Updated on Oct. 3 to include DPS spokeswoman's declined comment.

AUSTIN The Texas Department of Public Safety Officers Association filed a lawsuit Wednesday challenging a new addition to the agency's fitness assessments that requires officers to have their waistlines measured.

The lawsuit filed in Travis County court says the waistline requirement implemented last year 40 inches for men and 35 inches for women is discriminatory because troopers who do not meet the standards face termination, transfer or demotion, even if they pass all other required parts of the agency's physical fitness test. The officers could also lose out on overtime pay or the ability to work off-duty jobs if they do not meet the physical requirement.

A 6-2, 230-pound male trooper who has a 41-inch waist because of his "large build" could be removed from duty because of the "shortsighted directive," the group said in a news release.

"Not only is this policy demeaning, it is damaging to our troopers and to our citizens," Richard Jankovsky, the president of the officer's association said in a news release. "Not all physically fit troopers are of the same body type, the same height or the same genetic makeup."

In spring 2019, the lawsuit says, 594 of the 1,153 commissioned officers who took the fitness test did not meet the waistline requirements. The lawsuit says DPS has continued the fitness test this fall, placing hundreds of officers at risk of repercussions if they do not meet the requirements.

Katherine Cesinger, spokeswoman for the Department of Public Safety, declined comment citing the department's policy of not commenting on pending litigation.

The lawsuit asks the court to block the policy's further implementationuntil its legality can be determined.

The officers association, which represents more than 3,400 members across Texas, alleges that the Department of Public Safety implemented the new measure without the help of an outside consultant as is required by state law. The lawsuit also says that the new waistline requirements violate state law because it bears no direct relation to whether an officer can perform their duties.

"The new standards have moved beyond testing for fitness needed to perform one's duty as an officer into an appearance policy that has little bearing on an officer's ability to keep Texans safe," Jankovsky said.

The lawsuit is the latest battle between DPS Director Steve McCraw and his rank-and-file over the department's physical fitness standards. Since 2010, the department has slowly increased its fitness standards with the goal of ensuring a physically fit and well-trained force that can respond to its law enforcement tasks.

Deputy Director Skylor Hearn said the agency enacted the waistline requirementto address health conditions like obesity and cardiovascular diseases, which were prevalent in law enforcement. The new policy wouldidentify andsupportthose at risk for those conditions and help the department "take proactive steps to address this health and officer safety risk."

Officers are required to pass two physical fitness tests each fiscal year, which the department saysaccount for age and sex.

See more here:
DPS troopers sue over new fitness standards that require their waistlines to be measured - The Dallas Morning News

Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market has been thriving with considerable revenue from previous decades and it is likely to perform vigorously over the forecast period from 2019 to 2025. Various factors such as development, rapidly increasing demand, lifting population, economic stability are directly and indirectly fuelling growth in the market.

Get Sample Copy of this Report https://www.orianresearch.com/request-sample/717991

Some of key competitors or manufacturers included in this report are:

Abbott Laboratories, Adidas AG, Alive Technologies, Beuer GmbH, Entra Health Systems, Fitbit, Fitbug Limited, FitLinxx, Garmin Ltd, Humetrix, Ideal Life, Intelesens Ltd, Isansys Lifecare Ltd, Jawbone, Koninklijke Philips NV, Lumo BodyTech, Medtronic, Misfit, NeuroSky, Nike, Nonin Medical, Nuvon, Oregon Scientific, Polar Electro Oy, Sensei, Sotera Wireless, Suunto Oy, Toumaz UK Ltd, Wahoo Fitness, Withings SA,

Scope of Report:

The Wireless Health and Fitness Device market revenue was xx.xx Million USD in 2014, grew to xx.xx Million USD in 2018, and will reach xx.xx Million USD in 2025, with a CAGR of x.x% during 2019-2025. Based on the Wireless Health and Fitness Device industrial chain, this report mainly elaborates the definition, types, applications and major players of Wireless Health and Fitness Device market in details. Deep analysis about market status (2014-2019), enterprise competition pattern, advantages and disadvantages of enterprise products, industry development trends (2019-2025), regional industrial layout characteristics and macroeconomic policies, industrial policy has also be included. From raw materials to downstream buyers of this industry will be analyzed scientifically, the feature of product circulation and sales channel will be presented as well. In a word, this report will help you to establish a panorama of industrial development and characteristics of the Wireless Health and Fitness Device market.

