Happiness: It’s All About the Ending

A happy ending makes (almost) anything more pleasurable

In many ways, living in the moment has its benefits. While you’re in the midst of an enjoyable experience, you’re most likely to be tuned into the pleasures signaled by your body’s senses. By contrast, an experience marked by pain, mishaps, and inconvenience is one you’d just as soon get out of as soon as possible. Even so, after it’s over, many of us forget how badly we felt while it was going on. When pain outweights pleasure, living in the moment isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be.

As it turns out, many of us are pretty likely to form biased memories of our experiences. The biases can go in both positive and negative directions. According to Nobel-prize winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman, the “peak-end rule” is just one of many errors of judgment that affects the accuracy of our cognitive apparatus. An event makes its mark in our memories more by what happens at its end than at any prior point. In his book, Thinking Fast and Slow, Kahneman points out many of the illogical features of our thought processes, including the contrast between our experiences in the moment and the way we remember them.

Studies of happiness in the moment use a method called “experience sampling” in which people provide an instantaneous reading of how they are feeling. New technologies allow researchers to “ping” participants, asking them questions about what they’re doing right now, instead of having them provide recollections at some later point. For example, German researcher Bettina Sonnenberg and her colleagues (2012) asked participants on their mobile phones to report the activities they were engaging in while pursuing their daily routines. The participants also completed standard survey questionnaires about their use of time. People’s reports through experience sampling were very consistent with surveys that they later completed regarding questions about the amount of time they spent at paid work. However, when participants were asked to estimate how much time they spent in less regular, predictable activities (such as errands or leisure), the survey reports diverged substantially from the moment-to-moment data they recorded through experience sampling.

It’s no surprise that people rate their happiness while having a previous experience higher than they did while going through the experience itself. While you’re in the moment, you are aware of more of the “objective” features of the situation. You may be having your favorite meal, trying to unwind after a stressful day, and although you love the music itself, your mind strays to some of the unpleasant things that happened to you earlier. If we “ping” you to rate your happiness, your rating may reflect not the food you’re trying to enjoy, but the recall of what caused you to feel stressed. How many times, for example, have you watched a movie or TV show, absorbed in the action, only to have that little glimmer of emotional discomfort penetrate your consciousness?

From this one brief example, let’s extrapolate to more significant experiences in your life. Perhaps it was a joyous family occasion that became marred, temporarily, by someone’s emotional outburst. You really wanted to enjoy the event, but it wasn’t going completely as planned due to this one unfortunate incident. Over time, your memory of that event, according to Kahneman, will smooth out the rough edges and you’ll be left with an overall recollection that most likely will be a happy one.

There are many advantages to remembering the past in a positive way. In my research on personality and aging, I’ve found that the older adults with higher levels of self-esteem and well-being are the ones who tend to focus on those positive events from their lives. Long-term happiness often depends on your forming a favorable narrative of your life. Those who ruminate over their failures, disappointments, and mistakes are not only less happy in the moment, but also risk experiencing chronic depression.

With this background in mind, let’s take a closer look at one of the most intriguing results that Kahneman describes about the foibles of human memory. The peak-end rule states that the way an experience ends determines the happiness we ascribe to it. There are two classic experiments demonstrating the peak-end rule. Kahneman and his associates showed, in 1993 that participants exposed to 30 seconds of 14 degree ice water (very cold!) rated the experience as more painful than participants exposed to 90 seconds of exposure to 60 seconds of 14 degree ice water plus 30 additional seconds of 15 degree ice water. In other words, participants found the 90 seconds of ice water exposure less painful than those exposed to 60 seconds of nearly equally cold water because the 90 seconds ended with exposure to a “warmer” stimulus. We will rate an experience as less painful, then, if it ends on a slightly less painful way. The “peak end” in this case was a one degree difference in water temperature.

Many studies support the peak-end rule. People will prefer and even choose exposing themselves to more pain (objectively determined) if the situation ends with them feeling less pain. Think about it this way. If you are having a tooth drilled, you’d find it was less painful if the dentist ends the procedure with some lightening of the drill’s intensity, even if the procedure is longer than it would otherwise be. Counterintuitive? Yes. Common? Definitely.

We approach not only our experiences of pleasure and pain in this way, but also our acquisition of objects that we’re given as gifts. As reported in a review article by Dartmouth psychologist Amy Do and collaborators (2008), participants given free DVD’s were more pleased with the gifts if they received the more popular ones after the less popular ones, then if they received the exact same DVD’s in the opposite order. When it comes to pleasure, it’s all about the ending.

In the happiness realm, we can come up with many similar analogies from everyday life. Think about the last time you took a trip that was hopelessly botched by a series of mishaps. While traveling somewhere on vacation or for the holidays, perhaps you were delayed by bad weather, traffic, or a combination of the two. While going through the moment, you could not have been any more miserable. An experience sample would have charted your unhappiness as off the charts. However, as bad as it was for a while, by the end you got where you were going and were even reasonably on time. All those bad memories during the moment now recede and you feel that you have no real reason to complain. Contrast that experience with a trip that starts out well but ends badly. You’ll rate that experience as one worthy of your most vociferous objections to anyone and everyone who will listen.

