Stepping Out For A Cure 2011

Martha Leta, Maureen Sullivan, Medtronic's Lenny the Lion, Steve Lichtman and Vance Varian

News From The Front Lines by Martha Hicks Leta

All in all, Saturday October 22 was a great day for a walk, especially when it meant raising money and awareness to put an end to diabetes. While the showing from Fitness Together wasn’t as strong as last year, (we’ll hang that on the timing of our PACK Training rollouts) it was still pretty darn respectable.

Steve Lichtman, team captain for Cohasset, led our rag tag band of warriors, arriving at the crack of dawn to trick out the Fitness Together tent with banners, brochures, clipboards and flags. The team filled out nicely as the morning warmed with Maureen Sullivan from North Andover; Cathy Schaum, Marianne Cristello, Linda Morancy, Jean McQuestion, Irene Rossi, Michelle Rossi and trainer Vance Varian from Tyngsboro/Nashua. The Leta Family (Yours Truly with husband Lou, and daughters Bonnie and Caroline) carried the banner for Team Norwell; Representin’ for Notorious Team Westford was the ever-intrepid Ken Ballou and trainer Kati Salowski. Closing the age gap was baby Kaden Cardoza from Dedham, who had to be pushed in his stroller by parents Lisa and Michael Cardoza because, at two months old, apparently he’s “too little” to walk yet. (Whatever. We want to see him doing mountain climbers by Christmas, Michael.)

The Fitness Together tent, set in a primo location next to the registration area, attracted a fascinating variety of people who stopped by throughout the day to learn about our programs and to share their personal stories.

Maureen Sullivan chatted with a young woman who, while signing up her father to win some PACK training sessions, told Maureen about the difficulties of getting her rambunctious young cousin to sit still for his daily insulin injections. Maureen says, “The woman told me that the young boy turned to his older brother one day and said, ‘When I grow up, there will be a cure for my disease and I’ll be normal just like you.’ Here we are years later,” says Maureen, “Closer to a cure, but still with a high number of people suffering from the disease. That is why she walks every year.”

After the walk we were joined for lunch by Barbara, a woman with type 2 diabetes who’d been crippled by polio during her childhood in Italy in the 1960s. She said that in the early 1990’s several of her family members developed diabetes in quick succession. She wants to find a cure. Despite her dependence on a wheelchair, she came to volunteer for the walk and refused my offer to carry her trash to the waste barrel. “No, thanks. I’m perfectly capable of doing it myself.” And off she went.

We also met Noah, a young lad who went from table to table handing out temporary tattoos and Silly Bands shaped like blue flamingos. He calls himself “The Diabetes Dude” and says, “I have diabetes, but diabetes doesn’t have me.” At the age of 10, the Diabetes Dude has made it his personal business to travel the country telling his story. “I spend my time raising awareness of diabetes wherever I go, every chance I get and will continue to do so until there is a cure.”

Clearly, this cause matters a lot to a lot of people and the money raised is a big part of it. MC’d by Mix 104 morning drive disc jockey Karson, the opening ceremony featured team leaders and corporate sponsor presentations. FT’s own Steve Lichtman presented a check to the ADA for $20,000, an amount that roughly represents the collective contributions, thus far, from all Fitness Together Studios participating in the 2011 ADA co-operative program.

Patriot's defensive lineman Vince Wilfork | Darrell Lavoie Photography darrell.lavoie@yahoo.com

Patriot’s defensive lineman Vince Wilfork, who is raising money for his own diabetes foundation, said a few words about his late father, who was stricken by diabetes before he ever got the chance to see his son turn pro. “I had to give him shots at times, he was so weak,” said Wilfork. “I had to bathe him, had to take him to the restroom. There was a lot going on that my brother and I had to deal with. That’s why this is really close and dear to my heart.”

Though the big man was a hard act to follow, Tyngsboro/Nashua’s own big man, trainer Vance Varian, got the crowd fired up with a warm-up to Maroon 5’s “Moves Like Jagger.” Said Vance’s boss, Cathy Schaum, “I was very proud of my young trainer leading the warm-ups. I thought he was very poised and enthusiastic in leading the crowd and represented the entire FT organization very well.”

