If Not Now, When?

THIS ISSUE: 5 Heart Healthy Facts You Should Know

Table of Contents:

1) Editor's Note
2) Food for Thought
3) Feature Article: 5 Heart Healthy Facts You Should Know
4) Teleclasses
5) Question & Answer
6) Our Services

Editor's Note

Hi,

You know I love to give local weather reports here in Arizona. With temperatures in the 20's and snowy in Chicago (my home town), it has been really nice to watch the weather forecasts for the midwest while we are experiencing temperatures in the 70's and 80's. On Monday we missed a record of 90 by only one degree. It won't be long before things really heat up. That's when my wife wishes we lived somewhere else.

We had a great time at our town's annual “Gold Rush Days”. There were hundreds of vendors with lots of great food and all kinds of arts and crafts. We also went to another huge arts and crafts fair over in Scottsdale the following weekend. We enjoyed looking at everything at both events, and we didn't spend too much.

Last month I wrote about pole walking. I hope you found the article informative and useful. I checked the two links I put in the article after I published the newsletter, and I found out that the one for Exerstrider was incorrect. Here is the correct link for their site - Exerstrider.

And, here is the link again for Keenfit

This month my main article is about the importance of heart health. As we age, it can get harder to maintain a regular exercise program. In my article I try to point out some interesting facts about our hearts and exercise.

Good luck, keep exercising, and remember – "If not now, when?".

Best Wishes,

Tom Manfredi


Send any comments you may have to tom@fitness-after-50.com

My site fitness-after-50.com

Food for Thought

Feature Article - 5 Heart Healthy Facts You Should Know

Remember that the benefits of getting and staying fit far outweigh the risks for almost everyone. And, one of the most important muscles in the body is the heart. You need to be exercising your heart on a regular basis to keep it operating at maximum efficiency. Here are some facts about exercise and your heart:

1.The risk caused by a sedentary lifestyle is much greater than exercising. An out of shape heart can be very hazardous to your health. Fat in the heart muscle may interfere with the electrical impulses of the heart, which can cause irregular heart beats that can even lead to sudden death.

2.The heart is a muscle, and muscles thrive on exercise. Doing aerobic exercise on a regular basis will make your heart both stronger and more efficient. Aerobic exercise actually expands the size of the blood vessels around the heart, which may mean that if a clot heads for your heart, it won't get stuck in a restricted artery. Aerobic exercise also increases the number of smaller blood vessels around the heart, which can improve circulation to the heart muscle if a main artery is clogged.

3.Contrary to the old wives' tale, you can't wear out your heart by exercising. You do not have only a certain number of heart beats in a life. And, even better, regular aerobic workouts lower your resting pulse, which may mean that a well conditioned heart may actually beat less times in a day.

4.Challenging your heart is a good thing. You shouldn't be afraid to get your heart rate up a little. A good gauge is to exercise at a pace that allows you to maintain a conversation without feeling out of breath. And, try do do this type of exercise at least four to five times per week for a minimum of 30 minutes a day.

5.Exercise is especially important for people with heart disease. Almost everyone who goes through bypass surgery is put into a cardiac rehab program. These programs consist primarily of controlled and supervised aerobic exercise. Of course, certain cautions need to be taken, including a stress test to determine capacity for exercise, and initial supervision by experts who can monitor blood pressure, recovery time, and the electrical response of the heart.

(c)2005 - 2009 Thomas D. Manfredi, MS

Teleclasses

I will be announcing upcoming teleclasses in this section in the future.

If you have a topic that you would be interested in hearing about in a teleclass, send an e-mail to teleclasses@fitness-after-50.com

Questions and Answers

Answer - For women 50 and under it's 25 grams, while men the same age need 38. Women 50 and over have a target of 21 and 30 grams for men over 50. The lower numbers for older people isn't because we need less as we age, but because the advice is to get 14 grams per 1,000 calories, and older people need fewer calories.


To get more information on various fitness and health issues, please go to my site – www.fitness-after-50.com


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If you have a fitness or nutrition question you would like me to consider answering here in the newsletter, just send your question, along with your first name and city, in an e-mail to quesandansw@fitness-after-50.com

Obviously, I can't answer every question submitted. I will choose one question each month to answer here.

About Our Services

On line fitness coach Tom Manfredi is the creator of the site "fitness-after-50". This site is designed with the mature adult in mind. There is a lot of information available on the site for anyone looking to start or restart a sensible exercise program. Learn more by going to www.fitness-after-50.com



Tom Manfredi, 1218 Easy St., Ste 101, Wickenburg, AZ 85390

Other Services and Information

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