If it has been a while since you last explored Personal Best’s website- it’s time to take a trip and see what is new this month. Besides weekly informational and opinion blogs, we’ve added:

1. Two new links- one to The National Institutes of Health, a major medical and wellness resource, and the second to my-calories-counter.com, a wonderful resource with an extensive database for calorie counting and nutrition information.
2. Photographs of many of the common exercises in the Exercise Encyclopedia. Soon, most of the exercises will feature helpful photos to enhance your virtual training experience.

In the near future, Personal Best will feature Coaches Corner- a monthly column of tips and advice from nationally known college level coaches, as well as training tips to enhance your athletic experience, no matter what your level of play. Soon, you’ll find more sports related exercises and advice in the Resource Center including simple speed and agility workouts for your adolescent athlete.

Finally, don’t forget the Ask the Trainer feature on the Contact Us page- ask me- just go ahead!

Personal Best will be hosting a Customer Apprecation Day on Wednesday August 10th, from 5:30- 7:30pm, at the home of Personal Best in Hudson,MA. The evening is open to all current and former clients as a thank you to all the wonderful clients who have made Personal Best successful! The evening will feature free seated chair massages, food and drink, informational lectures and more, as well as a relaxing evening to enjoy the company of friends and other clients of Personal Best. Shyer Maguire, Juice Plus representative, will talk on whole food nutrtion, as we introduce Juice Plus to you, and Dr. Ovid Frasier will talk on the importance of good health and wellness throughout your life. Please join us for a healthy evening of fun and education! RSVP is required by August 1st, and reservations must be made for free seated chair massage. Please call Kathy at 978-562-0377 for more information and to RSVP.

As summer begins, and the structure of school fades fast, our teenagers will be free to hang with friends and have some freedom. Of course, in this day and age, we all need to know where our kids are at all times for their safety, but we realize the importance of giving our older kids some freedom, some time to make decisions on their own as they approach adulthood. However, an alarming trend has caught my eye, and it is making me question whether teens – even the most grown-up of teens-can be trusted to make good decisions when it comes their nutrition. I have had a chance to work with several teens over the last few weeks, some of whom are looking to lose weight. I was shocked at the amount of junk food these young people are eating. My son, when left to his own devices, is the same way- he will choose total sugar and junk food over anything healthy. I must force him to make better choices, and obviously only have control over this when he is with me.
SO- What is a parent to do? Control all of their food intake? Allow no junk food at all in the house? Follow them around all day and check what they are eating?
I do not have all the answers, but one part of it begins with parents instilling good eating habits when the children are young. You and your children should TRY and eat dinner together as much as possible. At least, for this one meal, they will eat healthy food as long as YOU put it on the table. If teens are allowed to fend for themselves, they will gravitate towards high fat, high sugar foods like french fries, chicken nuggets and soda. Once teen client of mine eats no vegetables or fruits whatsoever. No dairy, no yogurt, no wheat breads. She is 5″2, 50 pounds overweight and in daily pain because her knees and ankles can’t handle the weight. She was allowed to eat what she wants when she wants, with no good role models. SO-If YOU are a junk food addict- YOUR children will be the same. And, rest asssured, they will grow up to be ill and obese.
I also suggest that you ASK your children what they have eaten at their friend’s homes, at school, after school, or whether they stopped at the local store for a snack. Monitor their nutrition without judging them- but do not allow treats or high fat foods later in the day if they have had those foods at school or with their friends. And don’t forget about drinks- whether it is a soda or a gatorade- these empty calories can make a child overweight AND hurt their teeth.
Finally, limit the junk food you bring into the house. It is not necessary, nor healthy, for the kids to have junk food on a daily basis. Switch things up on them by buying fruit popsicles, lowfat yogurt ice cream, or -God forbid!- baked potato chips.
Times have changed. Junk food is available 24 hours a day- at school- while driving-at home. Unless we get a handle on what our kids are eating now, they will become part of a tragic majority in this nation- the obese. Not what we may have dreamed they can become….

Have you been watching Kathy’s Fitness Forum on CTV-8, Hudson Local Cable TV? The Fitness Forum runs Tuesday mornings at 6am, Friday evenings at 5:30pm and Saturday mornings at 9:30am. Each show features the latest in exercise programs and fitness information. Whether you are a new exerciser or seasoned athlete, The Fitness Forum will offer you exciting programs and exercises for at- home fitness.

Our first four shows featured:

As an experienced personal trainer, I come across alot of fitness information that is incorrect and unsafe. If you get most of your fitness information from fashion magazines or muscle-head magazines, you may be doing exercises that are unsafe and inappropriate for your goals and fitness level. I am so pleased that I can provide you with safe, effective exercise routines that match your lifestyle and fitness goals via Kathy’s Fitness Forum. Join us!

