Jayme Smithers dominates the peak to valley fitness circuit, beating out Dr.O and many others. Could he be this season’s Saturday fastest?

Welcome to the Peak to Valley training program – a comprehensive pre-season fitness program that will help you become a stronger skier or snowboarder and prevent injury this year on the slopes.  Every month, we will post new programs for you to follow so …

Lynn demonstrates how a jumping or plyometric exercise doesn’t have to be overly intense or aggressive. A nice low step like this one allows most moderate to advanced trainees to safely strengthen their fast twitch muscles, joints and connective tissue to prepare for winter sports.

Dr.O

Monthly Theme:  Speed

July’s theme is speed and agility.  Almost all of us need speed and agility whether we realize it or not; even the elderly sometimes need to move quickly in order to stop themselves from falling or to catch something quickly.  Most sports require significant amounts of quickness …

Monthly Theme:  Flexibility

June’s theme is flexibility.  The high volumes of activity in June will add tension to the body – often in the wrong places.  Joint irritation from overuse and repetitious movements like running and cycling can make your flexibility even worse.

Poor flexibility can lead to increased tension in …

There is a new kind of doctor in Whistler!  Dr Ryan Oughtred will help you take your health to the next level, prevent illness or become a better athlete.  Dr O is a Naturopathic Physician and X – World Cup ski racer; he understands the wants and needs of Whistler …

Fish Oil Prevents Aging

A study from the American Journal of Medicine demostrates an association between blood levels of Omega 3 fatty acids and a lower rate of DNA ‘wear and tear’.

Antidepressants work…if you really need them

A new meta-analysis was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association …

Your assessment acts like an annual membership, and you will be reminded when you are due for follow ups and important preventive medical screening tests and visits.

For fitness enthusiasts, the process involves measurement of lactate thresholds for precise assessment of endurance over time and selection of future training intensities. For those who want to manage their disease risk over time, the assessment gives you a framingham score, estimating your 10 year risk for developing coronary artery disease. This is the perfect annual health screen for someone who is looking for an executive health assessment with a strong focus on fitness, lifestyle, and athletic performance. Together with the advice and medical testing of your family doctor, your assessment will leave you feeling as though no ‘stone is left unturned’ with regard to your health.

Aside from your assessments with your medical doctor, all parts of your annual assessment are performed by Dr Oughtred himself which provides for a 5-star professional experience which you won’t forget. Take the time for your assessment now, and see what new avenues of health open up for you.

New to 2010 is Dr Oughtred’s annual health assessment: a comprehensive health assessment that includes a medical assessment, a physical therapy type of assessment, and a fitness and lifestyle assessment. Patients will receive a 15 page booklet outlining and explaining their results, and it comes complete with a comprehensive plan …

Lactate Testing is quickly becoming the preferred test for people that want to assess their aerobic capacity and determine how to make the most of their exercise program. I began to offer lactate testing to all of my patients in 2009 and I have found it effective not only …

The 2 supplements that I recommend the most are Fish Oil and Vitamin D. Lately, its seems that the evidence for supplemental Vitamin D is mounting at a rapid rate, and I thought it would be appropriate to write about it.

Vitamins are called vitamins because our body’s cannot function without them – they are vital to life. Almost all of them have to be consumed in the food we eat, or we will get deficiency syndromes and die. Vitamin D is different; our primary source of vitamin D is from the sun.

Vitamin D functions as a hormone in the body, which makes it unique from other vitamins. The human body can make it, but unfortunately it needs a little help to be switched on. This is the where sunlight comes in; circulating vitamin D close to the surface of the skin is altered by the sun’s radiation, converting it from D2 to D3, the active form of the vitamin.

The active form of Vitamin D governs the absorption and metabolism of Calcium in the body, and calcium is used by all cells in the body. Thus it allows for proper functioning of the entire body, but in particular the immune system, the nervous system and the skeletal system allowing for strong bones and teeth.

Right now, research is demonstrating that lower levels of Vitamin D are associated with a variety of problems. For instance, experts agree that the increased incidence of Multiple Sclerosis and other autoimmune conditions at higher latitudes is at least partly due to a lower supply of Vitamin D from the sun. People with darker skin who live in higher latitudes are more susceptable to deficiency because dark skin acts as natural sunblock, and prevents the activation of Vit D. It is no coincidence that people with lighter skin live at higher latitudes.

It’s a catch 22: direct sunlight can lead to skin cancer, and the lack of direct sunlight can lead to more cancer, weak bones, insomnia, dementia, autoimmune disease and who knows what else. I don’t recommend tanning beds because it is too easy to burn your skin with them. Dietary sources of Vitamin D are usually not adequate on their own.

The solution is to either supplement your sunlight or supplement your diet. You would need at least 30 minutes of direct sunlight sunlight on at least 3 days of the week to get it from the sun, and even with that amount you are not guaranteed optimal intake. Because I live in Vancouver, where sun is hard to find in the winter, I recommend supplementation for most patients. Walter Willet from Harvard’s school of public health recommends 1000 IU for all people, regardless of where they live, and he says that the recommendation may increase pending further research. I recommend 1500 IU per day during the dark winter months and 1000 IU per day during the brighter/ sunnier months. When in doubt with your dosage, you can have your blood tested to fine tune your optimal dosage. I shoot for 60-100 pmol/L with my patients.

Review:

Supplement 1000 IU – 1500 IU Vit D per day, or ensure > 30 minutes of direct sunlight on 3 or more days of the week.

If in doubt, have your Vit D levels tested to see what your optimal intake is.

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