Archive for April, 2010

A Sports Bra For All! – Part Two

Friday, April 23rd, 2010

From last post you learned how to find the right size for your sports bra. Now that you have your size, you need to decide which style is best. There are three basic sports bra construction styles:

  1. Compression Sports Bras (the one piece style that you pull on over your head) are the most popular style. This bra compresses against your chest allowing for minimal or no-bounce movement. This style is most suited for women with small to medium sized breasts (A-B cups). These tend to come in general sizes, such as small, medium, large vs. band/cup sizes.
  2. Encapsulated or Natural-Shaping Sports Bras are best suited for larger busted women, usually a C-cup or higher. These look more like a normal bra with fasteners in the front or back and may have underwire. This style encapsulates each breast in an individual cup. The encapsulated sports bra is the best choice for larger-breasted women (C-cup and up) or plus sized women.
  3. Compression/Encapsulation Sports Bras are a combination of the previous two bras. They encapsulate and compress the breast tissue against the chest. They can be pulled over the head or closed with fasteners. This style is ideal for women with medium to large breasts, usually C through DD cups.

Finding the Right Fit:

  • The straps fit snug against the skin, but aren’t so tight that they dig in. You should be able to slide two fingers underneath—from the front to the back of the straps with ease.
  • The band lies snug and flat against around the front, sides, and back of your ribcage. It should not ride up. You should be able to slide one finger easily under the band.
  • Your breasts fit within the cups. In other words, any bulging from the top or sides is an indication that the cup size is too small.
  • The fabric does not gather or bunch in the cup, especially on top. Excess fabric is an indication that the cup is too big and will not provide adequate support. This can also cause chafing during activity.

A few more construction details to consider:

  • Moisture-wicking fabrics, such as Dri-FIT and CoolMax, pull sweat away from the body to keep you dry and minimize chafing. Minimal seams or covered seams, especially in the cups also prevent irritation.
  • Deep armholes allow for range of motion and minimal chafing.

You’ve found a bra that fits your requirements, but you’re not done yet. Test it out in the fitting room. Do jumping jacks or jog in place to make certain the bra provides control, support, and comfort without rubbing you the wrong way.

The sports bra should be an integral part of every woman’s workout wardrobe. While finding the right one can take time, you’ll be amazed how much better you will feel while exercising once you do!

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A Sports Bra For All! – Part One

Tuesday, April 20th, 2010

Did you know your bra can actually dictate the tone of your workout? The wrong fit can be just the excuse you need to cut out of your run early, while complete comfort can keep you going long and strong. 

Exercising in the wrong bra can lead to more than discomfort. A number of issues can occur, including sagging, tension or pain in the arms and shoulders and restricted breathing.

Studies have shown 75% of women are wearing the wrong size sports bra.  To ensure a good fit, many department stores offer free fitting. Or you can always take your own measurements.  Below are steps to figure out your proper bra size.

  1. Wear a normal (non-padded) bra, not a sports bra, when taking your measurements and use a tailors or cloth measuring tape.
  2. Bust measurement: Measure the fullest part of your chest by loosely wrapping the tape measure around your bust, making sure the tape is straight front to back. Once you get a number, round up to the nearest whole number if necessary. (For example, if your bust measured 38.5”, round to 39”.)
  3. Band measurement: Measure your ribcage just under your breasts, making sure the tape is snug (not tight) and not lower in the back than the front. Add 3 inches to this measurement. If this number is odd, you need to add 1 more inch to make it an even number. (For example, if your band measured 32 inches, add 3 to get 35; because it’s an odd number, you’d add a 1 to get 36 inches.)
  4. Cup size: Subtract your band measurement (step 3) from your bust measurement (step 2). Use the chart below to determine which letter is your cup size. (Using the same example above, you’d subtract 39-36 to get 3 inches, which is a C cup, according to the chart.)
Bust – Band difference Cup Size
1/2″ AA
1″ A
2″ B
3″ C
4″ D
5″ DD or E
6″ F
7″ G

5. Put your band size with your cup size and you have your bra size. (In this example, the bra size is 36C.)

Next post I’ll let you know the different kinds of sports bras you can buy and how to know which one is best for you.

