The Student Health Center Newsletter
TV Well NOW page3
Make water a vart of vour workout routine
By Karltt Sandell
If exercise is an
important part of you
life, proper fluid intake
can improve you work
outs significantly Fluid
replacement helps you body cool down
after exercise; it allows broken-down tis
sue to filter out of your body and it
restores the fluid to joints which cushion
your movements. An inactive person may
feel that because she does not exercise dai
ly, she should not need as much water.
This is not true. An inactive person
should drink around 8 glasses of water
everyday. This may seem like a lot of
water; however, constant hydration is
essential.
Without an adequate supple of water
our bodies can not function at their opti
mal levels Sixty percent of our body
weight consists of water. Most of our
water is stored in our cells while the rest
circulates within our blood stream. Water
in our blood contains oxygen-carrying red
blood cells, food, vitamins and minerals
that our cells need to survive When the
body is low on water every cell is affected
When this occurs the body has a difficult
time cooling down which creates an
increase in core temperature The blood
begias to thicken, and the ability to elimi
nate waste is affected These conditions
have a detrimental affect on physical per
formance whether we are sitting in class or
running 5 miles.
Being in a heated area also puts added
stress on the body, so it is important to
keep vour body replenished to avoid boa I
illness such as heat stroke or heat exhaus
tion Exercise in the heat puls tremendous
strain on your body If you are planning
to exercise for a prolonged amount of timi
in a hot environment, it is important that
your body is well-hydrated before and
during your workout If your body
has depleted your water supply,
you may suffer from heat stroke.
Heat stroke is the sudden
involuntary nsc in oouy tem
perature caused by the inabil
ity of the
tempera turn-regulating
cells in the brain to
increase the body's mech- .
anisms to use up heat I
Symptoms of heat stroke I
are burning lungs, short
ened breath, parched
mouth, blurred vision, nau
sea, irrational thinking, and
clammy or dry skin If your
body temperature continues to nse
after these- symptoms occur, you might
become unconscious or even die. Heat
stroke is very serious and most often the
person experiencing it requires medical
help immediately. If you or someone you
know is experiencing heat stroke, one wa
to help cool the btxJy is to apply cool tow
els to the abdomen and head until medic.'
help arrives.
Heat exhaustion, although not as seri
ous as heat stroke, is equally important to
recognize and avoid. Heat exhaustion is
also caused by loss of water in your body
Unlike heat stroke, heat exhaustion occur
when the cells m your body become
unable to give up water, and your blotni
volume drops Symptoms are sluggish
ness. muscle tightness, loss of appetite,
> weakness headaches, and even depres
sion These are all signals that your
rbody is dehydrated It your body
continues to go without fluids, you
may go into shock Because heat
exhaustion incurs gradually, it is
much easier to avoid The key is to
si mol v keep your Nnlv well
hydrated at all times, especial
ly during exercise,
i How much should we
dnnk? We know that
water helps protect our
bodies and that it is
important to drink
water before. during
and alter exercising
Thinking water before
Wj exercise delays the
development of dehydra
tion, increases sweating and
creates less ofa rise in the body s core
temperature Experts recommend that
you drink 13 to 20 ounces of water 10 to 20
minutes before exercise, especially it you
plan to be in a heated environment
f Unfortunately, drinking water right before
exercising is not gisxl enough As you
I exercise vour txxlv rapidly loses water
through exhalation and perspiration
which increases your hxlv's rxsxls tor flu
id replacement It is most effective to
dnnk K-u ounces of water every 10-13 min
utes during exercise This will give your
i body proper circulatory flow which in
return enables your NhJv to perform effi
dcntly. After exercise it is important to
replenish your body periodically through
out the rest »>t the day. This will relieve
muscle tightness and fatigue
I lave you noticed the sudden explosion
of carbohydrate drinks such as "Power
Burst" or "Galorade" on the market these
days’ Some studies now show that these
dnnks can provide adequate fluid and
energy restoration during prolonged exer
cise such as long distance running or
cycling. Mindv Millard-Stafford. from
Sports Medicine, explains, "carbohydrate
drinks delay fatigue by raising blood glu
cose levels and provide an energy source
during exercise performed under different
environmental conditions ' I he variety of
drinks on the market today make it diffi
cult to determine which of them provides
the best source of energy I xperts suggi*st
that a moderately concentrated carbohy
drate drink of s-H percent during exercise
will help stabilize our body's performance
It the carbohydrate concentration exceeds
12 percent, our b<sites can no longer
absorb it This causes nausea and will
result in a decrease in performance It you
plan to exercise tor an extended period of
time and are considering replenishing
your hodv with a carbohydrate drink,
make sure the carbohydrate balance does
not exceed N percent
Fluid replacement is vital Water helps
reduce dehydration which can lead to heat
exhaustion or even heat stroke V\ ater is
the primary source that makes our bodies
function properly. Your bode requires
continuous hydration l>rmk up!
Don't let these fitness fables foil your exercise efforts
By Retire' Schmidt
In the nineties so
much technology and
information is available
that often times answers
to common questions
contradict or seem confusing to even a
well-informed health nut. The following
are some common myths regarding diet
and exercise.
• Myth: No pain, no gain.
