Tai Chi is, for my money, THE BEST way to keep your mind focused and "in the moment". This study shows what happens inf your mind wanders:
'Wandering minds' make people unhappy:
WASHINGTON (AFP) - – A US study out Thursday suggests that people spend about half of their time thinking about being somewhere else, or doing something other than what they are doing, and this perpetual act of mind-wandering makes them unhappy.
"A human mind is a wandering mind, and a wandering mind is an unhappy mind," wrote psychologists Matthew Killingsworth and Daniel Gilbert of Harvard University in the journal Science.
"The ability to think about what is not happening is a cognitive achievement that comes at an emotional cost."
The study tracked 2,250 people via the trendy iPhone gadgets using an application, or app, that contacted volunteers at "random intervals to ask how happy they were, what they were currently doing, and whether they were thinking about their current activity or something else that was pleasant, neutral or unpleasant."
When the results were tallied, people had answered that their minds were wandering 46.9 percent of the time.
Subjects reported being happiest while having sex, exercising or having a conversation. They reported being least happy while using a home computer, resting or working.
By examining the mind-wandering responses, researchers found that "only 4.6 percent of a person's happiness in a given moment was attributable to the specific activity he or she was doing, whereas a person's mind-wandering status accounted for about 10.8 percent of his or her happiness."
The study said "time-lag analyses" suggested that "subjects' mind-wandering was generally the cause, not the consequence, of their unhappiness."
Subjects tended to be most focused on the present, and least prone to mind-wandering, during sex, the study noted. During every other activity, minds were wandering no less than 30 percent of the time.
Seventy-four percent of those followed in the study were American, the researchers said, adding that the subjects came from a "wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds and occupations."
"Mind-wandering is an excellent predictor of people's happiness," said Killingsworth.
"This study shows that our mental lives are pervaded, to a remarkable degree, by the non-present."
The application is available at www.trackyourhappiness.org.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Personal Trainers How Don't Train Correctly
I was just working out in the gym and saw a trainer working with somebody whom I know. They were doing abs. It was a poor work out by my standards in both technique and methodology. But to make it (FAR) worse, I was leaving the gym and saw the person again and told her that I would call her to give her some pointers. She told me that she was going back in to do legs. This AFTER doing abs!!! This is TOTALLY horrible. Abs should ALWAYS be done LAST in your workout...PERIOD!! They are the support system for everything that you do. If you are going to do squats with fatigued abs...I smell potential injury!
Another day I saw a client doing her abs with a trainer and she had a towel around the back Of her head and to her hands. She was pulling on the towel to aid in her crunches. The potential for injury here is ridiculous! How a trainer could do such a thing is beyond me.
People, PLEASE do your own research and go into your work outs with some knowledge of hwo to train. Don't take these 'experts' for everything they say. Unlkike medical (where there is a bit more professional standards) these trainers do what they want and don't always follow BASIC principles.
FIRST- BIGGEST MUSCLES to SMALLEST. Legs, Back, Chest, Shoulders, Arms, Abs.
Second- Don't support your head doing abs. If your neck muscles aren't strong enough to do this don't you think they should be?
There are more things that I could go on about but keep these in mind for a much SAFER work out!
Another day I saw a client doing her abs with a trainer and she had a towel around the back Of her head and to her hands. She was pulling on the towel to aid in her crunches. The potential for injury here is ridiculous! How a trainer could do such a thing is beyond me.
People, PLEASE do your own research and go into your work outs with some knowledge of hwo to train. Don't take these 'experts' for everything they say. Unlkike medical (where there is a bit more professional standards) these trainers do what they want and don't always follow BASIC principles.
FIRST- BIGGEST MUSCLES to SMALLEST. Legs, Back, Chest, Shoulders, Arms, Abs.
Second- Don't support your head doing abs. If your neck muscles aren't strong enough to do this don't you think they should be?
There are more things that I could go on about but keep these in mind for a much SAFER work out!
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Dont Just Take My Word on Tai Chi
Here's another article about the benefits of Tai Chi Practice:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/28/health/28brody.html?_r=1&ref=health
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/28/health/28brody.html?_r=1&ref=health
Friday, September 17, 2010
Exercise for Children
As many times as I have said it, now it is PROVEN!!! WHY, then, are they continuing to remove Phys Ed from schools?
Children’s brain development is linked to physical fitness
University of Illinois psychology professor and Beckman Institute director Art Kramer and his colleagues found differences in the brains of physically fit children and their less-fit peers.
Photo by
L. Brian Stauffer
University of Illinois psychology professor and Beckman Institute director Art Kramer and his colleagues found differences in the brains of physically fit children and their less-fit peers.
CHAMPAIGN, lll. – Researchers have found an association between physical fitness and the brain in 9- and 10-year-old children: Those who are more fit tend to have a bigger hippocampus and perform better on a test of memory than their less-fit peers.
A bigger hippocampus in nine- and ten-year-old children appears to boost their performance on a relational memory task, said University of Illinois doctoral student Laura Chaddock
A bigger hippocampus in nine- and ten-year-old children appears to boost their performance on a relational memory task, said University of Illinois doctoral student Laura Chaddock. | Photo courtesy Laura Chaddock
The new study, which used magnetic resonance imaging to measure the relative size of specific structures in the brains of 49 child subjects, appears in the journal Brain Research.
“This is the first study I know of that has used MRI measures to look at differences in brain between kids who are fit and kids who aren’t fit,” said University of Illinois psychology professor and Beckman Institute director Art Kramer, who led the study with doctoral student Laura Chaddock and kinesiology and community health professor Charles Hillman. “Beyond that, it relates those measures of brain structure to cognition.”
The study focused on the hippocampus, a structure tucked deep in the brain, because it is known to be important in learning and memory. Previous studies in older adults and in animals have shown that exercise can increase the size of the hippocampus. A bigger hippocampus is associated with better performance on spatial reasoning and other cognitive tasks.
“In animal studies, exercise has been shown to specifically affect the hippocampus, significantly increasing the growth of new neurons and cell survival, enhancing memory and learning, and increasing molecules that are involved in the plasticity of the brain,” Chaddock said.
Rather than relying on second-hand reports of children’s physical activity level, the researchers measured how efficiently the subjects used oxygen while running on a treadmill.
“This is the gold standard measure of fitness,” Chaddock said.
The physically fit children were “much more efficient than the less-fit children at utilizing oxygen,” Kramer said.
When they analyzed the MRI data, the researchers found that the physically fit children tended to have bigger hippocampal volume – about 12 percent bigger relative to total brain size – than their out-of-shape peers.
The children who were in better physical condition also did better on tests of relational memory – the ability to remember and integrate various types of information – than their less-fit peers.
“Higher fit children had higher performance on the relational memory task, higher fit children had larger hippocampal volumes, and in general, children with larger hippocampal volumes had better relational memory,” Chaddock said.
