September 29th, 2010
High Leucine / Essential Amino Acid Protein Sources Help With Sarcopenia & Aging Issues
By John Troup
Protein is the single most important nutrient for muscle function. The fundamental way through which dietary protein affects muscle is stimulation of muscle protein synthesis (i.e., the body’s ability to build muscle) by the absorbed amino acids
(11). Muscle protein is
particularly
responsive to the stimulatory effect of ingested protein/amino acids. Building muscle is stimulated by a single dose of amino acids to a greater extent than any anabolic hormone tested, including testosterone
(12), insulin
(13), and growth hormone
(14).
Recent studies have proven the positive effect of amino acids on muscle protein synthesis translates to improvement in lean body mass, strength and function in elderly
(15,16). The recent report of the Health Aging and Body Composition Study
(17) confirms the importance of protein intake in preserving lean body mass on a large population basis. Changes in body composition were determined over a three year period in over 2000 individuals aged 70-79.
Individuals in the highest group of protein intake had 40% less loss in lean body mass over the 3 year period than those in the lowest groups of protein intake. The other three groups defined on the differences in levels of protein intake also corresponded to the extent of loss of lean body mass. So, its not surprising that in a different study
(18) women with intake greater than the mid-range of 0.8-1.2 g protein/kg/day (1.20-1.76 g/kg/day) tended to have fewer health problems over the 10 year follow-up period than those with protein intakes < 0.8 g/kg/day.
Protein & Amino Acids Are Key
Amino acids are the key nutrient stimulators of muscle protein synthesis and thus play an important and critical role in stopping the age acceleration that poor nutrition and low protein intake have on the aging process. What’s the best way to put this to work for better health and avoiding
sarcopenia? An optimal dietary supplement should have the greatest stimulatory effect on muscle protein synthesis using the least amount of amino acids. This combination will limit the impact of the supplement on other dietary intake, as well as minimize the serving size of the supplement, control (and minimize) excess incremental caloric intake and thereby increase the likelihood of compliance and improved results of maintain muscle function.
All forms of dietary protein contain a mixture of essential and non-essential amino acids (EAAs – essential amino acids, and NEAAs – non-essential amino acids). Ingestion of only the EAAs is necessary for stimulation of muscle protein synthesis
(25) resulting in positive muscle building and support effects. Unfortunately, a high quality protein contains approximately 50% EAAs. Thus, if a mixture of EAAs is given that matches the profile of the amino acids in a protein, only half the amount of EAAs is required as compared to the intact protein to elicit the same magnitude of response of muscle protein synthesis
(26).
In addition to providing necessary precursors for protein synthesis, some EAAs serve as molecular regulators of muscle protein metabolism. In particular,
leucine has a well-defined role in activating the molecular process involved in initiating the process of protein synthesis
(27).
The role of leucine is particularly important in elderly individuals. A mixture of EAAs in which leucine comprises 40% of the total is approximately twice as effective in stimulating muscle protein synthesis in older individuals as the profile of EAAs in whey protein, which is a high-quality protein in milk.
Leucine Alone Isn’t the Answer
Although leucine has an important and unique role in muscle protein metabolism in older individuals, ingestion of
leucine alone is ineffective in stimulating human muscle protein synthesis. Other essential amino acids must also be present in the appropriate proportions. This cannot be achieved by simply ingesting a mixture with the same profile of EAAs as muscle protein. Due to different transport rates from blood into the muscle, the optimal profile of ingested amino acids differs from the amino acid profile of muscle protein.
Adequate availability of the appropriate amount of amino acid precursors is necessary for the activation of muscle building activity caused by leucine.
Dr. Robert Wolfe and his team of scientists at the University of Arkansas has done a great deal of research studying all of these considerations into the design of the optimal profile of amino acids that can most effectively build muscle, avoid sarcopenia and enhance health function for a healthy aging process.
There is a dose response of muscle protein synthesis to this optimal mixture of additional EAAs when given in conjunction with high leucine (figure 1). Whereas leucine is a key component of the optimal formulation of amino acids to stimulate muscle protein synthesis, the effectiveness of the mixture results from the entire profile of amino acids.