When you experience pain w hile exer
cising, you are being given a signal by
your body that something is simply not
right and that you should slow or stop the
activity. Pain indicates that your stress
load is too high Pat Tanning, former
Sprint and Hurdle Coach at the University
of Oregon, says. "It's like your target heart
rate If vou go above your maximum
heart rate, vou are not enhancing your
workout, you are putting your body at a
stress level that could ultimately become a
disadvantage which could lead to injury
• Myth. More exercise is always better
When muscles are put under stress.
they need time to regenerate so that they
can build upon themselves to become
stronger. This regeneration period varies
for each individual but usually falls into
the approximate range of 24-4# hours. If
muscles are overused they become broken
down so much that they don't have the
ability to repair and grow. By giving
ample time for regeneration, you allow
your muscles to function at their optimal
levels During this rest, your muscles rid
themselves of waste’s and repair muscle
fibers. One important thing to remember
is that everybody is different in their phys
ical and biochemical make-up and that
their workout abilities will therefore also
be different.
• Myth: You can burn fat after you've
worked out 20 minutes
When you exercise, your body begias
bv burning glucose storage in your mus
cits for energy Around 20 minutes into
an exercise activity, your body slows
down on its use of glycogen storage and
begins to rely more on fat storage for fuel
This reserves the remaining supplies of
glycogen in the muscles True, at some
point fat becomes the major contributor,
but factors involving such things as inten
sity and duration do not equal a magical
time factor, such as twenty minutes Your
physical condition is also a factor: as your
body becomes more trained, it relies on fat
storage sooner
• Myth: Women who lift weights will
"get big "
When we walk, into a gym or weight
lifting class we are introduced with the
idea that weight-lifting will make us bulk
up Although we can gain muscle mass
through weight-lifting, it doesn't have to
happen Weight-lifting is good in that it
builds muscle strength and endurance
One factor that we should keep in mind is
that women only possess around ten per
cent ot the level of testosterone lh.it men
do The testosterone hormone is responsi
ble tor muscle over development Wh.it
will occur in women with regular weight
lifting schedules will be improved muscle
strength, shape, and tone Ihc volume
and intensity ot the workout along with
personal factors, such as body physique,
will ultimately decide what effects weight
training has on the body, for male or
female lifters
• Myth Aerobics classes are only for
women
Men can and do benefit greatly from
aerobics classes Aerobics classes provide
a well-balanced program, and help you
improve cardiovascular condition, muscle
fitness, flexibility, and coordination,
whether you are male or female Also
adding to the benefits are the various
types of aerobics classes available
Turn to MYTHS, page 4
Get creative with cross-training
By Tracy
Anudson
There it is.
that dreaded
SUirmaster tlut
you meet even'
day for forty-five minutes. The
thought of stepping on it for the
eight-hundredth time makes you
sick to your stomach. But you
need to workout, so you push the
start button and enter into your
own world.
The time ticks slowly as you
stare down at those blinking red
dots; you're thinking to yourself
how much you hate this and how
you're ready to give exercise up
all together. But wait! There is a
solution to this tremendous bore
dom, and that's cross-training
Cross-training is a combina
tion of several different types of
exercise put into a weekly work
out. To work the entire body
every day or every time you
exercise is not an easy or realistic
goal That is where cross-train
mg steps in Bv cross-training
you may work each par! of the
bodv weekly
Here is an example of an
advanced program Monday: one
hour of step aerobics with upper
body weight work Tuesday:
Stairmaster for forty minutes and
stationary bike for twenty with
added back and chest weight
work Wednesday: running and
lower body weight lifting
Thursday: High impact aerobics
Friday: bike riding and extra
abdominal work. Saturday: rest.
Sunday: play tennis or some sort
of team sport. This is just an
example of how you can com
bined different activities in a
weekly workout. This variety
can help you stay motivated and
obtain a positive attitude
towards working out
Exercise is essential for living
a healthy life According to the
American College of Sports Med
icine, we need to exercise a mini
mum of three times a week for at
least twenty minutes. This helps
maintain body weight and also
can give you cardiovascular ben
efits Cross-training limits jar
ring and over use of the same
joints and muscles This is
important because your muscles
nix’d rest in between workouts to
rebuild the broken-down tissue
In designing your own cross
training program, you have to
take into consideration that your
program is not going to be identi
cal to your best friend's, and that
it is not set in stone You must
find out what you enjoy doing
and do those things. If you can
not stand to run, then don't run
That's exactly how the vicious
cycle of dreading your workout
begins. Pick new and different
activities once in a while like
rock climbing or hiking. Always
keep in mind that there are no
limitations to what you can do to
exercise. Get creative and get
going!
For more fitness ideas, drop
by the Health Education office at
the Student Health Center.
EXCESSIVE
Continued from page 1
brittle, thin, and easily frac
tured. Younger women who
have lost some ot their bone
mass due to amenorrhea and
a lack of estrogen will be
affected by osteoporosis
scxiner than those who have
maintained a healthy and
adequate level of bone mass.
Our level of fitness means
very little without a healthy
body. Even though we may
look great in our cut-offs,
swimsuits, or birthday suits,
we won't get very far with
fractured or weakened bones.
If hormonal dysfunctions and
a reduction in bone mass
seems like a fair price to pay
for a great body, think again.
After all, instead of spending
hours on the track or the
stairmaster and putting cer
tain aspects of your health at
risk, you could be exercising
frequently yet moderately
while still receiving the maxi
mum physical benefits.
According to the Ameri
can College ot Sports Medi
cine (ACSMi, twenty to sixty
minutes of aerobic exercise
three to five days a week is
adequate in maintaining a
good level of health. For
those of you wanting to do
the bare minimum, the ACSM
states that even twelve min
utes of aerobic activity three
to five times a week produces
some benefits, although a
minimum of twenty minutes
is preferred. For all of you
exercise maniacs, however,
simply go by the higher num
bers in these recommenda
tions so that you may receive
maximum health and fitness
benefits without bring at a
high risk for injury. Consis
tent exercise at reasonable
levels will be very effective in
maintaining a respectable lev
el of fitness while enabling
your body to remain healthy
and strong for years to come.