Wow! Exercise really can "keep you young!" (or at least slow the aging process)
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Aerobic exercise, such as jogging, improves the body's oxygen consumption and its use in generating energy (metabolism).
But maximal aerobic power starts to fall steadily from middle age, decreasing by around 5 ml/[kg.min] every decade.
When it falls below aound18 ml in men and 15 ml in women, it becomes difficult to do very much at all without severe fatigue.
In a typical sedentary man, the maximal aerobic power will have fallen to around 25 mil/[kg.min] by the age of 60, almost half of what it was at the age of 20.
But the evidence shows that regular aerobic exercise can slow or reverse the inexorable decline, even in later life.
Research shows that relatively high intensity aerobic exercise over a relatively long period boosted maximal aerobic power by 25%, equivalent to a gain of 6 ml/ [kg.min], or 10 to 12 biological years.
"There seems good evidence that the conservation of maximal oxygen intake increases the likelihood that the healthy elderly person will retain functional independence," says the author.
The other positive spin-offs of aerobic exercise are reduced risks of serious disease, faster recovery after injury or illness, and reduced risks of falls because of the maintenance of muscle power, balance, and coordination.
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on 4/30/2008
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14.1
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In case I needed another reason to run....
opioids, heart attack, running, prevention
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Heart Benefit Seen From Runner's High
Runner's High May Help Prevent Heart Attack Damage
Opioids, the body's chemicals that create the "runner's high," may help save the heart from heart attack damage.
So say University of Iowa scientists who studied runner's high in rats.
"We have known for a long time that exercise is great for the heart. This study helps us better understand why," Eric Dickson, MD, says in a news release.
Dickson's team split rats into two groups.
One group of rats ran on a treadmill for 15 minutes per day for four days. On the fifth day, the rats ran for a longer time -- 25 minutes -- at a faster pace.
For comparison, the other group of rats spent the same amount of time on a treadmill that was switched off, letting the rats loll there without exercising.
On the study's sixth day, the researchers removed the rats' hearts and induced heart attacks in those hearts.
The hearts of the exercising rats had less heart attack damage than the hearts of the rats that didn't exercise on the treadmill.
The researchers repeated the experiment with another group of rats.
But this time, the rats got a shot of a chemical called naltrexone on the last two days of treadmill time. Naltrexone blocks opioid receptors.
After the shot, the researchers removed the rats' hearts and induced heart attacks in those isolated hearts. All of the rats' hearts showed similar amounts of heart attack damage.
The findings suggest that opioids play a role in the heart-healthy aspects of exercise, note Dickson and colleagues.
By the way, runner's high isn't just for runners. Other types of aerobic exercise can produce the same effect.
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on 4/29/2008
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13.3
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Avoiding Energy Sappers
nutrition, organization, negative influences, healthy habits, limits
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Do you ever find yourself feeling run down and your day has barely even started yet? Or you make it through your morning okay enough only to hit a zero energy wall midway into the afternoon. It takes a lot of energy to do all of the things, such as work, school and family, we do in a day. We need to be wise about how we allocate our energy to things so we can conserve enough energy to get through the whole day. Certainly you can be bone tired and still get things done. However, how well they get done and how you feel about it as you go can be dampened when you lack energy.
Conserve and spend your energy wisely for the tasks you must complete and for activities you want to engage in. Get rid of as many energy sappers from your day and life as possible to help you do this better. Other people, gadgets, technology, and our own behavior can all be energy sappers. There are energy sappers that are common to most of us and others that are uniquely your own based upon your personality type.
An improper diet and a lack of proper exercise are serious energy sappers. They are also health sappers, robbing the body of what it needs to maintain optimum health and function. Getting an improper amount of sleep is another energy sapper that can also harm the health of your body. Diet, exercise, and sleep are important factors in your emotional and physical health.
Behavior such as thinking we are never good enough or that we cannot achieve our goals is a distressing energy sapper. Moreover, our thinking propels our motion in the world. We can either propel ourselves forward towards success, love, money, and a good job by thinking we can. Or we can stop ourselves from moving forward and trap ourselves in a muck of unhappiness and failure by thinking we cannot achieve all of these things.
