Fitness Professionals Archives - Page 40 of 63

Adaptive Health Paradigm: A Principle-Centered Perspective for Medical Fitness

Dr. Mark Kelly/4 February 2019/ All MFN blog/

I hope to give you some insights to both how the human body works as well as why medically-based fitness is not only valid, but absolutely necessary to reverse, assist, or prevent various chronic and acute disease conditions. Wow, that is a “mouthful” to say the least. I feel so strongly about this perspective that I hope to create the Adaptive Health Model as a major “brand” of fitness. My company (Principle-Centered Health) for the past couple of decades has always had a systems-based approach to health and fitness. This approach ties a lot of different facts into a common theme, usually called a theory in science. Even my dissertation looked at how people adapted to the physical, mental and social issues in their lives using exercise, self-efficacy, and social support, respectively, and levels of strain and burnout. How humans adapt to the stresses put on them is very specific and can go in good or bad directions.

What is the Adaptive Health Paradigm?

Like most theories, paradigms or what people consider “original thought”, this “adaptive” paradigm builds on the “regenerative medicine” framework, and some disease models; thus, is not original at all. What may be new, or unique about the adaptive perspective is taking the old phrase from physicist Isaac Newton and his third law of motion, “for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” The body will respond to stresses by reacting in a “defensive” manner. If we break something down, the body builds it up (opposite reaction). If we are too low or too high in some function, the body will try to correct this. This negative feedback loop controls most systems in our bodies. I have often described our bodies as fragile but resilient. It is our fragility that signals the resilience to kick into gear!

Luckily for us, fitness is based on this exact principle. If we do endurance training, we are going into a lower oxygen state and there are many mechanisms or functions that kick in (sympathetic nervous system) when we push or stress our bodies. The body is responding to what is known as an “acute insult” by increasing the ability to transport and use oxygen, so that this “insult” doesn’t hurt us next time. The same “specificity of training principle” occurs with resistance training. We breakdown muscle and the body builds it back stronger to tolerate that “insult” the next time. When multiple acute exercise stresses are added up, the body changes and we call this “training”.

If stresses are really high, either too intense, too long, or too often, the body gets injured due to this overload, or it needs a lot more time to heal back up. This is why overload needs to be done gradually and progressively. Even our brains use this idea as a guiding principle. We push our mental capacities to learn more, but if we stress it too much, it will repress memories or shut down (burnout).

This same principle applies when we give our body bad things, or a lack of good things, it adapts with a dysfunctional state or disease state. Chronic inflammatory diseases, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, coronary artery disease, emphysema and heart disease are just a few of the examples of how the “garbage in and garbage out”, or “use it or lose it” works. If we sit and work at the computer too much we develop dysfunctional postures and upper cross syndrome may develop. If we do not constantly stress some system, it reverses the training changes, and goes into the “default” state, which is untrained and unable to respond to daily stresses. We simply need to obey our bodily blueprints, we need to constantly use our bodies to maintain function, and overload it to improve function. We need to have the right nutrients in place to allow this to happen, and then basically – get out of the way!

Intelligence in the Body: Applications the Adaptive Health Paradigm

The perspective being proposed in this article shares much with the more holistic medical practices. The human body is really good at healing itself when is it given the right factors to do so, and when we “get out of the way” for it to do so. I know many people who strongly believe in using alkaline water to “cure their ills”. They believe that the body does not know how to regulate itself with its own pH. Most of these same people don’t know what pH even stands for! They don’t know that it is actually the inverse log of the hydrogen ion concentration relative to the hydroxide ions, and that the respiratory system and renal system will go into action as soon as blood pH goes 0.05 pH units high or low!

In other words, these people believe their own bodies are naïve or incapable of curing itself, and like a young child or baby, their body needs constant care and guidance. Most people are so stressed about “taking care” of their bodies that they are doing more harm than good via the stress hormones, especially cortisol being constantly secreted and their adrenal gland is getting fatigued. In reality, the body is really good at healing itself, when we keep it strong and in good operating condition (via exercise and movement) and when we give it the right components to do the healing (via nutrition), and we get out of the way of the immune system (by managing our daily stress levels).

The mind works very much like a muscle. It must be trained and kept strong and when injured it will react in dysfunctional ways, and fight to protect itself. I recently heard an expert in human behavior change speak on how to keep a resolution. He said, we can’t keep a resolution without changing the underlying behaviors which caused the bad habit or lack of a good habit in the first place. By changing the way we think, we change the way we act, and changing our actions will change the way we think!

“What Goes Around, Comes Around”

The quote often stated by Thomas Edison in 1903, which was to give rise to the HMO concept, “The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patient in the care of the human frame, in diet and in the cause and prevention of disease.” Medical doctors (M.D.s) upon completing medical school and prior to practicing take the Hippocratic Oath, which is to do no harm. Even back in Ancient Rome, Hippocrates understood the importance of individualized medicine and the power to “get out of the way” (#5) and give the body what it needs to take care of itself. He had five rules that are still relevant in today’s medical practices.

