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What You Need to Know about Exercise and Diabetes

Sheri Colberg, Ph.D./21 November 2017/ All MFN blog, Conditions/

Do you have type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, or prediabetes? Then you need to know that exercise is a cornerstone in the management of all of these conditions, and it can benefit your health in so many ways.

diabetes old Sometimes, being active can actually make it more challenging for you to manage your blood glucose (“blood sugar”) levels, unless you learn more about its effects. I have always known at some level that exercise generally did good things for my blood glucose, even before I had my first blood glucose meter (after going 18 years without access to one). How could I tell without a blood glucose meter?

Being active always made me feel better, physically and emotionally, so much so that I earned a PhD in Exercise Physiology to understand why. You don’t need to go that far with your education, but there are some basics about being physically active with diabetes or prediabetes that you really need to know.

Here are some things that I know about exercise now that I wish someone had told me years ago.

#1: Exercise can help erase your blood glucose “mistakes”

Exercise acts kind of like an extra dose of insulin.
At rest, insulin is the main mechanism your body has to get glucose into muscle cells.
During exercise, glucose goes your muscles without needing any insulin (via muscle contractions)
Being regularly active makes your muscles more sensitive to insulin, so it takes less to have the same effect when you eat during or after exercise.
What better way to help erase a little overeating of carbs (or some insulin resistance) than a moderate dose of exercise to lower your blood glucose?

#2: Exercise doesn’t always make your blood glucose go down

It doesn’t always make your blood glucose come down, at least not right away.
During intense exercise, the excess glucose-raising hormones your body releases can raise your blood glucose.
Over a longer period of time (2-3 hours), it usually comes back down, but who wants to wait that long?
If you take insulin, you’ll need to take less than normal to correct a post-workout high or your blood glucose will likely be crashing low a few hours later.
A cool-down of less intense exercise (like walking) can help bring it back to normal, so do an easy, active cool-down after intense workouts or activities.

#3: Your muscles are critical to managing your blood glucose levels

Exercise also helps you build and retain your muscle mass.
Muscles are the main place you store carbs after you eat them—like a gas tank.
Exercising helps use up stored carbs, but can also increase the size of the tank.
When you eat carbs post-exercise, they can easily go into storage with a little insulin.
Being sedentary keeps the tank full and makes you resistant to insulin.
Aging alone can cause you to lose muscle mass over time, but you can combat it to a certain extent by recruiting all of your muscle fibers regularly.
Resistance training and/or high-intensity intervals build muscle more because they recruit the faster fibers that you don’t use when walking or doing easier activities.

#4: Exercise is the best medicine there is

Use exercise to control stress and to stave off depression—with no bad side-effects!
It’s a natural antioxidant—more effective and better than supplements!
Being regularly active prevents all sorts of cancers.
If you’re active, you’ll likely feel better and look younger than you are (as long as you don’t exercise too much).
You’ll be even less likely to catch a cold if you exercise moderately and regularly.
Standing more, taking extra steps, and fidgeting even help—be active all day long, and don’t forget your daily dose of the best medicine there is!

For other tips on exercise and more, visit www.diabetesmotion.com or www.shericolberg.com. You can also find some exercise programs geared towards people with diabetes by visiting Diabetes Motion Academy (www.DMAcademy.com).

Sheri R. Colberg, PhD, FACSM, is a Professor Emerita of Exercise Science at Old Dominion University and a former Adjunct Professor of Internal Medicine at Eastern Virginia Medical School. She is an internationally recognized authority on diabetes and exercise.

How Boxing Can Help You Be a Parkinson’s Fighter

Carisa Campanella/20 November 2017/ All MFN blog/

Media coverage on the power of boxing to combat the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease has been a hot topic in the Parkinson’s community. Rock Steady Boxing, a national program that initiated Parkinson’s specific, non-contact boxing programs with certified coaches, has inspired local boxing gyms in our area to begin offering boxing training to our local community. So, is boxing your way to better health an option for you? More importantly, what are the benefits of this fun and energizing fitness trend?

