and legs to tighten, the muscles are jerked quickly, causing injury that can take time to heal. On the other hand, the body does this to stay alive, so that the heart can keep pumping blood even under poor circumstances, and so the person won't feel pain as quickly - that's the beauty of the sympathetic nervous system's response. In the alarm phase, stress is relatively short lived and the return back to homeostasis is with ease.

A list of what happens during a fight-or-flight response:

• The sympathetic nervous system response goes into excess as the body mobilizes by bringing large amounts of glucose and oxygen to the organs to ward off danger.
• Non-essential parasympathetic functions like digestive, urinary, and reproductive systems are inhibited.
• Adrenocorticol secretion rises sharply, raising the blood pressure and producing symptoms of sympathetic system hyperactivity.

Symptoms: Shortness of breath, palpitations, emotional instability, headache, back pain, decrease in frequency and quantity of urination, insomnia, lack of appetite, dizziness, nausea, eye pain, cold hands and feet, tight neck and upper back muscles.

Options on how to treat this stage:

• B-Vitamins: B-Vitamins help the body deal with stress better. Deficiencies in B Vitamins can cause muscle cramping and depression, but certain B Vitamins (for example, B-5) are also necessary for adrenal gland function.
• Magnesium: Magnesium can help both the skeletal and smooth muscle cramping that can be experienced as a result of stress. Because magnesium relaxes muscle, it can be helpful for stress-induced Anxiety or asthma attacks, and for lowering blood pressure.
• Electrolytes: After a stressful event or exercise, electrolytes like sodium and potassium can be lowered as well and these electrolytes are necessary for fluid balance in the tissues and regulating transport along cell walls. Also, sodium is closely involved in the regulation of the adrenals. Lack of sodium and potassium can cause swelling, as well as muscle weakness, fatigue, muscle cramps, fatigue, and mental confusion. If you have hypertension, you should check with your doctor about this because there may be a correlation between potassium deficiency and high sodium consumption in the diet of hypertensive patients.
• Vitamin C: Among other reasons to take Vitamin C (there's a list!) ACTH stimulation causes marked loss of ascorbic acid from the adrenal cortex. ACTH is what stimulates cortisol production when there is stress.
• Cutting down on coffee consumption: Coffee stimulates the adrenal glands, so if you are having problems with stress, this would be an important thing to cut down on. Try going without the afternoon cup and just having one cup in the morning.
• Drinking Water: Drinking water is important for treating stress as your body needs it for virtually every function so it's easier for your body to bounce back if it's hydrated. If you haven't been drinking water, you can begin drinking more along with taking in essential fatty acids and lecithin.
• Lecithin: Lecithin helps cell walls repair tissue and helps organ hydration and function.
• Essential fatty acid (EFA): EFAs attract water to dehydrated cells and connective tissue and maintain cell hydration.
• Meditation: Meditating for at least 5 minutes a day will help the body to relax, mitigating the effects of stress and keeping you from moving to stage 2.
• L-Theanine: If you have sudden high spikes of stress leading to extreme stress symptoms this is a great supplement. A good example is if you have test Anxiety, panic attacks, extreme sweating, and blanking out in stressful situations. L-Theanine is an amino acid taken from tea leaves, such as green tea, that creates a sense of relaxation 40 minutes after ingestion. This works in two different ways. It stimulates the production of alpha brain waves, creating a state of deep relaxation and mental alertness similar to what is achieved through meditation. It is also involved in the formation of gamma amino butyric acid (GABA), which influences two other neurotransmitters, dopamine and serotonin, producing the key relaxation effect.
• Rhodiola Rosea root: Rhodiola rosea root supports the functioning of the adrenal glands and encourages a healthy response to physical, emotional, and mental stress by normalizing cortisol levels and other stress-related hormones. If used regularly, it enhances the body's natural resistance and adaptation to stressful influences. In some people it can make you hyper, so take with caution.

2. Resistance Phase
According to Hans Selye, M.D., traumatic situations cause an elevated function of the adrenal glands. If this elevated activity is prolonged, the adrenal gland will be overworked and become exhausted, and thus be unable to release adequate amounts of adrenal hormones, such as cortisol and epinephrine.

In the resistance phase, constantly reacting to stress leaves the body depleted, leading to a general decrease in overall resistance to illness, inflammation, and pain. Stress is wearing the body out even though the body is still resisting it. There is constant energy being sent by the adrenals and sympathetic nervous system to only the most important organs for a flight-or-fight circumstance. For example, since digestion is a parasympathetic function, undigested food begins to enter the colon, causing gas and bloating, and as the body can't pull the nutrients out of food as efficiently, there are less number of important nutrients to keep the body healthy and pain free. Secretion of the adrenal hormones is initially still high, but slows down as they begin to wear out. The sympathetic nervous system weakness leads to sympathetic deficiency. The parasympathetic nervous system begins to become more dominant as it attempts to compensate.

The parasympathetic nervous system will switch on and take over, but not because the sympathetic nervous system has switched off, but because it's so exhausted that the parasympathetic nervous system has to pick up the slack so the body can function. What occurs is a constriction of blood vessels such as capillaries and arteries in the brain, excitement of the digestive system, and adrenal gland deficiency along with a whole host of problems listed below.

What happens during the Resistance Phase?
-Parasympathetic dominance
-Sympathetic exhaustion
-Adrenal gland exhaustion

What kind of patient has moved from the Alarm Phase to the Resistance Phase?

• The adrenal gland exhaustion sign is most active on those who have suffered or are suffering from shock, trauma, or extreme stress.
• This could be a person under chronic stress, who has a sudden trauma or a big life change.
• This could be a person under chronic stress who has had past trauma that still challenges them in some way (car accidents, sexual abuse, child abuse, psychological abuse, fear of death).
• People may have also had many children or many abortions, have had surgery(s), a history of chronic disease and pain. Also, drug abuse or a history of strong medication can lead to this stage.

