I will be taking a hiatus from my blogging due to finals week and winter break. Stay tuned for the spring semester because in 2009 HEALTHY will be releasing the results of their study. I will be reporting their findings as well as continuing to enhance the blog.

Thank you for your readership,

Happy Holidays!

Elaine

Still, I find that the easiest way to calculate one’s BMI is through a BMI calculator like the one offered at this website published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:  http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/dnpabmi/Calculator.aspx

The specific calculator shown on the page suggested above works for children and teens aged 2 to 19 years old. Another link on the website connects to the adult BMI calculator: http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/adult_BMI/english_bmi_calculator/bmi_calculator.htm

It takes only seconds to enter your birth date, weight, height, and sex. Try these sites for a quick and easy way to be knowledgeable about your BMI or the BMI of a loved one.

The “Dance” page, a part of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s website, offers a comprehensive compilation of dance information that is imperative for a Pittsburgher. I spent some time to check it out, and below, describe some of its perks.

The site begins by presenting links to the library catalog for more focused and thus more successful searches. The website description explains that, “from ballet to belly dancing, the books and videos/DVDs in the dance collection form a rich resource for the history of dance, for self-instruction and practice of many dance styles, and for enjoying the performance of prominent dancers and dance companies.” Links are also provided by this site to all of the professional Dance Companies as well places of dance instruction and recreational dance in Pittsburgh. Most importantly, an additional link offers a list of materials to educate those with the desire to implement creative movement and dance into their classrooms.

<http://www.clpgh.org/research/music/dance/>.

(This link has been added to my blogroll)

Remember, when all else fails, it is always good to check out your local library!

http://www.dancemeetsfitness.com/

Professional dancer Patty Rose’s blog focuses on her passion to help people find fitness results through dance. She is the Creater and Producer of Dance Strong!(tm) DVD Series, “a Complete Workout Program combining the best of Dance and Fitness.” You can surf through her page to see clips of her workout videos as well as posts focusing on exercise combinations to get “dancer legs.”  Another great post talks about how she came across a workout DVD by Anthony King called, Thiller Dance Workout DVD. With Halloween right around the corner, this workout tape can be a way to exercise, to learn some crazy Michael Jackson moves, and to get into the holiday spirit!

By now we all know that dancing is healthy, but that doesn’t change the fact that most people still don’t feel motivated to move. While thinking of a way to solve this problem, I reflected on certain factors that never fail to stimulate my energetic juices. I know the one thing that inspires me most to dance is seeing live performances. For example, last weekend I traveled to the Byham Theater with some girlfriends to see “Radio and Juliet.” This show, performed by a company from Romania called Ballet Maribor, mixed Shakespeare’s classic tragedy Romeo and Juliet with the music of the popular, alternative band Radiohead. I believe that this abstract show functioned to please a wide demographic of audience members and thus proved that you don’t have to be a professional dancer to enjoy performances. If you are interested in good music, media, and light shows, then you can appreciate dance performances too. The best part about “Radio and Juliet” was that the dancing was extremely modern. It strayed from any preconceived notions one might have about the right way to “dance.” It’s good to be reminded that you don’t have to be able to booty pop in the club to be a good dancer or to dance “right.”

A lot of great dance comes through Pittsburgh, and luckily because I am connected to a program called PittArts, I receive updates about the most current tours. For your surfing pleasure, I’ve compiled a list of Pittsburgh dance performances for this fall semester.

University of Pittsburgh’s Fall Informal Concert

When? October 23 & 24

Where? Trees Dance Studio on Pitt’s campus

Cost? Donation

“A compilation of student choreography, a special work from professional choreographer Michelle Dawson, and guest appearances from Pitt’s Black Dance Workshop.”

 “Twenty Eighty-Four”

http://www.pillowproject.org/events/2084/

“An abstract visual conversation about our destiny, our destination and about humanity on this pale blue dot…even as we forget that this is all just another dot in somebody else’s sky. Twenty Eighty-Four is an original full-length multimedia performance installation featuring non-fiction choreography, video projection and visual effects.”

 “Insert Clever and Thought-Provoking Title Here”

http://www.attacktheatre.com/showcase/inserttitle

“An evening of live music, video, improvisation, and the physical prowess of Attack Theatre in a comedic journey through a world of bears, broken bottles, and axe murdering puppet shows.”

