Category Archives: Hesh Goldstein
Working out as we age
by Hesh Goldstein
(NaturalNews) Ever since I was a kid growing up in Newark I centered on sports. It started with playing all kinds of running games, then punch ball, then stick ball, then varsity sports in high school (football, swimming and track) and college (freestyle, butterfly and individual medley swimming), then County touch football leagues, then Wing Chun martial arts, and now three softball leagues – 70 and older, 50 and older and 20 and older – racewalking, stand-up paddling, weight and cardio training, hiking, teaching women’s self defense classes and of course, still swimming. The problem – I ain’t no spring chicken anymore (in my mid 70s) and can’t do it like I used to.
Recently, there was an article in our Hawaii newspaper that was reprinted from the Chicago Tribune and written by a Julie Deardorff that really got my attention. It talked about how tweaking workouts to fit age will improve one’s health.
So, if that article never made it to your newspaper and you are getting older and still working out, this article is a keeper.
“In her late 20s, Lori Popkewitz Alper loved the intense workouts at her Boston gym. But as her life and her changed so did her fitness repertoire.
During pregnancy, Alper found yoga. Soon she was pushing a jog stroller or hauling children in a double-wide bike trailer. Now 47, Alper has returned to some of the high-impact routines of her youth, but her approach has matured.
Workout programs are like 401(k)s – they need to be rebalanced over the decades, said fitness expert Tom Holland.
Four basic-yet-effective exercises – a squat, pushup, bicep curl and abdominal crunch – should remain in your program as long as you can perform them correctly.
You may have to modify them slightly as you age, not going as far on a squat for example, but you keep them in as long as you can.
As the body ages, it naturally begins to fall apart with some functions breaking down faster than others.
After age 20, the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use decreases by 1 percent a year in healthy men and women.
By the time you hit 30, muscular strength begins to head south. But the majority of the decrease occurs after age 50, when it falls at the rate of 15 percent per decade. Bone mineral density also decreases with age; in women the rate accelerates after menopause.
Experts say the ideal combination of exercise should include a combination of aerobic, strengthening and flexibility exercises.
Balance exercises are also vital in helping prevent falls, which can lead to fractures. Though higher-intensity training programs are effective, less rigorous ones can be just as effective, as long as they are done consistently.
Some fitness professionals stress functional fitness and de-emphasize cardio. They feel that older folks still need to get up and down of the floor, to be able to chase after grandkids and play a round of golf or tennis without having to recover for several days.
Aging is not for sissies. You need to face it head on and pay attention to your limitations, keep up your strength, keep trying new things and have a good attitude. So, tweaking your workout can keep you active. Here’s how to reduce the risk:
If you’re a runner, train like a triathlete. If you only run, you’ll be forced by injury to switch to swimming and biking to rehabilitate overuse injuries. Swimming is beneficial because your posture and body weight is horizontal to gravity, so you work many muscles that receive little attention when running or can become weak and prone to injuries, such as hamstrings, abdominals, and low back. Also, swimming provides a top-notch cardio challenge for heart health, which is important since heart disease risk increases markedly as we age.
If you’re a swimmer, add gravity. Be sure to incorporate strength training, walking or anything weight bearing to help prevent the loss of bone density. Also, spend an equal amount of time on your back to help balance out the curves of the spine. Adding some backstroke into the mix will stretch your pectoral muscles and work the muscles between your shoulder blades that help stabilize your spine and maintain your posture all day long.
If you’re a cyclist, run. Cycling mainly involves the quadriceps muscles while running is primarily a hamstring activity. When either of these muscles is too strong, injury occurs. Combining biking and running keeps these muscle groups balanced. Also try the stationary rower, which doesn’t put vertical pressure on the knees.
If you’re a bodybuilder, try yoga. Improving your flexibility provides a static challenge to the muscles versus the dynamic ‘pump, pump, pump’, rep after rep you’ve experienced with a long-term routine of bodybuilding.
If you’re a tennis player, balance the other side. Do resistance training in the form of dumbbells, bands and tubing to balance the strength on each side of the body. If you are right-handed, most of the joints and muscles on the right side of the body will be better developed than those on the left side. With free weights, each arm has to independently hoist the weight such as shoulder presses with the left side versus the right side.
If you don’t work out, get you okole (Hawaii pidgen for butt) moving. Don’t worry about weights and just get up and walk or try something fun. Start with a form of cardio, such as walking, spinning or using a cardio machine. Adopt a good core-building activity, such as Pilates.
You can also purchase exercise DVDs, which are ridiculously inexpensive. And, if you press play enough, they really work.”
For me, I stretch for at least a half hour before I play ball. At home, I do push-ups on my knees and use the 6-5-4-3-2-1 / 1-2-3-4-5-6 routine. This is doing 6 push-ups and waiting 30 seconds before doing 5, etc. I also do angles instead of just straight forward and back. For abs, I use a wheel that has side grips. I do 10 to 15 out and backs every other day. Then at least once a week I swim about 300 to 400 yards. Somehow I manage to fit in hiking, racewalking, stand-up paddling and an occasional women’s self defense class. And I sleep like there’s no tomorrow.
