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Posts Tagged ‘Health’

Avoiding Injury and Strengthening Calve Muscles

Avoid Calf Muscle Strain

From coreperformance.com

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A strained or pulled calf muscle is one of sport’s most common injuries. The two large muscles in the back of the lower leg (the soleus and gastrocnemius) are called calf muscles and they are at risk every time you push off—even if you’re just walking. When the muscles are stretched beyond their normal capacity, the muscle fibers tear away from the tendon. In a grade 1 strain, only a few fibers are torn and the symptoms are relatively mild. A grade 2 strain involves even more tears and more serious symptoms, and a grade 3 strain means the tendon or muscle has been completely ruptured.

calf-injury

Read Full Article Here

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Ultimate Calf Training

From Bodybuilding.com
You have been pounding away at the iron game for years, set after set and repetition after repetition. You have literally put blood, sweat, and tears into your calf training routine. Learn the facts and get some ideas on increasing calf size.
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How to Develop Calve Muscles on a person with sprinters Legs

From Livestrong.com
Photo Credit Thinkstock/Comstock/Getty Images

Photo Credit Thinkstock/Comstock/Getty Images

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Developing your calves gives you more power in the sprint and helps protect your ankles from injury. Your calves stabilize both your knee and ankle joints, while channeling the energy created by your stride into forward momentum. Strong calves give you explosive power out of the start, and help create a balanced look to your physique. Calf development should complement your sprint training, not compromise it, so train your calves following your regular sprint work. Consult a health care practitioner before beginning any exercise program.

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Exercises to Increase Your Running Speed

February 16, 2013 1 comment
by Robert Hainer, Demand Media from AZ Central.com

Increasing your running speed requires more than just practicing running. Use targeted exercises at home to build your endurance and strength and help you avoid injury when running. Many of these exercises help you develop the fast-twitch fibers in your legs, allowing for a faster start off the running block.

Arm Swings

Moving your arms correctly while running helps propel your body forward. Train your arms in the proper movement by standing with your feet together and alternating your arms forward and backward as if you were running. Focus on proper positioning; hold your elbows at a 90-degree angle. Start with your right arm forward, swinging it forward until the biceps is nearly level with your shoulder and your relaxed fist about eye level. At the same time, swing your left arm back so that the biceps is almost parallel to the ground and your forearm points straight down. Try this exercise seated as well to add intensity and train your arms to move at the right level, making sure your hands don’t brush the floor as they move. Add light weights to work the shoulders.

Butt Kickers

Exercises that stretch your muscles and increase muscle tone simultaneously can help you run faster. Butt kickers are an excellent example. Start to jog inside your house or in the yard, then bring one knee to hip level in front of you. Continue jogging, alternating your knees by bringing them up high and forward. Practice this move until you’re able to touch your gluteus with your heels with each knee raise. You don’t need a large space to perform this exercise, just enough space to move back and forth at a jogging pace.

Sprint

In contrast to an endurance run, sprinting works nearly all of your leg muscles to help you move faster during a normal run. You can also practice sprinting at home; you may need a yard to give you adequate room to sprint. From a starting position, run at 95 percent speed to the edge of your yard. Ideally, you should sprint for at least one minute to begin with. Sprint back to the house, then walk around your yard for a few minutes. Work your way up to 10 full-speed sprints before taking a breather. For added intensity, use a sloped area of your yard. Sprinting uphill and downhill works different muscles than sprinting on flat ground, building your overall leg health and helping you run faster while reducing the chance of injuries.

Wall Drills

Wall drills help you focus on form and work your trunk and back as well as your legs. The more these muscles learn to work together, the faster you can run. Stand in front of a wall and place both hands flat on the wall. Lean forward so your body is at an angle. Run in place by lifting one knee up toward the wall, keeping the foot directly under the knee, then alternating quickly with your other knee. Your feet should return back to their starting position between knee lifts.

Ins and Outs

A classic speed-development technique, ins and outs requires you to set up cones or markers in your yard about 20 yards apart. Run at about 25 percent of your maximum speed from the first cone to the second, then sprint at full speed back to the first cone. Repeat the process twice, then walk between the cones for a breather. Build up to five sets.

Acceleration Runs

If you have an acceleration ladder, you can use it in a relatively small space in your home. If not, place flat sticks 18 inches apart on your floor for the same effect. In the first drill, run as fast as you can through the ladder, touching both feet between each stick. Focus on lifting your knees as high as you can and getting your feet off the ground as quickly as possible each time. For the second drill, place only one foot between each rung as you run as fast as you can down the length of the ladder. Keep your back upright and straight, and focus on moving your arms correctly to help keep you balanced.

