Living After Suicide meets the 3rd Tuesday of every month, 7-8:30 p.m., at Solomon House, 200 Main St. in Huntersville. The next three meetings are Feb. 21, March 20, and April 17. For more information visit http://livingaftersuicide.info

Nothing like a winter bike ride to put color in your cheeks.

But working out inside never feeds my soul, puts the color in my cheeks, or just makes me happy to be alive the way an outdoor bike ride with friends does.  That’s true even in February.

In actuality, there’s no such thing as too cold if you know how to prepare. It’s true for kids who want to stay out in the snow, and it’s true for athletes who want to stay outside to train! Here are some tricks for staying outdoors – and fit – all winter:

• Don’t Get Cold Feet! If you keep your house cool to save money on heating costs then leaving home with slightly chilled extremities can be a real issue. In my case, a cold morning workout is best begun with a few minutes lounging with one of those microwavable heat ‘em up blankets on my feet.  Then I put on a good pair of wool athletic socks and I’m on my way.  I start my workout with nice warm toes and as my core heats up with the exercise they tend to stay that way.
• While hands and feet should be warm, the rest of you should feel slightly cold during the first 5 to 10 minutes of your workout.  If you start out too bundled up, you’ll soon begin to sweat which will cause you to become wet which will cause you to become miserable.
• Wear a series of thin layers.    Start with a light weight base layer that is designed to keep you warm and let moisture escape.   Continue to add external layers, adjusting to temperature and wind conditions. Be careful of starting out too bundled up, especially if you are going to be doing a vigorous activity like cycling or running.   If you have on too many layers, you run the risk of becoming overheated halfway through your workout.
• As you warm up through exercise, peel off layers before you start sweating.  Too much sweat accumulation will cause your clothes to become damp and clammy making those last fifteen minutes of your workout a cold, wet, slog.
• Wool is wonderful.  Cotton is killer.  Clothing made of cotton fabrics doesn’t let moisture escape and will simply soak up your sweat leaving you clammy and cold.  Look for lightweight wool layers when choosing outdoor workout gear.

Whatever your fitness routine, now’s a great time to get back outside and enjoy it. Just a little planning will make a big difference!  And one more great benefit of training outside in the winter?  It gives you a head start on the mental edge you need to compete on bad weather event days.  If you can force yourself out the door for a work out in February, a little rain on race day is much less likely to slow you down!

Sarah Matchett is a USA Cycling Certified Coach, and the driving force behind Cool Breeze Coaching in Mooresville.  You can send your fitness and training questions to her at sarah@coolbreezecyclery.com.

LINK: “Does Winter Running Burn More Calories?”

Mr. Millikin says: “Years of working as a hospital social worker have taught me that most folks are not prepared for their “last illness”. We accept that we are not “bullet proof”, but no one is sending bullets our way just yet, so why worry? Right? WRONG! Advance planning can be a “godsend” for your family, health care providers AND you. Join me and let’s look at just what an Advance Directive can do for you and your family’s future.”

Chris Magryta

By Dr. CHRIS MAGRYTA

I remember lecturing to my fellow residents back in 1997 about the timing of post-exercise nutrition and the need for sports drinks. In those days we knew little about optimal nutrition, but we knew that sports beverages were not necessary for most athletes.

High-endurance athletes – marathoners, triathletes and cyclists – can make a case for needing some electrolytes during intense training (greater than 3 hours). Johnny in Little League or Susie in gymnastics have no case for a sugar-laden beverage and should avoid them.

What we did know in 1997 is that hydration is an all-important key to life. Water is the source of all life and always will be. The easiest way to underperform as an athlete is to be dehydrated. The old adage that when you are thirsty you are already dehydrated is true. Keep yourself and your children/athletes ahead of the curve by carrying a jug of water around during the day and drinking frequently. Athletes should drink water every 15-20 minutes during practice and games.

CARBOHYDRATES: When, how much and why?

When we exercise our muscles need to burn sugar to work effectively. Our muscles store sugar in the form of muscle glycogen. The concentration of glycogen in the muscle pre exercise will dictate how much energy can be released during a workout. This storage form of sugar is depleted in long and intense workouts. Unfortunately, we cannot transport this sugar from one muscle to another. So when you cycle, you can only get sugar from the muscles of the legs or the liver. Therefore, maximizing the muscles’ glycogen is a key to peak performance.

Your liver also stores sugar as glycogen and can transfer this sugar anywhere, but it cannot store as much as a muscle can. When an athlete says that he hit the “wall,” he is telling you that he ran out of muscle glycogen as an energy source and started to burn lean tissue to produce sugar, which is very inefficient.

Carbohydrate loading before, during and after exercise is key.

Studies show that athletes can enhance the storage of sugar in muscles (glycogen) by carb/sugar loading. Here’s how it works: Two days before an event like a marathon, soccer game, long swim, etc., an athlete works out very hard, to depletes the muscles’ sugar stores. At the same time, he or she withholds sugar from the diet – flour- or sugar-based foods.