Along with Fitness Together’s sizable group donation to the ADA, the organization can be especially proud of Fitness Together Westford, which came in third place for individual corporate fundraising at $5,115, trailing Walgreen’s Boston North and Waters Corporation. Westford owner Greg Briggle is also listed among the top 20 individual fundraisers. Greg’s talent and enthusiasm for fundraising for this cause is inspirational.

The number of walkers estimated at the event came in around 3,000. To date the ADA is at 59% of their total goal of $500,000.

You can still donate for the cause through our page at FTMass

View more photos from the walk on Facebook

For more information about Fitness Together in Massachusetts please go to FTGetsResults.com

Helping To Cure Diabetes One Step At A Time

Troy Allard, Jess DeVoid and Megan Anderson lead warmup with assistance from Steve Lichtman

The ground was soggy and the rain came down hard, but that didn’t stop Fitness Together trainers Jess DeVoid, Troy Allard and Megan Anderson from getting the crowds riled up for the walk that lay ahead. With Pink’s “Get this Party Started” blasting in the background, the three led participants for the American Diabetes Association’s Step Out: Walk to Stop Diabetes through stretches, jumping jacks and other exercises as onlookers cheered from the sidelines.

Steve Lichtman, owner of Fitness Together Westborough gets walkers fired up.

Held on October 1 at Worcester’s UMass Medical School Campus, the walk raised awareness and funds to research, prevent, cure and manage diabetes. Steve Lichtman, whose Fitness Together Studio in Westborough is listed among the top corporate fundraisers for the event, said, “We really have two objectives here: one, for people to raise money and awareness to find a cure for diabetes, but also there’s a huge growing population of people with pre-diabetes and if we don’t do something about that from an exercise perspective, were going to see some problems in the years to come.”

The walk was one of several such events to take place in New England this fall. The Central Massachusetts Step Out Walk, has thus far raised over 60% of their total fundraising goal of $100, 000. Fitness Together in Westborough is one of many Fitness Together studios in New England raising money and awareness for the American Diabetes Association. Last year the group was given an award by the ADA for raising over $54, 000 for diabetes research.

The next such event will take place in Boston on October 22. Go here to participate or donate

FT Westborough

To find an FT Studio go to FTGetsResults

Taking On U.S. Diabetes Problem One Workout at a Time

Steve Lichtman accepts award from Jamin Reda of the American Diabetes Association Credit Martha Hicks Leta

FT’s Steve Lichtman is the kind of guy who walks the walk when it comes to charitable causes. For the past several years he’s corralled the efforts of Fitness Together studios across New England to raise money and awareness for the American Diabetes Association’s Step Out Walk to Fight Diabetes. But in more important ways, he’s made it his business to show how he and others can dramatically improve the lives of people with type 2 diabetes.

For Lichtman, owner of four Fitness Together studios in Massachusetts, the idea that he might have the answer to our nation’s monumental diabetes problem did not come to him all at once, but over time, kind of like the extra weight that had once gathered around his middle.

Ten years ago, Lichtman was the typical stressed-out guy, traveling all over North America for his corporate training job, hunkering down in airports, conference rooms or motels, never having time to exercise or eat healthy food, all of which compounded his chronic back pain. Then his parents became ill and he had to spend more time travelling to help them, which compounded the worry and stress. “My blood pressure was high, my cholesterol was through the roof and I didn’t know it then, but I was also heading towards becoming diabetic.” When his back pain became so bad that he couldn’t deliver an important presentation, he knew he had to make some changes.

At the behest of his doctor, Lichtman went in search of a good personal trainer. The first two were duds, but he struck gold with the third. When that trainer opened his own Fitness Together studio, Lichtman followed.

Fast forward several years, when Lichtman himself became the proud owner of Fitness Together Studios in Dedham, Westborough, Norwell and Cohasset. He loved the one-on-one workout experience, and the fact that it had helped him with his back pain so much that he no longer needed pain meds. Seeing his parents succumb to their respective illnesses drove home the importance of having a good fitness program, and now he was making it his life’s work to provide that to others. But it soon became clear there was a growing population of the American public that, more than anyone, needed what his studios had to offer: type 2 diabetics.

