Cfjarlotte ^ogt
THURSDAY, September 19, 1996
14A; healthy body/healthy MIND
Success of exercise programs depends on style
By Vince & Yolanda
SPECIAL TO THK POST
Do you feel like you’re listen
ing to a f~oreign language
when people start using fit
ness terms. To improve your
fitness vocabulary read on.
Repetitions: The number of
times an exercise is completed
through a full range of motion.
For example, one leg lift
equals one repetition of that
exercise movement
Set: A designated number of
repetitions. Doing 10 bicep
curls before taking a bri~f rest
period equals one set.
Curl: A curling exercise
works the muscles by shorten
ing it. This is accomplished by
bending the joint to contract
the muscle. Curling exercises
include bicep curls, leg curls
and wrist curls.
Extension: An extension
(exercise’ works muscles by
lengthening the muscle while
it is working. This is done by
straightening the joint.
Extension movements should
never straighten ~o the point
of locking or overextending the
joint itself Examples of exten
sion exercises include leg
extensions and tricep push
downs.
Low Impact Aerobic
Dance: Aerobic dance exercise
in which one foot is always in
contact with the lloor. Low
impact exercising eliminates
jumping, hopping and running
movements. Instead, march
ing movements, side steps and
lots of arm movements are
used to make this workout
effective. Low impact aerobics
are a good alternative for those
who can’t run jump or hop due
to injury. It’s also good for the
healthy injury free person
because it reduces your risk of
injury.
High Impact Aerobic
Dance; High impact aerobic
dance uses skipping hopping
and running movements. This
type of workout can be very
effective but unfortunately
puts you at a relatively high
risk for injury due to repetitive
stress and constant changes in
movement directions.
Intensity: The amount of
energy expended during a
workout. You can increase
your intensity by taking less
time between exercises, run
ning or biking more miles in
the same amount of time and
doing more than one exercise
with no rest between them.
Range of Motion: The dis
tance through which a limb
can travel during a repetition
without extending past normal
limitations. For example, a full
range of motion for a bicep curl
would start with your arm
fully straight and at \oui' side.
Holding a dumbbell with your
palms facing front raise the
weight until you can’t raise it
any further. Then lower the
weight back to your side with a
.-straight aim. This would be
one repetition through a full
range of motion.
Static Stretch: A static
stretch is a slow sustained
stretch of a muscle. You should
never bounce or jerk while
stretching. If you do, you can
cause injuries such as pulls or
tears. Instead, hold the stretcll
for a few seconds then exhale
slowly and deeply as you
extend the stretch a little fur
ther. Stretching should never
be done before you warm up
the body with some type of con
tinuous movement such as
walking or light jogging for five
to 10 minutes.
Flexibility: The range of
possible movement in a joint or
group of joints. Flexibility is
accomplished through stretch
ing. This type of routine
requires that you practice good
form so you don’t cause pulls,
tears or joint problems.
Body fat Percentage: The
portion of the body that is not
lean muscle mass or water.
Body fat percentage is mea
sured with an instrument such
as a caliper, ultrasound and
underwater submersion. Body
fat can also be measured by a
machine which uses electrical
impulse to calculate the
amount of body fat a person
has. It is possible for a person
to be small and carry more
body fat than a person who
appears heavy. A high percent
age of body fat will give the
body a flabby appearance.
Measuring body fat is a realis
tic alternative to measuring
body weight. Since a pound of
fat takes up more space than a
pound of muscle a well toned
person can weigh the same as
a flabby person but be much
smaller. The ideal body fat for
women is between 12 and 20
percent. For men, ideal body
fat is between 10 and 15 per
cent.
Warm-up: The process of
getting the body ready to do
more strenuous exercise by
increasing the amount of oxy
gen and blood flow in the body.
When you warm up it’s best to
do a slow or light weight ver
sion of the exercise you’re get
ting ready to perform; For
example, if you are using
swimming in your workout
program do a few slow laps to
get the body ready. If you’re
lifting weights do a few light
sets to get the muscles ready
to do more strenuous lifting.
