Dan’s Surfing Snippets

I used to get colds all the time, especially during the cold wintry months. However, I have noticed that I haven’t had a cold or flu in the past few years! There must be a reason (I never had a flu shot in my life).

Yes, I understand that you can build up a resistance to certain strains but I also know that what we call the common cold (acute viral nasopharyngitis) mutates readily. So each cold virus we are exposed to is relatively new to our immune defense system. I have known people of all ages throughout my life who were always sick with a cold.

So I decided to reflect as to what I have been doing or not doing that has had an impact. I feel that sharing this information as to what has helped me might also help others.

I know that the common cold virus gets transmitted by contact, one person to another. An obvious example is if a person with a cold coughs or sneezes right into another person’s face. However, there are many not-so-obvious means of transmission.

If I have and cold and cough into my hand, then touch a door knob to open a door; then 48 hours later someone touches that same door knob and then touches their face, especially rubs their eye… boom, they catch a cold.

I don’t want to sound like Monk (the character on TV) but, if we really think about it, there are germs all around us. So what I have been doing is washing my hands often and using sani-wipes and liquid hand sanitizer whenever I am at meetings and especially after shaking hands.

I make sure that I do not touch my face while in public.

If I did have a cold I would not shake hands and state that I have a cold and do not want to spread it to others. If I cough, even to clear my throat I do not cough into my hand as that would only spread germs. I would cough into the inside of my suit jacket. I feel that it’s just common sense not to infect others.

No, I don’t run around and whip out a box of sani-wipes after shaking each person’s hand at a meeting. I am just conscious that when this happens my hands are possibly contaminated and I should keep them away from my face until later when I am able to wash my hands. When able I also wash my face and blow my nose. I believe this helps to get rid of the unwanted germs that might have been trapped in my nasal passages.

Another thing I do is take about 500 mgs of Vitamin C every day and whenever I think that I might be exposed to some sick people around me, as soon as I am able, I take EmergenC (powder in a packet, available at most health food stores) in water or juice (1000 mgs Vitamin C per packet) and I feel that my immune system gets that extra boost to ward off and prevent the impending infection. Whatever…mind or matter… it works for me!

There are other things that I do to stay healthy that I will be exploring at another time but staying cold-free is important enough to share now.

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I can surf the web all day and night and one thing becomes quite evident…

p h y s i c a l  s t a g n a t i o n.

All of us who use computers a lot or have desk jobs suffer from the same problem. Our minds might be getting exercised but our bodies are not. And, as someone with a little bit of health of knowledge, I know that it is not good.

Long hours of sitting results in weight gain, poor muscle tone, and on and on. I know this and I am sure you do too. But whether it is laziness, lack of time, lack of motivation or whatever, the result is that we don’t get enough exercise.

I am the first one to admit that it is hard to find the time in a busy schedule to get to the gym or rec center. There’s travel time, time at the center, changing of clothes, time to travel back. I know– more excuses and that is what many of us do.

I saw a commercial on TV a few times about the Wii Fit Balance Board System and it caught my attention. So I did what we all of us do when something stirs our imagination we surf the web. I found all sorts of YouTube and other videos on Wii Fit and I was further intrigued.

So I surfed some more and researched and researched. And the more I did the more I wanted one. Talking it over with my wife (like any good husband does) I found out that she wanted to exercise more but had trouble finding the time and had an interest in this new gadget. She also surfed the web and we decided to go right out buy one.

Well, we found out that to get the Wii Fit to work you first need the Nintendo Wii unit. Ok, we searched online for prices and then which stores carried them only to find they were all SOLD OUT! So every day we tried again and it was the same thing.

I figured the local stores must carry this stuff so rather than drive from store to store I searched the web for phone numbers and ended up calling a few. They said that they received shipments here and there but they get sold out immediately. Wow, does everyone have the same idea… guess so.

So every day we called and called. Days turned into weeks and finally we found a store that just got a shipment in. We talked the clerk into holding it for us and we rushed to the store and paid about $250 for the Nintendo Wii unit but still no Wii Fits in stock.

Taking the Wii home and unpacking I found out that it came with a Sports Games CD so we could at least get used to using this new system while waiting for the Wii Fit to come in. Without a doubt we were very impressed. I haven’t played interactive games since the days of Pac Man and the Mario Brothers at the mall arcades. Again, we were impressed not only with the fantastic video graphics but also how the wireless unit intuitively monitors each and every motion to give a very realistic experience. The attention to minute detail is phenomenal.

It was easy to get physically involved. Just turn it on, place in the CD and play the games. We were not just sitting or standing. We were moving around. We were bringing up a sweat. We were getting active!

Our drive and determination to add the Wii Fit package to our new Wii unit increased. We continued to call several stores on a daily, and sometimes hourly, basis. I bet the clerks recognized our voices. Finally persistence paid off. One store said that they just got a shipment of 8 in and they would put one on the side for us. How thoughtful… or maybe were they tired of all the phone calls.

Without hesitation I got in the car and drove down to the store and picked up the Wii Fit unit. They even had it on sale so I was able to get it for $85 including tax! There I go, spending my tax incentive check before I even get it. We also purchased a second Wii remote so we wouldn’t have to hassle with passing the baton back and forth.

This thing is amazing. It tracks your BMI (body mass index) and weight. You select a goal to loose weight and how many weeks to do so. It talks to you and gives you great advice just like having a personal trainer. The wireless Balance Board is able to pick up every slight shift in movement so it is able to help us with our posture too.

Exercises are divided into different categories: aerobics, yoga, strength and balance games. It’s the ease and availability that is the key. Every time I am able to take a short break I can simply walk over to where we have the unit installed and do an exercise for as long as I like. The virtual trainer recommends that it is better to have a schedule and stick to it. Like measuring the BMI and weight the same time of day each time.

Two weeks have gone by and we have both seen positive results. Most of all, we are motivated to get our bodies back in shape and stay there. As a tech freak, this is not only interesting, but it is FUN!