Harvard’s Dr. Harvey Simon has long espoused the benefits of moderate exercise. But in reading The Wall Street Journal yesterday, I learned that Dr. Simon holds himself to a higher standard. His daughter, Journal reporter Stephanie Simon, writes that her dad is in the midst of a 30-year running streak. The last day her dad didn’t run was Oct. 30, 1978.

When he travels overseas, my dad, who is 66, plans layovers so he can get in a couple miles around the concourse, lest he miss a day to the time-zone shift. During blizzards, he wraps his feet in plastic bags, pulls galoshes over his sneakers and screws in cleats for traction. Then he waits for a snowplow to pass his front door, so he can follow in the freshly cleared path.

Read more…

High-altitude climbing can damage the brain. (Tony Smith/The New York Times)

If you’ve ever fantasized about scaling Mount Everest, think again. A new study of professional mountain climbers shows that high-altitude climbing causes a subtle loss of brain cells and motor function.

Italian researchers used magnetic resonance imaging to look at the brains of nine world-class mountain climbers who had at least 10 years of experience, including expeditions to Mount Everest and K2. The climbers ranged in age from 31 to 52, with an average age of just under 38, and were used to climbing to altitudes of at least 4,000 meters (two-and-a-half miles, or over 13,000 feet) several times a year. Read more…

Beach volleyball champion Kerri Walsh wearing a new type of athletic tape. (Natacha Pisarenko/The Associated Press)

Watching Olympian Kerri Walsh compete in beach volleyball last week, many viewers were wondering the same thing: what is that black thing on her shoulder?

A tattoo? A bizarre fashion statement? No. Ms. Walsh was sporting a new type of athletic tape called Kinesio, touted by physical therapists as a better way to relieve pain and promote healing of injured muscles.

The appearance of Kinesio on the well-toned Ms. Walsh — she even wore it while meeting President Bush — has spurred international interest in the little-known brand. In black, pink, blue and beige, the tape has been spotted on a number of other Olympians, including the shoulder of U.S. water polo player Lauren Wenger and the elbows of Canadian Greco Roman wrestler Ari Taub. Members of Spain’s basketball team and Jamaica’s track team are wearing it.

Ms. Walsh and the other athletes don’t have endorsement deals with Kinesio USA; the company simply donated 50,000 rolls of the tape to 58 countries for use at the Olympic Games. But whether its appearance on the international athletic scene is a sign of its therapeutic benefit or just smart marketing remains to be seen. Read more…

Older and better? (Kate Glicksberg for The New York Times)

Many people opt for newer homes because they are cleaner, bigger and often have more amenities. But new research shows old houses in old neighborhoods may be better for your health.

University of Utah researchers found that people who live in older, more walkable neighborhoods are at lower risk for overweight and obesity. Read more…

So I admit that like most people, I have been obsessed with Dara Torres’s amazing 41-year-old abs. For those who haven’t been paying attention, Olympic swimmer Ms. Torres has become an iconic figure ever since a stunning Robert Maxwell photo of her appeared in The New York Times Magazine.

Dara Torres and her abs. (Robert Maxwell)

As my colleagues at the Rings blog have noted, Ms. Torres and her “phenomenally ripped” belly have become the “physical ideal for mothers, women at or approaching middle age, and just women in general.”

Estelle Parsons, 80, at home. (Sara Krulwich/The New York Times)

But I’m going to suggest a new candidate to represent the physical ideal for women, young and old and in the middle. As reported in today’s Times, Estelle Parsons, a star of the Broadway show “August: Osage County,” has been winning acclaim not just for her acting but for the high level of fitness her demanding role requires. What’s amazing is that she is 80.

While Ms. Torres has a head coach, a sprint coach, a strength coach, two stretchers, two masseuses, a chiropractor and a nanny, all at the cost of at least $100,000 per year, Ms. Parsons’s stamina is a tribute to a lifetime of simple physical fitness.

She lifts weights, swims 30 minutes twice a week and takes a 30-minute bike ride on two other days. She takes a break from exercise on Wednesdays and Saturdays, when she has two performances. She swims, hikes or bikes on her Mondays off work. She also cross-country skis and does yoga in her dressing room and at home whenever she gets a few minutes.

“I’ve always been a fit person,” Ms. Parsons said. “I’ve been acting all my life, and I’ve always felt you should be in shape. I’m used to devoting my whole life to the work and what it requires.”

To read more about this amazing woman, click here.

What do you think? Would you rather be a Dara or an Estelle?