Further analyses indicated that a bigger hippocampus boosted performance on the relational memory task.
“If you remove hippocampal volume from the equation,” Chaddock said, “the relationship between fitness and memory decreases.”
The new findings suggest that interventions to increase childhood physical activity could have an important effect on brain development, Kramer said.
“We knew that experience and environmental factors and socioeconomic status all impact brain development,” he said.
“If you get some lousy genes from your parents, you can’t really fix that, and it’s not easy to do something about your economic status. But here’s something that we can do something about,” Kramer said.
Children’s brain development is linked to physical fitness
University of Illinois psychology professor and Beckman Institute director Art Kramer and his colleagues found differences in the brains of physically fit children and their less-fit peers.
Photo by
L. Brian Stauffer
University of Illinois psychology professor and Beckman Institute director Art Kramer and his colleagues found differences in the brains of physically fit children and their less-fit peers.
CHAMPAIGN, lll. – Researchers have found an association between physical fitness and the brain in 9- and 10-year-old children: Those who are more fit tend to have a bigger hippocampus and perform better on a test of memory than their less-fit peers.
A bigger hippocampus in nine- and ten-year-old children appears to boost their performance on a relational memory task, said University of Illinois doctoral student Laura Chaddock
A bigger hippocampus in nine- and ten-year-old children appears to boost their performance on a relational memory task, said University of Illinois doctoral student Laura Chaddock. | Photo courtesy Laura Chaddock
The new study, which used magnetic resonance imaging to measure the relative size of specific structures in the brains of 49 child subjects, appears in the journal Brain Research.
“This is the first study I know of that has used MRI measures to look at differences in brain between kids who are fit and kids who aren’t fit,” said University of Illinois psychology professor and Beckman Institute director Art Kramer, who led the study with doctoral student Laura Chaddock and kinesiology and community health professor Charles Hillman. “Beyond that, it relates those measures of brain structure to cognition.”
The study focused on the hippocampus, a structure tucked deep in the brain, because it is known to be important in learning and memory. Previous studies in older adults and in animals have shown that exercise can increase the size of the hippocampus. A bigger hippocampus is associated with better performance on spatial reasoning and other cognitive tasks.
“In animal studies, exercise has been shown to specifically affect the hippocampus, significantly increasing the growth of new neurons and cell survival, enhancing memory and learning, and increasing molecules that are involved in the plasticity of the brain,” Chaddock said.
Rather than relying on second-hand reports of children’s physical activity level, the researchers measured how efficiently the subjects used oxygen while running on a treadmill.
“This is the gold standard measure of fitness,” Chaddock said.
The physically fit children were “much more efficient than the less-fit children at utilizing oxygen,” Kramer said.
When they analyzed the MRI data, the researchers found that the physically fit children tended to have bigger hippocampal volume – about 12 percent bigger relative to total brain size – than their out-of-shape peers.
The children who were in better physical condition also did better on tests of relational memory – the ability to remember and integrate various types of information – than their less-fit peers.
“Higher fit children had higher performance on the relational memory task, higher fit children had larger hippocampal volumes, and in general, children with larger hippocampal volumes had better relational memory,” Chaddock said.
Further analyses indicated that a bigger hippocampus boosted performance on the relational memory task.
“If you remove hippocampal volume from the equation,” Chaddock said, “the relationship between fitness and memory decreases.”
The new findings suggest that interventions to increase childhood physical activity could have an important effect on brain development, Kramer said.
“We knew that experience and environmental factors and socioeconomic status all impact brain development,” he said.
“If you get some lousy genes from your parents, you can’t really fix that, and it’s not easy to do something about your economic status. But here’s something that we can do something about,” Kramer said.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Why NOT to Stretch Before Exercise
While I have been saying and practicing this for years, it is very nice to see that somebody did a study that backs me up:
Phys Ed: Does Stretching Before Running Prevent Injuries?
By GRETCHEN REYNOLDS
Angela Jimenez/Getty Images
Should you stretch before a run? That question, which has prompted countless academic studies, debates and inter-running-partner squabbles, is now at the heart of a notable new study published in August on the Web site of USA Track and Field, the sport’s national governing body. The study, one of the largest of its kind, involved almost 1,400 runners, from age 13 to past 60, who were assigned randomly to two groups. The first group did not stretch before their runs, while otherwise maintaining their normal workout routine: the same mileage, warm-up (minus any stretching) and so on. The second group stretched, having received photographs and specific instructions for a series of simple, traditional poses, like leaning over and touching toes, that focused on the calf, hamstring and quadriceps muscles. The volunteers were told to hold each stretch for 20 seconds, a technique known as static stretching. The entire routine required three to five minutes and was to be completed immediately before a run.
Phys Ed
The volunteers followed their assigned regimens for three months. Predictably, since running, as a sport, has a high injury rate, quite a few became injured during the three months. About 16 percent of the group that didn’t stretch were hobbled badly enough to miss training for at least three days (the researchers’ definition of a running injury), while about 16 percent of the group that did stretch were laid up for the same amount of time. The percentages, in other words, were virtually identical. Static stretching had proved to be a wash in terms of protecting against injury. It “neither prevented nor induced injury when compared with not stretching before running,” the study’s authors concluded, raising the obvious corollary, so why in the world do so many of us still stretch?
Stretching is, of course, a contentious issue in sports. The bulk of the available science strongly suggests that static stretching before a workout not only does not prevent overuse injuries but also may actually hinder athletic performance. “There is a very important neurological effect of stretching,” said Ross Tucker, a physiologist in South Africa and co-author of the Web site The Science of Sport. “There is a reflex that prevents the muscle from being stretched too much,” which is activated by static stretching, inducing the muscle to become, in effect, tighter in self-protection. Past studies have found that athletes’ vertical jump is lower after a bout of static stretching than with no stretching at all. They can’t generate as much power. Meanwhile, other studies have found, like the new track and field association report, that static stretching seems to have little benefit in terms of injury prevention, particularly against the overuse injuries common in running. “The findings of this present study are totally in line with the existing literature,” said Malachy McHugh, the director of research at the Nicholas Institute of Sports Medicine and Athletic Trauma and the lead author of a comprehensive new review of decades’ worth of stretching research published in April in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports.
Related
* More Phys Ed columns
* Faster, Higher, Stronger
* Fitness and Nutrition News
But many people remain fiercely attached to their stretching routines. “It was really hard to recruit runners” who, used to stretching, would agree to be randomly assigned to the nonstretching group, said Alan Roth, a former board member of USA Track and Field and coordinator of the study. Once they understood that they might be required to not stretch for three months, they declined to participate. It took the researchers more than two years to coax enough runners to join and complete the study, generating enough data for meaningful results.
And the results are “meaningful,” according to Dr. Dan Pereles, an orthopedic surgeon in the Washington area who originated and led the study. “I had gone into this thinking that stretching would prevent injuries. I was fairly sure of it. But that’s not what we found.” Instead, static stretching provided no particular benefit. On the other hand, it didn’t cause harm, either.
