It is a known fact that walking and moderate exercise strengthens your muscles and supports bone health. Heavier (not necessarily obese) women are at less risk of osteoporosis because the extra strain on the bones to carry the extra weight actually strengthens the bones. Very slim women who do not exercise are more likely to have osteoporosis. It is a fact.

Recently I bought a book from Amazon by Dr. Al Sears called P.A.C.E: The 12-Minute Fitness Revolution (Exercise Workout Books). Dr. Sears is an MD from Miami whose practice specializes in weight loss, lowering blood pressure, relieving symptoms of diabetes and other ailments through a modification of eating habits and incorporating his P.A.C.E. (Progressively Accelerating Cardiopulmonary Exertion) program of exercise. His program is based around the substantial evidence that humans were not designed for lengthy cardio sessions. He supports this theory with massive amounts of evidence including the success of many Olympic athletes. He also cites what he calls the “Jim Fixx Syndrome”. You may recall Jim Fixx the running guru of the 80’s who actually dropped dead from a heart attack while running!

The book and his program are centered on the notion that we should exercise strenuously in short bursts followed by rest periods. The title of the book says “In 12 minutes per day” but it is actually about 20 minutes including the rest times in between. There are many different sequences you can follow but there is something for everyone even people who have never exercised. I am following the 4,3,2,1 sequence which is 4 minutes of strenuous exercise followed by rest, then 3, then 2, etc. It takes about 20 minutes and I feel as though I have just done an hour on the elliptical at the gym or an hour strenuous walk! My butt and thighs are tighter after two weeks and I can actually feel the benefit to my lungs and breathing when I run up stairs.

I will be chronicling my journey with this program on this blog Menopause Weight Loss

For the first month I am using the exercise plan 3 to 4 times per week while slowly incorporating the shift to a more protein based diet. In the second month I hope to fully move into the eating plan and see my results. You can also see testimonials from others who have had tremendous success with this P.A.C.E. Program here; www.alsearsmd.com

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 15th, 2011 at 12:08 am and is filed under Exercise and Osteorporosis. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.