I promised you guys lots of personal training insight once I started studying for my NASM recertification, and guess what… My books just arrived! So, being the dedicated professional I am, I hightailed it straight to the beach to begin studying. (I know, I know… I work way too hard to bring you guys mind-body-spirit info…)

Sigh… It’s a rough job, but somebody has to do it!! ;)

I just finished Chapter One (Scientific Rationale for Integrated Training) and there’s a ton of interesting statistics that caught my eye! The lists below come straight from the National Academy of Sports Medicine textbook (parenthetical numbers correspond to pages in the 4th edition; footnotes reference the text’s original source).

Statistics

• Chronic diseases [such as asthma, cancer, diabetes and heart disease] have become the leading cause of death and disability in the United States, accounting for 70% of deaths in the United States; most chronic diseases are preventable and manageable through early detection, treatment and healthy living (p. 5)

• [In 2003] Of the leading causes of death in the United States, 57% were caused by cardiovascular disease and cancer, and nearly 80% of these deaths could have been prevented if a healthy lifestyle was followed (p. 5)[1. Hoyert, D.L., Kung, H.C. & Smith, B.L. (2005). Deaths: Preliminary Data for 2003. National Vital Statistics Report, 53(1), p. 1-48.]

• The estimated direct and indirect costs for cardiovascular disease for 2010 alone are estimated at $503.2 billion (p. 5)[2. American Heart Association. (2010). Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics – 2010 Update at a Glance.]

• 75 cents of every dollar spent on health care, or about $1.7 trillion annually, goes towards treating chronic illness (p. 5)

• At present 66% of Americans older than the age of 20 are overweight. Approximately 34% of Americans are obese, which equates to approximately 72 million Americans (p. 5)[3. Ogden, C.L., Carroll, M.D., McDowell, M.A. & Flegal, K.M. (2007). Obesity among adults in the United States – no statistically significant change since 2003-2004. NCHS Data Brief No. 1. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.]

• Experts predict nearly one in four kids will be overweight by the year 2015 (p. 5)[4. Wang, Y. & Beydoun, M.A. (2007). The obesity epidemic in the United States – gender, age, socioeconomic, racial/ethnic, and geographic characterisitcs: a systematic review and meta-regression analysis. Epidemiol Review, 29(1), p. 6-28.]

• Low-back pain is a primary cause of musculoskeletal degeneration seen in the adult population, affecting nearly 80% of all adults (p. 7)[5. Walker, B.F., Muller, R. & Grant, W.D. (2004). Low back pain in Australian adults: prevalence and associated disability. Journal of Manipulative Physiological Therapeutics, 27(4), p. 238-44; Cassidy, J.D., Carroll, L.J. and Cote, P. (1998). The Saskatchewan Health and Back Pain Survey. The Prevalence of low back pain and related disability in Saskatchewan adults. Spine, 23(17), p. 1860-6.]

• In 2003 musculoskeletal symptoms [which can be the result of unnatural posture, caused by improper sitting] were the number two reason for physician visits […] The monetary value of lost work time as a result of these musculoskeletal injuries was estimated to be approximately $120 billion (p. 7)[6. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2005 Dec. 15). Workplace injuries and illnesses in 2004.]

Funny stuff

• In the 1960s, women’s fitness centers were sometimes called ‘figure salons.’ Most included a rolling machine, used to ‘roll away fat’, and an electronic vibrating belt, designed to ‘jiggle the fat from the thighs’ (p. 4).

Get up and move! (Slowly…)

• In 2002, the World Health Organization recognized lack of physical activity as a significant contributor to the risk factors for several chronic diseases, but, unfortunately, few adults achieve the minimum recommended 30 or more minutes of moderate physical activity on 5 or more days per week (p. 6)[7. American College of Sports Medicine AHA. (2007). Physical Activity and Public Health: Updated Recommendation for Adults from the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Heart Association.]

• People are less active and are no longer spending as much of their free time engaged in physical activity […] This new environment is producing more inactive, unhealthy, and nonfunctional people (p. 6)[8. Zack, M.M., Moriarty, D.G., Stroup, D.E., Ford, E.S. & Mokdad, A.H. (2004). Worsening trends in adult health-related quality of life and self-rated health – United States, 1993-2001. Public Health Report, 119(5), p. 493-505.]

(This idea of ‘nonfunctional people’ made me think of our Poisonous Food post!)

• Today’s client is not ready to begin physical activity at the same level that a typical client could 20 or 30 years ago (p. 8). In the first 6 weeks of one study that focused on training sedentary adults, there was a 50 to 90% injury rate (p. 7)[9. Jones, B.H., Cowan, D.N. & Knapik, J. (1994). Exercise, Training and Injuries. Sports Medicine, 18(3), p. 202-14.]

Lessons Learned

After completing Chapter One, I have a renewed appreciation for the importance of stabilization training – the first phase of training where you work on muscular endurance (the muscle’s ability to contract for an extended period of time) and neuromuscular efficiency (the ability of the neuromuscular system to enable all muscles to efficiently work together in all planes of motion). Basically: balance work. The goal is to increase your client’s ability to stabilize joints and maintain optimal posture (p. 10). From my experience, clients aren’t usually too psyched about this phase (and confession: in the past I sometimes rushed through it!), but given how deconditioned people are nowadays, this training stage is more important than ever (especially when it comes to preventing injuries)!

I’ll talk more about the Stabilization Phase in upcoming posts. Until then, let me know if you have any questions!

References

Clark, M.A., Lucett, S.C. & Sutton, B.G. (2012). NASM Essentials of Personal Fitness Training (4th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

What do you think of these statistics? Surprising or what you expected?