One anomalous finding of the USA Track and Field study was that runners who were used to stretching and were assigned to the nonstretching group became injured at a disproportionately high rate. Almost 23 percent of them wound up hurting themselves during the three months. But no experts associated with the study or who have read the results believe that this finding intimates that stretching had been keeping them uninjured in the past. More likely, Dr. McHugh said, they fell victim to a training error, which, he explained, “in reality can mean any abrupt change in training patterns. Your body adapts to its routine, and if that routine is monotonously habitual as with many runners, it doesn’t take much of a change to cause an injury.”
So is the primary takeaway of the USA Track and Field study that, whatever you’re doing now in terms of stretching or not stretching, don’t stop? Possibly, but most physiologists, taking a broader view of the available science, would probably say no. “In all our involvement with elite athletes now, we don’t do this kind of static stretching anymore,” Dr. Tucker said. Instead, the best science suggests that an ideal preworkout routine “consists of a very easy warm-up, followed by a gradual increase in intensity and then dynamic stretching,” he said. Dynamic stretching, or exercises that increase your joints’ range of motion via constant movement, does not seem to invoke the inhibitory reflex of static stretching, Dr. Tucker said. When “you stretch through movement, you involve the brain much more, teaching proprioception and control, as well as improving flexibility.”
In practice, dynamic stretching would mean that, instead of leaning over and touching your toes or pushing against a wall to stretch your calves before running, you might raise your leg before you in a marching motion, and then swing it back, in a well-controlled arc, suggested Phil Wharton, a neuromuscular therapist and founder, with his father, Jim, of the Wharton Performance clinic in New York City. Or lift your leg to the side and scissor it in front of you to warm up the hip joint.
But make any such alterations to your routine gradually, with circumspection. If there’s one lesson from the USA Track and Field study, said Dr. Pereles, it is that “sudden changes are probably not a good idea.”
Phys Ed: Does Stretching Before Running Prevent Injuries?
By GRETCHEN REYNOLDS
Angela Jimenez/Getty Images
Should you stretch before a run? That question, which has prompted countless academic studies, debates and inter-running-partner squabbles, is now at the heart of a notable new study published in August on the Web site of USA Track and Field, the sport’s national governing body. The study, one of the largest of its kind, involved almost 1,400 runners, from age 13 to past 60, who were assigned randomly to two groups. The first group did not stretch before their runs, while otherwise maintaining their normal workout routine: the same mileage, warm-up (minus any stretching) and so on. The second group stretched, having received photographs and specific instructions for a series of simple, traditional poses, like leaning over and touching toes, that focused on the calf, hamstring and quadriceps muscles. The volunteers were told to hold each stretch for 20 seconds, a technique known as static stretching. The entire routine required three to five minutes and was to be completed immediately before a run.
Phys Ed
The volunteers followed their assigned regimens for three months. Predictably, since running, as a sport, has a high injury rate, quite a few became injured during the three months. About 16 percent of the group that didn’t stretch were hobbled badly enough to miss training for at least three days (the researchers’ definition of a running injury), while about 16 percent of the group that did stretch were laid up for the same amount of time. The percentages, in other words, were virtually identical. Static stretching had proved to be a wash in terms of protecting against injury. It “neither prevented nor induced injury when compared with not stretching before running,” the study’s authors concluded, raising the obvious corollary, so why in the world do so many of us still stretch?
Stretching is, of course, a contentious issue in sports. The bulk of the available science strongly suggests that static stretching before a workout not only does not prevent overuse injuries but also may actually hinder athletic performance. “There is a very important neurological effect of stretching,” said Ross Tucker, a physiologist in South Africa and co-author of the Web site The Science of Sport. “There is a reflex that prevents the muscle from being stretched too much,” which is activated by static stretching, inducing the muscle to become, in effect, tighter in self-protection. Past studies have found that athletes’ vertical jump is lower after a bout of static stretching than with no stretching at all. They can’t generate as much power. Meanwhile, other studies have found, like the new track and field association report, that static stretching seems to have little benefit in terms of injury prevention, particularly against the overuse injuries common in running. “The findings of this present study are totally in line with the existing literature,” said Malachy McHugh, the director of research at the Nicholas Institute of Sports Medicine and Athletic Trauma and the lead author of a comprehensive new review of decades’ worth of stretching research published in April in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports.
Related
* More Phys Ed columns
* Faster, Higher, Stronger
* Fitness and Nutrition News
But many people remain fiercely attached to their stretching routines. “It was really hard to recruit runners” who, used to stretching, would agree to be randomly assigned to the nonstretching group, said Alan Roth, a former board member of USA Track and Field and coordinator of the study. Once they understood that they might be required to not stretch for three months, they declined to participate. It took the researchers more than two years to coax enough runners to join and complete the study, generating enough data for meaningful results.
And the results are “meaningful,” according to Dr. Dan Pereles, an orthopedic surgeon in the Washington area who originated and led the study. “I had gone into this thinking that stretching would prevent injuries. I was fairly sure of it. But that’s not what we found.” Instead, static stretching provided no particular benefit. On the other hand, it didn’t cause harm, either.
One anomalous finding of the USA Track and Field study was that runners who were used to stretching and were assigned to the nonstretching group became injured at a disproportionately high rate. Almost 23 percent of them wound up hurting themselves during the three months. But no experts associated with the study or who have read the results believe that this finding intimates that stretching had been keeping them uninjured in the past. More likely, Dr. McHugh said, they fell victim to a training error, which, he explained, “in reality can mean any abrupt change in training patterns. Your body adapts to its routine, and if that routine is monotonously habitual as with many runners, it doesn’t take much of a change to cause an injury.”
So is the primary takeaway of the USA Track and Field study that, whatever you’re doing now in terms of stretching or not stretching, don’t stop? Possibly, but most physiologists, taking a broader view of the available science, would probably say no. “In all our involvement with elite athletes now, we don’t do this kind of static stretching anymore,” Dr. Tucker said. Instead, the best science suggests that an ideal preworkout routine “consists of a very easy warm-up, followed by a gradual increase in intensity and then dynamic stretching,” he said. Dynamic stretching, or exercises that increase your joints’ range of motion via constant movement, does not seem to invoke the inhibitory reflex of static stretching, Dr. Tucker said. When “you stretch through movement, you involve the brain much more, teaching proprioception and control, as well as improving flexibility.”
In practice, dynamic stretching would mean that, instead of leaning over and touching your toes or pushing against a wall to stretch your calves before running, you might raise your leg before you in a marching motion, and then swing it back, in a well-controlled arc, suggested Phil Wharton, a neuromuscular therapist and founder, with his father, Jim, of the Wharton Performance clinic in New York City. Or lift your leg to the side and scissor it in front of you to warm up the hip joint.
