Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Osteofitness II at the First Baptist Church in Lexington honors its Octo/Nonagenarian members

We are celebrating more and more 80th and 90th birthdays these days. But very few are as active and functional as the members of the Osteofitness II class at the First Baptist Church in Lexington.

They have been exercising for an average of 10 years in the Osteofitness program for building strong bones as well as general fitness. They have made a choice to include regular strengthening and self-care as an integral part of their aging. They have overcome tough times after the war, raised children, grandchildren and many have and still are caring for a loved one. And being a caregiver is ranked as one of the tasks with the most stress- both physical and emotional.

They show up in the worst of weathers, and usually show up early. Many go on to other activities such as tennis, swimming and walking. Many are living alone in their own home- shopping and cooking and working to maintain strong family ties.

They have taken care of floods and broken trees, snow storms, new furnaces and shown up at class.

They make choices for better health.  Some go to school, work in the community and are full time learners from the internet.

We need to celebrate this accomplished group of women and thank them for the message they give us just by their presence and smiles.

Joan Loewenberg, an Osteofitness II class member pays tribute to her fellow classmates with these words: 

"Hello, and good cheer to all present and special cheers to all of you 80 plus years of age, and yes, it is an achievement! I know that some of you think that it is just the “luck of the draw” that you have reached these distinguished ages. Yes, all of us, hope for some luck in our lives, however, you folks have set the example for us as to how one works to generate that luck…you get out of bed and work at it, you exercise, you eat right, you drink your water, and maybe you even drink a little something else on occasion. When you get sick or go through difficult times you pick yourselves up and come back to exercise class. So thanks for setting a good example, but that isn’t why I want to honor you today.

I want to honor you today because you make this class a sacred, caring, safe place to practice good health and care for each other. It isn’t just that exercise that we do together that makes this circle we form sacred, it is the small and big hellos, the stories we exchange, the pats on the back, the laughter and jokes and the support we give to each other regardless of our ages, economic means or our ethnic and educational backgrounds. I have worked, volunteered and served in many places and the love that is generated here is without match. Bless you to all but special love and blessings to those of you who have been on earth for eighty years or more because you have set the standard."

The following is an excerpt from The Gift of Years by Joan Chittister.

“The blessing of commitment to accomplishment is that, as we continue to bring our considerable skills, experience and insight to bear on the present needs of humankind we will certainly become… a blessing to the rest of society.”

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Nutrition guidelines: Calcuim and Vitamin D. There is no reason to panic.

Regarding the recent concerns over calcium supplements and heart attacks, Tufts University has published the following in their Health and Nutrition Letter dated Oct 2010: "Calcium -Heart Concerns: What should you do now?".

The following suggestion comes from a leading expert on Osteoporosis at Tufts University: "concentrate first on getting calcium from dietary sources, Dr. Dawson-Hughes advises. 'Then adults age 50 and older should use supplements if they have calcium-poor diets and can't fix their diets to bring the total calcuim-from food plus supplements- to 1,200 milligrams.'"

Many of you remember Helen Long from the informative seminars she produced on calcium not too long ago. Helen is dedicated to the latest and most accurate information available, and she is always willing to pass it along to you. I am planning some nutritional seminars in the near future, however, in the meantime Helen has sent this along for your information.