Symptoms:

• Feeling tired, low back pain, shoulder pain and muscular tightness in whole body. Other symptoms include lack of sweat (except on palms of hands), cold lower back, cold abdomen, cold extremities.
• Upper respiratory tract symptoms: Constriction of airways and wheezing, shortness of breath and coughing. Allergic asthma may have presented itself in the alarm phase but is more typical in the resistance phase.
• Urinary Tract symptoms: Parasympathetic system dominance can stimulate contraction of the bladder, causing frequent urination.
• Gastrointestinal symptoms: abdominal pain, cramps, diarrhea, excessive salivation and gas.

Options on how to treat this stage:

All the recommendations from Stage 1 will help, but here are a few more for the more severe stage 2. All of these should be checked out with a doctor first as you may be having more severe symptoms stemming from stress (for example, high blood pressure):

• Holy Basil: Holy Basil is an Ayurvedic herb that supports a healthy response to stress, nourish the mind, and elevate the spirit. It contains a variety of constituents, including eugenol, camphor, caryophyllene, ursolic acid, luteolin and apigenin that function collectively to normalize stress hormones and enhance adrenal function.
• Ashwaganda: Ashwaganda is an Ayurvedic herb and an adaptogen that supports mental and physical Vitality and stamina. It contains steroidal compounds and additional chemical constituents that advance the body's natural resistance and adaptation to stressful influences. It supports mental endurance, promotes total metabolic efficiency and encourages an overall sense of well-being.
• Schizandra berries: Schizandra (Wu Wei Zi in Chinese medicine) is an adaptogen that promote overall health and Vitality, enhances the body's natural resistance to stressful influences, supports mental endurance and promote overall metabolic efficiency. This is also an astringent herb, so it may help if diarrhea and having to urinate too often are symptoms.
• Try different relaxation techniques: Meditation, deep breathing, long hot baths, relaxing yoga classes, journaling. You need to find something that relaxes you that you can do every day. This seems simple but is a great help for your body.
• Avoid sodium: Avoid sodium if high blood pressure is a symptom. In restoration of the adrenal gland function, typically one should include potassium rich foods and avoid foods that are too high in sodium.
• Cut out coffee completely: Coffee stimulates the adrenal glands and in this phase, they are over-stimulated. At this point, you need to do everything you can to calm them, so this is the time where you actually should consider not just cutting down on coffee, but quitting entirely.
• Cut out smoking: Smoking inhibits the ability of your lungs to breathe so it can be really important to quit at this phase.
• Cut out or significantly lower sugar: The injury to the sympathetic nervous system and adrenal gland weakness can affect the way your body metabolizes glucose. This may be especially important if you are diabetic (chromium increases the ability of your body to metabolize glucose, so this may be something to look into if that's a problem). Sugar will also increase inflammation.
• Watch out for inflammation symptoms: Increases in body pain, sudden muscular tension, allergy attacks, and new food allergies - all of these are signs of inflammation which are common in this stage. Turmeric /curcumin can help with this, as can essential fatty acids, but the inflammation may be happening because stress is affecting the body.
• Ginger: Ginger is very warming, and if you are constantly feeling cold due to stress, this would be a great tea to make you can buy ginger at any grocery store and slice a few pieces to make tea out of. It works in soups too.
• Bitters: Bitters might be good to take at this time if digestion and elimination is a large problem.
• Overstimulation: If you are experiencing an inability to relax even when exhausted, you might try making a tea out of linden flowers, skullcap, passionflower, and chamomile, but make sure you aren't driving and have a night of relaxation and sleep ahead of you.

Stage 3: Exhaustion Stage
- This stage occurs only when stress is extremely severe or when it continues over a long period of time.
- If stress continues to this level, cortisol secretion increases above normal rate and may even surpass levels produced by alarm reaction. However, the body's adaptive mechanisms are not adapting, they are decreasing.
- The body is not able to successfully cope with the stressor.

Possible Consequences of Exhaustion Phase:

• Arthritis, arteriosclerosis, nephrosclerosis, gastrointestinal ulcers, hypertension, etc.
• Prolonged exposure to high levels of cortisol and other hormones involved in the resistance reaction causes wasting muscle, suppression of immune system, and pancreatic beta cells.
• Even if changes are made in lifestyle now, resistance reactions persist even after stressor is gone.
• Serious diseases like Cushing's syndrome and adrenal diabetes may occur.
• Due to the fact that the body's systems are very much out of homeostasis, a multitude of problems may now occur and so we won't discuss natural remedies and supplements as this is the more emergency stage where you must work with a doctor.

Sources

- Bodymind Energetics Towards a Dynamic Model of Health. By Mark Seem, Ph.D.
- Kiiko Matsumoto's Clinical Strategies Volume 1. By Kiiko Matsumoto and David Euler
- Principles of Anatomy and Physiology. By Tortora and Derrikson
- The Ciba Collection of Medical Illustrations, Volume 4, Endocrine System and Selected Metabolic   Diseases. By Frank H. Netter, M.D.
- Color Atlas of Human Anatomy. By R.M.H. McMinn and R.T. Hutchings
- The Stress of Life. By Hans Selye, M.D.
- Natural Health Complete Guide to Medicinal Herbs. By Penelope Ody, MNIMH
- Medical Nutrition From Marz, 2nd Edition. By Russell B. Marz, N.D., M.Ac.O.M

This quick and simple salad is a delicious solution to the age-old question, “What’s for dinner?” It’s filled with wholesome ingredients, protein and fiber to enhance your hard earned fitness results.