“About 75% of the people coming to us at Fitness Together are looking to lose a good amount of weight,” Lichtman says. “But in the last few years it became evident that it wasn’t just obesity but problems that go along with it, and in particular type 2 diabetes.”

Partnering with the American Diabetes Association, Lichtman got to work developing a program for people with type 2 diabetes that combined strength and cardiovascular training with nutrition counseling, but he wanted to be sure it was really working. He got the support of other Fitness Together studios in Massachusetts and Rhode Island and enlisted the help of help of registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator, Joan Hill. The result was an observational study that would measure the impact of diet and exercise on diabetes control, high blood pressure, sense of wellbeing. Over the next 6 months, 34 study participants at Fitness Together studios throughout New England were weighed, measured and assessed. And then they were put on the program: 2-3 personal training sessions a week, cardio workouts and nutrition counseling. Their vital statistics were recorded every six weeks, their blood glucose levels monitored periodically by their doctors. They were also asked a series of 6 questions that compared their sense of well-being at the beginning and end of the 26 weeks. Six months later, 24 participants had successfully completed the program, all showing measurably improved numbers, with many even having their medications lowered as a result. (See next week’s blog for more details about the study.)

Lichtman says he hopes the study will help insurance companies and corporations see the value of programs such as this, but he says it’s going to be an uphill battle; people still think one-on-one training is an extravagant expense. But after seeing the study results, he doesn’t agree.

“I’m told the average cost to support a person with type 2 diabetes can be as high as $25,000 per year. So, over next 40 years it is going to cost the system over $1 million dollars for that one person alone. And yet, we can design a program for somebody that, over the next year or so, could help them lose that weight, get their blood sugar under control, lower their meds and stem the risk of heart disease for a heck of a lot less money. I’ve had doctors tell me that what we offer could very well be the most cost effective solution to this healthcare problem. And with our new small group personal training (2-4 people), local HR directors are happy because we now have a fitness program that everyone can afford. And when a company contributes to our program, the cost of a training session for their employees can be less than the cost of a doctor’s visit co-pay.”

Lichtman says that seeing how much the program helped other people inspired him to step up his own commitment to his fitness routine and the American Diabetes Association. In order to raise money for last year’s Step-Out Walk to Fight Diabetes, Steve pledged to walk, bike, kayak or run 200 miles through Fitness Together’s Cardio for a Cure program which raised over $54,000. “What really motivated me was when I saw people wanting to be part of the study. It meant something to them. I thought, ‘If they can do it, I can do it, too.’”

That motivation stayed with him. “I’ve since lost 21 pounds, I’ve reversed any past issues I had with cholesterol, high blood pressure and rising glucose levels. My body fat went from a high of 27% to below 18%. I haven’t been this lean and fit since I was 28 years old,” says the 55 year old. “Who would have thought that in setting out to help others who were worse off than I was, I’d end up helping myself?”

To speak with Steve Lichtman call 781-572-1002. To find out more about Fitness Together’s Type 2 Diabetes program go to ftsouthshore.com

To join the American Diabetes Associations Step Out: Walk to Fight Diabetes go to Step Out New England

To join a Fitness Together Type 2 Diabetes program in Cohasset call 781-383-8004. In Hingham call 781-749-2511. In Norwell call 781-659-0034 or go to FTGetsResults to find an FT Studio near you.

Fitness Together Studios Awarded High Honors by the ADA

Steven Lichtman of Lichtman Marketing Group (r) accepts achievement award for Fitness Together Studios of Eastern New England from Jamin Reda, co-chair of the Boston Step Out Walk.

by Martha Hicks Leta

Fitness Together Studios of Eastern New England were recently recognized by the American Diabetes Association for two areas of outstanding achievement in fundraising for Boston’s 2010 Step Out Walk to Stop Diabetes.

Presented on August 10 at the Boston Step Out Kick Off Rally at Franklin Park Zoo, the first award recognized the Fitness Together Eastern New England Owners group for the outstanding achievement of raising over $54,000 through the 2010 Cardio for a Cure program.