Walking Is Man’s Best Medicine.
Know What Person the Disease Has Rather Than What Disease the Person Has.
Let Food Be Thy Medicine.
Everything in Moderation.
To Do Nothing Is Also a Good Remedy.

Integrative and Functional Medicine – Highly Inclusive and Holistic Perspectives

A philosophy of practice using these practices is integrative medicine. A brand of medicine created or at least popularized by Andrew Weil. The University of Arizona has this “brand” of medical school. Again, the academic requirements are similar to the M.D. and D.O. but expands its scope to other areas. From the website, Integrative Medicine (IM) is defined as a “healing-oriented medicine that takes account of the whole person, including all aspects of lifestyle. It emphasizes the therapeutic relationship between practitioner and patient, is informed by evidence, and makes use of all appropriate therapies. many different ways in the patient.

A new type of medicine is emerging from this functional perspective which is called personalized medicine. Again, the two are basically two sides of the same coin.

Figure 1: A diagram above showing the greater scope of each medical perspective- Integrative and Functional medicines are close in their holistic perspectives, with differing points of emphasis

What is going on within the individual to cause the disease or prolong its existence?

Sometimes disease hits simply because we were genetically predisposed to get it. However, very often if our system is strong and in good operating condition, we resist it from every occurring or overcome it quite quickly. Cancer is a prime example of this. We all have cancers in our bodies all the time. It is the strong immune system that fights it off. This is amongst the reasons that many, many chronic diseases hit us when we are old. The various system have lost their capacity to fight the dysfunction off, or recover from its destruction. Soon cell death (necrosis or apoptosis) or neoplastic (cancer) growth kicks in.

Harnessing the Power of Exercise and Diet to Fight Chronic Disease

Many, many chronic conditions that the MedFit Network and MedFit Classroom address are helped by exercise and diet because the ability of body to adapt and regenerate itself is enhanced. Most systems in our body fall under the “use it or lose it” scenario. High sugar, alcohol, smoking, and lack of movement are culprits in our health. Our body is not designed for an overload of these factors and across time, many different symptoms will develop because our body can no longer compensate or regenerate.

It is important for the medical fitness professional to understand the power of exercise and nutrition, and the proper application of these tools given the client’s or patient’s current condition. The field of physical therapy developed because many musculoskeletal conditions are helped by movement therapy or exercise. Many chiropractors believe that proper spinal alignment delivers proper neural signals throughout the body, which allows the body to optimize its regenerative capacity. Thus, an expert in medical uses of exercise to combat disease is critical to a healthcare team.

Dr. Mark Kelly Ph.D., CSCS, FAS, CPT has been actively involved in the fitness industry spanning 30 years as a teacher of exercise physiology at academic institutions such as California State University, Fullerton, Louisiana State University, Health Science Center, Tulane University and Biola. He was an exercise physiologist for the American Council on Exercise, a corporate wellness director, boot camp company owner and master fitness trainer.

References

Center for Integrative Medicine, Univ. of Arizona (n.d.). What is IM/IH? Retrieved from: https://integrativemedicine.arizona.edu/about/definition.html

Science Daily (n.d.). Personalized medicine. Retrieved from: https://www.sciencedaily.com/terms/personalized_medicine.htm

Good Reads (n.d.). Retreived from: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/13639-the-doctor-of-the-future-will-give-no-medication-but

Kalish, N. (2018). Hippocrates’ Diet and Health Rules Everyone Should Follow. Reader’s Digest. Retrieved from: https://www.rd.com/health/wellness/hippocrates-diet/

Aligning with Medicine

Phil Kaplan/28 January 2019/ All MFN blog/

I’ve been to the mountain. Yes, I’ve been in the world of medicine. I’ve run my programs in hospitals, collaborated with physicians to address chronic disease, and spoken at medical conferences on topics ranging from “emotion and the patient” to “the healing powers of synergy.”

Between you and me, I’ve been to nicer mountains. While I have nothing but praise for doctors, when we lift up the medical curtain, the overall system, the collective mindset, and the impotence of the treatment of chronic disease provide an open door. For who? For fitness professionals, and I say that with qualification.

The challenge in great part is a naivete. Our “industry” is not well versed in the living dynamics between medical institutions, health insurance, and pharmaceuticals, so these lobbying giants are viewed by personal trainers as purely corrupt, as the evils that plague our population. Yet, when the mirror of honesty is confronted, the limitations of conventional exercise and eating are not by any means the panacea trainers profess them to be in the midst of a population struggling with health compromise.

YES, THERE’S AN OPPORTUNITY BUT . . .

. . . it requires a re-education, an enhanced skill set.

Physical therapists are not thrilled with the idea of personal trainers working to address muscular imbalances and injury recovery. Nutritionists approach trainers who coach their clients nutritionally with caution. The trainer is not deemed a player on the Allied Health Care Team.