What can you learn from the peak-end rule to help you boost your own happiness quotient, both long-term, and in the moment? Here are three take-away messages:

1. Keep your mind focused on your goals during a negative experience. If things are going badly for you, try to find some redeeming aspect of the situation that will keep you motivated to get through it. If you are going through a painful procedure, medical or otherwise, look for ways to make it end on a better note than it began.

2. Don’t let minor discomforts ruin your pleasurable experiences. Those longed-for occasions don’t always go perfectly. However, if you can keep the occasional disruptions from invading your mood, you’ll find the pleasure-to-pain ratio wins out in favor of pleasure.

3. End your experiences on a “high note.” As Jerry Seinfeld so wisely pointed out many years ago, ending on a high note will always leave them “wanting more.” If you wait till the “bitter end” (to use another metaphor), the experience will be one you remember far more pleasantly.

As Shakespeare says, “All’s Well that Ends Well.” Let’s hope that your endings are just as happy!

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source: www.psychologytoday.com

Elevate Your Heart Rate With Physical Therapy

Heart disease is a leading cause of death and disability. This shouldn’t be a surprise – it’s been at the top of the list for years. You know that taking care of your heart is important. That means doing things like eating right, avoiding smoking, and exercising regularly. While all of those things can be difficult, today we’re going to focus on exercise.

HOW PHYSICAL THERAPY CAN HELP WITH YOUR HEART HEALTH

Cardiovascular exercise is anything that makes you breathe harder and your heart pumps faster. That could be walking, running, dancing, biking, swimming or hiking. It strengthens your heart and blood vessels. It can help control weight, lower blood pressure, reduce stress, and prevent heart disease.

If you’re regularly going for a run or swimming laps, you don’t need help from your PT. But 3 out of 4 adults aren’t exercising regularly. If you’d like to get started, your PT may be just the person to help you. It’s not uncommon to get injured, then never get back to your old routine. Your PT can help you deal with the old injury and design a plan to get you safely back to regular activity.

It’s also not uncommon to try to be more active on your own, only to stir up pain somewhere like your back, hip, knee or shoulder. Your PT can help with that too. They’ll figure out why you’re having pain, help you correct it, and get you a plan to reach your goals.

Physical therapists can also help you safely increase your activity levels after major medical issues like a heart attack, stroke, or even cancer. Recent research has shown improvements in cardiovascular fitness, fatigue levels, and even pain in cancer patients who participate in a personalized physical fitness plan from a PT.

Whatever your barriers to physical activity are, your PT can likely help you overcome them. As movement experts, physical therapists are trained to deal with a variety of conditions. They’ll help you work around whatever issues you have so you can safely elevate your heart rate and keep cardiovascular disease away.

Why Walking With a Buddy is a Great Idea! Plus, Six Bonus Tips!

Walking is a healthy, low-impact, and free activity that can be enjoyed every day. There are many advantages to walking daily. Not only is it beneficial for muscles and bones and cardiovascular and pulmonary health, but walking can serve as a weight-loss mechanism and mood booster. While it is totally feasible to walk solo, there are many great reasons to walk with a partner. Let’s explore a variety of reasons to have a “walking buddy.”

  • Walking buddies are a great source of encouragement. They can get you motivated, keep you on track, and cheer you on. And you can do the same for them.
  • A walking buddy can hold you accountable and vice versa. Thus, having a walking partner makes it more difficult for either party to skip the activity.
  • It is generally safer. In a worst-case scenario, should a partner trip or fall, the other is right there to assist. It also may be more secure to walk with a partner than to walk alone.
  • Walking together is fun. It provides a sense of purpose and creates a positive experience.
  • Staying active and engaged in a fun activity with a friend can reduce feelings of loneliness and even reduce depression in some individuals.
  • It builds relationships. Friends may share advice, stories, recipes, or engage in fun subjects such as sports or music.
  • It helps to pass the time more quickly.

These are some of the many great reasons to walk with a partner. Whether for exercise, walking the dogs, pushing babies in strollers, or simply spending time outdoors, togetherness can make the activity immensely more fun. No matter where you walk, whether on a sandy beach, a country trail, a suburban neighborhood, or a city block, the experience is generally more profound when enjoyed with a friend.

Six bonus tips:

1) Before engaging in exercise, talk to your doctor to decide what type of activities are right for you.

2) When walking for exercise, find a walking partner who shares similar goals with you. It’s important to keep a similar pace so that you each reach the maximum level of activity desired.

3) Wear appropriate walking shoes (no flip flops, heels, or ill-fit shoes) to minimize falls.

4) Be sure to stay hydrated and wear sunscreen as necessary.

5) Invest in a cell phone holder for walking so that you can safely carry your cell phone for emergencies.

6) When walking near high traffic areas, wear light clothing, stop, look, and listen before crossing the road, and cross at designated crosswalks.

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source: amac.us

 

Physical Therapy Guide to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease causes breathing difficulty and leads to other systemic problems. COPD is the tenth most prevalent disease worldwide. It’s estimated that by 2050, COPD will be the fifth leading cause of death in the world. Although COPD used to be more common among men, it now affects women nearly as equally in developed countries.

Physical therapists can work with your pulmonary rehabilitation team or with you individually to help improve:

  • Your exercise capacity.
  • Your overall strength.
  • Your health.

What Is Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)?

In chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the airways in your lung lose their normal shape and elasticity and can become inflamed. The result is that the airways are less efficient at moving air in and out of your lungs. Primary risk factors for developing COPD include:

  • Smoking.
  • Inhaling toxic substances.
  • Indoor and outdoor pollutants.
  • Genetic/environment interactions.
  • Respiratory insult to the developing lungs during prenatal or early childhood stages of life.

Current research indicates that COPD is no longer considered a “smoker’s” or “older person’s” disease.

The most common types of COPD are:

  • Chronic bronchitis—a chronic inflammation of the medium-size airways, or “bronchi” in the lungs, causing a persistent cough that produces sputum (phlegm) and mucus for at least 3 months per year, in 2 consecutive years.
  • Emphysema—a condition in which small air sacs in the lungs called “alveoli” are damaged. The body has difficulty getting all of the oxygen it needs, resulting in shortness of breath (“dyspnea”) and a chronic cough.

In addition to causing breathing difficulty, COPD results in cough, sputum production, and other symptoms. The disease can affect the whole body and lead to:

  • Weakness in the arms and legs.
  • Balance problems and increased risk of falls.
  • Nutritional problems (weight loss or gain).

People with COPD are likely to have other health problems that can occur at the same time or be related to COPD, such as:

  • Reduced blood supply to the heart (ischemic heart disease).
  • High blood pressure (hypertension).
  • Depression.
  • Lung cancer.
  • Osteoporosis.
  • Diabetes.
  • Congestive heart failure.
  • Coronary artery disease.
  • Atrial fibrillation.
  • Asthma.

Over time, COPD leads to a progressive decline in physical function because of increased shortness of breath (dyspnea) and loss of muscle strength. There are 4 stages of COPD — mild, moderate, severe, and very severe — based on measurements of the amount or flow of air as you inhale and exhale. People with COPD may need to take medications or may require supplemental oxygen.

How Can a Physical Therapist Help?

Your physical therapist will perform an evaluation that includes:

  • A review of your history, including smoking history, exposure to toxic chemicals or dust, your medical history, and any hospitalizations related to your breathing problems.
  • A review of your medications.
  • Assessment of what makes your symptoms worse, and what relieves them.
  • Review of lung function test results that may have been performed by your physician.
  • Muscle strength tests of your arms, legs, and core.
  • Walk tests to measure your exercise capacity.
  • Tests of your balance and your risk of falling.

Pulmonary rehabilitation, including exercise training for at least 4 weeks, has been shown to improve shortness of breath, quality of life, and strategies for coping with COPD. Your physical therapist will serve as an important member of your health care team, and will work closely with you to design a program that takes into account your goals for treatment. Your physical therapist’s overall goal is to help you continue to do your roles in the home, at work, and in the community.

Improve Your Ability to Be Physically Active

Your physical therapist will design special exercises that train the muscles you use in walking and the muscles of your arms, so you can increase your aerobic capacity and reduce your shortness of breath. You may also use equipment, such as a recumbent bike, treadmill, or recumbent stepper to improve cardiovascular endurance.

Research has shown that strength training in people with moderate to severe COPD increases muscle mass and overall strength. Your physical therapist will provide strengthening exercises for your arms and legs using resistance bands, weights, and weighted medicine balls

Improve Your Breathing During Activity

People with COPD often have shortness of breath and reduced strength in their “inspiratory muscles” (the muscles used to breathe in). Your physical therapist can help you with inspiratory muscle training, which has been shown to help reduce shortness of breath and increase exercise capacity. Your physical therapist can instruct you in pursed-lip and diaphragmatic breathing, which can help make each breath more efficient, and helps to reduce shortness of breath during your physical activities.

Improve Your Balance

The decrease in function and mobility that occurs with individuals who have COPD can cause balance problems and risk of falls. People who require supplemental oxygen can be at a greater risk for a fall. If balance testing indicates that you are at risk for falling, your physical therapist can help by designing exercises aimed at improving your balance, and helping you feel steadier on your feet.

Can This Injury or Condition Be Prevented?

One of the most important ways to prevent COPD is to stop smoking, which also can delay the onset of COPD, or delay the worsening of breathing difficulty. If you are a smoker who has a cough or shortness of breath but whose tests don’t yet show a decline in lung function, you may be able to avoid a diagnosis of COPD, if you stop smoking now! The American Lung Association offers an online Freedom From Smoking® program for adult smokers. Your physical therapist also can help you get in touch with local smoking cessation programs.

If you already have COPD, your physical therapist can guide you to help slow the progression. The therapist will show you how to continue an exercise program at home or at a fitness center after you’ve completed your physical therapy treatment. Regular exercise that is continued after pulmonary rehabilitation for COPD helps slow the decline in quality of life and shortness of breath during activities of daily living. It has been found that patients who continue exercising after completing a pulmonary rehabilitation program, maintained the gains that had been made, whereas those who stopped their exercise program had a major decline in their exercise endurance and physical functioning.

When COPD is accompanied by excessive body weight, breathing can be more difficult. Excessive weight can also inhibit the ability to exercise and decrease overall quality of life. Your physical therapist can help you manage your weight, or prevent unnecessary weight gain by designing an exercise program specifically targeted to your current abilities. Your physical therapist also can also refer you to a dietician for help with proper nutrition to support a healthy lifestyle.

source: choosept.com

PT vs. PTA; What is the Difference?

