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Great Exercises for Older Caregivers

Adults over 50 who are caring for aging parents are not like other fitness clients of similar age.

For starters, caregivers tend to be less healthy. A study by the insurance company MetLife noted that “adult children 50+ who work and provide care to a parent are more likely to have fair or poor health than those who do not provide care to their parents” (MetLife 2011). Another study showed that 17% of caregivers felt their health had gotten worse as a result of their caregiving responsibilities (Feinberg et al. 2011).

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15 Group Fitness Predictions for 2016 and Beyond

Group fitness arouses nostalgia and feels like “home” for many exercisers, both avid and novice. As the backbone of the fitness industry, it has ebbed and flowed over the past three decades (and counting). People love exercising to music and sharing endorphins. In fact, fitness facility members are thriving on creative class options, demanding more varied opportunities and driving the industry forward. What can you, as a group fitness professional, do to meet the needs of a growing market?

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7 Superfood Swaps on a Shoestring Budget

“Heavily marketed products backed by health brands or ‘gurus’ can have everyone questioning their food and nutrition choices,” says Teri Mosey, a holistic nutrition and culinary consultant in New York City who holds advanced degrees in exercise physiology and nutrition. “These foods being advertised as superfoods are [simply] whole foods from nature that have been around for thousands of years. They are just getting their 10 minutes of fame.”
Here are some thrifty substitutions for hyped-but-pricey foods that frequently show up on “superfood” summaries.

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Choose Pilates & Yoga for Healthy Bones?

After age 50, adults typically lose about 1% of their leg strength and 0.5% of their bone mineral density (Gourlay et al. 2012) every year. There are ways to combat this seemingly inevitable decline, but do traditional Pilates and yoga programs make the grade?

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Warm Up With Stability Balls

Instructors tend to spend most of their creativity on the main body of the workout and forget to choreograph an equally inspiring warm-up. Instead of relying on ho-hum step-touches, hamstring curls and classic knee lifts, incorporate the stability ball for an unforgettable warm-up that limbers up the body in all planes of movement.

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Is Your Knowledge of Squats Out of Date?

“Deep squats are bad for the knees!”
Chances are you’ve heard this advice and maybe even given it to your clients. I know that for many years in my career I’ve been guilty of making similar recommendations to clients in all walks of life. The problem is, where did this advice come from? Is it valid and who is it valid for?

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“Do your clients perform stretches before a workout, or do they do a dynamic warm-up and then static stretching at the end?”

We do a dynamic warm-up to raise body temperature, which raises heart rate and increases circulation to muscles, tendons and ligaments. A dynamic warm-up also helps prepare the mind and body for the upcoming workout, enhances performance and reduces injuries.

I even use dynamic warm-ups when I teach yoga. Most Baby Boomers (and I am one of them) need dynamic warm-ups.

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Crowdfunding 101

In August 2014, personal trainer Lyam White learned that one of the owners of the studio where he was renting space was looking to sell. The Seattle-based location had worked well for him, and he was concerned that he might have to search for a new place to train.

“I talked to the other owner about buying in, to ensure that I would still be able to train at this location,” says White. “Additionally, my wife is a massage therapist, and it occurred to us that the space could be used to consolidate our services and offer a ‘whole body shop’ storefront.”

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Becoming an Adaptable Personal Trainer

New beginnings.

When personal trainer Anne Biscaldi began working with Sandra—her very first client—the goals were simple. The client was interested in improving her strength, losing weight and shaping her body. Sandra, who was in her 40s at the time, had very little experience with a strength training program. “I couldn’t do a squat, couldn’t lift any weights for fear of pulling my back, and I had very little stamina,” she says.

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Improve Your Diet, Change the World

The parable of the hummingbird trying to put out a forest fire with his tiny beakful of water is emblematic of the challenges we face at a crossroads in the life of our planet and our food supply.

How do we wrestle with issues of food production, a swelling world population, an obesity epidemic, climate change, water scarcity, food cost containment and antibiotic resistance? Though it seems absurd to suggest that the few drops of water a single, determined little creature can throw on a runaway conflagration will do anything to help, the bird doesn’t care.

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Ask The RD: Are all types of fiber created equal?

Question: I know that it is best to avoid overly processed foods as much as possible. But isn’t
the fiber found in fortified foods such as breakfast cereals as good for you as the fiber found in naturally occurring foods? In other words, aren’t all types of fiber created equal?

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Emerging Male Eating Disorder Is Tied to Supplement Use

??As a rule, far more women than men suffer from eating disorders, but a silent epidemic is growing among American males, according to the National Eating Disorders Association. The organization estimates that 10 million males in the U.S. will suffer from a clinically significant eating disorder at some time in their life and that about 43% of men are dissatisfied with their bodies.

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Boost the Power of Raw Vegetables With Eggs

Like people, some foods just work better as a team. When the pairing forms a synergy that boosts your health, that’s even better.
A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (May 27, 2015, doi: 10.3945/ajcn.115.111062) by
Purdue University researchers showed that adding eggs
to a salad with a variety of raw vegetables is an effective way
to improve absorption of carotenoids, which are fat-soluble nutrients that reduce inflammation and oxidative stress. Eating a salad with a variety of colorful vegetables pro-

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