Servings: 6 
Here’s what you need:

For the Salad

• 2 cooked chicken breasts, chopped
• 1.2 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1 Tablespoon red onion, minced
• 1/2 cup cucumber, chopped
• 4 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
• 4 strips, cooked nitrate-free bacon, chopped
• 1 avocado, chopped

For the Dressing

• 1/8 cup olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 packet stevia
• 1 teaspoon crushed garlic
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Instructions

1. Combine all of the salad ingredients in a large salad bowl. Mix to combine.
2. Combine all of the dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Drizzle over the salad and serve.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 218 calories, 12g fat, 189mg sodium, 5g carbohydrate, 4g fiber, and 22g protein

• Lifestyle: People who spend less time outdoors, or who cover up with clothing when they are outdoors, get less exposure to the sun, so they make less vitamin D. (1)
• Sunscreen Use: Correctly-applied sunscreen blocks the harmful ultraviolet B rays that cause skin cancer, but it also blocks most of the skin’s production of vitamin D. So people who use sunscreen daily are more likely to be low in vitamin D. (1) But don’t ditch the sunscreen: The American Academy of Dermatologists says that sunlight exposure to unprotected skin increases the risk of skin cancer, and that there’s no safe level of sunlight exposure that allows you to make vitamin D without increasing skin cancer risk. Their advice? Use sunscreen or other sun protection daily, skip the tanning booths, and get your vitamin D from diet or supplements. (2) Some Vitamin D experts take issue with the American Academy of Dermatologists’ hard line on sun exposure, and they recommend a more moderate option: Put sunscreen on your face, and allow your arms and legs to get a small amount of unprotected sun exposure—say, 15 minutes max—before applying sunscreen or covering up. It’s still a matter of scientific debate.
• Geographic Location and Season: In the summer, if you sat out in a bathing suit on a sunny afternoon for long enough to turn your skin slightly pink, you could make plenty of vitamin D. Yet during the late autumn and winter, people who live at higher latitudes produce little or no vitamin D from the sun, because the sun is at too low an angle in the sky. In the northern hemisphere, people who live in Boston (U.S.), Edmonton (Canada), and Bergen (Norway) can’t make enough vitamin D from the sun for 4, 5, and 6 months out of the year. (3) In the southern hemisphere, residents of Buenos Aires (Argentina) and Cape Town (South Africa) can make far less vitamin D from the sun during their winter months (June through August) than they can during their spring and summer. (3) The body stores vitamin D from summer sun exposure, but it must last for many months. By late winter, many people in these higher-latitude locales are deficient. (1)
• Skin Tone: People who have a darker skin tone have more melanin in their skin, and this pigment is a “natural sunscreen” that slows down skin production of vitamin D. (3)  This the main reason why African Americans are more likely to be low in vitamin D. (4)
• Age: The ability to make vitamin D in the skin drops as we age, and is one of the reasons why older individuals are more likely to have low vitamin D levels. (1)
• Body Weight: People with excess body fat have lower vitamin D levels, so those who are overweight or obese have a higher risk of having inadequate vitamin D.  (1, 5, 6)

The bottom line: Low vitamin D can be found in all ethnic and age groups, around the world, for a host of reasons. Even if you are taking a standard multiple vitamin, the amount of vitamin D in most vitamins (400 IU) is not enough to prevent low blood levels. If you suspect that you are at risk of vitamin D deficiency, you can ask your physician to order a blood test for vitamin D.

Legumes play an important role in traditional diets in many parts of the world. They are low in fat, are good sources of protein and fiber, and contain a variety of micronutrients and phytoestrogens (plant estrogens). Phytoestrogens have received a lot of attention for their ability to fight not only cancer, but also heart disease and osteoporosis. They help balance hormones in the body and thus are thought to be particularly valuable for the hormone-dependent cancers: breast cancer and prostate cancer. It is well known that male hormones play a role in prostate cancer development.

Despite their advantages, legumes play a minor role in most Western diets. The typical Western based diet (lower in vegetables and legumes and higher in animal-based foods) can cause an increase in both male and female hormones (androgens and estrogens), while a plant-based diet tends to lower these hormones. This is the basis for the role of diet in the development of hormone-dependent cancers.

Soy foods, such as tofu, soy milk, soy beans, and vegetarian burgers, seem to be particularly rich in cancer-fighting properties. This is at least partially due to a form of phytoestrogen, called isoflavones, that is found primarily in soy. It appears to help prevent prostate cancer by binding to male hormone receptors in the prostate, thus reducing the stimulating effect of male hormones on prostate cell growth.

Epidemiological studies have shown that high levels of isoflavones are often associated with low rates of breast, colon, and prostate cancer. This has been used to explain why countries such as Japan and China that typically consume large amounts of soy have lower risks of these diseases.

The difficulty with consuming soy for reducing risk of prostate cancer is the lack of clinical trial evidence to support its use. As with any dietary component, it is difficult to isolate the effect of a particular food type to prove its effectiveness. One prospective study, including over 12,000 men, did evaluate consumption of soy milk. It found that those who drank soy milk regularly had a reduced risk of prostate cancer. The relationship held up after other factors were controlled for. Other studies need to be done to further establish the benefits of soy. In the meantime, getting more soy foods into your diet can be healthy for many reasons, and lowering your risk of prostate cancer may be one of these.

Vitamin D Deficiency: A Global Concern

If you live north of the line connecting San Francisco to Philadelphia and Athens to Beijing, odds are that you don’t get enough vitamin D. The same holds true if you don’t get outside for at least a 15-minute daily walk in the sun. African-Americans and others with dark skin, as well as older individuals, tend to have much lower levels of vitamin D, as do people who are overweight or obese.

Worldwide, an estimated 1 billion people have inadequate levels of vitamin D in their blood, and deficiencies can be found in all ethnicities and age groups. (1-3)  Indeed, in industrialized countries, doctors are even seeing the resurgence of rickets, the bone-weakening disease that had been largely eradicated through vitamin D fortification. (4-6)

Why are these widespread vitamin D deficiencies of such great concern? Because research conducted over the past decade suggests that vitamin D plays a much broader disease-fighting role than once thought.

Being “D-ficient” may increase the risk of a host of chronic diseases, such as osteoporosis, heart disease, some cancers, and multiple sclerosis, as well as infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis and even the seasonal flu.

Currently, there’s scientific debate about how much vitamin D people need each day. The Institute of Medicine, in a long-awaited report released on November 30, 2010 recommends tripling the daily vitamin D intake for children and adults in the U.S. and Canada, to 600 IU per day. (7) The report also recognized the safety of vitamin D by increasing the upper limit from 2,000 to 4,000 IU per day, and acknowledged that even at 4,000 IU per day, there was no good evidence of harm. The new guidelines, however, are overly conservative about the recommended intake, and they do not give enough weight to some of the latest science on vitamin D and health. For bone health and chronic disease prevention, many people are likely to need more vitamin D than even these new government guidelines recommend.