Most professionals have assistants, for example, a physician (MD) has a physician assistant (PA). Hence, a physical therapist (PT) has a physical therapist assistant (PTA). Each is incredibly educated requiring a graduate degree from an accredited physical therapist program for PTs, and an associate degree from an accredited PTA program for PTAs, followed by both taking the National Licensure Exam for the Commonwealth of Virginia; PTs (now required to have either a masters or clinical doctorate), and PTAs (who provide services under the direction of a licensed PT). Thus, creating a dynamic duo that has the most specialized education with an established theoretical and scientific base, widespread clinical applications in the restoration, maintenance, and promotion of optimal physical function. But, often it is misunderstood that, like physicians and physician assistants who work together as a team, PTs and PTAs are not considered equals in their profession. So what is the difference you wonder? The only difference is that PTAs cannot perform Initial Evaluations-a collection of patient history, conducting a systems review and the performance of tests and measures to identify potential and existing problems-in short the Diagnosis, Prognoses, Re-Evaluation of the Diagnosis, Plan of Care, or the development and implementation of Discharge plans.

So what is left for the PTAs to do for you? Well, that’s easy! PTAs can carry out the plan of care and goals established for you by your PT.

That’s right! Your PT carries out your treatment through their assistant. This is because Physical Therapy is different than a visit with your Physician. You have more visits because you are now in the treat and be treated phase. Your body is ready to have all anatomy systems relating to your condition treated such as muscle/brain re-education (teaching your brain to use your muscles properly), making sure you are doing your homework, (also called a Home Exercise Program or HEP), and performing Manual Therapy (which is when the PT/PTA physically performs stretches or manipulations to the affected, and surrounding, part(s) of the body.)

Of course, you do see your PT during your treatment, but this teamwork allows for the PTs to evaluate other patients coming in for their first visit, as you continue with your treatment. The saying goes that for everyone visit you have with your PT, you might have the next two visits with their PTA; that’s usually how we conduct our patient’s treatment series at Carousel. Meanwhile, there is constant communication, verbal and documented, between the dynamic duo allowing 2-sets of eyes that can differentiate between any possible hiccups during your treatment, such as strategies or plateaus. This allows for re-examination or modifications necessary to achieve the anticipated goals and expected outcomes to restore optimal quality of life as it relates to movement and health!

How Many Calories are Burned with Standing Desks? And, Are They Worth It? You Decide.

At this point, the scientific evidence is omnipresent to the point of becoming irrefutable. We are sitting too much at work and at home, and it’s doing terrible things to our bodies and minds.

New findings even indicate that regular exercise may not counteract the negative health issues associated with prolonged periods of daily sitting.

With sitting once labeled a “lethal activity” by Dr. James A. Levine of the Mayo Clinic, and with the top contemporary jobs requiring hours upon hours of face time in front of a computer screen, the situation may seem hopeless.

Workers today burn fewer calories at work than their counterparts from decades past, mainly because the good jobs in the information age often involve sitting in front of a stationary computer screen for the entire day.

The fact is that desk jobs pay better than jobs that put you on your feet all day. According to recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the top-paid US workers sit for an average of six hours per workday.

Their findings showed a direct correlation between a person’s annual salary and the number of hours that they spend working at a desk.

Given all the facts, it might sometimes feel like you’re being forced to choose between your career and your good health. Thankfully, an ergonomic answer for the beleaguered and desk-bound modern worker exists in the form of the standing desk.

Numerous studies in recent years have tied the regular use of a stand-up desk to decreased risks of obesity, diabetes, colon cancer and many other serious medical maladies. As our work and leisure lives revolve more and more around screens, sit-to-stand desks have become an essential part of every health-conscious home and office.

That’s a major reason why more workers in desk-bound professions are taking a stand for their long-term health by switching to a standing desk. Employers are also recognizing that height adjustable desks can increase productivity, reduce medical costs and boost worker satisfaction across the board.

Of course, if regular use of an adjustable height desk decreases your risk for obesity, then it is logical to assume that standing at work burns more calories than sitting at work.

This is indeed true, but how many more calories does standing burn as opposed to sitting? How have different studies tried to answer that question? How does the calorie burn associated with sitting and standing compare with the calorie burn of other activities like walking and running and gardening?

Finally, if the act of standing doesn’t burn enough calories on its own, are there any ways that you can increase the calories you burn while working at your standing desk?

First things first: what is a calorie?

Unfortunately, calories are not something that you can pick out of your food like raisins from a potato salad. A calorie is a unit of energy that measures the amount of energy stored in food.

The “calories” that most of us are familiar with, the kind that we read on nutrition labels, are technically called “kilocalories.” One kilocalorie is the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of a kilogram of water by one degree Celsius.

Contrary to their bad reputation, food calories are good for us. They provide essential energy to our bodies, giving us the fuel that we need to remain healthy and active. However, if you consume more calories than you burn off through physical activity, those excess calories get stored in the body as fat.

That’s why a balanced diet and regular activity are essential to maintaining our long-term physical, emotional and mental health.

Why do people disagree about the calories burned by standing desks?

Hundreds of studies have attempted to measure the calories burned by standing instead of sitting. Due to differences in the subjects and the scientific methods involved in those studies, the results have varied widely.

There is one consistent finding: day-after-day spent passively sitting is one of the worst things that we can do to our bodies. Any activity at all, even standing still, is better for us than sitting.

