The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

Why a weekend of bad eating won’t ruin your weight-loss efforts. A diligent dieter navigates the busy schedule of a week with planned meals, timing, and structure. They live in a calorie deficit, which provides them weight loss. They eat... — Updated 1/11/2022

Everybody reading this knows that smoking and diabetes are devastating to longevity. Collectively, along with their comorbidities, smoking and diabetes cost our health care system over $200 billion per year. There is a lifestyle choice that... — Updated 12/15/2021

How much of a person’s behavior is free will? Do people actually have a say in their health and wellness? It turns out, free will is second to what others around us are doing in regards to obesity and exercise habits. Behavioral... — Updated 11/30/2021

For the first time, a professional journal is tying fitness and exercise to reducing susceptibility to COVID-19. This column has already suggested exercise as being protective against the severity of symptoms, and recovery from COVID, but... — Updated 10/19/2021

Spoiler alert! Your metabolism isn’t getting slower. If there’s one thing this fitness and nutrition professional has heard time and time again, it’s the common thought that metabolism slows down with age. A person gets older, and... — Updated 9/7/2021

There’s a notion that if you’re active during the day this means you’re fit and healthy. This activity — unstructured, undirected, and unfocused toward a fitness goal — actually doesn’t move the needle. While daily... — Updated 7/14/2021

Exercise has a distinct effect depending on how it’s applied. Effects are specific and pronounced. No body adapts the same to the same exercise. However, exercise can be modified toward the desired outcomes. This is the law of specificity... — Updated 7/6/2021

It’s not surprising to report that physically active people have reported less-severe symptoms of COVID-19. Potentially, physical activity can be protective against severe symptoms, giving a better outlook to COVID-19’s unrelenting grip... — Updated 6/8/2021

What if you could exercise and gain fitness at any age, at any time, and in any condition? This is not some fantasy. You can. Fitness can be developed at any time. The mechanisms with which our bodies adapt into fitness never go away.... — Updated 4/13/2021

The pandemic has been tough on people’s waistlines. It’s reported that 36 percent of people have admitted to gaining a lot of weight during the pandemic. This should come as no surprise. In a stressful environment, the body is naturally... — Updated 3/2/2021

Some seniors avoid weight training because they feel that they are too frail to handle it. That’s contrary to what they really need to practice. Feeling frail means a person ought to be strength-training, not avoiding it. There is nothing... — Updated 2/9/2021

Don’t eat sugar; cut out cholesterol. What about preservatives, gluten, dairy and all the other dietary villains? Hey, did you see what Dr. Oz said? A person who is diet conscious is bombarded with the can’ts, the don’ts and the stops.... — Updated 2/2/2021

Welcome to diet season. After the holidays, people often feel the propulsion of self-loathing and throw the life ring to a diet protocol they may have heard about on a talk show or seen on social media. Oftentimes they have little to no... — Updated 1/19/2021

Resolutions are coming. Many of you reading this are rolling your eyes, ready to turn the page. Stick with it! There’s an important lesson everyone ought to consider: A resolution by nature sets you up to fail — and there are many... — Updated 1/12/2021

Exercise enthusiasts always fear losing the physicality they’ve accumulated meticulously with sweat equity over months or years of constant struggle under the resistance of gravity. Perhaps they’ve succumbed to injury, have a long vacati... — Updated 12/15/2020

Thanksgiving is upon us, and all its glorious traditions. It is not uncommon to eat nearly 1,800 calories in one sitting. This includes an average serving of turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, stuffing, two dinner rolls, a small... — Updated 11/24/2020

The year 2020 is one we’re more than ready to put in the past. It’s time to ring in new beginnings, or commemorate — and drown out — the past. This time of year, especially between Thanksgiving and New Years, Americans... — Updated 11/17/2020

There are many absolutists out there. This mentality strives for certainty. For the absolutist everything is black and white. If walking 10,000 steps a day is better than 5,000, it’s 10,000 or bust. If an apple has more fiber than a... — Updated 11/10/2020

No matter which party one aligns with, one ought to consider making health a national priority. Think of adopting the slogan: Make America Fit Again. This should cover the mental, physical, economical, and practical aspects of health,... — Updated 11/3/2020

As a nutrition coach working with people to help them lead a more healthful life, I get questions constantly — questions such as: “Should I avoid grains?” “Does fruit have too much sugar?” “Will drinking diet soda give me... — Updated 10/20/2020

The body is a very integrated machine, down to the framework of the muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones. When all of these are in harmonious alignment, they provide the body with stability, strength, injury resilience and balance. This... — Updated 9/22/2020

Many of us have fond memories of skipping ropes on the playgrounds of yesteryear. A childhood game of “I betcha can’t make 100 skips,” or a jump-a-thon sponsored PE program come to memory. Nostalgia for jump rope isn’t child’s play... — Updated 8/18/2020

The weight loss desire of our nation is insatiable, and despite our purest intentions, many health and fitness professionals are still getting it wrong, wondering “Why can’t these people see how simple it is?” Or “why can’t they gi... — Updated 8/11/2020

In health and fitness there is a common fallacy that leaves some people stuck and not making progress. This person’s intentions are pure, their motivation high. It’s not lack of ability; the cards aren’t stacked against them; they are... — Updated 8/4/2020

Hiking is a dynamic activity — up and over roots, side-stepping rocks, losing and regaining footing and bracing for stability on uneven ground. There’s a lot more to it than cardiovascular fitness and leg strength. How well are you... — Updated 7/14/2020