Hamstring Injuries

February 4, 2013 1 comment
Article from ironstrong.org forums
4 days after a pulled hamstring. Two images of...

4 days after a pulled hamstring. Two images of the same leg. One of the pictures was shot through a mirror (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Here is the tried-and-true injury rehab method for muscle-belly injuries we got from Starr and that has worked for years better than any other method I’ve ever used. It also works well on orthopeadic injuries in general, and should be tried before anything more elaborate is used. Wait 3-4 days until the pain starts to “blur”,which indicates that the immediate process of healing has stopped the bleeding and has started to repair the tissue. Then use an exercise that directly works the injury, i.e. that makes it hurt, in this case the squat. Use the empty bar and do 3 sets of 25 with perfect form, allowing yourself NO favoring the injured side. If it’s ready to rehab you will know by the pain: if the pain increases during the set, it’s not ready, if it stays the same or feels a little better toward the end of the set, it is ready to work.
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The NEXT DAY do it again, and add a small amount of weight, like 45 x 25 x 2 , 55 x 25. Next day, 45 x 25, 55 x 25, 65 x 25. Continue adding weight every day, increasing as much as you can tolerate each workout. It will hurt, and it’s supposed to hurt, but you should be able to tell the difference between rehab pain and re-injury. If you can’t, you will figure it out soon enough. This method works by flushing blood through the injury while forcing the tissue to reorganize in its normal pattern of contractile architecture.
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After 10 days of 25s, go up in weight and down in reps to 15s, then to 10s, and finally to fives. During this time do NO OTHER HEAVY WORK, so that your resources can focus on the injury. You should be fixed in about 2 weeks, squatting more than you hurt yourself with.
This method has the advantage of preventing scar formation in the muscle belly, since the muscle is forced to heal in the context of work and normal contraction, using the movement pattern it normally uses. The important points are 1.) perfect form with 2.) light weights that can be handled for high reps, 3.) every day for two weeks, and 4.) no other heavy work that will interfere with the system-wide processes of healing the tear.
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It is also very important through the whole process of healing the injury that ice be used, during the initial phase after the injury and after the workouts. Use it 20 on/20 off, many times a day at first and then tapering off to morning, after the workout, and before bed. Ice is your best friend in a muscle belly injury, holding down inflammation and fluid accumulation (“swelling”) while at the same time increasing beneficial blood flow through the injury. But DO NOT USE ICE MORE THAN 20 MINUTES AT A TIME. More than that can cause more damage than it repairs.
This may actually be the most useful post on this entire little forum of mine, and if you use this method exactly you can save yourself many weeks of lost training and long-term problems with muscle-belly scarring. Try it and see.

By doing this method you rebuild the muscle in an architectural sense allowing it to heal through contracting and relaxing. Do not get eager on this rehab protocol. Follow it to a T, once you are done begin to put weight on the bar again.

How to Develop Hip Flexors for Sprints

February 3, 2013 1 comment
English: Hip flexion 30 days after THA, with t...

English: Hip flexion 30 days after THA, with the ASIA technique Français : Flexion de hanche, 30 jours après PTH par technique ASIA (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Your hip flexors consist of your iliacus and psoas major muscles. This muscle group is often referred to as the iliopsoas, and its main function is to flex your hip. You perform this motion when you move your thigh toward your stomach. Strengthening these muscles helps improve your sprinting power and technique. Weight training exercises that involve hip flexion can help you reach that goal.

Step 1

Hang from a pull-up bar to do leg raises. Grasp the bar with an overhand, shoulder-width grip and let your legs hang straight down. Keep your abdominal muscles tight and back straight as you lift your legs. Raise your legs until they are parallel to the floor and hold for a couple of seconds. Lower your legs slowly and repeat.

Step 2

Use a Roman chair to do sit-ups. Sit on the upper padded support and hook your feet under the lower padded support. Cross your arms on your chest and lower your torso backward by bending at the hips. Stop when your torso is about parallel to the floor, then steadily rise back up and repeat. Keep your abs tight and back straight throughout.

Step 3

Use a stability ball to do knee tucks. Place your hands shoulder-width apart on the floor and place your lower shins on top of the ball. Your body should be in a push-up position at this point. Keep your back straight and abs tight as you bend your knees and roll the ball toward your head. Tuck your knees into your chest, roll the ball back out and repeat.