Cool-down: A cool down is
just as important as a
warmup, it allows the body to
recover gradually from the
stress of exercise. A general
indication that the body has
cooled-down is that you have
stopped sweating heavily and
the heart rate is below 100
beats per minute. Avoid
saunas hot tubs and hot show
ers immediately following
exercise sessions.
See TIPS Page 15A
Study: Transcendental Meditation lowers blood pressure in older black men
OAKLAND, Aug. 6 - Results
published in the August issue
of the American Heart
Association journal
Hypertension show that the
Transcendental Meditation
technique significantly low
ered blood pressure in older
African American men and
women who were at high risk
for one or more major risk fac
tors.
The study was the first of its
kind to investigate the appli
cation of stress reduction
techniques to African
American subgroups who dis
played major hypertension
risk factors including obesity,
high alcohol use, low exercise
level, psychological stress, and
high sodium intake.
Research at the West
Oakland Health Center in
Oakland, CA, monitored 111
subjects, ages 55 to 85, who
were randomly assigned to
three groups: the
'Transcendental Meditation
(TM) program, Progressive
Muscle Relaxation (PMR), or a
lifestyle modification educa
tion control group.
After three months, subjects
in the TM group showed sig
nificant reductions in blood
pressure at both high and low
risk levels for all five major
hypertension risk factors, and
for smoking, a major cardio
vascular risk factor. Whereas
subjects practicing the TM
program with the highest com
bined risk profile decreased
significantly in blood pres
sure, educational controls with
the same profile significantly
increased in blood pressure
over the same time period.
Other findings of the study
include:
• Of the two stress-reduction
techniques. Transcendental
Meditation was approximately
twice as effective as
Progressive Muscle Relaxation
in reducing hypertension.
• Women in the TM group
reduced systolic blood pres
sure (SBP) by 10.4 points and
diastolic blood pressure (DBP)
by 5.9 points, compared to con
trol women; women in the
PMR group did not show a sig
nificant difference.
• Men in the TM group
reduced SBP by 12.7 points
and DBP by 8.1 points, com
pared to control men; men in
the PRM group reduced DBP
only
The blood pressure reduc
tions found in the TM sub
groups were similar to those
commonly found with antihy
pertensive drugs. Comparable
blood pressure reductions in
drug trials over the long-term
have been associated with 3 5-
40 percent less strokes and
30-45 percent less coronary
heart disease.
“These findings are impor
tant because they show that
even in the worst case scenario
- when someone has multiple
risk factors for hypertension
and heart disease - the
Transcendental Meditation
technique can effectively
reduce high blood pressure
and thus help prevent caidio-
vascular disease and death,”
said Charles Alexander, Ph.D.,
coauthor of the study and
Professor of Psychology at
Maharishi University of
Manage ment (M.U.M.) in
Fairfield, Iowa.
Previous studies have found
that intensive, multidimen
sional lifestyle changes in diet,
exercise and stress manage
ment can help prevent coro
nary heart disease (CHD) if
maintained over the long
term.
“Our findings indicate that
use of the stress-reducing TM
technique by itself — indepen-
See TIPS Page 15A
YOm HOSPITAL DISCHARGE CHECKLIST
By George IX WUbanks, MD
Present, The American
College of Obstetricians
and Gynecology
I«r mothers and newsboms, a
reasonable hospital st^ following an
uncomplicated vaginal delivery is 48
hours, according to The American
College of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists (ACOG) and The
American Academy of ftdiatrics
(AAP). some insurers are limiting
Ixy tal st^ to as short as 24 even
12 hours. In response, some states
have pa.ssed laws requiring insurers to
observe ACOG and AAP guidelines,
and a similar federal bill has been
pn^xtsed. Regardless of what your in
surance policy covers, here’s what you
should know before you leave the
hospital.
