Entries by Chet Zelasko

Is Diet Soda Making You Fat?

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A week or so ago we were greeted with headlines that said that diet soda will make you fatter if you’re over 65 (1). If that doesn’t make you curious just about nothing will, especially if you’re carrying extra weight and drink diet soft drinks. Let’s see what the study was all about.

Researchers at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center have been conducting a multiethnic study called the San Antonio Longitudinal Study of Aging or SALSA for short; sometimes I think more effort goes into creating the name than designing the study. When the . . .

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Supplements for Low Back Pain

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To cope with pain in the lower back, we’ve looked at solutions that deal with mechanics: trying to increase the fluid levels of the discs as well as stretching and strengthening the core muscles. The next logical step is to cover some supplements that can help with low back pain.

Where there’s pain, there’s inflammation. Two nutrients can help reduce inflammation in bones and joints: omega-3 . . .

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Ab Exercises to Help Your Back

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Many of you have asked how to do the abdominal curls and the fanny raises I mentioned in Thursday’s memo. A picture is worth a thousand words, so I’ve included pictures of each along with some tips to do them correctly.

Abdominal Curl
This is a modified form of the old straight-leg sit up. There are several key elements to make sure that you protect your back and neck. The idea is to curl up as far as you can and . . .

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Mechanics: Walking Wrong on a Treadmill

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This past winter, I’ve done most of my running on treadmills. I should say that I’ve done my run/walks on treadmills as I rarely run continuously anymore, even in races. The more time I spend on treadmills, the more I watch other people walk on treadmills, and too many are doing it just plain wrong.

Huh? How can you walk wrong? You’ve been doing it since you were about a year old. The primary error that spoils the body’s mechanics is holding on to the handrails, especially when walking at a grade. On top of . . .

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Mechanics: Reducing Back Pain

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On Tuesday, I talked about what causes bulging discs and one way to help reduce the pinched nerves that cause pain. Today I’ll give you the second tactic to help bulging discs, primarily those in your lower back in what is known as the lumbar region. The solution is simple:

Stretch and strengthen your core.

Specifically, stretch the muscles of the lower back, the hamstrings, and the quads; and strengthen the muscles in the abdominal region.

Most people have an anterior pelvic tilt: the front of the pelvis drops making the . . .

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Mechanics: Why Discs Bulge

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Lately I’ve heard many people saying they have “bulging discs” and the result is some form of back or leg pain. As an exercise physiologist with good training in biomechanics, the mechanics of movement have always fascinated me; this week, I’m going to talk about that subject, starting by stating a fact about those bulging discs:

Everyone who walks upright has discs that begin to bulge at some point in their lives.

Bulging discs are simply part of the deal that goes along with walking. Whether they cause pain or . . .

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The Real Problem with Food

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On Thursday I talked about the 1977 Dietary Goals for the U.S. In this message, I’m going to let you know how the Senate Committee recommended we achieve those goals. I’m also going to tell you what the real problem is that has lead us to this sorry state of body weight that exists today.

What no anti-carbohydrate guru tells us is how we were supposed to achieve those dietary goals of increasing carbohydrates while lowering fat intake. Listening to what they say, you’d think we were told to start eating white bread and sugary . . .

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The Origin of High-Carb, Low-Fat

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I got tired of hearing the anti-carbohydrate supporters rant and rave about how the decision to move to a high-carbohydrate diet doomed us to the obesity epidemic we have today. What were these goals that doomed us? The goals are summarized in a report from the staff of the Senate Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs (1), but before I give you the pertinent goals, take a look at what’s in the Committee’s report. I summarized what was said, but it might sound familiar:

Americans eat too much fat and . . .

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The Battle of Fat vs. Carb

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Sometimes I just can’t let go. Such is the case with this diet debate of fat versus carbohydrate. I’m going to address both of these questions this week. It won’t end the debate, but at least you’ll have the facts.

The debate comes down to two separate but related questions:

  • Does a diet high in saturated fat contribute to heart disease?
  • Is the high-carbohydrate and low-fat diet recommended by the USDA the cause of the obesity epidemic?

Let’s begin with scientific evidence that a high-fat diet . . .

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Keeping Track of Life’s Simple 7

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To complete American Heart Month, here’s an easy way to track your heart health called Life’s Simple 7 (LS7), developed by the American Heart Association. LS7 has been around since 2010 but it escaped my attention until recently. For those of you who like to track your progress to see how you’re doing, this is a great tool; you may remember I mentioned it last month, but I think you need the details to really understand how LS7 can work for you.

There are seven different categories of variables to track, hence the name Life’s Simple . . .

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