Lean In

     are you sitting as you read this? most likely, just as i am while posting. by now most of us are aware of how bad sitting is for us. there are many suggestions as to how to alleviate this-stand up desks, sitting on a stability ball, at a minimum getting up and walking around (if allowed where you work). but there is one simple thing that we can do right now to help our backs and its not lean in but its to lean back.
     sheryl sandberg is the ceo of facebook and wrote lean in. talk about pressure. corporate pressure. but the problem we have with our backs is often disk pressure. if we think of the pressure on our backs when standing-hopefully with good posture!-as 100%. if you lean in while sitting to 80 degrees -a very common posture- the pressure increases to 190% squeezing the disks in our lower backs. but if you lean back to 110 degrees the pressure is only about 105%, almost as low as standing. if 110 degrees is not practical try 100 degrees where the pressure is still only 115%. what is 100 degrees? think of sitting at a right angle-90%-then lean back slightly.
    so there may be good advice in the corporate world to "lean in" but good advice for your disks while sitting-lean back.

Arctic Air/Arctic Apples

     many areas of the country are experiencing arctic air with record low temperatures. burrrrrr! not quite sure why a company choose the name of "arctic" for a new type of genetically modified apple that won't brown when sliced. the "enhanced" granny smith or golden delicious apples are supposed to encourage more apple consumption (?) but during the open to the public comment time at the department of agriculture the majority of consumers were not in favor of this these new gmo apples. no surprise there or that they were approved for  our eating pleasure.
     the saying " an apple a day keeps the doctor away" has been with us in various forms for over 150 years. i love apples and they are high in fiber and vitamin c. most of us do not eat enough fiber. although perhaps the old saying should have been " a pear a day keeps the doctor away" as pears have 50% more fiber than apples and more vitamin k. maybe as i am writing this arctic pears are also coming our way.

Maple Water

     last year i ventured into several natural food markets and asked for maple water. the response-blank looks. jump ahead to 2015 and approximately 7 companies are producing this "water" made from unprocessed sugar maple tree sap. it has less sugar, so fewer calories, than the ever so popular coconut water.
     besides less sugar and being all natural maple water also contains vitamin b, manganese and other antioxidants. it is also hoped that if it grows in popularity it will help to maintain forests.
     oddly enough this drink is very popular in korea, especially in the spring as a tonic. i shouldn't be surprised that even amazon now carries it-not inexpensive but you might want to give it a try.

Ad Sense

     not counting the super bowl that had approx. 47 minutes of advertising (and the fact that many look forward to and watch the super bowl ads) the average, hour long tv/cable show has 15 minutes worth of ads. people often watch at least 2 hours of programming a night.
     facebook reports that the average american spends 40 minutes on its site every day.
     the number one reason americans say that they don't exercise-NO TIME.
     more than a third of americans are overweight or obese.
     you can probably guess where i'm heading. cut back on your facebook time and work out or exercise during all those ads! health benefits would come from meeting the minimum requirement of 20-30 minutes of exercise a day. you think that you have no time-think again.

Weight Loss

usually i like to blog about what to do but this post will have some suggestions about what not to do -or think- when trying to lose weight.

1. you will not lose weight by exercise alone. your nutrition and calorie count needs to be correct.
2. crash diets don't work over the long term-they are a quick fix. no one can live on a crash diet forever and often, as soon as you go back to your regular habits the weight comes back.
3. even worse than above and for similar reasons are so called weight loss supplements. don't take them!
4. don't set a huge goal that is probably unrealistic and since you won't reach it you may get discouraged and give up. any weight loss-if you are over weight-is a benefit to your health. a loss of a pound per week, slow and steady is the way to go.
5. unless your eating habits are poor, small changes such as eating smaller portions and getting more exercise will create steady, long term weight loss.
6. don't make it overly complicated. there is so much information out there with new diet books coming out all the time it can make one crazy. you just need to find what works for you. some people like calorie counting especially now that there are so many apps that list all kinds of foods, some do well with paleo or the mediteranean plan and some like the community of weight watchers. 

you can do it! and when you go off course, as we all do, don't berate yourself just get right back into the healthier lifestyle  that you have chosen.

News Briefs

1. there is now a pacemaker like device that can control your appetite
2. if interested in losing weight eat within a 12 hour period
3. getting less than 7 hours of sleep? you are 3 times as likely to catch a cold
4. biotin most likely will not help with hair loss
5. rowing will be the new exercise craze in 2016
6. high stress is not just causing a belly but there are directs links with memory loss
7. trending-eating "clean", body weight exercise
8. paleo still going strong
9. there are workouts available based on your astrological sign

any health/fitness topics you would like more concise info on? just let me know

Commitments

     it's a new year-do you have a commitment to reaching any weight/fitness goals? we usually start out strong but many of us who- for instance- join gyms in january are no longer going by the end of february. more and more research is being done on why we do or more often don't meet our goals. how do we strengthen our commitment to a goal so that we reach it? do rewards work better than punishments? what if money is involved?
     there is a free website called stickk that wants to help us in reaching our goals. stick uses a commitment contract in which you name your goal, decide if you want a certain amount of money involved or to just have a "referee". they also offer tracking devices and ways to include friends and family . so how does the money part work?  for example-if your contract states that if you don't reach your goal of getting to the gym two times a week for 3 months you have to pay $10.00 (you choose the amount). the money doesn't go to stickk but to a charity or to what they call an anti-charity.
     stickk was created by a group of professors from yale university. check it out if you think it may help you to reach your goals or that you find it an interesting concept. there are quite a few people signed up already on their way, hopefully, to reaching their goals.
     www.stickk.com