Pedometers will encourage you to walk further

Sometimes it amazes me that there are stories that state the obvious. Pedometers are designed to encourage you to walk more, and it turns out.......it's true. Two published articles explain a little more about it. The New York Times and the San Francisco Chronicle.

The stories state that they found that people walked an average of 2,000 steps more when they wear a pedometer than when they don't. It's basically about accountability and pedometers are a great way to keep yourself accountable. I have one that I wear every day and it's fun to see how you do. Take a look at the stories, and if you get a pedometer, I highly suggest the accusplit. It's been extremely reliable, sturdy, and doesn't fall off or move around a lot. If you are looking for a way to be more active, this is a great for you to get started.

Smoking Ban Decreases Heart Attacks!

There's a county in Indiana that banned smoking to see what kind of effect it would have on heart attacks in the area. In just a short 22 months, there were statistically lower amounts of heart attacks. It's a pretty interesting story. If you would like more information, here is the article.

Heart Disease is Increasing for Those Under 45

America, we need to wakeup! Do we not see the signs of an increase in deaths due to heart disease? It's amazing how we think we are "fixing" the problem of cardiovascular disease and diabetes by medicating people, but it doesn't seem to be working for some reason. It's very simple why it doesn't work. It's putting a band-aid on something that needs to be completely redone. We have to take personal responsibility for ourselves and start doing things that we know reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. Why aren't we promoting being physically active and eating proper foods? Genetics, obesity, and high cholesterol are the main reasons they say that 700,000 people die from heart disease in America every year. I'm sorry, but I feel that genetics are used as an excuse way too often for people. I know that genetics play a role, but most of the people that use genetics as an excuse, really have bad lifestyle habits that people that they learned from their parents. Heart disease is preventable. Heart disease is preventable. Did I mention that heart disease is preventable? It's not about overmedicating. It's about taking personal responsibility for our health and doing what we need to do to reverse our risk of developing the often fatal, heart disease.

I'm sorry, but there's no reason for me to sugar-coat the truth. If you care about your health, it is truly your responsibility to make sure you take care of it. I can tell you that if you take care of yourself, you can lower your chance of developing heart disease. I can even tell you what to do to take care of your health. The question is, what responsibility are you willing to take for your health?

The Meaning of Life

I have moments when I can't help but think about why I am here on this earth, and what my purpose really is. Some people never discover it. I thank God that He has directed me to knowing what my purpose in life is.

I see so many people that are hurting or dying and they sometimes don't see a way out. They really don't see any chance of changing their life, and that's where I have the opportunity to come in and help. I can't help everyone, and I realize that. I also know that it's not me that helps them, but the power of God that does it. I'm just merely there to be used by God. It's hard when you see some people who seem to have just given up on life. They have reached the end of their rope, and they don't see any hope. As long as there is breath within your body, there is hope. The greatest thing that can happen to an individual who is struggling is to realize that there really is hope for them. They need to know they are not alone, and that there is a path that can rescue them. It saddens me when I see people who are slowly killing their body. They either don't know, don't care, or have no clue how to be different than the way they are. There are so many lies floating around the Health and Fitness industry. It's absolutely horrible how many people are in it just to make a buck. But it's not just the people in my industry that are the problem. We have companies that make junk food and fast food and promote it like crazy while our kids are developing diabetes and high blood pressure. We have politicians that want to find the best way to line their pocket in the midst of laws that are passed or not passed that could save lives. We have drug companies that do nothing but promote medicating and doctors push the pills of the best compensating drug companies. But no matter what kind of corruption is out there, it still depends on the person to step and take responsibility for their own health. Learn what you are eating. Understand how lifestyle affects your kids.

If I am remembered for nothing else in life, I hope I impact people in a way that will change their view of their health and that they influence at least one other life as well. I believe lives can be changed. I believe more memories can be created as more people live longer. I believe more Christians can witness to and help more people the better they take care of themselves, and therefore live longer. Did you realize that some people never go to fast food restaurants? That's a shock to a lot of people. Can you imagine if everyone only visited the fast food restaurants 2 times a year? I live for the day that the fast food restaurants begin to hurt like the smoking industry now hurts. It would show that people are taking responsibility for their own health.

I don't like that the writers are having to strike in CA to get paid, but in a way I'm really glad it's happening. With shows going to re-runs. I really hope that more people begin to turn off their televisions and take care of their body. That would be great!

I want to make an impact on someone every day. I pray that the day that I die, that people will remember the things I have taught them, and that they have the oppotunity to do the things that I taught them.

The order of doing exercises. Is it important?

There are so many people that don't realize that the order in which you do physical activity makes a big difference on the success (or lack thereof) of your results. Take for instant something like posture deviations in our body, which occur over time causing/resulting from incorrect movement patterns. So I always suggest people start with a foam roller, followed up by stretching, some basic corrective exercises, and then a warmup. This is so important because if you start warming up before you have stretched the proper muscles, it could cause you to use the wrong muscles the entire workout, thus limiting your desired results.

To make this more simple....let's say you are doing a normal workout and have a desire to tone up and lose weight. The best solution is to begin with a simple warmup, followed up by your strength training. Begin with the large muscle groups and work down to the smaller muscle groups. Follow that up with your cardio and use that to focus on your fat burning. Taking it out of order can make it harder to see your results over time.

I'll try to do an article on this on katyfitness.com in the near future.