Award presenter and Step Out co-chair Jamin Reda said, “Through their Cardio for a Cure program, with their clients, they were able to both raise money and recruit participants for the walk while at the same time motivating clients to exercise, which we all know is such an important part of both managing diabetes and also preventing it.”

Accepting the award for Fitness Together Studios was Steven Lichtman, owner of four Fitness Together studios and president of Lichtman Marketing Group, which coordinated fundraising efforts for studios in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. “For those of us that have friends and family living with type 2 diabetes, that’s the big reason why Fitness Together is doing what we’re doing. We’re helping a lot of people to get healthy, to lose weight, to lower their blood glucose levels and hopefully help them overcome this disease” said Lichtman.

Leslie Thornton, client of Fitness Together in Arlington was also recognized for achieving Top Individual Fundraiser status for last year’s Step Out Walk by raising $10,143, which she was able to do through an employer gift-matching program. Steven Lichtman accepted the award on behalf of Ms. Thornton and Fitness Together in Arlington.

The rally, held at Franklin Park Zoo on August 10 provided information for participants in the upcoming Step Out Walk, and recognized past achievements of individuals and corporations in raising awareness and funds for the American Diabetes Association.

The 2011 Boston Step Out Walk to Fight Diabetes, in which participants raise funds for community-based education programs, to protect the rights of people with diabetes and fund research to find a cure, will begin at Boston Common on October 22.

For more information on the Step Out Walk nearest you go to stepoutdiabetes.org.

Step Out: Walk To Stop Diabetes With Us

Step Out: Walk To Stop Diabetes With Us

Fitness Together

For the second year running, the Fitness Together MA Owners Cooperative has assembled 35 studios from across Massachusetts and Rhode Island to serve as the Official Health and Fitness Sponsor for the American Diabetes Association of Eastern New England’s Step Out: Walk to Stop Diabetes.

Now through year-end, participating Fitness Together locations will work together to raise over $25,000 for the ADA Eastern New England Chapter. Each studio has its own fundraising page to make donations. Clients, their families and friends are all invited to join your local studio’s walk team to help us reach our fundraising goal.

Why Fitness Together?

Not everyone is motivated to eat right and exercise. People who need a structured program with ongoing coaching and support in a private setting do well with Fitness Together. Our nationally certified personal trainers take a team approach to working with our clients. We understand the emotional and physical challenges which inhibit people from sticking with a program and getting positive results. We know how to motivate people and make exercise fun. It’s not all about dieting. It’s about helping clients feel better, look better, get healthy and learn how to make lasting lifestyle changes.
Register or make a donation for your Fitness Together Step Out Walk team today!

Choose your studio from the list here, click on the team captain’s name and then choose either:

Click here to Sponsor Me (make a donation) – or -
Click here to Walk with Me (help raise money)

 

 

 

 

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Step Out Videos

ADA NE Celebrates Last Year’s Fitness Together’s Successful Step Out Fundraising

 

ADA New England: Our Step Out Campaign Was A Success

Steve Lichtman accepts Certificate of Achievement awards for Fitness Together at the ADA’s StepOut Rally on August 10 at the Franklin Park Zoo.

“It’s a natural fit for our clients to make the most of their workouts and support a fantastic cause at the same time,” said Jeff Jervik, president and CEO of Fitness Together Holdings, Inc. “Diabetes is a major health issue affecting more than 25 million Americans. Diabetes incidence continues to grow, now reaching epidemic proportions and it’s a disease that deserves more attention, deeper support, broader education and swifter action from people and organizations that can help like Fitness Together.”

ADA Step Out 2011: Walk for Diabetes will take place Oct. 1, in Worcester, Mass., Oct. 2 in Providence, R.I. and Oct. 22 in Boston.

“We are very appreciative of the Massachusetts and Rhode Island Fitness Together studios and their teams of trainers for taking on this important issue”, said Chris Boynton, Executive Director for the Eastern New England area of the American Diabetes Association. “Fitness Together’s mission to help their clients live healthier, happier lives is very much compatible with our mission to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the quality of life for all those living with the disease.”