But make any such alterations to your routine gradually, with circumspection. If there’s one lesson from the USA Track and Field study, said Dr. Pereles, it is that “sudden changes are probably not a good idea.”
Friday, August 6, 2010
Cardio Myths!!
Here's an article that is on the money regarding many of the myths regarding Cardio work-outs and their 'fat burning' abilities:
Posted: August 5, 2010 07:00 AM
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Debunking Cardio Myths for Weight Loss
Numerous myths surround cardiovascular exercise and its ability to burn fat, such as, "You only burn fat when you exercise in the fat burning zone," and "You don't begin to burn fat until after 20 minutes into a workout." Instead of looking at cardio's ability to burn fat, shift your focus to how many calories it burns. Because a pound of fat equals about 3,500 calories, the more calories your cardio workouts burn, the more fat you'll lose. Boost the calorie burn by adding intensity and interval training.
Types
Running delivers an effective fat-burning cardiovascular workout, but cycling, swimming, hiking, tennis and inline skating offer equivalent cardio benefits. But why limit yourself? Choose any other exercise performed at a high intensity with minimal rest for a potent fat-burning cardio workout.
Intensity
Although walking provides a light to moderate cardiovascular workout that may keep you from gaining weight, you need greater intensity to lose weight, according to a study in the October 2005 issue of the Journal of Applied Physiology. Researchers from Duke University Medical Center studied overweight adults and found that only jogging 20 miles per week -- equivalent to four, one-hour workouts at a pace of five miles per hour -- burned belly fat when compared with a walking workout of only 12 miles per week -- equivalent to four one-hour workouts at a pace of three miles per hour. So, for the most effective cardio workout, step up your walk to a run.
Interval Training
The Journal of Applied Physiology published a study in its Dec. 7, 2006, issue indicating that the most effective fat-burning cardio exercise utilizes interval training. After two weeks of seven workouts, study participants' fat oxidation increased by 36 percent during exercise. Incorporate interval training into your workouts by sprinting for two to four minutes followed by a recovery period of equivalent duration. Do this for an hour every other day, and within two weeks your body will have increased its cardiovascular capacity and fat-burning ability.
Benefits
To increase the effectiveness of your cardiovascular exercise, perform a circuit training workout. The Journal of Sports Science and Medicine published a study indicating that concurrent cardio and weight training resulted in a significant reduction in total calories consumed, about 500 each day.
Misconceptions
The mythical "fat-burning zone" persists because of a kernel of scientific truth: Fat oxidation requires oxygen, which is available at lower intensities. However, when you're working above 75 percent of your maximum heart rate, your body receives energy from stored carbohydrates, according to the National Academy of Sports Medicine. Regardless of the source, burning energy creates a calorie deficit. The greater the deficit, the greater the fat stores used to replenish it.
References
Posted: August 5, 2010 07:00 AM
BIO Become a Fan
Get Email Alerts Bloggers' Index
Debunking Cardio Myths for Weight Loss
Numerous myths surround cardiovascular exercise and its ability to burn fat, such as, "You only burn fat when you exercise in the fat burning zone," and "You don't begin to burn fat until after 20 minutes into a workout." Instead of looking at cardio's ability to burn fat, shift your focus to how many calories it burns. Because a pound of fat equals about 3,500 calories, the more calories your cardio workouts burn, the more fat you'll lose. Boost the calorie burn by adding intensity and interval training.
Types
Running delivers an effective fat-burning cardiovascular workout, but cycling, swimming, hiking, tennis and inline skating offer equivalent cardio benefits. But why limit yourself? Choose any other exercise performed at a high intensity with minimal rest for a potent fat-burning cardio workout.
Intensity
Although walking provides a light to moderate cardiovascular workout that may keep you from gaining weight, you need greater intensity to lose weight, according to a study in the October 2005 issue of the Journal of Applied Physiology. Researchers from Duke University Medical Center studied overweight adults and found that only jogging 20 miles per week -- equivalent to four, one-hour workouts at a pace of five miles per hour -- burned belly fat when compared with a walking workout of only 12 miles per week -- equivalent to four one-hour workouts at a pace of three miles per hour. So, for the most effective cardio workout, step up your walk to a run.
Interval Training
The Journal of Applied Physiology published a study in its Dec. 7, 2006, issue indicating that the most effective fat-burning cardio exercise utilizes interval training. After two weeks of seven workouts, study participants' fat oxidation increased by 36 percent during exercise. Incorporate interval training into your workouts by sprinting for two to four minutes followed by a recovery period of equivalent duration. Do this for an hour every other day, and within two weeks your body will have increased its cardiovascular capacity and fat-burning ability.
Benefits
To increase the effectiveness of your cardiovascular exercise, perform a circuit training workout. The Journal of Sports Science and Medicine published a study indicating that concurrent cardio and weight training resulted in a significant reduction in total calories consumed, about 500 each day.
Misconceptions
The mythical "fat-burning zone" persists because of a kernel of scientific truth: Fat oxidation requires oxygen, which is available at lower intensities. However, when you're working above 75 percent of your maximum heart rate, your body receives energy from stored carbohydrates, according to the National Academy of Sports Medicine. Regardless of the source, burning energy creates a calorie deficit. The greater the deficit, the greater the fat stores used to replenish it.
References
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Lost Life
It has been a while since i have posted but this one is, possibly, the most important and disturbing post that I have.
It starts with a client who was training with a few associates when I had my original school. She was over weight and very deconditioned. Her training lasted only a few months. She called me a year or two later and asked me to start training her again. She had put on a few pounds. This time she was "serious" and had me go to her office where she had limited equipment but felt that it would be better since she had less excuses if I was there. This lasted, again, only a few months. Once more a few years passed and she called me to have her go to her home which she had just purchased and had a full gym. Now we were "Serious!" She had the cardio equipment and weights and all that was needed was me to push her. Again, she lasted only a few months. And she put on more weight.
This January she called, once more. I was going to her house regularly and she was more determined. Her knees were hurting, she had a hard time setting out of a chair and going up stairs was nearly impossible. We were going well but she was frustrated. She wasn't eating well, getting enough sleep and only seeing me twice per week. Hence, no results. She started deliberating on getting a 'tummy tuck' procedure. My recommendations were against it but she felt that she needed to; Her research told her that once the procedure was done, her metabolism would increase and the lower body weight she had would make her exercise program easier so she would hasten her results. She didn't feel great about doing it but...
She had the procedure scheduled for the Friday before Memorial Day. I asked her to call me after and let me know how she was doing and when she would be able to start up training again. She told me that it would be only one week! PLUS, she would have some of her workers training with her. She was "Serious!"
By the Wednesday AFTER Memorial Day I still hadn't heard from her. I was getting concerned since she was a bit more professional not to call me. I called and got no answer. Left various texts and email...still nothing. Finally, this morning I got an answer on her cell phone but not from her. The person who answered informed me that she passed away 24 hours after the procedure. I didn't bother asking the cause since it was obvious.