We therefore hear assertions from “trainer island” with limited foundation.

“Insurance should pay for our client sessions, after all, it pays for medical treatments that don’t work.” Wow, is that a slippery slope, one I wouldn’t approach if it showed up in my backyard and I was equipped with anti-slip cleats.

“Doctors should refer clients to us.” That is best responded to with a simple, “why?”

“Doctors don’t care about their patients.” There’s a globalized bias that fails to account for a system that makes “exploration of the client condition” one of the greatest challenges in the field, regardless of the physician’s heart.

* * * * * * The opportunity lies in humility, in a willingness to step up and learn, and in providing a true complement to the system that is flawed. It isn’t an “us or them,” but it also shouldn’t be a one way street of elusive referrals. It’s a recognition that we have the per-session time to invest. We can gain the trust of clients. We can see clients regularly and facilitate programs that require joint responsibility.

The most important piece of creating an industry wide recognition of the trainer’s power is perhaps the dismissal of ego, the acknowledgement that trainers deemed competent in prescribing safe and effective exercise, have not learned to address metabolic imbalance, hormonal disruption, and inflammatory issues that underlie the most common conditions.

It’s in the spirit of betterment that I’ve committed to learn and teach, to isolate practices fully within the trainer scope of practice that address the sources and causes of the plagues that impact 65% of our adult population. It’s time, not to urge doctors to respect trainers, but for trainers to create a legitimate platform of respect, one where chronic dis-ease is treated as a self-induced condition with patient / client empowerment as the greatest vehicle for true opportunity, as the vehicle for collaborative respect, a vehicle for the trainer to serve as a bona fide health catalyst.

Phil Kaplan has been a fitness leader and Personal Trainer for over 30 years having traveled the world sharing strategies for human betterment. He has pioneered exercise and eating interventions documented as having consistent and massive impact in battling chronic disease. His dual passion combines helping those who desire betterment and helping health professionals discover their potential. Email him at phil@philkaplan.com

Exercise and Dementia: Thinking Differently about Thinking

Dr. Mark Kelly/25 January 2019/ All MFN blog/

Many people are aware of the devastating effects dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has on families. I know this devastation personally, as my mother suffers from advanced stages of AD. It is very sad to have only the body present of someone you have known and loved your whole life! This article will discuss some of the newer developments in understanding and possibly reducing the disease, as well as the positive role exercise may have in slowing the onset and development of symptoms, and disabilities for any form of dementia.

The impact on family units and caretakers is even greater and can’t be measured by financial impact. Dementia is a group of symptoms that affect mental tasks like memory and reasoning. Dementia can be caused by a variety of conditions, the most common of which is Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 60 to 80 percent of dementia cases (http://www.alz.org). Much of the recent attention to professional football players and the repeated brain trauma is due to the increased incidence of dementia, not Alzheimer’s. Dementia is characterized by loss of memory, intellectual capabilities and executive functions.

Alzheimer Concept. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, in 2015, 5.3 million Americans are believed to have this incurable disease. The cost of Alzheimer’s to the U.S. is $226 billion, and this figure is estimated to more than quadruple to $1.1 trillion by 2050 unless some major discoveries are made. It is the 6th leading cause of death behind heart disease, strokes, and cancer but it is the only one that cannot be prevented. One in three seniors will die with some form of dementia. Alzheimer’s is far more prevalent in women, with about 3.2 of the 5.1 million people, or 2/3rds, being women. The Baby boomer generation should cause the number of those affected to swell to 7 million, which may double by 2050. (http://www.alz.org/facts/overview.asp).

Factors Associated with Alzheimer’s Disease

While no one really knows exactly what causes Alzheimer’s disease (AD), there are several factors that are highly associated with it, and even some treatments that seem to slow its progression and onset. The two most prominent factors associated with AD are age and family history.

After age 65, the risk of Alzheimer’s doubles every five years. After age 85, the risk reaches nearly 50 percent. A type of AD is known as early onset or younger onset. This term actually is used for two types, a risk and deterministic form. Both may start in someone’s 30s or 40s and if someone has the gene it is 100%. This “determined” form is rare, accounting for only 5% of the total cases. Research has shown that those who have a parent, brother, sister or child with Alzheimer’s are more likely to develop the disease. The risk increases if more than one family member has the illness.

Biomarkers of Alzheimer’s Disease

APOE genes
Neuro-tangles associated with the Tau protein
Beta amyloid plaques- a protein clump found in the brain- disrupting communication
Inflammation
Decreased brain size

(http://www.alz.org/research/science/alzheimers_research.asp)

When diseases tend to run in families, either heredity (genetics) or environmental factors, or both, may play a role. There are two categories of genes influencing a person developing a disease: risk genes and deterministic genes, both of which are present in Alzheimer’s disease.

