The Sequoia Advisor

IN THIS ISSUE                                                        March 15^th 2013

• Exercises to Avoid For the Over Age 50 Crowd
• Osteoporosis Medications... Are They Worth the Risk?
• Upcoming Events... Osteoporosis Workshop April 25^th
• Osteoporosis Support News... Yoga Nidra and Safe Senior Yoga
• Posture Perfect!^TM  April 10^th Free Demo Class
   

Feel Better... Live Better

Exercises to Avoid For the Over age 50 Crowd
By Woody McMahon 

Exercise Safety A Top Priority
In the exercise world, safety is often sacrificed for bigger biceps,
stronger abdominals and a smaller waist. In a younger persons world, that
might be OK. But if you are member of the over age 50 crowd, caution is
advised as you begin to get active or continue to pursue your current
exercise program. In other words, it is good to "exercise" a little
caution as you get more active and improve your health.

Exercises That Heal Your Body
Scientific research has shown that the right kind of exercise has a
strong ability to help heal your body and relax your mind. In many cases,
the healing effect is stronger than even the best medications for the
problem. Research also shows that after age 50, exercise safety is your
top priority.

Your Over Age 50 Goals Are Different
As you get older, your exercise goals change as well. Balance, leg
strength and joint function all become much more important than big biceps
or six pack abs. How well you can balance becomes much more important than
the amount of weight you can bench press or squat. Your exercise program
becomes more practical and designed to improve your activities of daily
living. Exercises will change to meet your more current health and fitness
needs.

Health Based Exercise Programs
Health based exercise programs can help you feel better and prevent your
body from becoming the bent over "poster older adult" you see in the
pictures. Once you begin to work with these specialized exercises, you
will feel changes in your body. Your exercise program will safely help
improve your posture, balance and strength while having a beneficial
effect on your bones, breathing, digestion, heart and memory.

Exercises That Can Cause You Harm
There are several exercises that "don't do your body any good," especially
if you are in the age 50-plus category. Truth be told, these exercise
movements don't serve younger bodies well either but youth are less apt
to listen to my story anyway.

Here is a partial list of exercises to avoid:

Side bends
Toe touches
Twisting motions
Seated exercises with weights
Sit-ups, crunches and straight leg raises

Doing More Harm Than Good
All of these exercises place unhealthy pressures on the spine,
dramatically increasing your risk for fractures and other back injury.
Most of them are easy to avoid because they do not provide essential
movements that help keep your body strong and independent. Many people
incorrectly believe they are exempt from my recommendations because they
either have been working out for many years or exercise regularly.
Not so I say.

Exercise Related Back Injury is Very Common
The number one injury at the health club is back related. There is a reason
for that. The back injury stat is directly related to the unreasonable demands
that many exercises place on your back. You are much better off avoiding
them and substituting something that is safer and more effective.

Women more than men must be careful to avoid these exercises because
of bone health issues. Osteoporosis and low bone mass (osteopenia) are
both conditions that can easily be worsened by the use of unhealthy
exercise practices. Unless you have been tested, you will never know you
have a problem.

So exercise is good "YES" but it is better to be safe than sorry when it
comes to your exercise program. Will you still be able to get a good
workout without all of these unsafe movements? Absolutely!

Would you like to improve your bone quality but don't know where
to start? I provide an easy to follow program called Be Bone Strong!
that helps improve your bone health, posture and balance while reducing
fracture risk. Contact me anytime for a no cost consultation at
703-628-2880 or email to woody@sequoiahealth.com.

Osteoporosis Medications... Are They Worth the Risk?
by Woody McMahon 

Bone Medications Carry Risks
At some point in their lives, many women must decide if they are going to
take medications to try and increase their bone density. Usually this
occurs after a bone test called a DEXA. The DEXA test measures the density
of the bones in the hip and the spine giving a number that is referred to
as a DEXA score. If the score is low, (osteopenia or osteoporosis), then
your doctor may recommend medications to increase the score.

Osteoporosis and Bisphosphonate Therapy
Dr. Susan Ott, Professor of the Department of Medicine at the University
of Washington, Seattle is one of a handful or experts who presents a balanced
and conservative approach to using medications for the treatment of bone
health problems. She has prepared an excellent research article entitled,
What is the Optimal Duration of Bisphosphonate Therapy? It is a clear
and concise discussion of the benefits and risks of the most common
class of osteoporosis medications called the bisphosphonates.

