nytimes: What's the Best Exercise?, 4/15/2011

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17exercise-t.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=homepage

brisk walking - far and away the single best exercise. ... Five-month-long program of brisk, interval-style walking (three minutes of fast walking, followed by three minutes of slower walking, repeated 10 times) resulted in increase by about 20% of physical fitness — maximal aerobic power and thigh muscle strength of older citizens. ... The walkers’ “symptoms of lifestyle-related diseases (hypertension, hyperglycemia and obesity) decreased by about 20%.

the squat - “activates the body’s biggest muscles, those in the buttocks, back and legs.” It’s simple. “Just fold your arms across your chest, bend your knees and lower your trunk until your thighs are about parallel with the floor. Do that 25 times. It’s a very potent exercise.” Use a barbell once the body-weight squats grow easy. The squat, and weight training in general, are particularly good at combating sarcopenia, or the inevitable and debilitating loss of muscle mass that accompanies advancing age. “Each of us is experiencing sarcopenia right this minute,” he said. “We just don’t realize it.” Endurance exercise, unlike resistance training, does little to slow the condition.

High-intensity interval training (H.I.T.) - essentially an all-interval exercise involving grunting through a series of short, strenuous intervals on specialized stationary bicycles, known as Wingate ergometers. In experiments, riders completed 30 seconds of cycling at the highest intensity the riders could stand. After resting for four minutes, the volunteers repeated the interval several times, for a total of two to three minutes of extremely intense exercise. After two weeks, the H.I.T. riders had increased their aerobic capacity as much as riders who had pedaled leisurely for more than 10 hours. H.I.T. reduces blood-sugar levels and diabetes risk, and anticipated to aid in weight control. A modified version is you sprint for 60 seconds at a pace that feels unpleasant but sustainable, followed by 60 seconds of pedaling easily, then another 60-second sprint and recovery, 10 times in all.

F&V: Peels

Q&A with Dr. Oz

Q: True not to peel fruits & vegetables (f&v) because the peel is full of vitamins?

A. The peels are rich with insoluble fiber and antioxidants. The fiber will keep material moving through your intestines while the anti-oxidants are invaluable for fighting off cancer-causing inflammation. I wouldn't recommend you attempt to eat a pineapple with the peel on, but generally, if you can get through the peel using your fingernail (i.e., apple, potato, unwaxed cucumber), leave it.

Q. But doesn't peeling also get rid of the pesticides that were sprayed on?

A. Many of the f&v with the thinnest peels (peaches, apples, bell peppers, potatoes) tend to have the most pesticides on the inside, so peeling them wouldn't help much anyway. Pony up the extra cash to go organic. F&V that you would never eat with the peel (avocado, pineapple, mango, banana) are safe to buy nonorganic -- the thick peel keeps the inside nearly pesticide-free.

(Sept 2010 Esquire)

nytimes: Eat an Apple (Doctor's Orders)

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/13/business/13veggies.html?_r=1

* Childhood obesity in the US costs $14.1 billion annually in direct health expenses like prescription drugs and visits to doctors and emergency rooms

* Treating obesity-related illness in adults costs an estimated $147 billion annually

*People tend to overeat junk food in higher proportion than they undereat vegetables. Unless people curtail excessive consumption of salty and sugary snacks, behavioral changes like eating more fruit and vegetables will have limited effect on obesity.

Physical: Numbers You Need to Know

by Dr. Harry Fisch (urologist and the author of The Male Biological Clock), March 2010

115/75 mmHg - ideal blood pressure to decrease risk for heart attack and stroke

less than 100 mg/dL - ideal blood-glucose level. Higher levels could indicate diabetes.

less than 100 mg/dL - ideal LDL level. This "bad cholesterol" is the most important cholesterol to track.

<=4 - ideal level of PSA, or prostate-specific antigen, which can signal the presence of cancer in the prostate

>300 ng/dL - ideal testosterone level. Low levels are associated with infertility, fatigue, and low sex drive.

nytimes: Vigor Quest, 1/15/10

Vigor Quest

"interest lies in extending the length of “health span,” as opposed to life span."

Assumed side effects for "for testosterone: thickening of the blood, rashes, swelling of the breasts. There is a strong presumption" that it will "supercharge an existing cancer. Some doctors, however, say these effects can be controlled or eliminated by monitoring dosages and screening at-risk patients." ... "Accepted truth was that the higher a man’s testosterone level, the greater his risk of contracting prostate cancer."

Dr. Abraham Morgentaler, associate clinical professor of urology at Harvard Medical School, "has no ties to Cenegenics Medical Institute." He researched testosterone in medical school and "was 'dumbfounded' at all the positive evidence of testosterone’s general health benefits that had been ignored. His research odyssey turned into a book, 'Testosterone for Life.'" He believes of the biological causes of middle-age malaise and its connection to testosterone. He predicts that within five years testosterone will be as popular a yardstick of good health as cholesterol. “There are all these people walking around the United States who are getting older,” he said. “They know they don’t feel right. They’ve lost pep. Their brain doesn’t work as well. Mainstream medicine has no answers for them.”

Woman decides to eat in for 2 years, saves $7,200 and sheds 10 pounds

http://www.nypost.com/p/lifestyle/food/my_personal_kitchen_fMLm6JPFTTTIJB8IMzM7lN/0

"She bought most of her groceries at the green market and occasionally the corner market, and -- incredibly --- spent just $25 a week."

"Cooking for yourself is about being more self-sufficient and more independent as a person rather than someone who has something handed to them - or pays someone to hand it to them," she says.

"There's a really cool bond that develops there. It's like a game you're playing, cooking together. I made a lot of friendships through supper clubs and cook-offs. It's a lot more social than at a restaurant."

study suggests: Beer Is a Rich Source of Silicon and May Help Prevent Osteoporosis

A new study by the Department of Food Science & Technology at the University of California has found evidence that suggests that beer is a significant source of dietary silicon, a key ingredient for increasing bone mineral density. "Beers containing high levels of malted barley and hops are richest in silicon," said Charles Bamforth, lead author of the study.