However, while the act of standing certainly burns more calories than the act of sitting, there have been profound disagreements about how many more calories are burned. Some widely reported studies on the subject have been questioned or discredited due to their limited scope, small sample size or lack of controls.

One widely reported study by the University of Iowa in 2015 found that workers who used adjustable standing desks typically stood one hour per day more than their sitting-only colleagues and that they burned 87 extra calories per day.

Many people took these findings to mean that sit stand desks burn 87 calories per hour. However, a good amount of that additional calorie burn was because stand up desk users also walked an average of six minutes more per day at work than those who used a traditional, non-ergonomic sit-down desk.

Although the standing desk probably deserves credit for encouraging movement and enhancing energy in those workers, walking burns more than twice as many calories as either sitting or standing.

How many calories are really burned by standing?

A 2017 analysis published in the journal Circulation gives us the most up-to-date and widely accepted estimate of the calorie burn that comes from standing.

Doctors in that analysis looked at nearly seven hundred existing energy expenditure studies, selected the 44 most scientifically sound of the bunch, and then averaged them all together. By aggregating dozens of credible studies rather than relying on potential outliers, we get the most accurate and universal results.

As it turns out, you shouldn’t necessarily cancel your gym membership just yet.

While standing at your desk absolutely encourages blood flow in your body, activates the muscles in your legs and burns more calories than sitting down, standing still doesn’t force those muscles to burn that many more calories than sitting.

The Circulation study found that standing burns about two extra calories per fifteen minutes than sitting down at a computer for that same amount of time.

This averages out to an additional eight calories burned every hour that we are standing instead of sitting down at our desks. Meanwhile, sitting and watching TV burns even fewer calories – passive sitting burns four fewer calories per hour than sitting while working.

Of course, every study has its limitations and detractors (some studies “prove” that standing desks boost all forms of productivity, while other studies “prove” that standing desks mainly boost productivity for tasks related to creative thinking), and new and conflicting research is released all the time.

How do the calories burned by sitting and standing at desks compare to the calories burned by other activities?

According to the research published in Circulation, sitting down at a desk burns roughly 20 calories per fifteen minutes, while standing at a desk burns about 22 calories per fifteen minutes.

Sitting and standing while working burn more calories than sleeping or passively sitting, but how do they compare to other activities, such as cooking, gardening, or playing hopscotch with your kids?

Here is a breakdown of the average calories that various physical activities burn over the course of fifteen minutes:

  • Sleeping: 11.5 calories
  • Sitting and watching TV: 18.66 calories
  • Sitting and working: 19.63 calories
  • Standing and working: 21.92 calories
  • Walking: 55.9 calories
  • Downhill skiing or waterskiing: 111.5 calories
  • Basketball: 149 calories
  • Running: roughly 200 calories, depending on your speed

The above results for sitting, standing and walking came from the analysis published in Circulation, while the other totals were provided by Harvard Medical School, and indicate the average calorie burn for a 155-pound person.

Keep in mind that these numbers are only averages and that we all burn calories differently based on our individual size, metabolism and gender. For example, due to differences in muscle mass, standing men burn twice as many calories on average as standing women.

Does standing at work count as exercise?

The British Journal of Sports Medicine recommends that desk workers stand for at least two hours a day. Given that standing up burns eight more calories per hour than sitting, spending two-plus hours working at a standing desk could only burn about twenty extra calories per day.

That difference might seem measly at first – at that rate, it would take an entire workweek to burn off the calories found in a single red apple – but with regular use, the benefits stack up over time. One hundred extra calories burned every workweek becomes 5,000 extra calories burned every work year.

And even if standing desks are not exactly the exercise machine of the future, they still offer a plethora of other health benefits to users that encourage additional activity outside of the office: alleviated back pain, improved blood sugar control, lowered blood pressure, increased energy, improved attitude and a lot more.

On the other hand, if you suffer from low energy and chronic back pain because you cram yourself into an anti-ergonomic sit-down desk and chair all day every day, you become far less likely to do the real calorie-burning activities like walking, running, and playing basketball once the workday is done.

How can you increase the calories that you burn at a standing desk?

As we have seen, standing at work does burn more calories than sitting, but the difference in energy expenditure between the two is relatively small when compared to other physical activities.

That said, there are plenty of ways that you can increase the calories that you burn at your standing desk without interrupting your workflow.

1) DON’T BE AFRAID TO FIDGET

If you want a little extra boost to your calorie burn, just ignore everything that your parents and teachers ever taught you about sitting (or standing) still.

Yes, it turns out that fidgeting is good for our bodies. A recent study even found that fidgeting while sitting at your desk burns more calories than standing still at your desk.

The benefits of regular squirming only grow more pronounced when you are on your feet. People burn 30 extra calories per hour when they are standing and fidgeting then when they are sitting and fidgeting.

Regular movement keeps the blood flowing and the calories burning, so shift around in your seat, twitch whenever you get the chance, and twiddle as your health depended on it.

2) GET A MINI-EXERCISE TRAINER

It is no longer necessary to choose between doing your desk work and doing your daily cardio.

Small-sized exercise trainers help you burn additional calories at your desk, no matter whether you are sitting or standing. You can use a miniature bicycle machine to pedal while you are sitting, and a miniature elliptical machine to get your steps in while standing.

