For Ladies Only
Just recently, I had two vivacious and very personable women start a workout regimen with me. Their doctor had instructed them to start exercising and clean-up their diets. One of these ladies is much younger and heavier than the other. Let’s call her Jess. The older woman is not as overweight, but was given the same order by her doctor. We’ll call her Ruth.
The doctor told them both they were on the road to a life of unhappiness and physical breakdown. What did the doctor mean? Both of these beautiful women were on the road to ruin if they didn’t have a major life change. Their doctor explained to them the pitfalls of a bad diet and that a lack of exercise means a life of disease and angst. The risks to both were stroke, diabetes, high blood pressure, slow metabolism, and malaise (that “tired feeling”). Smart doctor!
One of the really shocking statistics this doctor recently found out is that stroke among young and older women is dramatically up—big time!! Why is this? Well, many younger women are heavier—many even obese—and older women have tended to ignore their symptoms. A poor diet is a big contributor to these facts. Our diet of highly salted, overly fat foods is out to kill us. Ladies, the limit on salt intake is 1,500 milligrams per day, more or less, according to the American Heart Association dieting guidelines. Try to envision this—a teaspoon of salt contains about 2,300 milligrams of sodium. About three-fourths of salt intake comes from processed foods like soups, canned goods, sauces, and condiments. Salt numbers go sky high for fast food and in some restaurants. We over-salt everything—we dump salt on our food; even before tasting it. This was a habit my mom had and it resulted in high blood pressure. Some women can consume 4,000 milligrams of sodium a day! If that’s not enough of a shocker for the ladies, new research has found that a high-sodium diet coupled with the drinking of diet sodas leaves women vulnerable to a higher risk of stroke and heart attacks. This is among people who drink diet soda every day versus those who do not drink soda at all. Diet sodas are consumed by the majority of obese people. There is no nutritional value in this drink, and now there is a tie-in with strokes and heart attacks. I have always told all my clients to stop drinking soda and drink plain water or flavored seltzers instead.
My two new clients are now aware of these findings and are no longer diet soda drinkers. They have changed their diets and Jess has lost 18 pounds in three weeks! Ruth has trimmed down and her blood pressure and cholesterol are way down from where she started three weeks ago. These women may train with me, but they also get homework to do too. They are assigned to walk for at least 30-40 minutes no less than once and no more than twice a week. It’s working!!
So, to all the women here this week for Women’s FEST, welcome to Rehoboth Beach. I hope this information inspires you to make a lifestyle change for both young and old alike. Proper diet and exercise does work. Enjoy our beautiful town and enjoy life!
Rick Moore is a personal trainer certified by the American Fitness Professionals & Associates.