Vitamin D Sources and Function

Vitamin D is both a nutrient we eat and a hormone our bodies make. Few foods are naturally rich in vitamin D, so the biggest dietary sources of vitamin D are fortified foods and vitamin supplements. Good sources include dairy products and breakfast cereals (both of which are fortified with vitamin D), and fatty fish such as salmon and tuna.

The body also manufactures vitamin D from cholesterol, through a process triggered by the action of sunlight on skin, hence its nickname, “the sunshine vitamin.”  Yet some people do not make enough vitamin D from the sun, among them, people who have a darker skin tone, who are overweight, who are older, and who cover up when they are in the sun. (1)

Correctly applied sunscreen reduces our ability to absorb vitamin D by more than 90 percent. (8) And not all sunlight is created equal: The sun’s ultraviolet B (UVB) rays—the so-called “tanning” rays, and the rays that trigger the skin to produce vitamin D—are stronger near the equator and weaker at higher latitudes. So in the fall and winter, people who live at higher latitudes (in the northern U.S. and Europe, for example) can’t make much if any vitamin D from the sun. (8)

Vitamin D helps ensure that the body absorbs and retains calcium and phosphorus, both critical for building bone. Laboratory studies show that vitamin D can reduce cancer cell growth and plays a critical role in controlling infections. Many of the body’s organs and tissues have receptors for vitamin D, and scientists are still teasing out its other possible functions.

New Vitamin D Research: Beyond Building Bones

Several promising areas of vitamin D research look far beyond vitamin D’s role in building bones. And, as you might expect, the news media release a flurry of reports every time another study links vitamin D to some new ailment. These reports can be confusing, however, because some studies are stronger than others, and any report needs to be interpreted in the light of all other evidence. More answers may come from randomized trials, such as the VITamin D and OmegA-3 TriaL (VITAL), which will enroll 20,000 healthy men and women to see if taking 2,000 IU of vitamin D or 1,000 mg of fish oil daily lowers the risk of cancer, heart disease, and stroke.

Here, we provide an overview of some of the more promising areas of vitamin D research, highlighting the complex role of vitamin D in disease prevention—and the many unanswered questions that remain.

Vitamin D and Bone and Muscle Strength

Several studies link low vitamin D levels with an increased risk of fractures in older adults, and they suggest that vitamin D supplementation may prevent such fractures—as long as it is taken in a high enough dose. (9-13)

A summary of the evidence comes from a combined analysis of 12 fracture prevention trials that included more than 40,000 elderly people, most of them women. Researchers found that high intakes of vitamin D supplements—of about 800 IU per day—reduced hip and non-spine fractures by 20 percent, while lower intakes (400 IU or less) failed to offer any fracture prevention benefit. (13)

Vitamin D may also help increase muscle strength, which in turn helps to prevent falls, a common problem that leads to substantial disability and death in older people. (14-16)  Once again, vitamin D dose matters: A combined analysis of multiple studies found that taking 700 to 1,000 IU of vitamin D per day lowered the risk of falls by 19 percent, but taking 200 to 600 IU per day did not offer any such protection. (17)

A recent vitamin D trial drew headlines for its unexpected finding that a very high dose of vitamin D increased fracture and fall risk in older women. (18) The trial’s vitamin D dose—500,000 IU taken in a once-a-year pill—was much higher than previously tested in an annual regimen. After up to 5 years of treatment, women in the vitamin D group had a 15 percent higher fall risk and a 26 percent higher fracture risk than women who received the placebo.

It’s possible that giving the vitamin D in one large dose, rather than in several doses spread throughout the year, led to the increased risk. (18) The study authors note that only one other study—also a high-dose, once-a-year regimen—found vitamin D to increase fracture risk; no other studies have found vitamin D to increase the risk of falls. Furthermore, there’s strong evidence that more moderate doses of vitamin D taken daily or weekly protect against fractures and falls—and are safe.

So what is the significance of this study for people who want to take vitamin D supplements? A reasonable conclusion would be to continue taking moderate doses of vitamin D regularly, since these have a strong safety record, but to avoid extremely high single doses. This recent finding does present a challenge to scientists who will work to understand why the extreme single dose appears to have adverse effects.

Vitamin D and Heart Disease

The heart is basically a large muscle, and like skeletal muscle, it has receptors for vitamin D. (19) So perhaps it’s no surprise that studies are finding vitamin D deficiency may be linked to heart disease. The Health Professional Follow-Up Study checked the vitamin D blood levels in nearly 50,000 men who were healthy, and then followed them for 10 years. (20) They found that men who were deficient in vitamin D were twice as likely to have a heart attack as men who had adequate levels of vitamin D. Other studies have found that low vitamin D levels were associated with higher risk of heart failure, sudden cardiac death, stroke, overall cardiovascular disease, and cardiovascular death. (21-24) How exactly might vitamin D help prevent heart disease? There’s evidence that vitamin D plays a role in controlling blood pressure and preventing artery damage, and this may explain these findings. (25) Still, more research is needed before we can be confident of these benefits.

Vitamin D and Cancer

Nearly 30 years ago, researchers noticed an intriguing relationship between colon cancer deaths and geographic location: People who lived at higher latitudes, such as in the northern U.S., had higher rates of death from colon cancer than people who live closer to the equator. (26) Many scientific hypotheses about vitamin D and disease stem from studies that have compared solar radiation and disease rates in different countries. These can be a good starting point for other research but don’t provide the most definitive information. The sun’s UVB rays are weaker at higher latitudes, and in turn, people’s vitamin D levels in these high latitude locales tend to be lower. This led to the hypothesis that low vitamin D levels might somehow increase colon cancer risk. (2)

Since then, dozens of studies suggest an association between low vitamin D levels and increased risks of colon and other cancers. (1,27)  The evidence is strongest for colorectal cancer, with most (but not all) observational studies finding that the lower the vitamin D levels, the higher the risk of these diseases. (28-38) Vitamin D levels may also predict cancer survival, but evidence for this is still limited. (27) Yet finding such associations does not necessarily mean that taking vitamin D supplements will lower cancer risk.

