:: Health News ::

Chicago, IL (PRWEB) April 19, 2005 — Summer is around the corner and everyone is looking for a fun way to get back in shape and into their swim suits. One of the newest and most exuberant workouts to hit mainstream America is Laughtercising™. The technique requires inserting 10 minutes of vigorous laughter into your regular work out. Now what’s more fun than laughing?

Two studies released on March 8, 2005 at the American College of Cardiology recommend that people try to laugh on a regular basis. Dr. Michael Miller of the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore said, “Thirty minutes of exercise three times a week, and 15 minutes of laughter on a daily basis is probably good for the vascular system.”

Laughercising was created by Betty Hoeffner, co-founder of Hey U.G.L.Y., Inc., NFP, a 501C3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to empower teens with self-esteem building tools, to help them counter challenges such as eating disorders, bullying, violence, substance abuse and suicide. Hoeffner has been Laughtercising for over four years and she produced a CD of contagious laughter called LAUGH IT OFF to help others get into the exuberant form of exercise. Proceeds from the sale of the CD go to Hey U.G.L.Y. to help them develop their in-school curriculum and programs.

“Laughing’s not as easy as it may sound,” explained Hoeffner who sells her CD at http://www.HeyUGLY.org for $10.00. “First you have to put your ego aside because you can feel kind of silly just breaking out into raucous laughter. Then you have to work your way up to doing it, non-stop, for 10 minutes … just as you would in any exercise program. Once you become proficient, you’ll be able to break out into hysterical laughter instantaneously. You’ll keep laughing and laughing which will work up such a sweat and gets your abs aching. You’ll get so much energy you may find yourself vacuuming your house at 10 o’clock at night. Just try it and use it with your weight loss program!”

Instructions on the CD advise listeners to laugh along with the laugh instructors continuously for at least one minute. Every day, increase the laugh session until you can laugh for ten minutes for a great, laughtercising workout. The producers made the CD 60 minutes long so it can be played in the background as a stress reliever. Playing the CD quietly in the background while at work, studying for exams or struggling with an angst-ridden problem can help lighten your mood and put a smile on your face.

Hoeffner enlisted the help of nationally recognized voice-over expert, Richard Schoen to laugh with her on the CD. Schoen is the voice of such memorable campaigns as “Pork - The Other White Meat” and “There’s more for Your Life at Sears.” Schoen and Hoeffner play off of each other on the CD as it undulates from raucous to subtle to giddy to guttural laughter. This actually helps the laughterciser gain pace throughout the session.

According to William F. Fry, M.D., associate professor of clinical psychiatry at Stanford University, “….laughing 100-200 times per day is the cardiovascular equivalent of rowing for 10 minutes. When something strikes you as funny, you laugh. And when you laugh, your body responds. You flex, then relax, 15 facial muscles plus dozens of others all over your body. Your pulse and respiration increase briefly, oxygenating your blood. And your brain experiences a decrease in pain perception, possibly associated with the production of pain-killing, pleasure-giving endorphins.”