Pages 144

Order a copy of Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market Report @https://www.orianresearch.com/checkout/717991

Most important types of Wireless Health and Fitness Device products covered in this report are:

Wireless Sports & Fitness DevicesWireless Remote Health Monitoring DevicesWireless Professional Healthcare Devices

Most important types of Wireless Health and Fitness Device application covered in this report are:

For KidsFor AdultsFor Old Men

Wireless Health and Fitness Device market Production Breakdown Data by Top Regions:

United States (Canada, Mexico)

Europe (Germany, France, UK, Italy, Russia, Spain)

APAC (China, Japan, Korea, Australia)

Africa (Egypt, Israel, Turkey)

Inquire more or share questions if any before the purchase on this report @https://www.orianresearch.com/enquiry-before-buying/717991

Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market Research Report Offers The Below Industry Insights:

Table of Contents:

Major Points from Table of Contents:

1 Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market Overview

2 Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market Competition by Manufacturers

3 Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Production, Revenue (Value) by Region (2013-2019)

4 Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Supply (Production), Consumption, Export, Import by Regions (2013-2019)

5 Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Production, Revenue (Value), Price Trend by Type

6 Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market Analysis by Application

7 Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis

8 Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market Manufacturing Cost Analysis

9 Industrial Chain, Sourcing Strategy and Downstream Buyers

10 Marketing Strategy Analysis, Distributors/Traders

11 Market Effect Factors Analysis

12 Global Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market Forecast (2019-2025)

13 Research Findings and Conclusion

14 Appendix

Author List

Disclosure Section

Research Methodology

Data Source

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Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Trends, Analysis, Growth, and 2019 to 2025 Forecast - Space Market...

Changing Health, Attitudes and Actions to Recreate Girls, or CHAARG, is coming to UNT in January 2020. This new organizations goal is to inspire young women on campus to get active and find a passion for healthy living while still having fun.

Over 50 colleges across the United States have started their own CHAARG chapter and over 10,000 girls are involved in the community.

My goal for CHAARG is to empower women to be the best version of themselves, UNT CHAARG ambassadorAsya Pitre said. I want this organization to be an eye-opener to the world of fitness and health and give a taste of various workouts. Hopefully, girls will be able to find what they enjoy most.

Weekly workout sessions on campus will be offered with local instructors around the Denton area. Classes will vary from kickboxing, yoga and CrossFit, among others.

We want to make sure every woman feels welcomed and comfortable, no matter what fitness level they are starting at, CHAARG VP memberSabrina Ragsdale said. With you typical local gyms, the majority of the people there are men working out and this can be intimidating. With CHAARG, we are building a close-knit community and giving women the opportunity to gain the confidence and comfort to step into the fitness world.

CHAARG is also aiming to encourage college-age girls to live a healthier lifestyle, both physically and mentally.

Whether it be studying, self-care, or working on yourself mentally, I think thats the main goal for this organization, CHAARG member Uel Trejo said. We want to push people to be the best versions of themselves.

During the fall semester, the executive board will be going through training to prepare for spring recruitment and activities.

We have online training through CHAARGs website, Pitre said. We are trained by the founder and executive of expansion through modules on each specific positions responsibilities and how to effectively run the chapter to ensure the girls feel comfortable and included. For the last seven weeks, Ive been training with the other founding ambassadors at other chapters across the nation.

The entire calendar of events is set to be finished by the end of the fall 2019 semester, which will include workouts, spa days and possible coffee shop meet-ups. Weekly workouts and girly dates will be available for all members to participate in, as well as smaller group workouts planned inside the organizations group chat.

Ideas have been tossed around, Trejo said. There will be different events that people can show up to to fit their schedule. We have a group chat right now where girls can talk to each other and plan workout days together. Usually 4-5 girls go together.

Fall events will be posted through their Instagram account to help introduce members to each other. The group will also table periodically on campus.