“The Great Gatsby”

http://www.pbt.org/performances/gatsby.php

“A 20th Century ballet at its best presented in an emotional story that serves as an emblem of a Golden Age.”

 ”Inbal Pinto Shaker”

http://www.pgharts.org/events/EventDetails.aspx?id=13950

“Direct from Tel Aviv, Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak’s latest creative endeavor takes its inspiration from glass snow globes that swirl and twist with snowflakes when shaken.The aptly titled Shaker transports you to an eerily beautiful winter day, fitfully seen through a whirling snow storm from the window of a fast moving train. Breaking through a dark, frozen landscape, Shaker is an introspective journey in dance, forging memories, longings, ideas and imagination.”

 “The Nutcracker”

http://www.pbt.org/performances/nutcracker.php

“Christmas is The Nutcracker! This lavish production is steeped in glorious Pittsburgh history.”

Today I interviewed Elizabeth M. Venditti, an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh Medical School, about the specifics of the HEALTHY program. Eager to share her wealth of information, Beth immediately wrote down a couple of important websites pertaining to the issue that she thought would be imperative to add to my blogroll.

One website http://hin.nhlbi.nih.gov/portion/keep.htm offers an insightful way to emphasize the increase in food and drink portion sizes over the last 20 years. It provides two interactive quizzes from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Each quiz (titled Portion Distortion I and Portion Distortion II) tests your knowledge of how many calories are in our current food portions and how much exercise would be needed to effectively balance energy.

To begin with, the test provides two pictures juxtaposed in a way to visually represent the differences in portion sizes of items like muffins, coffee drinks, pastas, salads, popcorn, and even chicken stir fry. It then offers a multiple choice set of calorie numbers so you can guess how many more calories our current portions entail as opposed to the portions from 20 years prior. Once the correct answer is given, you are then asked to guess how many hours it would take to burn off the new amount of calories doing everyday activities such as vacuuming, car washing, walking the dog, water aerobics, or bike riding.

Test your knowledge with these fun quizzes, I bet you’ll be surprised.

Reduce Portion Sizes

1. Make sure you eat breakfast everyday. Eating breakfast ensures that you will not overeat during lunch.
2. If you love dessert, try always to share it with somebody else to cut down on calories.
3. When eating out, have a big vegetable salad, then split an entrée with a friend or have the other half wrapped to go.
4. Drink a glass of water 10 minutes before any meal to take the edge off your hunger and thus to reduce the amount you eat.
5. At home, listen to music while you eat instead of watching TV (people tend to eat more while watching TV).
6. Make less food look like more by serving it on a salad or breakfast plate and then eat it with a teaspoon or salad fork to encourage taking smaller bites.
7. Use broth and cured meats (smoked turkey and turkey bacon) in small amounts.

Move More Each Day

1. Jam while doing household chores.
2. Catch up with friends during a planned walk instead of phone call.

Make Healthy Food Choices

1. Low-fat macaroni and cheese can be a main dish. Serve it with a veggie or salad.
2. Cook with a mix of spices instead of salt.
3. Always keep a healthy snack with you, fruit, nuts, whole grain crackers.
4. Don’t grocery shop on an empty stomach. Make a list before you go the store.

If you liked some of these ideas, check out the rest of them at

http://ndep.nih.gov/campaigns/SmallSteps/50ways/index.htm

fact-sheet 

Dance Dance Revolution (DDR), an interactive video game that awards points for dancing in sync with its music, has developed a cult following since its emergence from Japan in 2000. Not only is it fun, but it teaches players coordination and rhythm as they dance over the light-up footpad. When an arrow glows the player must stomp on it. The concept is similar to that of “whack-a-mole,” except it engages one’s feet and encourages some funky new moves. Over the past 8 years there have been countless studies conducted and testimonials that have reported on the health benefits of DDR.  It is perfect for those who want to lose weight, but are not enticed by kicking a ball.  DDR games even offer a specific “Workout Mode” for people who want to track their progress and weight by calculating calories burned, minutes played, and distance traveled. While surfing the internet I found some interesting testimonials:

