For time:
Run 1600 Meters
Row 2000 Meters
Run 1200 Meters
Row 1500 Meters
Run 800 Meters
Row 1000 Meters
Run 400 Meters
Row 500 Meters
Post times to comments and BTWB.
Lifestyle Choices Can Affect Our Genetic Make-Up ~ Luke Palmisano
Many times in my life I have told myself all the things I cannot do. I can’t deadlift “x” amount of weight. I can’t run “this” fast. I can only be so strong, because my body is what it is. I am born with a certain type of body, with certain strengths. To an extent, this is true. I can’t ever be a defensive tackle in the NFL, because I can’t even imagine what I would have to do to my body to be able to weigh close to 300 pounds, while at the same time running a 4.8 40-yard-dash. Probably some mean conconction of steroids and methemphetamines.
That being said, we never want to think that we cannot affect within our body how our genes areexpressed.
David Rakel, MD, is the director of integrative medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. He speaks of the term “epigenetics,” which could be defined as what empowers people to take control of their health by making choices that may override their genetic code. Rakel says behavior and environment can affect how those genes are “expressed,” that is, how the information in a gene gets translated into proteins.
How may a gene express itself? If left unchecked, it may express itself in ways that it normally would for people in your family. If cancer is common in your family, that is how your genes may tilt toward expressing themselves. Same with strokes, hypertension, diabetes, ect. So what does that mean for us?
A 2007 study by Dr. Steven Schroeder of the University of California-San Francisco concluded the largest influence on the risk of death in America is attributed to personal behavior, such as smoking, obesity, and stress. You could define what we put in our body as creating the “environment” our genes exist in. Not just for us, but for future generations. How we feel, and what we put into our bodies will affect our health. Tests on lab rats showed that mothers who have the gene that increases the risk of diabetes, but who ate healthy foods (evidently fed garlic, beets, and onions), not only stayed healthy themselves, but influenced the expression of those genes in their offspring.
So if we choose to be happier, more forgiving people, and choose to eat our fruits and veggies, evidence is beginning to show that this will leave a mark on our code that can be passed on.