I have found that adhering to a plant-based diet, free of anything that had a face or a mother, dairy products and eggs, keeps me feeling light and energetic, despite weighing 190 pounds. And because of the sulfur crystals, I never have joint pain.
Aloha!
About the author:
I have been doing a weekly radio show in Honolulu since 1981 called “Health Talk”. In 2007 I was “forced” to get a Masters degree in Nutrition because of all the doctors that would call in asking for my credentials. They do not call in anymore. Going to www.healthtalkhawaii.com enables you, among other things, to listen to the shows. I am an activist. In addition to espousing an organic vegan diet for optimum health, I am strongly opposed to GMOs, vaccines, processed foods, MSG, aspartame, fluoridation and everything else that the pimps (Big Pharma, Monsanto and the large food companies) and the hookers (the doctors, the government agencies, the public health officials, and the mainstream media) thrust upon us, the tricks.
After being vaccinated with the DTP vaccine as a child I developed asthma. After taking the organic sulfur crystals (they are harvested from the pine trees in Louisiana) in November of 2008 for 10 days my asthma reversed and has not come back over 4 years later, 18 cases, so far, of autism have been reversed, as has cancer, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, osteoarthritis, joint pain, astigmatism, gum disease, increased sexual activity, heavy metal and radiation elimination, parasite elimination, free radicals elimination, faster athletic recovery time, increased blood circulation, reduced inflammation, resistance to getting the flu, reduction of wrinkles, allergy reduction, reduced PMS and monthly period pain, nausea, migraines and so much more. And it’s only possible because of the oxygen it releases that floods the cells of the body. The sulfur, as proven by the University of Southampton in England, enables the body to produce vitamin B12 and the essential amino acids. You can find out more about this incredible nutrient also on my website – www.healthtalkhawaii.com -.
An Apple A Day
(NaturalNews) Before getting into the crux of this article, what you are now about to read is probably the most essential and important piece of information concerning apples.
If organically grown, all the vital health benefits are located right under the skin of the apple. If conventionally grown all the detrimental pesticides, herbicides and cancer causing sulfites are located right under the skin of the apple.
So, should you choose to eat a conventionally grown apple, you must peel the skin off the apple first and just eat the flesh of the apple, which contains very little nutritional value. Personally, I would rather not choose to eat a conventionally grown apple.
That being said, whatever color of apple you choose, as long as it was organically grown, is extremely beneficial health wise.
Welcome to quercetin. Quercetin is an antioxident that stops tumor cell growth and works against cancers of the lung, breast, liver and colon.
In Hawaii, yet another study was done that found that people who ate more apples and onions – both being high in quercetin – had a lower risk of lung cancer.
The apple peel also stores natural plant compounds called triterpenoids, which either kill or slow the growth of cancer cells.
If you prefer apple juice better than eating the whole apple, go with organic cider that is unfiltered. It is made from shredded whole apples including the peel.
Another incredible ingredient in the humble organic apple is pectin. Pectin is a soluble fiber in apples that is another cancer-fighting ingredient.
Pectin is usually used as a gelling agent for jams and yogurt and although it can kill up to 40% of cancer cells, it does not kill healthy cells.
Organic apples are also essential in the battle against high cholesterol and heart disease.
These incredibly super nutrients will help your heart by lowering inflammation and keeping blood platelets from sticking together. In fact, the flavonoids in apples, along with other fruits and vegetables, nuts and herbs, work as antioxidents benefiting your heart because they stop the oxidation of LDL cholesterol – the “bad” kind – and protect against hardening of the arteries.
If you have seen oatmeal ads, you have been told that soluble fiber like pectin and psyllium husk helps lower cholesterol because it soaks up water in the intestines and forms a gel or a gooey mass that slows down digestion. This equates to the slower digestion of starches and sugars, which means that cholesterol levels go down over time.
Oh yeah, research has found that adults who eat apples and apple products have less abdominal fat as well as lower blood pressure and a reduced risk for developing metabolic syndrome, which can lead to chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease.
Bear in mind that what is lacking in your diet could be as much of a problem as what’s in it.
This is the case with boron, a trace mineral that many diets lack. Boron will help you use calcium, magnesium and vitamin D, all vital for strong bones and joints. And guess what? Too little boron puts you at greater risk for arthritis.
Osteoarthritis happens when cartilage, the slippery tissue that cushions your joints, starts to break down. This can lead to fluid pockets and misshapen bones around your joints and pain and stiffness in your joints like the knees, hips, fingers, feet and spine, mean a lifetime of work and play that has taken its toll. So, people that live in places where there is less boron in the soil and thus also less in plant foods like apples, have a greater risk of arthritis.
