Have you ever gone to sleep at night and woke up the next day feeling groggy and unrested? Or not be able to fall asleep at all due to stress? The need for and benefits of quality sleep cannot be overemphasized, but how can people actually get to a point where they are reaching adequate …
Get Active to Combat Stress this Holiday Season
Feeling overwhelmed at the thought of the holiday season? You are not alone. Seasonal illnesses, end-of-year work pressures, potential holiday tension and cold weather challenges can add up this time of year, and can all lead to negative physical and mental health outcomes. Unchecked stress can contribute to high blood pressure and heart disease as …
Don’t “Weight” to Focus on a Good Night’s Sleep
I am a poor sleeper. I am not the only one: The CDC reports one third of the U.S. population does not get the recommended amount of sleep. I recently decided to redouble my efforts to get more sleep. I am generally healthy, as I eat well and exercise regularly, so I primarily focused on …
Should I Sleep or Exercise? The Relationship between Sleep and Activity
Daily sleep and physical activity each have individual impacts on a variety of health outcomes and risk factors (1,2,3). There may be reciprocal relationships between sleep and physical activity, but the extent of these relationships remains unclear. Common questions include: Does sleep duration affect physical activity intensity or duration? How much sleep loss can one …
Physical Activity, Healthy Weight, and National Security
When Sports Illustrated subscribers thumbed through the final issue of 1960, they encountered the usual assortment of sporting news. Bart Starr led the Packers past the Rams at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Indiana men’s basketball team continued their winning ways, breezing by Missouri and Nevada on the shoulders of Walt Bellamy. But the sportswriters …
Physical Activity in School-Aged Children
School-aged children should get at least 60 minutes of moderate- or vigorous-intensity physical activity every day of the week. Only 26% of adolescents met these physical activity guidelines in 2018, and that percentage has remained stable since 2011. The COVID-19 pandemic made it even more difficult for children to meet these guidelines. At the start …
Using the American Fitness Index in the Classroom: Strategies and Lessons Learned
The American Fitness Index is a valuable tool and resource to researchers and practitioners alike. As an educator, I believe it has a place in the classroom as well. I teach an undergraduate upper-level, small class titled Physical Activity and Public Health. Throughout the semester we cover many topics including physical activity epidemiology, measurement, public …
Parks, Trails and Greenways Plus Programming Can Increase Physical Activity
Parks, trails, and greenways are an important part of a community. They are places where people can move, relax, and enjoy time with others. A new Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) recommendation shows that science backs up the idea that these places can help people be physically active. But simply having these community spaces …
Moving More to Improve Mental Health: What City Officials Need To Know
One of the personal health indicators selected for inclusion into ACSM’s American Fitness Index is a measure of the mental health status of city residents. Mental health and physical health are both important components of overall health and are themselves closely connected. Mental health plays a major role in maintaining good physical health. Mental health …
The Cost of Mental Health: Seeking Community Solutions
Good mental health is effective functioning in daily activities resulting in good productivity (e.g., work, school), healthy relationships and the ability to cope with adversity. A threat to good mental health is mental illnesses, which are health conditions involving changes in emotion, thinking or behavior (or a combination of these). Those experiencing mental illness may …