Category Archives: Experts Talk

Get Yourself a Menopause Coach!

I’ve heard of personal coaches, business coaches, lifestyle coaches and, of course, athletic team coaches….but never a coach for menopause, until now. What a great idea! After all, a “coach” is defined as an instructor, trainer, a private tutor — someone with expertise, experience and patience.  Isn’t that just what we need as we try to figure out the best, most healthful way to cope with menopause symptoms in an era of 15 minute physician appointments?

Rebecca Hulem is pioneering menopause coaching.  She’s a registered nurse, a Certified Menopause Practitioner and the author of Feelin’ Hot? A Humorous, Informative and Truthful Look at Menopause.  I recently spoke with her to learn more about what a menopause coach does: … [Read more]

Shake Up Your Normal Exercise Routine!

Not only is it fun to find innovative ways to shake up your normal routine, but all the body’s systems need to be surprised with diverse patterns of stress in order to continue to improve.  When I’m out for a run, I automatically look for inclines to run up, stairs to hop down and places to throw in 20 jumping jacks.  One man out for his morning walk said to me in passing recently, “You look like a kid with nothing better to do.”  Little did he suspect I was working on building bone, tuning up my cardiovascular system and burning off extra calories.

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How Stretching Can Help You Maintain a Youthful Appearance and Active Lifestyle

Even though stretching is the third pillar of a well-rounded exercise program (along with cardio and strength training),  it is often the one we skip….until we become aware that we’re feeling a bit stiffer in the mornings, less agile as we go about our day, and not quite as straight in our posture as we thought we were.

A buoyant, youthful demeanor depends on our ability to stretch out the muscles and maintain range of motion in the joints.  Stretching can counteract the stressors of daily life, reduce pain and discharge tension from the muscles.  By correcting the tendency of certain muscles to shorten and tighten, it can improve posture. … [Read more]

Strength Training – The New Star of Anti-Aging Strategies

Note from Wendy – Because I receive so much feedback from women complaining about menopausal weight gain, I asked the “trainer of trainers,” Joan Pagano, to offer perspective and advice on keeping fit and healthy as we age.  This is her third of five blog posts this week.  Joan is the author of three books that I highly recommend: “Strength Training for Women,” “8 Weeks to a Younger Body,”  and “15 Minute Total Body Workout.” Her latest book and DVD, “15-Minute Abs,” will be in bookstores in early December. Visit her website to learn more about her and to preview her books.

Cardio exercise has been the focus of fitness programs for many years, and now strength training has emerged as an equally important component of a well rounded exercise regime.  Study after study reveals its beneficial effect on weight control, energy level, bone density, posture, balance and the ability to resist diseases like osteoporosis, hypertension and diabetes. … [Read more]

How To Ramp Up Your Cardio Program

Ramp up your program by varying the length, intensity and frequency of what you’re doing. No matter what your starting level, you can improve your results – lose weight, grow stronger, build heart health – by creating a mix of workouts.Are you dedicated to your cardio routine….and not seeing results?  Stuck in a metabolic rut or on a weight plateau?  At any level of fitness, your body will eventually adapt to a consistent level of exercise and stop improving because it doesn’t have to.

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Advice From “The Trainer of Trainers”: Why Exercise is the Best Defense Against the Aging Process

Note from Wendy – Because I receive so much feedback from women complaining about menopausal weight gain, I asked the “trainer of trainers,” Joan Pagano, to offer perspective and advice on keeping fit and healthy as we age.   Joan is the author of three books that I highly recommend: “Strength Training for Women,” “8 Weeks to a Younger Body,”  and “15 Minute Total Body Workout.” Her latest book and DVD, “15-Minute Abs,” will be in bookstores in early December. Visit her websiteto learn more about her and to preview her books.

Joan will be offering advice every day this week, so I hope you’ll check back daily.  She will gladly answer your questions posted in the comment section.

I call the decade of the 20′s “The Body Prime” when all physiological systems are peaking.  We can exert ourselves in a daily high-intensity workout or sport, feel great and have a trim body to show for it! 

The decade of the 30′s is when we need to “Keep our Edge!”  It’s when a very subtle decline beings to occur throughout the body, causing a decrease in bone mass/strength, muscle mass/strength and resting metabolic rate.  Usually these changes don’t fully manifest until later, but they are occurring with each year of aging and can be offset with appropriate exercise.

The 40′s serve as a “Wake up Call!” for many women who notice real changes in their bodies, hormonal changes for one, but also creeping weight gain, loss of flexibility and changes in posture. … [Read more]

Menopause and High Blood Pressure – Is There a Connection?

I came across a startling fact in this month’s Berkeley Wellness Letter. Apparently, hypertension drugs have replaced hormone therapy as the No. 1 medication for women age 45-64.  Another article, this one in The Mayo Clinic’s Women’s HealthSource, about blood pressure changes in women as they age, stated that womens’ systolic pressure – that’s the top number in a BP reading and the one that’s more closely associated with heart disease risk and stroke in people over age 50- increases by about 5 millimeters of mercury with menopause.  So, is there a correlation between rising blood pressure and declining estrogen levels?

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Belly Fat…The Cause & Cure

We’ve created clever euphemisms to describe it – like muffin top, mid-life bulge, and a thickening waist. But however you want to refer to belly fat, it’s an unfortunate fact of life for most women in mid-life and getting rid of it is, as a friend of mine put it, like chiseling cement. … [Read more]

“The Vitamin D Cure” Author Weighs In On the “It” Vitamin

Since my blogpost about Vitamin D several months ago, I’ve noticed dozens of articles, research studies and even books about the “sunshine” vitamin.  It seems to be the new “it” vitamin that everyone’s talking about. Vitamins A, B and C have had their 15 minutes of fame. Apparently, it’s D’s turn and, as my own physician said to me, “it’s hot.”

To find out why, I contacted the leading proponent of Vitamin D, the author of “The Vitamin D Cure,” Dr. James Dowd , a rheumatologist and founder and director of the Arthritis Institute of Michigan.   He responded to my questions by email, which I gladly share with you here.   … [Read more]

Six Botanical Medicines That Can Help with Menopausal Symptoms

In my interview with Shaila Schwartz, a Naturopathic Doctor in San Francisco, I asked her about botanical medicines that she has found to be most helpful with her patients.  Her response follows: … [Read more]