09.22.09

Deadlift

1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

BRITNEY

7 rounds for time:
5 push jerks 135# / 95#
10 kettlebell swings 55# / 35#
15 butterfly situps (butterfly is key!)

Enjoy this WOD created by CFPT’s newest trainers, Adam, Becka and Sarah! If you are feeling crazy boys, feel free to try out the new 70# Kettlebell !

POST WOD REFUEL FOR DEADS:

Male:
above 12% – 35g prot/15g carb
8-12% – 35g prot/30g carb
below 8% – 35g prot/45g carb

Female:
above 16% – 20g prot/20 g carb
12-14% – 20g prot/30 g carb
below 12% – 20g prot/40 g carb

POST WOD REFUEL FOR BRIT-BRIT

Male
above 12% – 30g prot/20g carb
8-12% – 30g prot/40g carb
below 8% – 30g prot/60g carb

Female
above 16% – 20g prot/20 g carb
12-14% – 20g prot/35 g carb
below 12% – 20g prot/50 g carb

Eat a balanced meal 45-60 min after post WOD refuel for everyone.

GREAT JOB TO…

Liz! We hope to see you back again very soon!

MANY APOLOGIES

For closing at such short notice last night. It took us over 2 1/2 hours to get to the gym, and along the way we witnessed many trees down, roads closed and the worst traffic jam ever on Peachtree going South. We made the call en route to the gym…your guys’ safety is always our #1 priority, which is why we closed. We’ll be back open for some beatdowns tonight !

FIGHT GONE BAD IV

Is just a few short days away. I received this email this morning and wanted to share. I hope those of you that are signed up already can hit up your friends and family one last time. Those of you that are coming into the gym…SIGN UP TODAY and try to get some cash for these great causes. Those of you that are not participating, send an email to your friends and family explaining what we are doing and what great organizations we are working out for!

This is my fourth time putting on Fight Gone Bad. A lot has changed in four years, and a lot hasn’t. There are more of us than there were in 2006, and there are a lot less of “them”.

In my job I get to meet people every day in the worst possible circumstances. Families losing husbands and fathers. Men calling on the way home from the doctor asking me what to do, how to tell their families. Through my work with the Wounded Warrior Project I’ve met families who’s sons and daughters see their fathers come home missing parts with nowhere to turn, and those who’s fathers aren’t coming home at all.

Through it all, there have been you guys, the Crossfit community. You have no idea what you’re doing on Saturday, because you don’t get to meet these families. You don’t get to hear how much what you do means to them. You don’t know how they feel less alone because of you. You don’t get to know how many people you touch. I wanted you to know with only a few days left how much you count. How much it means to more than two million families that you stand up for them while millions would rather not know. More than anything you don’t know how much what you do means to me. These broken, wounded people are part of our “family” and I promised every one of them that we’d come through for them, and we have….every year.

Now with five days left we’re in the last round of our own Fight Gone Bad, and like any final round every one of us has to reach down and find out who we are when we think we’re maxed, beaten, but still standing. So, I’m asking on behalf of the people I promised, please go the final round with all you’ve got. If people get pissed because you’re emailing them one more time, I’m asking you to measure that against the people watching us from Afghanistan to Los Angeles.

I can write for hours and never come close to telling you the whole story about how badly you’re needed, but one ten-year old says it better than I ever could, so I’m going to let her finish for me. When you watch this you should know that Winter’s raised more than $150,000 by herself in the last 14 months. She knows what we’re doing because when her father died in March at age 40 from prostate cancer, she became a real part of our family when she moved from Michigan to Oregon. Please meet the most special 10-year old you’ll never meet.

September 22, 2009 | Filed Under W.O.D. | 46 Comments

09.21.09

BRITNEY

5 rounds for time:
5 push jerks 135# / 95#
10 kettlebell swings 55# / 35#
15 butterfly situps (butterfly is key!)

Enjoy this WOD created by CFPT’s newest trainers, Adam, Becka and Sarah! If you are feeling crazy boys, feel free to try out the new 70# Kettlebell !

POST WOD REFUEL

Male
above 12% – 30g prot/20g carb
8-12% – 30g prot/40g carb
below 8% – 30g prot/60g carb

Female
above 16% – 20g prot/20 g carb
12-14% – 20g prot/35 g carb
below 12% – 20g prot/50 g carb

Eat a balanced meal 45-60 min after post WOD refuel for everyone.

CONGRATULATIONS!