• Dr. Cedric Bryant, the chief exercise physiologist for the American Council on Exercise confirmed, “DDR can be a great activity. It gets your heart rate up and requires you to follow varying movement patterns. That helps in terms of agility and balance. It’s a real creative way of getting kids moving.”
• Coach Fenwick from Patrick Middle School says, “Compared to a stair-master or jogging, you can burn just as many calories.”
• Brandon Sheline, of Kokomo, Ind., tells that “he uses DDR as an integral part of his training for track because it builds his leg strength and increases his foot speed.”
• Blogger asylumzero said, “About 3-4 years ago, I played DDR a LOT during the summer and lost about 15 lbs in 1 1/2 month. It increased my stamina in general, including when I’m running.”
• Personally, I have seen students playing DDR in the basement of the William Pitt Union in the center of the University of Pittsburgh’s campus. They are always crowded around the machine and sweating profusely as they wait for their next turn to battle the scores of their opponents.

The endless success stories seem to confirm the facts. There is even a website http://www.ddrfreak.com deemed “the most visited website for DDR fans” that promotes the game by providing all of the press attention it has received since its release (it also provided a lot of the information that I am reporting here). I learned that a study conducted at Pennsylvania State University found that, “the average heart rate while teens are playing DDR is 144 beats per minute.” This is equal to a slow jog or a moderate bike ride.

In 2002, CBS correspondent Tracy Smith reported on The Early Show about a school near Los Angeles that was truly revolutionized by dance. Patrick Henry Middle School actually bought DDR machines and then incorporated DDR competitions into their physical education classes. This sounds like a really great idea, and apparently it worked so well that teachers had to force the kids to go to lunch at the sound of the bell.

Something truly astonishing that has branched off of the DDR craze (there have been more than 6.5 million copies sold worldwide) are the developments of a company called Sportwall International. This company used the DDR concept to invent more games that utilize a player’s whole body, not just the fingertips. Apparently these games have been seen in 100 schools and 100 McDonald’s restaurants in the United States to help encourage physical fitness.

Who would have thought that Americans would start seeing video games pop up in schools and in McDonalds!? If everybody from doctors, to educators, to fast-food managers see the importance of dance as health, Dance Dance Revolution may truly be a solution.

Last Friday, for the first time this semester, I saw 8 a.m. sunshine as I drove with my peers to Arsenal Middle School. Our Dance Pedagogy class was set to perform four dances at what was to us, a “getting to know you” assembly for the 8^th graders. Actually, it was more of a “welcome back” assembly run by the returning facilitators of the HEALTHY program. In between announcements, recaps from last year, awards, and descriptions of their upcoming goals our dancers performed jazz, tap, ballroom, and hip-hop pieces.

After pledging to the flag, and despite my overwhelming nostalgia for giant green lockers, I managed to gain a deeper understanding of just what the HEALTHY program means to Arsenal Middle School. The enthusiastic people sporting the HEALTHY t-shirts were returning for their third and final year as part of a nationwide initiative sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. These educators have been working with the same group of students since the kids were in 6^th grade.

It was interesting to hear an overview of the different ways HEALTHY has and is working to enrich the school’s wellness program. Last year the kids participated in something called a “cafeteria lab” where they were able to test different bags of chips and guess their fat content.

The theme this year is Energy Balance. It stresses the importance of drinking water and being active. The key is to balance “calories in with calories out.” There will be an Energy Balance Olympics with challenges to eat healthier, to consume less sugar drinks, to be more active, and to lessen screen time. In true nature of the recent games in Beijing, medals will be awarded to those students who show the most progress.

Near the end of the assembly there was a short clip of two celebrities who imparted motivational messages to the audience. The youngest Jonas brother revealed his diagnosis with type 1 diabetes and described his healthy methods for dealing with the disease. Also, Jacob Dylan was recorded describing “what healthy means to him.”

By the end of the assembly I had learned a number of new things about the program at Arsenal Middle School and the significance of our role in HEALTHY. It was exhilarating to hear the clapping of the students excited to have dancers as guests in their school. They cheered loudest for the hip-hop piece choreographed to the song “No Air” by Jordin Sparks featuring Chris Brown. The dance lessons we teach will reflect the pieces we choreographed in the show and function as the way students balance “calories in with calories out” during the school day.

I believe the “welcome back” assembly at Arsenal was a success for all the parties involved. The next stop for our Dance Pedagogy class will be Frick International!