The most important way to spread this awesome organization is by word of mouth, Ragsdale said. We are relying heavily on the smiling faces to draw like-minded girls to the UNT CHAARG Chapter.

People whove heard about us are really interested in CHAARG, Trejo said. They say its hard to find people to workout with and have that mentality with and I understand that. People are busy and they dont always have the same schedules that line up. Having a group where they want to stay healthy, it encourages them to be better themselves.

Members hope that girls on campus will join the UNT CHAARG community and take advantage of this organization.

These workouts will be surrounded by positive, motivating, and amazing girls, Pitre said. I know how difficult it can be to balance classes, work, a social life, and personal time. This organization will build great habits that will carry on in these girls lives.

Featured Image:Chemistry senior Sabrina Ragsdale (left) and biology junior Asya Pitre (right) display the CHAARG hand sign in front of the Physics Building on Sept. 17, 2019. The UNT CHAARG chapter will go live in Jan. 2020. Image by Meredith Holser

Originally posted here:
Women's health and fitness group, CHAARG, coming to UNT in the spring - North Texas Daily

Living a healthy lifestyle requires making smart choices about what to eat, what to do for activity, not smoking and getting enough sleep. The simple answer for why some people can do this so well is willpower they have the power to say no to unhealthy options no matter how tempting they may be.

This isnt to say that poor willpower is to blame for poor health. Making healthy decisions is difficult under the best circumstances, but in an environment that encourages poor choices, it is even more difficult. But having the mindset to take control and say no when necessary is essential for adopting healthy habits.

Because of the personal, emotional and social factors surrounding food, eating, activity and sleep, making lasting health improvements is challenging, to say the least. Ultimately, you are responsible for what you eat and how much you exercise. Taking control of these factors is difficult it requires saying no a lot but essential for your success.

When you are trying to lose weight or just eat healthier, the right diet can help. Some foods, typically those with sugar and refined carbohydrates, can leave you feeling hungry soon after you eat. Other foods that contain fiber, protein and fat can help you feel full longer. But choosing healthier foods instead of unhealthy options means that you need to make difficult choices, even when hunger or convenience are an issue.

Support from other people can help you make better eating and activity choices. You are more likely to stick to an exercise program if you do it with others, either people you know or in a group exercise setting. Many people find that weight loss programs which include group support and being accountable to others improves their adherence and success. And having support at home helps with everything from preparing healthy meals to going to bed earlier to get more sleep.

On the other hand, people in your life can interfere with your success. Spouses, friends and acquaintances can knowingly or unknowingly make comments or decisions that can sabotage your best efforts. A friend who knows you are on a diet but bakes brownies for you anyway or a family member who serves large portions or second helpings at dinner can make sticking to your diet more difficult. A coworker who schedules a meeting during lunch when you take time to exercise can get in the way of your activity goals. Managing these situations requires you to stand up for yourself and say no sometimes.

Saying no isnt easy and requires practice to be more comfortable doing it. Your own personal belief about your ability to do this, called self-efficacy, is critical to your success. The degree of your self-confidence is based on your own past experience as well as your thoughts and feelings about the behavior you wish to change. Chances are that if you have tried and failed to do something new in the past, you may feel less hopeful about your success this time. Think about it this way: Your past experiences have taught you what doesnt work and what not to try this time around. This information can help guide you to an approach that will work for you. Once you believe that this time is different, you have a better chance for success.

Even with the perfect diet, the best exercise program and a supportive environment, being successful requires making difficult choices sometimes. And more often than not, that means saying no!

Brian Parr, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Department of Exercise and Sports Science at USC Aiken where he teaches courses in exercise physiology, nutrition and health behavior. You can learn more about this and other health and fitness topics at http://drparrsays.com or on Twitter @drparrsays.

See the rest here:
HEALTH AND FITNESS: Just say no! | Features - Aiken Standard

From step trackers to weight loss programs, people are using their smart phone apps to track their health-related issues. Experts are warning of some potential downsides of not reading the Fine Print before sharing personal information.

Maureen Tsuchida, like many others, turned to health-related apps because they are quick and convenient.

I put everything from blood work to immunization records, to medication, to eyeglasses, to checkups. Ive really become very dependent on it, Tsuchida said.

