In keeping with January's apparent theme, we're going to talk about an Exercise of the Month.  WAIT - keep reading!  It's NOT what you think, I promise!  No treadmills, stair-steppers, gyms, aching muscles or sweatbands required! 
     You probably know that there are different kinds of exercise.  It is important for our overall health to get a combination of aerobic exercise, strength training/weight bearing exercise and exercise that helps with our flexibility.  Each has unique benefits to offer and we'll be talking about them in more detail at this month's 2nd Tuesday program.  (So I know you'll want to RSVP to save your spot on the 13th!)
     Weight bearing exercise is perhaps the single most important way to maintain our bone strength.  Bone health is much in the news these days.  Mostly what we hear is how at risk we are - especially women - for poor bone health.  Unfortunately, we also mostly hear that the way to combat this is with medication.  In reality, for most women, exercise is more effective at reducing hip fractures (often associated with poor bone health) than drugs.  In the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures done by the National Institute of Health, nearly 10,000 independently-living women were followed for seven years.  Those who did moderate exercise had 36% fewer hip fractures than the least active women.  In real numbers, there was a reduction of 6 fractures/1000 women per year in those who exercised most.  This was statistically significant AND, guess what?  That reduction was two times larger than the reduction that was gained by using Fosamax (a leading osteoporosis drug)! This particular study showed that at least two hours each week of moderate to vigorous exercise was the most beneficial.  There are many other studies that also show tremendous benefit of weight bearing exercise for bone health.
     And one series of studies show benefits with something even more simple and less time consuming.  In October 2006, K. Sakamoto and colleagues published a study about the effects of "unipedal standing" on the frequency of falls and hip fractures in the elderly.  (That's a fancy way of saying "standing on one foot.") Subjects stood on one foot with their eyes open for one minute, three times a day.  In this study, the number of falls in the unipedal group vs. the control group was lower by a statistically significant amount, although the number of fractures was the same.  Besides providing an increased weight bearing opportunity for the hip bone, the exercise also the has apparent benefit of improving balance, which contributes to the decrease in falls. 
     Then in November of 2008, the same researcher published a similar study.  This time they ditched the "unipedal standing" description for something a little more catchy -- "Dynamic Flamingo Therapy!"  This study followed a group of women for 10 years, all standing on one foot for one minute three times a day.  The marker used in this study was bone density tests.  After 3 months, 63% of the women had increased their bone density!  These numbers fluctuated over the course of the 10 year study period, but at the end, one third of the women still had increased bone density over her initial scan and there had been no hip fractures.  (By the way, average age at the start of the study was 68.) 
     Now, granted, the study size was small, there was no control group in the second study and we don't know what else these women were doing over the course of 10 years.  But come on!  How easy is this?  Every one of us could incorporate this into our routine without too much difficulty.  We can improve our bone health, improve our balance AND have 6 minutes a day (3 on each side!) to breathe and relax besides.
     So this is the Exercise of the Month.  Three times a day, stand on one foot for one minute.  Repeat on the opposite foot.  If you are unsteady on one foot, gently hold the back of a chair or the counter or the wall so you don't fall over.  With regular practice, you may eventually find you don't need this prop.  Simply transfer your weight to one foot, and lift the other foot off the ground.  You can lift the knee up, or just bend your knee so your foot is off the ground behind you.  If you are a regular yoga practitioner, add Vrksasana, Tree Pose, to your routine.  See if you can brush your teeth as a Dynamic Flamingo (and your dentist will be happy you're brushing for a full 2 minutes)!  How about any time you're put on hold while making a phone call....use that minute + to be a Dynamic Flamingo.  Or when you're watching TV, get up off the couch during the commercials and be a Dynamic Flamingo. 
     How fun is that?  And see, no gyms or special equipment required!  Just smile and breathe.  Happy Flamingo-ing!  And thanks to Jacob Schor, ND for originally bringing this to my attention.