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Actually, I’m not actually in NYC right now, I’m in Princeton, NJ.  However, I will be in NYC on Tuesday and will stay there until next Sunday.  This is all part of my graduate school program and I’m really looking forward to it.  Speaking of which, I still have some stats homework to do!  So I’ll keep this brief and move right to this week’s interesting articles:

Mississippi is the heaviest state in the US.  More than 30% of residents are obese and less than 30% are a healthy weight.  So I found this piece from the Mississippi Daily Journal interesting.  It describes one woman’s quest to regain a healthy weight and some of the obstacles she faced.  Note how most of the article is devoted to social factors like eating habits and cuisines.  I am a firm believer that our society shapes us just as much as we shape it.  If we want to be healthy, we really need to live in a healthy society.
@The Daily Journal

How many times have you seen a study that says something is healthy only to immediately here a different study saying the very same thing is unhealthy?  It’s confusing sometimes and it can lead us to disbelieve everything we hear and go on with our unhealthy habits.  Here’s an article from Reader’s Digest that talks about this issue.  It looks at a study that came out recently which sought to examine the benefits of the low fat diet.  It’s a great piece which shows just how flawed some studies can be.  And remember, you don’t need a lot of fancy rules to eat healthy.  Take a look at the following series for some simple guidelines on how to eat healthy.
@Reader’s Digest

From the Washington Post comes this article about the benefits of omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids.  This is a good primer for people interested in these nutrients and their effects.
@The Washington Post

And let’s wrap today’s post up with this excellent article from the NY Times about muscle health.  It’s a wonderful introduction to muscles and all the great things they do for us.  It’s also god some valuable information about how to care for your muscles so they can care for you.
@The New York Times

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It’s Friday and the weekend is about to start.  For most people, that means a couple of days of rest and relaxation.  Unfortunately, the weekend also means many unhealthy habits for people.  People tend to eat more and be less active on the weekend.  So how about ending this week right with a few ideas for a healthy weekend.

Go Outdoors

The weather is beautiful in the San Francisco Bay Area.  If it’s this pretty where you live, how about finding a fun outdoor activity?  This could be anything from hiking and biking to playing frisbee in the park with friends.  It could even be something as simple as finding a friend or loved one and taking a long walk through your neighborhood.  Whatever it is, outdoor activities tend to be healthier than staying indoors.

Work On The Yard

If you have a yard, why not spend some time working on it?  I don’t just mean mowing the lawn, although that’s a pretty decent physical activity right there.  I mean plant a few things, especially vegetables or fruits.  Planting a garden will provide you with physical activity for months and with fresh produce at a cheap price.  It’s the best of all worlds!

Lay Off The Beef and Grains

The majority of what we eat is meat and grains.  How about changing that for a weekend?  No, you don’t have to go vegetarian for the weekend, but how about sticking to healthier meats until Monday morning?  That means fish, chicken, turkey and so on.  No beef, no pork, especially not the overly processed varieties.  Also, stay away from breads this weekend.  So no pizza, pasta or breads.  Commit yourself to doing this for just a weekend and see how easy and tasty this sort of healthy diet can be.

Go Dancing

Dancing is a wonderful workout which most people don’t consider a workout.  If you’re part of a couple, why not invite your partner to a night out at a dance club?  If you two have never danced before then find your nearest dance lesson or hall and go try it out.  There’s always beginner nights.  If you’re single, what better place to meet people than at a dance hall?  That’s especially true of you shy guys out there.  Trust me, you’ll enjoy it

Start Each Day Right

Commit to starting your Saturday and Sunday mornings right.  That means plenty of sleep the night before (you can forego the late night drinking binges for one weekend), a good breakfast and a 5 minute workout.  Do that for two mornings and see how much better you feel for the rest of the day.  Again, I’m not asking you to commit to this for the rest of your life, just two mornings.

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I hope everyone has a healthy and fun weekend.

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I saw a comment this morning on my commute biking post.  The comment mentioned warm weather and implied that this would make biking impractical.  I gave my own answer in a follow up comment but I wanted to expand on that answer a bit.  First of all, thank you to the reader for leaving this comment, there’s always something I may have overlooked and it’s good to be reminded of it on occasion.

Now, let me make what I said in the comment a bit clearer. I don’t believe that warm weather should be an impediment to biking to work. You can bike early in the morning or late enough in the evening to avoid much of the heat. Showers at work can also help for those of you who are like me, and tend to sweat. That said, exercising in extreme weather does pose a health concern and that’s what I wanted to talk about today.