Click Graph to Enlarge
Click Graph to Enlarge
The bottom line is that
the optimal mix of high leucine/essential amino acids has been shown to build muscle (i.e., improves protein synthesis rates) as much as four times more than intact protein on a gram for gram basis
(figure 2). The results shown in figure 2 demonstrate that it is possible to formulate a dietary supplement to enhance muscle protein synthesis, and thus muscle size and strength, that is much more efficient than normal dietary intake.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: aging baby boomers, amino acid protein blends, healthy aging, leucine, muscle loss, protein, protien, robert wolfe phd, sarcopenia
Posted in Healthy Aging, Muscle Loss | No Comments »
September 28th, 2010
LITTLE ROCK – September 28, 2010 – In support of AARP’s mission to improve the quality of life and health span as a person ages, it made perfect sense for AARP and
BeneVia® to join forces. Both organizations have similar goals; to promote healthy living & vitality for the “baby boomer age”. BeneVia® will be participating in
AARP’s Orlando 50+ Thursday, September 30, 2010 through Saturday, October 2
nd, 2010.
AARP’s mission focuses on improving the quality of life as their members grow older, especially active “baby boomers”. They help “the boomer age” of adults by promoting products and services that they think will be beneficial and effective to fulfilling their missions.
HealthSpan’s team of doctors and scientists have researched and patented the key nutrients for four key areas of health management for aging adults, and developed four health specific clinical nutrition drinks for BeneVia® ;
Strength & Energy (a
ViaLeuPro™ and a high Leucine based protein blend),
Memory & Focus (an Omega3- DHA and Lutein combination),
Heart Health (ViaLeuPro™ a high leucine protein blend with Phytosterols), and
Immune Protection (Arginine and Omega3- DHA).
BeneVia® will be in booth #2845 and have a number of activities for any attendee, especially highly active baby boomers, to participate. At the BeneVia® booth, AARP event attendees can test their Lean Body Mass. Lean Body Mass is what determines the amount of physical activity one can participate in the present and the future. The test measures the percent of body fat. The healthiest range is between 78-89% and the most athletic is those with a Lean Body Mass over 87%, depending on the age range. However, those with percentages at low risk can improve their mass by physical exercise and essential proteins and nutrients found in BeneVia®,
Visitors to the BeneVia® booth can also sample all of the great tasting, consumer preferred BeneVia® flavors, receive coupons to purchase BeneVia® on-line or at fine retailers and learn more about Nutrition and Healthy Aging. BeneVia® is very excited at this chance to partner with AARP and promote healthy living and healthy aging!
Full Press Release:
Aiming to Produce Healthy Vitality in Aging Awareness BeneVia® Partners with AARP
Tags: aarp, aarp event, aarp events, aarp florida event, aarp orlando event
Posted in Events, Press & News | No Comments »
September 28th, 2010
Ahead of our participation in the AARP event in Florida this weekend,
Orlando@50+, we’ve got a special event to lead into this amazing weekend ahead. We’ve put together a webinar featuring world renown aging expert
Dr. John Morley. This webinar is all about how to age gracefully and what tools you need. Highlighting the theme of the AARP event as well, we’ve focused on the same theme and entitled the webinar “
Tools for Aging Gracefully: Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll after 50“.
If you have time later on today around 3:30 p.m. EST, feel free to
join us. There’s
no cost to join the webinar, but missing it might cost you in missing out on some great information and tools that can help you age gracefully. You can join the webinar by
clicking here.
Tags: aarp event, aarp events, aarp florida event, aarp orlando event, aging gracefully, dr. john morely, orlando@50+
Posted in Events, Press & News, Webinars | No Comments »
September 27th, 2010
By Sara LeBrun-Blashka
Ever since I was young, the heart has amazed me with it’s power to keep us alive and moving. When I was 6, my grandmother had quadruple bypass surgery and then went on to continue to live an active life for 10 more years.
As a mom, my son was born premature with a PDA, Patent Ductus Arteriosus, and a murmur. His PDA was repaired by drug therapy, Indomethacin, and he out grew the murmur. Now he is an active 6 year old, playing soccer and speed skating.
