18 minute read
Families TODAY
UNDERSTANDING STOCK MARKET CORRECTIONS
by Stephen Kyne, CFP
Sterling Manor Financial
for Saratoga TODAY
IF YOU’VE HEARD THE TERM “STOCK MARKET CORRECTION,” IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS, AND NOT KNOWN WHAT PEOPLE WERE TALKING ABOUT, YOU CERTAINLY AREN’T ALONE.
There is a lot of industry jargon that is tossed around, often leaving the lay person scratching their head. During a time when the economy is at the forefront of most people’s minds, unfamiliar terminology can add another layer of stress to an already trying time. Armed with a little knowledge, these terms become a lot less intimidating. So, what is a stock market correction? Generally, a stock market correction is a pullback in major indices of around ten percent. These pullbacks are often fairly sudden and, since they lend a sense of urgency to the rhetoric of pundits on television, they can seem especially worrisome when they occur.
Lasting anywhere from a few days to a few months, they usually accompany a change in leadership across various sectors of the stock market. Think of sectors as categories of companies, e.g., technology, energy, financials, etc. Processing billions of pieces of information every day, markets are messy but ruthlessly efficient. A stock market correction is actually a healthy part of the market cycle, since they allow an opportunity for investors to move funds from sectors in the market which may have had their run, to sectors which may be poised to outperform. Our economic outlook for this year did call for a correction, and it seems we’re getting one right out of the gate. By late January, the NASDAQ was down about twelve percent, and the S&P was down about eight percent. Both have come off their lows in the last two weeks; however, they may test lows again before the correction is over. There are a few factors which hint to us that we are in the midst of a correction, and not the beginning of a protracted pullback. First, we believe the market is reacting to information that is already known and fairly well understood. For a year we told you that the Fed was going to have to raise rates in 2022, far ahead of when it was predicting it would have to. Anyone who was paying attention knew that inflation was going to be anything but transitory, as the Fed claimed, and would require action. It seems that the Fed finally got the memo and signaled last month that rate hikes were coming. In fact, futures markets are expecting four to five increases this year. Quite a change of tune from the Fed! Markets reacted negatively, although this information should have already been baked into stock prices. Additionally, anyone who has been watching knows that Russia presents a large geopolitical risk to both the Ukraine, and to the rest of Europe. The risk to the Ukraine is obvious. The risk to Europe, which relies heavily on Russia for heating fuel, is collateral but still very real. Be that as it may, both of these risks are fairly well understood and should also be priced in. Given that Russia has attacked its neighbors during both the 2008 and 2016 Olympics, and has amassed its army on the Ukrainian borders twice in the last year, nobody should be surprised when Russia attacks, least of all the markets. As an aside, China is watching very closely to see if the west has the fortitude to stick with the Ukraine, as it weighs options for dealing with Taiwan. Second, by and large, the economic data for the US has been positive. About eighty percent of companies in the S&P have reported earnings that were higher than expected for the fourth quarter of 2021. Expectations are that profits will continue to increase in 2022, despite rises in input costs. The unemployment landscape is promising as well. While there are still quite a few people out of work, there are more vacant jobs than there are unemployed workers to fill them. The market for labor, like all markets, will work this problem out, and we expect continued improvement.
We’ve said it a million times, and we will continue to say it because it bears repeating: the US markets have a 100% track record of bouncing back from market corrections, and then going on to find new highs. While that is not a guarantee, it’s a track record that can’t be denied. Fear mongers will tell you “this time is different.” So far, they’ve never been right.
We’ve said it a million times, and we will continue to say it because it bears repeating: the US markets have a 100% track record of bouncing back from market corrections, and then going on to find new highs. While that is not a guarantee, it’s a track record that can’t be denied. Fear mongers will tell you “this time is different.” So far, they’ve never been right. Work closely with your CFP® Professional to make sure that your financial plan reflects the current outlook, as this piece contains forward looking statements that are always subject to change. Stephen Kyne, CFP is a Partner at Sterling Manor Financial, LLC in Saratoga Springs, and Rhinebeck. The information provided here is for general informational purposes only and should not be considered an individualized recommendation or personalized investment advice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security or other financial instrument. Investing is subject to risks including loss of principal invested. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. No strategy can assure a profit nor protect against loss. Securities offered through Cadaret, Grant & Co., Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory services offered through Sterling Manor Financial, LLC, or Cadaret Grant & Co., Inc., SEC registered investment advisors. Sterling Manor Financial and Cadaret Grant are separate entities.
Saratoga Senior Center Calendar
5 WILLIAMS STREET, SARATOGA SPRINGS • 518-584-1621
FEBRUARY IS “SHARE THE LOVE” MONTH AT THE CENTER!
