Saving Money by Being Healthy

Steve Lichtman on Money Matters with Barry Armstrong

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Part Four

Barry Armstrong talks with Steve Lichtman, President of Lifestyle Fitness Corp which owns 4 Fitness Together personal training franchises. Fitness Together (FT) is the Official Health and Fitness Sponsor for the American Diabetes Association’s Step Out: Walk to Fight Diabetes campaign. FT is conducting a type 2 diabetes study to help people lose weight, lower their blood sugar and reduce their dependency on medication (save money). For their research, Fitness Together studios across MA & RI are looking for type 2 diabetics for this ground-breaking study. Steve also discusses saving money through being healthy, good nutrition and how FT trainers help all their clients with personal, one-on-one training, especially those who have always had to struggle to lose weight and then maintain that weight loss.

Barry has hosted Money Matters Radio with Barry Armstrong for over 10 years. His passion is to educate listeners and help them with their financial questions and quandaries. With 25 years of expertise in the financial services industry Barry is experienced at solving the many financial issues that are discussed daily on the show.

For more information on Fitness Together in MA

For more information on the FT/ADA Type 2 Diabetes Study

Doodlez Raising Money For Diabetes

Abi with Doodlez

Abigail McGlone has had Type 1 Diabetes for over 10 years. A few years back she came up with the idea of making her own educational film about diabetes to help other kids. Abi also created a little character named Doodlez who is the film’s mascot, cheering us on as we take the steps needed to make this film project a reality. Abi and her mom will be selling Doodlez plush toys at Medfield Day on September 25th. 100% of the proceeds from the sale of Doodlez will go to the Fitness Together Cardio For A Cure fundraising campaign for the American Diabetes Association.

The Diagnosis – Type 1 Diabetes

It was September 5th, 1999. What would normally be a carefree Labor Day weekend was not turning out that way. Abigail, our cheerful and energetic almost 3 year-old daughter was not herself. She was exceptionally thirsty, soaking through multiple layers of diapers overnight and acting very lethargic. Surprisingly, a doctor missed these classic symptoms during our office visit just three days earlier. Then on September 6th, Labor Day Monday, things still didn’t seem right so we went back to a different doctor. This time, much to our shock and despair, we were told to go immediately to Children’s Hospital Boston since Abigail almost certainly had Juvenile Diabetes.

Dealing with the Disease – The Grade School Years

It’s been over 10 years since that devastating weekend. Abigail, who now goes by Abi, is a 13 year-old young lady who wears an insulin pump 24/7 and checks her blood sugar 5-7 times per day. An active teenager with lots of friends, Abi has learned to live with her diabetes quite well, without too many struggles. However, throughout her school years she has often been frustrated with people not truly understanding her disease. Abi felt that the educational films about diabetes shown at school throughout the years were either outdated or didn’t give an accurate story of what it’s like to live with this disease. This is when Abi came up with the idea to make our own educational film to help kids understand what it’s really like to live with Type 1 diabetes.

Doing Something to Help – The Film & Doodlez!

Abi’s idea to create a film sounded like a good idea to her family. After much consideration, lots of time and work, a script was conceived and written for a ten minute film which we titled, “The Balancing Act: A Day in the Life of a Kid with Type 1 Diabetes”. We chose this name since diabetes itself is a daily balancing act, constantly balancing insulin, food and exercise in order to keep blood sugar levels in a safe and healthy range. Around this same time, Abi created a character that she was always doodling on her schoolwork, and she called this character Doodlez. It was such an adorable little character that we decided to have Doodlez introduce the film. We also had Doodlez made into a 4” plush toy that kids can clip onto their backpacks. Our goal is to get Doodlez in the hands of newly diagnosed kids, along with the educational DVD. At this point we have an inventory of 500 Doodlez plush toys ready to go and waiting for the film to be made!

Moving Forward – Get that Film Made!

Our goal is to get the film produced as soon as possible and to make it available to schools, hospitals and libraries throughout the United States. We believe this will help kids and teachers gain a better understanding of what life is like on a daily basis for kids with Type 1 diabetes. By doing this, Abi hopes that kids like her will be able to avoid the anxiety and frustration she felt during her grade school years. Our wish is to find a corporate partner, ideally a blood glucose meter manufacturer who would sponsor the film. Once completed, we would package the film, the glucose meter and the Doodlez plush-toy and have it ready for distribution throughout the United States. Abi is also the voice of the animated Doodlez, who appears in our website and in our 10 minute film. The picture on the left shows Abi recording the voice of Doodlez in a recording studio in New York City.