Step 4

Stand behind an exercise platform or box to do knee drives. Step onto the platform with your left foot and press down to lift your body up. Move your right leg forward, bend your knee and lift it toward your chest in a forceful motion. Hold for a few seconds, step back down, repeat, then switch sides. Wear a pair of ankle weights to increase the resistance.

Step 5

Fasten an ankle strap to your lower right leg and set a cable machine on low to do leg raises. Lie flat on your back with your legs facing the weight stack and arms at your sides or hands on your hips. Keep your leg straight and raise it as high as possible. Try to get your foot parallel to the ceiling. Lower your leg until it is right above the floor, repeat, then switch sides.

article from livestrong.com

Warming up and Cooling Down for the Sprints

January 24, 2013 Leave a comment

By Roy Stevenson

Jogger #1

Jogger #1 (Photo credit: Ed Yourdon)

Warming up prepares the sprinter’s muscles by increasing the force of their muscle contractions and speeding up muscle contraction rate, giving the sprinter more power and speed. Warming up also helps nervous young athletes stabilize their adrenalin rush before competition, helping them better control their pre-event nervousness. Here’s how sprinters should go about warming up for races and training sessions.

Phase One: Start your sprinter’s warm up with 10-15 minutes jogging to increase body temperature–slow and easy.

Phase Two: This should follow on immediately after phase two and consists of 10-15 minutes of dynamic stretching exercises to reduce muscle stiffness. Dynamic (ballistic) stretches through a wide range of motion work best because they are closer to the athlete’s actual movements in competition; and research shows that static stretching exercises do not simulate rapid running movement and may actually cause a reduction in leg power.

Phase Three: The sprinter progresses to 10-15 minutes of general and event-specific drills. These specific drills put the finishing touches on the warm up and prepare the athlete for sprint training. The drills usually include leg speed exercises, and it is here that pre-race and pre-training warm ups diverge.

To read the full article click here

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Warm-up at Stretching: Alin ang tama?

Warm-up at Stretching: Alin ang tama? Isang review article

Airnel T. Abarra

MS Human Movement Science (Candidate)

University of the Philippines Diliman

pinoyathletics@gmail.com

Kung tatanungin ang isang ordinaryong atleta o recreational runner na wala masyadong background sa Sports Science, sasabihin nila na ang warm-up ay ang pag-stretching kasama at pag-ikot ng ilang beses sa track oval hanggang mapawisan. Sa artikulong ito hihimayin ng may-akda ang mga literaturang may kaugnayan sa konsepto ng tamang warm-up at kung alin ang mas angkop na uri ng stretching at mga dapat gawin ukol dito.

Warm-up- Ayon kay Alter (1990), ang warm-up ay pangkat ng mga ehersisyo nag ginagawa bago ang isang ensayo na may pangunahing layunin na mapataas ang temperature sa katawan sa gayon maiwasan ang injury. May dalawang uri ng warm-up: ang Passive warm-up kung saan ang pamamaraan upang mapainit ang katawan ay ang pananatili sa isang mainit na lugar gaya ng sauna o pag-shower sa mainit na tubig at General warm-up o ang pagsasagawa ng mga kilos ng katawan upang maging mainit ang pakiramdam. Kabilang sa General warm-up ay jogging, paglalakad at iba pa.

Stretching- ito ay isang proseso ng pagpapabanat. Ang mga ehersisyo na ukol dito ay isinasagawa upang tumaas ang antas ng flexibility upang makuha at angkop na full range of motion sa piniling isport. (Alter, 1990)

Batay sa kahulugan na nabanggit, malinaw na makikita na magkaiba ang warm-up at stretching. Kaya mali na sabihin na ang warm-up at stretching ay iisa. Ang susunod na katanungan ay alin ang dapat mauna, stretching o warm-up at vice versa?

Ayon sa artikulo ni Torres (3isgreaterthan1.com, 2012) dapat na mauna ang pag-warm-up kaysa stretching. Nakapagdudulot ito ng paghina ng muscle kung full range of motion ang pag-uusapan. Sinang-ayunan din ito ni Alter (1990) na dapat mauna ang warm-up bago ang stretching dahil magiging mas mabisa ang muscles kung mainit na ang temperatura nito (Young at Behm, 2002).

Susunod na katanungan ay anong uri ng stretching ang dapat gawin, Static ba o Dynamic?