The point of this is that it is up to you..EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU.. to maintain your health and not let ANYTHING prevent that. Don't fool yourself and say that you are happy with who you are, even if that "who" is 50 pounds too fat. Your, as a person, might be great but your BODY ISN'T!!!! DON'T continue those bad habits that got you there. DON'T continue to make excuses; I have to work, I can't make the time, exercise bores me...and countless others.
THERE IS NOTHING MORE IMPORTANT IN YOUR LIFE THAN YOUR HEALTH!!!!
Don't end up like my client and make excuses until you have a lost life, too!!!
It starts with a client who was training with a few associates when I had my original school. She was over weight and very deconditioned. Her training lasted only a few months. She called me a year or two later and asked me to start training her again. She had put on a few pounds. This time she was "serious" and had me go to her office where she had limited equipment but felt that it would be better since she had less excuses if I was there. This lasted, again, only a few months. Once more a few years passed and she called me to have her go to her home which she had just purchased and had a full gym. Now we were "Serious!" She had the cardio equipment and weights and all that was needed was me to push her. Again, she lasted only a few months. And she put on more weight.
This January she called, once more. I was going to her house regularly and she was more determined. Her knees were hurting, she had a hard time setting out of a chair and going up stairs was nearly impossible. We were going well but she was frustrated. She wasn't eating well, getting enough sleep and only seeing me twice per week. Hence, no results. She started deliberating on getting a 'tummy tuck' procedure. My recommendations were against it but she felt that she needed to; Her research told her that once the procedure was done, her metabolism would increase and the lower body weight she had would make her exercise program easier so she would hasten her results. She didn't feel great about doing it but...
She had the procedure scheduled for the Friday before Memorial Day. I asked her to call me after and let me know how she was doing and when she would be able to start up training again. She told me that it would be only one week! PLUS, she would have some of her workers training with her. She was "Serious!"
By the Wednesday AFTER Memorial Day I still hadn't heard from her. I was getting concerned since she was a bit more professional not to call me. I called and got no answer. Left various texts and email...still nothing. Finally, this morning I got an answer on her cell phone but not from her. The person who answered informed me that she passed away 24 hours after the procedure. I didn't bother asking the cause since it was obvious.
The point of this is that it is up to you..EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU.. to maintain your health and not let ANYTHING prevent that. Don't fool yourself and say that you are happy with who you are, even if that "who" is 50 pounds too fat. Your, as a person, might be great but your BODY ISN'T!!!! DON'T continue those bad habits that got you there. DON'T continue to make excuses; I have to work, I can't make the time, exercise bores me...and countless others.
THERE IS NOTHING MORE IMPORTANT IN YOUR LIFE THAN YOUR HEALTH!!!!
Don't end up like my client and make excuses until you have a lost life, too!!!
Friday, May 14, 2010
BMI Inaccurate
For those of you who use this scale for determining if you are too fat, please don't! I just read an article (http://cnsnews.com/news/article/65781) where the Federal Govt will determine grant money for the program for childhood obesity based on BMI. When I calculate my BMI it is 26.1- Overweight!!! They say that 24 is too fat. I am around 12% body fat.
When you measure if you are too fat...Do just that!!! Measure your body fat. There are many means to do this by; calipers, scales, hand held and, the most accurate is water weight. BMI is a lazy persons way and not accurate.
When you measure if you are too fat...Do just that!!! Measure your body fat. There are many means to do this by; calipers, scales, hand held and, the most accurate is water weight. BMI is a lazy persons way and not accurate.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Fat gene and Exercise
There is a gene that makes people fat! But, this shouldn't be use as an excuse to NOT exercise. Just the opposite, it means that they SHOULD!!!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100419/hl_nm/us_obesity_gene_brain_3
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100419/hl_nm/us_obesity_gene_brain_3
Friday, April 16, 2010
Running On Treadmils
Here's a very good article on treadmill running by my 'Mentor', Paul Juris.
http://media.cybexintl.com/cybexinstitute/research/Truth_on_Fit_Apr10.pdf
Please consider that you should NOT HOLD on while on a treadmill!
http://media.cybexintl.com/cybexinstitute/research/Truth_on_Fit_Apr10.pdf
Please consider that you should NOT HOLD on while on a treadmill!
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Quick Weight Loss
On listening to commercial radio for the first time in a while I heard an ad for Quick Weight Loss Centers. The ad states that you can lose lots of weight fast with NO EXERCISE!!! How ANYBODY can promote this is beyond me. The DJ who is spokesman for this is just being irresponsible. People, PLEASE don't get caught up in this. Diet is very important to your wieght loss but exercise is also. It is also, possibly, more important in keeping the weight off as muscle burns 3 times the calories that fat does. So when you exercise and build a base of muscle it is much easier to keep the resultant weight loss off. If you lose weight just by diet (usually under eating) you will lose you rmuscle base and slow your metabolism. Then when you go back to eating 'normal' size meals, you will gain your weight back in greater fat volume!
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Why NOT to eat Fast Food
If you have ever thought of having some McDonald's Burgers...read this and you will change your mind. Certainly not giving it to your kids!
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1258913/Happy-1st-birthday-Mother-keeps-McDonalds-Happy-Meal-year--gone-off.html#ixzz0iiYBqrK0
Fast food, frighteningly slow decay: Mother keeps McDonald's Happy Meal for a whole year... and it STILL hasn't gone off
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 11:18 AM on 19th March 2010
Glancing at the two McDonald's Happy Meals pictured here, you may feel they look pretty much identical.
Astonishingly, however, this is the same meal, photographed 12 months apart.
Where any other food might be a mouldy, decomposing mess after a year, the McDonald's meal shows few signs of going off apart from the beef patty shrivelling and the stale burger bun cracking.
I had the windows open many times, but flies and other insects just ignored the Happy Meal. What does that tell you, if they can't be bothered with it?
Proof, says the American nutritionist who took these photographs, that it contains so many preservatives that it is bad for the children it is aimed at.
Joann Bruso said: 'Food is supposed to decompose, go bad and smell foul eventually. The fact that it has not decomposed shows you how unhealthy it is for children.'
Mrs Bruso left the Happy Meal uncovered on a shelf at her home near Denver, Colorado, to see what would happen. She has revealed the results on her blog, in which she gives healthy eating advice to parents.
The 62-year-old, who has eight grandchildren, admitted that the arid temperature of her home near the Rocky Mountains meant there was little moisture in the air with which to speed decomposition.
Health concerns: Blogger Joann Bruso
But she added that during the year-long experiment, no flies or other insects were attracted to the food.
She said: 'I had the windows open many times, but flies and other insects just ignored the Happy Meal. What does that tell you, if they can't be bothered with it?
'Food is broken down into its essential nutrients in our bodies and turned into fuel. Our children grow strong bodies when they eat real food.
