Better U Challenge #2

Oh my gosh, where do I begin sharing the wonderful information we received from last night’s meeting? First, I would like to thank Kristine DeCoster for hosting the event and the Women’s Center. Our guest speakers were Dr. Brian Michaelsen, M.D. and Lucy Martin, F.N.F. from Rockford Health physicians. And I would like to say it is always wonderful to see the ladies chosen for the Better U Challenge.

Dr. Michaelsen discussed osteoporosis, calcium, calcium carbonate, vitamin D and how important weight bearing and resistance training is for bone density. We need to do weight bearing activities 3-5 times a week and resistance training 2-3 for 30-60 minutes in a combination of exercises. After the age of 35 we start to have bone loss. Be sure to stretch before and after you exercise.

You can obtain calcium from foods such as yogurt, salmon, spinach and broccoli. The recommended dose of calcium is 1200 mg/dy. Foods that have vitamin D are fatty fish, egg yolks, cheese and there is 400 IU in a quart of milk.

Dr. Michaelsen was excused from the discussion on menopause.

What can I say about Lucy Martin except she was absolutely wonderful! Lucy is every woman’s dream for discussing such personal issues. At the present, she is enduring her own menopause issues and understands what you are going through. She also had great tips on the glycemic index lifestyle.

I highly recommend both Dr. Michaelsen and Lucy Martin, F.N. P. If you know of a woman needing help with “any” female issue, please do them a favor and send them to Lucy. I can’t say enough about how impressed I was with her talk.