Archive for October, 2009
Treadmill Information
Written by MichaelZ on October 31, 2009 – 5:05 pm -Purchasing a Nordic Track treadmill or other brand machine for your home should be considered for many different reasons. Since gym fees can add up month after month and you may not always have time to visit the gym, having your own home gym only makes sense. A treadmill is an essential piece of equipment in starting a home gym, it can be used for multiple exercises such as jogging, walking and even running. You should be able to research treadmills before you decide to buy one, since you will need to know what type of treadmill you need, as well as the amount of money that you can afford to pay for one.
If you want a basic walking treadmill, you don’t need to spend a lot to get one that will work for you. Walking on treadmills doesn’t cause the same wear and tear as running or jogging, so you can make do with a much cheaper treadmill. But if you plan to jog or run extensively on your treadmill, you’ll probably want to spend a bit more on a higher quality treadmill with a bigger price tag.
Treadmills are made up of a number of components that can range from high quality and expensive to inexpensive and inferior in the quality department. The motor is the most important part of the treadmill. This part takes most of the wear and if it is not powerful or quality enough it might burn out. If it doesn’t have enough power then the treadmill will stop working before you even get into your workout, but don’t spend all of your money in order to get the best motor. Treadmill motors are rated using two measurements; peak horsepower and continuous duty horsepower. Don’t be fooled by an engine with a great peak horsepower mentioned in the treadmill reviews because you have to make sure the continuous duty horsepower is good as well. To be certain that the machine will last as long as possible, it needs a good continuous horsepower rating, as this will allow it to have as much power as it needs.
Also be sure to look at the belt. You will need to be certain that this piece, which is made of rubber, is of very good quality. Often times inexpensive poor quality treadmills may look good on the outside but soon show that the belt is not thick enough. To get the longest life from your treadmill, be sure to get a belt that’s 2 ply at least; the thicker the better. A good quality thick belt means it won’t wear out or need replacing for a much longer time, which is good because the belts are pretty expensive to replace.
A treadmill of decent quality doesn’t necessarily need to cost a small fortune, however spending a few hundred extra dollars could mean and increase of longevity. Remember that you have to keep your budget in mind before deciding on a treadmill that you want to buy. If you are forced to buy one that is not of very good quality, it could wear out in a very short amount of time.
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A Health Teacher in the Most Popular Co-ed High School in the District Teaches Her Students About the Importance of Alcohol Addiction Signs
Written by MichaelZ on October 31, 2009 – 5:05 pm -Miss Benning was a health instructor at the most financially challenged co-ed high school in the local community. Although she had been teaching for only three of four years, she had already obtained a reputation as an instructor with a teaching methodology that motivated and stimulated the students in her class to learn and to think.
For instance, one Friday afternoon at 1:30 she addressed her pupils and articulated the following: “For the next three or four days we are going to learn about some basic alcoholism facts from a general point of view and we are also going to learn about several of the most highly researched signs of alcoholism from a less general and more detailed standpoint.”
“Not all of these alcoholism signs will categorically reveal that someone with a drinking problem is an individual who is addicted to alcohol, but the more signs that a person displays, the more likely it is that he or she is an alcohol dependent person.”
Miss Benning then told the members of the class that each person would be responsible for examining three alcoholism signs and then presenting his or her results to the class via a thirty minute oral presentation.
The Pupils are Energized About Giving An In-Depth Presentation to Their Fellow Classmates About The Signs of Alcoholism
After learning about the different alcoholism signs for a number of days, the time had finally arrived for the individual presentations. It was instantly clear to see that the students were energized about the topic because the material that they presented was outstanding. To say that Miss Benning was pleasantly surprised with the interest exhibited by the pupils in her class concerning this topic was an understatement.
The day after all of the students completed their presentations, Miss Benning passed out a piece of paper with a list of all the alcoholism signs that were discussed and presented in the presentations and in class. Miss Benning then asked the pupils in her classroom to study the list and rank the top ten alcohol dependency signs that were most indicative of alcoholism. After approximately ten minutes, Miss Benning collected the sheets of paper and explained to the pupils in her classroom that after she assesses the results, she will discuss her findings the next school day.