These two events remind me of why we need to take good care of our hearts. In 2006, heart disease killed over 316,000 women. (National Vital Statistics Reports. 2009) Women at all ages need to take good care of their hearts.
Getting Started With Healthy Heart Tips
- Exercise. Just get moving. May be around the block or running a race. Set small goals every day and aim for 2.5 hours/wk.
- Maintain a Healthy Weight. Eat foods in Moderation remember the rule: Calories in: Calories Out. You need to consume the same amount of calories that you burn to maintain your weight. You need to burn more calories then you eat to lose weight.
- Reduce the Fat and Cholesterol in your diet:
a. Choose lean meats and poultry without skin and prepare them without added saturated and trans fat.
b. Select fat-free, 1% fat, and low-fat dairy products.
c. Cut back on foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to reduce trans fat in your diet.
d. Cut back on foods high in dietary cholesterol. Aim to eat less than 300 mg of cholesterol each day. www.cdc.gov/features/heartmonth/
- Consume High Quality Proteins with Luecine: Moderate Activity combined with High Leucine Essential Amino Acid Supplement can help increase and maintain muscle mass and avoid increase of fat mass thus maintaining energy levels, supporting normal blood glucose and blood lipid levels (Clin. Nutrition,2008)
- Stop Smoking!
- Manage Your Stress. Find outlet’s like yoga, other forms of exercise or other actives that take your mind off of stress
- Drink Alcohol in Moderation if at all: 1 drink for women/day and 2 drinks for men/day
- Get Your Self Checked Out Regularly. Have your cholesterol, blood pressure and triglycerides measured annually.
Tags: healthy hearts, heart health, heart tips, nutrition, women's health, women's heart health
Posted in Nutrition, Women's Health Issues | No Comments »
September 24th, 2010
Last month BeneVia sponsored the
Aging But Dangerous Martini Sky Dive event where over 100 women all over the age of 50 took the “plunge” of a lifetime. That plunge was skydiving over the beautiful blue skies of Baldwin, Wisconsin! Along for the ride was some
BeneVia Strength & Energy drink, which event attendees got to sample and received coupons for future purposes.
We’re lucky enough to have video from the event, this is the first of a few, so stop back here, or become a
fan on Facebook or
Twitter and we will keep you up to date when we get the other videos loaded up for viewing.
Tags: healthy aging, martini sky jump, martini skydive, martini skydiving event, strength & energy
Posted in Aging Dangerously, Events, Healthy Aging | 2 Comments »
September 23rd, 2010
This article is from the series Full Circle: Walking Around Lake Superior, which are contributions from Mike Link & Kate Crowley as they take on the challenge of a lifetime by hiking the 1,600 mile shoreline of Lake Superior. Benevia Nutrition Drinks are a sponsor of their exciting challenge.
The Adventure of a Lifetime Has Taught Us a Lot
By Kate Crowley
Here we are – the night before the end of our grand adventure, getting ready to complete our Full Circle of Lake Superior and it doesn’t feel as though four and a half months have passed by. The time hasn’t gone fast, it hasn’t gone slow, it’s just……..gone, one day flowing into another. We have been living with uncertainty, but trusting we would not get lost or stranded, and knowing for sure we would find new locations, people and things.
I really wanted to shrink down another clothing size, but even if that didn’t happen, I know I have more muscles in my legs, and a better pulse rate and blood pressure. All things to be happy about. I feel stronger and healthier and am happy that my body has stood the test of walking 1550 miles.
Now in a repeat of how we felt before departing on April 29
th, we are once again facing unknowns. How will it feel to be home, to not have to get up and walk the next morning? How will we maintain this level of fitness and weight loss without walking 10 miles or more a day? How will it feel to not hear or see this beautiful lake every single day?
We’ll Miss Our Companion & Teacher
The lake that has been our companion and our teacher throughout the journey. We have listened to its voice in waves, ripples, and rollers. It has sung us to sleep at night and chanted us awake in the morning. It has dazzled our eyes with reflections and refractions and whitecaps. I will miss it a lot.
But this journey has also brought us so many new friends around the lake and much more inspiration to share what we have learned about it with others. We love it as much, if not more, than before. Our bodies are healthier and our minds are clear, just like the water of Lake Superior. Long may it be so.