Learning how to box and executing the six common punches – jab, straight right, left hook, right hook, left uppercut and right uppercut – is a powerful way to develop your skill-related fitness. Skill-related fitness includes agility, balance, power, speed, coordination and reaction time. All these components are of particular importance to someone with Parkinson’s who may be experiencing a decline in several of these areas. Shadow boxing (punching the hands of a trainer in front of you in a sequence) helps improve speed, coordination and reaction time. Taking lateral steps around a boxing ring helps reinforce balance and agility. Putting your body into a split stance to throw your punches helps to strengthen your lower body and make you more stable.

Another excellent advantage to boxing is it enhances your cognitive fitness. Many people with Parkinson’s experience some challenges with clarity of thought, memory, and ability to do certain tasks. Learning boxing punches in sequence and repeating them helps to create new neural pathways which help to strengthen your brain and your functionality. Being exposed to and learning this new activity also helps improve your cognitive abilities.

What may be the most important reason to take up boxing is the feeling of strength and empowerment you will feel as you literally “fight” this disease. Punching a boxing bag can help relieve stress, make you feel in control, and give you an incredibly productive outlet. Boxing is fun, it’s invigorating, and it’s energizing.

In order to participate safely, be sure to get your physician’s clearance before beginning a boxing or exercise program, and always adhere to the safety precautions outlined by your instructor.

Carisa Campanella, BA, AS, is an ACE Health Coach and ACSM Personal Trainer. She is the Program Manager at the Neuro Challenge Foundation for Parkinson’s. Neuro Challenge provides ongoing monthly support groups and educational programs, individualized care advising and community resource referrals to help empower people with Parkinson’s and their caregivers.

Rebounding and Lymphedema

Doreen Puglisi/16 November 2017/ All MFN blog/

Rebounding is a complete cellular exercise, stimulating the activity of the lymphatic system (a critical part of the immune system). Rebounding 3-5 times per week at a minimum of 10-15 minutes at a time is highly beneficial.* It is effective at a minimal bounce, using acceleration and deceleration, with each bounce, to open and close the one-way valves between the lymphatic system and the cells. Lymphatic fluid surrounds all of the cells of the body. While bounding toxins, poisons, and metabolic waste are pulled out of the cells into the lymph fluid, while oxygen and nutrients (transferred previously at the capillaries, from the blood) are pulled in the cells from the lymph fluid. Within the lymph system are lymphocytes, for example- white blood cells, which consume metabolic waste, bacteria, and dead cells. Rebounding keeps the lymph system moving and unplugged, so lymphocytes have free reign to do their job. More importantly, bounding does this without stressing the hips, knees, or ankles, or creating shin-splints. It can be done on a daily basis or multiple times per day without creating overuse injury.

What is the Lymph System and how does it help me?

The lymphatic system acts as a secondary circulatory system, except that it collaborates with white blood cells in lymph nodes to protect the body from being infected by cancer cells, fungi, viruses or bacteria.

The lymphatic system is a system of thin tubes that runs throughout the body. These tubes are called ‘lymph vessels’.

Unlike the circulatory system, the lymphatic system is not closed and has no central pump. It is not under pressure and only moves because of exercise or muscle contraction.

When the lymphatic system is congested, the cells become deprived of oxygen, affecting the body’s ability to rid itself of its own waste material. Over time, other body systems that rely on the lymphatic

It takes only two minutes of rebounding to flush the entire lymphatic system, while cleansing and strengthening cells and lymph nodes. A further benefit to the body is that during this brief time span the white blood cells of the immune system triple in number and remain elevated for an hour. These specialized cells play a major role in the body’s defense against illness and disease.

When beginning a program of regular rebounding it’s best to gradually increase time and intensity as the body – including bones and internal organs – adjusts to the increased gravitational load and becomes stronger.