The VITAL trial will look specifically at whether vitamin D supplements lower cancer risk. It will be years, though, before it releases any results. It could also fail to detect a real benefit of vitamin D, for several reasons: If people in the placebo group decide on their own to take vitamin D supplements, that could minimize any differences between the placebo group and the supplement group; the study may not follow participants for a long enough time to show a cancer prevention benefit; or study participants may be starting supplements too late in life to lower their cancer risk. In the meantime, based on the evidence to date, 16 scientists have circulated a “call for action” on vitamin D and cancer prevention: (27) Given the high rates of vitamin D deficiency in North America, the strong evidence for reduction of osteoporosis and fractures, the potential cancer-fighting benefits of vitamin D, and the low risk of vitamin D supplementation, they recommend widespread vitamin D supplementation of 2000 IU per day. (27)

Vitamin D and Immune Function

Vitamin D’s role in regulating the immune system has led scientists to explore two parallel research paths: Does vitamin D deficiency contribute to the development of multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, and other so-called “autoimmune” diseases, where the body’s immune system attacks its own organs and tissues? And could vitamin D supplements help boost our body’s defenses to fight infectious disease, such as tuberculosis and seasonal flu? This is a hot research area and more findings will be emerging.

Vitamin D and Multiple Sclerosis: Multiple sclerosis (MS) rates are much higher far north (or far south) of the equator than in sunnier climes, and researchers suspect that chronic vitamin D deficiencies may be one reason why. One prospective study to look at this question found that among white men and women, those with the highest vitamin D blood levels had a 62 percent lower risk of developing MS than those with the lowest vitamin D levels. (39) The study didn’t find this effect among black men and women, most likely because there were fewer black study participants and most of them had low vitamin D levels, making it harder to find any link between vitamin D and MS if one exists.

Vitamin D and Type 1 Diabetes: Type 1 diabetes is another disease that varies with geography—a child in Finland is about 400 times more likely to develop it than a child in Venezuela. (40) Evidence that vitamin D may play a role in preventing type 1 diabetes comes from a 30-year study that followed more than 10,000 Finnish children from birth: Children who regularly received vitamin D supplements during infancy had a nearly 90 percent lower risk of developing type 1 diabetes than those who did not receive supplements. (41)  Other European case-control studies, when analyzed together, also suggest that vitamin D may help protect against type 1 diabetes. (42) No randomized controlled trials have tested this notion, and it is not clear that they would be possible to conduct.

Vitamin D, the Flu, and the Common Cold: The flu virus wreaks the most havoc in the winter, abating in the summer months. This seasonality led a British doctor to hypothesize that a sunlight-related “seasonal stimulus” triggered influenza outbreaks. (43) More than 20 years after this initial hypothesis, several scientists published a paper suggesting that vitamin D may be the seasonal stimulus. (44) Among the evidence they cite:

• Vitamin D levels are lowest in the winter months. (44) 
• The active form of vitamin D tempers the damaging inflammatory response of some white blood cells, while it also boosts immune cells’ production of microbe-fighting proteins. (44) 
• Children who have vitamin D-deficiency rickets are more likely to get respiratory infections, while children exposed to sunlight seem to have fewer respiratory infections. (44) 
• Adults who have low vitamin D levels are more likely to report having had a recent cough, cold, or upper respiratory tract infection. (45)

A recent randomized controlled trial in Japanese school children tested whether taking daily vitamin D supplements would prevent seasonal flu. (46) The trial followed nearly 340 children for four months during the height of the winter flu season. Half of the study participants received pills that contained 1,200 IU of vitamin D; the other half received placebo pills. Researchers found that type A influenza rates in the vitamin D group were about 40 percent lower than in the placebo group; there was no significant difference in type B influenza rates. This was a small but promising study, and more research is needed before we can definitively say that vitamin D protects against the flu. But don’t skip your flu shot, even if vitamin D has some benefit.

Vitamin D and Tuberculosis: Before the advent of antibiotics, sunlight and sun lamps were part of the standard treatment for tuberculosis (TB). (47) More recent research suggests that the “sunshine vitamin” may be linked to TB risk. Several case-control studies, when analyzed together, suggest that people diagnosed with tuberculosis have lower vitamin D levels than healthy people of similar age and other characteristics. (48)   Such studies do not follow individuals over time, so they cannot tell us whether vitamin D deficiency led to the increased TB risk or whether taking vitamin D supplements would prevent TB. There are also genetic differences in the receptor that binds vitamin D, and these differences may influence TB risk. (49) Again, more research is needed. (49)

Vitamin D and Risk of Premature Death

A promising report in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that taking vitamin D supplements may even reduce overall mortality rates: A combined analysis of multiple studies found that taking modest levels of vitamin D supplements was associated with a statistically significant 7 percent reduction in mortality from any cause. (50) The analysis looked at the findings from 18 randomized controlled trials that enrolled a total of nearly 60,000 study participants; most of the study participants took between 400 and 800 IU of vitamin D per day for an average of five years. Keep in mind that this analysis has several limitations, chief among them the fact that the studies it included were not designed to explore mortality in general, or explore specific causes of death. More research is needed before any broad claims can be made about vitamin D and mortality. (51)

Sports massage is a form of massage therapy that is tailored to treat the needs of athletes. The use and application of specific techniques is the foundation of sports massage, yet what distinguishes it from other modalities is the intention behind the therapy. Many of us might think of massage as relaxing and holistic. Sports massage, in contrast, is designed to achieve specific goals, such as increasing performance or treating or preventing injury. The purpose of a sports massage session can vary, depending upon numerous factors that are unique to each athlete. For instance, sports massage can be used effectively to treat conditions such as tendonitis, strains, sprains, and adhesions. It can also be used in conjunction with training schedules and conditioning programs to enhance performance, aid in recovery and reduce the potential for injuries.

The major applications of sports massage are recovery, remedial (to improve a debilitating condition), maintenance, and event (pre, inter, and post). An athlete can enhance his or her performance by knowing when to incorporate sports massage into a training routine. Healthy, injury-free muscles perform better, longer, and with less chance of injury.