Tags: baby boomers, full circle, kate crowley, lake superior, nutrition
Posted in Exercise Plans, Full Circle: Walking Around Lake Superior, Nutrition | No Comments »
September 22nd, 2010
By John Troup
We’ve all experienced the reality that time and age play on our bodies. In some cases it has helped us better understand the effects of gravity as our firm muscle mass has slowly sagged or simply disappeared – reducing our energy levels and limiting us from the activities we once enjoyed. For those
actively exercising, it’s also common to notice that it takes longer to get into shape, even harder to keep exercising and longer to recover from the workouts we do. So, why is this and what can we do to avoid it and minimize this age-associated phenomena?
Age-Associated Muscle Loss is Sarcopenia
Scientists around the world continue to study this change in muscle function and size with aging. While it is a scientifically complex phenomena, it appears that causative factors include sedentary lifestyles, higher amounts of fat mass which contribute to high inflammation that negatively effects muscle and changes in nutritional habits and practices that further complicate the process leading to
sarcopenia, or age associated muscle loss. This process affects all individuals, and is central to the decrease in quality of life and activity that often occurs with aging. In more severe cases, there is a correlation between the extent of loss of muscle mass and strength with functional impairment
(2,3), disability
(4,5), falls
(6), frailty
(7), and the loss of independence
(8). Recent studies suggest maintenance of muscle mass and strength in elderly decreases all-cause mortality and mortality from cancer
(9) and from chronic obstructive lung disease
(10) such that survival rates are significantly improved in these age-specific disease conditions.
Accelerators of aging and muscle loss have recently been identified from population health studies providing us with the good news that specific habits and practices that include nutrition and exercise can help stop and reverse sarcopenia – along with a variety of chronic health conditions. These studies have shown that as we age, nutritional practices and habits also change such that important nutrients like quality protein, calcium, vitamin D, B vitamin intakes all decrease in our diets.
Click Image to Enlarge Graph
Lack of Exercise Worsens Sarcopenia
Lack of exercise and activity confounds the problem and soon our muscles become more resistant to adapting and maintain their former high level of function. Typically, muscle loss begins to take place in our early 30’s and progresses to critical levels by our 60’s when it is not unusual to have lost more than 30% of total muscle mass. Gradually and often in parallel, other health issues occur (ie., heart, diabetes etc) and co-morbidities have negative effects on our health status. This causes the negative cascade with age – unless we do something about it.
Click Image to Enlarge Graph
The chart above clearly shows a summary effect of health studies reported in the scientific literature on healthy life functions. This composite chart illustrates that the typical life functional changes in and with aging (white line) can be improved with proper nutrition and exercise. In so doing, the chronic disease conditions can be minimized or avoided and the health span is significantly improved.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: age related muscle loss, amino acid protein blends, baby boomers, babyboomers, healthy aging, muscle loss, nutrients, nutrition, protein, sarcopenia
Posted in Healthy Aging, Muscle Loss, Nutrition | No Comments »
September 21st, 2010
Our “Featured Fan” series spotlights a Facebook Fan or Twitter Follower of BeneVia on our blog each month. We love our fans, friends & followers and we love hearing your stories and we love to promote you and the passions of your life. Interested in becoming a “Featured Fan“? Then make sure you follow on on Twitter and/or Facebook and chat it up with us, tell us what’s so special about you and we’ll be sure to listen!
This month’s featured fan is Cathy Isles who took part in the Martini Sky Jump that BeneVia sponsored in Minnesota!
By Cathy Isles
I own a greeting card company,
Bridging the Universe, that specializes in disease specific cards, supportive cards and the best breast cancer cards ever printed. I am busy during the day processing orders from my greeting card company’s website and making sales calls to hospital gift shops. I am also a published childrens writer, so I have book signings and events to attend to and other books to produce. During the day I had no problem sticking to my low carb diet because I kept busy. I did great every day watching what I ate until the evening came and the sweet cravings started.
Being a diabetic for the last ten years, I have struggled with evening cravings for something sweet. Most of the time I “cheated” and ended up eating and drinking things I probably shouldn’t have. Not only would I go over my carb allotment for the day, but I would feel incredibly guilty. Because I avoid drinks with aspartame, diet pop was out of the question. This continuous evening eating habit was causing me to gain weight, which I could not afford to do since I was well over 200 pounds already.
