Fitness
Exercise ranks No. 1 in resolutions
GETTING FIT FOR THE NEW YEAR — Those who took part in an aerobics class taught by instructor Carol Teaff at the Weirton campus of West Virginia Northern Community College, will once again have the opportunity to join the upcoming free course that is being offered beginning Tuesday. The class runs from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays through May 8 and is free of charge.
— Contributed
WEIRTON — Approximately 80 percent of Americans who made a New Year’s resolution this year chose to set a goal to improve their health.
Exercise and weight-loss were among the promises made by more than 96 million adults, according to a nationwide survey conducted by the Health and Fitness Association.
That makes it the most popular theme for 2025.
The reality of making these resolutions come to fruition, however, can be expensive.
According to YouGov, research has shown that just 9 percent of Americans will actually keep their resolutions throughout the year. And almost nine out of 10 people said having access to structured spaces such as gyms, health clubs or exercise studios is an important factor to achieving their goal, resulting in those low figures of those who follow through on their Jan. 1 promises. One reason people end up shying away from continuing or beginning an exercise routine is that not everybody can afford to join a gym or club.
As a result, apps are being downloaded as a means to losing weight and getting physically and mentally fit so people can go through the process at home. The top aspirations of app users saw 50 percent of people wanting to build or strengthen their muscles and 44 percent seeking to establish a regular exercise regimen. Americans wanting to improve their mental health through physical activity stood at 42 percent.
“Americans are entering the new year with strong ambitions to improve their health and fitness, but financial strain is a real obstacle for many,” stated Liz Clark, president and CEO of the HFA. “This represents both a challenge and an opportunity to explore strategic solutions that can make fitness more accessible to everyone.”
But one area woman is helping community residents achieve their goal of getting fit by offering free aerobics to those intent on keeping their word.
Carol Teaff has been exercising non-stop for 45 years. She has been offering free aerobics classes since retiring as an English and speech professor at West Virginia Northern Community College in 2008, following a 33-year career.
The college had asked her to run a community education exercise class because she previously taught a one-credit hour step aerobics class as part of her schedule.
And she has continued to do so ever since.
Even during the pandemic, she still ran her class through Zoom, not allowing COVID to deter her from doing what she loves.
So, what prompted her to begin exercising in the first place?
Teaff explained, “I started exercising to work my way out of depression caused by life events. Exercise is the perfect cure for depression.”
“I started out going to exercise classes with friends, but they all eventually quit,” she continued. “So, I kept on going to classes by myself because I could see what exercising was doing for me — reducing my heart rate, strengthening my lungs, lowering my risk of cancer and other diseases, increasing my flexibility and just making me happy. Cardio is the best thing someone can do for their body, along with weight lifting, which I also did for many years and have recently gone back to.”
“Most people who start exercising drop out within six months, and of those who remain, many keep exercising at the same level instead of upping their game,” Teaff said.
“The goal should be to keep improving, whatever your age,” she stressed. “In addition, a lot of people set unrealistic goals — dropping x number of pounds or running a 5K race before they are ready, or lifting weights that are too heavy for them. Deconditioned people need to start with something easy and work toward realistic goals, resisting the urge to compete with others in better shape who have been exercising longer.”
“I can’t even tell you how many out-of-shape guys I have seen running on the beach in bare feet at noon,” she stated. “This is a bad idea for so many reasons.”
Even if one doesn’t take Teaff’s classes, she offered advice on the proper way those starting out their New Year’s resolution of exercising should begin.
She stressed the importance of starting slow, doing it three times a week.
“Make it harder when you’re ready,” she commented. “Schedule it into your life and don’t quit, even if you feel like quitting. If I skipped my exercise routine every time that I didn’t feel like doing it, I would rarely work out. Once my heart rate climbs, I am always happy that I kept my schedule. After 45 years, I can’t not do it!”
“To get the most advantage out of cardio, exercisers need to keep track of their heart rates,” she noted, saying anyone is able to go online and search for target heart rate zones. Wearing a fitness tracker also is a good idea, she added.
She will once again hold classes for those interested in continuing or just beginning an exercise routine starting on Tuesday.
The class will meet from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the student center of the Weirton campus, located in the back of the building. The class will run through May 8.
