Men’s Health Peer Education Magazine Vol. 12 No. 2 July 2013 – Physical Activity: The Veterans’ Health Week Issue
Veterans' Health Week 2013
This year’s Veterans’ Health Week (VHW) will be from Monday, 14 October to Sunday, 20 October. The theme of this edition of the magazine is aligned with the VHW theme of Physical Activity. This issue highlights the importance of physical activity to your health and wellbeing. When reading this magazine, please think about "Finding Strength, Developing Flexibility, Maintaining Balance and Enjoying Fitness". It's never too late to start becoming more active.
Inside this issue
Mental health benefits of physical activity
Mental and physical health are closely linked, so taking care of your physical health can be a very effective way of managing your mental health. Increasing your physical activity is one of several simple strategies and healthy habits that, along with the support of family and friends, can help you cope with life’s challenges.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Start your engines!
Winter is a tough time for Aussie sports fans. Wimbledon, the British Open, THE ASHES - while the demands of NRL, ARU, AFL, xyz.... continue without respite. We know what we have to do, painful and stressful as it may be. The screen and the couch call us to duty for our team, code and country. Often the watch is long and the pain is great. High-powered edibles and restorative fluids can only do so much. But as true sports fans we know how to endure, take the knocks and pay the price.
Something happened on the way to the mirror
It was still the same face staring back at me each morning, but the picture below my shaven face seemed to have expanded for no apparent reason! I was still getting up each morning: shave, shower, breakfast, work, returning late afternoon to walk the dogs, a bite of dinner, watch the TV while ironing for next day. All the same sort of stuff I had done for over 20 years in the Army, less field training and deployments. So where was I going wrong?
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: Diabetes and Exercise, Fuel foods, Exercising: Achieving a Perfect Balance, What sort of Physical Activity should I be doing, Any foot advice is good advice and much, much more.
Contents List
Page
/Title
1 / - Veterans’ Health Week 2013- Inside this issue
2-3 / - Editorial
- Letter to the Editor advert and Reproduction of content
- MHPE Magazine Editorial Committee membership
- Letters to the Editor: Bob Postlethwaite and Signalman Brutus
4 / - Exercise +Activity = Weight
5 / - Moving ahead with pain
6 / - Exercise: warm up and cool down
7 / - Mental health benefits of physical activity
8-9 / - Ladies and Gentlemen, Start your engines: Taking the SIT out of obesity
10 / - A talk to Penny / An audience with Pushkin
11 / - Any foot advice is good advice
12-13 / - Exercise: achieving a perfect balance
14-15 / - My Health Rules
16 / - Something happened on the way to the mirror
17 / - Tai Chi: An alternative gentle exercise program
18-19 / - Diabetes and exercise
19 / - Exercise physiology and gym memberships
20-21 / - Fuel foods: nutrition and physical activity
22 / - Heart Health
23 / - Veterans’ Health Week 2013
24 / - Keeping your mind active
25 / - Dead Horse Gap
26-28 / - Volunteer Recognition 5 and 10 year certificates
29 / - Volunteer Reps corner
30 / - DVA’s Right Mix App
- Keeping your mind active - answers
31 / - On Base Advisory Service
32 / - Review: Australian Healthy Food Guide
33 / - Health Technology: App review
34 / - Spiders’ webs and bookworms
35 / - MHPE National Highlights
36 / - Back page information
- Back page contact details
- Next issue
Tear-out / - If physical activity is so important, why don’t we do it regularly?
- What sort of physical activity should I be doing?
Editorial
Welcome to the Veterans’ Health Week Physical Activity issue
I was once advised that a stroll is only good for the soul. I’m very fond of strolling, as well as lying on the couch after a long day at work, sleeping-in on weekends and eating hearty comfort food during the winter months. I’m probably not alone in having a predominantly sedentary lifestyle.
