September 29, 2005, Vol. III Issue 20
Dear Friends,
One of the things I love most about my job is the opportunity to learn about innovative viewpoints. This information often initially comes via books and authors recommended by none other than our clients. This was the case with Dr. Marie Savard, author of Apples & Pears, The Body Shape Solution for Weight Loss and Wellness. When a client told me about that title, I was intrigued and had to know more. Off to the bookstore and now I get to share both her ideas and her expertise as a speaker for your health-centered events.
October means meeting season is in full swing and brings National Breast Cancer Awareness Month to our attention. I had the opportunity to attend a different kind of Susan G. Komen Race benefit this week. It was “Sail for the Cure” here in Portland with Becky Olson on the platform and a bevy of enthusiastic women sailors (and men) in the audience. I don’t know if it was the wind and water from the daytime activities or the wine consumed during the silent auction, but everyone appeared to be glowing with health and vitality and passion for the cause by the time Becky took the microphone.
I realized I haven’t shared any recipes in awhile so read on to the end for one of my fall favorites.
Are You an Apple or a Pear?
As the book jacket for Apples and Pears by Dr. Marie Savard reads, “When it comes to your health, body shape really does matter!” Hmm . . . that gets my attention. Could the key to better health actually be found via “testing” with a simple tape measure?
“Chances are you already know if you’re an apple or a pear. Most women know intuitively whether their bodies tend to store fat around their waists (forming an apple shape) or lower down around their hips, thighs, and buttocks (forming a pear shape),” Dr. Savard says.
But what does it matter? Gut or butt, too much is too much, right? Wrong!
Dr. Savard is a nationally-known internist, women’s health expert and advocate for patients’ rights. She is the award-winning author of How to Save Your Own Life, and the creator of The Savard Health Record.
According to Dr. Savard, there’s much more at stake here than the clothing style you might choose to camouflage, minimize or flatter your figure. She says your body shape is the single most powerful predictor of future health. “Body shape is the closest thing we have to a medical crystal ball,” she says. “This one simple piece of information is more important than weight for predicting your risk of heart disease or stroke. It is connected to differences in your physical chemistry, hormone production, and metabolism and directly affects your likelihood for obesity, heart disease, osteoporosis, the metabolic syndrome, diabetes, stroke, varicose veins and certain cancers.
“The good news,” she tells us, “is that this crystal ball only tells us what is likely to happen; our health destiny is not written in stone. We have the power to improve the course of our lives in spite of our shapes . . . if we are willing to take action.”
For example, it makes all the difference in your risk for heart disease. Women who gain weight around their middles (apples) are up to four times more likely to have a heart attack than women who add pounds around their hips, buttocks and thighs, but there are practical steps they can take to reduce their risk.
“Apple-shaped women have more visceral fat, which gathers around the internal organs and is generally more harmful to the body than subcutaneous fat, which appends itself to the buttocks and thighs. Visceral fat creates a physical environment that is primed for heart disease and stroke. The more abdominal fat a woman has (the greater her waist is in proportion to her hips) the more dangerous the situation becomes,” Dr. Savard says. “A tape measure can be the most powerful tool a woman and her doctor have to identify the woman’s risk of heart disease and to begin taking appropriate preventive steps.”
The best news is that there are things you can do to prevent or even reverse the risks of body shape. In the book, Dr. Savard offers specific nutritional and exercise recommendations based on body type for women of all shapes and sizes.
“No matter what body shape you have, how old you are, or how much you weigh, there are many things you can do to decrease your personal disease risk,” she says. “Diet and exercise are only part of the equation. Medical monitoring is critical, as is a change in mindset. We need to stop thinking of our weight problems, and learn to accept ourselves as women with figures. Every woman can become stronger, look better and feel healthier.”
“Once you understand what body shape means, how it is formed, how it changes, and how it relates to your health, the effect is like ripping off a blindfold,” she says. “Finally our stomach and thighs make sense. Finally you know what you have to do to lose weight more easily. Finally you can put medical problems in context and really know what to do to improve them. Finally you can appreciate and understand your body as it is, while still nurturing it to become stronger and healthier than ever
before.”
Dr. Savard welcomes the opportunity to share the revelations of apples and pears with your group. Find out if you’re an apple or pear by taking the quiz on her website, http://www.applesandpears.org.