Health and medical apps can help keep track of your familys medical profiles.

Tsuchida is a tech blogger and knows that even the most secure apps can be compromised, so she is sure to read the fine print and to make sure her information is not being stored on a remote server.

For certain medical apps, I make sure that its not being backed up somewhere else, Tsuchida said.

Thats just one of the ways consumers can safeguard their personal health information.

There are tons of benefits of using these applications, however, you have to be aware of the privacy and security risks, Dr. Lina Bouayad said.

Assistant Professor in the College of Business at Florida International University, Dr. Lina Bouayad says the technological advances are making it possible to share your entire health file with app.

It can connect you to patients like yourself, it can find you the best provider for your condition, the lowest cost for treatment possible, so all of these are benefits that you can get from those apps, Bouayad said.

Unlike hospitals and doctors, that by law must protect this information, apps, and technology companies dont have to follow the same rules.

Once the user provides consent, once they allow sharing of the information, then the app can basically share that data to whomever they choose to, Bouayad said.

She says you should read the terms and conditions of an app. She advises consumers to select apps that are transparent about the type of health information they collect and how it is used and to be certain the apps you choose has built-in security measures like encoding stored and transmitted data.

Experts also warn that you should be leery of free apps.

Theyre probably selling your personal data. After all, they have to make money one way or the other, said Consumer Reports Tech Editor Bree Fowler.

Bree Fowler with Consumer Reports says there could be unforeseen issues.

We recommend taking a good hard look before deciding whether to hand over your data or not. Were concerned that if your personal data gets out there it could ultimately lead to workplace discrimination, Fowler said.

As for Maureen, she says shell be more vigilant when using health apps.

I have not only my information but my sons information too, Tsuchida said.

Consumer Reports also says to check the terms of service of the app and whether the app is asking for permission to access your contacts or photos or allows it to share your data with third parties.

See the article here:
You Should Read the 'Fine Print' of Health and Fitness Apps: Experts - NBC 6 South Florida

More than 71 million U.S. consumers used a health club in 2018, according to IHRSA. With the growth of health and fitness club consumers exceeding 34 percent since 2008, the era of fitness has certainly arrived. Yet less than 20 percent of consumers are health club members. What if health clubs could become a bigger part of the solution for peoples health, thus lowering medical costs and further expanding the market for the health club industry? Working with health care providers can be a big contributor to further growth for the health club industry while doing a lot of good for the nations health.

Reducing health care costs while helping people avoid and manage chronic conditions more productively is a real and present opportunity when considering the numbers. According to the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, six in 10 Americans have at least one chronic disease. These conditions include cardiovascular disease, depression and diabetes, among many others. Chronic illnesses negatively impact the lives of many Americans and their families every day. These conditions are also costing a lot of money; around $2 trillion of the now $3.6 trillion annual cost of health care in the United States can be attributed to chronic diseases. According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, this will only get worse since costs are forecasted to reach an unsustainable $6 trillion by 2027.

In a recent episode of ABC Financials Fitness Industry Innovation podcast, Reshape MD CEO Jeff Skeen discussed his views regarding the integration of healthcare and fitness. (You can listen to the interview here.) According to Skeen, the fitness and medical industry have long existed in a state of friction, while ultimately serving consumers on the same front health and wellness. Skeen and host Kelly Card, chief engagement officer at ABC, dive into the intricacies of how the medical and fitness industries can complement each other with increased medical connectivity. The need for this integration is upon us, according to many industry experts such as Skeen.

Sedentary lifestyles are fueling the epidemic levels of lifestyle-related illnesses. As many studies reflect, exercise is medicine. According to Helen Durkin, IHRSAs executive vice president for public policy: The industry plays a pivotal role in solving our nations current health and health care crises. Americas health clubs provide much-needed support, innovative equipment, and training, and safe, secure spaces that enable people to more easily stay physically active year-round and from year to year. And its precisely because regular exercise is critical to our countrys health and economic future that keeping the health club industry strong not only benefits IHRSA members but the health, happiness and prosperity of the entire country.