Risk genes increase the likelihood of developing a disease, but do not guarantee it will happen. Researchers have found several genes that increase the risk of Alzheimer’s. Apolipoprotein (APOE)-e4 is the first risk gene identified, and has the strongest impact on disease risk. APOE-e4 is one of three common forms of the APOE gene; the others are APOE-e2 and APOE-e3.

Those who inherit one copy of APOE-e4 have an increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s and those with two copies have an even higher risk, but still not a certainty. In addition to raising risk, APOE-e4 may tend to make symptoms appear at a younger age than usual (early onset). Scientists estimate that APOE-e4 is implicated in about 20 to 25% of Alzheimer’s cases.

Brain Size and Function

We often associate brain size with cognitive capacities and for the most part this relationship holds true. While it is very difficult to measure any increase in mass due to neuroplasticity, we can measure increase activity in the brain due to exercise, or decreased activity from AD and other dementias.

How can Exercise and Diet Help

senior-exercise-trainer It is important to understand some of the limitations of exercise and diet in helping either dementia or AD. First of all, one must separate non-Alzheimer’s dementia from Alzheimer’s, and then must understand what stage of AD the individual is in. Finally, one must realize if the symptoms have already manifested (onset), and then monitoring the progression.

Exercise has a more pronounced effect on helping decrease progression and even reversing some symptoms with non-Alzheimer’s dementia. In addition, the earlier someone is able to perform preventative actions, the greater the effect those therapeutic actions will have. Exercises that really activate the brain such as dance, yoga, and new sports or techniques are the best for prevention.

By exercising regularly throughout your life you will lower your incidence of getting Alzheimer’s by 50% and by doing mental exercises with the physical exercises may lower your chances by 70%! This reduction would not apply to those with deterministic genes but it would for others. Some researchers believe exercise can both delay onset and reduce symptom severity no matter what the cause.

Aerobic exercise in particular causes a release of brain derived neurotropic factor, which has been labeled as “Miracle Gro for the Brain” by the author of SPARK, John Ratey, M.D. In addition, aerobic exercise causes some angiogenesis or the development of additional circulation to the brain. When the brain cells receive more blood, they get more oxygen, and thus function better.

Other side benefits of exercise are the muscle strengthening and enhanced balance and activation of postural muscles. Many Alzheimer’s patients will be at risk for falls and disturbed gait patterns. A consistent exercise program can delay and slow these issues even in somewhat advanced stages.

The dosage is the same as that for the general public or 150 minutes of moderate activity a week. It is important not to push an Alzheimer’s patient into exercise. Many AD victims can become agitated quite quickly and the stress is unwarranted. Simply walking is the best exercise. Make sure the walking path is smooth and not filled with obstructions or difficult terrain.

In an article from Science News, “Walking slows progression of Alzheimer’s”, Cyrus Raji, Ph.D., from the Department of Radiology at the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, mentions, “We found that walking five miles per week protects the brain structure over 10 years in people with Alzheimer’s and MCI, especially in areas of the brain’s key memory and learning centers. We also found that these people had a slower decline in memory loss over five years.

The type and magnitude of exercise needs to be carefully monitored with advancing Alzheimer’s or dementia but in those with mild cognitive impairment, a “healthy dose” of both resistance and aerobic exercise is advocated.

Trainers and Nutrition

Phil Kaplan/21 January 2019/ All MFN blog/

It was 1995. I sat on a panel at the Club Industry conference in Chicago and made a fully convicted argument that “personal trainers MUST talk about nutrition.” I had been told by assorted experts, club owners, and educators that ‘it’s illegal for trainers to talk about nutrition.’ Absurd.

In referencing that event from 20 years ago, I’m realizing how far we’ve come in the field of personal training. I’m also reminded of the Diet Ginger Ale Lady.

I was in the checkout line in Publix supermarket and the woman in front of me had only 3 items. She had 3 cases of diet ginger ale. Period. The cashier eyeballed her purchase and quipped, “you must like diet ginger ale.” The response was surprising.

“No, I don’t like it at all, but it’s a great diet!”

Now the visibly overweight cashier’s ears perked up, “Diet? How does it work?”

“Well, the ginger gives you all the nutrients you need and the carbonation makes you feel full, so for two days you only have diet ginger ale. On the third day you have all the soup and salad you want. You repeat the 2-day 3-day regimen until you’ve lost the weight.”

I was sure somebody was going to show up. Maybe the FBI. At the very least, the local police. After all, if it’s “illegal” for personal trainers to talk about nutrition, this woman had to be committing extreme violation!

No cops came. No SWAT Team or sting operation. The diet ginger ale lady left with her purchase and went on her way.

I share this to make a point. The advice people are receiving related to nutrition runs from relatively sane to outwardly dangerous. If we are going to guide our clients toward health, we have an obligation to help them make better choices.

I understand why some opted to believe that nutritional advice from trainers violated the law. Personal trainers without nutritional credential should NOT be prescribing diets, nor should they be recommending supplements. There are far too many risks, and in that, there have been lawsuits and judgments.