Finally a Cure For My Sweet Tooth
In August, I was invited to be a vendor at the Aging But Dangerous Martini Skydiving Event in Baldwin, Wisconsin, which was sponsored by BeneVia. While at this event, I met Jennifer Ashley who was representing BeneVia. She gave me a sample of the Heart Health BeneVia drink which is pineapple flavored. I cracked open the bottle and took a sip and could not believe how delicious and satisfying it was. I figured it would have at least 20 carbs in it, but I was pleasantly surprised when I read the label to find it only had 3 carbs! I read the ingredients and there was no aspartame—a bonus as far as I was concerned. I knew I found something that would stop my evening screaming sweet tooth!
Since adopting my evening bottle of BeneVia Heart Health, I have lost 10 pounds and I feel great. I started going to water aerobics five days a week for one hour. Not only have I lost pounds, but I am losing inches. Not eating in the evening has really helped me too to feel more energetic and I don’t wake up anymore the following day feeling “hung over” from eating too many carbs.
Setting Healthy Goals
I have set a goal for January 2010, which coincides with my 50
th birthday, to be under 200 pounds. I know with BeneVia Heart Health drink, a low carb diet and continued exercising I will be able to accomplish this. I have recommended BeneVia drinks to so many people, including my parents who have used the milk based drinks which often left unpleasant aftertaste to them.
I will confess I love the option of having the drinks delivered right to my door with no shipping costs if I have it delivered every six weeks. That makes it not only affordable, but convenient. I am all about convenience.
As I get older, I want to stay healthy and I know that by adopting the nightly BeneVia Heart Health drink and staying active, I will be able to accomplish this. My card business and book signings keep me busy and when I feel I need a pick up or I want to quench a sweet craving, I just grab a BeneVia Heart Health drink and enjoy every drop!
Tags: baby boomers, benevia, cathy isles, featured fan, healthy goals, martini sky jump
Posted in Aging Dangerously, Featured BeneVia Fan, Women's Health Issues | No Comments »
September 20th, 2010
By Holly Gonwa, NASM CPT, TPI-Titleist Performance Institute Fitness
Owner of
Pulse Personal Training in Cedarburg, WI
The most rewarding population to work with is people wanting to stay active for life. For some this is running a marathon for others it is living independent for most it is somewhere in between. What matters is we all keep moving within our limits. If one has not been “exercising” for quiet sometime I encourage them to start slow. Adding movement in places they never thought about, like parking farther away from the door when shopping, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, marching in place while a
commercial is on during their favorite television show.
Start Simple!
Start with movement for 5-10 minute increments. Think of exercise as movement. Experienced exercisers, such as high school athletes or weekend warriors, need to listen to their bodies. The new exerciser thinks they “should” be able to do more. The experienced exerciser can’t hear what their body is telling them. They think they can push through the pain. You are not 18 anymore. Sorry.
As our bodies age, the fluid in the joints decreases and the proprioceptive devices (sight, hearing) decrease. The lack of fluid can make movement more painful. For most people, when movement hurts they limit the movement or stop the movement altogether. If you don’t use it you lose it. Losing it as we age means we begin to have less range of motion. Loss of range of motion is sneaky. I have clients come in thinking they can lace their hands behind their back only to find it is no longer possible.
How’s Your Balance?
My personal favorite is to test balance. Stand on one leg, elevate the thigh to be parallel to floor. Close your eyes and count to 10 without wobbling. These examples then become exercise/movement. I have clients who are amazed at what a workout balance can be. I even have clients who are amazed at how much they sweat trying to gain back a few degrees of motion.
I just want to make note of Arthritis or “Art” as we like to call it in the studio. Art may visit often and sometimes stay longer then we would like. For most of us Art is not a matter of if but a matter of when and to what degree. I encourage those that are moving to keep moving. There might be some days that are not pretty but remember some movement is always better than no movement.
