The writer is president and CEO of United HealthCare of North Carolina.

Garland Scott

By GARLAND SCOTT

Obesity is tipping the scales as one of North Carolina’s biggest problems. Over the last 20 years in North Carolina, the percentage of the population that is obese has increased from 12.9 percent to 29.5 percent.

That’s an alarming trend, and it’s playing out in just about every community across the country. In fact, it’s a trend that has catapulted obesity to one of the top health problem facing our state and our nation. Read the full story

Davidson Parks & Recreation is now taking registration for a new series of fitness classes in the new year.

Beginning in January, they include: Body Sculpting for Women, Resistance to the Core, Belly Dancing, Stretch and Strengthen, Zumba, Yoga, Semi-Private Personal Training, Weight Loss Challenge.

Registration and a complete schedule are available at www.ci.davidson.nc.us. (Click on P&R Registration on the left)

Joe Higgins teaches Sun-style Tai Chi.

The Cornelius PARC Department will offer a class in Sun Style Tai Chi for participants ages 18 and up. The 8-week session runs Mondays from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. starting Jan. 11 in the community room of Cornelius Town Hall, 21445 Catawba Ave.

This program uses one of the four major Tai Chi styles. This exercise program works muscles, joints and tendons while placing the least amount of stress and tension on these areas. Sun Style uses agile steps and gentle, flowing circular movements to provide a fitness and health exercise and a “moving meditation.” Read the full story

Cyclists had sunny weather for last year's ride in January. (Ron Donson photo)

The Rocky River Road Club will host its 12th annual “Polar Bear Metric Century” 100k (62 mile) and 50k (31 mile) bicycle rides Saturday, Jan. 9, from Davidson through the countryside in north Mecklenburg, Iredell and Rowan counties. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Ada Jenkins Center on Gamble Street in Davidson. Read the full story

An ongoing feud between a long-distance runner and officials in Portsmouth, N.H., has wound up in court, where a judge has ruled to ban him from the city. Runner Craig O’Brien, 48, said police harassed him for his daily exercise routine after he began running in downtown Portsmouth. Police say “he interrupts vehicular traffic” and they have the right to take “appropriate action.” Read the tale in a Boston Globe story posted on the Boston.com, “For jogger, no more crossing the line.”

SOURCE: Snap Fitness

Here are some tips for keeping yourself motivated in your workout routine.

1. Vary your routine every so often to prevent boredom and provide enhanced benefits by working different muscle fibers within the same broad muscle groups. Try different exercises; try doing more reps and lighter weights one day; more weight and less reps another day, etc.

Read the full story

ADVERTISEMENT. Snap Fitness is a DavidsonNews.net advertiser.

SOURCE: Snap Fitness
Your muscular strength affects nearly everything you do on a daily basis. That’s why strength training is an essential part of a well-rounded fitness program, especially during the summer. Strength training not only tightens and tones, helps strengthens your bones, prevents muscle loss and injury, but there are significant weight-loss benefits.

A regular cardio routine will help you increase your heart rate, and that in turn will burn calories. But that’s only half the equation when it comes to managing your weight. Not only is strength training essential in helping you to look trimmer and shapelier, but the added muscle helps you burn more calories – even after your workout is done.

For dieters, this type of exercise is even more important. When you lose weight, up to a quarter of the loss may come from muscle, which can slow your metabolism. Strength training helps you rebuild any muscle you lost by dieting – or keep you from losing it in the first place. Consider a few other facts:

• Muscle is your body’s primary calorie burner – it’s more metabolically active. At rest, each pound of muscle burns 30-50 calories a day, while a pound of fat burns only 2 calories. One study showed that strength training increases the number of calories the body burns at rest by as much as 7 percent a day.
• Adults over the age of 30 lose an average of 1 percent of their strength per year. But increases in strength can occur at any age.
• As you lose muscle through aging or inactivity, your metabolism slows. It starts an unhealthy cycle – you gain fat, become more sedentary, lose more muscle and gain more fat. Strength training helps you reverse the cycle!

Learn more about starting a fitness plan at www.snapfitness.com.

Following is an excerpt from Brenda Barger’s Around Davidson column, April 2, 2009.

Jeff Heal

Finding a coupon for a free consultation and training session at one of DavidsonNews.net‘s advertisers made your correspondent lace up her Sauconys for a one-hour appointment at “Fitness Together” located in Davidson Commons adjacent to PostNet. What a delightful hour to find out that geriatric muscles still had a little life left in them and furthermore to get to meet owner, Jeff Heal.

Born and raised in New Jersey, Jeff graduated from East Stroudsburg University where he ran hurdles, 4×4 relays and Read the full story

The Wall Street Journal reports this week that a growing number of people are joining what are being called “brain gyms.” These are small businesses that typically offer brain-teaser programs that are supposed to help keep your mind in shape as you age. The Journal reports that “the scientific jury is still out” on whether these help, but it’s not stopping people from joining. Read the article, “The Latest in Mental Health: Working Out at the Brain Gym”

More health and fitness links

Below we catch up on some reading from Cognitive Daily, a pyschology blog written by Dave and Greta Munger of Davidson. Their daily posts offer an easy-to-read look at the latest research and trends in the psychology world. You can read them daily at http://scienceblogs.com/cognitivedaily/ Read the full story

A new fitness business called Snap Fitness opened its doors on Monday, Oct. 20, at 130 Harbour Place Drive.

Amie Cennamo

Owners Victor and Amie Cennamo said the club provides a “convenient, less-expensive and non-intimidating alternative” to “big-box” competitors. “We cut costly and space-consuming amenities – pools, ball courts, child care, etc. – debunking the ‘bigger is better’ mentality and focusing on a high quality, not quantity, workout experience for people of all fitness levels,” she said in a press release. Read the full story