DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am 6 feet 6 inches tall, weigh 288 pounds and am flat-footed. I am a constant basketball player, but one thing gets me – I can’t dunk. What can I do to change that?

And how do I improve my lungs to where I can run up and down the court for every game I play? – B.T.

ANSWER: You mean you can’t jump high. You’re a big guy. It’s hard to propel that much weight into the air. Gravity works against you. Your flat feet have little to do with this.

Ordinarily, for increasing jumping ability I recommend a plyometric exercise called drop jumping. Plyometrics are the kind of exercise that develops explosive power. Drop jumping is done with the athlete standing on a platform or sturdily constructed box, jumping off and immediately upon landing, propelling him – or herself upward as high as possible and as quickly as possible.

You’re too big for this kind of exercise. It could damage your knees. But there are other ways of performing plyometrics that are easier on the knees.

From a half-squat position, jump as high as you can and land on bent knees. Don’t do this on a concrete surface. Find a soft surface, like grass. Start with a few jumps, and when your body becomes accustomed to them, increase the number of jumps and decrease the time between jumps. If this exercise hurts your knees, stop it.

To increase the demand of the jump, you can tuck your knees into your chest as you’re airborne.

Improving your lungs means improving your leg muscles and conditioning your body to withstand the demands of constant movement. You do this in only one way – running. Basketball is a combination of spurts of running fast and somewhat slower-paced motion. You have to practice sprinting and long-distance running.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: All I hear is “walk, walk, walk” and that walking is the best form of exercise. I have spondylolisthesis (a spine problem) and cannot walk far without pain. What form of exercise would you suggest as an alternative to walking? – G.C.

ANSWER: Swimming is an excellent exercise that improves heart health and should not be a strain on your back. Granted, it’s not as simple to do as walking. You have to find a swimming pool or lake, and you have to change clothes. But swimming not only is an aerobic exercise (heart and lung exercise), it strengthens your upper body.

Biking is another thought. Some stationary bikes are built so that the rider is semi-recumbent, a position that is easy on the back. Try one out. See if it causes you any pain.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: We detect a contradiction, and it would seem you can’t have it both ways. On the one hand, you say aerobic exercise must be for 20 to 30 minutes, with no rest period. Later, when talking about stationary bikes, you declare that it’s OK to break up exercise sessions into three 10-minute sessions. Personally, I hold with the 30-continuous-minute school. – V.K.

ANSWER: That is a contradiction.

In the best of all worlds, it is better to exercise without a break for 20 to 30 minutes in order to get the maximum benefit of aerobic exercise, the kind of exercise where large muscles are continuously moving. This is the exercise for heart health and for blood-pressure lowering.

However, not everyone is able to go at it for half an hour without a break. Those people can still obtain benefits by dividing their exercise sessions into two 15-minute periods or three 10-minute periods.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Does carrying heavy grocery bags with your arms hanging down constitute enough effort on muscles and bone that it can be deemed weight-bearing exercise for their development? – M.L.

ANSWER: Sure it does. Dumbbells and barbells are not the only things used for bone and muscle strengthening. Grocery bags count. So does body weight when you do chin-ups or push-ups. For that matter, so do many household chores.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am 69 years old, and I walk 4 miles every day. My pulse rate is 43 to 45 beats a minute. Does that slow of a beat protect my arteries? They take less of a pounding. – Anon.

ANSWER: A slow pulse (heart rate and pulse are the same) can indicate great physical conditioning. The famous tennis player Bjorn Borg was said to have a resting pulse in the 40s. Few people are in as good physical shape as he was.

The slow pulse of well-conditioned athletes indicates that their hearts pump more blood with each beat than the average heart pumps. Their hearts, therefore, don’t have to pump as fast to circulate blood. I have never heard that having fewer beats protect arteries. Maybe it does.

At age 69, I am hesitant to say your heart rate indicates excellent health. If you have symptoms like dizzy spells, get to your doctor quickly for an evaluation. Even if you don’t have dizzy spells, have your doctor check this out. A slow heart rate can also indicate heart trouble.

Dr. Donohue regrets that he is unable to answer individual letters, but he will incorporate them in his column whenever possible. Readers may write him or request an order form of available health newsletters at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Readers may also order health newsletters from www.rbmamall.com

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