Tags: balance test, boomers and exercise, exercise, exercise over 50, exercise plans, testing balance
Posted in Exercise Plans | No Comments »
September 17th, 2010
This article is from the series Full Circle: Walking Around Lake Superior, which are contributions from Mike Link & Kate Crowley as they take on the challenge of a lifetime by hiking the 1,600 mile shoreline of Lake Superior. Benevia Nutrition Drinks are a sponsor of their exciting challenge.
Finishing the Challenge of a Lifetime
By Mike Link
For me this last two weeks is a strange experience, positive, but never the less, strange. We know this shore, we know the people. Every place we go there are people wanting to walk with us, feed us, give us shelter. It is great. Others are coming up the shore to walk a few miles and just to say they were part of our adventure. It is extremely gratifying to know how many people have connected with our adventure and we planned this portion to allow for time to meet and share. We have given programs in Grand Marias, Beaver Bay, and Knife River and continue to find ways to share. In many ways this is an extremely important aspect of what we are doing. We are educators, we have a cause, we need the conversation. Press keeps finding us and we are pleased to give them time too.
The press is a tool to reach people and they are delighted to have a positive story in the midst of so much negative. In fact, I think the world needs to stop and take a walk. We need to refocus on what is right and how to keep the earth good for future generations while we enjoy it and the healthy result of exercise and fresh air.
Answering the Questions Was The Most Difficult Part
The most difficult aspect of this portion of the trip is trying to answer peoples questions. What surprised us? Everything and nothing. We started with one plan – walk around the lake, and that meant being open to new options and variations in our plan on a daily basis, so in fact we were not surprised because we were expecting to be surprised each day. This was a walk of discovery and it has been a trip that has fulfilled our daily quota of details and new observations. The lake challenged us and it inspired us.
So we come back satisfied, loving the experience, and wondering how it will be to wake up and not have to walk. How will it be to have a day where we do not see or hear the lake and its waves? We are, in fact, entering a new phase of discovery.
Tags: baby boomers, benevia, full circle, lake superior, mike link, nutrition
Posted in Full Circle: Walking Around Lake Superior, Nutrition | No Comments »
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LITTLE ROCK – September 28, 2010 – In support of AARP’s mission to improve the quality of life and health span as a person ages, it made perfect sense for AARP and BeneVia® to join forces. Both organizations have similar goals; to promote healthy living & vitality for the “baby boomer age”. BeneVia® will be participating in AARP’s Orlando 50+ Thursday, September 30, 2010 through Saturday, October 2nd, 2010.
AARP’s mission focuses on improving the quality of life as their members grow older, especially active “baby boomers”. They help “the boomer age” of adults by promoting products and services that they think will be beneficial and effective to fulfilling their missions.
HealthSpan’s team of doctors and scientists have researched and patented the key nutrients for four key areas of health management for aging adults, and developed four health specific clinical nutrition drinks for BeneVia® ; Strength & Energy (a ViaLeuPro™ and a high Leucine based protein blend), Memory & Focus (an Omega3- DHA and Lutein combination), Heart Health (ViaLeuPro™ a high leucine protein blend with Phytosterols), and Immune Protection (Arginine and Omega3- DHA).
BeneVia® will be in booth #2845 and have a number of activities for any attendee, especially highly active baby boomers, to participate. At the BeneVia® booth, AARP event attendees can test their Lean Body Mass. Lean Body Mass is what determines the amount of physical activity one can participate in the present and the future. The test measures the percent of body fat. The healthiest range is between 78-89% and the most athletic is those with a Lean Body Mass over 87%, depending on the age range. However, those with percentages at low risk can improve their mass by physical exercise and essential proteins and nutrients found in BeneVia®,
Visitors to the BeneVia® booth can also sample all of the great tasting, consumer preferred BeneVia® flavors, receive coupons to purchase BeneVia® on-line or at fine retailers and learn more about Nutrition and Healthy Aging. BeneVia® is very excited at this chance to partner with AARP and promote healthy living and healthy aging!
Full Press Release: Aiming to Produce Healthy Vitality in Aging Awareness BeneVia® Partners with AARP
Ahead of our participation in the AARP event in Florida this weekend, Orlando@50+, we’ve got a special event to lead into this amazing weekend ahead. We’ve put together a webinar featuring world renown aging expert Dr. John Morley. This webinar is all about how to age gracefully and what tools you need. Highlighting the theme of the AARP event as well, we’ve focused on the same theme and entitled the webinar “Tools for Aging Gracefully: Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll after 50“.