Sports massage can help to optimize the positive factors that affect performance, such as healthy muscle and connective tissues, normal range of motion, high energy and fluid and pain-free movement, as well as inducing mental calm and improving alertness, and concentration. It also can help minimize negative factors such as dysfunctional muscle and connective tissue, restricted range of motion, low energy, staleness, pain, and high anxiety^(1a).

Sports massage decreases injury potential by helping to prevent acute injuries (muscle tears) as well as chronic injuries stemming from wear and tear (tendonitis). Regular massage allows the muscles and soft tissue to stay supple and healthy, lengthened and flexible and free from adhesions, thereby reducing the potential for injury. By increasing circulation and assisting the body’s healing processes and breaking down scar tissue and adhesions, sports massage can help chronic injuries get better.

Important Primary and Secondary Effects of Sports Massage^(1b)

Primary effects refer to the physiological and psychological condition of the athlete and include:

• Improved fluid circulation (blood, lymph),
• Muscular relaxation,
• General relaxation,
• Functional separation of muscle and connective tissue (i.e., breaking up adhesions),
• Connective tissue normalization (releasing areas of tension, etc.),
• Increased mental alertness and clarity, and
• Deactivation of trigger points. (A trigger point is a nodule of tight muscle tissue that can refer pain locally or to other areas of the body.)

Secondary effects refer to performance-related outcomes and include:

• Greater energy,
• Greater flexibility and range of motion,
• More fluid movement (i.e., referring to the quality of the range of motion),
• Faster recovery, and
• Pain reduction.

If you decide that sports massage is the right treatment for you, it is important to find a well-trained therapist. Check out if a practitioner has had training in sports massage from an accredited school. Currently, there is no national credentialing that signifies a person who has passed a test demonstrating a solid understanding of the foundations and techniques of sports massage, so you will have to ask a few questions. How many hours of training (in general) did they have? Was their school accredited by the American Massage Therapy Association? How many hours of training in sports massage did they receive? What kind of athletes have they worked with? Were the athletes training or competing at the time? Is your therapist an athlete (on any level)?

Many sports massage practitioners participate in races or competitive events, which increases their understanding not only of the uses and benefits of sports massage, but of other factors that go into being an athlete. For example, the length of time between the massage session and the athletic event directly relates to the depth of pressure a therapist should use. A knowledgeable therapist will know that a pre-event massage, which is meant to encourage general looseness, calls for less deep work than a regular “maintenance” massage. It is important that your therapist always errs on the side of caution when using deep pressure, and that they have an understanding of the psychology of an athlete and the physical demands of training.

One of the benefits of working regularly with the same sports massage therapist is that he or she can learn to feel what is “normal” for your tissue and body type and can keep a watchful eye on any changes that may signal the need to head off potential trouble spots. If an injury does occur, the therapist can join the team of health care practitioners helping you to recover. Here, the focus is on healing the injury quickly and effectively, minimizing the side effects of the injury and decreasing the chance of re-occurrence.

The use of sports massage in training routines varies depending on the athlete, the sport being trained for and the level of competition. It is important to mention that every athlete and every situation is going to be different, and that each person should research and find a plan that is most suitable for them. With that in mind, let’s take a look at how two different athletes used sports massage in conjunction with their training.

When Uta was competing in 5K to 10K races, or preparing for a marathon, she received sports massage twice a week. Usually, she scheduled her massages the day after one of her harder training sessions for the week. If that wasn’t possible, she would allow herself a treatment session on the same day as her hard workout, but she would wait at least 3 to 4 hours to let her body recover some from the training before addressing soft tissue needs. Getting regular massage during her intense training periods also helped Uta psychologically, by allowing her to give back to her body and take some time for herself.

Training for my first triathlon, I used sports massage regularly. I noticed that I could identify potential problems and head them off before they became an impediment in my training. I also felt, during the most intense training periods, that taking the time to give back to my body really helped me to feel like I was rounding out my training program. Having time to recover, making the effort to work my muscles and being in tune with my body, all played integral roles in my ability to train as hard as I did, without hurting myself.

Getting regular massages during training is a great way to generate feedback for yourself about how you are doing. The more feedback you can gather about performance and training, and how your body is responding to it all, the better informed you will be about how you can compete and recover from competition. Sports massage, therefore, can be a great tool for athletes in their training. It provides myriad benefits, including increasing performance potential, speeding recovery time, and reducing the prevalence of injuries. And let’s not forget the wonderful relaxation, stress relief, and whole body integration that everyone—not just the athlete—can obtain from massage!

When you decide on your favorite summer workouts—we discussed a few fun options in Part I—you can move on to organize everything so you stay healthy and well-hydrated during your fitness routine.

First of all, add extra care to how you prepare for your workouts. Make sure you are properly hydrated beforehand. Drink small amounts of water frequently, beginning two hours before you go out. I would not necessarily drink too much for 20 to 30 minutes prior to your start, though, because it can make you need to “go” while working out.

If you plan to work out for more than one hour, you might want to run with a water bottle belt, as many athletes do. You also could leave one or more water bottles on the course. If you decide on that strategy, it is best to stay on a loop course. This gives you a chance to replenish every few miles. And, if you want to be absolutely safe, ask a friend to join you on a bike. For bikers, use both your water bottles, and stay ahead of the game by stopping at any convenience store or gasoline station to fill-up your bottles before you need them again.

Listen to Your Body, Stay Healthy

Nothing is more important than listening to your body. If you do not feel well, please be very cautious. Before, during, and after your workouts, the first signs of a possible problem might be heavier breathing, an elevated heart rate, or losing concentration. Consider wearing a heart rate monitor—it can caution you before you run into trouble.

When you feel unwell, admit it to yourself early on and get out of the heat right away. Cool off with a cold towel, use ice cubes, and hydrate! Please, do not wait to see a physician if you do not feel better immediately. Be familiar with some of the early warning signs of overheating: dizziness, fainting, fatigue, hot skin and followed by chills, lack of perspiration, feeling thirsty, and elevated heart rate. If you stop sweating, you most likely are very dehydrated⁽¹⁾.