'If flies ignore a Happy Meal and microbes don't decompose it, then your child's body can't properly metabolise it either.
'Now you know why it's called junk food.'
McDonald's has made great efforts to show that its food is healthy amid growing concerns about childhood obesity. All its restaurants list the calories in each item as well as the individual ingredients.
Recent research showed that each product has an average of seven E numbers. The bun has several preservatives such as calcium and sodium propionate, while the pickle slice has the preservative sodium benzoate.
The fries, which Mrs Bruso said were still golden brown after a year, contain preservatives such as citric acid and sodium acid pyrophosphate, which maintains their colour.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1258913/Happy-1st-birthday-Mother-keeps-McDonalds-Happy-Meal-year--gone-off.html#ixzz0iiYBqrK0
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Best Diet Explanation I Have Seen
This is one of the best diet explanations that I have seen:
A High Protein Diet Won't Make You Lose Weight Long Term: In Fact, It May Make You Fatter
In this series of interviews I've conducted with extraordinary nutritional researchers and medical doctors, I've sought to understand the link between diet and health. The common refrain is resoundingly clear in that a plant-based diet is both preventive and healing, whereas a diet high in animal protein is destructive to our health. And now it's become abundantly evident that a high protein diet is not only making us sick, but it also makes us fat.
A High Protein Diet Won't Make You Lose Weight Long Term: In Fact, It May Make You Fatter
In this series of interviews I've conducted with extraordinary nutritional researchers and medical doctors, I've sought to understand the link between diet and health. The common refrain is resoundingly clear in that a plant-based diet is both preventive and healing, whereas a diet high in animal protein is destructive to our health. And now it's become abundantly evident that a high protein diet is not only making us sick, but it also makes us fat. There is no one who has more peer reviewed research on the subject of weight loss and overall health than Dean Ornish, M.D. He has sparked a revolution in cardiology with his studies which show that heart disease can be reversed through comprehensive lifestyle changes. His current research is showing that those very changes also affect gene expression -- that you can turn on or turn off genes that affect cancer, heart disease and longevity. He is the founder and President of the non-profit Preventive Medicine Research Institute and is a Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. Here's what he says about losing weight the healthy way, and keeping it off.
KF: It's widely believed that people lose weight fastest on a high protein diet. True?
DO: Initially, they may lose more weight because they are losing water weight. But by the end the year, the weight usually returns. In general, slower weight loss by eating more healthfully is more sustainable. Slow but steady wins the race.
KF: Why do some people have such a hard time losing weight and keeping it off?
DO: It's not enough to focus only on what we eat and other behaviors; we need to work at a deeper level. The real epidemic in our country is not only obesity but also depression, isolation, and loneliness. As one patient told me, "When I feel lonely and depressed, I eat a lot of fat. It fills the void. Fat coats my nerves and numbs the pain." People often overeat when they're feeling stressed, lonely, and depressed --"comfort foods."
Everyone knows that diet and exercise play a role in how much we weigh, but many are surprised to learn what a powerful role emotional stress has in causing us to gain weight and how stress management techniques can help us to lose it and keep it off.
Chronic emotional stress causes us to gain weight in several important ways:
• Many people overeat to cope with feeling stressed, and they often tend to eat foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar as well.
• Chronic emotional stress stimulates your brain to release hormones that cause you to gain weight, especially around your belly where it's most harmful and least attractive. Chronic stress also causes stimulation of hormones such as cytokines that promote inflammation. Also, obesity itself causes a low-grade inflammation which, in turn, tends to promote more obesity in a vicious cycle.
• Since chronic emotional stress promotes weight gain, stress management techniques may play a powerful role in helping you to lose weight and keep it off. The psychosocial, emotional and spiritual issues are as important to address if you want to lose weight and keep it off as the nutrition and exercise ones.
Most Americans eat too many refined carbohydrates. When they go on a typical high-protein diet, they reduce their intake of all carbohydrates, which for most Americans means they primarily reduce their intake of simple carbohydrates. This helps them to lose weight.
Whenever I debated Dr. Atkins before he died, he was usually described as the "low carb" doctor and I was the "low fat" doctor. But that was never accurate. I have always advocated that an optimal diet is lower in total fat, very low in "bad fats" (saturated fat, hydrogenated fats, and trans fatty acids), high in "good carbs" (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and soy products), low in "bad carbs" (sugar, white flour, processed foods) and with enough of the "good fats" (omega 3 fatty acids) and high-quality proteins.
There are clear benefits to reducing the intake of refined carbohydrates, especially in people who are sensitive to them. The solution is not to go from refined carbohydrates like pasta to pork rinds and from sugar to sausage, but to substitute refined bad carbs with unrefined good carbs.
KF: Tell me more about a good carb vs a bad carb.
DO: Good carbs are whole foods. These include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and soy products in their natural, unrefined, unprocessed forms.
Because these good carbs are unrefined, they are naturally high in fiber as well. The fiber fills you up before you eat too much. For example, it's hard to get too many calories from eating apples or whole grains, because apples are naturally low in calories and high in fiber, which causes you to feel full before you consume too many calories.
Also, the fiber in good carbs causes your food to be digested and absorbed into your bloodstream more slowly. This helps to regulate your blood sugar into a normal range without getting too high or too low.
For example, when whole wheat flour is processed into white flour, or brown rice into white rice, the fiber and bran are removed. This turns a "good carb" into a "bad carb."
Why? Because when the fiber and bran are removed, you get a quadruple-whammy:
• You can eat large amounts of "bad carbs" without getting full. Fiber fills you up before you consume too many calories. Removing fiber allows you to consume virtually unlimited amounts of sugar without causing you to feel like you're full.
• When you eat a lot of "bad carbs," they get absorbed quickly, causing your blood sugar to rise too rapidly. When your blood sugar gets too high, your pancreas secretes insulin to bring it back down. However, it may go down below where it started, causing low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). By analogy, when you pull a pendulum to one side and let it go, it doesn't stop at the mid-point; it continues an equal distance to the other side.
When your blood sugar gets too low, you feel tired, lethargic and a little crabby. There's a good temporary fix for those bad feelings--more bad carbs! This creates a craving for more "bad carbs" to raise your blood sugar in a vicious cycle.
• When your body secretes too much insulin, it accelerates the conversion of calories into triglycerides, which is how your body stores fat. Thus, when you eat a lot of "bad carbs," you consume an excessive number of calories that don't fill you up, and you're more likely to convert these extra calories to body fat. Insulin may also cause your body to produce more of an enzyme called lipoprotein lipase, which increases the uptake of fat into cells, leading to weight gain.