Static stretching- ito ay isang uri ng stretching kung saan ay binabanat ang muscles at mananatili sa isang posisyon sa ilang segundo. Ayon kay Torres (3isgreaterthan1.com, 2012) at sa kanyang mga literaturang sinangguni na hindi mainam na magsagawa ng static stretching pagkatapos ng warm-up at nakapagdudulot din ito ng paghina ng lakas ng muscle kung gagawin ito (Young at Behm, 2002).

Dynamic stretching- mga uri ng ehersisyo kung saan ay ginagaya ang mga pangunahing kilos na kailangan sa isport na kinabibilangan. Sa pag-aaral na ginawa nina McMillan et al. (2006) kung saan pinaghambing nila ang Dynamic, static at walang warm-up natuklasan nila na mabisa ang dynamic na uri ng warm-up kung ihahambing sa static at walang warm-up. Pinatunayan din nina Soligard et al. (2008) sa kanilang mga ehersisyong ipinagawa sa mga babaeng atleta ng Football na ang mga dynamic na uri ng ehersisyo ay mas mas mabisa kung ihahambing sa static lalo na kung ginawa ito bilang warm-up.

Sa kabila ng mga patunay sa kabisaan ng Dynamic na uri ng warm-up o stretching at pagsasagawa ng warm-up bago ang mga ehersisyo, makabubuti pa rin na magsagawa ng pag-aaral ukol dito sa lokal na kalagayan. Sa gayon magkaroon ng paghahambig at mapalawak ang pananliksik ukol sa isports sa Pilipinas lalo sa larangan ng Athletics o Track and Field. *

Paala-ala: Kung may mungkahi o puna sa artikulo, mangyaring makipag-ugnayan gamit ang e-mail address sa itaas.

Sanggunian:

Alter, M (1990) Sports Stretch. Leisure Press IL

McMillan DJ et al. (2006) Dynamic vs. Static-Stretching Warm up: The Effect on Power and Agility Performance. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2006, 20(3), 492–499

Soligard T. et al. (2008) Comprehensive warm-up programme to prevent injuries in young female footballers: cluster randomized controlled trial. British Medical Journal BMJ 2008; 337:a2469

Torres M. (2012) To Stretch or Not to Stretch Before Training & Racing. 3 is greater than 1 website retrieved 05-July-2012 http://3isgreaterthan1.com/blog/to-stretch-or-not-to-stretch/

Young & Behm (2002) Should Static Stretching Be Used During a Warm-Up for Strength and Power Activities? National Strength & Conditioning Association Volume 24, Number 6, pages 33–37

One Rep Max Chart: How Much You Can Lift?

by Marc Perry, CSCS, CPT

I have below a One Rep Max Chart along with information so you can learn what a 1 rep max chart is, why it’s useful, and how to read the chart.

Wrist straps allow lifting heavier without hav...

Wrist straps allow lifting heavier without having the grip strength required otherwise. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What is a One Rep Max Chart?

one rep max chart One Rep Max Chart: How Much You Can Lift?

A 1 Rep Max Chart gives you a rough estimate of the number of reps and the amount of weight that corresponds to the maximum amount of weight that you can lift.  The chart works by assuming that the number of reps you can lift a certain weight can be predicted using mathematical relationships.

Power Clean one rep max circa 2011 Pirie Enzo

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Why Is A One Rep Max Chart Useful?

Using the diagonal sled-type leg press machine.

Using the diagonal sled-type leg press machine. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

One of the most frequent frustrations guys express to me is having no idea how much weight they can lift for a given number of repetitions.

So for example, if you can bench 175lb for 10 reps, then what should you try to bench if you are shooting for 6 reps?

Using a 1 Rep Max Chart is an effective way to make the process of calculating the amount of weight you should be using for a given number of reps more methodical.  In addition, if you are curious how much weight you can lift for only one rep (your max lift), instead of putting yourself at risk for serious injury, you can shoot for 6 reps then use a 1 rep chart to estimate your 1 rep max.  No need to put yourself in the hospital attempting to lift weight that’s too heavy.

This 1 rep max chart is not perfect because (1) some exercises may correspond better to the chart then others and (2) your strength and endurance levels can effect the number of reps you complete for a given amount of weight that may be above, or below the amount predicted.  Overall, the 1RM chart is a great guideline to help you increase your weights over time to properly progress your workouts.

In fact, when I was a college athlete, all of our strength training programs were based on our 1RM for a given lift, which we figured out by completing 6 reps with all of the basic lifts (squat, bench etc.).  Most advanced strength programs for athletes are based on 1RM and build in progressions so that the workout program forces strength increases over time.  Reps for a given workout can vary dramatically from 15 reps to as low as 2, or 3 reps, but this is the extreme.