Having recently twisted my ankle during an afternoon sprint to the train station, I was disheartened to learn that my recovery strategy, which is to do nothing, is the wrong approach.

Taking care of your ankles. (Jean-Paul Pelissier/Reuters)

Today, The Times Health Guide offers an informative Q & A about ankle health with Dr. John G. Kennedy, assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at Weill Medical College of Cornell University and clinical director of the running clinic in the gait laboratory at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.

Here are a few highlights:

Q. Is it possible to ignore an ankle sprain and get on with your life?

A. The traditional treatment for the sprained ankle, our mothers used to tell us, was that if you didn’t break your ankle, then stop the whining, put some ice on it, and you will be fine. We are now learning that that may not have been the best strategy because it actually leads to more problems…. To ignore a sprain, you do so at your peril.

Q. What steps do you recommend for healing an ankle sprain?

A. Most ankle sprains result from forced and excessive inversion, an inward rolling of the ankles. These sprains frequently occur when stepping on another player’s foot or when a runner steps into a rut. The ligaments on the outside portion of the ankle, and the muscles on the lateral portion of the leg that are responsible for limiting ankle inversion, are typically injured. The high incidence of recurrent sprains that we see is primarily due to the failure to successfully complete an adequate three-phase treatment program.

Dr. Kennedy goes on to explain the three-step treatment plan. One of the more interesting tips includes toe exercises. When the foot is elevated, perform range-of-motion exercises by keeping your heel still and tracing the alphabet in capital letters with your big toe. To learn more about the three-phase treatment program and other ankle advice from Dr. Kennedy, click here.

High temperatures can pose health risks that may go unrecognized. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Years ago as a high school student, I attended a summer running camp in Pennsylvania. During a routine six-mile run, I stumbled, and a coach stopped me and asked me if I was okay. “I’m fine,” I assured him, and kept running.

But I wasn’t fine. By the end of the run I had collapsed with heatstroke and had fallen unconscious. The athletic trainers quickly submerged me in a tub of ice to lower my body temperature, and I spent the next week in a hospital, lucky to be alive. Later my coach visited me, angry at himself for letting me continue my run. But I had no memory of our earlier exchange. “You were so convincing,” he told me.

Athletic researchers say one of the most frustrating aspects of heat illness is that the sufferer is often completely unaware of his or her own symptoms. Read more…

Intense bursts of exercise may be as good for the heart as longer, moderate-intensity training. (Lynn L. Walters for The New York Times)

Short bursts of exercise can benefit heart health just as much as tedious endurance training, a new study suggests.

The research, published in the American Journal of Physiology — Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, is good news for time-strapped exercisers. It supports the notion that people who engage in brief, high-intensity forms of exercise reap the same cardiovascular health benefits as those who exercise at moderate intensity for a longer period of time. Read more…

Adults prepare to test their flexibility as part of the launch of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports new national adult fitness test. (Brendan Hoffman/Associated Press)

The President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, which routinely recognizes the physical fitness efforts of elementary school students, now offers a new fitness assessment for adults.

The test, for people 18 and older, was created because the council received so many requests for an assessment of adult fitness. Using an online form, exercisers can log their scores to find out how they rank among other Americans. For instance, a 40-year-old woman who can run 1.5 miles in 15 minutes (a 10-minute-per-mile pace) ranks in the 65th percentile — meaning she’s above average, but 35 percent of similarly aged women are in better shape. Read more…

Teens practicing in Westport, Conn. A new conditioning program is helping girl athletes avoid knee injuries. (Thomas McDonald for The New York Times)

We’ve been reading a lot lately of the growing problem of serious knee injuries among young athletes, particularly girls. As a parent, I’m left with one question: What can I do to protect my daughter from a serious sports injury?

The worry is the anterior cruciate ligament, the main ligament that stabilizes the knee joint. Earlier this year, my colleague Gina Kolata wrote this story about a rising number of cases of A.C.L. injuries among young athletes. The operation to repair the damage poses a greater risk for children and adolescents who have not finished growing because it involves drilling into a growth plate, an area of still-developing tissue at the end of the leg bone.

This weekend, The Times Magazine article “Hurt Girls” focused on why girls, in particular, seem prone to the injury. Read more…

(Christopher Capozziello for The New York Times)

The wrong golf swing can ruin your game and your back, but some new gadgets for golfers may help.

Avid golfer Tim Carroll, a writer for the Wall Street Journal, reviews the swing aids and a number of other golf gadgets in a special report. While golfing purists may scoff at the notion of a gadget, the right aid may be the difference between practicing the right way and the wrong way.

