<p>There’s a financial strain placed on the health care system when drug company studies are used to lower standards which result in the over-prescription of very expensive drugs (see Lipitor – over $1000 a year times 70 million prescriptions, we are talking billions of dollars a year), especially when there is a very tenuous evidence that those drugs improve outcomes. One of the real problems with our health care system is over-treatment. So, in that sense, if standards become unrealistic, it contributes to a broken health care system.</p>
<p>In addition to becoming fatter and more sedentary as we age, our blood pressure is increased by the natural hardening of the arteries with age. It’s unrealistic for 50 year olds to have the same average blood pressure as 20 year olds.</p>
That does not mean the standards are necessarily at fault – it means that people are reaching for the drugs as a first resort instead of a last resort. That is what leads to overuse of expensive drugs and some of the excessive costs in the health care system.
Is it unrealistic for a 50 year old to have a low body fat percentage like a 20 year old? Based on the progress some people posting here have described, no, it is not unrealistic if the 50 year old stays active and eats cleanly. And such a 50 year old is likely to have supple arteries and optimal blood pressure like a 20 year old.
<p>Yes. I think that is unrealistic. Especially for women, but also for men. We go through hormonal changes as we age that impact fat storage. 20 year olds are typically bean pole skinny.</p>
<p>I second idad. A 50 yr old can be as lean as a 20 yr old, however, on the molecular level the composition of their bodies will be different. No matter how much one exercises and/or eats healthy, three decades of exposure to highly damaging, oxidative environment aka the atmosphere will leave their mark on one’s DNA, hormones, etc.</p>
<p>While a 50 year old in optimal health and fitness will not be able to compete with a 20-29 year old in optimal health and fitness, there are plenty of 50 year olds who would put the vast majority of 20-29 year olds to shame in those categories.</p>
<p>Just because the average person your age is unhealthy, fat, and weak does not mean that you have to be average. That is the whole point of this thread, right?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>That is well within the range of chin-ups that male US Marines are expected to be able to do (minimum of 3; 20 for maximum points on the chin-up portion of the fitness test, although they must be done in one set).</p>
<p>I think that the folks that actively post on this thread are in a small minority.</p>
<p>The number of people that I know of (in person) that have lost significant weight is quite small. I see a lot of people that have been overweight for a long time (over ten years) and they workout everyday but don’t lose any weight. Basically they are in better shape than average for their age but they eat a lot of food that compensates for their extra activity. I’m sure that carbs are a big problem. I’ve also seen many people that have lost some weight by exercising or dieting put it back on, though usually slowly.</p>
<p>The people that I see that are fit are those that have always been fit and that have always watched their diet or the few, like me, that made dietary changes to supplement their activity to lose weight.</p>
<p>As a model, eat less and move more is a simple formula, but getting people to do them both looks to be very hard. I think that move more, eat more is more common. The nutrition stuff that I’ve learned here during 2011 has been phenomenal and I think that education in this area is needed for success to get the eat less part to work.</p>
<p>interesteddad–20 year olds are not always bean pole skinny these days. I was observing young women (my son is almost 20) and thinking that his girlfriend, if he ever gets one, will likely be on the heavy side, because most young people today seem to be overweight. </p>
<p>None of my kids are overweight, but I always fed them properly. Couldn’t get them to exercise, necessarily…some did taikwondo and liked to bike, others were more sedentary. Alas.</p>
<p>BCEagle–yes, there is more knowledge of nutrition and how the metabolic processes work, but it has to filter down to the masses, through the government and vetted by agri-business which has its own agenda. Corporations want us to eat MORE soybeans, corn, rice, and so forth. Government subsidies help grain farmers but not vegetable/fruit growers. And doctors are still recommending (if they know to recommend anything besides pills) that people follow the outdated food pyramid, with its high carb/minimal fat allowances.</p>
<p>If I ate 6-11 servings of grains/pasta a day, I would look like a house. That was in the old Food Pyramid. The MyPlate seems to be an improvement, but do people know about it? And can its message counteract the barrage of ads we see all day for snacks, treats, desserts, and sweet cereals? (Some of which contain “real fruit juice”?)</p>
Got my 1500 miles before mile 2 of this morning’s 6.3 mile run. Got out the door before 5:30 (ugh) in the fog. 47 degrees, so pretty nice. Very peaceful with little traffic. Got to see the sunrise as I was finishing. Good way to start the day. I hope I stay awake at work…
<p>My son got up to about 228 but dropped down to 192 in three months by
kicking up the exercise. He was always buying low-fat foods and they
didn’t work for him. Now he eats somewhat more like me and that has
helped. He’s running and lifting and he’s pretty tall and I think that
he looks good now.</p>
<p>Daughter has always been skinny. I never see her exercise but she has
decent muscles. She has absolute control over how much she eats. I
imagine that carrying a heavy backpack around campus contributes to
her strength. She is familiar with a lot of the exercises that I do so
she might be doing them when nobody is around. She likes to workout in
private.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>It was discussed on this thread for quite a long time before I looked
into using it. My thoughts on calorie counting was that it would be a
real pain in the neck - but they did a really nice job on the
interface and I was pleasantly surprised. I’m a metrics guy so I would
tend to do things to take measurements and record them. I would guess
that the average person would be loathe to count calories. Even if it
is relatively easy.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>That’s 2010; this year it’s “Evaporated Cane Juice”.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>Very nice accomplishment. Especially with the injury.</p>
Absolutely. 50 year old geezers can be very fit. Fitter than a 20 year old. But, on average, no. I’m really proud to do enough chinups to pass the Marine test. Of course, I can’t do the 1.5 mile run and I’ve never done a crunch, so I’d be in trouble on those.
