The Shape of America
Brett Cohen-Certified Fitness Trainer

Losing weight is a national obsession. In 2000, consumers in the United States spent approximately $35 billion on weight-loss products ranging from books and videos to drugs and diet shakes. Yet countless studies show that Americans today are in worse shape than at any other time in recent history.

This trend has paradoxically occurred while health clubs, home exercise equipment and heavily promoted diet plans have proliferated. The number of fitness centers in the U.S. has tripled to 18,000 since the mid 1980's. Since 1987, club membership has almost doubled. Despite the glut of diet foods and health clubs, Americans are growing plumper!

The percentage of overweight Americans has increased by about one-third in the last 20 years. This disturbing trend even afflicts our young people with more than 25% of today's children overweight. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys show that 23 percent of adults were obese in 1994 compared with 15 percent in 1980. The percentage of overweight or obese Americans is even greater now. "Today about 65 percent of U.S. adults are overweight or obese," according to Surgeon General Richard Carmona," and more than two-thirds of all adults are trying to keep it off."

Just what does it mean to be overweight or obese? A body mass index (BMI) between 25 and 30 is considered overweight. Obesity is defined as having a body-mass index of 30 or above and is accompanied by serious health consequences. Body mass index is determined by comparing weight in relation to height. The measurement is dependent on mass, not body fat. (1) When applied to sedentary people, the formula seems to be quite an accurate gauge of one's condition. (2) Researchers and health professionals use this index as a predictor of chronic disease. Body mass index can determine one's risk of dying before reaching full life expectancy and can give an estimate of how much weight one needs to lose. (1)

The Culprits
First: The average American doesn't exercise nearly enough! Only 15 percent of Americans engage in vigorous exercise for 20 minutes three times a week. (3) Second: We are eating too much! In the past 25 years, portion sizes served in restaurants and fast-food eateries have increased dramatically. Research clearly shows that when more food is on our plate, we eat more. The public health implications are profound, as researchers now point to larger portion sizes as one of the primary reasons our waistlines are expanding. (4) Obese Americans consume more than 20% of calories from cakes, cookies, pies, pastries, ice cream, sugar, candy, syrup, soda pop, corn chips and potato chips. (1)

The Solution
Moderate exercise, eating more fruits and vegetables, fewer fats and sweets. As the largest weight-loss study ever conducted by Consumer Reports shows, there is no "magic-bullet", just good ol' fashioned sensible dieting and exercising that works. The magazine polled 32,213 dieters. Nearly 8,000 lost at least 10% of their body weight and kept it off for a year or more. Astoundingly, 83% said they lost weight and kept it off ON THEIR OWN, with no special foods, supplements, drugs or commercial weight-loss programs. They cut portion sizes, ate more fruits and vegetables, avoided sweets and junk food and exercised at least three times per week.(5) "There is no miracle pill that will lead to weight-loss," Surgeon General Carmona said. "Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight requires a lifelong commitment to healthful eating and adequate physical activity."

But Americans are not responding to the call. Why? Americans are among the brightest people in the world. Why are we not making the changes necessary to improve the quality of our lives? "I believe the answer lies in the way we, as Americans, view our lives." says Dr. Jane Pentz, Founder of Lifestyle Management Associates; Ph. D. in Nutritional Biochemistry and Ph. D. in Human Nutrition Sciences from the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University. "Our top priority is making a living. A necessity to be sure. Without food, shelter, and clothing life becomes painful-pleasure and joy become lost. Our hectic lifestyles prevent us from taking the time to contemplate what is truly important. We have day-timers under our arms helping us to make the most out of every moment. We have e-mail and pagers, all in the name of maximizing efficiency. But there comes a time when we must ask ourselves where in the world are we going? Without direction, we simply continue to run around in circles."

The Shape of America
Americans are just too fat! Americans have too much food available to them. Social situations encourage overeating, restaurants compete by offering larger servings and technology has made it possible to avoid exercise. In this technological age we no longer do much physical work. We make our living by reading, writing, speaking and thinking, but seldom by physical labor. Most of us are office workers, not construction workers, and consequently our muscles are atrophied from disuse. The nature of our work is written on our physiques and the imprint of our sedentary lifestyles can be read in our posture, gait and head carriage. The physical profile of most middle-aged Americans is distressingly similar-necks canted forward, shoulders rounded, abdomens flaccid, and appendages skinny and weak. Our neglected bodies often serve only as a repository for stress, depression, and illness. (8) If we continue to eat far more than we need and exercise far less that we should, experts believe virtually every U.S. adult will be overweight within a few generations.