See What to Expect Below: Thursday, February 24 • 9:30-12 p.m. SPAC Discounted Tickets Are Back! 50% off select performances. Purchase your tickets today! This is an awesome Senior Center benefit! 2022 Membership Drive. Renew your membership today so you can take advantage of our great benefits. Stop in and learn about the program benefits of SilverSneakers or Renew Active membership through your Medicare advantage plan. Visit with Humana, Wellcare & CDPHP! Fresh Produce from Regional Food Bank! 11:00-12:00. Tarot Card Reading. 10:00-2:00. Call for appointment.
DINNER & A DRINK! DINNER PREPARED BY STAFF. ENJOY A GIN TASTING.
Tuesday, February 22 • 5:30 p.m. $11 per dinner. Menu to be determined. It’s Old Bryan Inn - how can you go wrong! Dinner is served at 5:30. Please sign up, seating is limited. Dine-in only!
SIMPLY FOOD BY MAURA
What’s Happening at the Center in February! Center of Excellence at AMC, does one need an MD referral, when is more diagnosis/treatment helpful, and when not? How does the Alzheimer’s Center of Excellence assist caregivers? How to access? SAVE THE DATE! And more... Please sign up!
SUMMER IN THE WINTER PARTY TRIPS & EXCURSIONS! Tuesday, March 1 • 3 p.m. Live music Bobby Dick & Susie Q. $10. Summer party food served! Please sign up, seating is limited. VAN TRIP - SARATOGA TEA & HONEY Wednesday, February 16, 2022 NEW PROGRAM AT THE CENTER When you step through the door, you will be surrounded by a wide variety of fine loose-leaf teas from all over the world. Discover new teas Do you need a break from caring for your loved one? and learn brewing techniques from our knowledgeable staff. Lunch at Skilled caregivers on site to help. Old Bryan Inn. Pay $3 at sign up. Bring money for lunch and shopping. By appointment. Call Senior Support Services Leave the Center at 10:15 a.m. at 518-584-1621 ext. 206. VAN TRIP - SARATOGA AUTO MUSEUM LEARNING AT THE CENTER Friday, February 18, 2022 Enjoy a guided tour of beautiful vintage cars, vehicles, photos, and • DNA Doesn’t Lie, But Sometimes It Tells history of autos in NY. Lunch at Old Bryan Inn. Pay $15 at sign up. Funny or Strange Stories. Bring money for lunch. Leave the Center at 10 a.m. Monday, February 14 • 11 a.m. Facilitated by Will Gergits. Come and hear interesting stories about using DNA-based technologies to address questions of identity in various species of animals including cats, deer, VAN TRIP - CHARLTON TAVERN LUNCH BUNCH Friday, February 25, 2022 The Tavern was on the ground floor and the kitchen and adjoining blue dining room are located in what was once a barn and livery stable. Pay $5 at sign up. Bring money for lunch. Leave the Center at 10:45 a.m.eagles, fish, etc. No technical knowledge necessary to attend and hopefully enjoy. Please sign up! NETHERLANDS, BELGIUM & FRANCE • How to Identify and Stop the Most Common June 11-22, 2022 with Optional 3-Night London Post Tour Extension. Financial Tricks and Scams WESTERN CANADA’S ROCKIES, LAKES, WINE COUNTRY Thursday, February 17 • 1:00 p.m. July 30-August 7, 2022
Tuesday, February 15 To-Go dinner only. $11 per dinner. Turkey Dinner, 3:30-5:30 p.m., curbside pickup.
TRIVIA NIGHT
Tuesday, February 15 • 5:15 p.m. $2.00 pizza and cocktail tasting included. Thereafter, Trivia Night will be held on the third Monday of the month. Join us for fun, friendly competition! Please sign up, seating is limited. ideas. All other supplies provided by Senior Center.
$5 HAIRCUTS FOR MEN
Facilitated by Kym Hance, CMC, Aging Life Care Manager, Herzog Law Firm. All older adults are at risk of being financially cheated or misled. It is not only strangers who attempt these types of crimes, it could be someone you know. When it comes to safeguarding your finances, learn how to protect yourself and stop financial scams. We will also talk about where to turn, and what to do, if this is happening to you or someone you know.
• Talking about Alzheimer’s Disease Friday, February 18 • 11 a.m. Rachel Robinson, Albany Med Center of Excellence for Alzheimer’s Disease.What is the Alzheimer’s
Monday, February 14 • 9 -12 p.m. Ryan will be coming to the Center to cut our men members’ hair. You must call the front desk to make an appointment.
