SportsGeezer

The Great Outdoors Gets Old

For many Americans, the great outdoors appears to have been replaced by the technology-rich indoors.
The Scientific American reports that Americans have been visiting national parks and other natural reserves less and less since 1987, and that the popularity of outdoor activities like camping and hunting is on the wane. Sciam cites a study who results were recently published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, showing that, with the exception of a slight increase in backpacking, outdoor pursuits peaked between 1981 and 1991 after 50 years of steady increase and have been declining at roughly 1 percent per year since for an overall drop of as much as 25 percent.
Read more in the Scientific American.

Can Viagra Improve High Altitude Performance?

For a couple of years now, word has been out that Viagra can stoke up athletic performance at high altitudes. Can it really? Science Daily reports on research suggesting that Viagra can do the trick, but it doesn't always. The researchers gave ten trained cyclists Viagra and sent them out on a six kilometer track with a simulated altitude of more than 12,000 feet. Four of the ten cyclists responded well to Viagra, and their performance improved as much as 45 percent. Six cyclists showed no improvement, and when Viagra was given to cyclists riding at sea level, there was no change in any performance. Read more in Science Daily.
For a more entertaining story about Viagra and high altitude performance, read this piece in Outside.

Could a Personal Locator Beacon Save Your Life?

Once upon a time, hikers who were lost or injured deep in the wilderness were relegated to the lunch menu for big cats and bears. These days, the predators' repasts are hindered by technological advances that make it easy for lost humans to be found by other humans, who are not yet lost. The New York Times reports that after years of being used by private pilots and boaters, Personal Locator Beacons were approved by the FCC for use on land in 2003.  That approval, however, did make them cheap, or particularly light, and the Times suggests that because these babies sell for $500 and up and weigh at least 10 ounces, backpackers have been slow to sign on. The devices, obviously used when a cell phone is out of range, emit a 406-MHz radio signal that is picked up by one of 12 satellites operated by the international Cospas-Sarsat search-and-rescue system. The signal carries a code that identifies its owner and, depending on the completeness of the required registration, the owner’s emergency contact information and the expected location. Read more about Personal Locator Beacons in the New York Times.
Compare prices and models here.

How to Choose a Sunscreen

Geezer often wonders how simple things became so complicated. Take buying sunscreen. Once upon a time, the wife ran into the drug store for sunscreen while you ran into the package store for beer, then you were off to the beach. Not any more. The new way to buy sunscreen, presented here, comes to us from the Boston Globe.
Read the label before you buy. The SPF number is an indication of protection against UVB rays only. Sunscreen products labeled "broad-spectrum" protect against UVA and UVB radiation, but there is no standard system for measuring UVA protection.  Next, look at the ingredients. Products with an SPF of 15 or higher that contain avobenzone (Parsol 1789 ), zinc oxide , or titanium dioxide are likely to be effective against the entire spectrum of UVA rays. Also, check  the  expiration date: Most sunscreens expire within two to three years. Choose an SPF of at least 15. The SPF represents the level of sunburn protection provided by the sunscreen. SPF 4 blocks out 75 percent of burning UV rays, while SPF 30 blocks out 97 percent. The FDA is reviewing ways to measure how much UVA protection sunscreens provide.
Wait, there's more. Apply it correctly: The average person is supposed to apply an amount of sunscreen equal to the size of a golf ball. When using SPF 15 correctly, you will get the equivalent of one minute of UV rays each 15 minutes you spend in the sun. So, spending eight hours in the sun wearing SPF 15 is the same as spending 32 minutes unprotected.  And one more thing: Remember that reflective surfaces like water, snow, and sand increase UV exposure.

You'll Never Walk Alone

You'll never walk alone. At least, according to some recent research conducted at Medical Research Council in Glasgow, Scotland, you are far less likely to walk alone than with someone else. The study, which looked at 48 papers written about the best ways to get people to walk for exercise, concluded that people who walked in groups were far more likely to keep it up, and that reminders, such as phone calls and e-mails, helped to get people off their duffs. The research is reported in the New York Times and published in the British Medical Journal.

Speed Hiking: Taking the Zen Out of the Outdoors

It's hard to figure the cardio to zen ratio of the latest outdoor obsession: hiking up mountains as fast as you can, but Geezer puts it at three to one. The goal, after all, as the New York Times describes it, is how fast can you get up and down. The good news is the "sport" combines the muscle-building benefits of altitude gain with fast-paced aerobic activity, which keeps heart rates high.  Or is that the bad news? Geezer leaves it up to his gentle readers. In the mean time, the Times reports, the first speed-hiking race will to be held on August 11 at Sugarbush Resort in Warren, Vermont. The roughly 16-mile Herc Open has a purse of $25,000.

The Mall vs. the Meadow: Walking Outdoors Lifts Spirits

A new study suggests that, when it comes to improving one's mood, some things are more effective than air conditioning and a 20 percent store-wide discount. Researchers from the University of Essex compared the benefits of a 30-minute walk in a country park with a walk in an indoor shopping centre on 20 people affected by depression. After the country walk, 71 per cent said that they felt less depressed and tense while 90 per cent reported increased self-esteem. After the walk in the shopping centre only 45 per cent felt less depressed and 22 per cent actually felt more depressed. About 50 per cent felt more tense and 44 percent said that their self-esteem had dropped. Read more in the London Times.

Appalachian Trail Diary

What's it really like to hike the Appalacian Trail, I mean the whole Appalachian Trail? A fearless young--OK not young, but 50-something--named Michelle Holmes is about to let us know. Holmes, who is married to Boston Globe collumnist Derrick Jackson, is filing occasional reports and photos of her progress from Georgia northward.  Will she make it to Maine?  Geezer says yes, if she hikes as well as she writes. Read it here.

Walking: the Ultimate No-Fuss Exercise

Editors at the LA Times health desk have got to be some of the best packagers of information in the newspaper business. Their latest product is an encouraging and useful collection of nine stories about the benefits of, and tips about, walking. Yes, walking. Who knew that brisk walking can help prevent cardiovascular disease, colon cancer, osteoporosis and diabetes, or that a broader set of disorders — breast cancer, depression, cognitive decline and sexual dysfunction, to name a few — might also be helped by regular strolls around the block?  Read more, and take a walk. Seriously.

Exercise Neither Helps Nor Hurts Knee Pain

The next time you hear someone blame their knee pain on too much exercise, tell them to take walk, or a jog, or a run. If researchers at Boston University School of Medicine are correct, the exercise will not make their pain any worse--or any better. The Ivanhoe Newswire reports that BU researchers followed nearly 1,300 people over about 10 years, and found no relationship between physical activity, like walking or jogging, and the development of knee osteoarthritis. Previous studies have suggested exercise can protect against the development of knee pain, while others have concluded it may lead to the condition. Read more.