To Adam, Rebecca and Sarah…check out their new bios on our Coaches page (Sarah’s coming soon). We are super proud of you guys and your accomplishments and very excited to have you on board as coaches!

CONGRATS ALSO TO…

Scott and Katie for your triathlon over the weekend!

GREAT JOB TO…

Kristina, Lance, Kim and Angie! We are looking forward to seeing you back again very soon!

GET SPARTAN: THE 500 TEAM CHALLENGE

On Saturday 10.24.09 at 10am will begin CFPT’s first-ever Team Challenge. Teams of four will be chosen randomly based on those who sign up for the event that day. Remember, this is a TEAM WOD, so ALL fitness levels are highly encouraged to participate. What better way to get to know your fellow CFPT-ers !

The WoD:
500 Pull ups
500 Push ups
500 Sit Ups
500 3 count Flutterkicks
500 Squats

The Rules:
Only one person will be working at a time. Once that person hits failure, the next person will begin the exercise.

PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS: PART DEUX

You asked for it…you are getting it. Here’s the contest gig:

When: Tuesday 10.13.09 through Thursday 11.17.09

The Rules: Participants will get dunked to get their body fat and lean body mass tested at the start and end of the competition. Sign up sheets are at the gym and the cost of the test is $25 (each time). We are asking that you lock down for this month. Paleo only. CrossFit at least 4 times per week. Lockdown and go hard and see what results you can get within that month!

Cost to enter the competition is $10 each. There will be a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place prize. Amounts will be determined once we see how many people are competing.

It’s going to go a little something like this:

1. We are going to look at the change of your initial fat mass – final fat mass and assign points based on the fat loss.

For example, if a person starts with 30# of fat and ends with 25# of fat, the difference is 5#, which is 16.67% of the beginning fat mass (30#). This equals 16.67 points.

2. Same thing is going to go with lean mass change. This will equalize fat and lean muscle mass gain, so for those of you that are already lean, you stand a chance in the game too!

Example, a participant starts out with 100# of lean muscle mass and ends with 105#. Lean mass change is 5#, which is 5% of the beginning lean mass, which is equal to 5 points.

This sample person would have 16.67 + 5 = 21.67 points in the end.

We hope to have 100% gym participation!! Get signed up at the gym today! We have two days scheduled with the Fat Tank, if we need to get him out here an additional day we can do so. Because of the number of members, PLEASE pay at the time that you sign up, no exceptions this time.

NUTRITION SEMINAR

Mark your calendars…there will be a CrossFit Specific Nutrition Seminar on Saturday, October 17th from 10-11am. Cost is $5 per person for members and the sign up sheet will be at the gym.

FIGHT GONE BAD IV

Join us and help to support two amazing causes…the Wounded Warrior Project and Athletes for a Cure. Sign up today to be a part of Team CrossFit Peachtree!

EICOSANOIDS

Article taken, in part, from Nutritionize.

We have all heard of estrogen and testosterone and are well aware of their affects on our bodies, but many of us are unaware of a powerful super hormone that roams through our bodies and plays an integral role in the synthesis of every other hormone, these are called Eicosanoids ( eye-KOH-sah-noids).

According to biochemistry and Wiki: “Eicosanoids are signaling molecules made by oxygenation of twenty-carbon essential fatty acids, (EFAs). They exert complex control over many bodily systems, mainly in inflammation or immunity, and as messengers in the central nervous system. The networks of controls that depend upon eicosanoids are among the most complex in the human body.”

If that was a little too technical then just remember this… Eicosanoids are extremely important! They are the check and balance system of our bodies. To make it simple think of it as a game where there are two types of Eicosanoids “Good” and “Bad”. The goal is to maximize the “Good” and minimize the “Bad”. Guess who controls this simple yet extremely integral game… YOU! The food you eat directly effects the production of the good and bad eicosanoids which run the whole hormonal show. Eicosanoids are controlled by dietary fat (Omega 3 and 6) and insulin. Balancing Protein/Carbohydrates, balances the respective hormones Insulin/Glucagon and directly affects Eicosanoid production. The sliver of fat is all it takes to finish off the equation. Dietary fat includes Omega 3 and Omega 6, having both in your diet is important in regulating eicosanoid production and inflammatory response. Contrary to popular belief eliminating fat does not make your body fat go away, instead it screws up the whole game and imbalances the super hormone. A balance of the “good” and “bad” eicosanoids results in overall wellness, however, an imbalance can have severe implications in the body ranging from allergies, asthma, high blood pressure, chronic infection, and more.