Public awareness of the benefits of exercise as part of a healthy lifestyle that helps prevent chronic diseases is increasing. In addition, other factors are creating an emerging opportunity for the health club industry overall when it comes to the integration of health care and other services with fitness. Medical delivery models are changing, and consumers are increasingly becoming the CEOs of their own health and well-being. New technologies, boomer demographic trends and patients increasingly paying out-of-pocket for health care services are all trends combining to create new innovative business opportunities for health club businesses. More Americans are turning to lower-cost alternatives while seeking more convenient practical solutions to prevent or better manage the catastrophic impact of poor health. Physicians are responding by supporting digital tools while ditching traditional methods and medications and, instead, prescribing preventative lifestyle solutions, such as health club memberships.

These trends are just getting started and a wide-ranging set of new and innovative business models that integrate traditional health care with preventive lifestyle servicesincluding nutrition, stress management and exerciseare emerging. As economic pressures continue to increase on the healthcare system investments in alternative preventive and proactive disease management services as a logical alternative will become more popular. This is why medically integrated healthy lifestyle services are going to become a bigger part of the fitness industry. Given that the current health club industry reaches less than 20 percent of the U.S. population, the opportunity to reach a much larger market by offering these solutions is very promising.

Helping our industry understand the challenges and opportunities surrounding the integration of the health care and health club industries is why ABC Financial is sponsoring the Healthcare & Fitness Integration Summit at the Club Industry Show Oct. 9-11, 2019, at the Hilton Chicago. Leaders from the fitness industry will be collaborating with physicians and others interested in working with health clubs, to learn about the issues affecting the industries and to discover how the industries can collaborate to make our country healthier.

By working together, health club industry leaders can integrate fitness services with the medical community and make an even greater positive impact on the health of the nation, while lowering health care costs and expanding the reach of the health club market.

About ABC Financial Services

ABC Financial (abcfinancial.com) is a premier provider of technology and related financial services for the health and fitness industry, renown for exceptional client service for clubs and their members. Its market-leading billing and collections solutions automate the revenue cycle that enable owners and operators to achieve better financial performance, all in a Software-as-a-Service and cloud-based platform. ABCs comprehensive technology solutions include DataTrak advanced health club management and MYiCLUBonline extensible member engagement platforms that allow owners and operators to efficiently manage employees, members, resources and sales and to drive improved member engagement. Founded in 1981, ABC helps more than 7,500 health clubs across the United States, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico perform better and more profitably. ABC Financial is a Thoma Bravo portfolio company, a private equity firm based in San Francisco and Chicago (thomabravo.com).

Read the original here:
Medically Integrated Services and the Fitness Industry - Club Industry

Physically fit young adults have healthier white matter in their brains and better thinking skills than young people who are out of shape, according to a large-scale new study of the links between aerobic fitness and brain health. The findings suggest that even when people are youthful and presumably at the peak of their mental prowess, fitness or the lack of it may influence how well their brains and minds work.

We already have plenty of tantalizing evidence that aerobic fitness can beneficently shape our brains and cognition. In animal experiments, mice and rats that run on wheels or treadmills produce far more new neurons in their brains than sedentary animals and perform better on tests of rodent intelligence and memory. Similarly, studies involving people show strong relationships between being physically active or fit and having greater brain volume and stronger thinking abilities than people with low fitness or who rarely exercise.

But most of these past studies focused on middle-aged or older adults, whose brains often are starting to sputter and contract with age. For them, fitness and exercise are believed to help slow any decline, keeping brain tissue and function relatively youthful. Much less has been known about whether fitness likewise might be related to the structure and function of healthy, younger peoples brains.

So, for the new study, which was published last month in Scientific Reports, scientists at the University of Mnster in Germany decided to look inside the skulls of a large group of young adults.

They began by turning to a hefty trove of data gathered as part of the Human Connectome Project, an international collaborative effort that aims to help map much of the human brain and tease out how it works.

As part of that project, more than 1,200 young men and women in the United States recently agreed to have their brains scanned with a specialized type of M.R.I. that looks at the health of their brains white matter. White matter consists of the many connections between neurons and brain regions. It is, essentially, the brains communications wiring. (The working neurons make up the brains gray matter.)