This is a low-impact class that puts an emphasis on continuous movement, strength improvement and flexibility. All of the exercise are done while standing, so there aren’t any chairs or floor work involved.
Everyone is encouraged to work at his or her own ability level, never pushing themselves beyond what they are able to handle.
Participants are asked to wear loose or stretchy clothing, along with athletic shoes. They should bring a bottle of water as well, she noted.
To register for the class and begin to fulfill that resolution to become healthier, visit wvncc.edu/community-education and click on “Current Courses Available.”
Select “Community Education/ Health and Wellness,” and then enter the information required.
Students can register on paper Tuesday prior to the first class.
Fitness
Scientists Say Most Adults Need 4 Times More Exercise Than Recommended for Major Heart Benefits
Substantial heart health benefits may require 560-610 minutes of weekly exercise, with lower fitness individuals needing even more activity to achieve similar protection.
Adults may need far more exercise than current public health guidelines recommend to significantly lower their risk of heart attack and stroke, according to an observational study published online in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
Researchers found that adults needed between 560 and 610 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity each week for a substantial reduction in cardiovascular risk. That is roughly 3 to 4 times higher than the current recommendation of at least 150 minutes weekly of activities such as brisk walking, running, or cycling.
The findings also suggest that people with lower fitness levels need slightly more exercise than highly fit individuals to achieve the same cardiovascular benefits.
Researchers said current exercise recommendations may need to move away from a one-size-fits-all approach and instead provide personalized goals based on a person’s fitness level.
VO2 Max and Cardiovascular Fitness Explained
Cardiorespiratory fitness differs widely between individuals and is considered a strong indicator of heart health. Researchers noted that low cardiorespiratory fitness is closely linked to a higher risk of heart attacks, strokes, and early death.
One common way to measure fitness is through VO2 max, which reflects the maximum amount of oxygen the body can use during intense exercise. The measurement shows how efficiently the heart, lungs, and muscles work together to deliver and use oxygen.
Researchers from Macao Polytechnic University in China investigated how physical activity levels and cardiorespiratory fitness, measured through VO2 max, influenced cardiovascular disease risk.
UK Biobank Study Tracks Exercise and Heart Events
The study analyzed data from 17,088 participants in the UK Biobank study collected between 2013 and 2015. Participants had an average age of 57, while 56% were women and 96% were white.
Participants wore wrist devices for seven consecutive days to track their normal exercise levels. They also completed a cycling test to estimate VO2 max.
The researchers included additional information such as smoking habits, alcohol use, self reported health and diet, body mass index, resting heart rate, and blood pressure.
Over an average follow-up period of 7.8 years, researchers recorded 1,233 cardiovascular events. These included 874 cases of atrial fibrillation, 156 heart attacks, 111 cases of heart failure, and 92 strokes.
560–610 Minutes Weekly Linked to Stronger Risk Reduction
Adults who met the current guideline of 150 minutes of exercise per week saw a modest 8% to 9% reduction in cardiovascular risk, regardless of fitness level.
However, achieving a more substantial reduction of greater than 30% required between 560 and 610 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise weekly. Only 12% of participants reached that level of activity.
Lower Fitness Levels Require More Physical Activity
The analysis showed that participants with the lowest fitness levels needed about 30 to 50 additional minutes of exercise each week compared with highly fit individuals to gain similar benefits.
For example, a person with low fitness needed about 370 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise each week to reduce cardiovascular risk by 20%, compared with 340 minutes for someone with high fitness.
The researchers say, “This finding highlights the steeper challenge faced by deconditioned populations.”
Researchers Call for Personalized Exercise Guidelines
Because the study was observational, the researchers said it cannot prove cause and effect. They also acknowledged that participants may have been healthier and fitter than the general population. Additional limitations included estimating cardiorespiratory fitness rather than directly measuring it and not tracking sedentary behavior or lighter physical activity.
The team said the findings support current exercise guidelines as an effective minimum target for cardiovascular protection. However, they added that more personalized recommendations could help motivated individuals further reduce their heart disease risk.
“Future guidelines may need to differentiate between the minimal moderate to vigorous exercise volume required for a basic safety margin and the substantially higher volumes necessary for optimal cardiovascular risk reduction,” they conclude.