Exercise And Injury

There’s always the risk of injury when exercising, that’s just part of moving about.  The more you move about the more you increase your chance of falling, twisting your ankle or straining a muscle.  Sitting on the couch has very little risk compared to jogging for example.  Still, I believe exercise and being active is worth it because the extra risk you incur is more than outweighed by the health benefits.  However, there’s a point at which the extra risk becomes too high and that’s the point at which you should stop exercising and start resting.

When Is Risk Too High?

I can think of many cases where the risk of exercise is too high.

• Strenuous exercise when you have a medical condition - If you know you have a heart condition, you shouldn’t be working out without consulting with a doctor.  You may be improving your overall health but you’re also straining your heart.  Same goes for lifting weights when you know you have some kind of joint or muscle issue.  If you have a medical condition, talk to a doctor before you exercise.
• Strenuous exercise under poor conditions - Weather is a good example.  I’m willing to bike when it’s 100 degrees outside but only if I bring water and only for short rides (less than 5 miles).  If it was 120 degrees outside, I would probably rethink my biking idea.  Same goes for the cold.  I biked to work in New England when it was 0 degrees, but I drove when it was snowing because biking in a blizzard is just silly.
• Lifting weights with bad form - Using bad form is not just bad exercise, it’s also a higher injury risk.  Those folks you see in the gym swinging weights around and getting their whole body involved in a simple weight lifting exercise?  They’re just being stupid.  They’re not getting a good workout and they’re placing themselves at a much higher risk of injury.
• Continuing to exercise when you’re injured - I’m guilty of this one.  You feel a pain and you know you should stop working out but you keep going anyway because you tell yourself to be tough and hang in there.  Guess what, that’s the wrong approach.  Exercising with an injury is going to aggravate the injury, not make it better or make it go away.  Yes, not all pains are injuries and you should learn to tell the difference between a temporary ache and pain which signals an injury, but don’t take chances.
• Too much sun - Quite a few physical activities are outdoors which means exposure to the sun, which also means sunburn.  For those of you who still associate a tan with health, I have bad news, a tan is not healthy.  A tan is a signal that you have exposed your body to too much sunlight.  A sunburn is even worse and significantly increases your chances of skin cancer later in life.  If you’re going to be in the sun for any length of time, use sunscreen if possible.  A small exposure to sunlight (10 minutes or so) is fine and can even be healthy but anything longer is bad without sunscreen.
• Bad equipment - Poor exercise equipment has been the cause of many an injury.  That could mean broken machines at the gym or poor running shoes when jogging.  Either way, if you’re going to use equipment, make sure it’s safe.

How To Judge When A Risk Is Too High?

Unfortunately, I can’t tell you that.  Sometimes it’s obvious, like jogging with a heart condition.  Sometimes it’s not so obvious, like how to tell when your shoes are bad for running.  When in doubt, check.  There are a variety of resources on exercise, from physical trainers and doctors to online sites and books.  For example, there are sporting goods stores with professionals that will help you find the right shoe for your foot.  It’s far better to check in advance than it is to spend 3 months recovering from an injury that could have been avoided, believe me, I learned that one the hard way.

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Just remember, you’re exercising for the health benefits.  If the risk of injury outweighs those health benefits, then you’re doing something wrong.

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Remember that old White Snake song? I think it went something along the lines of “here I go again on my own, walking down the only road I’ve ever known…”. Well, maybe you don’t remember it or maybe you’re trying to forget the 80’s, but either way, that’s what was going through my head yesterday morning when I tried out trail running.

I’d actually tried out trail running before.  I had a couple of friends who took my running with them a few times some years ago, but this was the first time that I had ever done it by myself as part of a planned workout and I have to say, the end result was a bit disappointing.

Why Did I Go Trail Running

First, because I like trying out new things.  Anyone who reads this site knows that.  I enjoy finding new ways to challenge myself and work on my physical fitness.  Second, because I heard trail running is an excellent workout due to the uneven nature of the surface you’re running on.  However, I also wanted to see if this was a way to make running more fun.

I think everyone who ever jogged is familiar with the problem of boredome.  Simply put, jogging isn’t the most interesting thing in the world to do.  You’re basically running and that’s all.  Now you can overcome this problem in a number of ways.  For example, bring a friend and chat as you run, bring an iPod and listen to music or you can even watch TV if you’re like me and run on a treadmill.  Whatever it is, you want to do something that relieves the monotony of running and running and running and running…  Well, I thought that trail running might be a good option.  After all, I love hiking so isn’t trail running like hiking only faster?  Well, that didn’t quite turn out the way I thought it would.