“Practice makes permanent,” said Dave Pelz, who coaches golf great Phil Mickelson, to Mr. Carroll. “And if you practice as poorly as most golfers do, then you will be a permanently bad golfer.”

The article includes the $220 SKLZ Gyro Swing, which includes a gyroscope in the clubhead. The battery-powered device emits a hum when you swing it, but if the swing starts to go wrong the gyroscope pushes you back in the proper plane. Read more…

British Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies doesn’t look like someone who spends much time at a desk, but she has nonetheless devised a desk-based workout for those of us who do.

Ms. Davies became a household name in 1976 at the age of 13 when she swam for Britain at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. Although she didn’t win a medal that time, she did eventually earn a silver in the 400-meter individual medley at the 1980 Moscow Olympics and remains one of Britain’s most successful swimmers.

Still exceptionally fit, she has created a series of videos for The Times of London Web site aimed at boosting fitness for office workers. She offers tips on neck and wrist rotations, calf stretches and even bicep curls with hole punchers, all performed in the comfort of your cubicle. The easiest way to find all five segments is through links on the fitness Web site SportsGeezer.

Here’s my favorite segment, which features “desk dips,” which Ms. Davies notes are good for those “wobbily bits” on the back of your arms.

Jack LaLanne (Photo courtesy of Befit Enterprises)

Fitness guru Jack LaLanne knows push-ups. During his 30-plus years on television, he regularly demonstrated the proper push-up technique and wowed us with feats of strength like finger-tip push-ups and one-armed push-ups.

Mr. LaLanne, 93, still does push-ups during his daily 90-minute workout. “I hate it,” he said of working out. “But I like the results. Exercise is something you’ve got to do the rest of your life.”

I was fortunate to speak with Mr. LaLanne for my Well column in this week’s Science Times, which explores why the push-up remains an enduring symbol of fitness. The article also explains why your ability to do a push-up is linked to how well you age. Here’s a calculator to tell you how many push-ups you should be doing if you are in good shape.

Read the full column here, and be sure to check out our new Well video segment, “Drop and Give Me Twenty!,” above.

How’s your push-up performance? Post your comments here.

Feeling fatigued? (George Ruhe for The New York Times)

When a person is sapped by fatigue, the last thing he or she wants to do is exercise. But new research shows that regular, low-intensity exercise may help boost energy levels in people suffering from fatigue.

Fatigue is one of the most common health symptoms and can be a sign of a variety of medical problems. However, about one in four people suffers from general fatigue not associated with a serious medical condition.

University of Georgia researchers decided to study whether exercise can be used to treat fatigue. The research, which appears in the February issue of the journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, involved 36 volunteers who were not regular exercisers but who complained of persistent fatigue. Read more…

If you had to, could you survive a house fire, save a drowning victim, escape from a sinking car? (Matt Hempel/Associated Press, Uli Seit for The New York Times, Ann Johansson for The New York Times)

Are you fit enough to save your own life?

That’s the premise of a new reality show from Discovery Health that premieres tonight. Called “Fit to Live,” it’s based on Dr. Pamela Peeke’s book of the same name and raises the question of whether you have the strength, endurance and agility to escape a natural disaster, flee a burning building or pull your family from a wrecked car.

Fitness isn’t about working out at the gym or running a marathon, notes Dr. Peeke, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Maryland and chief medical correspondent for Discovery Health Television. Fitness is important for coping with life’s emergencies, big and small, whether it’s running to make an airport connection or fleeing a burning building.

“Fit to Live” joins a series of reality-meets-health TV shows like ABC’s “Fat March” and NBC’s “The Biggest Loser.” But this show isn’t a weight-loss contest. It’s a fitness test to determine if someone, whether they are skinny or fat, is in good enough shape to save their own life. In the show, five average people are given 10 minutes to escape a simulated fire in a 30-floor building. During the simulated emergency, they find stairways blocked and “bodies” to rescue, and none of them can make it to safety on the roof. “They all died,” noted Dr. Peeke. After undergoing a month of basic fitness and health habits, the contestants retake the test.

While this may sound far-fetched, I can personally attest that fitness counts in an emergency. On September 11, 2001, I was on the ninth floor of the World Financial Center, which was just across the street from the World Trade Center. After the second plane struck the Trade Center, my building was evacuated. A nine-floor descent doesn’t sound like much, but my group was stuck behind a slow-moving overweight woman. It took what seemed like forever to get out, and it was truly frightening. The evacuation was far more challenging for the people several floors above us. Read more…