Allowing other people that routinely think in a negative way into our liv... read entire entry
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on 4/27/2008
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22.6
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Maintaining a healthy environment is important, too! Happy Earth Day!
earth day, environmental health, awareness, appreciation
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Here are some ways in which you (and your family/friends) can make Earth Day a true celebration:
1. Spend time outdoors. Whether you’re in the country, suburbs or an urban setting, make a point to spend some time outdoors. This may be your own backyard, a local park or reserve, or the botanical gardens. If you can, my vote would be to go somewhere special and beautiful in order to bypass the contempt of the familiar and to support an experience of appreciation and awe.
2. Check out a local fair. As the importance of taking care of the planet is becoming more a part of mainstream awareness, the number of green festivals and fairs across the country is increasing. Check out your local paper or bulletin board to see if there’s one in or near your town. It could be educational and fun for all.
3. Make a special meal using locally produced ingredients. Explain to your children where the products are grown, helping them to realize that food doesn’t “come from” stores. If the weather’s pleasant, a visit to a local farm might make a good outing.
4. Express thanks. At mealtime, have each person express something for which they’d like to thank the Earth.
5. Do something hands-on:
Plant a tree or a native plant. To find out which trees are indigenous to your area and where the best places are to plant them, contact your local Department of Forestry.
Clean up a room in your home, finding anything that can be recycled or donated for reuse. Don’t stop there. Actually dispose of items appropriately and celebrate with a yummy homemade treat.
Join a community project. Many communities have activities celebrating Earth Day in which your families can participate in helping to clean-up, conserve or preserve the health of your local environment. Where I live a river runs through our entire city. I joined a small group of volunteeers, and together we cleaned up a one-mile st... read entire entry
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on 4/22/2008
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11.2
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Stress - Workout, Work it Out!
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Though causes of stress can be plentiful, there are multiple ways to combat stressors and the negative toll they can take on the body,
People experience stress in different ways, depending on the severity and duration of the stressor. Stress can have a positive impact in that it can motivate as well as help maintain focus and alertness. On the down side, stress may result in feelings of being overwhelmed or out of balance, and can cause anxiety and depression.
Stress can have numerous disruptive effects on the body - not just the mind - including fatigue, headaches, stomach upset, sleep problems, backaches, changes in appetite, increased cortisol secretion (the so-called "stress hormone"), changes in weight (loss or gain), increased resting heart rate and respiratory rate, high blood pressure, shortness of breath, muscle tension, sweaty palms, and cold hands and feet.
Stress is a common problem in today's society, largely because increased pressure to perform on the job has created work/life imbalances, Other major stressors include death of a spouse or family member, divorce, marriage, and personal injury or illness. Job demands, a move or change in a work or living situation, relationship issues or arguments, financial issues, and holidays are other possible causes of stress.
Many methods of stress reduction exist, including breathing, meditation, progressive relaxation, and exercise. All tend to reduce anxiety, depression, heart rate and blood pressure, and enhance a feeling of relaxation and wellbeing.
Exercise serves as a distraction from the stressor, and results in reduced muscle tension and cortisol secretion. The additional benefit of exercise is that when done alone or used in combination with other stress reduction methods, it also improves physical fitness and has the potential for more profound effects on chronic disease risk reduction than other stress reduction strategies.
... read entire entry
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on 4/20/2008
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14.5
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Personal Respnsibility
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A friend of mine sent me this. Yeah, it's one of those mass e-mail types, and I almost always delete those forwards, but for whatever reason, I read this one and found myself laughing at this story, and at the same time marveling at just how one-target it is.
The Donkey
One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a
Well. The animal cried piteously for hours as
The farmer tried to figure out what to do.
Finally, he decided the animal was old, and the
Well needed to be covered up anyway;
It just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey.
He invited all his neighbors to come over and
Help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began
To shovel dirt into the well. At first, the
Donkey realized what was happening and cried
Horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement he
Quieted down.
A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally
Looked down the well. He was astonished at what
He saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit his
Back, the donkey was doing something amazing.
He would shake it off and take a step up.
As the farmer's neighbors continued to shovel
Dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it
Off and take a step up.
Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey
Stepped up o ver the edge of the well and
Happily trotted off!
Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds
Of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well
Is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of
Our troubles is a steppingstone. We can get out
Of the deepest wells just by not stopping,
Never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up.
Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
Free your heart from hatred - Forgive.
Free your mind from worries - Most never happen.