What Happened

So at 8am on a Sunday morning, I drove to a nearby park, figured out what trail I was going to follow and took off running.  It was a trail I had already hiked before, so I knew it rather well.  However, I found that running the trail is no where near as much fun as hiking it.  Because I was trying to work out, I didn’t have the time to stop and enjoy the surroundings like I do when I hike.  I couldn’t stop an admire the view or try to see if the sounds I was hearing were a deer.  It was like watching my favorite movie on fast forward.  I could recognize all the things I had previously enjoyed but I couldn’t quite enjoy them as much.

How Good Of A Workout Was It?

As far as the workout itself, it was pretty decent.  The uphills were challenging and the uneven surface certainly helped me work on my stability.  My only concern was the increased chance of injury due to the uneven surface.  Also, the constant impact from the downhills was certainly not a friend to my knees, feet and shins.

The Final Straw

All in all, I didn’t enjoy the trail run as much as I thought I would.  However, I would still go back and do it again if it weren’t for one thing, the drive.  My house is located in a relatively urban area.  In order to get to this part, I had to drive for 15 minutes.  With the price of gas being what is and with this workout adding an extra 30 minutes of prep time (driving back and forth plus finding parking), it just doesn’t seem worth my time.  I believe that one of the main strengths of a workout is being convenient and this was anything but.

Do I Recommend It For Others?

If you live close to a park or if you can bring some friends to run with you, then sure.  Otherwise, I think you’re better off sticking to the gym or your nearest track.

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It was an interesting experiment but I think I’ll stick to running at the gym and leave the hills for hiking.

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A few months ago I talked about potential gifts that made sense from a healthy perspective.  One of the options I mentioned was a dog.  What I should have made clearer in the article (and thank you to those of you who made it very clear in the comments) is that a dog is not a responsibility to be undertaken lightly.  They demand a huge amount of attention and resources.  Please think very carefully about getting a dog before you go ahead and start looking for one.  Make sure you’re ready for the time commitment and the frustration that a puppy brings.  A puppy is not just about playing fetch and looking cute.  That’s about 5% of the puppy experience.  The rest is cleaning up messes, teaching them how to behave, taking them for walks and cleaning up behind them.

I say this because my wife and I recently got a puppy, who we love, but boy is she a lot of work.  We’re both experienced dog owners but it’s been a while since we had a puppy and we’re learning all over again how much work it is.  So before you get a dog, make sure you’re ready for one and please consider adopting an adult dog from your local shelter or rescue society.  They’re less work and they need your love just as much.

And with that little public service announcement (which I think I have made once before), here are some articles from this week that I thought you might find useful:

From Consumer Reports, we get this article about the benefits of Vitamin D and how to balance the risk of being outdoors with your body’s need for sunshine.  I’m fair skinned myself which means anything more than 30 minutes in direct sunlight with a sunscreen means a sunburn.  So I try to take a few quick walks outside every day and spend the rest of my time indoors or slathered in sunscreen.  As with many healthy things, sunlight is good for you, but only in strict moderation.
@Consumer Reports

Here’s an interesting health article from the Seattle Post Intelligencer.  It reviews a study that was done on three groups of men.  The study’s intent was to measure the effectiveness of various treatments for lowering blood pressure.  Turns out that the men who got the most attention, support and information did the best.  Not very surprising for most of us, and yet many people still choose to work on their health and fitness alone and with no support.  I don’t understand this.  If you’re lucky enough to have a network of family and friends eager to support and help you, don’t ignore them.
@Seattle Post Intelligencer

And keeping on topic of social help, here’s a neat article from the Detroit Free Press.  It’s a bunch of tips from readers on how they stay healthy.  These aren’t health or fitness professionals, they’re just ordinary people like you and me struggling to stay healthy in addition to leading their lives.  Take a quick look, maybe you’ll find some useful tips.

The Free Press also put out another similar article which can be found here.
@Detroit Free Press

And now that you’ve heard some tips from ordinary folks, how about some tips from an expert?  The UK’s Daily Mirror put out a very useful article that goes over 25 health tips from doctor, nutritionists and other professionals.  Some of them are oldies but goodies and a few others are repetitions of things we’ve talked about here on 60 in 3, but there’s useful information here if you’re interested.  I found the nutrition section especially enlightening.
@The Daily Mirror

And from the Diet Blog we have this article proving that not all gym exercises are healthy.  If you doubt this, wait until the day when I relive my experience with a back exercise called Good Mornings.  Trust me, just because it involves weights does not mean it’s a healthy workout.  Poor form and poorly thought out exercise can cause injuries that will set you back far more than not exercising at all.
@The Diet Blog

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So there I was, running like a mad man down my street.  I was dodging driveways, jumping over curbs and occasionally startling an elderly woman enjoying a peaceful stroll.  My legs were aching, my heart was pounding and I could barely breath.  Was I running away from something?  Was I chasing someone?  Nope, I was workingout!

