P.E.P. Talk - November 2022

Recent studies show that 28% of adults age 50 and older are physically inactive. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that adults exercise moderately for at least 150 minutes per week.

The answer to the question of is it too late to start exercising at this point in my life is NO. It’s never too late to start exercising.

If you’ve become interested in taking care of yourself and trying something new, feed that, and it will flourish.

Moving for any amount of time—even five minutes, if that’s what you can do to start—helps your health, according to the latest fitness guidelines. And the more you do, the more benefits you get over time, including better heart health, mental sharpness, and reduced risk for chronic diseases like diabetes or even cancer.

Start smart and do half of what you think you’re capable of in the amount, intensity, weight, speed or distance.

Why? If you go full speed ahead, you won’t be able to feel how your body is actually reacting to certain movements.

Your body doesn’t heal as efficiently as it did when you were 20, 30, or even 40. When you take things slowly, you can assess how your body feels both during your workout and one or two days after, when you’re most likely to experience any soreness or pain.

Your body is just at a different level when you’re starting over or from the beginning. Your fitness and wellness journey is unique to you, so avoid comparing your progress to someone who may have been exercising for a longer period of time, even if you’re the same age.

Having a foundation of movement, fitness, joint mobility, strength as well as that brain and body connection will benefit you even if you have taken a very long break. If you don't have that foundation and you are just starting for the first time it doesn’t mean you can’t do it—it just means you need to proceed with caution and arm yourself with knowledge.

Check in with yourself on a regular basis and celebrate your personal milestones. Can you walk even a few minutes longer than you did when you started? Do you feel less winded doing chores or running errands? Notice that your pants fit a little better, or you feel less pain in your back, hips and knees? All of these successes count!

How Do I Pick The Right

Athletic Shoe For Me?

Wearing shoes that are comfortable and fit your feet can help prevent injuries such as blisters and calluses. A walking shoe should also be fairly lightweight and provide good shock absorption. But not all walking shoes are created equal. Find the fit and features that are right for you.

Tip: Don't forget water fitness needs the proper shoes too. Standing barefoot on a hard surface (in or out of the water) does not provide any arch support or shock absorption.

Achilles tendon protector. Reduces stress on the Achilles tendon by locking the shoe around the heel.
Heel collar. Cushions the ankle and ensures proper fit.
Upper. Holds the shoe on your foot and is usually made of leather, mesh or synthetic material. Mesh allows better ventilation and is lighter weight.
Insole. Cushions and supports your foot and arch. Removable insoles can be laundered or taken out to dry between walking sessions.
Gel, foam or air midsole. Helps cushion and reduce impact when your foot strikes the ground.
Outsole. Makes contact with the ground. Grooves and treads can help maintain traction.
Toe box. Provides space for the toes. A roomy and round toe box helps prevent calluses.

Let's Get Moving!

Walking, hiking and biking are popular outside activities when the weather permits and indoor cardio equipment may be your go to routine when it is too hot or too cold to be outside. But by dividing your cardio routine into a few shorter segments and adding in a simple set of strength building exercises you can really enhance your fitness routine. This burns more calories, helps to cross/corrective train to avoid injuries, increases your strength and avoids overuse injuries by doing the same exercises with the same movement patterns for too long.

An anti-inflammatory diet has become more popular in the last few years. Inflammation can be the cause of arthritis and joint pain, as well as migraines and fatigue.

If you're looking forward to Thanksgiving dinner, but worried about the inflammation that could result, you’re not alone.

Choosing foods that are part of the anti-inflammatory diet is designed to prevent or reduce low-grade chronic inflammation, a key risk factor in a host of health problems and several major diseases such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, arthritis and joint pain.

Under normal circumstances, short periods of inflammation can be good for the body and help the body heal, but when inflammation is constant, it can lead to various chronic diseases.

On Thanksgiving there are identifiable culprits that can cause inflammation.

Those include:

Pop/sugar-sweetened beverages
Fried foods
Red meat
Processed meat (adding bacon or sausage to a stuffing)
Processed baked goods (pie, cookies, cake)
Refined carbohydrates (white rolls, white bread added to stuffing)
Sugar (added to cranberry sauce, sweet potato casserole)

Some suggestions for easy ingredient swaps to help you enjoy your meals worry-free:

Instead of canned cranberry sauce loaded with sugar, make a fresh cranberry relish (see recipe below).
Instead of green bean casserole, make steamed, sautéed or roasted green beans.
Instead of white mashed potatoes with cream and butter, make roasted red skin potatoes or sweet potatoes.
Instead of stuffing made with white bread and sausage/bacon, make a cauliflower stuffing.
Instead of pumpkin pie, make a pumpkin pudding so that you are missing out on the white flour and butter crust.
Instead of salads made with iceberg lettuce and cream-based dressing, make salads with dark greens and vinaigrette dressings.
Instead of sweetened, high calorie beverages, serve fruit infused waters.
Instead of chips, serve unsalted nuts.

A baked turkey is preferable to fried, whole grain rolls over white rolls and offering several vegetable side dishes, such as Brussels Sprouts, are great, healthier options.

The typical anti-inflammatory diet emphasizes fruits, vegetables, lean protein, nuts, seeds and healthy fats. These foods contain antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids which have been shown to reduce inflammation.

CRANBERRY-ORANGE RELISH

1 ½ cups cranberries
1 medium-size orange, seeded and chopped
1 medium apple, unpeeled and chopped
¼ cup sugar if desired

Process orange in a food processor or blender until finely chopped. Add cranberries, chopped apple and sugar. Pulse until fruit is finely chopped. Chill.
Makes 18 servings. Serving size equals 2 tablespoons. Each serving counts as a condiment or ¼ fruit serving.

Nutrition Analysis per serving

22 calories
0 grams fat
0 milligrams cholesterol
0 milligrams sodium
5.8 grams carbohydrate
1 gram fiber
0 grams protein

Locals Only
Welcome to the Coachella Valley's locals only recommendations for you. This is a list of local businesses, excursions and happenings throughout the desert. They can be experienced as a single event or group them together to customize your own adventures and day trips.
Most of the local businesses are currently open but may still have some COVID restrictions.
Please visit each website to confirm their current rules and regulations.

Cabot's Pueblo Museum
Local Tip: Make sure to get tickets in advance if you want the guided tour. Lots of history, artwork and artifacts in this historic house museum. Highly recommended.