FitnessMantra Weekend: Ordinary Workouts Fueled By Extraordinary Nutrition?

Fitness Mantra del.icio.us page Welcome to “FitnessMantra Weekend”, your once-a-week health news update. As always you can also stay updated with the latest in fitness news by subscribing separately to the Fitness Mantra del.icio.us feed.

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I always enjoy The Misfits column in the Washington Post. Howard Schneider and Vicky Hallet bring the right mix of information and humor to their weekly fitness columns and this week’s is no exception. It’s Just A Workout — No Olympic Refueling Needed focuses on the amazingly popular use of Sports’ Drinks and Energy Bars during what most serious athletes would consider a plain, average workout.

The fact, though, is that most of us don’t really need any kind of super-fuel for our everyday workouts:

Unless you are preparing for a competition or an endurance event or exercising hard for a long time, deciding what and when to eat is not complicated.
The “what” is plain old food [...]: fruit, vegetables, grains and protein, in reasonable balance.
The “when” is whenever it feels right.

That’s really all there is. Enough said.

Here are the week’s top health and fitness stories:

Breast milk content may affect child’s obesity risk: Mothers who breast feed and have high levels of a protein secreted by lipids in their milk may be increasing the risk that their child will be overweight
Half a glass of red wine ‘protects from cancer’: Half a glass of red wine a day could protect you from colon cancer, scientists have discovered.
L.A. kicks off program to cut trans fats: Los Angeles County on Thursday rolled out a program in which local restaurants that agree to stop using heart-damaging trans fats in their cooking will get a decal to display in their windows.
‘Billboard poster saved my life’: Alec Keep credits this dramatic poster for the fact he is still alive today.
Parents to get child weight data: Parents will get details of their children’s weight under a national testing programme to combat obesity.
Exercise May Ease Fibromyalgia Symptoms: A simple exercise program that includes walking, stretching, and basic strength training may help control fibromyalgia symptoms.
Confused, or Just Confusing?: If you’re feeling a little whiplash from recent nutritional news, no wonder.
It’s Just a Workout — No Olympic Refueling Needed: Absent an acute demand — the energy to finish a marathon, for example — exercising doesn’t require you to eat a certain thing at a certain time, but rather to eat a healthy mix through the day.
Fish, Fruits, Veggies May Cut Dementia Risk: A diet that includes plenty of fish, omega-3 rich oils, fruits and vegetables may reduce the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease
Low-Carb Diet May Slow Prostate Tumor Growth: In mice, a low-carbohydrate diet slowed prostate tumor growth, possibly because fewer carbohydrates leads to a drop in insulin production, U.S. researchers say.
Now, the Stick: Employers [...] have tried dangling a carrot to discourage bad habits such as smoking [...] Now some are beginning to brandish a stick, docking pay, hiking insurance premiums or even banning employees from the workplace if they don’t comply with off-site
‘Diabulimics’ shun insulin to get thin: Unlike disorders such as anorexia, in which a person severely restricts calories, a person omitting insulin can eat whatever she wants. Pizza, beer, ice cream Ã¢â‚¬â€ none of it can be processed by the body.
Few women doing enough exercise: Only a fifth of women in the UK are doing enough exercise to be healthy
Chocolate and other foods to cut blood pressure: These eight foods are among the best of the best when it comes to lowering your blood pressure.
Most diet pill users stay overweight: Three diet drugs recommended for long-term use result in minimal weight loss and carry some serious side effects
Signs Drive Shoppers to Take the Stairs: Attention all shoppers: taking the stairs protects your heart.
Clipping Away at Illness: The trick is to teach barbers and stylists how to weave health messages into those chats
An Economy of Scales: How much she would pay me per pound to lose weight. She said, “Five dollars.” I said, “Seven dollars.”
Go green, get lean! Scientists take a new tack: One numbers-crunching scientist calculates that if all Americans between 10 and 74 walked just half an hour a day instead of driving, they would cut the annual U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide, the chief greenhouse gas, by 64 million tons [... and ] shed
Junk food ad limits ‘not enough’: A report by Which? magazine concludes children are still exposed to adverts promoting foods with high sugar, salt and fat content.
Obesity may up prostate cancer death: Men who are overweight or obese when diagnosed with prostate cancer are nearly twice as likely to die after treatment, a U.S. study found.
Australia airline ‘fat tax’ urged: A leading Australian nutritionist has urged airlines to charge obese passengers more for their seats.