September 21, 2009 | Filed Under W.O.D. | 108 Comments

09.19.09

FOR TIME:

21-18-15-12-9-6-3 rep rounds of:
Handstand push-ups
L-pull-ups

FOR TIME:

10 Supine Ring Pull Ups
21 Double Unders

GOOD LUCK ADAM, SARAH AND BECKA!

CFPT’s newest coaches are getting certified this weekend !

GOOD LUCK SCOTT AND KATIE!

On your first Triathlon !

September 19, 2009 | Filed Under W.O.D. | Leave a Comment

09.18.09

5 ROUNDS FOR TIME OF:

30 GHD Sit-ups
25 Back extensions

First come, first served for this WOD. If you are new and want to try this WOD, then you will be doing sit ups and superman back extensions.

5 ROUNDS FOR TIME OF:

8 Handstand Push Ups
8 L-Pull Ups
8 Ring Dips
8 Push Ups with hands rotated backwards

*Do these from a normal push up position, rotate your hands so your fingers are pointed back towards your legs. Good for wrist flexibility.

POST WOD REFUEL

Male
above 12% – 30g prot/20g carb
8-12% – 30g prot/40g carb
below 8% – 30g prot/60g carb

Female
above 16% – 20g prot/20 g carb
12-14% – 20g prot/35 g carb
below 12% – 20g prot/50 g carb

Eat a balanced meal 45-60 min after post WOD refuel for everyone.

BEER FRIDAY!

Any takers on the Run-n-Chug?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIKE D!

Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to YOU! Happy birthday dear Mike D.!! Happy birthday to you!

GREAT JOB TO…

Grant, Hannah and James! We are looking forward to seeing you back again very soon!

WELCOME TO…

Jonathan and Meghan!! We are looking forward to helping you get in the best shape of your life.

GOOD LUCK!!!

Best of luck to Adam, Rebecca and Sarah at their Level 1 Cert this weekend! We are super proud of them and VERY proud to have them on our training staff!

GET SPARTAN: THE 500 TEAM CHALLENGE

The WoD:
500 Pull ups
500 Push ups
500 Sit Ups
500 3 count Flutterkicks
500 Squats

The Rules:
Only one person will be working at a time. Once that person hits failure, the next person will begin the exercise.

PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS: PART DEUX

You asked for it…you are getting it. Here’s the contest gig:

When: Tuesday 10.13.09 through Thursday 11.17.09

Cost to enter the competition is $10 each. There will be a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place prize. Amounts will be determined once we see how many people are competing.

It’s going to go a little something like this:

1. We are going to look at the change of your initial fat mass – final fat mass and assign points based on the fat loss.

For example, if a person starts with 30# of fat and ends with 25# of fat, the difference is 5#, which is 16.67% of the beginning fat mass (30#). This equals 16.67 points.

2. Same thing is going to go with lean mass change. This will equalize fat and lean muscle mass gain, so for those of you that are already lean, you stand a chance in the game too!

Example, a participant starts out with 100# of lean muscle mass and ends with 105#. Lean mass change is 5#, which is 5% of the beginning lean mass, which is equal to 5 points.

This sample person would have 16.67 + 5 = 21.67 points in the end.

NUTRITION SEMINAR

Mark your calendars…there will be a CrossFit Specific Nutrition Seminar on Saturday, October 17th from 10-11am. Cost is $5 per person for members and the sign up sheet will be at the gym.

FIGHT GONE BAD IV

Join us and help to support two amazing causes…the Wounded Warrior Project and Athletes for a Cure. Sign up today to be a part of Team CrossFit Peachtree!

September 18, 2009 | Filed Under W.O.D. | 87 Comments

09.17.09

DANIEL

For time:
50 Pull-ups
400 meter run
21 Thrusters 95# / 65#
800 meter run
21 Thrusters 95# / 65#
400 meter run
50 Pull-ups

With heavy hearts we dedicate this workout to Army Sgt 1st Class Daniel Crabtree who was killed in Al Kut, Iraq on Thursday June 8th. To Daniel’s family and friends, we express our sorrow; to his wife Kathy and daughter Mallory, we tearfully acknowledge your loss as the true cost of freedom. Fair Winds, Daniel.

This WOD will be scaled accordingly!

POST WOD REFUEL:

Male:
above 12% – 35g prot/15g carb
8-12% – 35g prot/30g carb
below 8% – 35g prot/45g carb

Female:
above 16% – 20g prot/20 g carb
12-14% – 20g prot/30 g carb
below 12% – 20g prot/40 g carb

GREAT JOB TO…

John! We are looking forward to seeing you back again very soon!