mommusic:
Yeah. If I ate grains 6 to 11 times a day, I’d be in real trouble. Most people would. That’s what’s scary for most of today’s young people. At least most of us grew up in a time when people knew that starches and breads and cereals were fattening. That was common knowledge until the late 70s. Not that it was bad to eat those foods, but that those were the foods you cut back on when you wanted to shed a few pounds. Today, kids have been taught that the more carbs you eat, the better and avoid protein and fat because eating that is “bad” for you. Imagine what is going to happen to this crew when they hit middle age with those diets? Talk about putting on some pudge… They have been taught to eat the specific diet that packs on pounds and leads to metabolic syndrome unless you limit calories to impossibly low levels (which will cut the legs out from under exercising and building lean muscle mass).
<p>I guess it would be bad form to eat all the boss’s Christmas candy (the gifts from law firms are rolling in) since I’m not even a permanent employee at this place yet! Those small pieces of white chocolate are SO tempting. Good food gifts could make up for a lot of the drawbacks of this place!</p>
<p>Of course, what most people did not realize was how small the serving sizes (of everything) in that food pyramid were. Many people will eat an entire day’s worth of everything (except vegetables) in one meal…</p>
<p>You haven’t seen me dive into a big pile of broccoli! I can eat a whole day’s worth of veggies in one meal, too!</p>
<p>The recommended portion sizes are just another of the many flaws in the whole food pyramid public health policy guidelines. If the guidelines only work for people who eat like birds, nibbling a little here and there, then the guidelines aren’t going to be very effective.</p>
<p>The servings sizes make comparisons between products a bit of a pain. My whole grain cereals range from 80 to 190 calories per serving. The serving volume also varies. Basically you have to spend a lot of time calculating proportions to compare products.</p>
<p>I imagine most people just eat until they aren’t hungry anymore.</p>
<p>Roughed up pretty well by my neighbor running buddies this morning. They like to charge up the hills at sprint speed. Had to sit and pet the dog and sip tea for an hour afterwards. Everything is tender . . . but in a good way.</p>
<p>DH is down another couple pounds. He told me to butt and let him figure out on his own, which is a big relief for me. Here’s a good dinner we just had (I think it’s healthy) – the 50/50 salad mix that’s half spinach, a little vinaigrette (olive oil, dijon, garlic, pepper), feta, walnuts, tomatoes. Then a bunch of Kobe beef from the King’s Deli counter. And some warmed up rolls with butter. My DD added some leftover eggplant parmesan but DD and I stuck with the salad, beef and two rolls each. </p>
<p>My BP is low, I think: 116/74. It’s always about that except when I was pregnant.Lately I feel physically healthier but dumber.</p>
<p>5.25 miles, 9:15 pace. Felt awful - I had to do some errands this morning and it completely threw off the nutrition timing - basically too big a gap between eating and running.</p>
<p>I did the low-carb thing yesterday but it’s a strange menu. 130 grams of carbs in the morning, misc stuff for mid-afternoon and dinner consisting of 3 eggs, 1/2 pound of chicken and 6.7 ounces of kippers.</p>
<p>Doing better on the cold front…perhaps because I’d like to reach out and strangle someone at WageWorks, which processes our FSA claims. Aside from making me listen to about five minutes of voice response garbage before giving me the option of speaking to a representative, it took 54 minutes for them to explain why the vision claim they’d denied based on not receiving the receipt had had the amount to be considered modified based on their review of the receipt they claimed to have not received. In the end, it turns out that the optometrist, who has been in business only about 25 years, used such highly technical terms as “Varilux Comfort 2 Enhanced” on the receipt rather than “Prescription eyeglass lenses.” And that “Material Copay” – well, I guess it COULD have been because H decided to buy some bejeweled eyeglass case. Aargh. They’re also none too sure about “fish oil” because the doctor specified “fish oil” on the WW “Letter of Medical Necessity” form, but their instructions to processors say that it needs to be on a Rx pad form. Luckily, a supervisor thought better about that “this time.” I’m not sure which circle of hell I’d like to consign them to, but I’ll think about it. I think some weightlifting is in my immediate future.</p>
<p>I wish I could report the same. I’m back with the mild scratchy throat and low-grade head cold symptoms today. Congestion, a whiff of a sinus headache, and so forth. The good news is that it’s not very serious. The bad news is that a nap is more appropriate than a spin on the Airdyne!</p>