3) STRETCH REGULARLY TO STAY LOOSE

Do some calf and leg raises while sitting down, then do some deep knee bends or lunges while standing up. Stay limber and loose to prevent muscle fatigue and you will have no trouble standing at your desk for several hours a day.

4) TAKE REGULAR SHORT BREAKS

People who work at desks should take a short break and move around for a couple of minutes every half an hour. Regular movement is the greatest gift that we can give to ourselves, so push yourself away from the desk and move around at least once every thirty minutes.

5) USE A CALORIE COUNTER

Find an online calorie counter or a fitness app and track the hours that you spend sitting and standing every day. This will not only inform you how many calories you burn when standing, but it will also remind you to shift between sitting and standing positions throughout the day.

6) DO CHAIR EXERCISES

If you’re not afraid to turn your office into an Olivia Newton-John video, find a chair aerobics workout and start building up a real sweat. A sturdy and supportive ergonomic chair will only enhance your workout.

source: Eureka Ergonomic on 09/10/21

5 Shoe Mistakes Many Older Adults Make

Your feet have been taking you where you want to go nearly every day of your life. But eventually, those decades of wear and tear are bound to take their toll. In fact, among people over the age of 65, foot pain ranks among the top 20 reasons for seeing a doctor, according to a study in the Journal of Foot and Ankle Research.  

What’s more, many people have habits that can make foot discomfort worse. Here are five common mistakes people make when it comes to their feet—and what to do instead.  

Mistake #1: You Wear Slippers Around the House 

“Seniors often think they’re doing themselves a favor by wearing slippers, but slippers are basically the same as walking barefoot,” says podiatric surgeon Marlene Reid, D.P.M. She’s co-owner of Family Podiatry Center in Naperville, Illinois, and past president of both the Illinois Podiatric Medical Association and the American Association for Women Podiatrists.  

“Podiatrists across the country have been seeing a ton more heel pain during the coronavirus pandemic because people have been home and walking around the house in slippers or no shoes at all,” she says.  

Soft, fuzzy slippers may feel cozy, but they lack arch support, and if they’re mule style (with nothing securing them to your heel), they can come off easily, contributing to falls.  

In a study published in Footwear Science, 765 men and women ages 70 and older were followed for about two years and asked to keep track of any falls that took place in their homes. Fifty-two percent of falls occurred when people were barefoot, wearing slippers, or wearing socks without shoes.  

What does that mean for you? Wear athletic shoes at home. They have much more stability to help prevent heel pain, and the rubber soles can help prevent falls. Choose a pair with a wider toe box to give your toes space to spread out.  

If you keep your home shoe-free to avoid tracking in dirt, purchase a pair of shoes that will be worn only inside.  

Mistake #2: You Buy the Wrong Shoe for Your Foot Type 

There are three different foot types: normal, high arch, and flat-footed. Each has its own shoe requirements to achieve healthy, happy feet. (Not sure what type of foot you have? Ask a podiatrist for an assessment. You can find DIY tests online, but they aren’t always accurate, Dr. Reid says.)  

Once you know your type, here’s how to shop accordingly:  

If your foot type is normal, also called neutral arch: Look for shoes with a firm midsole and a straight to semi-curved last, which refers to the shape of the sole. To determine a shoe’s last, simply turn it over and look at the outsole. A straight-lasted shoe is symmetrical relative to a line drawn from the middle of the toe box to the middle of the heel.   

If your foot has a high arch: You need extra cushioning, because “most people with high arches have a problem with shock absorption,” Dr. Reid says. A softer midsole and flexible footbed will help too, according to the American Podiatric Medical Association.

If you have flat feet: Your feet probably roll in (or pronate) when walking. Look for shoes designed to help with stability and motion control, which typically have a straight last.  

Mistake #3: You Don’t Test Out Your Shoes Before Deciding to Keep Them 

Your shoes may feel good when you walk a few paces in the store, but whether they’ll still feel comfortable after a full day of wear is another story.

Dr. Reid says it would be a good idea to ask the store if you can bring them home and wear them inside for a full day to make sure they don’t cause pain or blisters. (Because you’ll be wearing them indoors, the sole won’t get dirty, so there shouldn’t be an issue if you need to return them.) 

Some shoe stores will even let you return them after wearing them outdoors. Nike, for instance, offers 60 days to take your purchases for a trial run, and Zappos.com offers 30 days on certain shoes.  

Be sure to try them on in the evening too. Feet swell as the day goes on, Dr. Reid says, so you want to make sure they feel comfortable when your feet are at their largest. 

Mistake #4: You Wear Flip-Flops 

Flip-flops are a total flop for feet of all ages, thanks to their lack of shock absorption and arch support. “They keep me in business,” says Suzanne Levine, D.P.M., a board-certified podiatric surgeon at Millennium Podiatry in New York City and co-author of My Feet Are Killing Me.  

Dr. Levine says these beach bag staples will aggravate your feet if you have arthritis, a bunion, or a neuroma, which is a painful bundle of nerve tissue usually located in the ball of the foot between the third and fourth toes. Flip-flops can also lead to plantar fasciitis, a condition that causes pain on the bottom of the heel.  

Even worse, flip-flops can increase your chances of an injury, whether it’s from an object accidentally dropping on your foot (no shoe protection), a stress fracture (from stubbing your toe or breaking your pinkie toe as it slips off the flip-flop), or by causing you to trip and fall.  

