Fitness, Business, Fitness Business, & Achieving Life Goals

I was working on my mission of videoing 30 variations of the Tabata protocol (see Tabata Revisited), which requires specific timing, and was challenged trying to set up my stopwatch where I could see it. I’d done 12 variations before a colleague called out, “You know there’s an app for that.” I’ll be darned if she wasn’t right. Tabata timer not only times the specific protocol with audible and visual alarms, but gives incredible timing variety that I can use in boot camps and other circuit workouts. Love it!

So, as specific and obscure an app as you might think that is, think about other health/fitness/nutrition apps that could help you. Some are free and some have a nominal fee. There are so many for each area, I’m not recommending the ones I list, just using them as examples. Try some apps out and see how they work for you.

Diet: Any app (application) that makes it easier to journal what you eat and keep track of your calories, would be a great tool. Calorie Tracker and Lose It are two options.

Workout: Giving you ideas for exercise programs are apps from Men’s Health, iPump, and more.

Sports specific: there are apps that are programs to help you train for sporting events. i.e marathon training like Run Coach and Triathlon and Marathon training

Health: Managing your health is also included in programs such as Glucose Buddy for diabetics

Indeed there seems to be apps for every occasion. Go seee what’s out there for you.

That said, a word of CAUTION, nothing takes the place of having a professional create a program that meets your individual needs. That is always your best choice.

Happy app-ing, Mark Nutting

I just started listening to (I mostly do audio books) Outliers: The Story of Success. It begins with a discussion of Roseto, PA, a town with a remarkably low incidence of heart disease. Researchers, in an effort to discover why that was, checked out their diet, activity level, environment, and even hereditary factors (the majority of citizens were descendants of immigrants from Roseto, Italy). None of these showed any correlation to Roseto’s uniquely high health levels. Then they realized what was making the difference. It was that Roseto was a tightly knit society with a strong sense of family and community. Their days were spent interacting with others. That connection with others was making them more resistant to disease.

This is not the first time I’ve heard that social connection is a powerful health enhancer. And, in the research I’ve been reading on brain fitness, activities that involve social interaction also enhance brain health.

So what’s the take away message here? We are meant to be interacting with others. If our days are spent being by ourselves, our physical and mental health is at risk. Seek out those chances to connect. Join clubs, groups, classes, be a volunteer, get out and visit friends and family.

For our part in the fitness industry, we are trying to create greater opportunities for social interaction though group exercise classes, small group training, social events at our clubs, creating areas where you can hang out and talk with others, and even using social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to further your ability to reach out to others. (NY times had an interesting article on social media Online, ‘a Reason to Keep on Going’ )

To coin a telephone commercial slogan, reach out and touch someone. Your life will be enriched for it.

According to Wikipedia – Exergaming (a combination of “exercise” and “gaming”) is a term used for video games that also provide exercise. Exergames have one element of exercise and one element of gaming.

Wii Fit, while all the rage with consumers these days, is just one many exergames. One of the most popular has been Dance, Dance, Revolution (DDR), a dancing game following lighted squares on the floor. One of the downfalls of video games (and why I won’t let our kids play them) is the sedentary aspect of them. It (too much inactive time in front of video games, computer, and TV) is one of the contributing factors of the ongoing childhood obesity problem. Exergaming takes the individual off the sofa and gets them to move.

What’s the real health and fitness benefit from using these games/programs? Well, the benefits of physical activity include cardio-vascular health, better weight management, reduction of anxiety and stress, improved sensory-motor learning, and improved cognitive alertness and performance, and, this is physical activity. There is research that shows improvements in all of these areas with daily use of various exergames. There is even research that shows that “Wii-habilitation ‘could prevent elderly from falls”. Will this replace the need to do other types of exercise? Will it replace the need for health clubs?

I’m afraid the answer is a resounding, “No”. The catch to the whole thing is that maximal health and fitness requires ever-progressing workloads for continued adaptation. (If you don’t do more, you don’t get more.) The programs don’t create a personalized workout based on your individual special needs (i.e. high blood pressure or adapting for injuries). No one is checking your form or keeping you safe.

What exergaming does do well that it needs to be commended for is getting the sedentary individual up and moving. It also gives a physically active option for those that like video games. Anything that gets you to move more will have some health and fitness benefits. Let’s face it. People will use it because it’s fun and entertaining.

I guess the ultimate answer is that we will allow our sons to save their money and buy a Wii even though I’m dead set against video games. (Of course that comes with a 20 minute time limit. I’d still rather have them go outside and play.) The best way to reach your health and fitness goals is still to have a personalized program created by a certified Personal Trainer.