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Show We Have A Problem: Non-Running Popularity j By TOM BUSSELBERG For most adults, winter not only means staying indoors more, but eating bigger meals, spending more time in passive pursuits, like watching TV, and limiting activity to getting into the car or running I to the refrigerator during station breaks. AS A result, by the time April rolls i around, many of us have extra rolls of fat I to greet the spring weather with. Not only doesn't it look as good, in my opinion, but ' it means buying new clothes and last, but certainly not least, it isn't healthy. Obviously. I'm not alone in this feeling. 1 attended a "Jogging Seminar" recently at McKay-Dee Hospital in Ogden where Dr. Frank G. Yanowitz, an LDS Hospital cardiologist and co-director of the Inter-i Inter-i mountain Human Performance Center, also at LDS, addressed hospital employees. He wasn't there to heap J praise. "WE HAVE a problem in this country," he said. "That is the increased popularity of non-running. My job is to counteract that movement. There are now 180 million non-runners vs. 20 million runners." And while he said exercise doesn't cure j every ill, such as believing that chronic exercise will necessarily lead to longer live. Dr. Yanowitz did give some pluses to exercise. THERE ARE three different types of exercise that produce three different results. The first enables a person to learn how to carry out a skill, play a game or dance, for instance. A second method : increases strength and brings increased muscle size. And while he said those reasons for exercise were fine for some, ! they wouldn't give the best results for those just wanting to maximize health. ; That third area centers on endurance j achieved through running, for instance. According to the good doctor, it results in an increased capacity of the body to utilize oxygen. Also known as aerobic exercise. Dr. Yanowitz said it can add life to your years. FOR THOSE just starting out running isn't necessary or even recommended, he said. Brisk walking, running, swimming, bicycling and Nordic and Alpine skiing are also good forms of aerobic exercise. And for a tot of people, the activity is fun enough in and of itself that they don't have to consciously think of it as exercise. WE ALL can remember running the 100 yard dash in school or just trying to get away from that mean dog. It may have caused our heart beat to jump to a faster pace and we might even have started imitating a dog with a pant. That degree of exercise might have been excessive. Dr. Yanowitz said a person's maximum heartrate defines the maximum function for each individual. To determine your maximum heart rate, subtract your age from 220. Then, your exercise should be sufficiently vigorous to sustain your heart rate at 75 or 85 percent of maximum for 20 minutes at a time, several days a week. HE SUGGESTED exercising three times a week on alternate days. That activity ac-tivity produces metabolic changes and the muscles increase their capacity to take oxygen out of the blood. But just because you start a jogging program and stay at it for two weeks doesn't mean you'll become a marathon runner overnight, he warned. Several factors determining the results you'll achieve include intensity and frequency of exercise, age and initial level of fitness. "THE YOUNGER you are, the more potential you have. But you are never too old," he said. "The worse off you are to begin with, the more you are going to improve." But again, don't try for miracles overnight. Don't strain and start walking before you run. And if you don't like running, he said cycling, including indoors, skipping rope, ice and roller skating, rowing, bench or stair climbing can all help. On the other hand, tennis, bowling and golfing usually aren't considered as aerobic unless done very vigorously. HOW WILL you know if you're reaching that so-called desired heartrate? Dr. Yanowitz advised taking your pulse 10 seconds after finishing the exercise to determine if you have reached the desired rate. "You will know when you are working your heart too much because you will be too much out of breath to carry on a conversation. When you are finished you shouldn't be too fatigued, just pleasantly tired." v And, as any athlete or trainer will tell you, the warmup is as important or more so than the actual event or exercise. Warming up before strenuous activity will increase body temperature and increase blood flow. That will guard against muscle, tendon and ligament damage. By the same token a gradual cooling off after you're done is just as important to prevent blood from pooling (which slows waste product removal, causing cramps). AND FINALLY, a good exercise program shouldn't cause pain. But remember, we don't all have the same potential but we all have the potential to improve, he said. Opportunities for exercise are improving improv-ing all the time in Davis County and nearby. One of the best places I know to begin a graduated exercise program, no matter what your level of physical fitness, is a par course. ORIGINALLY devised in Europe, a par course is a mile-long exercise trail with 18 exercise stations, connected by a jogging and walking trail. The exercises include pushups, jumping jacks, pullups, situps, hopping in place and using parallel bars. It's called a par course because three levels of performance are allowed-for beginners, on up to a medium level and finally a top performance rate. That way, you can exercise up to your par. You set your own pace. There isn't anyone there to time you or spur you on. You can start by doing one pushup or walking the entire jogging area. It's up to you. I used to run the par course at Weber State College regularly, and hope to do so again when the weather permits. IN DAVIS County, Bountiful's par course in the 1800 South Park has already been used by some, and with warmer weather, should see a lot more use And for those in Kaysville and Clearfield areas, planners are working to build par courses there. And back up in Weber County, Washington Terrace enthusiasts are working to complete a par course there, as well. But no matter what your pleasure if at all possible, I'd urge you to start some kind o an exercise program. For the football player and weightlifter, liftino weights to build muscle bulk andor aD pearance can be great. And for the aspiring aspir-ing sportsman, fencing or tennis can be great to build skill and agility. JL PaL5SE d? somethin- Just don't overdo. And if you're over 35, please see a txrZ befre Sta"ine 8Ung h0 on Have a good summer! |