There was some real anticipation by the students while they were walking out of Miss Benning’s class. One could swear that her pupils couldn’t wait for the next day to come so that they could find out the results of their in-class research.
The Students Contrast Their Results With the Appraisals From A Panel of Substance Abuse Experts
When the next school day arrived, Miss Benning handed out a sheet of paper that listed the top four alcohol dependency signs according to the pupils’ rankings. Next to these results, she added another column that was labeled “correct answer.” She then told her pupils that the numbers in the extra column she added stood for the responses that were articulated by a group of alcohol addiction professionals.
Miss Benning asked her students to go over the data on the piece of paper she handed out and then to raise their hand if they had any issues, concerns, or questions. Within 20 or 30 seconds, almost every student in the classroom raised her or his hand. It was apparent that the students had some issues, questions, or concerns about their results versus the answers given by the professionals. For instance, virtually every individual in the classroom disagreed with the highest ranked answer given by the authorities, that is to say, “Do you feel awfully ill when you abstain from drinking?”
The Essential Difference Between Alcohol Addiction and Alcohol Abuse is the Physical Dependency That is Experienced With Alcoholism and Not With Alcohol Abuse
Miss Benning then explained to the pupils in her classroom why this answer was the most clear-cut sign of alcohol dependency. She underlined the fact that the major difference between alcohol dependency and alcohol abuse is the physical addiction that is experienced with alcoholism and not with alcohol abuse.
Fundamentally this means that when a person who is alcohol dependent all of a sudden quits drinking, he or she will suffer through alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
Miss Benning then explained to the pupils in her classroom that alcohol withdrawal symptoms are responses by the body and by the brain to the lack of alcohol to which they had become acclimated. Stated more explicitly, alcohol withdrawal symptoms are messages from the brain and from the body telling an alcohol dependent individual that something is very misaligned and needs to be fixed. These signals consist of several uncomfortable, painful, and dangerous withdrawal symptoms that can possibly lead to a loss of life if the proper therapy is not immediately undertaken.
Miss Benning then discussed the host of alcohol withdrawal symptoms that can be experienced when an individual who is alcohol dependent abruptly stops drinking.
The point that Miss Benning tried to stress was this: an alcohol abuser can experience almost any and every one of the alcohol dependency signs that the students had ranked, but the one sign or symptom that few, if any, individuals who engage in alcohol abuse ever experience is alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
To state this as exactly as possible, Miss Benning stressed the fact that alcohol abusers, unlike alcohol addicted people, are not alcohol dependent and as a result, when they quit drinking, they almost never experience alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
The Pupils Think They Have Uncovered An Indiscretion With the Findings From The Team of Drug and Alcohol Addiction Professionals
The pupils also some difficulty with the second ranked answer given by the drug and alcohol abuse specialists, namely, “Have you ever had a drink the first thing in the morning to get rid of a hangover or to steady your nerves?”
Miss Benning explained to the pupils in her classroom that this sign does not automatically imply that the problem is alcoholism, but that it does stress the need that alcohol addicted individuals have to drink in order to stay away from alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
After Miss Benning explained the relevance of alcohol withdrawal symptoms in the life of the alcohol dependent person, the students started to comprehend the basic difference between alcohol abuse and alcoholism.
To add a sense of closure to the subject matter, Miss Benning asked the pupils in her class to take out a piece of paper and answer the following question: “if every person who is an alcoholic knew about every one of the alcohol withdrawal symptoms and alcohol addiction signs we have studied, what percentage of them do you think would get alcohol addiction treatment?”
After approximately four or five minutes, Miss Benning asked for the students’ responses. While many students reasoned that about 85 to 95 percent of people who are addicted to alcohol would obtain alcohol addiction rehabilitation if they knew about the facts related to alcohol withdrawal symptoms and alcohol addiction signs, most of the pupils reasoned that this number would not be less than 50 percent.