12 Reasons to Jump for your Health & Fitness

Rebounding provides an increased G-force (gravitational load), which strengthens the musculoskeletal systems.
Rebounding aids lymphatic circulation by stimulating the millions of one-way valves in the lymphatic system. Your lymphatic system acts as your body’s internal vacuum cleaner.
Rebounding circulates more oxygen to the tissues- and where the is oxygen there cannot be disease.
Rebounding establishes a better equilibrium between the oxygen required by the tissues and the oxygen made available.
Rebounding increases capacity for respiration
Rebounding increases the functional activity of the red bone marrow in the production of red blood cells.
Rebounding improves resting metabolic rate so that more calories are burned for hours after exercise.
Rebounding improves circulation. It encourages collateral circulation (the formation of new branch blood vessels that distribute blood to the heart) by increasing the capillary count in the muscles and decreasing the distance between the capillaries and the target cells.
Rebounding strengthens the heart and other muscles in the body so that they work more efficiently.
Rebounding improves coordination between the proprioceptors in the joints, the transmission of nerve impulses to and from the brain, transmission of nerve impulses and responsiveness of the muscle fibers.
Rebounding improves the brain’s responsiveness to the vestibular apparatus within the inner ear, thus improving balance.
Rebounding for longer than 20 minutes at a moderate intensity increases the mitochondria count within the muscle cells, essential for endurance.
As our planet has become dangerously congested with debris so does our body. We are neither helpless nor hopeless in this dire state; we can also take measures to reduce, eliminate and cleanse toxins from the blood, tissues and organs of our bodies. One of several effective methods of detoxification is through lymphatic cleansing.

Among the various functions of the lymphatic system is its ability to carry waste away from the cells and bloodstream to the body’s organs of elimination. The system consists of veins and capillaries, with one-way valves, that contain a clear fluid called lymph. This fluid also surrounds cells throughout the body and collects cellular debris before draining it into the lymphatic system. Lymph carries the waste on a one-way path toward the heart and passes through many filters (lymph nodes) where special white blood cells attack and eliminate foreign molecules.

Once the lymph fluid approaches the heart it is returned to circulation and makes its way for further cleansing of toxins by the liver and kidneys. The lymphatic vessels are not connected to the blood circulatory system, and unlike blood which is pumped by the heart, lymph fluid relies on bodily movement and exercise to drive it through the lymphatic system. Forceful flushing of the system cleanses lymph nodes, contributes to healthy, clear lymph fluid, and boosts the immune system. Stagnant, slow-moving and thick lymph fluid is due to a lethargic, toxic body and weakened immune system.

When the lymph fluid remains sluggish the lymph nodes become clogged and lose their filtering ability. Without routine flushing of the lymph, debris becomes trapped in the body, creating a toxic overload and contributing to the onset of disease.

At this point another two-minute rebound session would increase the demand for white blood cells as the process of cleansing, strengthening, and the flushing away of spent cells and other cancerous debris is repeated.. Therapeutic rebounding has been shown to reduce cancerous tumors and improve or heal a host of other ailments (3).

Doreen Puglisi, MS is the Founder and Executive Director of Pink Ribbon Program. The Pink Ribbon program works to give every woman the ability to regain a sense of well-being that had been lost from diagnosis through surgery into recovery.

References:

Brooks, Linda: Rebounding and Your Immune System. Urbana, OH: Vitally Yours Press, 29; 33-46, 2003
Brooks, Linda: Cancer – A Simple Approach. Urbana, OH: Vitally Yours Press, 33-6, 2002
Brooks, Linda: Rebounding to Better Health. Sixth Printing, KE Publishing, 51-2; 39-56; 71-6, 2006

Exercises That Can Help Prevent and Relieve Arthritis

Maurice D. Williams, MS/15 November 2017/ All MFN blog/

Arthritis is a disease where the joints of one’s body are chronically inflamed. 46 million (or 21%) Americans have it and it is one of the leading causes of work disability.

They are two major forms of arthritis: osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Osteoarthritis is when the cartilage within the joints wears away and causes severe pain and swelling, particularly in the hands, knees, hips and spine. Rheumatoid arthritis, on the other hand, is where one’s immune system mistakenly attacks it’s own tissues. As a result, the body responds with pain and stiffness in areas of the body such as wrists, hands feet and knees. Fortunately, exercise can help provide some relief, pain and discomfort wise, for those suffering with this chronic health condition.

How Exercise Helps to Relieve It

There have been two significant studies that showed exercise could help arthritic people feel better. Strength training and balance exercises were used to provide relief from the pain experienced because it improved flexibility and overall strength. Balance and strength training affect one’s gait, so, at the very minimum, exercise can help to improve this. Also, it is important to keep in mind that arthritis increases muscle loss and lack of flexibility. As a result, it is important for an individual with arthritis to keep their body limber and moving as much as possible.

Exercises That Can Help With Arthritis

According to NASM, the following protocol should be followed by arthritic people for a reduction in pain and overall health improvement. Please keep in mind, that anyone starting an exercise program, should consult with their physician and a qualified fitness professional first.