Inactivity has become built into our daily lives. We work longer hours – most of them sitting, we catch transport or drive to work, we communicate on electronic devices and most of our down-time also involves us lying down (back to the couch).
A common excuse is that we have too much to do and can’t find the time. What this really means, is that we consider physical activity a lower priority than everything else we have or want to do. It’s usually only when we have a health scare, or an injury, that we remind ourselves the body isn’t indestructible, and some ongoing maintenance might be in order.
Becoming more physically active is essential for long-term health and wellbeing. To kick-start you into action, read the My Health Rules article on pages 14-15. Our MHPE volunteers, Kathy, Laurie and Tiny, took up the challenge to become more physically active and we hope their stories will inspire you to make changes too.
Congratulations to our MHPE volunteers
2013 marks the 12th anniversary of the MHPE program. Each year, we recognise MHPE volunteers by awarding certificates of recognition and badges for 5 and 10 years of service. These awards are made during National Volunteer Week in order to acknowledge the value of volunteering within the broader Australian community. I would like to congratulate those volunteers who will achieve 5 and 10 years of service and thank them for all their hard work, enthusiasm and ongoing support of the program. Without our volunteers, there would be no program.
Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor,
I recently visited a Men’s Shed to drop off the MHPE magazine and give my usual spiel “My job is to get men to go to the doctor”. The secretary said “Over the last year we have attended the funerals of six members who knew they had something wrong, but would not go to the doctor”. At a supermarket check-out, a lady saw my MHPE shirt and said “Do you bully men to go to the doctor”. I said “We try to persuade them”. She said “Come and bully mine. He won’t go”. My message is: Men do not wait until you have symptoms. Go and have a check-up. Then you may have more birthdays and that is the secret of how to live longer.
Bob Postlethwaite
MHPE Volunteer
Guys, guys, guys,
We’re only on this planet for a blink. Enjoy life what you can make of it. The glass IS half full. After all, we are above ground! Get active again. The pyramid of good food. All in moderation. Jog today, but stroll tomorrow and smell the roses. Volunteer to pass on your years of knowledge and for goodness’ sake, see your doctor for an annual check-up. Yeah I’m 62, still competing athletics (decathlon), don’t drink or smoke, an atheist, tutor, tenor, Coast Guard crew volunteer, love life and my wife, and due only to hereditary genes had two heart operations. I coach disabled athletes who’s results bring me amazement and tears of joy. I love what I’ve made of my life.
Signalman Brutus.
MHPE Magazine Editorial Committee Membership
Naomi Mulcahy DVA (Editor)
Dr Graeme Killer AO, DVA Principal Medical Adviser
Dr Warren Harrex, DVA Senior Medical Adviser
Dimitri Batras, DVA National Health Promotion Adviser
Chris Clarke DVA
Jeff Fairweather DVA (outgoing member)
Mariusz Kalinowski DVA (incoming member)
Michael Correll VVCS (incoming member)
The Committee would like to thank Jeff for his support of the MHPE Magazine and
welcome Mariusz and Michael who have joined the Committee for a two-year term.
Letters to the Editor
What we’re looking for…..
Letters should be no more than 100 words and relate to articles or topics discussed in the magazine or regarding men’s health generally
Please send your letters to The Editor at
, or
Men’s Health Peer Education magazine
c/- Department of Veterans’ Affairs
GPO Box 9998
Sydney NSW 2001
MHPE Magazine And Reproduction Of Content
Just a reminder to our readers, if you would like to include an article that’s appeared in an edition of the magazine in your own publication, please contact the Editor to confirm if there are any restrictions on the re-publication of the material.
Eating + Activity = Weight
Just a few months ago, three MHPE volunteers in different states challenged one another to lose 10kg over twelve weeks. How did they do it?
We are all familiar with the consequences of being overweight or obese: Increases in cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal problems, Type 2 diabetes and some cancers. Yet more than two-thirds of Australian men are overweight or obese (and more than half of Australian women and one quarter of children).