• When your body secretes too much insulin, it may lead to insulin resistance and even diabetes. Insulin binds to what are called insulin receptors on your cells. When your body makes repeated surges of insulin in response to too many "bad carbs," the receptors become less sensitive--a little like Aesop's fable of the boy who cried wolf--as if the insulin receptors were saying, "Oh, not more insulin again, just ignore it." Like a heroin addict who requires more and more of the drug to get the same feeling, insulin resistance causes your body to make more and more insulin just to maintain the same effect on your blood sugar. Over time, this may lead to type 2 diabetes. Too much insulin also enhances the growth and proliferation of arterial smooth muscle cells, promoting atherosclerosis and clogging your arteries.
This doesn't mean you should never eat bad carbs. I do, in moderation. When I eat bad carbs, I try to consume them along with good carbs and other high-fiber foods. That way, the fiber in the good carbs will also slow the absorption of the bad carbs.
KF: Does it make a difference if the protein in our diet is vegetarian or animal?
DO: Yes. To paraphrase Gertrude Stein, a calorie is a calorie is a calorie in its effects on weight but not on health. Interestingly, there have been a few "vegetarian Atkins diet" studies published recently, which is a little like putting lipstick on a pork rind...
KF: What's the danger in a high animal protein diet? Is animal fat any different than vegetable fat (like oils or avocado)?
DO: Diets that are high in animal protein are usually high in saturated fat, which promotes both heart disease and cancer. A recent study reviewed by Dr. Steven A. Smith in The New England Journal of Medicine found that high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets accelerate atherosclerosis (blockage in arteries) through mechanisms other than traditional risk factors such as changes in cholesterol and triglycerides.
Fat (from any source) has nine calories per gram, whereas protein and carbohydrates have only four calories per gram. Thus, when you eat less fat, you consume fewer calories even if you eat the same amount of food--because the food is less dense in calories.
Also, too much protein, especially animal protein, puts a strain on your liver and kidneys and promotes osteoporosis. When your body excretes too much protein, it excretes too much calcium along with it. Too much animal protein, especially red meat, has been linked with significantly increased risks of heart disease, prostate cancer, breast cancer and colon cancer.
For example, a study published last year in the Archives of Internal Medicine reported the findings from a half-million people in the NIH-AARP study that consumption of red meat was significantly associated with increases in total mortality, cardiovascular mortality and cancer mortality.
Studies show that measures of cardiovascular disease rather than just risk factors show that people on average become worse on an Atkins diet. For example, a recent study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association by Miller et al showed that flow-mediated vasodilation (a measure of heart disease), LDL-cholesterol and inflammation worsened on a high-animal-protein diet but improved significantly on a low-fat, whole foods, plant-based diet.
KF: How should one eat in order to lose weight?
DO: Mindfully. It's not just what you eat, but also how you eat that matters. Have you ever eaten a bag of popcorn while watching an intense movie? All of your attention is focused on the movie--so you may look down and see that the bag of popcorn is empty. You got all the calories but little of the pleasure. In contrast, if you really pay attention to your food, savoring it as you would a fine wine, you have greatly enhanced pleasure with fewer calories. And pleasure is sustainable.
KF: What should be avoided?
DO: As described above, avoid refined carbohydrates, too much fat (especially trans fats which cause weight gain), and processed foods.
KF: Should we count calories? Fat grams? Carbs?
DO: In my experience, if you eat predominantly a whole foods, plant-based diet that is naturally high in fiber and low in fat and in refined carbohydrates, and if you eat it mindfully, you don't have to count anything to lose weight. You feel full before you consume too many calories.
KF: What are some of the health concerns of being overweight?
DO: Being overweight significantly increases the risk of virtually every chronic disease. Some authorities have said that obesity is now overtaking smoking as the most preventable cause of premature death.
KF: How do you break through cravings for unhealthy food, because they really do have a hold on most of us!?
DO: As you begin to eat more healthfully, your taste preferences change. You begin to prefer foods that are more healthful. And you connect the dots between what you eat and how you feel. Because these mechanisms are so dynamic, most people find that the feel so much better, so quickly, it reframes the reason for changing from living longer to feeling better. And feeling better is sustainable; risk factor modification is not.
KF: What is a reasonable rate of weight loss?
DO: In most cases, no more than three pounds/week.
KF: What if we want to lose weight faster; is there a healthy way to do it?
DO: Do more exercise and meditation and eat smaller amounts of healthy foods and less salt. Regular exercise not only burns calories, it also raises your basal metabolic rate, the number of calories you burn while at rest. Thus, exercise helps you lose weight even when you're not exercising. Do some strength training as well as aerobic exercise. Walking a mile burns even more calories than running a mile. Exercise in ways that you enjoy, then you're more likely to do it. If it's fun, it's sustainable.
KF: If someone is too busy to cook, and is in a big hurry, what is the best and most affordable approach?
DO: There are more and more healthy prepared and frozen meals on the market. Eat with your friends and take turns shopping and cooking--not only does it save time, but when you fill your heart with the love of friends and family in a shared meal, you have less need to overfill your belly.
For more information: www.pmri.org
Friday, February 19, 2010
Disease Care to Health Care
FINALLY, somebody other than me is saying it!!! And he got his published:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-frank-lipman/changing-our-disease-care_b_453743.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-frank-lipman/changing-our-disease-care_b_453743.html
Sunday, February 7, 2010
In-Style or Fad Workouts
I just saw two "infomercials" on two different "new" work-outs- Insanity and 10-Minute Work Out Both seemed to be intense, invovle multiple intergrated exercise and motions and didn't require much more than either bands or light dumbells. Other programs that I have become aware of are P90X and Cross-Fit. ALL of these seem to be valid (Not having fully seen the 10-Minute Work-Out I can't totally say that but 10 minutes doesn't seem sufficient to provide adequate anything!) in that they are good programs. They all use principles that athletes and regular fitness people have known for years; High intensity work outs get faster results than just doing the basic "aerobic and strength training as separate programs". A good example of this is in looking at track & field sprinters. They probably don't do much aerobic work and concentrate on ultra high intensity wind sprints (40 yards or so) or a bit longer (800 meters). Yet they don't have much body fat. In fact, it has been found/proven that a high intensity work out can result in an elevated heart rate for as much as 48 hours after. This means a greater residual caloric burn than aerobic work outs. Also a higher metabolism results.
Why, then, am I not a "fan" of these work outs? I don't say DON'T do them but I have my preference in Kung Fu! It contains ALL of the principles that are contained in those aforementioned programs; High intensity, integrated exercise, plyometrics, coordination development, etc. But Kung Fu has a few things that they don't have. Being a program that actually develops the skills required to do it, you develop a stronger foundation of skill that allows you to perform the program in a safer manner. Many people start these other programs and just go right into the exercise, many of which they may not be physically ready for and therefore run a greater risk of injury.
The main things, for me, that sets Kung Fu apart are the development of focus mind/body connection and self defense skills. When you train with Kung Fu you MUST perform with proper technique to gain maximum power to get the technique to work! This requires focus. Yes, you SHOULD do the exercise propeerly in the other programs but you aren't being forced into it by knowing that someone may be attacking you! Plus, a good Kung Fu program is something that develops through out your life. I have been practicing for a LONG time and am still mentally engaged and learning and practicing new techniques. With all of the others, you will fininsh all they have to offer in a few months!
