We want to spotlight the good folks in the Memphis area who are working to keep our youngsters fit and healthy.
Got a summer program designed to get and keep kids moving? Post the details here.
Hopefully, together we can spread the word.
The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports just rolled out a new fitness challenge. This one is aimed at adults, not junior high students.
Designed for folks age 18 and older, it is designed to measure flexibility, strength and cardiovascular fitness. Participants can visit the council's Web site, enter their results and see how they compare with other Americans of the same age and gender.
Melissa Johnson, the council's executive director, told the Associated Press that the test was developed in response to Baby Boomers looking for exercise advice and a way to compare their performance to peers. Johnson said developers hope it will also inspire Americans to get moving.
The test involves:
-A one-mile walk or 1.5-mile run,
-Doing push-ups to exhaustion;
-Doing sit-ups for one minutes;
-A stretching exercise called sit and stretch.
More information is available online at the council's Web site.
Sorry, this time there is no patch. But if you take the challenge, let us know how you fare.
A variety of free services, including emergency contraception and family planning, will be offered beginning Monday (May 12) by Planned Parenthood of Greater Memphis.
On Monday, May 12, free family planning services, including birth control and annual exams, will be offered.
On Tuesday, May 13, free emergency contraception will be available.
On Thursday, May 15, free testing for sexually transmitted diseases will be offered.
Those services will all be available 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Planned Parenthood Health Center, at 1407 Union, suite 300.
On Friday, May 16, beginning at 9 p.m. Planned Parenthood staff will be at the bar One More, 2117 Peabody, with birth control information.
Tennis Memphis, the nonprofit organization that manages the city's seven tennis centers, received a $100,000 grant from the U.S. Tennis Association's Tennis and Education Foundation and the Ford Foundation.
The funds will go to open a Neighborhood Education in Tennis or NET Center at the Eldon Roark Tennis Center in Whitehaven. The center will provide tennis instruction as well as academic tutoring and other life skills education to middle school students, said Stephen Lang, Tennis Memphis executive director.
Tennis Memphis, a nonprofit organization formed in 2001, contracts with the city to manage 50 outdoor and 12 indoor courts.
The group launched a similar program at Ed Rice Community Center in Frayser in 2007. Both are scheduled to offer summer and after-school programs. Registration is $25.
For more information about Tennis Memphis or its programs, call 358-5425 or visit its Web site.
Transforming Bodies, a new gym in the Cooper-Young neighborhood, is hosting an open house Saturday, May 10. The event is set for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 937 N. Cooper.
Roland Genesy is the owner. His credentials include 15 national and state body building championships. He earned his personal trainer certification through the Cooper Institute in Dallas. For more about Genesy or the gym, visit his Web site.
Meanwhile, if you know of other gyms or fitness centers that have opened (or closed) let us know and we'll post the information on The Commercial Appeal's Healthy Memphis blog. Send the information to powers@commercialappeal.com.
Dr. David LaVelle, an orthopedic surgeon with Campbell Clinic, sent in this report after completing his seventh 100-mile mile. LaVelle, of Memphis, took seven hours and 17 minutes to complete the 3-State, 3-Mountain Challenge on May 3. His cousin Mike Tomlinson traveled from Florida to Chattanooga for the event. The two men took a break at the 1,600-foot summit of Sand Mountain for this photo. Tomlinson is on the left and LaVell on the right.
Here is his report:
"The storm which caused so much damage and pain in the Mid-South Friday night went through Chattanooga on Saturday morning. Mike, my older cousin and riding partner for the 3-State, 3- Mountain Challenge, and I watched the Weather Channel Late into Friday night. Saturday morning we got up early, got our gear together and rode a little over
a mile to the University Tennessee, Chattangooa stadium where the ride was to take off at 8 a.m.
"The sky was very threatening and about the time we got to the stadium the thunderstorm began. We took shelter in a pavilion next to the stadium for about an hour and then the ride began.
"The ride organizers must have had their eye on the radar because just as the
last of the thunder had passed, they let us leave to begin the ride.
"It rained for the first 25 miles of the ride and then gradually cleared. It remained cloudy until the last 20 or so miles.
"One may ride safely in the rain but it is much less fun. Just like driving a car, it takes longer to break, and the wheels can slip out from under you, so you must go slower on the same roads than when the roads are dry. The rain gets on your glasses and when riding behind someone else to let them cut the wind in front of you (drafting) the water on the road sprays directly into your face. The end result is that my goal of doing the ride in less than 6 hours was doomed from the start. At that point the goal was to finish the ride upright.
"My time was 7:26. Last year I did it in 6:45.