Weight management is not a complex formula: If energy in (food) exceeds energy out (physical activity), you gain weight. And vice versa. At an individual level, each side of the equation may require change.
The Australian Dietary Guidelines suggest a few key changes that can influence this balance:
· Food variety daily, especially more non-starchy vegetables
· More wholegrains, seafood, legumes/beans, low-fat dairy and poultry
· Less processed foods, starchy vegetables and, for men, less red meat
· Remember alcohol has two-thirds more kilojoules than sugar!
Buy simple ingredients rather than pre-packaged and processed meals, and prepare meals yourself. Have the family or mates help and enjoy the rewards. Don’t sit watching Masterchef; Do it.
The Australian Physical Activity Guidelines challenge us to get thirty minutes of moderate exercise most days, to complete the weight equation. That means doing something that increases our heart and breathing rate, but not so much that you can’t have a conversation. There’s a hint; activity is more fun in company.
Don’t have the time?
Remember chopping wood for heat and cooking, getting up to change TV channels, and walking to the shop for milk? Physical activity is not just about gyms, jogging and Lycra. Incidental exercise can be taking the stairs, gardening or sacking the cleaner. Walk the dog. Get a dog!
Think of movement as an opportunity, not an inconvenience. Where can I moderately exercise for 10-15 minutes, a few times each day, in activities I already (or could) do? How much longer is it to walk briskly to the shop/station/club? Can I cycle? No parking hassles. Does the dishwasher do as good a job on saucepans as vigorous scrubbing?
If you can, also enjoy some regular, vigorous activity for extra health and fitness. It does make a difference to the equation. See your GP first. And they will tell you physical activity is not just about weight management. Exercise helps prevent many illnesses, dementia, falls and injury, reduces stress and improves energy, concentration, sleep and your sense of well-being.
Is there an easy way to shift the balance and lose weight quickly? ‘Fad’ diets come and go, and unfortunately weight loss is usually not sustained in the long run (see a comparison of diets at www.abc.net.au/health/dietguide and click on ‘select and compare’). A much better outcome is achieved with little changes in both sides of the weight equation over a long time. How did our MHPE colleagues achieve success? Modest changes sustained over months.
My ideal diet book is very short: It is called Eat Less, Exercise More, and all pages are blank. You write your own script.
The Australian National Physical Activity Guidelines are currently being revised. The fundamental message of Australians doing more physical activity will not change.
Tony Hoare, DVA National Aged Care Adviser
Moving Ahead with Pain
When chronic pain persists it often involves changes to the structure and chemicals in the nervous system. The good news is that physical activity is beneficial to the nervous system as well as improving physical conditioning which helps people cope better with daily pain.
Boom-bust Cycle
Individuals with chronic pain have ‘better’ and ‘bad’ days. The boom-bust cycle is activated when people try and get too much done on the good days, overdoing it, flaring up the pain and needing longer periods of rest to recover. Over time, this leads to physical deconditioning. In the end, individuals require less physical activity to result in the busts. Continuing on this cycle can lead to: feeling grumpy, frustration, poor sleep, making mistakes, forgetting things or becoming clumsy.
Pacing
Pacing refers to scheduling activities over a period so that you have a plan for breaking down tasks in a way that won’t flare-up the pain, but still achieve outcomes.
Pacing involves time limiting activities and increasing the amount you can do over time. Ideally use a timer and be disciplined about beginning and stopping in line with your baseline.
Step 1
Choose an exercise/activity that you want to do e.g: take the dog for a walk. Plan the activity e.g: time of day, number of days per week.
Step 2
Set a baseline and start at a level that is comfortable. For example, ‘might manage a 20 min walk and can comfortably do a 15 minute walk’. Try this exercise for 2 consecutive days. Record your body’s response and then take an average of the ‘comfort time’, e.g:
Day 1 – 20 min walk
Day 2 – 15 min walk
Average = 17 min walk