This improves the muscles’ ability to store sugar. Therefore, 2 days later during an event the athlete has maximal muscle glycogen stores to compete with.

Before the event, you can eat nuts, seeds, vegetables, and proteins like soy or meat. Then post-workout eat whole-grain pasta, brown rice, and other rapidly digestible carbohydrates. The key is to get the meal within the first 2 hours post-workout.

Having a health bar immediately after the workout makes good sense to get the process started before a big meal. The data shows that supplements like Recoverite or other post-workout drinks are as effective as a home-cooked meal. I tend to think that a natural food meal is still preferable to a processed snack.

If you do not get the meal in the first one to two hours after exercise, you have lost the ability to fill your muscles up with optimal sugar stores. After 3 hours of soccer games on Sunday nights, I eat a quick bar and then eat a huge meal with pasta or rice and beans. Even at 41, I can still run with the young lads and plan to forever, God willing!

Pre-race or pre-workout meals need to fit certain ideals: 1) provide sustained immediate energy for the workout, 2) avoid hypoglycemic events (low sugar feelings), 3) be anti-inflammatory.

How do you achieve these goals? First off, we need to understand the different types of carbohydrates. There are fast digesting carbs and slow digesting carbs, otherwise known as, high and low glycemic foods. Pre-workout time is when we want to trend toward slowly digesting foods that release a sustained amount of sugar to our body. We want to avoid an insulin response and thereby avoiding periods of low blood sugar. Peak performance is hard to achieve if you have a glucose spike followed by an insulin surge and then a period of low sugar.

For example, a slice of white bread or a candy bar (high glycemic index/load) will give you an immediate sugar spike and insulin release followed by a low sugar trough. You will feel sluggish and have decreased performance. A serving of whole grain oats or fruit and carrots (low GI/GL) will provide a slow release of sugar with no subsequent sugar trough and thereby increasing muscle glycogen and available sugar for your workout.

The anti-inflammatory nature of certain foods will reduce the post-workout inflammatory stress and aid the healing process. You want to avoid processed foods with high volumes of omega 6 oils (soy/corn/vegetable oils) and pro-oxidant chemicals. Stick with natural foods and see the anti inflammatory link for guidance.

PROTEIN IS KEY TO MUSCLE BUILDING

A study by Greg Haffe in 2000 showed that with weight lifting or resistance training, the carbohydrate that you ingest prior to and during the event has a beneficial effect on muscle glycogen storage but no effect on muscle work output. In other words it has a good effect on recovery but no effect on the current muscle building. Protein will the key to muscle building.

There is evidence that if you eat carbohydrates within one hour of weight lifting you break down less protein for energy and thereby increase muscle production and mass. This is a good thing for a trained athlete. Increased muscle mass is useful for strength during sport activity. Remember to look at the glycemic index and load for what types of food to eat.

Carbohydrates are the key for an endurance athlete. Making sure that our young kids are eating complex carbohydrates during the school day and before workouts will be key. For example, whole grain granola with some fruit for snacks during the day and then a full lunch.

Dr. Chris Magryta is an integrative physician at Salisbury Pediatric Associates and Touchstone Health Associates. He lives in Cornelius. This column is adapted with permission from his weekly Health & Wellness newsletter. He can be reached at newsletter@salisburypediatrics.com

Steve was the fiancé of church member Kate Lacey. In honor of Steve, our décor and snacks will have a Greek flavor. Steve made donating at DCPC a priority and the church is asking the members of DCPC to come and donate in memory of Steve. Come enjoy the fun and give the gift of life!

The Feb. 6 drive will be at the Congregation House, on Concord Road, Davidson. Schedule an appointment by contacting the church office at 704-892-5641. Be sure to bring a photo I.D. with you.

Please check the website www.redcrossblood.org to ensure eligibility to donate. Click on Tips for a Successful Donation for prudent pre-giving nutrition.

The specific amoeba causing problems is called naegleria fowleri. The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals cited two cases in Louisiana in which people who used neti pots improperly later died from the amoeba. The department said in a warning:

Naegleria fowleri infection typically occurs when people go swimming or diving in warm freshwater lakes and rivers. In very rare instances, Naegleria fowleri infections may also occur when contaminated water from other sources (such as inadequately chlorinated swimming pool water or heated tap water less than 116.6 degrees Fahrenheit) enters the nose when people submerge their heads or when people irrigate their sinuses with devices such as a neti pot. You cannot be infected with Naegleria fowleri by drinking water.

“If you are irrigating, flushing, or rinsing your sinuses, for example, by using a neti pot, use distilled, sterile or previously boiled water to make up the irrigation solution,” Louisiana State Epidemiologist, Dr. Raoult Ratard, said in the warning.  “Tap water is safe for drinking, but not for irrigating your nose.”  It’s also important to rinse the irrigation device after each use and leave open to air dry, the warning said.

RELATED LINKS

Dec. 19, 2011, NPR.org, “Second Net-Pot Death from Amoeba Prompts Tap-Water Warning.”

Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals warning on neti pots.