Live simply and appreciate what you have.
Give more.
... read entire entry
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on 4/18/2008
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6
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Brain fitness: you workout on a regular basis, but have you given any thought to your brain?
brain fitness
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Not long ago, most scientists believed the brain became “hard-wired” during childhood, and that there was little you could do to improve its function once you entered adulthood. Not anymore. The scientific community now accepts that the brain retains its plasticity—the ability to rewire itself for better function—throughout life. Here are some "exercises" you can do to keep your brain as fit as your body.
The task: Add some dark chocolate to your diet.
The reason: When you eat chocolate you activate the systems in your brain that pump dopamine, an important brain chemical. These systems enable learning and memory, and help keep your brain sharp and fit
The task: Go on a guided tour of a museum or another site of interest. Pay careful attention to what the guide says. When you get home, try to reconstrucft the tour by writing an outline that includes everything you remember.
The reason: Research into brain plasticity (the ability of the brain to change at any age) indicates that memory activities that engage all levels of brain operation—receiving, remembering and thinking—help to improve the function (and hinder the rate of decline) of the brain.
The task: Choose a song with lyrics you enjoy but don’t have memorized. Listen to the song as many times as necessary to write down all the lyrics. Then learn to sing along. Once you’ve mastered one song, move on to another!
The reason: Developing better habits of careful listening will help you in your understanding, thinking and remembering. Reconstructing the song requires close attentional focus and an active memory. When you focus, you release the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, a brain chemical that enables plasticity and vivifies memory.
The task: Sit in a place outside your house, such as on a park bench or in a café. Stare straight ahead and don’t move your eyes. Concentrate on everything you can see without moving your eyes, including in y... read entire entry
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on 4/15/2008
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5.1
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Brother v. Brother: The story behind the Adidas - Puma Rivalry
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Adidas and Puma may be among the most recognized brands in the world, but neither might exist if not for a bitter rivalry between two brothers from a little-known village in Germany. In the 1920s, Adolf (Adi) Dassler, a soft-spoken sports fanatic who spent hours working on shoe designs in his workshop, and Rudolf Dassler, a gregarious salesman, started a small shoemaking business in the Bavarian enclave of Herzogenaurach, focusing primarily on hand-sewn athletic footwear. But as their business took off, the two brothers grew increasingly frustrated with each other. They disagreed on everything from politics, the future of the company and one another's choice in wives.
Finally, in the mid-1940s Rudolf left in a huff and set up a rival shop across the river, while Adi remained in the initial plant. His company was renamed Adidas, and in 1948 Rudolf registered his new company, Puma. NEWSWEEK's Jennifer Barrett spoke with Barbara Smit, author of the new book "Sneaker Wars" (Ecco; $26.95), about how a family feud spawned two of the biggest brands in global sports.
I thought this was such an interesting story. It appeared in Newsweek magazine. If you're interested, here's a link the the article in its entirety.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/132068
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on 4/15/2008
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3.9
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Strength: It's in the recovery, not the workout!
workout, strength, recovery, nutrition, protein
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Did you know that it's not your workout that makes you stronger? Although aerobic exercise and strength training are essential, your strength and fitness gains are actually made during your recovery from a workout, not the workout itself.
You can maximize your fitness and strength gains from every workout by making sure your body actually recovers from the stress and challenges of your training. To do this, it is important to understand the nature of your muscles. Your muscles are packed with an energy source called glycogen. Glycogen is a form of sugar that your body uses as a fuel during exercise. While you exercise, your glycogen stores decrease but they can be replenished during your recovery from exercise. When you finish exercising and consume a meal containing carbohydrates, sugars pass through the blood stream, and eventually enter your muscle cells where they are converted to glycogen. Soon you can use this glycogen as the fuel for your next workout. The replenishment of your muscle glycogen is maximized in a short window of opportunity within one hour of your workout, so it is important to consume a meal or snack containing carbohydrates as soon as you leave the gym.
