For immediate release
Aug. 5, 2009

BRIDGING THE HEALTH GAP: CONNECTING THE DOCTOR’S OFFICE AND THE GYM

New partnership with Anytime Fitness fosters collaboration between health care providers, fitness professionals

INDIANAPOLIS – Interweaving the worlds of doctors, fitness professionals and patients into one model platform for optimum health and fitness has long been a challenge for proponents of healthy lifestyles. But a new partnership between the Exercise is Medicine™ global initiative and Anytime Fitness, the world’s largest co-ed fitness chain, aims to do just that and demonstrate how exercise can help solve America’s health care crisis.

Exercise is Medicine, a program supported by numerous national health and fitness organizations, is at the heart of the partnership. The program supports the notion that health care providers – especially physicians – should play a vital role in encouraging patients to get healthy. And, on the flip side, fitness professionals should have the hands-on opportunity to carry out the doctor’s orders within the four walls of a health club.

“Exercise is preventive medicine,” said Robert Sallis, M.D., chair of the Exercise is Medicine Task Force. “Anytime Fitness has the unique opportunity to carry out one of our fundamental principles: that physical activity isn’t about just looking good – it’s necessary for disease prevention and a long, healthy life.”

As a founding partner sponsor of Exercise is Medicine, Anytime Fitness will offer numerous benefits to gym patrons and health care providers who take the health-and-fitness merge to heart, including:

The new collaboration is just one step in Anytime Fitness’ mission to be much more than just a hard-bodies gym.

“Anytime Fitness is a strong believer in the connection between exercise and medicine and our member success stories serve as proof of this link” said Chuck Runyon, president and co-founder of Anytime Fitness. “The connection between exercise and a healthy lifestyle is why Anytime Fitness works to remove obstacles to fitness by locating our fitness centers closer to where people work and live including smaller communities, keeping memberships affordable and fostering a positive and supportive culture within our clubs.”.

Patients play a vital role in completing the health-and-fitness circle, too.

“If your doctor or health care provider isn’t talking to you about physical activity, bring it up,” Sallis said. “Ask them about the best, safest kinds of exercise for you. This conversation should be and needs to be a regular part of every doctor’s office visit.”

About Exercise is Medicine™
Exercise is Medicine™is an initiative focused on encouraging primary care physicians and other health care providers to include exercise when designing treatment plans for patients or to refer the patient to a qualified health and fitness or other allied health care professional for exercise counseling. Exercise is Medicineis committed to the belief that exercise and physical activity are integral in the prevention and treatment of diseases and should be regularly assessed as part of all medical care.

About Anytime Fitness
Open 24/7, Anytime Fitness provides its more than 700,000 members with convenient and affordable fitness options in friendly, well-maintained facilities featuring top-quality equipment. State-of-the-art security and surveillance systems ensure member safety even during unstaffed hours at the clubs. Anytime Fitness expects to achieve system-wide sales in excess of $150 million in 2009. For more information about Anytime Fitness, or to find the club nearest you, visit www.anytimefitness.com.

Exercise is Medicine™ -- An ACSM/AMA Initiative to Boost Fitness as Treatment

Posted: 11/25/2009

What if there was one prescription that could prevent and treat dozens of diseases, such as diabetes, hypertension, and obesity? Would you prescribe it to your patients? Certainly!

We would like to introduce you to Exercise is Medicine™, an initiative launched by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the American Medical Association (AMA). Guiding principles for the program have been designed to help improve the health and well-being of our nation through a regular physical activity prescription from doctors and other healthcare providers. They are as follows:

• Exercise and physical activity are important to health and the prevention and treatment of many chronic diseases;
• More should be done to address physical activity and exercise in healthcare settings and
• Encouragement of ACSM's effort to bring a greater focus on physical activity and exercise in healthcare settings.

To encourage your patients to engage in physical activity, the Exercise is Medicine™ initiative has developed a Pre-Participation Checklist. It takes only a few minutes for them to fill out. If they answer "yes" to any of the items, they need a medical opinion about the type of exercise that is safe and appropriate for them before they start a program.

To help patients choose appropriate regimens, Exercise is Medicine™ has provided a series of videos called "Keys to Exercise," which would be useful to share with your patients. Click on the following thumbnails.

Starting an exercise program

Starting an exercise program can sound like a daunting task, but just remember that your main goal is to boost your health by meeting the basic physical activity recommendations: 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity at least five days per week, or vigorous-intensity activity at least three days per week, and strength training at least twice per week.

Choose activities you enjoy, such as swimming, biking, or playing basketball with friends to get your daily physical activity. If you need variety of activities to stay motivated, combine a few that appeal to you.

Physical activity can be accumulated through a variety of activities, not just running. Walking is a great way to do moderate-intensity physical activity

Guidelines for healthy adults under age 65

Basic recommendations from ACSM and AHA:

Do moderately intense cardio 30 minutes a day, five days a week
Or
Do vigorously intense cardio 20 minutes a day, 3 days a week
And
Do eight to 10 strength-training exercises, eight to 12 repetitions of each exercise twice a week.

Moderate-intensity physical activity means working hard enough to raise your heart rate and break a sweat, yet still being able to carry on a conversation. It should be noted that to lose weight or maintain weight loss, 60 to 90 minutes of physical activity may be necessary. The 30-minute recommendation is for the average healthy adult to maintain health and reduce the risk for chronic disease.