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Check out the study the Fitness Together MA Owner’s Cooperative has undertaken to examine the impact of fitness and exercise on Type 2 diabetics.

Go to our page to join the StepOut Walk for 2011 or donate to help fight Diabetes.

New Research On Fitness & The Reversal Of Diabetes

by Martha Hicks Leta

Last year Fitness Together studios across Massachusetts and Rhode Island undertook an ambitious study to examine the impact of a 26-week individualized fitness training program on people with diabetes and pre-diabetes.

At the start of the study Joan Hill, Registered Dietitian, Certified Diabetes Educator and Licensed Dietitian/Nutritionist (RD, CDE, LDN) said, “Through this observational 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.”

As the study nears completion, the data is showing a distinct correlation between lifestyle changes to a reduction in weight, body fat, diabetes medication and an improvement in overall sense of well-being and health.

A recent article by Dr. Mark Hyman, MD entitled “New Research Finds Diabetes Can Be Reversed” examines another study that, as it turns out, supports the data emerging from the Fitness Together study.

The scientific study, entitled Reversal of type 2 diabetes: normalization of beta cell function in association with decrease pancreas and liver triglycerides concluded that the right kind of changes in diet and exercise in diabetics “reversed most features of diabetes within one week and all features by eight weeks.”

We’re not surprised. Dr. Hyman says that he sees this regularly in his medical practice. “With focused, strategic, scientifically based nutritional intervention, combined with exercise, stress management and sugar and insulin balancing nutritional supplements, many of my patients completely reverse their diabetes. And the side effects—more energy, better sleep, improved sexual function and weight loss—are all good.”

What this means is that while Fitness Together clearly is part of the solution, our nation’s health policy model needs to change dramatically from supporting illness to preventing it. “If we have a known cure, a proven way to reverse this disease, shouldn’t we be focused on implementing programs to scale this cure?” asks Dr. Mark.

The results of Fitness Together’s comprehensive set of data on 24 subjects will soon be made available. In the mean time, it’s nice to see that Fitness Together trainers and clients know the value of hard work and lifestyle changes in achieving and maintaining health.

New Research Finds Diabetes Can Be Reversed

Article sent to us by Dr. Mark Hyman, from his site DrHyman.com

I have recently spent more time in drugs stores than I would like helping my sister on her journey through (and hopefully to the other side of) cancer. Rite Aid, CVS and Walgreens all had large diabetes sections offering support for a “diabetes lifestyle”—glucose monitors, lancets, blood pressure cuffs, medications, supplements and pharmacy magazines heavily supported by pharmaceutical advertising. Patients are encouraged to get their eye check ups, monitor their blood pressure, track their blood sugars, have foot exams and see their doctor’s regularly for better management of their blood sugars—all apparently sensible advice for diabetics.

But what if type 2 diabetes could be completely reversed? What if it wasn’t, as we believe, an inexorable, progressive disease that has to be better “managed” by our health care system with better drugs, surgery and coordination of care? What if intensive lifestyle and dietary changes could completely reverse diabetes?

A ground breaking new study in Diabetologia proved that, indeed, type 2 diabetes can be reversed through diet changes, and, the study showed, this can happen quickly: in 1 to 8 weeks. That turns our perspective on diabetes upside down. Diabetes is not a one-way street.

If we have a known cure, a proven way to reverse this disease, shouldn’t we be focused on implementing programs to scale this cure?

We used to believe that once cells in your pancreas that make insulin (beta cells) poop out there was no reviving them and your only hope was more medication or insulin. We now know that is not so.

Continuing misconceptions about what causes diabetes and our unwillingness to embrace methods know to reverse it have lead to a catastrophic increase in the illness. Today one in four Americans over 60 years old has type 2 diabetes. By 2020, one in two Americans will have pre-diabetes or diabetes. Tragically, physicians will miss the diagnosis for ninety percent with pre-diabetes or diabetes. (Below I tell you exactly what tests to ask your doctor to perform and how to interpret them).