GET SPARTAN: THE 500 TEAM CHALLENGE

The WoD:
500 Pull ups
500 Push ups
500 Sit Ups
500 3 count Flutterkicks
500 Squats

The Rules:
Only one person will be working at a time. Once that person hits failure, the next person will begin the exercise.

PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS: PART DEUX

You asked for it…you are getting it. Here’s the contest gig:

When: Tuesday 10.13.09 through Thursday 11.17.09

Cost to enter the competition is $10 each. There will be a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place prize. Amounts will be determined once we see how many people are competing.

It’s going to go a little something like this:
1. We are going to look at the change of your initial fat mass – final fat mass and assign points based on the fat loss.

For example, if a person starts with 30# of fat and ends with 25# of fat, the difference is 5#, which is 16.67% of the beginning fat mass (30#). This equals 16.67 points.

2. Same thing is going to go with lean mass change. This will equalize fat and lean muscle mass gain, so for those of you that are already lean, you stand a chance in the game too!

Example, a participant starts out with 100# of lean muscle mass and ends with 105#. Lean mass change is 5#, which is 5% of the beginning lean mass, which is equal to 5 points.

This sample person would have 16.67 + 5 = 21.67 points in the end.

THE CHINK IN MY ARMOR

Greg Amundson learns a tough lesson when his poor command of double-unders costs him a trip to the 2009 CrossFit Games. What happened after that is the real story.

At 7 a.m. on the day of the Last Chance Qualifier, my wife Mallee woke me up and said, “Honey, do you know how to double-under?” At that moment, I couldn’t think of the last time I had even held a jump rope in my hands, but I was confident I could perform the skill at a competitive pace. How hard could it be? I was in the best shape of my life and ready for any challenge, but I discovered very quickly that I had absolutely no competence in the skill.

I did the first two Last Chance WODs, and when I got to the deadlift/double-under workout, I ripped through the deadlifts without any problems. I stumbled through the first 10 double-unders in a row before getting tripped up and missing a revolution. Then something amazing happened: I performed 33 double-unders in a row. That was 23 more than I had ever done before.

Then all hell broke loose. As I started my attempt for repetition 44, I failed. I tried again and failed. This continued for a painstaking full minute. It got to the point that I was unable to perform even a single accurate jump. It was horrible.

Paul Szoldra, the active-duty Marine who videotaped my failed attempt to get to the CrossFit Games via the Last Chance Qualifier, may have summed up the whole thing best. As I lay on the floor gasping for breath and thinking I was about to die, Paul offered these kind words: “That’ll teach ya not to practice double-unders!”

Thus began my journey of self-discovery into the skill of the double-under. Read the full story here…

September 17, 2009 | Filed Under W.O.D. | 62 Comments

09.16.09

FOR LOAD:

Front squat 3-3-3-3-3 reps

WE ARE STARTING THE LAST ROUND OF THIS WOD AT 6:30PM SHARP!!!

ELITE WOD

WOD A: 400 meter sprint; 3 min rest x 2

WOD B:
21, 15, 9
Hang power cleans 185# / 135#
Bodymakers

A bodymaker is a burpee pull up into a Knees-to-Elbows. If you need an assistance band to do pull ups, you will be doing burpees, pull ups and KTE.

POST WOD REFUEL FOR BOTH:

Male:
above 12% – 35g prot/15g carb
8-12% – 35g prot/30g carb
below 8% – 35g prot/45g carb

Female:
above 16% – 20g prot/20 g carb
12-14% – 20g prot/30 g carb
below 12% – 20g prot/40 g carb

FUNDAMENTAL CLASS TONIGHT AT 7PM!

For those of you that are new, or want to work on the Foundational movements, we HIGHLY encourage you to attend the 7PM class (it runs simultaneously to the Elite WOD).

GREAT JOB TO…

Mike, Cindy, Emily, Hollis,Tracy, Sandra, Dan, Dave and visting CrossFitter Brandon!! It was awesome to see such a large group of friends try out CrossFit! We are looking forward to seeing you soon and getting you in the best shape of your life!

FIGHT GONE BAD IV

Join us and help to support two amazing causes…the Wounded Warrior Project and Athletes for a Cure. Sign up today to be a part of Team CrossFit Peachtree!