I honestly believe that our actions affect each and every person around us. Unless you live alone on an island, this theoretically makes sense, as, on a local scale, we come into contact with hundreds of people on a daily basis. But what about the larger picture? Do we have a responsibility to society as a whole to remain a good standing member of our community, to do the morally right things that benefit ourselves as well others? Of course we do! We obey laws, we act civilly and politely whenever possible, we volunteer to help when needed… but what about our personal responsibility to remain healthy for the good of society?

No, I am not advocating any governmental interference, so dont worry, but I’ve been thinking about what our society would be like if we all saw good health as not just a personal choice, but as a societal norm as well. Recent studies have shown that only 3% of Americans do all the right things to be healthy. For the first time in decades, it appears that the trend to live longer is slowing down. Obesity, smoking, lack of exercise and poor nutrition are causing us to die sooner than later. Hundreds of thousands of Americans are sick or dying from diseases and illnesses that were self imposed by bad health habits. Our emergency rooms are glutted with uninsured patients who smoke, over consume alchohol and eat horribly, often obese, suffering from strokes, heart disease, diabetes, cancers and more. All self imposed. Yes, insurance premiums are ridiculously high, forcing many of the poor to remain uninsured and hence, they cannot afford preventative care- but would our premiums be lower if we all took better care of ourselves?

I pose these questions merely for interesting debate. There is no easy answer, but clearly we do need to take a personal responsibility for our health, if only to save our families and friends from having to watch us die from lung cancer, or suffer in longterm care from a stroke. Think about Terri Schiavo- did you know her cardiac arrest was due to an eating disorder? How much suffering did her family go through because of Terri’s mental illness and unhealthy behaviors? Terri’s actions affected the nation as a whole as well, so couldn’t the other end of the spectrum work too? Consider this scenario- a client of mine was recently killed in a motorcycle accident. He was a wonderful man, full of life, a school teacher, a dad, an outdoorsman, a musician. It has been reported that the drive of the car may have suffered a heart attack or some other illness while driving- and hence was not in control of the car when she killed him. A true tragedy for all, but was it a simple case of ” bad luck”? What if this woman had known she was having cardiac problems and ignored them? What if she failed to take her medicines properly, or ignored her doctor’s advice to stop smoking and begin exercising? You can see how a simple case of “bad luck” becomes a larger issue…..

I encourage all of you to embrace a healthy lifestyle. Not only will it benefit society and your families, you’ll feel and look great as well! Best in health….

Happy Holidays! While I know many of you are in the midst of the holiday frenzy, it still might be a good time to think about committing in the New Year to SLOWING down and being present. Personal Best will be restarting Saturday morning Hatha Yoga at Center Stage Dance Studio, Broad Street, Hudson, MA on January 8th, 2005. The class goes from 8am- 9:15am. For more information, call Kathy Ekdahl at 978-562-0377, or see Events section of the website. In addition to this class, Center Stage will also offer a Monday evening Power Yoga Class with Kelly McCausland. Kelly taught under Baron Baptiste! The class will begin January 24th and will go from 7:30pm- 8:45pm. For more information, call Kelly at 978- 562-6439.

Like most Boston Red Sox fans, I rejoiced in disbelief as the Red Sox came back from a three game deficit to the Yankees, to go on so confidently to beat the Cardinals for the World Series Championship. It was a great sports moment, but the more I reflect on it, the more I realize that the tremendous success of the Red Sox is a metaphor for the struggle we all experience on a daily basis as we find our way to good health and wellness. To what can we attribute the success of the Red Sox? What did they teach all of us about never giving up? The key to the Red Sox’ success is that the players always believed in themselves. What if, like us, every Red Sox player got up to bat thinking “I’m a loser- I can’t do this- I’ve failed so many times before!” Where would they be today? Luckily, they ignored internal and external negativity, and played game to game- just as we need to do when our own negative self talk takes over and when everyone around us fails to support us and talks of past failures. The Red Sox did not let past failures deter them or sway them in their effort to achieve success. So many times, WE allow our past exercise and nutrition failures to determine our present and future actions. Instead, we need to take each day one at a time- each meal, each exercise session-each pitch, each at- bat, is a chance to turn things around for the better. The only way YOU can personally win your “World Series” is by believing in yourself, and surrounding yourself with “team mates” who also believe in you. Baseball is a game of endurance- a game of patience, with hours of monotony, broken by moments of pure ecstasy. We must also have patience with ourselves, realizing that the summation of all our efforts WILL result in success- just believe in yourself. As the Red Sox so beautifully put it, Why Not Us?