"Mike lives in Tampa, Florida, where cyclists consider interstate over-passes hills to be conquered. He is 60 years old and he got on the cycling kick about the same time I did in 2006. Last year when we did the 3-State, 3-Mountain Challenge, he had to walk up the last section of the last mountain (Burkhalter gap on Lookout mountain). Luckily, I'd been able to train on the hills in Shelby Forest and while much lower and shorter, if you ride them repeatedly, you get the training you need to conquer the 1800 feet it is to make the last climb. So last year I didn't have to walk. Even though I'm 5 years younger than Mike, this has been on his mind for the last year. I made it up the two and a half miles of the climb and he didn't. So this year he emphasized something called interval training and work on this all year. And it paid off. He was able to make the climb.
"I almost gave up. It was much hotter after the rain cleared out. My current bike has fewer lower gears. I had not been able to train as much this year as last year.
"The reason I didn't give up? I really don't know, except that it is not in my makeup. I was panting and thought I'd get sick. But it passed. Then I recalled something my son, the wrestler, had on one of his tee shirts: "Pain is Temporary but Pride and Accomplishment are Forever." Funny how cheesy things might stick in your head.
"On the way into Chattanooga, we passed an accident where a bike rider went down. The ambulance was there picking him up. I have no idea who he was or how he was hurt. A car may have been involved, he may have had equipment failure or just missed a turn. It was a sober reminder that cycling is a dangerous sport. It makes you want to be extra careful, but every human activity carries risk. While working at The MED off and on over the last 20 years, I have seen people hurt every way imaginable. Of course I've seen cyclists but many more car and motorcycle victims. I've taken care of people hurt from falling out of trees, off mountains, ladders and out of bed or from slipping on ice, wet leaves and gum balls. So for me, it's like another corny but true quote, this one from "Braveheart": "All men die, but not all men really live."
"I tried living a safe, secure life from a couch and it nearly killed me. Now I feel like I'm really living."
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Now that age 40 is the new 30, the publishing industry has responded with a glut of books intended to make 50 the new 35.
The new offerings include "Positively Ageless" and "Redesigning 50: The No-Plastic-Surgery Guide to 21st Century Age Defiance."
The first comes from Prevention magazine and is authored by Cheryl Forberg, a registered dietitian and chief. She is also the nutritionist for the NBC reality series The Biggest Loser. The second was written by Oz Garcia, described on the book jacket as "one of the world’s leading authorities in progressive nutrition and anti-aging." Someone's also apparently dubbed him "nutritionist to the stars." As a life-long member of the non-star camp, the book nearly passed unopened from my life.
Halfway through both books, I am still unsure if reading them qualifies as time well spent.
"Positively Ageless" has plenty of good, practical information. It covers everything from the importance of calcium and the evils of smoking to the magic of a balanced diet and why age increases the importance of strength training. It is packed with recipes and meal plans promising to rejuvenate skin, fight free radicals, bolster energy and strengthen my disease fighting immune system.
Reading it late at night, I occasionally find myself shaking my head and thinking either tell me something new or who has time to make their own breakfast sausage.
"Redesigning 50" is written with so many asides and digressions built into each chapter it reads like Cliff Notes, rather than a book. There are lots of personal testimonials from individuals who are identified by name, age, professional and marital status. I found the book's overall design distracting, rather than a reader-friendly way to communicate about a subject - aging and how to slow it - that is complex and fraught with controversies.
For now, I am still working my way through both books and trying not to be too put off by complex dietary regimesm, Botox testimonials and plugs for nutritional supplement.
Are there book I should be reading instead? If you have suggestions, please take a minute to post the title along with the book jacket blurb that reflects your take on the author's message.
We’re hosting an online conversation this week with Dr. Ramasubbareddy Dhanireddy, a board certified pediatric specialist in neonatal-perinatal medicine at UT Medical Group. He is director of the The Sheldon B. Korones Newborn Center at The MED and professor of neonatology at The University of Tennessee Health Science Center.
Read about preventing prematue births at http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/lifestyle/health-fitness/
Dr. Dhanirreddy, who will answer questions about preterm births and ways to reduce risks of early deliveries.
Free immunizations and dental screenings will be available Saturday when the Memphis & Shelby County Health Department marks National Infant Immunization Week.
The free services will be offered during a health fair set for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at health department headquarters, 814 Jefferson.
The event is aimed at children ages two months through five years. Free pre-school and kindergarten physicals will also be available. Officials request parents or guardians bring vaccination records.
A Spanish interpreter will be available.
For more information, call 544-7708.
Grants of as much as $5,000 are available to help families pay for needed medical services and equipment.
The UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation sponsors the program, which is limited to those age 16 and younger whose families meet a variety of income and insurance guidelines. It is designed to help pay for therapy, medication, medical equipment and other costs not covered by commercial health insurance.
The foundation is a private, nonprofit organization supported by UnitedHealth Group. The company offers a variety of health-related services. For more information, or to apply for a grant, visit the foundation's Web site.