CHARACTER IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN NOBODY IS WATCHING

You are in the middle of a WOD, it’s hard, really hard, and you are dying. Who is going to know if you shave off a rep here or there? You just want to be done…want it all to be over. Nobody will know, nobody is watching…

So, you take off a rep here, a three reps there, just to end the misery…you scream out time and we notate your time on the board. You can breathe…it’s all over.

Believe me, that thought has gone through every single person’s mind reading this blog. The difference is if you act upon it. It’s called Clock Whoring and there are a few issues with it…

First, and most obvious to me, is you are cheating. You are cheating yourself, your fitness and your friends around you. The definition of cheating is: “Cheating is an act of lying, deception, fraud, trickery, imposture, or imposition. Cheating characteristically is employed to create an unfair advantage, usually in one’s own interest, and often at the expense of others.” Not something I would want to be associated with my character.

Secondly, your time is going up on the white board. This is where you are telling the world how you did in this workout. “Integrity may be seen as the quality of having a sense of honesty and truthfulness in regard to the motivations for one’s actions.” Your friends look to the white board as a starting point, a benchmark of what to expect, a way to judge their fitness level. Be fair to yourself and to other’s and do every rep, every round.

Third, and this is the one that cracks me up, you are paying us to help motivate you and get you in better shape, right? So, if you are cheating…it’s like paying us to not get the most value. WHY?

And finally…people do notice. Look around, there are people standing around watching all of the time. They look at your scores, they see the times…sometimes things just don’t add up.

Clock whoring is a thing that boggles my mind. I mean everybody misses a rep now and then…but to consistently do it? Is it ego? Is it truly a character flaw? We’ve personally seen a person, who was a great athlete, who many of our members looked up to, but was busted clock whoring consistently…what’s the point?

I dislike writing posts like this, I feel like a mother. But, it has been brought to my attention about this happening, not just with one person, but with multiple people around the gym. And, to be very honest, the only reason that I really do care is for the majority of the people who are in there, working hard, putting up honest to goodness numbers. It’s for those people who I write posts like this. Because they see your times and, even though in their mind, they know they got a higher number of rounds or a better time legitimately, it’s the principle of the matter.

September 16, 2009 | Filed Under W.O.D. | 72 Comments

09.15.09

BELLS + BALLS

AMRAP in 20 MINUTES OF:
5 Burpees
10 Wall Balls 20# / 14#
15 Kettlebell Swings 55# / 35#

For many of you, this was your first WOD at CFPT and you did only 10 minutes (or less). This is officially our year anniversary…and we are really looking forward to see how all of you do with the full enchilada today !

Post WOD Refuel Male:
above 12% – 30g prot/20g carb
8-12% – 30g prot/40g carb
below 8% – 30g prot/60g carb

Post WOD Refuel Female:
above 16% – 20g prot/20 g carb
12-14% – 20g prot/35 g carb
below 12% – 20g prot/50 g carb

Eat a balanced PFC meal 45-60 min after post wod refuel (P=protein, F=fat, C=carb)

GREAT JOB TO…

Robyn and Michelle! We are looking forward to seeing you back again very soon!

FIGHT GONE BAD IV

Join us and help to support two amazing causes…the Wounded Warrior Project and Athletes for a Cure. Sign up today to be a part of Team CrossFit Peachtree!

OKTOBERFEST GAMES

We are looking for individuals who would like to compete! Please let us know if you are interested. If any of you have an interest in training for the Games next year, we highly recommend attending!

For more information on this event, click here. Or check out our Facebook page.

STUDY: MORE AMERICANS AT HIGHER RISK OF HEART DISEASE

From Time Magazine

Epidemiologists love to crunch numbers — and Americans, on the whole, love to ignore them. Even the most health-conscious among us soon grow numb to the storm of statistics warning us about rising levels of obesity or falling levels of exercise or all the other numerical indicators that tell us how unwell we’re getting. But on Sept. 14, a team of researchers released a new finding that should cause even the most data-weary folks alarm.

According to a paper published Monday in Circulation, a journal of the American Heart Association, fewer than 8% of all Americans can now be considered at low risk for heart disease. No one needs a statistician’s help to know that that means more than 92% of us are not as healthy as we could be, and that’s worth paying attention to.

The study was actually the latest in a series of studies, all of which have been part of a program known as the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES). Administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the program is a four-decade attempt to evaluate the country’s health by conducting surveys and physical exams with a rotating sample group of about 10,000 Americans. The first NHANES study was conducted from 1971 to 1975, the second from 1976 to 1980, the next from 1988 to 1994, and the most recent — from which the heart-disease findings are only now being released — from 1999 to 2004.

