Some Things we Just Can’t Measure

We all know there are a great deal of benefits to regular exercise, most of us putting weight loss or weight maintenance at the top of the list.  This benefit is easy to easy to measure on a scale or in our clothing.  What about the benefits we can’t measure, like lowering our risk of cancer or heart disease.  We can’t really measure things that DON’T happen, but researchers can and they give us more and more reason to keep on moving.  When more than 18,000 people became participants in the Cooper Center Longitudinal Study these were some of the trends reported:  When participants increased fitness levels by 20% in their midlife years, they decreased their chances of experiencing heart failure, colon cancer and Alzheimer’s by 20%.  That’s a pretty good trade-off and some more reason to get and stay on a almost daily exercise routine.  It may just save your life!

Thanks to those who came out to exercise last night, especially to the 6pm class where I replaced our usual weight segment with some athletic yoga.  Talk about sweating!  It always amazes me how much one can sweat when they aren’t even moving!  Last night I also had a chance to catch up with Carol after class and what a great job she continues to do pushing her body in and out of the gym and tweaking her nutrition to continue to make beautiful changes to her body, mind and soul.  She mentioned that whenever she finds herself feeling blue, instead of doing something for herself…which is only a temporary fix, she does something for someone else and that makes her feel much better.   Thanks, Carol.  We all need a reminder!

So get out there and take care of YOU…and remember, part of that will come from taking care of those around you.  When we open our hearts, we really do light the way.