Let’s not, however, go to a full pendulum swing and prevent trainers from speaking truth.

I said earlier we’ve come a long way, and we have, and many trainers have become educated in nutritional practices, have aligned with software programs or continuing education courses, and the stigma is lessened significantly.

That doesn’t mean I believe the entire field of personal trainers should be spewing the nutritional beliefs they most attach to.

While many trainers have become responsibly educated, others haven’t and that presents a challenge.

My anecdotal experience has shown me that many personal trainers with limited education in clinical nutrition, marry themselves to one of two approaches and those approaches become a blanket touching each and every client.

They adhere to the old school teachings of “calories in vs. calories out” and reference mathematical formulas to estimate “ideal” caloric intake.
They profess that a bodybuilding type plan, generous in protein, and ample in both meals and energy substrates, is the way to go, failing to recognize the uniqueness of each client.

Many today scream Paleo, others yell Keto, and there’s very little unity.

Here’s my suggestion. While science will reveal new subtleties in food intake for specific groups, demographics, and performances, and food will continue to change as genetic modification, commercial livestock rearing, and food preservation techniques will challenge nature, the basics of “The Macro” won’t change.

Amino acids are the building blocks of tissue and we obtain them from dietary proteins.
Essential fats are essential with a host of vital benefits.
Starvation is NOT an effective weight loss strategy.
Processed foods will disrupt pancreatic hormones and metabolic processes if consumed often over time as staples in a nutrition plan.
Sugar intake can lead to a host of chronic and debilitating conditions If it isn’t well managed and kept modest at best.
Natural (organic) foods, grass-fed, pasture raised, and wild caught are going to provide more of nature’s “life force” than anything removed from sunlight, anything chemically modified, or anything hybridized for resistance to pests or weeds.

The bullet points are nothing but generalities, and this doesn’t pretend to be a complete list of important points, but a trainer equipped with some consistently valuable guideposts for their clients seeking health and betterment are certainly more powerful than those who avoid nutrition altogether.

Dr. Joel Fuhrman, Physician, Nutritional Scientist New York Times, Best-Selling Author

There are a great many leaders opening new doorways in the field of nutrition. One of them is Dr. Joel Fuhrman. We’re privileged to have him sharing his powerful insights at the MedFit Tour stop in Irvine, CA on February 9. It’s only one of the many reasons you should attend.

Dr. Fuhrman will share eye-opening research about the impact of fruit, specific vegetables, fats, and common foodstuffs on human health. . . and I guarantee two things. One, you’ll be blown away as so much of his study reveals the misinformation that plagues our population. Two, you’ll be far better equipped to deliver thrilling outcomes for your clients, whether you train athletes, regular folks, or the chronically afflicted.

Dr. Fuhrman is only one of a dozen extraordinary speakers slated to share insights in the wide-open and opportune field of Medical Fitness. It’s the future. It should be a part of yours.

P.S. Here’s a gift, see Dr. Fuhrman live on video for free. Click here to access.

It Still Hurts. Why?

Jay Weitzner, MS/16 January 2019/ All MFN blog/

Hurt. Ouch. Pain. These three words are oft used to describe a feeling or sensation that we don’t like somewhere in our body….

Pulmonary Hypertension and Mind/Body Medicine?

Robyn Kade/9 January 2019/ All MFN blog/

To understand how Pulmonary Hypertension reacts to Mind/Body Medicine, you must understand what is going on biologically. Mind/Body Medicine, such as meditation and exercise, can help to give these clients a better quality of life. As a fitness professional, it is important to know how, when and why you are using certain mind/body modalities.

Pulmonary Hypertension is a very rare disease of the lungs and right side of the heart. Sometimes there is no known cause except a change in the cells that line the pulmonary arteries. There is no cure, so managing the disease is the best most people can do. Some clients may be on multiple medications, which is normal. The changes in the pulmonary cells cause the artery walls to be thick and stiff. Extra tissue may form and the arteries may become tight. Young individuals usually become diagnosed by the age of 36 and women are diagnosed more often then men. Each year, 10 to 15 people per million are diagnosed in the United States. It is important to note that life expectancy is about 3 to 5 years if not diagnosed and treated.

Hypertension, as most people know, is a blood pressure which is 130–139 over 80–89. Individuals with hypertension can usually come off of medications with eating healthy and exercising. There are instances where the client will never stop taking medications, due to genetics. The client can eat healthy and exercise, but the blood pressure does not come down. A primary doctor may try to get the blood pressure under control, but can’t.

In this situation, the individual would be sent to a Cardiologist who specializes in Pulmonary Hypertension. There are four types of Pulmonary Hypertension and they each have their own symptoms and treatment. It is important to obtain a doctor’s clearance before working with this population.