From 1983 to 2008, world-wide diabetes incidence has increased 7 fold from 35 to 240 million. Remarkably, in just the last 3 years from 2008 to 2011, we have added another 110 million to the diabetes roll call. And increasingly small children as young as eight are being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes (formerly called adult onset diabetes). They are having strokes at 15 years old and needing cardiac bypasses at 25 year old. The economic burden of caring for these people with pre-diabetes and diabetes will be $3.5 trillion over 10 years.

If we have a known cure, a proven way to reverse this disease, shouldn’t we be focused on implementing programs to scale this cure? Unfortunately despite this extraordinary new research, the findings will likely be pushed aside in favor of the latest greatest pill or surgical technique because behavior and lifestyle change is “hard.” In fact, with the right conditions and support, lifestyle diet and lifestyle change is very achievable.

What did research show?

Reversing Diabetes: Can it Be Done in a Week?

The study, entitled Reversal of type 2 diabetes: normalization of beta cell function in association with decrease pancreas and liver triglycerides, was exquisitely done. The bottom line: A dramatic diet change (protein shake, low glycemic load, plant-based low-calorie diet but no exercise) in diabetics reversed most features of diabetes within one week and all features by eight weeks. That’s right, diabetes was reversed in one week. That’s more powerful than any drug known to modern science.

We know from gastric bypass patients that with rapid changes in diet right after surgery, within just a few days, without significant weight loss, diabetes goes away—fatty livers heal, cholesterol levels plummet. Some theorized it was because of changes in the stomach hormones related to the gastric surgery. Others, including the researchers of this new study surmised that maybe it was just the drastic change in diet. So they went about studying just the diet change without surgery.

They studied 11 people with diabetes and compared them to a control group. Through very sophisticated techniques including MRI imaging, they measured their blood sugar and insulin responses, cholesterol levels and fat in the pancreas and liver (some of the hallmarks of diabetes) before and after diet changes at 1, 4 and 8 weeks.

What they found was revolutionary. The beta cells—the pancreas’ insulin producing cells—woke up, and the fat deposits in the pancreas and liver went away. Blood sugars normalized in just one week, triglycerides dropped in half in one week and reduced 10-fold in eight weeks. The body’s cells became more insulin sensitive and essentially, in just 8 weeks, all evidence of diabetes was gone and the diabetic patients looked just like the normal controls on all the testing.

While this may be surprising to most, it is something I see regularly in my medical practice. With focused, strategic, scientifically based nutritional intervention, combined with exercise, stress management and sugar and insulin balancing nutritional supplements, many of my patients completely reverse their diabetes. And the side effects—more energy, better sleep, improved sexual function and weight loss—are all good.

What most don’t realize is that pre-diabetes and diabetes exist on a continuum and both dramatically increase the risk of heart attacks, stroke, cancer, infertility, sexual dysfunction, depression and dementia. You don’t have to get diabetes to be at risk for all those problems. That is why it is so important to get your doctor to diagnose pre-diabetes early and implement an intensive lifestyle program to help you reserve it.

You may be at risk if you have extra belly fat, have a family history of diabetes, gestational diabetes, are in at risk ethnic group (Asian, Hispanic, African American, Native American, Middle Eastern), have high triglycerides (> 150 mg/dl) or a low HDL (< 50 mg/dl) or have high blood pressure.

If any of these apply to you or you have other cause for concern, here is what to do.

How to Reverse Your Diabetes

First, get your doctor to test the following:

• A 75-gram glucose tolerance test measuring BOTH glucose and insulin fasting and 1 and 2 hours later. Your fasting blood sugar should be less than 100 mg/dl and your 1 and 2 hour sugar levels should be less than 130 mg/dl. Your fasting insulin should be less than 10, and your 1 and 2 hour levels should be less than 35.
• Triglycerides should be less than 150 mg/dl and HDL (good cholesterol) should be over 50 mg/dl, and the triglyceride to HDL ratio should be less than 4. These ranges are meaningful only if you are on no medication.
• Newer cholesterol tests measure the size of your cholesterol particles and is very effective in diagnosing problems with pre-diabetes early. In fact, this is the only cholesterol test we should be performing.