You’ll be seeing Dr. Savard and other exciting new speakers on my website as soon as I emerge from the chaos of moving. For info about fees and availability, mailto:Barbara@speakwellbeing.com or call me at 503-699-5031.
Becky Olson: The Five H’s and Sister Lister
I love it when I get to see a speaker locally whether it’s one of “my” speakers, one I’m scouting or someone I just want to hear/see for my own enlightenment or personal growth.
Sunday night I got to experience Becky Olson, an up and coming speaker in the health arena. Becky recently left the corporate world to pursue her passion for speaking and sharing her experience living through breast cancer. She is a 2X breast cancer survivor, author of The Hat that Saved My Life and was the keynote speaker for the “Sail for the Cure” event here in Portland.
I loved that Becky got us all involved in her talk. She had five points to make, called the 5 H’s, and she had us repeat them out loud. Then, during her talk, she asked us, when she got to each point, to name it. Much to my amazement, I remembered each one, and so did other audience members! Now, I could tell you what they were…or you could ask. I will tell you, that her first “H” was Hair and that launched her into the story that led to the title of her book, The Hat That Saved My Life. If you want to know the rest of the five H’s, email me.
Becky’s also developed a program around a character, “Sister Lister.” A list maker all her life, Becky addresses a problem that many women face: Too much to do and never enough time to do it. You’re a sister lister if you’re a woman who makes lists. I can relate. In the weeks and days leading up to my wedding, I lived by lists. I even made lists for my fiancé. So many lists that on our honeymoon, our mantra was, “No lists!”
Becky, however, has a point. When you’re feeling stressed out by too many things on your mind, list-making can be a lifesaver.
In her Sister Lister talk, she’ll teach you how to better organize your life by learning to focus on one task at a time. “Too often we get caught up in one daunting task only to find ourselves thinking about all the other ones that are piling up behind it,” Becky says. “The first one doesn’t get done and the second one doesn’t get started because we are not focused.
The best part of it is, she does it all with a sense of humor. “Get control, get focused, get it done and then GO PLAY!” she says. I knew I liked this woman the moment I met her!
A Different Kind of Turkey in the Oven
Being married is a whole new world in many ways. One of the things that’s come up for me, of all things, is meal planning. Now, my husband likes to cook and we like to cook together, and we both like to eat healthy (he would even tell you I have been a good influence on him in this arena!) Meal PLANNING, however, is a different issue. I’m learning. I know, I know, all of you have known this for years.
Since I go for my evening Nia workout most weekday early evenings, I get home a little after 7 p.m. and I want to eat NOW! So, I plan ahead and while I have always done this and cooked for myself, somehow it’s different doing it for the two of us. Anybody know what that is all about?
Now that there’s a nip in the air, I find myself turning away from the barbecue and toward the crockpot and the oven, and two of my favorite chapters in Zonya Foco’s Lickety Split Meals for Health Conscious People On the Go. Those are “Slow-Cooking” and “Oven, Exercise, Eat.”
The premise of course, in “Oven, Exercise, Eat,” is that after some quick preparation, you put dinner in the oven and head out for some exercise while it’s cooking. Got that part covered. I’ve never been a traditional meat loaf fan, but Jim and I agree Tantalizing Turkey Loaf is a winner (and the house smells awesome when you walk in the door!). It’s on page 133 of the newest edition of LSM. If you’d like the recipe, email me at Barbara@speakwellbeing.com and write Turkey Loaf in the Subject line.
I’ll share our favorite slow-cooking recipe in a future issue.
Until next time, take care of yourself, for your well being and those you love.
Yours truly,
Barbara
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ABOUT OUR SERVICES
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The Speak Well Being Group specializes in providing exceptional speakers for health, wellness and women’s events. Because we’ve worked with so many hospitals and healthcare groups around the country, we speak your language. Our hand-picked speakers are attuned to your needs and adept at addressing the issues while delivering information in an entertaining way, or simply providing a good time with a light message when that’s the ticket. When youwork with us, you’ll come back for more “How are we going to top that?” speakers.
You’ll find many of our speakers on our website.
Or please call anytime and let us assist you: 503-699-5031
The Speak Well Being Group, Lake Oswego, OR 97035
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