Types of Pulmonary Hypertension

Group 1: Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
This group is usually classified as having no known cause. It can be genetic or develop from someone having Lupus, Scleroderma or HIV. Symptoms for this classification can be chest pain, dizziness, fatigue, inability to exercise, low blood pressure, chronic cough, shortness of breath, swelling or swollen legs.

Exercise is very important for this group by strengthening the heart and lungs. Clients will initially go to cardiac rehab for four to twelve weeks. When rehab is over, remember to obtain a clearance prior to working with your client. Start your client out by doing their cardiac rehab program. The goal is to strengthen the heart and help the client to build cardiovascular endurance.

Group 2: Pulmonary Hypertension due to left lung disease
The heart does not pump blood or relax effectively. Medications are used for this group to help lung functioning. Blood pressure medicine and diuretics may also be prescribed. The physician may also ask their client to lose weight or use a CPAP if they have sleep apnea.

Group 3: Pulmonary Hypertension due to lung disease
This group of individuals may have COPD, Interstitial Lung Disease, Sleep Apnea, chronic high altitude exposure, and pulmonary fibrosis. Treatment consists of improving lung function, proper sleep breathing and staying away from high altitudes.

Group 4: Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension
In group four, clients have blood clots in the lung. The blood clot restricts blood flow causing hypertension. It is important to work closely with the client’s physician for this type of hypertension.

Overall, exercise is thought to be good for individuals with Pulmonary Hypertension. There are, however, some guidelines to follow. Clients should never over exercise or become overheated. If you are working with someone who presents with symptoms, do not exercise upper and lower extremities at the same time. Exercise in extreme hot or cold environments should be avoided.

Stress management techniques will not help with bring blood pressure or heart rate down. For these clients, it is important to concentrate on the symptoms. Many individuals with Pulmonary Hypertension develop anxiety, depression and chronic stress. Clients may sit in a chair or lie on the floor for mind/body classes. It depends on what is comfortable for each client. It is important that the client knows to not get discouraged because they are not seeing a drop in blood pressure.

Robyn Caruso is the Founder of The Stress Management Institute for Health and Fitness Professionals. She has 18 years of experience in medical based fitness.

References:

http://www.tsmihfp.com
https://pulmonaryhypertensionnews.com/pulmonary-hypertension-who-classification/
https://phassociation.org/medicalprofessionals/consensusstatements/exercise/
http://pulmonaryhypertensionrn.com/types-of-pulmonary-hypertension/

Health Care Collage Words Medicine Background

How Do You Define Health?

Alene Brennan/8 January 2019/ All MFN blog/

Health can be defined in a variety of ways.

The absence of disease.
The absence of symptoms of a disease.
The ability to achieve a specific health goal. (Weight loss or reduced medication)
The ability to achieve a specific life goal. (Travel or dance at your granddaughter’s wedding)

There’s no right or wrong definition of health. It’s all what’s of most importance to you. However, unless you take a moment to reflect on and define it for yourself, you may by default be guided by your physician’s goal for your health.

Their goal is well-intended and certainly well researched, however, without the understanding what’s most meaningful to you in terms of your health, you’re likely following a standard protocol. They may get you 90% of the way to your health, not realizing it’s the last 10% beyond the standard protocol that enables you to achieve what is most meaningful to you.

As we’ve entered into a New Year when health goals are more at the forefront of our minds, it can be an inspirational time to determine what health means for us.

A vision helps you determine what you’re aiming towards.

You can then communicate a clearly defined vision with your health care providers, so they can support you in achieving your goal.

So, what does this look like?

As a nutrition coach, I always take new clients through this process.

What goal comes to mind first?

Generally speaking, the most popular answer is weight loss. But nobody wants to lose weight just to have a lower number on the scale. It’s about what they can do when they’re at that lower weight. (Walk up the stairs without being winded, not need a seatbelt extender during a plane ride or feeling comfortable in a bathing suit on your anniversary vacation.)

Because I work primarily with individuals that have autoimmune disease, the motivations are much deeper. The obvious would be less pain, more energy and increased mobility. But when truly getting to understand each person, they share that they want to regain the ability to walk down the driveway to get the mail, have enough energy to do their own grocery shopping, or reduce pain so they can sleep better at night.

The latter goals have such great detail that your care team will want to get onboard in setting you up for success.

From here, you can best determine what providers and services you need most to achieve health in your terms.

This may also prompt them to offer more options for you in achieving your goal. It could be as simple as suggesting a session with a physical therapist to a mediation app that’s been helpful to other patients in managing pain.

Bottom line, you need to first define your vision for health and then clearly communicate that vision with your healthcare team – ideally starting with your primary care physician – so you can be supported with the best path to your health success.