The Pupils Were Amazed to Discover That Only 25% of Alcohol Addicted People in the United States Seek Alcohol Dependency Rehab
To the surprise of most of the students, Miss Benning confirmed that according to the research literature, only 25% of the alcohol addicted individuals in the U.S. ask for alcohol dependency treatment. This astonished most of the pupils because they thought that first-hand knowledge of the appalling statistics and facts related to alcoholism would motivate most of the individuals who are alcohol dependent to get alcoholism rehabilitation.
Miss Benning then explained that alcohol dependent people not only need alcohol on a daily basis in order to function but they also require alcohol everyday so they can steer clear of possible alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Apparently, the alcohol addicted person’s need to drink on a daily basis is stronger than logic or facts. To be sure, since the craving for alcohol is “reality” to the person who is alcohol dependent, this is a challenging issue that is difficult to reverse.
A few minutes later the bell rang, indicating the end of the class. Based on the excitement exhibited by the pupils when they were leaving the classroom, Miss Benning recognized that she had motivated and encouraged her pupils to stop and think about a vital health and social problem that exists in our society.
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Teenage Alcohol Abuse: A Serious Problem
Written by MichaelZ on October 30, 2009 – 4:51 pm -Recent alcohol abuse statistics show that alcohol abuse among adolescents is increasing in the United States. What are some of the reasons for this? Numerous alcohol dependency professionals stress the point that beer, wine, and liquor advertisements constructed by the media are an essential reason for the spread of teen alcohol abuse.
Other alcohol abuse experts argue that the increase in adolescent alcohol abuse is due to the toleration and accessibility of alcohol in our society.
Still other substance abuse professionals assert that more than a few of our teenagers engage in dangerous drinking due to the increased stress that they experience.
From a slightly different vantage point, due to the fact that both parents in many families are gainfully employed, the lack of parental guidance evidently has to play a significant part in the expansion of teen alcohol abuse. And as a final point, diverse alcohol addiction specialists claim that the spread of teen alcohol abuse is due, to some extent, to our permissive society.
Coping Skills and Excessive Drinking
One facet of youth alcohol abuse that looks like it is somewhat missing in the alcohol abuse research findings, in contrast, is the shortage of educational programs that teach adolescents how to augment their coping skills so that their risky drinking behavior is fundamentally lessened or done away with.
More to the point, scientific research has demonstrated that there is an indirect connection between poor coping skills and abusive drinking. Essentially, this means that the more mediocre the coping skills, the higher the rate of alcohol abuse. To the degree that this is a valid contention, why isn’t coping skills training an important part of the academic curriculum in all of our junior high schools, elementary schools, and high schools?
A Society That Highlights Youth Coping Skills
Let us manufacture a scenario for explanatory purposes. Let us imagine a society in which all people are taught how to achieve first rate coping skills all the way from kindergarten up to and including their final year in high school.
In such a society, when life gets stressful, people who are “coping skills masters” will be able to respond in a more healthy and more creative manner, as opposed to others who fail to execute their coping skills.
Stated another way, students who display high-quality coping skills will be more able to think proactively and exhibit superior decision making as opposed to students who, because they were unsuccessful in their attempts to develop quality coping skills, are attracted to the “quick fix” of hazardous drinking.
What would happen in the above “ideal” society, moreover, if teenagers not only obtained exceptional coping skills training but also obtained an exclusive education that accentuated the short term and long term harmful results associated with drug abuse and alcohol abuse? Emphasizing these drug and alcohol abuse facts, along with more advanced coping skills training, it is affirmed, would help teenagers avoid the clear charm interlinked with teen drinking and, as a result, would significantly decrease the abusive drinking behavior demonstrated by adolescents in our country.
Youth Abusive Drinking: Conclusion
There are indubitably several convincing reasons why so many of our teenagers drink in a destructive manner. Such a tricky subject demands a broad based and more pertinent educational and preventative response by our students, educators, politicians, and parents so that our teens can learn how to cope with life’s problems in a more productive and accountable way rather than gravitating to harmful drinking behavior to solve their problems.
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