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The Proven and Easy Way to Lower your Triglycerides and Improve your Health

Wednesday, April 14th, 2010

I just read an article that discusses taxing sugary beverages. You can find that article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/06/health/06brod.html?ref=health. The article provided many startling statistics about sugary drinks and their effect on health. I found the report from the Harvard study very interesting. They reported that heart disease risk increased by 20% in the women that drank 2 or more sugary sodas in a day compared to those women that drank one or less sugary drinks in a month. This study had a pretty big sample size (88,000 women) and lasted an extensive period of time (24 years) making these results fairly strong.

You may be thinking, well of course sugary drinks are not good for you. Who doesn’t know that? I’m sure that message has been drilled into your heads already. But, the reason I bring it up is that because of the effect these carbohydrates have on your body’s fat stores and triglyceride levels. Your refined carbohydrate intake has a big impact on your triglyceride levels.

Triglycerides are fats that travel in the bloodstream. I always think of triglycerides as the vehicle that transports unused energy to the energy storage facility, that is, your body fat. Your body can store an unlimited supply of reserve energy in your fat stores.

Anytime you eat carbohydrates, your digestive system breaks them down into sugars. There are six different kinds of sugars; Glucose, Fructose, Lactose, Galactose, Maltose, and Sucrose. Notice that they all end in “ose”.  After the digestive system breaks down the carbohydrates into one of these six sugars, these sugars are then shuttled to the liver. Once in the liver, the liver decides how to use them. They may be stored for later use or they may be shuttled out to the bloodstream to provide energy to the other organs and muscles of the body (blood glucose). If your body does not need any energy at the moment, because you are working at a sedentary job or you are sitting and watching television, your body will take these sugars and make triglycerides with them.

If you want to reduce your body fat and triglyceride levels consider switching your sweets. Opt for calorie-free beverages like water or unsweetened iced tea to satisfy your thirst in place of sugary sodas or fruit juices. Consider adding fruit for dessert in place of candy. The reduced intake of refined sugars and calories will help you reduce your triglyceride levels and lower your body fat.

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What’s New in Worksite Wellness?

Wednesday, April 7th, 2010

Three years ago, as a registered dietitian and certified personal trainer, I would not have guessed that my full time job would revolve around work-site wellness programs.  I also would not have guessed how rewarding it is!

When it comes to work-site wellness programs employers want to know: “What will a wellness program do for my business?”  The Return on Investment (ROI) data is coming in:

“A 2002 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services study noted that companies with physical activity programs for employees have reduced health care costs by 20 percent to 55 percent, reduced short-term sick leave by up to 32 percent and increased productivity by up to 52 percent.”

http://www.health.state.ny.us/prevention/worksite/

“According to an article published on Business Insurance April 27, 2009: Poor health among U.S. workers costs employers much more than many realize in reduced productivity, according to a multi-year study of 10 employers and more than 150,000 workers.

The study, published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, found that presenteeism–when employees are present at their jobs but unable to perform at full capacity–creates a greater drain on company productivity than employee absence, a finding that may come as a surprise to many employers, researchers say.

For every dollar spent on medical costs and pharmaceuticals, there is $2.30 of health-related productivity losses due to absenteeism and presenteeism, according to the study. For certain conditions, such as anxiety, employers lose as much as $20 in productivityfor every dollar they spend on medical care and pharmaceuticals.

The study, which researchers said is one of the largest to date on the subject, found that when medical and prescription drug costs are considered alone, the top five conditions driving employer health care costs are cancer, back/neck pain, coronary heart disease, chronic pain and high cholesterol.”

http://www.businessinsurance.com/article/20090426/ISSUE01/100027532

These cost-savings are achieved when a culture of wellness and a focus on preventive care for employees (not sick care) is emphasized.  Successful worksite wellness programs understand this and use this to drive their wellness initiatives.

Whether you are just starting to implement wellness initiatives at your worksite or you have had them in place for some time now, consider conducting a needs assessment survey. The results can help you achieve maximum ROI by guiding your decisions for wellness programming.

What a difference a few years has made. A lot has changed in the field of worksite wellness since three years ago, and I have no doubt the trend is going to continue. Now is the time to drive your efforts forward.

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