TAROT CARD READINGS
Last Thursday of the month. February date: Thursday, February 24 • 10-2 p.m. Facilitated by Mary Shimp. $5 donation. Do you have some unanswered questions about your life? A tarot card reading provides guidance to gain an insight into what the future holds. Call to make a 15-minute appointment.
CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ FEATURING MONTEREY, YOSEMITE & NAPA
September 19-26, 2022
TROPICAL COSTA RICA
November 2-10, 2022 with Optional 3-Night Jungle Adventure Post Tour Extension
The Third Foundation of Fitness: Power
by Robert Rehberger
PT, DPT, OCS
for Saratoga TODAY
Thus far, I have written about stability and how control over one’s body can help maintain balance and sharpen your movements throughout the day. Then I covered mobility and its importance to allow you to move freely and efficiently throughout your daily routine.
Today, I will be writing about power. Power is defined as the ability to develop force over a period of time. (i.e., Power = Force x Velocity).
THIS FORMULA SHOWS US TWO THINGS:
• Power can be increased by increasing force (strength) • Power can be increased by increasing velocity (speed) People tend to stop participating or significantly decrease their participation in activities that involve moving quickly. This results in a loss of the ability to generate power in our day-to-day lives. This formula becomes particularly important as we move from our teens, twenties, and thirties into mid to later life years. For example, as we grow older, we perform less power-based activities: • We sprint less. We jump less, hopscotch less, run up fewer stairs. • We don’t train or play sports that involve quick movements. Research shows a strong correlation between power output and an individual’s ability to walk, rise from a chair, get out of bed, prevent a fall, or climb a flight of stairs. And although strength and power are connected, they are different aspects of health and fitness, and each needs to be addressed for optimal performance. At Goodemote Physical Therapy, we take a more comprehensive approach and address all “Fitness Foundations,” including stability, mobility, strength, and power. Conditions such as sprains and strains, osteoarthritis, tendonitis, post-surgery, etc., all require each aspect of fitness, including developing power, to ensure we help our patients achieve optimal results. Here are four essential facts about power to consider while training fitness:
POWER DECLINES FASTER THAN STRENGTH
Many gym-goers will train strength, but fewer train power. We simply lose control due to less incorporation into our weekly routine.
POWER DIRECTLY IMPACTS OUR BALANCE
Power has a significant role in balance. How quickly and forcefully we move after losing our balance determines whether or not we fall.
POWER IMPROVES BY TRAINING IT
We must incorporate training power in our daily/ weekly routines to improve our ability to produce force quickly. There needs to be an appropriate amount of stimulus or stress added to your body to improve. Unfortunately, performing low-load activities (i.e., walking, dancing, stretching, jogging) do not enhance power.
YOU CAN IMPROVE POWER AT ANY AGE
It is never too late to work on power to help improve your daily activity. At Goodemote PT, we will perform a comprehensive assessment and create an individualized routine based on your abilities and goals. If you have not been power training regularly, it is essential to get a guide. Some people will wonder if power training will hurt their joints or if it is dangerous in some way. Our team at GPT will modify exercises to make them power movements. We will ensure you are safe and under control. Here are a couple of examples of modifications to safely make an activity a power movement by increasing velocity: Speed Intervals: For those who walk or run daily, add some power into the mix by speeding up for timed intervals.
For example, while doing your regular walk or run, speed up the pace as fast as possible while maintaining control. The interval should be between 5-20 seconds to start. After the sprint, go back to your normal rate or slightly slower for 30 seconds to a minute. Repeat this 5-10 times every other day you walk or run. Pool Jumping: The pool is a great place to work on jumping as it provides buoyancy, creates some resistance via water, and is safe if you lose your balance. Start by getting in about chest-deep water and jumping in place for 10-20 repetitions. Then, while jumping in place, go lower into the squat position and throw your arms up over your head for 10-20 repetitions. Next, start jumping forward (imagine over a shoebox) 5-10 times. You should take 20-30 second breaks between each change in movement. Or try to jump up and down on one leg. If you don’t have access to a pool, we can help you at our office by showing you modifications to ensure you can perform them safely at home. The fitness foundation of power is often overlooked, but you need to move efficiently and quickly throughout the day. The bottom line is power helps us walk better, balance and react more effectively, and move faster! It is crucial to train power 2-4 times per week and easily add to your regular fitness routine. In my final article in this series, I will be going over what I believe to be the most fundamental fitness principle for living a longer, higher quality of life… strength training. At Goodemote PT, we are here to help you feel good again! We work with individuals recovering from injury to help improve their quality of life and fitness. We offer virtual therapy and post-PT programs to help you address any fitness goals you have! Dr. Robert Rehberger PT, DPT, OCS, is a physical therapist at Goodemote Physical Therapy. He is a Board-Certified Orthopedic Specialist and a Board Certified Spine Fellow. Call 518-306-6894 to set up an appointment with one of our highly trained PTs. You can also find us at GoodemotePT.com.