Reference: “Joint non-linear dose–response associations of device-measured physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness with cardiovascular disease: a cohort and Mendelian randomisation study” by Zhide Liang, Senyao Du, Shiao Zhao, Xianfei Wang, Qiang Yan, Baichao Xu, Sanfan Ng and Ziheng Ning, 19 May 2026, British Journal of Sports Medicine.
DOI: 10.1136/bjsports-2025-111351
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“In space we don’t experience any forces, our muscles, our bones immediately start to diminish because we’re not being loaded by those forces,” says Dr Dan Cleather, professor of strength and conditioning at St Mary’s University who is on the team developing the British equipment, HIFIm.
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Coming on the heels of the exercise-crazed 1980s, with its ubiquitous leg warmers and tights, were the 1990s. During the decade, cardio-packed martial arts workout videos and stationary bike spinning classes came into vogue, as well as some new gym lingo. And, while the decade did get some things right when it came to health and fitness — like the Health At Every Size Movement and the culmination of the U.S. government’s push to promote its Healthy People guidelines — it also got some things very wrong, especially when it came to its fitness jargon. We just can’t forget the fact that these popular ’90s catchphrases sounded quite ridiculous, not just today, but even back then. With that said, here are some of the classic cringeworthy slogans of the era, which you might recognize if you’re a Millennial, Gen Xer, or Boomer.
Tae Bo Nation (and Work It)
By the late 1990s, fitness guru Billy Blanks seemed to be touting his Tae Bo kickboxing-meets-martial-arts videos on every screen. Thus, his calls to form a “Tae Bo nation” and to “Work it!” became commonplace.
Interestingly, Blanks refused to follow a script for his Tae Bo videos (via Men’s Health). Consequently, his enthusiasm was totally legitimate (and smile-inducing) for everyone involved. As Blanks told The New York Times in 2026, “Even though we were working out hard, we were having so much fun with doing it.”
Unlike many fitness trends that completely disappeared, Tae Bo has demonstrated some staying power, with today’s generation rediscovering the classic workout, albeit without the “Work it!” catchphrase or the tight neon outfits.
Abs of steel
The 1980s saw the birth of “Buns of Steel” workout videos, featuring glute-burning exercises. The slogan took on a new form in the 1990s and became “Abs of Steel,” a branded workout featuring toned fitness instructor Tamilee Web that eventually took off as a catchphrase as well.
Even nowadays, it’s used as a figure of expression (or even ironically in memes) because of how everyone associates well-developed abs with toughness. Obviously, though, everyone knows that toned abs aren’t literally as hard as steel. (Check out these ab exercises that should be in your workout routine.)
Boo-yah!
In the ’90s, it wasn’t that uncommon to hear someone utter, “Boo-yah!” after any great accomplishment, like winning at sports or completing a particularly intense workout. In fact, the strange term became a one-word catchphrase after ESPN reporter Stuart Scott kept saying it during the early part of the decade.
According to Scott’s college friend Fred Tindal (via The Ringer), “boo-yah” was a misspelling of how someone used to describe the sound of a thunderstorm to them (“crack crack crack crack crack boo-yaw”). Interestingly, while Scott popularized the phrase, he didn’t invent it; experts traced its roots to West Coast hip-hop (per Slate).
Stop the insanity!
Fitness star Susan Powter gained popularity in the 1990s for her passionate cry to “Stop the insanity,” a rallying call for people to move beyond restrictive dieting and fad fitness trends toward true holistic health. Though it earned Powter positive attention (and a guest spot on “The Tonight Show”), her catchphrase also became the subject of jokes and spoofs on various TV shows of the era.
Ultimately, Powter’s following faded. But while her catchphrase is no longer popular, its message remains significant, as evidenced by the growing movement towards fitness at any size.
Squeeze your way to shapely hips and thighs
Longtime actress and model Suzanne Somers shook up the 1990s when she starred in ThighMaster exercise product infomercials, where she claimed it was possible to “squeeze your way to shapely hips and thighs.”
Consumers seemed to buy into the silly slogan: On the “Hollywood Raw” podcast, Somers claimed that they “stopped counting” when they reached 10 million copies sold (via Yahoo!).
But does Somers’ ThighMaster actually work, as the catchphrase suggests? “[With the ThighMaster], you’ll build muscle, but it’s not going to be functional in any way,” fitness expert Justin Price told the Los Angeles Times, reinforcing what we know about spot reduction being fiction.
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