Fosomax, Actonel, Boniva and Reclast
You may not recognize the medications by the name the bisphosphonates
but you certainly are familiar with Fosomax, Actonel, Boniva and Reclast.
Dr. Ott says, "As with any drugs, bisphosphonates should not be used
indiscriminately. They are indicated for patients at high risk of fracture,
especially those with vertebral fractures or a hip bone density T score
lower than ??"2.5."

Are These Medications Being Overprescribed?
The answer to that question maybe unfortunately yes. Dr. Ott describes
the fact that these medications are being prescribed for many more
patients than they were first intended. These medications were
initially approved by the FDA for patients at high risk of fracture, especially
those with vertebral fractures or a hip bone density T score lower than ??"2.5.
Now many more women are taking the medications. By some accounts, up
to 4 million alone in this country.

What Are The Risks?
The risk associated with over-prescription is that these drugs can carry
serious side effects that include atypical femur fractures and jaw
osteonecrosis. Because of the way these medications work, long-term use
(over 5 years) tends to create bones that are denser but also
substantially more brittle. In some ways, extended use of the
bisphosphonates contributes to the very problem they are trying to solve.

Additional Highlights of the Report
"Reports of adverse effects with prolonged use have caused concern about
the long-term safety of this class of drugs. This is particularly
important because these drugs are retained in the skeleton longer than 10
years, because there are physiologic reasons why excessive
bisphosphonate-induced inhibition of bone turnover could be damaging, and
because many healthy postmenopausal women have been prescribed
bisphosphonates in the hope of preventing fractures that are not expected
to occur for 20 to 30 years."

"Another common misunderstanding is that the bone density increases
because the drugs are "building bone." After 3 years, the bone density in
the femur reaches a plateau. I have seen patients who were very worried
because their bone density was no longer increasing, and their physicians
did not realize that this is the expected pattern."

"A study of 50 women treated with bisphosphonates for 6.5 years found
that 33 percent had a mineralizing surface of zero. This means that
patients taking bisphosphonates are forming very little new bone, and one
third of them are not forming any new bone."

"But bisphosphonates may have long-term negative effects. One purpose of
bone remodeling is to refresh the bone and to repair the microscopic
damage that accumulates within any structure. Without remodeling, cracks
can accumulate. Because the development and repair of micro-cracks is
complex, it is difficult to predict what will happen with long-term
bisphosphonate use."

Try these healthy lifestyle changes for 30 days. Feel what it is like
to become part of the health solution rather than a health burden. If you
need additional suggestions and advice on living a healthier lifestyle, email
or call me for a no cost consultation, at 703-628-2880 or email to
woody@sequoiahealth.com.

Upcoming Events

• The myths, facts and misconceptions that surround bone health
  
• The significance of the DEXA scan number and the importance of FRAX
• ADL(Activities of Daily Living) safety to reduce fracture risk
• The right exercise program... a powerful bone protection system
• Medications... weighing the benefits and the risks
• Nutrition and hydration and its importance in building stronger bones
• The stress-osteoporosis connection and what to do about it

Posture Perfect!^TM Free Demo Class
Monthly Series
Next Demo Class April 10^th  from 1 to 2 pm

We are holding FREE Posture Perfect!^TM demo classes on the second
Wednesday of every month from 1 to 2 pm. These classes are held
at Congregation Beth Emeth on Lawyers Road in Herndon, VA.

RESERVATIONS are REQUIRED
so please call Woody McMahon at 703.628.2880 or email to
woody@sequoiahealth.com for more information or to make
your reservation.

The FREE Posture Perfect!^TM demo class helps introduce you to the many
benefits of our safe and effective posture, balance and strength program
co-developed by Sara Meeks, PT and Woody McMahon, personal trainer.

Come and experience how each class can help strengthen your bones,
improve your balance, alleviate back aches and neck pains, improve
osteoporosis and teach you how to sit and stand-up straighter. 

The History of Posture Perfect!^TM
When I developed the Posture Perfect!^TM classes over 2 years ago, there
were no safe and effective exercise programs available for "over age 50" adults.
Everywhere I looked there were older adults in classes that used seated
exercises (bad for your back); machine style exercises (bad for your balance)
treadmills (a poor leg strengthener); and performed movements that
involved crunching, bending and twisting. (increases the risk of spinal
fractures).
  
Posture Perfect!^TM solved all of these problems by offering a safe and effective
approach helping older adults become more active. Each class improves your
posture, strengthens your bones, enhances your balance, alleviates back
aches and neck pains, reduces fracture risk and teaches you how to sit
and stand-up straighter. 
 