Also be careful after your workout. Take a dry shirt to put on after your run, and always take some fluid to drink. If you feel cold—even in summer, for example when you come from outside into an air-conditioned room while still wearing your wet workout clothes—change immediately into dry clothes. It may be summer, but you need to stay “warm” after your workouts to avoid weakening your immune system and maybe getting a cold.

For adequate protection, sunscreen, glasses, a summer hat, and a rain jacket are always good to have close by.

Hydrate Well Throughout the Day

© Betty Shepherd

It can be very warm and dry during the summer, so make sure you stay cool and hydrated at all times. There are some guidelines I would suggest, and one of my favorite is to keep a bottle of water or a sports drink close by. This will remind you to drink and get replenished with small amounts continuously and evenly spread out throughout the day.

Hydration is critical for many body functions, such as digestion, regulation of body temperature, and the circulatory processes that bring nutrients to the cells and transport waste from them. This is even more understandable when considering that our bodies are up to 75% water in total, depending on age and build, with blood being 83% water and the brain being 75 to 78% water. These are the levels when each of those organs work best⁽²⁾.

When you get dehydrated, every cell in your body suffers, causing you to feel less fit and fatigued⁽³⁾. This puts more stress on your body and makes you more prone to illness and disease. And you can be at risk of overheating, which can have terribly serious consequences—including being life-threatening.

For proper hydration, start with juice from a fresh squeezed lemon with lots of water first thing in the morning. It is good for re-hydration after your night’s sleep and also will help your body to detoxify.

And as mentioned earlier, drink enough before, if possible during, and right after your training. It is best to replenish within 30 minutes of finishing your workout—the so-called “recovery window.” I like to eat a big slice of water melon right after my training, it is a great source of water, antioxidants, and easily digested carbohydrates. In the following article “General Guidelines,” you can find more information on this topic.

A Few Thoughts on Summer Nutrition

© Betty Shepherd

Many people like to adjust their nutrition and take advantage of everything that is fresh and more available in the summer, like tasty fruits and vegetables. It is berry season—maybe you are lucky enough to be able to pick your own on a berry farm. Eat food that has high water content like melon, citrus fruits, berries, and vegetables.

Diluted fruit juices with 1 part juice and up to 2 parts water can help you to stay hydrated. The juice from sour cherries, for example, has many health benefits and can even support faster strength recovery for runners.

You also can try the many different kinds of unsweetened iced teas. My favorite flavor is mango.

Enjoy what you eat and make it tasty. Add some cool summer nutrition like different kinds of smoothies. Depending on the amount you make, they even can be served as an entire meal. Just add water, berries (like raspberries and blueberries), banana, whey protein, and some ice cubes into a blender. Mix it and enjoy. Or try a variation with mango or pineapple. And for more health benefits, add a teaspoon of ground flaxseeds.

There also are many delicious salad creations with great dressings. You could try a variety of citrus dressings. Other choices of salads include my favorites—fresh cucumber salad with dill and onions or a tomato salad with olives, feta, and basil.

Sashimi and sushi can be delightful lighter dinner fare when well-portioned. And when you prepare your meals, add more vegetables than pasta or potatoes. And how about cold summer soups like water cress and gazpacho?

And for all you BBQ lovers, here are some thoughts on “Healthier Grilling.” I hope you can enjoy many relaxing summer evenings with your family and friends.

Good luck for your summertime fitness!

© Betty Shepherd

Summer is such a beautiful time of the year. Happy days with stunning sunrises, long, warm evenings and relaxing afternoons freshened up with lemonade and watermelon. Even on hot days, it is not difficult to find great exercises to keep your fitness level up.

Summer is also special because you can finally do the workouts you might have been missing during the colder months of the year. You even can take advantage of the training sessions you would not necessarily do during the ideal training period for other sports in winter.

You can add cross-training, as well. That means you can work out in other sports or add exercises that support what you normally focus on. It gives you an opportunity to prepare yourself for your upcoming autumn events or improve your fitness and skills for your favorite winter sports. Cross-training can give you a wide variety of workout choices which can enable you to reach your goals.

In the summer, you have a wonderful opportunity to take advantage of the outdoors and experience beautiful connections to nature—the oceans, lakes, rivers, beaches, mountains, and shady woods and forests.

Before we go on, however, I would advise getting a physical before you start your summertime fitness, making sure you are fit enough to work out in those warm conditions and are able to stay ahead of the game. It is a time that is good for more than just goal setting. You also can talk about your fitness ideas and workout possibilities for the upcoming months and decide if they are realistic for you.

Your Favorite Summer Workouts

Of course, in summer—as well as year-round—do activities you enjoy. They might include your favorite ball game, long hikes, water sports, or anything that is giving you excitement and happiness while exercising.

Maybe you have some “wishes” you can turn into goals—like improving your fitness, learning to surf, running your first 5K, hiking a mountain, or biking some new trails by the end of the warmest time of the year. When you follow a path of realistic and achievable short-term goals, it can be much easier to stay motivated and make it fun to reach your goal.

© Betty Shepherd

It always is a good idea to include your favorite workouts first, then, integrate new opportunities as the summer progresses. By the end of the warmest months, you will have explored and tried different exercises—alternatives you may have been curious about, perhaps, and had thought could be fun for you. Ball games, swimming, water sports, mountain biking, running, hiking, camping, for example, all are great exercises to try during the summer, especially if you had never done so before or if it had been a long time since you did them. And if you are ready to take on multiple challenges, nothing might be better than combining a number of activities.

My favorite summer workouts are those easy and relaxing evening runs, when the sun starts to set and the air is getting fresher, when I can play with those long shadows in the forest. I often combine them with a swim, diving into a lake after my run. Sometimes I jog a few miles to a beach by a lake and cool-off by swimming for some distance, depending on how I feel after my run. I used to do this often as a kid and later during my track season. I have enjoyed it ever since.

As the previous comment illustrates, summer workouts are a great way of rekindling happy childhood memories: those long days of carefree summer vacations from school, playing baseball, basketball, or soccer, or maybe completing a track session in the stadium. Perhaps you have a loving memory of the smell of freshly cut grass. That wonderfully distinctive aroma always reminds me of the newly-mown infield at the local track when I was a kid.