The volunteers, who mostly were in their 20s, also completed multiple questionnaires about their health and lives, a general medical checkup, and a two-minute walk test, a widely used measurement of aerobic fitness that involves walking as rapidly as possible for two minutes, to see how far you get.

Finally, they sat through a battery of cognitive tests, designed to quantify how well they could reason and remember in various ways.

The German researchers then gathered all of this information and began crosschecking it, comparing the young peoples fitness and thinking skills, their fitness and white matter health, and their white matter health and ability to think.

And they found a variety of interesting correlations. The young people, all of whom were healthy, had covered a wide range of distances in their two-minute walks. Some of those young men and women covered far less distance than others, marking them as the least physically fit.

These relatively out-of-shape young people generally performed worst on the tests of memory and thinking skills, the scientists found. Their brain scans also indicated that their white matter was slightly weaker and more frayed than in the brains of the young men and women who had walked farthest in those two minutes.

These relationships remained intact when the researchers controlled for the young peoples body mass indexes, socioeconomic status, age, gender, blood sugar levels and blood pressures.

In essence, the fitter people in this group were, the more robust their white matter looked, and the better they performed on tests of memory and thinking skills.

The researchers were taken aback by the strength of the associations between the young adults fitness, thinking and white-matter health, says Dr. Jonathan Repple, a psychiatrist and neuroscience researcher at the University of Mnster who oversaw the new study.

There already are a few studies published looking at older people and their brains and fitness, he says, but to observe this in a young sample was quite surprising.

This study provides only a snapshot of one moment in the lives of these young people, though, and can show only links between their fitness, white matter and thinking skills. It cannot prove that greater fitness directly caused their brains to look and function better.

It also did not measure or ask about exercise habits, so it is not clear how much or what kinds of exercise might be needed if you are young and want to raise your fitness and potentially also bulk up your white matter and cognitive skills.

Dr. Repple says he and his colleagues are planning experiments to test whether and how various exercise programs affect fitness and the brain in people of different ages.

But already, this study and others suggest that being fit may matter for brain health earlier than many of us might think.

Even at a young age, physical fitness has beneficial effects not just on the body, Dr. Repple says, but also on brain health and brain functioning.

See original here:
Being Young, Active and Physically Fit May Be Very Good for Your Brain - The New York Times

A patent filing has revealed Apple may be investigating how to integrate health monitoring technology into clothing. Filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, it shows a soft, stretchable band potentially designed to be woven into fabric, and could also contain sensors to monitor the bodys vital signs.

What would the band look for? Think about it as the next stage on from whats possible with the Apple Watch. Expect heart rate sensing and an electrocardiogram feature, in addition to blood pressure, blood sugar levels, blood oxygen levels, respiration rates, and additional fitness-orientated measurements including activity and step count.

The filing indicates that the band will connect wirelessly to another device, likely for control and data syncing, which could mean a future iPhone or Apple Watch. However, there is some evidence the band will have touch-sensitive sections for user control when its being worn, and also the potential for voice control through a microphone, too.

The bands stretchable material is key to making it work properly, as it will need to be in almost constant contact with the skin to accurately take the important measurements. Whether Apple sees this as a compression-style undergarment, rather than a casually worn t-shirt, is not clear. Durability is another concern. The patent suggests the fabric, circuitry, and power capacitors for energy storage used will be suitable for washing at home, without removing components first.

Since the introduction of the Apple Watch, Apple has realized the potential in health monitoring technology, and has gone on to introduce important new features to the Watch including an ECG, fall detection, and more. Apple has also invested in research with the medical community to help people monitor, manage, and diagnose health and fitness conditions. A smartwatch enables many of these features, but its size and location on the body limits the amount it will eventually be able to do. Smart clothing is the logical next step.

The patent filing does not guarantee Apple will ever make smart clothing, or integrate a stretchable health monitoring band like the one described into a garment. However, well-known engineer Daniel Podhajny, responsible for Nikes FlyKnit material, is listed as one of the contributors to this particular patent, indicating it has a potentially higher chance of going beyond the idea phase.

Read more from the original source:
Apples next health tracker may be woven into your clothes - Digital Trends

NILES Want to try the Y? Heres your chance to do it for free.

