Increasing Physical Activity

Only a fifth of adults in the United States do enough physical activity to meet the guidelines set by Centers for Disease Control. The health benefits of regular physical activity are beyond dispute, yet less than 40% of physicians routinely counsel their patients on the importance of physical activity. Increasing Physical Activity: A Practical Guide equips healthcare practitioners to include physical activity counseling in the daily practice of medicine. Written by lifestyle medicine pioneer and cardiologist, Dr James Rippe, this book proves inactivity is a stronger risk factor than other lifestyle factors for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and many other diseases. It provides evidence-based information on the role of physical activity in preventing and treating chronic conditions and includes practical strategies for healthcare practitioners to prescribe this powerful method to enhance both short and long-term health and quality of life. Features: Specific chapters explain the role of physical activity in reduction of risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, osteoarthritis, dementia and many other chronic conditions. Chapters begin with bulleted, key points and conclude with a list of clinical applications. Strategies are provided to encourage previously sedentary individuals to adopt regular physical activity. Physical activity is placed in the context of other lifestyle medicine concepts including maintenance of a healthy body weight, following sound nutritional practices, stress reduction and other practices which impact on health and quality of life. Written for healthcare practitioners at all levels, this is a user-friendly, evidence-based manual for healthcare practitioners looking to incorporate more physical activity counseling into either general medicine or subspecialty practices.

Dr. Rippe is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Medical School with post graduate training at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is currently the Founder and Director of the Rippe Lifestyle Institute and Professor of Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Over the past 25 years Dr. Rippe has established and run the largest research organization in the world exploring how daily habits and actions impact short and long-term health and quality of life. This organization, Rippe Lifestyle Institute (RLI), has published hundreds of papers that form the scientific basis for the fields of lifestyle medicine and high performance health. Rippe Lifestyle Institute also conducts numerous studies every year on physical activity, nutrition and healthy weight management. A lifelong and avid athlete Dr. Rippe maintains his personal fitness with a regular walk, jog, swimming and weight training program. He holds a black belt in karate and is an avid wind surfer, skier and tennis player. He lives outside of Boston with his wife, television news anchor Stephanie Hart and their four children, Hart, Jaelin, Devon and Jamie.

1. Lifestyle Medicine Physical Activity and Health 2. Background and Key Physical Activity Concepts 3. Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Disease Risk Reduction and Treatment 4. Physical Activity and the Prevention and Treatment of Cancer 5. Physical Activity and Diabetes, Pre-Diabetes and the Metabolic Syndrome 6. Physical Activity in Women's Health 7. Physical Activity and Youth 8. Physical Activity and Older Adults 9. Physical Activity in Individuals with Chronic Conditions 10. Physical Activity, Weight Gain and Obesity 11. Physical Activity, Cognition and Brain Health 12. The Role of Physicians in Promoting and Prescribing Increased Physical Activity 13. Exercise Prescription: Practical Applications 14. Overcoming Sedentary Behavior 15. Promoting Regular Physical Activity