Cardio Exercise: treadmill walking, stationary cycling and low impact step aerobics. I recommend up to 30 minutes as a general goal to aim for with duration. The intensity should be from a walk in the park to a light job.

Flexibility: Static stretching and foam rolling may be used as tolerated for the areas of the body that appear to be overactive. These can be performed seated or standing.

Weight Training: Exercises that include core, balance and general overall major muscle groups are recommended. Circuit training is a great way to get all of those things done in one session. I suggest 1-2 sets of 10-12 reps, 2-3 times a week. It is important to keep in mind the following when doing exercise: avoid heavy lifting, with high reps, stay away from movements that cause pain and be prepared to only do five minutes of exercise in a given session until your overall conditioning improves.

Maurice D. Williams is a personal trainer and owner of Move Well Fitness in Bethesda, MD.

Resources

1. http://blog.nasm.org/senior-fitness/what-a-pain-in-the-joint-training-guidelines-for-arthritic-clients/
2. http://blog.nasm.org/senior-fitness/modify-training-programs-clients-osteoarthritis/
3. http://www.healthline.com/health-slideshow/8-essential-everyday-exercises-for-ra-pain#8

Source
NASM Essentials of Personal Fitness Training, 4th Edition Revised, 2014.

Aging: What’s Positivity Got To Do With It?

Adrienne Ione/14 November 2017/ All MFN blog/

When I hear people say, “Ya, positive aging is so important.” I wonder, what exactly does positivity have to do with aging? Does having positive thoughts truly have an impact on the aging process?

A 76-year-old triathlete in Tempe, Arizona questioned aloud, while reading my business slogan, which is printed on the back of my jersey, as I ran past him, “Aging actively and thinking positively? Well, I am positively aging. Does that count for something?”

Then there’s the program for positive aging aimed at “improving later life mental-health and dementia care.”[1] So not only is it a mindset, we then also have instituationalized thought by offering programs that potentially train us to think a particular way about working with people affected by abnormal aging – from the DICE approach to the CARES approach.

In the 90s Martin Seligman, father of the “positive psychology” movement led the way for gerontology to create what Robert Hill and others call positive aging. Hill purports that “happiness does not just happen” rather our intentional behaviors and thoughts deeply impact the quality of our life.[2]

Perhaps as our lifespans have drastically increased over a relatively short period of time, the fervor with which we approach longevity is focused now more on quality rather than quantity.

According to U.S. Census Bureau, “in 2050, the population aged 65 and [greater] is projected to be 83.7 million.” Population growth at this rate is twice the speed of growth nearly 40 years ago.

Further, the average life expectancy for a female in the US is 78.8 years (slightly less for men and no current data on people who are transgender). One study suggests those with positive perceptions of their own aging lived an average of 7.5 years longer.

While having tea with a friend the other day, she shares a conversation at a recent doctor visit, where the doctor said, “How about you focus on your diet and we’ll follow up in 2 years.” My friend chuckled, and said, “Doctor, have you looked at my file?” He said, “Yes, I see your cholesterol and glyceride numbers.” My friend says, “OK. Did you see the numbers in my birthday space?” He responds, “Yes, you were born in 1917.”

My friend’s conclusion is: “I think I have the quantity part of life figured out. I’m going to focus now on the quality. And as that relates to food, if it tastes good, I’m going to eat it…this baklava from the Greek Festival sure is delicious. MMmmmmmm.”

Our thoughts are not separate from our body. There is mounting evidence for physical impacts of positive thought processes: strong cardiac health, decreased blood pressure and cholesterol readings.

Regardless of your current age, your thoughts can have a positive impact on your aging process. Research suggests if you look forward to aging, then you’ll enjoy the process more fully and joyfully as opposed to your dreading (or dreadful) aging counterparts.

Adrienne Ione is a cognitive behavioral therapist and personal trainer who integrates these fields in support of people thriving across the lifespan. As a pro-aging advocate, she specializes in the self-compassion of dementia.

Website: yes2aging.com
Guided Meditations: insighttimer.com/adrienneIone
Facebook: silverliningsintegrativehealth

References

[1] http://www.programforpositiveaging.org/

[2] Robert Hill Positive Aging

Put Your Best Move on for Movember

Shira Litwack/13 November 2017/ All MFN blog/

The event men look forward to — and women don’t — the Movember Moustache.

