April is Parkinson’s Disease Awareness Month and a good time to discuss how exercise can lessen symptoms and improve quality of life. Parkinson’s is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects the brain. The cause is unknown, and progression differs widely among individual patients. Symptoms include tremors, problems with walking and balance, and limb rigidity. Treatments include
How do you feel today? It’s a simple question that can bring a lot of different responses, right? You might say, “I feel great – had a checkup with the doctor yesterday and everything’s good.” Or, “I feel kinda crabby… Didn’t get much sleep last night.” Or even, “I feel tired and sore, and I
You probably know how important your hips and knees are. But we need to pay attention to our ankles, too. They require mobility and stability, just like all joints. If an ankle lacks either, it could cause problems up the line – at the knee, hip, and back. Mobility If the ankles are stiff, you
What sounds like a perfect way to celebrate your 75th birthday? For Jerry Mathis, it wasn’t about cake or resting by the pool. Jerry ran his first Spartan race, instead. It was a 5k course with 20 obstacles like climbing over walls, shimmying up ropes, and trekking through swampy land. Sound like fun to you?
At the gym, we often perform exercises in straight lines, like lifting a bar straight up, right? Our feet are generally even and parallel. All that’s great, but it’s not enough, since we don’t move like that in real life – just straight forward/back and up/down. Usually, we’re on one foot and moving to the
Everybody likes a bite between meals sometimes. And there’s nothing wrong with it, as long as you make healthy choices and don’t overindulge. Highly processed foods tend to be high in fat, salt, and empty carbohydrates, so avoid those. Get some fruits and veggies in there, protein, and a little healthy fat. Here are 10
A year ago, Pam was vibrant, an active member of a fitness studio, and celebrating her 83rd birthday. But after the Covid-19 pandemic kept her mostly housebound, she grew frail and hunched over, concerning her children and sending her back to the fitness studio she had loved so much. “It was shocking to me to
In Alaska, land of extremes, the annual Iditarod Sled Dog Race got started March 7 and was scheduled to wrap up a week or more later. The people who drive the sled dogs are called mushers. They’re men and women, starting in their 20s and going well into their 70s, engaged in the brutal “Last
We love chocolate – but why do we associate it so much with love, especially around Valentine’s Day? A few reasons, according to conventional wisdom and some (not entirely conclusive) scientific research. Chocolate has two components, phenethylamine, and tryptophan, that are relevant to brain function and love. “The former is a stimulant that is released
That Friday evening began like any other. When Deb Calderara (middle) sat down to watch “Jeopardy!” she had no idea how scary things were about to get. “I started having all the classic symptoms of a heart attack,” says Deb, who was 57 at the time. “I felt like someone was sitting on my chest