The YMCA of Southwest Michigan is hosting Health Week, which features free activities and free admission, at the Niles-Buchanan YMCA, 905 N. Front St., from Sunday through Oct. 12.

The week kicks off with a Health and Fitness Expo in partnership with Andrews University from noon to 3 p.m. Sunday.

The Veggie Van will visit the Y from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday to offer free healthy foods and nutrition information, courtesy of Spectrum Health Lakeland.

Guests who enter the Y for free during the week will have the same opportunities YMCA members have, including the weight and cardio room (only for those age 16 and older), warm water therapy pool and six-lane lap pool, group fitness classes, indoor track, gymnasium and more.

To receive free admission, community members age 16 and older are required to have identification for entry, or must be checked in with a parent or guardian. Anyone age 15 or younger must be accompanied by a parent or guardian at check-in.

For more information on Health Week, visit ymca- swm.com/healthweek or call the Niles-Buchanan YMCA at 269-683-1552.

Read more:
Niles YMCA to host Health Week, offer free admission - South Bend Tribune

Working out too hard and not working out hard enough can both sabotage your fitness progress. The RPE scale can help you exercise at the right intensity.

Fitness progress is all about intensity. You'll only get faster if you practice running faster, and you'll only get stronger if you keep adding more weight. It's the basic rule of progressive overload: You must gradually increase the physical demands of your body to reach your fitness goals.

When working out, you should monitor your intensity to make sure you're exercising at a level that pushes you toward your goals, but not at a level that might injure you. You can do that with metrics like heart rate and VO2 max, but there's something much simpler you can use: perceived exertion.

Related:7 ways to recover from a tough workout

In the world of fitness, there's a nifty scale called Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) that goes from 1-10. Personal trainers often use RPE to gauge their clients' efforts during or after a workout. It's an incredibly simple yet powerful way of tracking fitness, but it hasn't gained much traction outside of the realm of personal training.

RPE basically involves asking yourself, "on a scale of one to 10, how hard is this activity right now?" Because of its simplicity, RPE serves as an easy, accurate way to track fitness progress for beginners.

Read more: 8 ways to track your fitness that aren't heart rate

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If you do any internet research on this topic, you'll notice that there are two RPE scales. The original RPE scale was called the Borg Scale of Perceived Exertion, developed by Dr. Gunnar Borg, who introduced it in the 1950s.

This older model runs from 6 to 20, with 6 correlating to no exertion at all (like watching TV) and 20 correlating to maximum effort (like sprinting at a pace you can't maintain for more than a few seconds).

The Borg scale's range of 6 to 20 might seem odd, but Borg designed it that way to correspond to healthy heart rates. The starting point, 6, corresponds to the healthy resting heart rate of 60 beats per minute (bpm); 8 corresponds to 80 bpm; and so forth.

Over time, a modified version of the Borg scale worked its way to the forefront. It's a typical 1-10 scale, and it's based on overall exertion, not heart rate. This is the scale known today as "RPE" and it's the one most fitness professionals recommend for beginners.

The RPE scale goes as follows:

Level 1: no effort at all (watching TV)

Level 2: barely noticeable effort (tying shoes)

Level 3: very light effort (washing dishes, folding clothes)

Level 4: light effort (leisurely walking)

Level 5: moderate effort (brisk walking)

Level 6: moderately difficult effort (jogging, easy hike)

Level 7: difficult effort (running, lifting moderately heavy weights)

Level 8: very difficult effort (lifting very heavy weights, difficult hike)

Level 9: extremely difficult effort (mountain biking on an incline)

Level 10: maximum effort (sprint at the end of a race)

RPE is based on how you feel during a specific workout, and everyone has different RPEs for different types of workouts.

You can also think of the RPE scale in this way, which is more fun and applicable to any activity:

Level 1: I'm doing nothing and I feel great.

Level 2: Still not really doing much, I could do this all day.

Level 3: I'm breathing a bit harder now, but I can maintain this pace.

Level 4: I'm starting to sweat, but I can still hold a conversation.

Level 5: I just pushed past the point of comfortable, but I can still talk easily.