Recover from Injuries Using Active Rest in the Pool

Debbie Booth/9 November 2017/ All MFN blog/

Have you ever felt like Tom? You try and try but seem to end up adrift? Your intelligent, well read a motivated, hard working athlete, you know a lot of things, you certainly know how to exercise and you do it well. You have probably asked for some advice over the years on how to train. Especially since that nagging injury occurred.

Maybe it’s shin splints that developed from training for a ½ marathon, maybe it’s the knee injury from playing basketball, tennis, pickleball or sliding into 3^rd base. Maybe you rolled an ankle because you missed that bottom step while walking out the door and that ankle hasn’t been right since.

So what do we do? We medicate it, rest it, tape it and brace it. While we are resting we look at the latest exercise programs and plot our course to get back on track once we feel it’s better we hit the gym – wrap that injury and go…. HIIT training, Cross Fit, Boot Camp, running we are on a roll. After just a couple weeks that injury is back. Now we are back on the couch with our favorite bottle of motrin again, now your despondent. That nagging thought creeps into your head, I’m too old, gotta give up the game.

Not so fast my friend! We can do things a different way! The problem here is we took a few weeks or months off!

How about trying ACTIVE Rest?!

Active rest defined: “Involves performing light exercises that stimulate the recovery process without imposing undue stress on the injured body part.”

Taking an active rest day will hasten your recovery, making you feel stronger and faster when you’re back in workout-mode.

What are the benefits of active rest in a pool?

Biggest benefit – Reduce swelling. When you reduce swelling you reduce pain. A two-fer bonus! Also unload the joint – due to the gravity free environment, again – takes the pain away. With the reduction in swelling and pain we can keep the joint moving, stabilize and strengthen it, working up to full body workouts to spin you back out into your sport.

The pool is what I call a pass through. It’s not a destination for most of us. We use it for it’s amazing properties so we can continue our favorite activities and sports. Active rest in a pool will not only rehabilitate your injury getting you back to your sport and activities faster it will help you mentally and emotionally, because you can DO something! It keeps CAN’T out of our vocabulary! High Schools, Colleges, Professional Teams and even our Military are using pools for training. Athlete or not, we hate being sidelined. We do much better when we are active. So next time you are adrift…try something different.

Debbie Booth is an aquatic fitness educator and trainer; she grew up in MI, (a Lake Girl for life) where her love of water began. She teaches medically based aquatics and has yet to grow gills. If lost she will usually turn up at the end of a dock with her feet in the water. You can visit her website at wateristhenewgym.com

HIIT Diabetes Before Diabetes Hits You

Jeremy Kring/8 November 2017/ All MFN blog/

What is HIIT and Its Benefits for Those with Type 2 Diabetes?

So, you’ve heard the buzz in the media about HIIT, its impact on weight loss and cardiovascular benefits and are wondering, could HIIT be for me? As a diabetic, someone with insulin resistance or one at high risk for either, you have likely heard the benefits of exercise, its impact on your blood sugar, and how your weight plays a role in all of it. However, you may be wondering is this safe? What should I do? How do I get started? What should I know?

There are four huge reasons to incorporate HIIT into your regimen (assuming you’re cleared by your physician).

It can improve insulin sensitivity (resistance)¹
Improves cardiovascular health and reduces risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD)⁵
HIIT burns more calories per minute compared to Moderate Intensity Continuous Training (MICT) ⁶
Requires less time per session to receive the same or increased health benefits

What Exactly is HIIT?

HIIT stands for high intensity interval training. There are many HIIT program variations but what makes a program HIIT is that it has an element of high intensity exercise, and an element of low to moderate intensity exercise executed in revolving intervals. An example is if someone used an exercise bike they might bike as fast as they can for 20-30 seconds, and immediately afterward slow down to a slow to moderate pace for 1-2 minutes. They might repeat these timed intervals for a period of 10-30 minutes. HIIT can take many different forms and incorporate various high intensity intervals, as well as various different types of exercises. Therefore, there may be some HIIT programs that are appropriately challenging and yielding a multitude of benefits and others that may be excessively intense or place too much stress on the joints. Here’s what you need to know: how to gauge your levels of intensity, HIIT program options, and what programs may be appropriate for you (with clearance from your physician), and things to be aware of.