/. Your Baby’s Condition is Stabk.
\bur baby should have an aii^xt^xiate
birth weight, normal exam results,
and be in a stable conditiorL The
baby should have urinated and pass
ed at least one stool before discharge,
and should be ^le to maintain a ikm*-
mal temperature and suck and
swallow tK)rmally.
2 Lab lists Have Been {formed
All necessary lab tests should be done
on your baby before discharge. If your
baby is discharged during the first 48
hours of life, then the baby should be
' tested within 48 hours alter hospital
discharge. These tests irKlude a
Hepatitis B vaccine, and heel-stick
tests to screen for conditions that if
rKX detected and treated early could
lead to mental retardation or other
problems — conditions like phenyl
ketonuria (PKU). hypothyroidism,
and sickle cell anemia. If your baby
was tested for PKU before 24 hours
of life, which may be too early, get
the infant retested at a follow-up visit
within 48 hours after discharge.
J. You've Received Instruction on
Newborn Care. You should be told
about basic care such as how to breast
or bottle feed, how to position your
baby for sleeping, and how to pro
perly use an infant car seat.
4. You Have Ii\formation on Com
plications and Emergencies. You
should be told about possible pro
blems with your newborn — in
cluding symptoms of jaundice and
dehydration. Have the names and
numbers of persons to call in an
emergency.
5. You've Made an Appointment
for a Follow-Up Visit. If your baby
was discharged within 48 hours of
birth, this visit should be within 48
hours of discharge. If the baby had
a longer hospital stay, his or her ap
pointment vdll be within the fust
month of birth. Your own appoint
ment with your doctor will probably
be within two to sbe weeks.
d You Have Instructions for Your
Health should know how to care
for ar^ stitches you have, and whether
you need prescription medicine
Finally, don’t forget to plan for con
traception.
Next Week: Can I Beat This
Over-the-Counter?
Why the new food labels
are important
HOUSTON—Experts are
predicting a moderate 1996-97
influenza season, but people
most at isk for life-threatening
flu complications should still
get vaccinated — and the soon
er the better.
‘The elderly and people with
chronic underlying health
problems should get vaccinat
ed every flu season,” said Dr.
W. Paul Glezen, epidemiologist
at the Influenza Research
Center at Houston’s Baylor
College of Medicine.
Influenza B will likely be the
dominant strain this season,
Glezen said, but there could
also be an appearance by
A/Wuhan (H3N2), a new vari
ant.
Glozen advises people in the
high-risk groups to get inocu
lated as soon as the vaccine
becomes available, usually in
early autumn.
In North America, flu season
usually begins in earnest after
Thanksgiving, but, as hap
pened in 1991, it can come ear
lier.
“If it hits early, the elderly
and people with chronic under
lying health problems need to
be protected,” Glezen said.
Every year thousands of peo
ple, most of them elderly, die
from pneumonia resulting
from influenza, he said, and
many, perhaps most, of the
deaths could have been pre
vented by vaccination.
Among the people at high
risk for possibly deadly flu
complications: people with
heart disease; lung disease,
including asthma and chronic
bronchitis; diabetes, chronic
kidney disease; chronic ane
mia, including sickle-cell dis
ease and immune-system dis
orders.
Influenza usually strikes
suddenly and produces fever,
generalized muscle pain
severe weakness and fatigue, a;
sore throat and a dry, hacking
cough.
To reduce fever and pain,
adults may take aspirin or
aspilin substitutes; children!
should take acetaminophen, if
needed, said Glezen, a pedi-)
atlician. All flu victims should
get plenty of bed rest and liq
uids. ;
The vaccine is about 85 per^
cent effective in helping people
avoid intlucnza, he ^aid. '
Some people worry that they
will get the flu from the vac-;
cine, but that is not possible^
Glezen said, because the vac
cine is made from killed Virus,'
The vaccine has been showft
to significantly lower the lisk
of hospitalization for influenza
and pneumonia in people 65
and older.