An article I read last month by Jeannie Stein of the Los Angeles Times, describes some negative effects of watching TV. I have noticed myself that the more I find time for some form of exercise, the less time I have for watching television and it looks like that is a good thing.

Watching television for hour upon hour obviously isn’t the best way to spend leisure time. Inactivity has been linked to obesity and heart disease. But a new study quantifies TV viewing’s effect on risk of death.

Researchers found that each hour a day spent watching TV was linked with an 18% greater risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, an 11% greater risk of all causes of death, and a 9% increased risk of death from cancer.

As the article stated, researchers found a statistical relationship between long hours of TV viewing and a shortened life span, but the study did not go so far as to find a direct cause.

A journal of the American Heart Assn., looked at health data among 8,800 men and women older than 25 who were part of the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle Study. Participants recorded their television viewing hours for a week, and researchers separated the results by amount of viewing: those who watched less than two hours of TV a day, those who watched two to four hours a day, and those who watched more than four hours a day.

Researchers found a strong connection between TV hours and death from cardiovascular disease, not just among the overweight and obese, but among people who had a healthy weight and exercised.

“What we showed was that irrespective of a person’s exercise level, sitting for four or more hours watching television was linked to a significant increase in risk of death compared to watching lower amounts of TV,” said Dr. David Dunstan, lead author of the study and professor and head of the Physical Activity Laboratory at the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in Victoria, Australia. “The message here is that in addition to promoting regular exercise, we also need to promote avoiding long periods of sitting, such as spending long hours in front of the computer screen.”

To him, the results weren’t unexpected. “When we’re in that sitting posture, we’re not using our muscles, and we know from extensive evidence that muscle contractions are important for the body’s regulatory processes, such as the ability to break down glucose and use it as energy.”

Dr. Prediman K. Shah, director of the cardiology division of the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute, agreed. He pointed out that muscles become deconditioned when not used, triggering harmful physiological changes. “If your activity is slowing down, you metabolize cholesterol less and synthesize it more,” he said.

Even sporadic exercisers who sit for long periods need to increase their daily activity.

“The physical activity we do over a 24-hour period is important,” says Dr. Gerald F. Fletcher, a cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., and a spokesman for the American Heart Assn.

That means taking the stairs instead of the elevator, gardening, walking the dog . . .

“For couch potatoes, sitting on your duff is hazardous to your health,” Shah said. “The bottom line is keep moving.”

My partner, Tammy 0’ Connor, read about a local long-distance run in our home town of Glendale California and wanted to cover this event for oomphTV. This will be the third annual 5K (3.1 miles) Glendale Downtown Dash taking place on March 14. Nearly 70 runners and walkers started preparing two weeks ago as part of an eight week training program designed to shape up the participants before the Dash.

The Glendale Downtown Merchants Assn. will host the Dash, which raises money for the Glendale Adventist Medical Center’s stroke services.  The event has raised nearly $100,000 for the hospital’s stroke services.

In addition to the Dash, participants were also asked to take part in the “Lose a Ton in 10” community weight loss challenge. This challenge urges residents to set weight-loss goals and pledge money for each pound lost. The funds raised will benefit Glendale Healthy Kids, a non-profit organization that provides health-care services to uninsured children. And the hospital will donate $1 – up to $2,000 – for every pound lost by residents.

Co-owners Elaine Miller and Narina Minassian, from a local gym called All About You Wellness Boot Camp, coordinate the work-outs. They aim to train local participants in the Dash and help them lose weight.

There are countless events and challenges across American like this one.  Tammy and I wanted to see the kinds of people that participate and help organize this kind of positive community experience. Raising money for those in need and getting yourself more healthy? This seems like a win, win for everyone.

After spending the first cold Sunday morning with the participants and the organizers, I can tell you it was worth effort. First of all, Elaine and Narina, the owners of the gym, were filled with great enthusiasm and designed a well thought out and easy to follow work out routine. The local participants were eager to join in and seemed ready to dive into the eight-week training program.

After the first workout program was completed, there was a weigh in for the “Lose a Ton in 10.” We then announced to the participants that we would be interested in interviewing and keeping track of a few participants progress during the eight week program. Tammy and I thought maybe one or two people might volunteer. We were shocked when nine participants stepped forward to be interviewed on the first day.

After interviewing the nine participants we found out that what got them active in “Lose a Ton in 10” was their deep desire to lose weight and get control of their own health. Pasadena resident Phyllis Cremer just turned 50, and is hoping to improve her health for the next 50 years.  We found out that another woman was also turning 50 this year and wanted to see her grandchildren grow up. She told us heart disease runs in her family and felt this year she was going to be the time to take action and make some positive lifestyle changes.

Tammy and I came away from this event very surprised by how much we were inspired by the energized owners of the gym and by the residents of our home town. We plan to continue to follow some of these residents and get back to you with their personal oomph! stories.