Join Alene for her upcoming webinar with MedFit Classroom:

Alene Brennan has been featured in USA Today, Philadelphia Inquirer, Huffington Post and Mind Body Green. Alene overcame debilitating migraine headaches through diet and lifestyle and is now once again using a “Less Pharm, More Table” approach is managing her diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis. Alene holds four certifications: Nutrition Coach, Yoga Instructor, Personal Trainer and Natural Food Chef. She also completed specialized training in nutrition for autoimmune disease specifically the Wahls Protocol and the Autoimmune Protocol. Since receiving her MS diagnosis and seeing first-hand the power of using diet and lifestyle to create a healing environment in the body, she dedicated her virtual nutrition coaching practice to helping people with MS and autoimmune dieseases take back control of their health. Visit her website, alenebrennan.com.

High intensity interval training workout

How Much High Intensity Exercise is Too Much?

Debra Atkinson/28 November 2018/ All MFN blog/

Are you doing too much high intensity exercise? High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) has been the holy grail of fitness trends for the past several years. Is it the Holy Grail for YOU? Here’s what a recent study says and how to interpret that if you’re a woman flipping (or wanting to) her second half with flare.

Exercise is stress. High intensity exercise is greater stress. Stress causes cortisol.

Cortisol plays two roles in our lives. It’s both the stress hormone and the energy hormone. The perfect amount of stress makes you feel alive and thrive. Too little or too much cortisol each causes problems.

When you’re exercising with the right amount of “overload” or stress you create a positive, not negative, stress response. That’s not to say (because I hear you saying that’s how you negate stress) that exercise doesn’t relieve stress. It can. But we sometimes don’t give ourselves the right dose, frequency or intensity to optimally relieve stress without having it come back to bite us you-know-where.

Better Stress

The key is to find your personal optimal exercise. I’m an advocate for the right exercise for you right now. Women in midlife are more susceptible to the negative effects of stress as they go through other major hormone changes. What worked once – even as recently as months ago or last week – may not be your ideal exercise this week.

That doesn’t mean you’re going to suffer, gain weight, get moody or any of the above. If you adjust your exercise according to what’s going on, respond to it even if you can’t predict what changes will be, you’ll sail through those years from peri-menopause to beyond menopause better. That sets you up for a full Flipping 50 (49-99) feeling as young as your habits will allow you. It’s habits that determine how your genetics express or suppress (epigenetics).

What’s the best exercise? The answer is not the same for you and for every other woman over 50. We’ve got common denominators but your details are unique to you. If you’re deconditioned, conditioned, or an athlete it changes your exercise prescription. If you’re in adrenal fatigue, you’re estrogen dominant, or have low testosterone will change what I suggest you do. If you have osteoporosis, are trying to prevent it, or you have 20 or more pounds to lose, each of these (and more) will change the exercise plan that’s best for you.

A recent study of weight training performed as high intensity interval training (HIIT) was created to determine if HIIT weight training was better than traditional weight training. Researchers asked, is heavy weight training better than the moderate-to-light weight training recommended for decades?

A side note here: the fear of “bulk” from strength training is legit. The three sets of 10-to-12 repetitions taught for decades, as some kind of gold standard actually IS a bulk-building protocol. Ten or fewer repetitions is the optimal strength, bone building, and fat reducing/lean increasing protocol while higher repetition ranges are best for performance enhancement and influencing smaller muscle activation.

Your personal exercise protocol is also influenced by whether you’re a mesomorph, endomorph, or ectomorph. Each body type can respond differently to a protocol.

ACE Research

According to the study performed by the American Council on Exercise, a leading authority in fitness, moderate or average exercise should occur between 70 to 80 percent heart rate intensity, HIIT training requires at least 85 percent heart rate intensity, the study says. Les Mills’ researchers (creators of Body Pump) wanted to determine how to best achieve a healthy balance between one’s HIIT volume (minutes of HIIT per week) and one’s positive stress response. Their hypothesis was that more than 30 or 40 minutes of weekly HIIT volume would prompt a reduced positive stress response.

“A positive stress response to exercise is a critical part of creating the bio-chemical changes in the body that help build new muscle and improve fitness,” the study says. “The stress response can be measured effectively by examining cortisol and testosterone concentrations in saliva.”

Not to repeat myself but as mentioned earlier, this is really what we refer to as the principle of overload in fitness. The stimulus of exercise must be adequate to provide overload such that the body responds after (when between sessions fitness occurs IF you have adequate rest, food, and sleep).

Remember Your Hormones

It’s key for YOU to remember, Flipping 50 friend, that you have another thing to consider. The status of your hormones, not just of your mind’s desire to lose fat, or get in shape needs to be considered when designing your exercise program. Pushing through … following lame social media memes suggesting that “sweat is fat crying” can backfire on you and increase fat storage when stress goes the wrong way. When you read “move more” interpret it as walking down the hall to deliver a message as opposed to going to boot camp 6 days a week or doing two-a-days.

Let me take a step back here and describe what it feels like to lift at a level defined as HIIT. There’s a lot of confusion about HIIT. Anything that gets you breathing slightly harder is NOT HIIT. Lifting with a weight that causes fatigue at 10 repetitions correlates with 80% intensity. So in order to lift and a HIIT level of 90% as per the study, you’d be lifting a weight closer to 5 repetitions.

