TOPIC 5: Strength Training Exercising is a matter of life and death! Consider these startling statistics... 95,000 people will be told this year they have colon cancer, 50 million Americans have high blood pressure, a third of our population - 60 miilion people - are overweight and this year alone, one and a half million people will suffer a heart attack. Now consider that all of those health burdens could be prevented through regular exercise. 72 year old Manuel Curiel is one of those statistics. Earlier this year he suffered a heart attack. He underwent quadruple bypass surgery, and today he's rowing himself back to good health. It took a major health crisis for Manuel to wake up to the benefits of exercise. Now he's a convert. He says, "Everything is so hectic you don't have time to exercise. But if you make a little time and exercise... you're better off." Unlike Manuel, Terry Jeck hasn't experienced a major health crisis, he's trying to avoid one. His goal is to lose weight, eat healthier and exercise. Terry will tell you that he's been a smoker, a drinker, and an over eater. He says at 60 years of age, it's time to change. "I've always had a guilty feeling," Terry said, "A dissappointed, frustrated feeling about my weight. This terrible diet and I seem trapped by it. Now I feel like I'm taking baby steps towards changing it." Fitness experts say strength training is an important component of physical activity, some say even more important than cardiovascular training. As we get older, we lose muscle. FitCenter Program Coordinator Susan Bovry says, "When we age we begin to lose our strength at about one percent per year, starting at age 35. By the time people are 65, if they are not doing something to increase or at least maintain their muscle strength, they may have lost up to 30 percent of their strength." That means not being able to do the things you're used too. Aging well is not just adding years to your life, but life to your years. Excersise Physiologist Doug Crowell says you can start small. "We typically think that five to 10 minutes of exercise in the past wasn't good for us. Now we're saying it is. Light weights are great to start with, and we gradually add more and more." He continues saying, "There are a lot of people in their 60's, 70's, 80's and older.. who are athletic, doing things, walking, running, playing tennis.. frankly, I can't do that now, but I know that it's possible. That's kind of a goal."