Year of Faith Walk to Jerusalem February 13 March 29, 2013

Transcription

1 Year of Faith Walk to Jerusalem February 13 March 29, 2013 Year of Faith Walk to Jerusalem is a simple walking and prayer program. The Liturgy Committee here at St. Joseph Church decided to initiate this program during the Lenten season starting on Ash Wednesday and completing the walk on Good Friday. This is a good time of the year when spring is beginning and weather is conducive to getting outside. Q: When can we register to walk? A: The signup will start February 2 and go right up to the beginning of the walk February 13. To make this a spiritual journey, we invite you to pray for others during your walk. The length of the program is 6 weeks and everyone is rewarded with recognition at the completion. Q: If I m unable to walk is there another way I can participate? A: If you are unable to walk you can still participate by being a prayer partner with one of the walkers or team of walkers. 30 minutes of prayer counts as a mile. Attending a daily Mass, praying two Rosaries or thirty minutes of a devotional time with the family or other forms of spiritual focus all count as mileage towards our Faith Walk. Q: How do I register and who can participate? A: You can call the rectory: or ricparker@fuse.net for information to get your family, group, or individual registered. For families and or groups we ask that you designate a team leader to register your group and report on your progress during the walk. Once you have registered you will be sent your packet via or you can pick up a packet in the rectory office. Q: Will we see our progress along the way? A: Progress of our collective walking efforts toward Jerusalem will be published in the church bulletin and posted on our web page. There will also be a world map posted at the church for parishioners to view the path and progress of our walk. Q: How do we determine prayer time distance equivalence A: 30 minutes of prayer/exercise would equate to 1 mile. Examples: 2 rosaries Scripture reading Eucharistic Adoration Stations of the Cross Bible study (group or individual) Prayer during exercise

2 Q: What are the Goals of this journey? A: To grow spiritually as a family, individual and parish. Pray as a family Learn about a saint or Catholic shrine Invite a fallen away neighbor or relative back to church Commit to make a retreat Attend Stations of the Cross (invite non-catholic) Commit a daily act of charity, patience, etc Share a piece of information about the Church with someone Our Year of Faith Walk to Jerusalem registration packets include devotionals, some simple instructions regarding techniques of walking, suggested warm-ups, stretches and activity conversion charts. The activity conversion charts list other activities such as swimming or even gardening with the times converted to mileage. We encourage you to go online to review health and wellness material regarding exercise for more detail. We wish you well in your Year of Faith Walk to Jerusalem. It is exciting to see individuals who are otherwise couch potatoes getting out in groups and exercising their bodies and their spirits. Time to lace up, zip up, buckle up and get the Spirit Moving!

3 Guidelines for Physical Activity Participation Fitness Level If... Then... Beginner/Intermediate Intermediate Advanced You do not currently engage in regular physical activity, You are now active, but at less than the recommended levels, You currently engage in moderateintensity activities for at least 30 minutes on 5 or more days of the week, You currently regularly engage in vigorous-intensity activities 20 minutes or more or moderateintensity activities 45 minutes or more on 3 or more days of the week, Begin by incorporating a few minutes of physical activity into each day, gradually building up to 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity activities on most days of the week to achieve initial health benefits. Strive to adopt more consistent activity for additional health benefits: Moderate-intensity physical activity for 30 minutes or more on 5 or more days of the week, or Vigorous-intensity physical activity for 20 minutes or more on 3 or more days of the week. Achieve even greater health benefits and weight management by increasing the time spent or intensity of those activities. Continue to do so. If you are Then a reasonable mileage goal is Beginner Intermediate Advanced 1-2 miles each day 2-3 miles each day 3+ miles each day *Scientific evidence to date supports the statements above. What is "moderate-intensity physical activity?" Moderate-intensity physical activity refers to any activity that burns 3.5 to 7 Calories per minute (kcal/min) (Ainsworth et al., 2000). These levels are equal to the effort a healthy individual might burn while walking briskly, mowing the lawn, dancing, swimming for recreation, or bicycling. What is "vigorous-intensity physical activity?" Vigorous-intensity physical activity refers to any activity that burns more than 7 Calories per minute (kcal/min) (Ainsworth et al., 2000). These levels are equal to the effort a healthy individual might burn while jogging, engaging in heavy yard work, participating in high-impact aerobic dancing, swimming continuous laps, or bicycling uphill. Content source: Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