The Sprint Workout

In my ongoing quest to try all sorts of new and interesting workouts, I came across something called the Sprint Workout.  Because I love trying out new things and because this workout seemed interesting, I thought I would give it a try.  Let me tell you, 5 minutes into it, I was already reconsidering my decision.

What Is It?

The sprint is sort of like interval training only the intervals are at much higher intensity and the rest periods are almost at full rest.  For example, my normal workout is a steady run at 6.5 mph for 40 minutes.  When I do intervals I change this to 2 minutes at 7mph followed by 3 minutes at 5.5 mph and so on for 40 minutes.  The sprint workout goes even further.  You run all out as hard as you can for as long as you can and then you rest until you can breath, then you repeat the whole thing over again.  In practice, that means 30 to 45 seconds at your fastest speed followed by 2 to 3 minutes at a walk and then repeating that 10 or 15 times.

By the way, you don’t have to do this with just running.  For example, you can do pushups as fast as you can for as long as you can and then stretch for a few minutes while you regain your breath.  The action is different but the idea is the same.

Warning!

Don’t try this workout if you’re new to exercise or if you have some kind of heart condition or any other medical condition for that matter.  You’re quite literally going all out here and for some people, going all out is dangerous.  So please consult with a doctor before doing this if you have any concerns.

Also, if you’re going to be sprinting, you may wish to consider a softer surface than I used.  Sand, grass or even a running track are all better than the sidewalk I was running on.

Are There Benefits?

This workout really pushes your limits.  After doing repeated sprints for 30 minutes I felt like I was about to die.  However, after resting a bit, I jogged the rest of the way home and it felt easy.  It was like I had challenged my body to give all that it could and now that I was just asking for a little bit, my body had no problem with it.  Also, for a short workout, this one takes a lot of energy.  You end up with a very high heart rate in a short period of time.  I’m not sure about the science, but it sure felt like i got an hour’s worth of working out in 30 minutes.

Are There Downsides?

Yes, the major one being the injury risk I mention above.  Also, people look at you a bit funny when you’re sprinting.  I guess they’re worried about what’s chasing you and wondering if they should run too.

Will I Do It Again?

Probably, but I doubt this will become a regular part of my workout routine.  It was fun, but too uncontrolled for my tastes.  However, if you’re interested in a different kind of workout, by all means, give it a shot.  Just be safe about it.

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A new day, a new kind of workout.  Even though I didn’t like this one as much, it was still nice to try something new.

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A few months ago I talked about my four day workout.  At the time, I was splitting up my routine to work one or two parts of the body per day.  Since then, I’ve changed my routine to work my entire body each time I work out.  I’ve had a few questions from readers on which style I found best.

Whole Body Workout

A whole body workout means just that, work out your entire body.  It’s 24 different exercises and I usually do 1 set of each for a total of 24 sets.

Body Part Workout

The body part workout works one or two individual body parts per day.  I would typically do abs and back one day, legs the second day, biceps and triceps the third day and chest and shoulders the fourth day.  You can do different splits but it’s still the same idea.  I would usually do 6 different exercises and 4 sets of each one for a total of 24 sets.

Advantages of the Whole Body Workout

• Speed - I get through the whole body workout faster even though it’s the same number of sets.  This is because I don’t have to rest as much between sets since I’m not constantly working out the same body parts.
• Schedule Flexibility - With the whole body workout, if I miss one day, it’s not as bad.  I still workout my whole body on other days.
• Variation - This workout keeps me more interested in the workout since I’m doing a new exercise each time.

Advantages of the Body Part Workout

• Targeted - You’re working out a specific body part every day and you’re really targetting that part.  I seemed to be getting a better workout overall when I was consistently doing a body part workout schedule.
• More Rest - After doing an abs and back workout, you have a week before you workout that area again.  That lets you rest that area and allows the muscles to recover.

Which One Do I Recommend?

Well, it depends on how serious you are about your time in the gym.  If you have at least three or four days to spend and a good amount of time on each of those days, you should probably go for the body part workout.  You’ll get a better workout for each body part and you’ll see better results.  However, if you’re like me and you’re trying to juggle working out into an otherwise very busy schedule, I think the whole body workout is a better option.  It guarantees you that you workout all your muscles equally, it’s quick and you’ll still see good results, if not quite as good as those of the targetted workout.

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There’s really no right answer here.  Neither workout is clearly better or worse than the other.  Try them both and stick to what works for you, but don’t be afraid to change things up and try something new once in a while.

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