It’s fine to wear them for short periods of time at the pool or in the locker room, where they can help you avoid funguses and wart viruses, but don’t wear flip-flops all day long. Better yet, pick up a pair of slides, which offer the same easy-on, easy-off access, are waterproof, and, thanks to their increased thickness, offer a bit more shock absorption and put less pressure on the balls of the feet.  

Mistake #5: You Buy Rocker-Bottom Shoes Just Because You Think You’re Supposed to 

With their super-stiff, rounded bottoms, rocker-bottom shoes are heavily marketed toward older adults, with claims of easing pain. And they can do just that for individuals with foot arthritis. Because they don’t bend, they limit motion in the middle of the foot, an arthritis-pain hot spot. If you’re one of the nearly 20 percent of adults age 50 and older who have foot osteoarthritis, these shoes can help.  

But rocker-bottom shoes aren’t helpful for people with heel pain (plantar fasciitis), and they can even exacerbate it. “I had a 62-year-old patient who came in with heel pain caused by plantar fasciitis, which means the ligament that runs along the bottom of the foot from the toes to the heel, called the plantar fascia, was inflamed,” Dr. Reid says. 

“Her physical therapist recommended a brand of shoes that allowed no motion whatsoever. But unless you have arthritis, you need a shoe with some flexibility that allows the plantar fascia to stretch. So the more she wore these shoes, the tighter the fascia got and the worse her heel pain became,” explains Dr. Reid.   

If you think rocker-bottom shoes may help you, talk with a podiatrist before purchasing a pair. Once you have them, ease into wearing them, starting with an hour on the first day, two hours the next, and so on.  

“These shoes will change your gait by limiting motion, which affects the muscles and tendons, as well as the joints, and it can take some getting used to,” Dr. Reid says.  

Carousel PT is a Vasyli Accredited medical facility. Claim back YOUR “Footprint” with Carousel!

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By Leslie Goldman | October 9, 2021

blog source: https://www.silversneakers.com

The Whole-Body Wellness Challenge is rooted in the understanding that health isn’t just about fitness. This month, we’re sharing fun and easy ways to bring everything you love about SilverSneakers classes and your time at the gym to other areas of your life. You’ll find workouts, tips, and activities to help you build strength, eat healthier, sleep sounder, and be more present in your life, so you can feel good—body, mind, and spirit.

A Promise Is A Promise, And You Made A Promise To Get More Exercise In The New Year!

So your kids got you to promise to exercise more in 2022 during the festivities of the holiday season. You couldn’t resist. After all, you agreed because you love them, but now you either disappoint them and take it easy, or you convince yourself to give it a try. Come on, you can do it whether you turn 60, 70, or even 80 years of age this new year, says Rebecca Weber, CEO of the Association of Mature American Citizens [AMAC].

“No one’s telling you to go to Olympic extremes. All you have to do is the basics, such as going for a 15 to 30-minute walk every day. Once you get used to it, you’re bound to up the ante and start doing things like carrying a pair of dumbbells on your outings. Pretty soon, you’ll find yourself doing sit-ups and push-ups. But be sure not to go to extremes, particularly if you have health issues. In fact, it is best to have a chat with your health care provider before you begin your exercise routine,” Weber advises.

The National Institute on Aging [NIA] recommends that you take it slow at first. You don’t want to overdo it. Over-exercising – particularly at the outset – can make you want to quit, or worse, cause injury.

The right way to get started, according to the NIA, is to:

  • Begin your exercise program slowly with low-intensity exercises.
  • Warm-up before exercising and cool down afterward.
  • Pay attention to your surroundings when exercising outdoors.
  • Drink water before, during, and after your workout session, even if you don’t feel thirsty.
  • Play catch, kickball, basketball, or soccer.
  • Wear appropriate fitness clothes and shoes for your activity.
  • If you have specific health conditions, discuss your exercise and physical activity plan with your health care provider.

The pandemic has been hard on all of us, but it has been a particularly difficult experience for senior citizens creating an additional disincentive to take it easy if you can. However, says AMAC’s Weber, it can also be another good reason for working out. At the very least, it can take your mind off of the disease for a while on a daily basis, which can raise your spirits.

“When you consider what is required for someone to engage in exercise—time, motivation, goal, and willingness to put up with some discomfort—it becomes a little clearer as to why a person dealing with stress and anxiety would be less likely to engage … Despite having time on their hands, this person is struggling with psychological discomfort due to negative thoughts which saps away motivation and energy to engage in activities, let alone exercise,” says Dr. P. Priyanka.

In fact, a poll conducted by researchers from Canada’s McMaster University and Western University in April showed that participants who had worked out regimens prior to the COVID outbreak were exercising less as a result of the pandemic.

“But don’t use the coronavirus excuse to get out of doing your exercises,” says Weber. “Think of the benefits you’ll derive – the stamina and energy you’ll gain, not to mention the fact that it improves your mood and helps you fight off depression and not to mention the fact that you made a promise to your kids and your loved ones.”

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source: https://amac.us/a-promise-is-a-promise-and-you-made-a-promise-to-get-more-exercise-in-the-new-year/WASHINGTON, DC, Jan 7

Expect to Get Better. You Probably Will.