During rigorous exercise, you are actually creating small micro-tears in your muscle fibers. When your body repairs these micro-tears, the result is increased strength and lean muscle mass. However, to repair these muscle fibers, your body must have the amino acids from proteins to use as building blocks. Amino acids are smaller molecules that connect together in a specific sequence to create proteins throughout your body. When you eat a meal consuming proteins, they are broken down into amino acids, pass through your blood stream, and used throughout your body to build new proteins specific to your genetic make-up. Again, this is a time sensitive process and you need to supply your body with these essential amino acids soon after you finish your workout by consumin... read entire entry
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on 4/14/2008
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5.8
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Smile If You Want To Be Healthy
oral health, heart disease, gums, prevention, dentists
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Yeah, a positive attitude is a sign of a healthy person, but that's not what this post refers to. Did you know that poor oral hygiene can compromise your overall health?
The Importance of Oral Health to Overall Health
Oral health means more than just an attractive smile. Poor oral health and untreated oral diseases and conditions can have a significant impact on quality of life. And in many cases, the condition of the mouth mirrors the condition of the body as a whole. Recent reports indicate a relationship between periodontal (gum) disease and stroke, heart disease and preterm low-birth-weight babies. Likewise, more than 90 percent of all systemic diseases have oral manifestations, meaning your dentist may be the first health care provider to diagnose a health problem.
What problems can poor oral health cause?
According to the Surgeon General's report on oral health in America, released in 2000, a large percentage of the population suffers from a reduced quality of life due to oral and facial pain. This pain is largely due to infections of the gums that can lead to tooth loss. More than 75 percent of the population is affected by some type of gum disease.
Reports show that infections in the mouth can affect major organs. For example, oral bacteria can travel through the bloodstream to the heart, where they can cause bacterial endocarditis, a condition in which the lining of the heart and heart valves become inflamed. Poor mouth care also can contribute to oral cancer. In addition, poor oral health affects the digestive process, which begins with physical and chemical activities in the mouth.
What symptoms of other diseases show up in the mouth?
Mouth tissues reflect symptoms of other problems throughout the body. In addition, many diseases can be diagnosed in their early stages... read entire entry
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on 4/10/2008
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13.3
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Jitters Upon Coffee Jitters
coffee, saturated fat, calories, trans fat, nutrition facts
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Coffee Creamers: New report finds hidden calories and fat
Ok, I'll admit it - I'm hopelessly addicted to caffeine. But not just any caffeine; I NEED MY COFFEE! Besides my morning workout, the day just hasn't started for me until I've had a steamy cup of brewed perfection. Yeah, it's a vice, but it isn't too bad for me - or is it?!
It seems innocent enough - just adding a little cream to your coffee can’t hurt, right? After all, some nutrition labels list a measly 10 calories and half a gram of saturated fat per serving. But both your serving size and the labels might deceive you, according to a new report on coffee creamers from the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).
CSPI finds Nestle rounds down the calories in its Original Coffee-mate powder - from 14.83 calories to 10 - and the 0.99 grams of saturated fat is rounded down to 0.5 grams per one teaspoon serving. But the truth is most people actually use about a tablespoon.
Anyone glancing at the Nutrition Facts label for most of these coffee creamers would have a false sense of security. If you use one tablespoon of the Original Coffee-mate, it adds up to 45 calories and three grams of saturated fat - more than the 40 calories and 2.1 grams of saturated fat in two tablespoons of half & half. Three or four servings of coffee creamer a day and before you know it you’ve had half a day’s allotment of saturated fat.
The CSPI report finds some Coffee-mate products and other brands are lower in saturated and trans fat. But after reviewing several popular liquid and powder coffee creamers, the only “Best Bite” ratings (this means no partially hydrogenated oil, i.e. trans fat, and no more than 0.6 grams of saturated fat per serving) go to International Delight Fat Free and Silk liquid creamers… as well as plain old fat-free, 1%, 2%, or even whole milk, and fat-free half & half from Land O’Lakes and some store brands. Something to keep in ... read entire entry
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on 4/9/2008
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16.6
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Sports Drinks, Energy Drinks, Recovery Drinks - What's the difference?
sports drinks, hydration, energy drinks, recovery drinks
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Sports drinks jargon buster
With so many sports drinks on the market, it’s easy to become confused about which type is best suited to your needs. Isotonic, energy and recovery drinks can all be used to promote hydration, but tend to have slightly differing effects. It’s important to understand, though, that these categories can overlap – eg energy drinks containing relatively small amounts of carbohydrate can be almost isotonic – so the distinctions here should serve as a guide only.