Go here for more information on Doodlez

Friend Doodlez on FaceBook

Map to Medfield Day

Participants Still Needed For FT/ADA Type 2 Diabetes Study

Our latest commercials. Fitness Together is still looking for participants in their Type 2 Diabetes study they are holding across MA and RI.

For more info and to see if you qualify, go here on WCVB

Steffi’s Story

We just wanted to pass along this inspiring story from 13 year-old Stephanie Mowad who has been assigned to Fitness Together as our “corporate inspiration” for the ADA Boston Step Out Walk. Stephanie will be writing us monthly emails leading up to the walk and you will all have the chance to meet her at the event on October 23rd.

As you will read, Stephanie has type 1 diabetes. She explains how difficult life can be for a kids with type 1 diabetes and how much a cure would change her life. We thought perhaps sharing or posting this letter in your studio might inspire more people to get involved with the Cardio for a Cure program and to do some fund-raising for this very important cause. The more support and awareness we can give to the ADA, the better chance these kids will have of living even a small part of their lives diabetes-free.

Keep up the good work with the Cardio for a Cure campaign and keep pushing towards our goal

Steffi Mowad

Hello, my name is Stephanie Mowad, and I was diagnosed with Type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetes two and a half years ago, in March of 2008, at the age of 10. This was a difficult time for me and my family. I had lost 22 pounds, and was drinking excessively. My mother also noticed several black and blue spots covering my body. Being concerned, but not letting on, she made a doctors appointment for me, and it was then that I was informed that I had diabetes. We had just moved back from El Paso, TX one year prior, and we were still trying to adjust ourselves to our new city, new home, new job and new schools. We were already overwhelmed. We were definitely not ready for a new illness. The weeks to follow were the most horrifying weeks of our lives.

It was at this time that I had to learn to test my blood sugar levels, by drawing blood from my fingers, up to seven times a day. Then, after determining whether or not my levels were too low or too high, I had to either eat a fast acting snack, or I had to receive an insulin injection to curtail any further rise in my blood sugar level. Unfortunately, I had to take up to seven or more shots per day until I was placed on an insulin pump. I was pretty scared throughout this time, not knowing whether a low blood sugar would place me in a coma, or too many high blood sugars would cause damage to my body. It was a constant watch, and a constant unknown.

It has been a tough two years, but through education and the wonderful people that I have met through friends, school, Children’s Hospital and the ADA, I have learned much and have been able to not only control my diabetes, but am also able to live a very healthy and active life. I was also inducted as a Junior Youth Leader to the ADA last October, during the Step Out and Walk to Fight Against Diabetes in Boston.

The constant fear that I had been living with subsided. I learned that as long as I check my sugar levels consistently, watch my diet and exercise regularly, I can live a healthy and normal life and enjoy all of the things that I have grown to enjoy, like dance and soccer. Sure, every now and again, I may have to leave a dance class, or the soccer field for a low, but as soon as I treat my low blood sugar, I am right back in the game. The best part of all is that it has become second nature to all those around me, too. I no longer feel like the ‘different person’. I am just the person who needs to take extra precaution prior to engaging in a fun filled activity.

I may not like the fact that I was diagnosed with diabetes, and I may forever ask ‘Why Me’, but I know one thing for sure, that one day, with the help and support of people like you, a cure will be found, and I will no longer have to take those additional steps before partaking and enjoying life.

Until then, I will do what I can to help and educate others, and hope to be an inspiration.

Thank you,

Stephanie Mowad

Type 2 Study by FT Studios In MA & RI

Impact Of Diet & Exercise Impact On Diabetes Will Be Researched

50 Participants Needed For Study

Some of the newest clients exercising at area Fitness Together franchised studios in Massachusetts and Rhode Island are doing more than stepping on a scale to chart their progress. They’re giving blood.

They are part of a type 2 diabetes observational study being conducted by area Fitness Together studios to examine the impact of a 26-week individualized fitness training program. Regular blood glucose tests with a small prick on the finger are as important as the exercise in measuring safe success.

“Diabetes is a major health issue affecting more than 24 million Americans, and our franchisees have told us they are happy to have a chance to make a difference,” says Jeff Jervik, president and CEO of Fitness Together Holdings, Inc.

