I know from previous emails that many people like to take online quizzes to see how healthy they are and where they may be able to make some improvements. The American Heart Association just came out with such a quiz, called “Life’s Simple 7 Success Plan”. You can take the quiz by clicking here.
According to the AHA, here are the seven secrets to a long life:
* stay away from cigarettes
* keep a slender physique (BMI below 25)
* get some exercise (150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise per week)
* eat a healthy diet (read article for specifics)
* keep your total cholesterol below 200
* keep your blood pressure below 120/80
* keep your fasting blood glucose level below 100
Research shows that most 50 year olds who follow the above guidelines can expect to live another 40 years, free of stroke and heart disease. The advice was published today in the journal “Circulation”.
The AHA also found that in a recent survey 39 percent of Americans thought they had ideal heart health. However, 54 percent of this group were told that they had either a heart disease risk factor or needed to make a lifestyle change to improve heart health, or both. In other words, many people are in denial.
It is no surprise that weight control is a leading pitfall for those people trying to meet the seven guidelines above. As Dr. Donald M. Lloyd-Jones chair of the preventive medicine department at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, states, “People I think are far too accepting of their waistlines.”
In addition to giving you a numerical score, the quiz from the AHA also offers advice in problem areas. For example, for someone needing to lose weight, it recommends setting a goal of losing a pound per week by burning at least 3500 more calories per week than they are taking in.
Have fun with the quiz!
Whole Foods in Plymouth Meeting
I realize this may not excite many of you, but Whole Foods is one of my favorite stores (I’d have to say it runs a close second to Apple stores), and so I just wanted to make you aware of the new Whole Foods in Plymouth Meeting. It is the largest Whole Foods store in PA, and includes a cafe with wine and beer on tap, a pizzeria, hamburgers and barbecue, and fresh gelato, to name just a few of the unique features of this Whole Foods store.
I was lucky enough to attend a presentation last week at the store by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, a leading nutritionist and best selling author. His book, “Eat to Live” is one of the top selling nutrition books, and one of the few such books that I would highly recommend. The presentation lasted about two and a half hours, and I was actively engaged the entire time.
Here is a well-written summary of his presentation. One of the highlights of the presentation were the following basic guidelines for what an individual should eat each day:
* a big salad
* one-half cup of beans
* three pieces of whole fruit
* one ounce of raw nuts and seeds
* one large serving of steamed green vegetables
You can read more about “Eat to Live” at http://drfuhrman.com/weightloss/about.aspx and read more about Dr. Fuhrman at http://drfuhrman.com/default.aspx
While on his web site, you may want to sign up for his weekly newsletter, or read more about his partnership with Whole Foods.
What can I say – the guy is awesome!
In closing, I would like to mention that Whole Foods does offer tours for groups, and I have talked to them about offering a tour for our clients. However, I need to have some idea of the interest level before going too far with planning such a tour. So if you would like to take a tour (we would go to the store in Devon), please let me know by responding to this email. I have heard they are quite informative and you get some free stuff!
And speaking of free stuff, here is an event at the store in Plymouth Meeting scheduled for Thursday, Jan 21 from 2-5:
“Stop by our Community Room and create your own Whole Body goodie bag full of hand-selected sample products that we’re sure you’ll love! No sign up necessary. Limit 1 bag per person, while supplies last”
To your health and happiness…
P.S. Based on client feedback, our Fitness Together trainers are going back to a more “traditional” look. I appreciate all of you sharing your thoughts with me about the new look that we tried, but I guess it was one of those ideas that was better on paper than in reality!