In 1995, the American College of Sports Medicine estimated that as many as 250,000 Americans die prematurely every year because of their sedentary habits. To put this into perspective, five times as many people succumb to the effects of their inactive lifestyles than are killed in automobile accidents. According to the Centers for Disease Control, almost 60 percent of Americans are physically inactive and less than 10 percent exercise intensively. In spite of all the rhetoric about the need to live an active, healthy lifestyle, few Americans have heeded the call. Most have chosen a life of destructive self-indulgence. (8)

Obesity increases the risk of a number of serious ailments, including diabetes, heart disease, strokes, high blood pressure, some types of cancer and other chronic disorders. Some studies have shown an increase of up to 60% in the risk of death from all causes for obese people.

The statistics indicate that most of us will live to see old age. That's the good news. The bad news is that some of us will acquire one or more forms of a chronic disease, either disabling us or reducing the quality of our lives. The Journal of the American Medical Society indicates that chronic disease is on the rise affecting nearly 100 million Americans in 1995. By the year 2020 this figure is expected to reach 134 million. Our nation is in jeopardy-chronic diseases are occurring in epidemic proportions. (1)

"The quality of your life and your relationship to others depends on the fact that you must have a place to live. We are a replacement society-if the car or TV breaks down, we simply replace it. We cannot replace our bodies. There is no buying another one. Many people believe that a miracle-working physician or a miracle drug will fix their bodies if they break down. The fact is degenerative diseases of old age (heart disease, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, etc.) are chronic diseases; they do not go away. They may subside temporarily, but they are incurable. The key to conquering them is to do what we can to prevent them from occurring in the first place. The evidence is far too great to ignore the facts any longer. There is a direct relationship between the food we eat, our physical activity level, our stress level and long-term health. Yes, genetics does play a part. But genetics can be understood by the following analogy. Some of us are given a compact car to get through life, while others are given a big luxurious limousine. Both will get us through life, but even the limousine will end up in the junk yard if we don't take care of it. Remember, we alone are responsible for our own health even through our senior years. We must all leave this world one day, but how and when we do is partially under our control." -Dr. Jane Pentz

Making Time to Exercise
The October 2002 edition of Runner's World Magazine features U.S. President George W. Bush running his first public 3 mile race, which he completed in 20:29. President Bush has been a runner since 1972 and completed the Houston Marathon in 1993 with a time of 3:44:00. He began running as an out-of-shape 25 year old at the suggestion of a friend. "Back then I was a man known to drink a beer or two, "said the President. "Overtime, I'm convinced that running helped me quit drinking and smoking. Running just makes you feel fantastic. In essence, it keeps me young. Running is a way to heal people." "As a runner, I quickly realized what it felt like to be healthy, and I already knew what it felt like to be unhealthy," claims the President.

"I believe anyone can make time to exercise. As a matter of fact, I don't believe it-I know it," said the President. "If the President of the United States can make the time, anyone can." "A healthy work force is a more productive work force. We have got to do a better job of encouraging exercise in America." The experts agree. Exercise is one of the most important daily activities one can engage in. Make it happen. The President of the United States exercises almost every day. You should too. (6)

Brett's Bottom Line
Far too many Americans choose pain and disability rather than health. What is commonly called "health insurance" is really "disease insurance". It helps pay for your treatment when you are sick; it doesn't keep you well. (7) Americans have come to believe that the pursuit of health is a burden, an imposition on their already over-scheduled, over-committed lives. Yet maintaining a healthy lifestyle is not burdensome-it is liberation . (8) Time and money are of little worth without health. Success without vitality is of no value. It is never too late or too early to begin the journey to fitness. No matter what age or physical condition, the time to begin is now….

References
1) Nutritional Specialist Manual-By Dr. Jane Pentz
2) Men's Fitness Magazine-October 2002
3) Shape Magazine-November 2002
4) Runner's World Magazine-November 2002 (Size Matters-By Liz Applegate Ph.D.)
5) ECA NEWS-Fall 2002
6) Runner's World Magazine-October 2002
7) Real Food-Real Fast-By Rico Caveglia
8) Fitness is Religion-By Ray Kybartas