Level 6: I'm feeling breathless and it's getting harder to talk. I'm sweating more now.

Level 7: I'm breathing very hard and my muscles burn. No talking, just grunting.

Level 8: Don't ask me a question -- I can't answer. I'm dripping sweat.

Level 9: OK, this really hurts. Can we stop now?

Level 10: I think I might die.

Someone who does yoga often might rate a basic yoga class as a level 3. Someone who's never done yoga, even if they are very fit, might rate the same yoga class as a level 6.

Professional runner Megan Roche told CNET that for most people, RPE is event-specific. For example, a runner and a powerlifter will rate a 3-mile run very differently. The runner might log it as a level 4, while the powerlifter might log it as a level 8. If they go on a hike together, they might both rate the hike as a level 6.

"The key is tuning into relative efforts for the activity, which should correlate with fitness over time," Roche said. "However, it's a constant recalibration process. If that 'easy' run makes you sore, it's probably not easy and you need to adjust how you think of your RPE."

Keep in mind, though, that effort isn't everything. You shouldn't misconstrue RPE to mean that you always need to workout at level 7 or higher. Exercising at too great an intensity too often can lead to injury and fatigue, among other symptoms of overtraining.

In fact, as a CrossFit coach, I encourage all of my athletes to take at least one full rest day (do nothing day) and one active recovery day each week. On an active recovery day, you should exercise at an RPE of 2 to 4. This easy level of exercise encourages blood flow, flushes out lactic acid, loosens up stiff muscles and counteracts inflammation.

Related: 6 health stats that matter more than your body weight

Effectively using RPE requires diligent logging, as does any other method of tracking your fitness.

You could always go the old-fashioned route of logging RPE by hand, much like the way you'd keep a pen-and-paper food journal. Make sure to write the full workout and any details that affect your effort level. For a running workout, you'd want to log pace and distance at a minimum. You could also include incline, temperature and terrain.

For a weightlifting workout, write down your sets and reps, weight loads and rest intervals. Don't just write "3x10 squat." Write "Back squat, 3x10, 150 pounds, 60 seconds rest between sets." Then log the RPE.

Here's an example of what might go in my RPE notebook:

CrossFit benchmark workout "Grace": 30 clean-and-jerks for time at 95 pounds. Time: 4 minutes, 51 seconds. RPE: 8.

If I decided to complete "Grace" again three months later, the entry might look like this:

CrossFit benchmark workout "Grace": 30 clean-and-jerks for time at 95 pounds. Time: 4 minutes, 25 seconds. RPE: 8.

According to those entries, I completed more work in less time, but felt the same. That shows I got more efficient (stronger, faster or both) at the clean-and-jerk.

You should also note other variables that play into RPE, such as fatigue level or soreness when starting the workout. You could do the same exact workout twice, but rate the second go-around as more difficult because you were tired or sore before even beginning.

Strava's new features, Perceived Exertion and Fitness, allow you to see long-term RPE trends across your workouts.

There aren't many ways to track RPE digitally, but there are some. Strava, the endurance sport-tracking app, just released a new RPE feature called Perceived Exertion, along with a feature called Fitness. These two features work together to allow app users to manually log workout intensity and view how workouts stack up over time.

Intensity, a workout app for strength training, has a nice setup based on progression tracking, which is what RPE is all about. Its many features collectively allow you to identify strengths and weaknesses among your workouts.

Loaded - Workout Journal also supports RPE tracking, along with a number of other functions.

With so many high-tech and in-depth ways to track health and fitness, you might wonder why you should use RPE. True, RPE might seem old-school, but exercising based on how you feel can offer valuable insights.

As Roche notes, "RPE is valuable because the brain incorporates countless variables to determine exertion. Heart rate is one thing, aerobic capacity another, but also everything from temperature to stress levels to sleep to energy availability."

So on the surface, RPE seems simple, but it actually meshes many fitness metrics into one.

"We have a computer in our head doing all these complex calculations every second, so if we learn to tune into those signals, it can be more powerful than any tracker," Roche said. "Plus, avoiding strict quantification of performance is usually better for love of the process."

The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.

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Perceived exertion: The easiest way to track your workouts - CNET