Forgetful Kids, Conflicted Mom
by Katherine Morna Towne for Saratoga TODAY
o your kids forget things at home that they
Dneed for school or sports or other activities? Mine do with some frequency. Things I regularly find in the house after everyone has gone to school include winter gloves, water bottles, lunches, and homework. Or one of my boys will let me know he forgot his Chromebook or its charger, or a particular item needed for practice. Every time this happens, I’m conflicted: do I bring their things to school or don’t I?? I know that I’m not supposed to bring them their things. As certified Parent Educator Deborah Godfrey writes on her web site PositiveParenting.com, “Kids have to get the idea that if they forget something, there are consequences to that and the next time, they’ll remember it. They are not so likely to remember it if the fallback is, ‘Oh, my mom will do that for me.’ I call this a successful failure. It’s a tiny little failure and kids need failure and mistakes in their life as they grow up. It’s developmentally appropriate.” Our own local parenting expert and licensed psychologist, Dr. Randy Cale, agrees, as he writes on his website TerrificParenting.com, “Instead of fixing every moment, allow your children to experience the disappointment that comes with a failure to be responsible. To put it simply: stop protecting them. For example, stop running home to retrieve your son’s baseball glove that he regularly forgets to bring to practice. Or, don’t bring your daughter to school late so she can use the morning to study for an exam because she ‘forgot’ to do so the previous night. In both cases, you are not preparing your children to be responsible.” This kind of thing would normally be a no-brainer for me, not only because the experts seem to concur about what the right course of action is, which I usually find meaningful and helpful, but also because my personality tends toward being a strict mom with high standards, and I almost always favor long-term success over short-term fixes. I tend to be a big fan of learning hard lessons now so that the future is more peaceful and more successful. I want my kids to be responsible, successful, well-adjusted adults, and if doing hard things when they’re younger will help that happen, then that’s what I want to do. And on the flip side, I don’t want to ruin their futures by not requiring enough of them when they’re growing up. But!
I also don’t want them to have to stay inside during recess because they don’t have the proper gear for playing outside. Outside recess is good and healthy, and not bringing them the gloves they left at home feels like not requiring them to brush their teeth or eat vegetables. I want my boys to take responsibility for their own things, but I’ve seen how hard it is for them to catch up when they miss schoolwork because of things that can’t be avoided, like illness (and, these days, quarantine) — and not only hard for them, but hard on the teachers as well — so if this hardship is avoidable by bringing them the homework they forget at home, then doing so feels like an act of mercy for all involved. I appreciate that being hungry will help the kids remember to bring their lunches or snacks in the future, but I worry about these growing boys and their caloric requirements, especially for my athletes, especially on days where I don’t see them from when they go to school in the morning until they get home at 8:00 that night after an away game. Etc., etc. I really do try to take the hard line when I can. Some considerations that have helped me figure it out, situation by situation, are: how late in the day did I realize they forgot their things? If it’s near the end of the school day, I’m more likely to just leave it be. How difficult is it for me to bring their things to them? If it causes a real problem because of other commitments I have, I might consider this to be one of those days where they’re just going to have to deal with it. What was it that was left? If it was their lunch or the permission slip for the field trip due that day, I’m more likely to bring it; if it’s something that’s less problematic, I might leave it be. Who was the boy who left the thing? Some of my boys let things roll off their backs much more easily; others really freak out about not having what they need. Also, some of my boys tend to be forgetful, others don’t — if a forgetful boy forgets something, I might be less inclined to bring it to him than one of my boys who tends to do a better job remembering his things. How old is the boy who forgot something? Though they say to cultivate this kind of responsible behavior from a young age, I think a high schooler is better equipped to figure out how to manage than a Kindergartener, for example. How likely is the teacher to suffer from my boy’s forgotten thing? If I know that my son’s teacher will have an easier day if I bring in the thing he forgot, I’m more likely to bring it in. Whew! I think this particular issue is a great example of the mental and emotional gymnastics parents often go through when trying to figure out the right thing to do, and how the solution can seem so clear from the outsidelooking-in, but not at all clear when you’re in the middle of it. If nothing else, I hope my boys always know how much their mother loves them and how much I want to take care of them well and bring them up the right way. Kate and her husband have seven sons ages 17, 15, 13, 11, 10, 7, and 3. Email her at kmtowne23@gmail.com.
