Scots are an unhealthy race

[HollyElise]

Thank you for your suggestion, but no i do not because the benefits of muscle mass on health far, far, outweighs the risk or seriousness of the potential problems. Also the chances of getting tears and injuries can be greatly minimized with variety, a good stretching routine, and attention to good form.

As far as injuries go, they have found that runners who run above 10 miles a week greatly increase their chances of injury well beyond proportion to the miles. There is an exponential curve to injury.

Poor muscle mass on the other hand increases risk of obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes and insulin resistance, gallblader disease, kidney disease, liver disease, heart disease, many types of cancer, arthritis, osteoperosis, low bone density and increased risk of breakage from falling, etc, and many other diseases (Prevention Magazine, 8 Minutes in the Morning, and other sources). The negative consequences of low muscle mass as we age is HUGE. Casually look around you at the people over 65 and note who is active and fairly healthy and who is not or is feable and note their muscle mass. What were their habits? Did they have low activity, maintain their health only with low-impact exercise like walking, or did they have activities that built muscle mass? It won't be exact, but i think you will see an obvious correlation between muscle mass and the likelyhood of continued health. Statistics clearly indicate this as well.

The technique of low weights and many reps is hugely disadvantaged for building muscle mass because it is the challenge to the muscle and the "burn" of breaking down the muscle that causes the body to reinforce that muscle with additional muscle tissue. This is a natural process. If you need it, your body will try to make more, if you don't challenge it and don't need it, it will try to conserve.

Anyone can overdo it and many weight training buffs do. But these are usually the kinds of people who spend 45 minutes or more at a weight training session, and often do not have adequate stretching. I'm talking about 8 to 15 minutes and rotating muscles. This gets back to that curve of increased injury from working out too long.

I'm not contesting that Psycho is right, but i think perhaps psycho's perspective is very different because he or she (sorry, don't know) is not seeing hypertension, heart disease, joint replacement due to low bone density and the host of other patients that are having serious health problems because they failed to maintain their conditioning.

[HollyElise]

My apologies. You didn't say psycho you said physio... LOL! ...well, it keeps me humble!

[Marti33]

glad I made that statement Holly

[HollyElise]

It's so very difficult sorting out health advice, isn't it?

There is a bewildering array of differing opinions from the experts, and some advice seems to come in and fall out of fashion.

Here's an interesting little tidbit... I just learned that in the average population, cancer strikes one in three over their lifetime, but among athletes it only strikes one in seven.

[HollyElise]

And thank you Marti. Just because i'm not choosing to follow that advice doesn't mean your suggestion wasn't considered and appreciated.

[eviemacky]

Dear acooke...So sorry you have such a poor opinion of the Scots. I'm sure that in all races there are a number of bad apples. However, on the brighter side, we do have wonderful National Dances and wonderful old Scottish tunes to be heard around the world. At least we are famous for a few good things...remember Lord Kelvin and Andrew Carnegie? On the other hand I believe the Sassenachs ( English) have little or no respect with their arrogant manners. Why would you ever go to Edinburgh for work anyway...what type of work did you perform?

Anyway try to be happy for the experience you had living in God's Country at least for a little while.....Eviemacky

[HollyElise]

I think what they were referring to is Scotland has the second highest rate of heart disease per capita in the world, second only to Finland.

Does this mean we can't eat a steady diet of deep-fried pizza?