For that portion of the survey, the investigators focused on people in the 25-to-74 age group and evaluated five different risk factors for cardiovascular disease: blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking history, obesity and diabetes. To be considered at low risk, subjects had to have a blood pressure reading of 120/80 mm Hg or lower without the aid of medication and a cholesterol level below 200 mg/dL, also without drugs. They had to be nonsmokers or at least former smokers, not be overweight or obese, and never have been diagnosed with diabetes. “From a prevention point of view, it’s important that Americans achieve as many of these goals as possible,” says the CDC’s Dr. Earl S. Ford, the lead author of the study.

That’s why it’s troubling that so few of us did. In the latest NHANES, just 7.5% of adults were considered low risk in all five areas. That’s a significant dip from the 10.5% in the 1988-94 survey — which was already a decidedly poor score. Within the adult population, there is no particular demographic slice that’s doing particularly well, but some are clearly faring better than others. Among women in the current study, 10.5% were considered low risk (a decrease from 15.5% in the previous survey), compared to just 4.8% of men (down from 5.7%). In the 25-to-44 age group, 12.1% came in at low risk, compared to 3.5% of 45-to-64-year-olds and just 0.8% in the 65-to-74 demographic. Whites, among whom 8.2% were at low risk of heart disease, did better than Mexican Americans (5.3%), and both did better than African Americans (4.6%). The racial gaps have much to do with socioeconomic disparities and unequal access to health care, but there are also genetic factors at play, with certain groups having a higher susceptibility to certain conditions.

Bad as the current numbers are, they are actually not historic lows. In the 1971-75 survey, just 4.4% of the entire sample group was considered low risk; that percentage climbed to 5.7% in the next survey before peaking in the third one. The trend was reversed this time around. “Until the 1990s, we were headed in a positive direction,” says Ford. “But then it took a turn.”

Surprisingly — and encouragingly — rising heart-disease risk does not necessarily translate to rising heart-disease deaths. Last year, the American Heart Association announced that since 1999, deaths from coronary heart disease fell a remarkable 25.8%. There are a lot of reasons for that happy development, but the leading ones are better drugs and technology, closer adherence to evidence-based practice guidelines and the simple precaution of getting people in cardiac distress to the hospital fast.

All the same, the best way not to need the hospital at all is not to get sick, and even the greatest advances in treatment will amount to little if we can’t bring the risk factors under control. The most important factors to attack, the Circulation paper explains, are not cholesterol or tobacco use. Both continue to drop, and with recent federal action to boost cigarette taxes and allow the Food and Drug Administration to regulate tobacco for the first time, the decline in smoking may actually accelerate. (Indeed, last year, the share of Americans who use tobacco fell below 20% for the first time in modern memory.)

The real problems are blood pressure, obesity and diabetes, all of which are relentlessly on the rise. Worse, there’s a time bomb in the trend lines. According to a 2008 survey by the CDC, 32% of American children are now overweight or obese, a number that at least appears to have plateaued after a long period of steady increase but one that’s shocking all the same. Once those children reach the 25-to-74 demographic, their heart-disease risk could cause the national numbers to explode. “As these children grow up, I expect to see a decrease in the number of people who qualify as low risk,” says Dr. Seema Kumar, a pediatric endocrinologist and medical director of the Weight Management Program for Children at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. “Our obese children are at high risk of becoming obese adults; some of them are already developing high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.”

The answer to much of this — as is so often the case — is better diet, more exercise and early detection. Such preventive measures form one of the cornerstones of the ongoing health-care debate — one of the few points on which nearly all sides can agree. The authors of the new study call for physicians to be reimbursed for heart-disease-prevention measures like working with their patients to develop weight-loss and smoking-cessation plans and to be allowed enough breathing room in their schedules to let them do good cardiac assessments. Schools and workplaces, the paper argues, should also be in on the prevention game. Since both are places where large numbers of people congregate, they are also places where simple measures like blood-pressure screenings could do the most good.

“Much potential exists to reverse ominous trends in cardiovascular health,” the authors write, “but this is unlikely to occur without making prevention of overweight and obesity a national priority.” There’s no way of knowing when Americans who have heard this refrain again and again will take notice — and take action — but when 92% of us are affected, now seems like a very good time.

September 15, 2009 | Filed Under W.O.D. | 62 Comments

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