Let’s Talk About Intensity

Intensity refers to the level of exertion of the heart. Vigorous/High intensity can be defined as activity that is at 6 or more METs (metabolic equivalents).⁸ However, this definition is not practical for the everyday participant. A more practical way of identifying the level of intensity that you’re working at is illustrated below:

Light – This exercise creates a barely noticeable change in breathing, involving the beginning of an increased depth of each breath.
Moderate – Activity that requires increased breathing but you can still carry on a conversation.
Vigorous – Activity that is demanding to the point that talking cannot be maintained during activity.
High – This is near maximal effort, and can only be sustained briefly.⁸

HIIT Program

As mentioned HIIT programs come in many different layouts, shapes and sizes. In most studies they use walking or biking as the exercise and use various rest, or active recovery intervals (very/light intensity recovery exercise). For example, in one study they had one group of participants perform one min high intensity biking followed by one minute of rest, which repeated ten times. They had a second group that performed two minutes of high intensity biking followed by one minute of rest, which repeated five times.³ In another study they took a group and used a range of 15-60 seconds of high intensity exercise followed by one minute of active recovery.⁶ The training sessions conducted in these studies typically lasted approximately 20-30 minutes and yielded better results than the moderate intensity continuous training (MICT) protocols they were compared to.⁶ The MICT done in the study was biking at a steady pace at a moderate level of intensity for up to 45 minutes. This illustrates just how much more effective HIIT can be than traditional cardio.

However, to be clear HIIT training is not appropriate for everyone, and if any doubts remain be sure to contact your physician. The American Diabetes Association recommends a 12-point electrocardiogram be performed on those with type II diabetes prior to beginning a vigorous training program, and while HIIT is not a prolonged vigorous training regimen, you should consult with your physician as a precaution.⁷

What Programs are Appropriate for You?

While some critics of HIIT argue that the high intensity increases participant dropout rates, the truth is you won’t know if it’s enjoyable or even tolerable unless you give it a try. Additionally, you may not like one HIIT program, but may find you like another. In all cases, it is recommended that you start at either a moderate or light intensity gradually increasing to higher intensities over time.⁸

What should I be aware of when undergoing a HIIT program

Specific to type II diabetes, you should be aware of:

Any medical restrictions that apply to you, especially if you have additional chronic conditions in addition to diabetes
How your blood sugar is affected and how to apply this to proper medication dosages
Qualifications of the instructor carrying out the program
Allowing your instructor to be aware of your health status or condition(s)
Find out if there are any high orthopedic stress or ballistic movements, in the program you’re considering. If you’re just starting (i.e. you have not been conditioning for a minimum of month), movements you may want to avoid in the beginning are:
- High knees, jumping lunges, jumping squats, running/sprinting, and any movement that pounds on your joints

Consideration Regardless of Exercise Type

There are times when you should not exercise on a given day such as:

If you have a fever (over 101F)
If you have a new illness that has not been treated
If ambient temperature and humidity are excessive
If exercise causes pain⁸
If you have infection/mucus in the lungs

There may also be times when you should stop exercising and/or ask for guidance such as:

If you feel chest discomfort
If you unexpectedly have an irregular heart rhythm
If you feel dizziness or lightheadedness during exercise, or you have dizziness or lightheadedness that does not resolve after you stop exercising
If you experience leg cramps that persist after stopping exercise
If your vision is blurry⁸

In Closing

HIIT has proven to be an effective training protocol that can yield heightened health benefits in less time than traditional moderate intensity continuous training (MICT). For those with type II diabetes, insulin resistance, or are at increased risk of either, HIIT can help you increase insulin sensitivity, reduce cardiovascular risk, and be an effective part of a weight loss program. Like any exercise program it comes with a measure of risk and is not suitable for everyone. Participate within the parameters set by your physician, and be sure to listen to your body.