During the warmest time of the year, it is best to wait for temperatures to have fallen in the early morning or the late evening. Any kind of ball game—basketball, baseball, soccer, or tennis—is fun to play in the cooler evenings. With dusk still far away, you can arrange to get together with your friends after work and add informal versions of these games to your other activities. This can be fun and often makes it easier to stay fit.

When I was growing up and started running, we played lots of ball games as warm-ups for our training sessions. A game of team handball or volleyball was just right for us kids. Coming from Germany, soccer always was the favorite. Maybe you can join a group of friends to play a game? You will soon find the countless sprints to get the ball or trying to keep it will definitely give you good cardiovascular exercise. Huffing and puffing, I sometimes had to stop running to catch my breath.

For many of us, nothing is nicer than taking part in summer water sports. You can enjoy the whole day at a lake or the ocean with activities such as paddle boarding, kayaking, surfing, snorkeling, or playing different water ball games with your friends. These all are sports that can provide fun activities for you and your entire family.

If you don’t have the luxury of a few free days, try a nice swim before or after work, or, if time permits, during your lunch break. Swimming is not only a great cardiovascular workout, and refreshing during the summer months, it also can help you recover from more strenuous training like biking or running. And, at the same time, it will improve deeper breathing.

Dave enjoys kayaking across the state of Florida. © Dave Bracknell

A former client of mine started with a few sprint triathlons in the summer and quickly moved up to the Olympic distance in winter. He later discovered that kayaking would be fun for him, too. I got an email message from him with breathtaking photos of the ocean and his kayak resting on a beach. He wrote that he just kayaked across the state of Florida in a charity event.

I can imagine that he had a fun pool party afterwards! It is a great idea to start a party with your family and friends in late afternoon, playing ball and enjoying swim games, and later taking in the sunset while having a super-tasty barbecue.

Could an interesting hike become one of your favorite workouts? Even a leisurely “glow worm and fire flies” hike on a cool summer night might be something you would enjoy. It can be such a fun activity for the whole family. And if you choose a long day hike, you might want to top it off by camping out overnight under the stars.

Change the Venue, Adjust Your Goals, and Explore Cross-Training

Sure, you want to avoid the hottest part of the day—so go inside! Join a gym for the warmest months, and instead of running or biking outside, try the treadmill or the stationary bike or one of the many other aerobic exercise machines available at most gyms. You always can exercise outside during the cooler temperatures around sunrise and sunset.

The nice thing about summer events is that most of them take place in the morning or evening hours. Nothing is better than completing your workout or event and meeting friends for a late breakfast afterwards. “It’s just a piece of pancake!”

Adjust your fitness goals for the warmest time of the year. As always, it is best to set realistic, achievable, short-term goals. I recommend focusing on a few shorter workouts with higher intensity and playful variations in speed. Perhaps your goal might be to become faster in your sport during the summer. Then in autumn, you can add some endurance and focus on longer events again.

Once you accomplish your summer goals, you can use your improved fitness to achieve great results in your events later in the year.

© Betty Shepherd

Here are some ideas. If you are a triathlete, you might want to improve one of your disciplines to be better prepared for competition in the fall. To work on your swimming might be a good idea. Or you might change from running to more biking, and in the colder months add longer running workouts again. There are great duathlon competitions in the summer. To work on improving your speed, you may decide to prepare for a sprint triathlon or a sprint duathlon, instead of the longer versions.

Many runners may just have finished a spring marathon. The warm summer months are ideal to prepare for a 5K, and in late August one could prepare for a 10K. Then, in September, you can get ready for a half marathon. All the training and goal setting can be done with the ultimate aim of a faster marathon. Or simply enjoy the shorter distances as your main event all summer. That is good, too!

You also can switch from one sport to another. Think “off season training.” For runners, bike and swim instead of doing high mileage running. Some bikers go from the road into the forest and mountain bike, it is a great way to improve your skills. Enjoy water sports like kayaking or paddle boarding. Compete in team swimming events, relays are always great fun.

A good goal could be to work on other elements of fitness, like strength or technique training, especially if these are areas in which you already want to improve. To do this, you may want to include these new elements in your routine during the summer so you are better prepared for your upcoming events later in the year.

I love these elements of cross-training. They can give you a chance to try out a variety of workouts—not doing the same activity every day. And they can be done indoors during the warmest hours of the day. Think about it as something you can look forward to complement your training. Deep-water running, core strengthening, light weights, stretching and yoga… they all can be added to your summertime fitness routine. In this manner, you can condition your body for your fall events—to be a better runner, biker, or golfer—and for your winter sports to be a stronger skier, snowboarder, or skater.

Be prepared to adjust your workouts according to the weather conditions on any given day. It can be hot, humid or rainy, and setting a new and easier goal will help you achieve them. Maybe you, too, would love to combine some of your runs with a cooling swim afterwards.

And finally, a general suggestion for your summer workouts: start them slowly, increasing your workload in gentle increments. The weather conditions can be challenging and even deceptive. By starting your workouts carefully, keeping your strength in reserve, you will be able to keep your body temperature and your pulse lower. And you will not get so fatigued.

In many climates, temperatures can change dramatically over the course of the day, so always be aware of the conditions in which you do your activities and training. Of course, during summer months, adequate hydration should always be on your mind.

Fitness Programs and Sport Events You Can Join

Check out recreational leagues and programs for adults and kids in your area. Your town, local fitness club, and local businesses might offer programs for many sports and events, and maybe you would like to join one of them. This way you also might meet new friends and enjoy staying fit together. It might even not feel like working out hard at all.

There are many events over the summer that may be of interest to you. Some of them are charity rides or runs where you also can get the satisfaction of helping your community or a charity that touches your heart like SOS Outreach with which Take The Magic Step is a partner.

In “Summertime Fitness: Part II,” I will explore proper hydration and offer a few thoughts on summer nutrition.

Until then, I hope you can enjoy your fun and cool summertime fitness!