Get smart with those resolutions

BOOK NOTES by Joan Ruddiman

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   All the fun stuff is over — now tis the season of resolutions. Yet, for all the good intentions, each year we seem to quickly fall short of the goals. Imagining the outcome is not the problem — knowing how to get there trips us up every year.
   According to the social psychologists who track such data, the top of the resolution list includes losing weight. But as the Boomers age, excess pounds are only part of the concern. How to stay fit as in being toned, energetic, staving off bone loss, are worries that are far more serious than the holiday pounds we fretted over 10 years ago.
   There is an answer in how to achieve health resolutions for 2003 — one that is as old as humankind, and as revolutionary as the most current medical research. What we’ve gained in the last century in food nutrition, sanitary conditions and medical care is mitigated by the increasingly sedentary lifestyles encouraged by technology. Computers and television/video centers in our homes demand hours of our time — and precious little of our energy.
   What used to be just part of the routine of life at home, at work and at play — walking, lifting, carrying — has been "improved" with equipment to make our lives more "convenient" and "comfortable." As three quick examples, think self-propelled vacuum cleaners, elevators and golf carts. We look — and feel — like the couch potatoes we are.
   Medical researchers are paying attention to this disturbing trend in the nation’s health. In particular doctors are waging the battle on two emerging fronts — aging Boomers and obesity that is at epidemic proportions in today’s children. Ironically, their best weapons in defense of good health for every age come from research with the elderly.
   There is no magic elixir but high-powered doctors and medical researchers do claim to have found the Fountain of Youth. The answer to what ails us is strength training.
   Hold the disdain — or your despair. It is a whole lot easier than you may think!
   Miriam Nelson and Sarah Wernick, both have Ph.D.s, both are active in women’s health issues and have combined their talents to present "Strong Women Stay Young," an easy to read book that provides the "how to" and the inspiration to follow through with a basic strength training program. Wernick, an award winning health writer who knows this is a tough pitch, begins with anecdotes of real life women we all want to emulate. They are full of energy, enjoy kids, grand-kids, great grand-kids (!), and engage in all types of sports (like bowling and golf, but also rollerblading, hiking, and canoeing). Weight is no longer an issue as fat turns to muscle reflected in smaller clothing sizes. But what Nelson (Director of the Center for Physical Fitness at the School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University) is more concerned with are the hidden benefits, particularly improved bone density and balance.
   Women, and men, are becoming aware of bone loss issues. What was once thought to be an inevitable part of old age is now aggressively addressed with nutritional and strength training programs. But in the most surprising and disturbing evidence on aging, Nelson reveals in the book is how the body is slowly robbed of balance which gives us the flexibility that allows fluid movement and steadiness in standing. Our sense of balance is slowly dulled over decades until the loss is ultimately realized with the fear of falling and the shuffle so common in the elderly. The fearful negotiation of stairs and sidewalks stems from this loss of balance more than any other age-related ailment.
   Boomers who need a wake-up call should try this. Stand with hands extended to a table or countertop, but don’t hold on. With eyes closed, balance on one foot for 15 seconds. Most people over forty can’t get past six seconds without grasping the tabletop.
   The reminders that we are aging — and out of shape — are both overt and covert. The resolutions we make speak to our awareness of what we need to do. What is revolutionary is the knowledge of how to address these concerns and the positive can-do spirit "Strong Women Stay Young" inspires.
   Some of the most inspirational stories shared by Nelson and Wernick come from the early studies conducted by Drs. Walter Frontera, William Evans, joined by Maria Fiatarone, all of the Tufts Center on Aging. In a study first reported in 1990 in the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA), in just eight weeks frail elderly men and women regained strength, walking speed, and remarkable gains in balance that allowed many to discard their canes.
   The researchers figured if a strength-training program worked wonders for the very old, think what it could do for younger people. Nelson and her team of researchers explored just that premise, with equally dramatic results as reported in a JAMA study published in the mid-1990s. The book shares the entire fascinating story and provides all information to begin and sustain the program.
   "Strong Women Stay Young" came to me as a thoughtful gift from med student Kate who has a passion for geriatrics. She heard of the Nelson/Wernick books (including "Strong Women Stay Slim," "Strong Women, Strong Bones") from a geriatric professor at Mount Sinai. Sharon, our local fitness guru, has been touting the benefits and the how to’s of weight training for years in the Upper Freehold Regional Adult Education program. The evidence is everywhere — ya got to believe!
   "Strong Women Stay Young" is a national best seller — easily found. Also to know more, go to www.strongwomen.com. The investment in equipment is minimal, as is the time requirement — twice a week for about half an hour.
   Go ahead and make those resolutions. You’ve got a plan that will get you to your goals. Give real meaning to wishing "Have a Happy and Healthy New Year."
Joan Ruddiman is a teacher and friend of the Allentown Public Library.