Fitness Together studios are welcoming a minimum of 50 subjects to the program and will share the results with the American Diabetes Association (ADA) of Eastern New England where the Fitness Together franchise group is also the Official Health and Fitness Sponsor for the ADA’s Step Out: Walk to Fight Diabetes.

In one of the largest research projects of its kind, 42 Fitness Together studios have assembled across Massachusetts and Rhode Island to enlist men and women over the age of 30 who have been clinically diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and are more than 30 pounds overweight. They will be monitored a Certified Diabetes Educator as well as Fitness Together studio personal trainers.

“Through this study, we will better understand the impact of diet and exercise on diabetes control, high blood pressure, one’s sense of well-being and the costs of medications,” explains Joan Hill, Registered Dietitian, Certified Diabetes Educator and Licensed Dietitian/Nutritionist (RD, CDE, LDN).

“The mission of the ADA is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. We are supportive of the Fitness Together franchise group’s efforts to gather information for a better understanding on how working with a personal trainer can motivate those with diabetes to improve their control,” said Chris Boynton, executive director for the Eastern New England area of the American Diabetes Association.

From July through December, the Fitness Together studios will chart weight loss and conduct A1c tests, which measure one’s average blood glucose level and helps track if people are at risk of complications due to uncontrolled diabetes. The studios will also track blood pressure, medication use and sense of well-being before and after test results and look for indicators of significant health improvements from the clients. People with type 2 diabetes who wish to be part of the study can locate participating studios at our Cardio For A Cure page on the BostonChannel.com or through our blog page on Step Up For A Cure Studio List

Each client who signs up for the type 2 diabetes study must be cleared by a doctor to exercise and must agree to six-months of observation for the following:

• resistance training three times a week with a personal trainer in the studio
• cardiovascular exercise a minimum of three times a week in the studio
• an initial fitness evaluation followed by fitness re-tests every six weeks
• documenting of all meals in a nutrition journal
• frequent blood glucose checks at Fitness Together

In the help to fight diabetes, the Fitness Together studio franchise owners have also pledged to raise a minimum of $40,000 for the ADA Eastern New England Chapter. To join the cause, you can make a donation at participating studios or visit our Cardio for a Cure link in cooperation with the ADA.

Online press | Providence Journal | News9 West

Drew Carey Type 2 Diabetic Sheds 80 lbs

Type 2 Comedian Drew Carey Sheds 80 Pounds, Says No-Carb Diet Did It

Keep a close eye on this story. It has two elements necessary for creating a lot of buzz: a celebrity and his unconventional “cure” for a disease.

People magazine reports that comedian Drew Carey says he has stopped his type 2 diabetes – and the need to take any medications for it – by shedding 80 pounds through a diet in which he almost totally gave up eating carbohydrates.

A changed man

Carey, 52, said he has dropped 80 pounds since going on a no-carb diet in J January. The comedian, who gained a nationwide audience with his long-running “The Drew Carey Show” on ABC (1995-2004), has always appeared as husky and somewhat overweight. But the photo accompanying the People article shows a startlingly transformed, slender man.

In his diet, Carey says he eliminated almost all carbohydrates, including pizza, bread, crackers and any grain or starch-based food. Instead he focused on foods like egg whites and yogurt. His only concession to carbs was to eat some fruit.

Carey combined his no-carb diet with a lot of time in the gym, doing 45-minute cardio workout sessions.

The end result, he claims, is a 10-size drop in the pants he wears and the end of his diabetes. His plan is to shed more weight and drop one more pant size.

That’s where the controversy comes in. Can somebody “cure” himself of type 2 by undertaking the radical changes in weight and diet that Carey did? Perhaps the furthest that any medical expert would go in describing Carey’s condition is to say that his type 2 symptoms are in remission. If he can maintain his new weight and diet, he may stay in remission indefinitely.

There’s also the matter of Carey’s extremely low-carb diet. Even the staunchest advocates of high-protein/low-carb diets call for some carbohydrate intake. It’s simply too hard for most people’s metabolisms to create glucose exclusively from fat and protein. Carey’s inclusion of fruits in his diet allowed for some carbs even as he excluded ones supplied by highly refined foods.

So, technically, Carey didn’t undertake a totally no-carb diet. But he came close, according to his claims. For now, his story is just one other piece of anecdotal evidence that says people with diabetes (and pre-diabetes) should consider adopting a low-carb lifestyle. But Carey’s celebrity status may also inspire further research into the question of just how many carbohydrates people with diabetes or pre-diabetes really need.

Source | Diabetes Health