We have several people in our current classes who are coming to strengthen
their bones and over half of the others are interested in exercises and posture
changes to help make their backs and necks feel better.

Please call Woody McMahon at 703-628-2880 or email to
woody@sequoiahealth.com for more information, class times and reservations.

Osteoporosis Support News

2013 Osteoporosis Resource Center at Qi Elements Classes

Current Class Schedule

Tai Chi for Osteoporosis
When: Mondays and Wednesdays 1:30-2:30 PM
Where: Qi Elements Center, 464 Herndon Parkway
Suite 215, Herndon, VA 20170
Tuition: $105 for one class a week, $190 for both classes
Email qielements@verizon.net or call Roger 703 435-4400 for more
information.

Yoga Nidra Relaxation and Meditation
When: Monday March 25 - 6:45P to 8P
Where: Qi Elements Center, 464 Herndon Parkway
Suite 215, Herndon, VA 20170
Tuition: $20
More information: www.openingmovesyoga.com/class.php
or call Bonnie at 703-407-2065 for more information.

Safe Yoga for Boomers & Beyond Classes
When: Monday February 26 from 6:45P to 8P
Where: Qi Elements Center, 464 Herndon Parkway
Suite 215, Herndon, VA 20170
Tuition: $88 for one class a week for 4 weeks plus make-up
More information: www.openingmovesyoga.com/safe-yoga-herndon.php
or call Bonnie at 703-407-2065 for more information.

Posture Perfect!^TM Level 1 Beginner Classes
When: Wednesday 12:00 to 1:00
PM and Thursday 6:30 to 7:30 PM
Where: Congregation Beth Emeth 12523
Lawyers Road, Herndon, VA 20171
Tuition: $160 for 8 classes in 8 weeks
Email woody@sequoiahealth.com
or call Woody at 703-628-2880 for more information.

What is the ORC? The ORC is unique in the Northern Virginia area offering
safe and effective exercise classes including Personal Training, Yoga, Tai
Chi and Posture Perfect!^TM We also offer classes and consultations for
people with osteoporosis, osteopenia, back, hip and neck pain as well as
other bone and joint health problems.

"What makes the ORC exceptional is that it offers safe and effective
exercise programs that can help improve posture, balance and strength for
bone and joint health problems" says Woody McMahon one of the center's
co-directors. "For the first time people that come to the center can feel
comfortable that the exercises they are performing will only do good and
not cause any harm."

Who Benefits From Our Classes

Beginners: Our unique classes are great for someone who wants to begin
a safe and effective exercise program but does not know where to start.

Post Rehabilitation: Our classes offer a safe and effective transition
from physical therapy to more general exercise that help to safely
strengthen important stability muscles.

Advanced: The classes are perfect for tennis players, golfers or runners
who want to enhance their bodies to improve their sport and continue to
play safely and injury free.

Newsletter Sign-Up Sign-up for our FREE newsletter The Sequoia Advisor to
stay informed about all of our future class offerings, workshops and
seminars. It is easy... just go to http://www.sequoiahealth.com/ORC and
enter your name and email address. We look forward to seeing you soon at
one of our classes. Please call Woody McMahon at 703-628-2880 or email to
woody@sequoiahealth.com for more information.

Woody

Woody McMahon
The Sequoia Advisor

Sequoia Health and Fitness, Inc.
483A Carlisle Drive
Herndon, VA
20170

Required Disclaimer: The material provided herein should not be construed
as a health-care diagnosis, treatment regimen or any other prescribed
health-care advice or instruction. The material is provided with the
understanding that the publisher is not engaged in the practice of medicine
or any other health-care profession and does not enter into a health-care
practitioner/patient relationship with its readers. The publisher does not
advise or recommend to its readers treatment or action with regard to
matters relating to their health or well-being other than suggesting that
readers consult appropriate health-care professionals in such matters. No
action should be taken based solely on the content of this publication. The
material and opinions provided herein are believed to be accurate and sound
at the time of publication, based on the best judgment available to the
authors. However, readers who rely on material in this publication to
replace the advice of health-care professionals, or who fail to consult
with health-care professionals, assume all risks of such conduct. The
publisher is not responsible for errors or omissions.

Copyright (c) 2006-2013 by Sequoia Health and Fitness, Inc.

------------------------------------------

About this Newsletter

To unsubscribe or change subscriber options visit:
http://clients.autopilotsolutions.com

To learn more about Fresh Start, please contact Woody McMahon:
woody@sequoiahealth.com

You are receiving our free newsletter from this email
woody@sequoiahealth.com