But there is good news: you can get an excellent helping of boron in apples and apple juice, which may ease arthritis symptoms. In the SAD (Standard American Diet), apples and apple juice rank in the top 10 boron sources, along with peanut butter, beans, potatoes and orange juice. And the food sources are the best.
Next on the list is fiber. You know, the tough stuff that gives carrots and celery their crunch and whole wheat bread its heartiness but which is totally lacking in flesh and dairy products.
There are two kinds of fiber: soluble and insoluble.
The soluble fiber from oats, barley, bananas. dried beans and apples, forms a gel in your intestines to move out fatty substances.
The insoluble fiber from wheat bran, brown rice, broccoli and yes, apples, is called roughage. Rather than break down completely during digestion it, instead, holds on to water and bulks up stool. It kind of acts like a broom sweeping food through your intestines quickly.
Both soluble and insoluble fiber are essential in preventing constipation.
As previously stated, apples provide both types of fiber – about two-thirds insoluble and one-third soluble in the form of pectin. A whole medium apple will give you about four grams of fiber. Remove the peel and you are down to two grams.
Since 1980, apple juice consumption has doubled, while fruit consumption has declined. But apple juice is missing some of the great stuff you get in apples. One cup of apple juice has only a quarter of a gram of fiber but more sugar than the whole fruit has. The juice will make diarrhea worse, so be safe not sorry.
So, A is for apple and antioxidents, and B is for boron, which you need for your brain. Because apples are powerful in antioxidents, they will help your brain make more acetylcholine, which acts like a neurotranmitter in relaying messages to other nerve cells in your brain.
People with Alzheimer’s disease build up a protein in their brain called beta amyloid, which forms sticky patches on their nerves. The high levels of beta amyloid result in less acetylcholine, which means less messages being relayed to other nerve cells in the brain.
Eating apples at every stage of life will help keep your lungs strong and healthy because the phytochemicals abounding in apples work by reducing inflammation in the airways leading to less wheezing and asthma.
In fact, studies done in Finland, Wales, England, the USA and Singapore all had similar results: eating apples helped people breathe better. New evidence has been revealed that pregnant women who eat lots of apples have a stronger chance of protecting their babies from wheezing or developing asthama in childhood. Of course, once vaccinations come into play, all bets are off.
It is never too late to begin your apple-a day habit. So many seniors suffer with breathing trouble caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This is the technical term for both emphysema and chronic bronchitis, and it’s the fourth most common cause of death in the US.
The experts think that the antioxidants in apples help repair lung damage that can lead to COPD..
And yes, an organic apple a day will keep the doctor away and two teaspoons of organic sulfur crystals will keep asthma, autism, cancer, joint pain, headaches, low energy and astigmatism at bay.
But then again, if all else fails, there’s always Obamacare. God forbid!
Aloha!
About the author:
I have been doing a weekly radio show in Honolulu since 1981 called “Health Talk”. In 2007 I was “forced” to get a Masters degree in Nutrition because of all the doctors that would call in asking for my credentials. They do not call in anymore. Going to www.healthtalkhawaii.com enables you, among other things, to listen to the shows. I am an activist. In addition to espousing an organic vegan diet for optimum health, I am strongly opposed to GMOs, vaccines, processed foods, MSG, aspartame, fluoridation and everything else that the pimps (Big Pharma, Monsanto and the large food companies) and the hookers (the doctors, the government agencies, the public health officials, and the mainstream media) thrust upon us, the tricks.
After being vaccinated with the DTP vaccine as a child I developed asthma. After taking the organic sulfur crystals (they are harvested from the pine trees in Louisiana) in November of 2008 for 10 days my asthma reversed and has not come back over 3 years later, 18 cases, so far, of autism have been reversed, as has cancer, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, osteoarthritis, joint pain, astigmatism, gum disease, increased sexual activity, heavy metal and radiation elimination, parasite elimination, free radicals elimination, faster athletic recovery time, increased blood circulation, reduced inflammation, resistance to getting the flu, reduction of wrinkles, allergy reduction, reduced PMS and monthly period pain, nausea, migraines and so much more. And it’s only possible because of the oxygen it releases that floods the cells of the body. The sulfur, as proven by the University of Southampton in England, enables the body to produce vitamin B12 and the essential amino acids. You can find out more about this incredible nutrient also on my website – www.healthtalkhawaii.com – Products and Services. There is also an organic, 70%, cold processed dark chocolate out there that contains sulfur based zeolite, which removes radiation and heavy metals. You can find out more by reading the article “A Dark Chocolate To Die For” on my website under Articles, or by going towww.mywaiora.com/701848.
I am 73. I have been a vegetarian since 1975 years and a vegan since 1990. I have no illnesses and take no meds. I play basketball 2 hours a week, am in 2 softball leagues, racewalk, body surf, do stand-up paddling, do weight workouts and teach women’s self defense classes based upon 25 years of Wing Chun training.
My firm belief – if it had a face and a mother or if man made it, don’t eat it.
Aloha!
FROM FAT TO FIT 