I can go on about this for quite a while but ponder just THAT point. I will call it the Kung Fu Challenge. I wish all of you were in Atlanta so that you could give my class a try. You would see that Kung Fu can take accomplished athletes and make them feel as if they haven't done much exercise!
Why, then, am I not a "fan" of these work outs? I don't say DON'T do them but I have my preference in Kung Fu! It contains ALL of the principles that are contained in those aforementioned programs; High intensity, integrated exercise, plyometrics, coordination development, etc. But Kung Fu has a few things that they don't have. Being a program that actually develops the skills required to do it, you develop a stronger foundation of skill that allows you to perform the program in a safer manner. Many people start these other programs and just go right into the exercise, many of which they may not be physically ready for and therefore run a greater risk of injury.
The main things, for me, that sets Kung Fu apart are the development of focus mind/body connection and self defense skills. When you train with Kung Fu you MUST perform with proper technique to gain maximum power to get the technique to work! This requires focus. Yes, you SHOULD do the exercise propeerly in the other programs but you aren't being forced into it by knowing that someone may be attacking you! Plus, a good Kung Fu program is something that develops through out your life. I have been practicing for a LONG time and am still mentally engaged and learning and practicing new techniques. With all of the others, you will fininsh all they have to offer in a few months!
I can go on about this for quite a while but ponder just THAT point. I will call it the Kung Fu Challenge. I wish all of you were in Atlanta so that you could give my class a try. You would see that Kung Fu can take accomplished athletes and make them feel as if they haven't done much exercise!
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Exercise & Life
In the past few days I have had a few students tell me that they were going to "take leave" from classes (exercise) so that they can "straighten things out in their lives". They feel that they need the time to get their mind focused and make sure that they have their priorities straight. It might be time, money or just energy and that they will return when they have gotten it together.
My take on this is that they have it wrong. While I tell them that they should do as they feel I also don't feel they have it right. I don't tell them this directly (as my general philosophy says that I should) because I feel that this kind of "life question" is one of personal choice and not one that should be externally influenced- I can't motivate somebody only that person can motivate their selves. This is very similar to the Buddhist faith where you don't 'recruit' people into it.
For me EXERCISE (particularly Kung Fu and Tai Chi) HAS BEEN THE WAY to straighten things out. It focuses my mind like nothing else. It takes my mind off of the problems that I am facing and forces me to put my mind into the form or, even more challenging, opponent trying to hit me! It relaxes my body even though many people say that exercise hurts and gets you tires. Remember that exercise releases endorphines- A natural high! And it may cost some money to pay for class but if I weren't going to class I would probably pay for other things to occupy my time- movies, books, food...
What I DO know is that ALL of my major life's crises were endured by continuing to practice my Kung Fu throughout. After all of them I am still healthy adn mentally (I know others would question this) stable.
Don't stop exercising when you have life problems. Whether you do Kung Fu, Tai Chi, Karate, boxing, running, aerobics or just weight lifting you should maintain your routine. Keep your mind and body strong and focused. It WILL help you through your situation.
My take on this is that they have it wrong. While I tell them that they should do as they feel I also don't feel they have it right. I don't tell them this directly (as my general philosophy says that I should) because I feel that this kind of "life question" is one of personal choice and not one that should be externally influenced- I can't motivate somebody only that person can motivate their selves. This is very similar to the Buddhist faith where you don't 'recruit' people into it.
For me EXERCISE (particularly Kung Fu and Tai Chi) HAS BEEN THE WAY to straighten things out. It focuses my mind like nothing else. It takes my mind off of the problems that I am facing and forces me to put my mind into the form or, even more challenging, opponent trying to hit me! It relaxes my body even though many people say that exercise hurts and gets you tires. Remember that exercise releases endorphines- A natural high! And it may cost some money to pay for class but if I weren't going to class I would probably pay for other things to occupy my time- movies, books, food...
What I DO know is that ALL of my major life's crises were endured by continuing to practice my Kung Fu throughout. After all of them I am still healthy adn mentally (I know others would question this) stable.
Don't stop exercising when you have life problems. Whether you do Kung Fu, Tai Chi, Karate, boxing, running, aerobics or just weight lifting you should maintain your routine. Keep your mind and body strong and focused. It WILL help you through your situation.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Hating Exercise?
I recently read the following quote by an very overweight actress (Gabourey Sidibie of "Precious"):
"I hate yoga so much. Like, if yoga was a person, I'd stab them." At the end of the day, "it doesn't make any sense to kill yourself, because who are you trying to be beautiful for? It's a mind game, not a body game."
It was made when asked about her exercise and desire to lose weight. MAYBE she was just being specific about yoga but the "because who are you trying to be beautiful for" bit quells that for me. Here's my problem with quotes like this. I understand that it is most important that you love yourself and not the image that others have of/for you. This 'self-acceptance' issues that many obese people have are real. A recent episode of Nip/Tuck (don't laugh, it was well written and if you got past the decadence and other things made some interesting points) addressed this issue directly. But this only distracts many from another (and I feel more important) issue of health!
Being overweight, even more so obese, is BAD FOR YOU And UNHEALTHY. I know that exercise hurts and is very hard. That's why they call it WORKING out!!! But, as I have said in previous posts, it is this short term of pain that prevents MUCH pain over the course of your life! It is very important to find a form of exercise that fits you mentally and physically; Some people can't run because of bad knees, some people aren't good with their flexibility so yoga would discourage them, some don't have the developed coordination for sports. But FIND ONE. There is a form of exercise for everybody.
"I hate yoga so much. Like, if yoga was a person, I'd stab them." At the end of the day, "it doesn't make any sense to kill yourself, because who are you trying to be beautiful for? It's a mind game, not a body game."
It was made when asked about her exercise and desire to lose weight. MAYBE she was just being specific about yoga but the "because who are you trying to be beautiful for" bit quells that for me. Here's my problem with quotes like this. I understand that it is most important that you love yourself and not the image that others have of/for you. This 'self-acceptance' issues that many obese people have are real. A recent episode of Nip/Tuck (don't laugh, it was well written and if you got past the decadence and other things made some interesting points) addressed this issue directly. But this only distracts many from another (and I feel more important) issue of health!
Being overweight, even more so obese, is BAD FOR YOU And UNHEALTHY. I know that exercise hurts and is very hard. That's why they call it WORKING out!!! But, as I have said in previous posts, it is this short term of pain that prevents MUCH pain over the course of your life! It is very important to find a form of exercise that fits you mentally and physically; Some people can't run because of bad knees, some people aren't good with their flexibility so yoga would discourage them, some don't have the developed coordination for sports. But FIND ONE. There is a form of exercise for everybody.
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