The department has taught CPR to more than 1,000 people since 2009. The new Family & Friends CPR is for people who want to learn CPR but do not need a course completion card for their jobs.

This course is ideal for schools and students, new parents, grandparents, babysitters and others interested in learning how to save a life. Family & Friends CPR classes will be offered on the third Saturday of each month at Kannapolis Fire Station No. 1 (300 Firehouse Drive, Kannapolis) and are free of charge. To register for a class, please contact Patsy Harrison at 704-920-4265.

Kannapolis Fire Department is working with Rowan Cabarrus Community College to offer several healthcare provider classes throughout the 2012 year. These classes will also be held at Kannapolis Fire Station No. 1. For information on the healthcare provider classes, please contact RCCC at 704-216-3513.

For those who haven’t already seen it, guests on Saturday can tour the Y’s newly renovated fitness facility that opened last month.

The interior of the wellness center, complete with new equipment and better lighting. (YMCA photo)

The center features:

• Larger, brighter and more open workout space
• New and improved Life Fitness strength equipment
• Panoramic views of Lake Cornelius
• Precor TRM 885 Cardio Equipment, including top-of-the-line commercial treadmills, private viewing screens, touch screen consoles, heart rate monitors, integrated Footplant Technology and Ground Effects impact control
• Stay Healthy fitness tracking technology available with all equipment

Open house visitors will be able to try the new fitness equipment, participate in group exercise demonstrations, meet staff members and familiarize themselves with the other facilities and services offered at the Lake Norman YMCA.

All community members are invited to attend.

Cyclists ride through Antiquity. (Chip Dawson / DavidsonNews.net)

By CHIP DAWSON
DavidsonNews.net

This is bike country. The weather and the open road become a siren call for many of us year around.
You can have a nice outing exploring the trails and neighborhoods of Cornelius and Davidson. If you’re a more serious biker, try the county and state roads to the north and east or head west on Catawba and explore all the residential neighborhoods along the lake. A ride down Jetton and through all its side roads can net you well over 30 miles.

SAFETY – THE NUMBERS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES

While it provides great exercise and good times, bicycling is also a job. You must be serious about the condition of your bike, your equipment and your skills. According to the CDC, more than 500,000 people in the U.S. are treated in emergency departments, and more than 700 people die as a result of bicycle-related injuries each year. One study showed that one third of the injuries are significant head injuries.

On average, 23 North Carolina bicyclists are killed each year and more than 800 are injured. A majority of those involved in crashes are adults, and two thirds of crash injuries occur in urban areas. In fact, Mecklenburg County is at the top of the list, reporting the most crashes of all North Carolina counties – 11.7 percent of the total. Alcohol use by cyclists was found in 8.3 percent of the crashes. Click here to see the full North Carolina bicycle crash report along with other state cycling and pedestrian research.

BASIC RULES SAVE LIVES

Bikers concentrate as they travel on Main Street in Davidson. (Chip Dawson / DavidsonNews.net)

As bad as the statistics may seem, you don’t need to be a victim if you know what your doing. Here are some solid rules to stay safe:

• Remember, bicycles are considered to be vehicles under the law. You must follow the same rules as cars.
• Ride in the direction of traffic to the right side of the lane or in the shoulder or bike lane (if safe to do so).
• Signal turns and turn from the proper lane
• Don’t ride in the turn lane if you’re traveling straight through (stay in the through lane).
• Stop for all stop signs and lights. Proceed when safe if your bike doesn’t trip the light signal wire.
• If you’re not comfortable in traffic, especially on the narrow roads with no shoulders common in this area, stick to the trails and residential streets.
• Always wear a helmet—even if you’re an adult. Serious bikers wear a helmet not because they take more risk, but because they know how easy it is to crash a bike and strike your head.

HELMETS

I’ve been a serious biker for decades and I’ve crashed twice. Once I slid on loose sand in the road at 5 miles per hour, and the other time I was stopped and lost my balance. In both cases, my helmet took the blow to my head – it was cracked but my head was not.

Old, narrow roads with open grates, like this one on N. Main St. in Cornelius, increase the risk for bikers. (Chip Dawson / DavidsonNews.net)

When I see kids in helmets and their parents with bare heads, or a couple of older folks on their easy riders with no helmets, I worry about what will happen if they catch a wheel in a pot hole, or on the road shoulder, or crossing tracks. It’s folks like them who make up a significant number of the injury cases cited above.

Both North Carolina and Cornelius require helmets on those younger than 16 and Cornelius also requires helmets for in-line skates, roller skates, skateboards and non-motorized scooters.
REI, the outfitter, has some excellent riding tips and videos on their web site. Click here to see them.

For a Guide to North Carolina Bicycle and Pedestrian Laws, click here. In the guide, you’ll find lots of interesting facts. For example, bicyclists can be charged with reckless operation, which is defined as wanton disregard for the rights and safety of others.

For a safe and fun ride, just check out the resources linked above, stop at the bike shop to get your bike and your protective equipment checked, and start peddling.