Another good article!

Get paid to walk

I know two women who are both in their 80s. Neither is wealthy; in fact, both live solely on their Social Security incomes in Southern California, where the cost of living ranks among the highest in the nation. Neither of these women has ever smoked or been overweight, and both come from families with notable longevity. One of these women takes 11 different medications. Thankfully, she has a prescription plan that allows her to pay just a portion of the real cost. Still, her tab for all of her medications comes to about $300 each month. That's $10 a day, seven days a week. Her annual medication tab comes to more than $3,600 -- more than 30 percent of her meager income. The other woman takes no medications. None. What's more, she is a 30-year double-mastectomy cancer survivor. It's not like she was born with the "perfect health" gene. I am no doctor; however, as I assess this situation, I see one startling difference in the lifestyles of these two women. The first is sedentary, having never been one to exercise or to be physically active. The other, however, walks and swims. Six days a week, she walks 5 miles and swims for one hour. She has done this every weekday for her entire adult life -- even during the times she was undergoing cancer treatment. Still, at age 85, she consistently performs these daily exercises. It has become as much a part of her lifestyle as eating and sleeping. The first woman who takes so many medications is now mostly immobile and confined to a walker. The other is active, drives, enjoys life and spends her days reaching out to help others in her community. A study of 906 women published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association" (Sept. 8, 2004) showed that activity -- or lack of it -- was the biggest predictor of heart disease. The women were given angiograms to detect heart disease. They were assessed for weight and Body Mass Index, with 76 percent being overweight, and, of those, 41 percent obese. But those risk factors did not result in more heart disease. Instead, assessing physical activity, the least active women showed the most evidence of heart disease. Weight did not matter. Results from the 20-year-long Nurse's Health Study showed that walking an hour a day, or a total of seven hours a week, is associated with decreased risk for breast cancer and Type 2 diabetes. As little as a half hour a day, or three hours a week, is associated with decreased risk of heart disease. Of course, I can't be certain that intentional exercise is the key to the second woman's good health, but I wouldn't doubt it for a minute. There's no doubt that exercise matters not only to our health and quality of life but to our bank accounts, too. Walking one hour a day is like getting paid $10 to invest in your future. Mary Hunt is the creator of Debt-Proof Living newsletter.

Great article! THANKS!
Dawn

*Nice!!
sheree

That was really inspiring. Really makes you think, doesn't it?? We're here for very good reason, not just to look hot, but to be HEALTHY!!! Thank goodness we've found one another!

cool

cool