And here’s the program I use for my patients to reverse diabetes:

• Eat a low glycemic load, high fiber, plant-based diet of vegetables, beans, nuts, limited whole grains, fruit and lean animal protein
• Vigorous exercise (fast walking, running, biking, etc.) 30 minutes 4-5 times a week and strength training 20 minutes 3 times a week
• Take a good multivitamin, fish oil, vitamin D and blood sugar and insulin balancing nutrients (including chromium and alpha lipoic acid)

Remember, pre-diabetes and diabetes is not a one way street and the solution is not at the bottom of a pill bottle or the end of an insulin syringe, it is at the end of your fork and in the shoes on your feet!

Now I’d like to hear from you …

Do you think diabetes can be reversed? If so, how?

What methods have you tried to gain control of your diabetes or weight gain? How have those methods worked for you?

Why do you think accessible, scalable, lifestyle solutions like these that actually reverse chronic illness are not more frequently prescribed in conventional doctor’s offices? How can we change this?

Please visit my site to give me your comments.

To your good health,

Mark Hyman, MD

MARK HYMAN, MD has dedicated his career to identifying and addressing the root causes of chronic illness through a groundbreaking whole-systems medicine approach known as Functional Medicine. He is a family physician, a four-time New York Times bestselling author, and an internationally recognized leader in his field. Through his private practice, education efforts, writing, research, advocacy and public-policy work, he strives to improve access to Functional Medicine, and to widen the understanding and practice of it, empowering others to stop managing symptoms and instead treat the underlying causes of illness, thereby also tackling our chronic-disease epidemic.

Dr. Hyman is Chairman of the Institute for Functional Medicine, and was awarded its 2009 Linus Pauling Award for Leadership in Functional Medicine. He is on the Board of Directors of The Center for Mind-Body Medicine, and a faculty member of its Food As Medicine training program. He is also on the Board of Advisors of Memhet Oz’s HealthCorps, which tackles the obesity epidemic by “educating the student body” in American high schools about nutrition, fitness and mental resilience. As a volunteer for Partners in Health, Dr. Hyman worked on the ground immediately after the Haiti earthquake and was featured on 60 Minutes for his work there. He continues to help rebuild the Haitian health-care system.

Dr. Hyman is founder and Medical Director of The UltraWellness Center in Lenox, Massachusetts,where he directs a team of physicians, nutritionists and nurses who utilize a comprehensive approach to health. Before starting his practice, he was co-Medical Director at Canyon Ranch Lenox, one of the world’s leading health resorts. While at Canyon Ranch, he co-authored the New York Times bestseller Ultraprevention: The 6-Week Program That Will Make You Healthy for Life (Scribner) – winner of the Books for a Better Life Award honoring the best self-improvement books each year. He has since written UltraMetabolism: The Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss, and a companion public television special. His latest book and PBS special, The UltraMind Solution, a comprehensive approach for addressing the causes of mental illness and cognitive disorders, was released in January 2009. The Blood Sugar Solution book and companion PBS special will be released in March 2012, addressing the global epidemic of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Corporate Wellness With The American Diabetes Association & Fitness Together

  

On Wednesday, June 22, 2011 – Fitness Together-North Andover and the American Diabetes Association raised awareness on the importance of health and wellness to the employees at Parlex Inc. in Methuen, Ma.

One of the biggest fitness challenges working people face is in simply making the time to fit in the workouts. We tell ourselves our jobs just take up too much time to leave room for exercise, so we let it go year after year as the pounds pile on and our health diminishes. On top of that, job stress often leads to hypertension, overeating, depression and diabetes. So when you stop and think about it, doesn’t it makes more sense to invest time and money in maintaining or improving wellness before it turns into chronic illness? Here are a few figures if you need convincing:

• Adult obesity rates have doubled since 1980, from 15 to 30 percent, while childhood obesity rates have more than tripled.” [i]

• Diabetes affects 25.8 million people of all ages
8.3 percent of the U.S. population [ii]

• According to the UnitedHealth Group’s Center for Health Reform and Modernization “More than half of all Americans will have diabetes or pre-diabetes by the year 2020, at a cumulative cost of $3.35 trillion unless something drastically changes with U.S. health trends.” [iii]

In the United States Diabetes treatment results in direct medical costs of $116 billion. The individual diagnosed with diabetes can expect to have medical expenses 2.3 times higher than for the average individual without diabetes. The indirect costs, factoring in disability, work lost and premature mortality are $58 billion.[iv]  In economic terms, the burden associated with disability, loss of life and related complication affects not just the person with the illness, but employers, fellow workers and family members.