If you have time later on today around 3:30 p.m. EST, feel free to join us. There’s no cost to join the webinar, but missing it might cost you in missing out on some great information and tools that can help you age gracefully. You can join the webinar by clicking here.
Ever since I was young, the heart has amazed me with it’s power to keep us alive and moving. When I was 6, my grandmother had quadruple bypass surgery and then went on to continue to live an active life for 10 more years.
As a mom, my son was born premature with a PDA, Patent Ductus Arteriosus, and a murmur. His PDA was repaired by drug therapy, Indomethacin, and he out grew the murmur. Now he is an active 6 year old, playing soccer and speed skating.
These two events remind me of why we need to take good care of our hearts. In 2006, heart disease killed over 316,000 women. (National Vital Statistics Reports. 2009) Women at all ages need to take good care of their hearts.
Here we are – the night before the end of our grand adventure, getting ready to complete our Full Circle of Lake Superior and it doesn’t feel as though four and a half months have passed by. The time hasn’t gone fast, it hasn’t gone slow, it’s just……..gone, one day flowing into another. We have been living with uncertainty, but trusting we would not get lost or stranded, and knowing for sure we would find new locations, people and things.
I really wanted to shrink down another clothing size, but even if that didn’t happen, I know I have more muscles in my legs, and a better pulse rate and blood pressure. All things to be happy about. I feel stronger and healthier and am happy that my body has stood the test of walking 1550 miles.
Now in a repeat of how we felt before departing on April 29th, we are once again facing unknowns. How will it feel to be home, to not have to get up and walk the next morning? How will we maintain this level of fitness and weight loss without walking 10 miles or more a day? How will it feel to not hear or see this beautiful lake every single day?
Click Image to Enlarge Graph
Click Image to Enlarge Graph
This month’s featured fan is Cathy Isles who took part in the Martini Sky Jump that BeneVia sponsored in Minnesota!
By Cathy Isles
I own a greeting card company, Bridging the Universe, that specializes in disease specific cards, supportive cards and the best breast cancer cards ever printed. I am busy during the day processing orders from my greeting card company’s website and making sales calls to hospital gift shops. I am also a published childrens writer, so I have book signings and events to attend to and other books to produce. During the day I had no problem sticking to my low carb diet because I kept busy. I did great every day watching what I ate until the evening came and the sweet cravings started.
Being a diabetic for the last ten years, I have struggled with evening cravings for something sweet. Most of the time I “cheated” and ended up eating and drinking things I probably shouldn’t have. Not only would I go over my carb allotment for the day, but I would feel incredibly guilty. Because I avoid drinks with aspartame, diet pop was out of the question. This continuous evening eating habit was causing me to gain weight, which I could not afford to do since I was well over 200 pounds already.
The most rewarding population to work with is people wanting to stay active for life. For some this is running a marathon for others it is living independent for most it is somewhere in between. What matters is we all keep moving within our limits. If one has not been “exercising” for quiet sometime I encourage them to start slow. Adding movement in places they never thought about, like parking farther away from the door when shopping, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, marching in place while a commercial is on during their favorite television show.
For me this last two weeks is a strange experience, positive, but never the less, strange. We know this shore, we know the people. Every place we go there are people wanting to walk with us, feed us, give us shelter. It is great. Others are coming up the shore to walk a few miles and just to say they were part of our adventure. It is extremely gratifying to know how many people have connected with our adventure and we planned this portion to allow for time to meet and share. We have given programs in Grand Marias, Beaver Bay, and Knife River and continue to find ways to share. In many ways this is an extremely important aspect of what we are doing. We are educators, we have a cause, we need the conversation. Press keeps finding us and we are pleased to give them time too.
The press is a tool to reach people and they are delighted to have a positive story in the midst of so much negative. In fact, I think the world needs to stop and take a walk. We need to refocus on what is right and how to keep the earth good for future generations while we enjoy it and the healthy result of exercise and fresh air.
