From Monday's Globe and Mail
Published Sunday, Dec. 25, 2011 4:00PM EST
New guidelines, new warnings and some popular misconceptions all came under scrutiny over the past year
Kids should strength train
Kids 5 to 17 should get at least one hour of moderate to vigorous physical activity daily, including muscle- and bone-strengthening activities at least three days a week. That doesn’t mean they need to pump iron, but it’s safe if they do it properly. (Chris Bolin for The Globe and Mail)
Healthy living is about restraints
Former Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Akst argues that leading a healthy lifestyle is a matter of mastering our environment in We Have Met the Enemy: Self-Control in an Age of Excess. There’s being able to resist those cookies in the cupboard, and then there’s being smart enough not to have sweets in the house in the first place. (Getty Images)
Sitting down is killing you
The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology created the world’s first sedentary behaviour guidelines and scientists in Ottawa launched the Sedentary Behaviour Research Network this year. The conclusion? Too much sitting increases chances of cancer, heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. (Getty Images)
It’s okay to exercise while pregnant
When Amber Miller (pictured here with daughter June) gave birth a few hours after finishing the Chicago Marathon she faced harsh criticism. But doctors say the real problem is pregnant women aren’t getting enough exercise. The idea that pregnant women should put their feet up and eat for two is the worst thing they can do, doctors now say. (Chuck Berman, Chicago Tribune/MCT via Getty Images)
Obstacle races are about to get huge
Jumping through fire, crawling under barbed wire and throwing spears may not sound like a good time, but a growing number of Canadians beg to differ. Companies that run obstacle races, including Spartan Race, Warrior Dash and Tough Mudder, have been making inroads in Canada, and participation rates are skyrocketing. (Nathalie Madore/The Canadian Press)
Fruit is the enemy … or maybe not
Timothy Ferris, author of The 4-Hour Body, recommends no fruit. The 17 Day Diet allows three pieces, but before 2 p.m. Health Canada suggests up to five pieces daily, and a new Weight Watchers system gave fruit a points value of 0 to encourage people to eat more. Trying to figure out if fruit is good for you is enough to make you go bananas. (Getty Images)
We don’t get nearly enough exercise
This year, the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology released new activity guidelines. Adults should be active for 150 minutes a week, rather than 60 minutes a day; kids should be active for one hour a day, rather than 90 minutes. But only 12 per cent of children and less than half of adults even met the previous standards. (Getty Images)
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| The Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star. The Globe and Mail is widely described as Canada's English language newspaper of record. Publisher Phillip Crawley Editor John Stackhouse  |