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How To Read The One Rep Max Chart

The left hand column has the 1 rep max wheras the numbers in the right hand columns represent how much weight can be lifted for the specified number of reps (reps are listed in the top row).

For example, find the 135lb max on the left, the scroll across the colums.  If you can lift 99lb for 12 reps, that corresponds to roughly a 135lb max.  A lift of 119lb for 4 reps also corresponds to a 135lb max.

The chart below uses the Brzycki Formula after its creator, Matt Brzycki, but is still very close to the old school strength chart based on percentages.*  For more 1 rep max formulas, check out this page: 1 rep max formulas

max/reps 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
50 36 37 38 38 39 41 42 43 44 45 47
55 39 40 41 42 43 45 46 47 49 50 52
60 43 44 45 46 47 49 50 51 53 55 56
65 46 48 49 50 51 53 54 56 57 59 61
70 50 51 53 54 55 57 58 60 62 64 66
75 54 55 56 58 59 61 63 64 66 68 70
80 57 59 60 62 63 65 67 69 71 73 75
85 61 62 64 65 67 69 71 73 75 77 80
90 64 66 68 69 71 73 75 77 79 82 84
95 68 70 71 73 75 77 79 81 84 86 89
100 71 73 75 77 79 81 83 86 88 91 94
105 75 77 79 81 83 85 88 90 93 95 98
110 79 80 83 85 87 89 92 94 97 100 103
115 82 84 86 88 91 93 96 99 101 105 108
120 86 88 90 92 95 97 100 103 106 109 113
125 89 91 94 96 99 101 104 107 110 114 117
130 93 95 98 100 103 105 108 111 115 118 122
135 96 99 101 104 107 109 113 116 119 123 127
140 100 102 105 108 111 114 117 120 124 127 131
145 104 106 109 112 114 118 121 124 128 132 136
150 107 110 113 115 118 122 125 129 132 136 141
155 111 113 116 119 122 126 129 133 137 141 145
160 114 117 120 123 126 130 133 137 141 145 150
165 118 121 124 127 130 134 138 141 146 150 155
170 121 124 128 131 134 138 142 146 150 155 159
175 125 128 131 135 138 142 146 150 154 159 164
180 129 132 135 138 142 146 150 154 159 164 169
185 132 135 139 142 146 150 154 159 163 168 173
190 136 139 143 146 150 154 158 163 168 173 178
195 139 143 146 150 154 158 163 167 172 177 183
200 143 146 150 154 158 162 167 171 176 182 188
205 146 150 154 158 162 166 171 176 181 186 192
210 150 154 158 162 166 170 175 180 185 191 197
215 154 157 161 165 170 174 179 184 190 195 202
220 157 161 165 169 174 178 183 189 194 200 206
225 161 165 169 173 178 182 188 193 199 205 211
230 164 168 173 177 182 186 192 197 203 209 216
235 168 172 176 181 186 191 196 201 207 214 220
240 171 176 180 185 189 195 200 206 212 218 225
245 175 179 184 188 193 199 204 210 216 223 230
250 179 183 188 192 197 203 208 214 221 227 234
255 182 187 191 196 201 207 213 219 225 232 239
260 186 190 195 200 205 211 217 223 229 236 244
265 189 194 199 204 209 215 221 227 234 241 248
270 193 198 203 208 213 219 225 231 238 245 253
275 196 201 206 212 217 223 229 236 243 250 258
280 200 205 210 215 221 227 233 240 247 255 263
285 204 209 214 219 225 231 238 244 251 259 267
290 207 212 218 223 229 235 242 249 256 264 272
295 211 216 221 227 233 239 246 253 260 268 277
300 214 220 225 231 237 243 250 257 265 273 281
305 218 223 229 235 241 247 254 261 269 277 286
310 221 227 233 238 245 251 258 266 274 282 291
315 225 230 236 242 249 255 263 270 278 286 295
320 229 234 240 246 253 259 267 274 282 291 300
325 232 238 244 250 257 264 271 279 287 295 305
330 236 241 248 254 261 268 275 283 291 300 309
335 239 245 251 258 264 272 279 287 296 305 314
340 243 249 255 262 268 276 283 291 300 309 319
345 246 252 259 265 272 280 288 296 304 314 323
350 250 256 263 269 276 284 292 300 309 318 328
355 254 260 266 273 280 288 296 304 313 323 333
360 257 263 270 277 284 292 300 309 318 327 338
365 261 267 274 281 288 296 304 313 322 332 342
370 264 271 278 285 292 300 308 317 326 336 347
375 268 274 281 288 296 304 313 321 331 341 352
380 271 278 285 292 300 308 317 326 335 345 356
385 275 282 289 296 304 312 321 330 340 350 361
390 279 285 293 300 308 316 325 334 344 355 366
395 282 289 296 304 312 320 329 339 349 359 370
400 286 293 300 308 316 324 333 343 353 364 375
* The old school 1RM max chart is based on a linear relationship such that 10 reps corresponds to 75% of your max.  Every 1 rep change corresponds to +/- 2.5% change in the amount of weight that can be lifted.  For example, 10 reps of 135lb (75% of max lift) corresponds to a 180lb max and 6 reps of 135lb (85% of max lift) is a 158lb max.