The good news is that type 2 diabetes, stress and hypertension can be controlled and managed through diet, exercise, and losing excess weight.

This is the message brought to workers at Parlex Inc. in Methuen by Maureen Sullivan, owner of Fitness Together in North Andover, and her manager, Adam Genetti, along with Sara Dacey of the American Diabetes Association. Over the course of three lunch shifts Adam spoke with around 40 employees about the positive impact improved fitness can have on quality of life, whether it’s at home or at work. They also shared information about the Fitness Together Type 2 diabetes program and strategies for preventing or managing the disease as well as other illnesses impacted by obesity and inactivity.

Parlex Human Resources Administrator, Carolyn Fritchy says, “Even if the presentation impacted at least one employee, that’s potentially saving one life.” Fritchy also says she’s hoping to get at least 3 test participants to show that “that exercise and changing your dietary habits can certainly impact your health and save the company money.”

As more companies in the United States begin connecting the dots between wellness and productivity, improvements in presentee-ism and the bottom line will yield positive results on the population and the economy.

If your company is interested in having the ADA and Fitness Together representatives speak to your employees on the importance of wellness, please contact Martha Leta at 508-846-6173 or email marthaletaFT@aol.com

If your company would like more information on the Fitness Together Type 2 diabetes wellness program, please contact Steve Lichtman directly at 781-572-1002 or email at stevelichtman@fitnesstogether.com  If your company is in the Merrimack Valley area, you can contact Maureen Sullivan or Adam Genetti directly at 978-659-0047 or email at maureensullivan@fitnesstogether.com. In Rhode Island contact Matt Gagliano at 401-529-8244 or email at matthewgagliano@fitnesstogether.com

Footnotes

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[i] http://www.healthyamericans.org/obesity/

[ii] http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/statistics/

[iii] http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2010/11/23/diabetes-or-prediabetes-predicted-for-half-of-americans-by-2020/

[iv] http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/statistics/#fast

Post-workout Diet for People with Diabetes

Clipped by FT Client Martha Leta from the Joslin Diabetes Center Blog

Since today’s blog is about post exercise snack strategies we’re assuming that you are already exercising.

But for those who haven’t started yet—and you know who you are—remember that people who have diabetes need to exercise. Exercise can improve cardiovascular function, increase flexibility and strength and lower blood glucose levels.

For people who take oral medications that cause the pancreas to increase its insulin production (such as glyburide, glucotrol, amaryl) or who take insulin, moderate or vigorous exercise can also lead to hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). Exercise has the potential to cause hypoglycemia up to 24 hours after you have stopped exercising. Therefore it is important to exercise safely.

Follow the tips below to get the most out of your exercise sessions while maintaining good blood glucose control.

Aim for a blood glucose level above 110mg/dl when you finish your exercise session.

If your blood glucose is less than 110 mg/dl immediately after exercise:

• Have a 15-30 carbohydrate snack post exercise. If no meal or snack is scheduled for more than one hour, take 15 grams of carbohydrates and 7-8 grams of protein.
• If you take insulin, decrease the dose of insulin acting during the time you exercise for your next session.
• Consider decreasing the insulin dosage following exercise.
• Increase carbohydrates before and/or during exercise.
• If your blood glucose at bedtime is still less than 100 mg/dl, DOUBLE your bedtime snack, or, if possible, decrease your insulin dose acting during bedtime.

Remember, hydration is important-make sure you drink adequate fluid during and after you workout.

For those controlled with diet and exercise or with medications such as metformin or actos, extra snacking before or after exercise is generally not needed.

Making an appointment with a dietician or exercise physiologist to discuss post-workout strategies can help you get the most exercise.

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Joslin Diabetes Center

Did you know that Fitness Together has a program customized for Type 2 Diabetics? You can learn more about our program here.

Donald Whittemore is one of the FT Type 2 Diabetics Success Stories.