Don’t wait for hot flashes to start thinking about the health of your bones.  Once you hit 30 years old, bone loss begins.  And here’s a real hot flash: your risk of getting osteoporosis is greater than your combined risk of having a heart attack, getting breast cancer, and having a stroke. 

I recently attended a fantastic lecture given by Mary O’Connor, M.D., Chair of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at The Mayo Clinic in Florida.  Not only was she a great speaker, she delivered a very important message—loud and clear:  YOU CAN FIGHT OSTEOPOROSIS AND YOU, YOUR CHILDREN AND SIGNIFICANT OTHER SHOULD START FIGHTING IT TODAY. 

The Scary Statistics

• Only 50% of women are able to regain their pre-fracture abilities after a hip fracture.
• Half of all women over 50 will develop osteoporosis.
• One in four men over 50 will develop osteoporosis.
• One in three men will not survive one year after a hip fracture
• Hip and spine fractures frequently lead to death.
• Bone loss does not only occur in men and women over 50.  The University of Memphis men’s basketball team showed a 6.1% decrease in bone density during an intense training period.  The loss of calcium in sweat impacts bone loss.

 The Prescription is Simple

Get enough Calcium.  Get as much as you can through your diet with calcium-rich foods like yogurt, sardines and spinach. Take a supplement to help you meet the recommended daily requirement.  Note that growing children need the most calcium while their bones are growing.

1000 mg   

Children: 4-8 yrs

Men & Women: 19-50 yrs

Men: 51-70 yrs

1300 mg   

Children:  9-18 yrs

1200 mg   

Women over 50 yrs

Men over 70 yrs

2000 mg    Safe Upper Limit

Take Vitamin D.  If you didn’t read my article about Vitamin D, please take a look at it.  The benefits of taking a Vitamin D supplement are enormous.  According to Dr. O’Connor, EVERYONE should be taking this inexpensive and important supplement.

Perform Weight Bearing Exercises on a Consistent Basis.  Lift weights, walk, run or play tennis.  Do anything that “stresses” your bones in a good way.  Regular weight bearing exercises cause your bones to adapt to the impact of the weight by building more cells which makes them stronger. Without the ability to “bear weight” astronauts come back from an extended flight into outer space with significant bone loss.

Fall Prevention.  Making your home as safe as possible is especially important for older individuals.  Keep floors clean and all rooms free of clutter, Install handrails in the bathroom where needed.  Talk with family members to determine if your house is a “safe” place for you to live.

Along with regular strength training, you can also practice balance exercises which will help prevent a fall.  Ask a personal trainer at your gym to teach you a few simple balance exercises and incorporate them into your weekly routine.

As Dr. O’Connor said, “No one EVER wants to rely on a walker to get around.”  Be proactive when it comes to the health of your bones and hopefully you won’t have to deal with this devastating disease.  If you’d like more information please check out this informative site. 

Strong Body, Strong Bones,

Molly

I have resisted Pilates since it became popular in the 90’s. It’s not because I didn’t want to look like all those sexy celebrities who swear by Pilates, I just thought it wasn’t for me. I always believed that running and lifting weights was all I needed to stay fit.  Boy was I wrong.

As you know, some things happen for a reason. For quite some time, I’d been thinking I should give Pilates a try to see if it would help alleviate some of the dysfunction in my thoracic spine. One day I woke up and decided that was the day I would find a Pilates Studio and give them a call. Later that morning, I met Jennifer Kries while walking Stella and Jessie in Washington Square. She told me she taught Pilates and I promised I would set up a session with her. After 3 months of emailing each other back and forth, I finally scheduled my first lesson. I knew it would be an educational experience but had no idea:

1. How much I would learn
2. How many misconceptions I had about Pilates; and
3. How incredibly talented Jennifer is

Jennifer is a true healer with an extensive background in mind-body arts and fitness. Her knowledge of anatomy, her verbal cues and her incredible teaching methods impressed me beyond words. She has inspired and empowered women around the world with her award winning Method Series DVDs (which she did not tell me about when I met her).

According to Jennifer, there are six principles of Pilates: concentration, control, centering, breath, flow and precision. When performed correctly, you learn to move with maximum efficiency while minimizing stress on your body. You are able to access new levels in your body and create a deeper, more complete feeling of fitness, energy and vitality that remains with you days after your workout.

Jennifer continues her explanation: “The focus is on the center of the body—the “powerhouse”. These corset muscles—also also known as the stabilizing core muscles of the torso—support the spine. The active collaboration of these major muscle groups creates a solid cylinder around the central spine. Keeping these muscles super strong helps prevent shearing or eroding forces from being applied to the vertebrae, ligaments and discs. Problems in the spine result from acute injuries, repetitive trauma and habitual patterns of movement that are unconscious and unproductive for the body and mind.”

My first day, Jennifer simply asked me to stand and breathe while she observed me. Can I tell you how hard this was? I would have much rather had her tell me to drop to the floor and do 50 push-ups. Because of the restrictions in my mid-back, taking continual deep breaths while standing with good posture is quite difficult.

To make a long story short, Jennifer’s trained eye saw many destructive things about my posture. My “natural” posture is causing a lot of compression on my low back and hips (which can also affect the knees). The tightness in my rib cage is causing me to round my shoulders which will continue to worsen my posture over time if I don’t do something about it now.

After 4 sessions, I’ve learned specific exercises that will help improve both my posture and my rib dysfunction over time. The extreme rigidity in my thoracic spine is improving and I’m definitely sleeping better. The deep breathing is still really hard for me, but it is getting a little easier.

I believe that Pilates is almost a necessity for people like me.  No, I’m not a dancer or an actress; I’m a 46 year old woman with significant issues in my spine and I suffer from sporadic pain in my hips and knees.  I am planning on taking Pilates at least one time per week for the rest of my life!  With weekly classes, I am confident that my posture will be better when I’m 65 than it is today.  I think it’s a good goal.

If you want to increase your core strength, improve your lung capacity and improve your mind-body connection, please give Pilates a try. You’ll learn to connect your mind with your body.  If you’re willing, you’ll also learn to slow down and realize that life is not something we should strive to race through.  We should embrace life every day by living in the moment.

If you’re interested in purchasing one of Jennifer’s DVDs, please visit her site at www.jenniferkries.com.   If you’ve had a “life-changing” experience from performing Pilates, please share your story.

Stand tall and Breathe,

Molly