Isotonic drinks provide the body with water, energy and electrolytes in a form enabling the water to be absorbed as rapidly as possible. Studies have shown that fluid is rapidly emptied from the stomach when it contains roughly the same concentration of dissolved substances as that of blood serum – a value of 280 milli-osmoles/kg for you technophiles out there! At this concentration, a drink is said to be ‘isotonic’ or at the same concentration as your body fluids. During exercise, energy in the form of carbohydrate, and electrolyte minerals, such as sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium, are lost along with water. When these substances are dissolved in water at an isotonic concentration they not only help replace lost fluid more rapidly than even plain water but also help replace some of the lost energy and minerals. However, research has demonstrated that drinks containing dissolved glucose at higher than isotonic concentrations (up to 5%) can be emptied from the stomach just as rapidly, and can therefore replace lost energy more rapidly. Although not strictly isotonic, these drinks offer all the fluid replacement benefits of isotonic drinks and are often marketed as such.
Energy drinks are less about replacing lost fluid and more about keeping the working muscles supplied with energy during very long and sustained workouts. Energy drinks need to contain much higher concentrations of soluble carbohydrates than isotonic drinks, because an isotonic solution ... read entire entry
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on 4/3/2008
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11.1
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Proper Hydration for Exercise
hydration, water, sports drinks, workout intensity
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What and when athletes drink depends upon exercise duration and intensity
Water is the most essential ingredient to a healthy life. Water has many important functions in the body including:
Transportation of nutrients / elimination of waste products.
Lubricating joints and tissues.
Temperature regulation through sweating.
Facilitating digestion.
Importance of Water During Exercise
Proper hydration is especially important during exercise. Adequate fluid intake for athletes is essential to comfort, performance and safety. The longer and more intensely you exercise, the more important it is to drink the right kind of fluids.
Dehydration
Athletes need to stay hydrated for optimal performance. Studies have found that a loss of two or more percent of one's body weight due to sweating is linked to a drop in blood volume.
When this occurs, the heart works harder to move blood through the bloodstream. This can also cause muscle cramps, dizziness and fatigue and even heat illness including:
Heat Exhaustion
Heat Stroke
Causes of Dehydration
Inadequate fluid intake
Excessive sweating
Failure to replace fluid losses during and after exercise
Exercising in dry, hot weather
Drinking only when thirsty
Hyponatremia - Water Intoxication
Although rare, recreational exercisers are also at risk of drinking too much water and suffering from hyponatremia or water intoxication. Clearly, drinking the right amount of the right fluids is critical for performance and safety while exercising.
Adequate Fluid Intake for for Athletes
Because there is wide variability in sweat rates, losses and hydration levels of individuals, it is nearly impossible to provide specific recommendations or guidelines about the type or amount of fluids athletes should consume.
Finding the right amount of... read entire entry
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on 4/1/2008
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12.4
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Secrets to Building Workout Intensity
workout, pain, muscle fatigue, intensity, mental preparation
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Secret #1 Apply intensity with success
Working out with intensity is a process. You can't simply decide to go for it; you have to build up to full intensity by first developing the physical skills and strength needed.
Intensity is the application of maximum physical effort systematically applied to a technically developed motor skill. This means you must be experienced in a technique before intensity is applied. For example, if you're inexperienced at weight lifting but attempt a maximum deadlift with bad form, you risk injury. However, performing a maximum deadlift with expert skill and good form can actually help prevent training accidents.
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Secret #2: Going for the Gold
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Before you can be the best that you can be, you must first master the physical discomfort associated with intense physical activity. "No pain, no gain" refers to the mental development of pain tolerance to push your muscular endurance to the absolute limits of failure - thereby stimulating muscle growth.
Strength and endurance athletes use such terms as "pushing it to the limit", "to the max", and "hitting the wall" to describe these upper limits of performance. However, these don't imply reckless and dangerous techniques for maximum performance at any cost. Just the opposite. With regard to exercise, the terms refer to the skilled use of weight training techniques systematically applied to a working muscle group sufficient to cause temporary failure - without causing muscular injury. Therefore, you need to distinguish muscle burn and muscle fatigue from the pain of injury.
The burn from muscle fatigue subsides within 20-30 seconds, whereas injury pain is pronounced, sharp and continuous. Know your p... read entire entry
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on 4/1/2008
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3.6
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