Jeremy Kring holds a Master’s degree in Exercise Science from the California University of Pennsylvania, and a Bachelor’s degree from Duquesne University. He is a college instructor where he teaches the science of exercise and personal training. He is a certified and practicing personal/fitness trainer, and got his start in the field of fitness training in the United States Marine Corps in 1998. You can visit his website at jumping-jacs.com

References

Madsen, S. M., Thorup, A. C., Overgaard, K., & Jeppesen, P. B. (2015). High Intensity Interval Training Improves Glycaemic Control and Pancreatic β Cell Function of Type 2 Diabetes Patients. PLoS ONE, 10(8), e0133286. http://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0133286
Marcinko, K., Sikkema, S. R., Samaan, M. C., Kemp, B. E., Fullerton, M. D., & Steinberg, G. R. (2015). High intensity interval training improves liver and adipose tissue insulin sensitivity. Molecular Metabolism, 4(12), 903–915. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmet.2015.09.006
Smith-Ryan, A. E., Trexler, E. T., Wingfield, H., & Blue, M. N. M. (2016). Effects of high-intensity interval training on cardiometabolic risk factors in overweight/obese women. Journal of Sports Sciences, 34(21), 2038–2046. http://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2016.1149609
Shepherd, S. O., Wilson, O. J., Taylor, A. S., Thøgersen-Ntoumani, C., Adlan, A. M., Wagenmakers, A. J. M., & Shaw, C. S. (2015). Low-Volume High-Intensity Interval Training in a Gym Setting Improves Cardio-Metabolic and Psychological Health. PLoS ONE, 10(9), e0139056. http://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0139056
Phillips, B. E., Kelly, B. M., Lilja, M., Ponce-González, J. G., Brogan, R. J., Morris, D. L., … Timmons, J. A. (2017). A Practical and Time-Efficient High-Intensity Interval Training Program Modifies Cardio-Metabolic Risk Factors in Adults with Risk Factors for Type II Diabetes. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 8, 229. http://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2017.00229
Jung, M. E., Bourne, J. E., Beauchamp, M. R., Robinson, E., & Little, J. P. (2015). High-Intensity Interval Training as an Efficacious Alternative to Moderate-Intensity Continuous Training for Adults with Prediabetes. Journal of Diabetes Research, 2015, 191595. http://doi.org/10.1155/2015/191595
Francois, M. E., & Little, J. P. (2015). Effectiveness and Safety of High-Intensity Interval Training in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Spectrum : A Publication of the American Diabetes Association, 28(1), 39–44. http://doi.org/10.2337/diaspect.28.1.39
Moore, G. E., Durstine, J.L., & Painter, P. (2016). ACSM’s exercise management for personals with chronic diseases and disabilities. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Chocolate and Your Sports Diet

Nancy Clark, RD/7 November 2017/ All MFN blog/

The Chocolate Season is here and I can already feel the tension rising. “Between Halloween and New Year’s Eve, I feel surrounded by chocolate. It’s everywhere!!!” reported a self-proclaimed chocoholic. “I try so hard to not eat it, but I inevitably succumb, and I inevitably gain weight. Thank goodness for January First!!!” If you share the same love-hate relationship with chocolate, keep reading. And be thankful this so-called “bad food” offers benefits.

The Good News

Chocolate is made from cocoa, a plant. It is a rich source of health-protective phyto (plant) nutrients, just like you’d get from fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Two tablespoons of natural cocoa power (the kind used in baking) offers the same antioxidant power as 3/4 cup of blueberries or 1.5 glasses of red wine.

Of all the types of chocolate, dark chocolate is the richest source of phytonutrients. Unfortunately, dark chocolate has a slightly bitter taste and most athletes prefer the sweeter milk chocolate (with more sugar and saturated fat).
One phytonutrient in cocoa is nitrate. Nitrate gets converted into nitric oxide, a compound known to increase blood flow and, in high doses, enhance athletic performance.
Other types of phytonutrients in cocoa are flavonoids (also found in tea, apples and onions). Epidemiological surveys suggest these favonoids reduce the risk of heart disease in people who regularly consume chocolate.⁽¹⁾

The Bad News

Athletes, like most people, commonly eat chocolate in bursts—a lot in a day, such as a reward on a Friday afternoon, or indulging on Halloween.

Depriving oneself of daily chocolate easily creates urges to binge-eat when given the chance. You know the scenario: “Sunday is my ‘cheat day’— my last chance to eat Chocolate Kisses for the week. I stuff ‘em in!!!” The question arises: Would enjoying two Hershey’s Kisses every day reduce the urge to devour the whole bowl of them at once?