Research has shown that positive expectations increase the chances of a good outcome. It’s the old self-fulfilling prophecy; your attitude determines your approach to situations. If you believe you’ll be successful, you’ll likely put in more effort. You’ll be more willing to try new things, take some risks and keep trying after failures or setbacks. A negative attitude will likely mean that you’ll take your first failure or setback as confirmation that what you’re trying won’t work or isn’t possible and you’ll give up. Why waste time and effort on something that’s doomed to failure anyway?

YOUR EXPECTATIONS INFLUENCE YOUR RESULTS

There’s some research to prove that positive thinking and expectations make a difference in rehab settings too. A review of 23 articles looking at outcomes for shoulder pain found a few interesting things. First, patients who expected to recover and believed that they had some control of the outcome, ended up doing better than those who didn’t. Second, optimistic patients were found to have less pain and disability after completing rehab. Third, patients who believed they’d have pain and disability after surgery tended to have – you guessed it – pain and disability after their surgery. Research says that you tend to get what you expect.

SO DO YOUR THERAPISTS

Your attitude is important, but what about your therapists? There isn’t much research specific to PT, but there is a study done in elementary schools that might give us some clues. Two psychologists – Rosenthal and Jacobs did a study showing that teacher expectations had an influence on student performance. They told teachers that randomly selected students in their classes were tested and found to be “late bloomers”. These students were expected to show large improvements in academic performance during the school year. When the students were tested 8 months later, the students the teachers believed would improve the most, did.

Why? When teachers think students have a lot of potential to improve, they hold them to higher standards. They teach more complex materials, don’t settle for simplistic answers, and are more willing to spend time instructing and working with those students. It’s pretty easy to see how this could cross over into a PT clinic. If your PT thinks you can get better, they’ll probably put more effort into designing your program, spend more time with you and push you harder than someone they don’t believe has a lot of room for improvement.

To have the best chance for a good outcome, you and your therapist both need to expect one. You probably will.

 

References
De Baets L, Matheve T, Meeus M, Struyf F, Timmermans A. The influence of cognitions, emotions and behavioral factors on treatment outcomes in musculoskeletal shoulder pain: a systematic review. Clin Rehabil. 2019 Jun;33(6):980-991. doi: 10.1177/0269215519831056. Epub 2019 Feb 22. PMID: 30791696.
Rosenthal, R, and L. Jacobsen. Pygmalion in the classroom: teacher expectation and pupils’ intellectual development. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1968.

 

 

Let’s Move: 5 Studies Supporting Physical Activity’s Long-Term Health Benefits

As APTA continues its public information campaign on the importance of physical activity, here are five recent studies that underscore the message that more movement means better health — now and in the future.

Exercise Could Aid in Decreasing Anxiety Disorder Symptoms
This study from Sweden chronicles the effects of a 12-week exercise program among patients diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. A total of 286 patients were assigned to one of three groups: a control group that didn’t receive exercise interventions, a cardiorespiratory exercise group, and a resistance training group. After the 12-week program, researchers found the exercise groups were associated with 3.6 times higher odds for improved self-reported anxiety scores, and 4.8 times higher odds for improved depression scores, compared with the control group. Those odds increased with increased levels of moderate to high-intensity exercise. (Journal of Affective Disorders)

Better Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Mid-Life Pays Off Years Later
A study of 2,962 individuals who participated in a long-term health study conducted between 1979 and 2001 looked at reported levels of cardiorespiratory health in midlife (between ages 20 and 78) and later emergence of subclinical atherosclerosis, vascular stiffness, hypertension, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, and mortality. Researchers found that higher rates of cardiorespiratory fitness in midlife was associated with lower risk of all conditions. Authors of the study write that the findings “suggest that midlife [cardiorespiratory health] may serve as a prognostic marker” for chronic conditions in later life. (JAMA Network Open)

Exercise Doesn’t Increase Risks of Later Knee Osteoarthritis
Does running or other recreational physical activity contribute to later knee OA? Authors of a recent study say no. In a study of 5,065 participants followed over the course of five to 12 years, researchers found that, based on metabolic equivalents of tasks, various sports as well as running, biking, and walking had a “non-significant” effect on the later emergence of knee OA. (Arthritis & Rheumatology)

Physical Activity Correlates With Lower Risk of All-Cause Mortality for Individuals With Parkinson Disease
A nationwide study of 10,699 individuals with PD found that “all physical activity intensities” were associated with reduced all-cause mortality, and that the reductions increased as PA increased. Individuals with PD showed even lower rates of mortality if they were physically active both before and after the PD diagnosis. (JAMA Neurology)

Research Makes Inroads Into How PA Helps Reduce Dementia Risk
Scientists have understood that PA reduces dementia risk, but exactly how that risk is reduced has remained something of a mystery. Now researchers examining human brains of deceased individuals whose levels of PA had been tracked for years prior to their deaths think they may have a clue. Their analysis found that physical activity appears to reduce the proportion of morphologically activated microglia, also known as PAM. Activated microglia have been associated with damage to the brain through the release of chemicals that increase inflammation, which is in turn related to dementia. Researchers found that lower levels of PAM were correlated with individuals who reported higher levels of PA in their lifetimes. (Journal of Neuroscience)

If pain or a condition is holding you back, contact a physical therapist. A physical therapist can help get you moving to reduce your risk of chronic disease, enhance your fitness, and prevent injuries. It’s never too late to get moving!

source: American Physical Therapy Association