Don’t panic. You definitely progress to this point. You also can reduce the weight slightly and use power, increasing speed on the lift but always controlling the lowering (eccentric) phase of exercise to achieve this overload without a heavy weight. You do this in daily life… the wind grabs the car door, the door to a store is heavy, or you heft the garbage bag out to the curb… so if you’re worried about injury (valid) do consider whether your daily activity warrants the work so you’re prepared.

Fatigue vs Tired

Moving fast to get breathless is not necessarily overloading the muscles in a way that muscle changes and creates lean muscle tissue that assists in fat burning.

THIS is a key distinction most program creators and attendees fail to make. Going to a boot camp where you’re moving fast from a strength exercise to a cardio exercise to a core exercise will likely tire you. Tired is not muscle fatigue. Muscle fatigue must be reached so your body changes.

Will it burn calories right now? Yes. Will it change your body, your body composition, and set you up for years of a stronger leaner body? No.

The study used strength training as the mode of high intensity exercise. Researchers compared one set of 5 repetitions for each of 10 exercises to 1 or 2 sets of 10 repetitions for 10-12 exercises. The subjects were both male and female and ages up to 59.

The results showed body fat decreased significantly for both groups. Blood pressure and LDL (bad) cholesterol decreased only for the HIIT group.

“When it comes to HIIT, adding volume doesn’t deliver better results,” the report says.

“It actually hinders. To get the full benefits of HIIT and prevent overreaching, our recommendation is to…

Do a maximum weekly HIIT sessions that are above 90 percent maximum heart rate for 30-40 minutes…

…and balance them with other less demanding workouts.”

“It’s also imperative that you let your body recover properly after a HIIT session. This way, you’re likely to perform better when you do your HIIT workouts and benefit from the positive results,” researchers added.

The key exercise flips:

More is not better when it comes to High Intensity exercise
An understanding of what constitutes high intensity interval training is key if you’re to reap benefits
The more health markers (blood pressure and cholesterol) you’re trying to target with your exercise, the more HIIT could benefit you done with adequate progression
A low volume of HIIT (no more than 40 minutes a week) is far better for results (and reduction of injury) than more volume (frequency, or duration)
If you’re doing high intensity exercise that is also high impact cardio or high intensity strength training every day you may be inhibiting your recovery and results.

This distinction of when to work hard and when to recovery is so important. It’s not intuitive for a generation that witnessed the work harder, get better results discipline of our parents.

Article reprinted with permission from Debra Atkinson. Originally printed on flippingfifty.com.

Debra Atkinson is the #youstillgotitgirl who is flipping 50 and changing the way thousands of women think about their second half. She’s the host of the Flipping 50 TV Show and the Flipping 50 podcast. As a master personal trainer, strength and wellness coach with over 30 years fitness industry experience, she works with women who are pro-aging with vitality and energy. She is an international fitness presenter, author of hundreds of articles and multiple books. Visit her website, flippingfifty.com

How Sharp is Your Saw: Using eLearning to Get More Coaching Clients

Nichole Lowe/15 November 2018/ All MFN blog/

One of the most powerful tools in any coach’s arsenal is his or her knowledge of which coaching techniques to apply to a given situation and how to apply them to best meet clients’ needs. “Sharpening the saw,” or continually honing one’s skills, ensures coaches are on top of the most effective practices.

Learning new skills and coaching techniques is easier than ever through eLearning–educational programs delivered online. Online courses are more accessible, less expensive and faster to master than traditional educational programs. And best of all, they can be taken at the learner’s convenience, 24/7/365.

So how does eLearning help coaches sharpen their saw? In his mega-bestseller The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, author Franklin Covey describes “sharpening the saw” as a way of “preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have–you. It means having a balanced program for self-renewal in the four areas of your life: physical, social/emotional, mental, and spiritual.”

By engaging in eLearning to expand their knowledge of proven, effective practices, coaches can treat clients with a wider variety of issues. These same practices also work on the coach! Taking online training gives coaches the opportunity to see their own issues, in each of the four areas mentioned by Covey, from a fresh perspective, making them better practitioners and better people in general.

Approaching eLearning not only as a tool to gain skills as a coach, but also as a way to live to one’s full potential provides extra motivation when taking online courses and makes “sharpening the saw” more fun!

Reprinted with permission from the SoleLife Blog.

Nichole Lowe is a board certified Health Coach, Educator and Presenter. She is the Founder and CEO of SOLELIFE™. SOLELIFE™ is an online training platform that offers proven advanced training for coaches and health practitioners in Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT) to improve its customers’ client results and grow their referral business. It’s an all-in-one solution for professional coaches where they can learn new skills, connect with peers, and gain valuable industry knowledge in a first-ever fully social eLearning platform.

If you’re interested in learning more about DBT, SOLELIFE offers a free course, Understanding DBT.