4 BEFORE YOU START AN EXERCISE PROGRAM... THERE ARE A FEW QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOU SHOULD SEE YOUR DOCTOR FIRST. QUESTION YOURSELF Your first step is to ask yourself how active you want to be. This may sound like a silly question you re probably planning on doing whatever you re capable of, whether that s a slow walk around the block or a vigorous step class. But if you re of a certain age or have certain cardiovascular risk factors, you may need to see your physician before beginning a program that involves vigorous (as opposed to moderate) aerobic activity. Here s how exercise intensities are typically defined: Low-to-Moderate This is an intensity that can be sustained relatively comfortably for a long period of time (about 60 minutes). This type of exercise typically begins slowly, progresses gradually and usually isn t competitive in nature. Vigorous This is an intensity that is high enough to significantly raise both your heart and breathing rates, and is usually performed for about 20 minutes before fatigue sets in. Are you planning to participate in vigorous activities and are a man over 40 or a woman over 50? You should receive a medical exam first. The same is true for individuals of any age with two or more coronary artery disease risk factors (see box). If you re unsure if this applies to you, check with your physician. MORE QUESTIONS Now that you ve made it through the first questions, there are a few more to answer. A YES to any ONE of the following questions means you should talk with your doctor, by phone or in person, BEFORE you start an exercise program. Explain which questions you answered yes to and the activities you are planning to pursue. 1Have you been told you have a heart condition and should only participate in physical activity recommended by a doctor? 2Do you feel pain (or discomfort) in your chest when you do physical activity? When you are not participating in physical activity? While at rest, do you frequently experience fast, irregular heartbeats or very slow beats? 3Do you ever become dizzy and lose your balance, or lose consciousness? Have you fallen more than twice in the past year (no matter what the reason)? Coronary Artery Disease Risk Factors Age (men > 45, women > 55) Family history of heart attack or sudden death Current cigarette smoking High blood pressure High cholesterol Diabetes Physical inactivity 4Do you have a bone or joint problem that could worsen as a result of physical activity? Do you have pain in your legs or buttocks when you walk? 5Do you take blood pressure or heart medications? 6Do you have any cuts or wounds on your feet that don t seem to heal? 7Have you experienced unexplained weight loss in the past six months? 8Are you aware of any reason why you should not participate in physical activity? If you answered no to all of these questions, and you passed the first round of questions, you can be reasonably sure that you can safely take part in at least a moderate physical activity program. But again, if you are a man over 40 or a woman over 50 and want to exercise more vigorously, you should check with your physician before getting started. So, are you ready? If you are, but are unsure how to get started, consider contacting an ACE-certified Personal Trainer or joining a reputable fitness facility. For more information on finding a trainer, or for fitness information in general, visit the ACE Web site at By taking the time to evaluate if you are ready to start exercising, you ve planted yourself firmly on the path to better health and fitness. Compliments of: Put your name and logo in this area, then make handout copies. Reprinted with permission from the American Council on Exercise. If you are interested in information on other health and fitness topics, contact: American Council on Exercise, 4851 Paramount Drive, San Diego, CA 92123, ; or, go online at and access the complete list of ACE Fit Facts American Council on Exercise M BEX - 11

5 Activity Aerobics, high impact Aerobics, low impact Basketball, game Basketball, leisure Bicycling, moderate effort Bicycling, moderate effort Circuit Training Dancing, moderate to rapid Eliptical Jogger Football, touch Gardening Gardening, vigorous, such as digging Golf, with cart Golf, without cart In-line skating Jogging Judo/Karate Jumping Rope, fast Pilates Racquetball Rowing Running, 6 minute mile Running, 7.5 minute mile Spinning Stair climbing machine Swimming laps, moderate effort Swimming laps, vigorous effort Tennis Volleyball Water aerobics Weight training, low-moderate intensity Yoga, low - moderate intensity Minutes to equal 1 mile 16 minutes 13.5 minutes 20 minutes 9 minutes 1 14 minutes 21.5 minutes 17.5 minutes 6.5 minutes 21.5 minutes 5 minutes 6 minutes 15 minutes 9 minutes 17 minutes 20 minutes 2 25 minutes