Taking the power away from chocolate

If you like chocolate too much—to the extent you have trouble stopping eating it once you start, an easy way to take the power away from chocolate (and other sweets) is to eat it more often in appropriate portions. Trying to stay away from it will backfire. Thank about it this way: Do apples have power over you? No. You give yourself permission to eat an apple whenever you want. So why does chocolate have power over you? Because you try to not eat it.

To take the power away from chocolate, enjoy some every day, such as for dessert after lunch or planned into an afternoon snack. By regularly eating chocolate, it will become a commonplace food, just like eggs, apples, or carrots. Give daily chocolate a try?

Note to parents: Denial and deprivation leads to overeating in kids, as well as in adults. Letting your kids enjoy—and self-regulate their intake of—(Halloween) candy is the better path than forbidding them to eat it. Do you really want to be the food police?

Living without Cravings for Chocolate

Some athletes believe they are born with a sweet tooth. Not the case. When the body is hungry (and athletes’ bodies can get very hungry), it craves quick energy, sugar. The solution to sugar cravings is to prevent hunger by eating enough quality-calories earlier in the day. Unfortunately, I meet way to many athletes who believe food is fattening or they have no time to eat. They live with a niggling hunger that can easily explode into a chocolate binge. They are not chocoholics; they are just athletes who have gotten way too hungry.

Fortunately, there are ways to manage sugar cravings.

Prevent hunger by eating more breakfast and lunch.
Plan sweets into your overall healthful daily food plan.

Chocolate cake for breakfast?

If you would really enjoy eating chocolate as a regular part of your sports diet/weight management program, I suggest you eat chocolate at breakfast. Yes, chocolate cake for breakfast enhances weight loss —at least, according to Daniela Jacubowicz PhD⁽²⁾. In her research with 193 subjects with obesity (but no diabetes), half ate a 300-calorie protein-based breakfast. The others ate a 600-calorie breakfast that included protein plus dessert, such as chocolate cake.

She instructed both groups to eat the same amount of total calories: 1,400 (for women) and 1,600 (for men). In the first 16 weeks, both groups lost an average of 33 pounds per person. But in the next 16 weeks of the study, the group with the smaller breakfast complied poorly with the diet and regained an average of 22 pounds per person. The dessert-with-breakfast group continued to lose another 15 pounds each. By 32-weeks, they had lost about 40 pounds more than their peers.

Jacubowicz noticed those who had dessert with breakfast had fewer cravings for sweets later in the day for 2 reasons:

By frontloading their calories with the 600-calorie breakfast, they were less hungry and less likely to stray from the diet.
When they satisfied their cravings for sweets/treats in the morning, they were less tempted later in the day.

So what does this research mean for you?

Eat a satisfying breakfast that leaves you feeling content. Do not stop eating breakfast just because you think you should, but rather because you feel satiated.
If you want a treat, such as chocolate, eat it at breakfast as opposed to overindulging at night. Really, is there a health difference between enjoying dessert after breakfast instead of after dinner?
Even on a weight reduction diet, you should eat what you truly want to eat, including chocolate, in an appropriate portion.

The bottom line

By no means is chocolate the key to a healthy sports diet, nor is eating lots of dark chocolate preferable to snacking on apples and bananas. But we can certainly enjoy chocolate as a small part of a well balanced sports diet. Just make sure it does not crowd-out other nutrient dense foods. As always, moderation is the key.

Nancy Clark, MS, RD, CSSD counsels both casual and competitive athletes at her office in Newton, MA (617-795-1875). Her Sports Nutrition Guidebook & food guides for marathoners, new runners and soccer players offer additional information. They are available at nancyclarkrd.com. See NutritionSportsExerciseCEUs.com for her online sports nutrition workshop.

References

1.Buijsse B,Feskens EJ, Kok FJ, Kromhout D. Cocoa intake, blood pressure, and cardiovascular mortality: the Zutphen Elderly Study. Arch Intern Med. 27;166(4):411-7, 2006.
Jakubowicz D, O Froy, J Wainstein, M Boaz. Meal timing and composition influence ghrelin levels, appetite scores and weight loss maintenance in overweight and obese adults.Steroids77(4): 323-331, 2012.