I encourage you to try this chart out and see how it corresponds to your actual lifts.  Let me know how it goes by leaving a comment.

Back to basics diet

January 21, 2013 2 comments

July 9, 2012 By Emily

All too often people are so daunted by the (seemingly) overwhelming task of eating a healthy diet that they give up believing “it’s all too hard”. Many people seem to be suffering from information overload, and I don’t blame them!
What is some of the information flying around? First it was low fat, then the next minute its high protein and high fat. We are told to load up on good grains.. but don’t we want to be low carb? The media says low sugar is key and don’t worry about fat. We think to go for artificial sweetners to try replace sugar… but no, they are not ok either. Eggs are good for you, so why so many recipes for egg white only omelettes. Did I mention sugar is poison?
What?!!! It’s enough to make anyone confused! The bombardment of conflicting information makes the concept of a healthy diet appear immensely more complicated than the reality. I’ve got good news – it doesn’t have to be that hard! In my practice the first thing on my agenda for every consult is bringing it all back to basics.

Fruit Platter

Fruit Platter (Photo credit: Matthew Kenwrick)

Here are my 8 key points for getting your diet back on track. If you stick to these, the rest will fall into place.

Click Here for full article from the Art of Balance: health coaching

A List of Foods That Burn Fat Fast

January 18, 2013 1 comment

In other words, there are certain foods that if eaten, will actually burn more calories than they contain. God is truly amazing! Nearly everything we eat contains calories, i.e., if it’s real food. A bottle of Diet Pepsi contains ZERO calories because it’s not food, its poisonous Aspartame. If you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight. It’s a basic principle of weight loss. So it’s actually healthy to snack on catabolic foods throughout the day when you get hungry, and you’ll be losing weight in the process. Pretty nifty huh?

English: lettuce

English: lettuce (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Some foods, like a piece of chocolate cake baptized in chocolate icing, are high in calories, and take a while to burn off. Other foods, like lettuce, are low in calories, and can be burned off faster. Your body is always burning calories, even if you’re sitting still and doing nothing. Being physically active definitely helps to burn calories faster, but you don’t want to overdo it. Swimming is one of the best and safest exercises, i.e., unless you like to dive into the shallow end of the pool head first. 

So, what are the foods that burn fat fast?

English: Apple. Polski: Jabłko.

English: Apple. Polski: Jabłko. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Catabolic foods burn more calories than they contain. For example, an apple contains around 80 or 90 calories. But the energy your body uses to metabolize the apple burns about 180 calories. So, when you eat an apple, your body burns off up to 100 calories more than you consumed. So the saying still holds true… “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”

Here is a list of high catabolic foods:

Apples
Asparagus
Blackberries
Blueberries
Broccoli
Cantaloupe
Carrots
Celery
Cucumbers
Eggplant
Grapefruit
Lemons
Lettuce
Limes
Oranges
Pears
Peppers
Pineapple
Plums
Radishes
Raspberries
Sweet Potatoes
Strawberries
Tomatoes
Watermelon
Zucchini

Of course, this doesn’t mean you can eat a greasy double-cheeseburger, and then eat five apples to make up for it. What it does mean is, if you are on a diet, eating certain foods will help you burn more calories and lose weight faster. These are foods you can snack on throughout the day, satisfying your hunger without ruining your diet. 

Also, be sure to drink plenty of hexagonal water, i.e., pure water, every day.

source: http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Health_Concerns/catabolic.htm

Why Sprinters should NOT do Double-Leg Squats

January 8, 2013 2 comments
Musculation exercice squats 1.png

Musculation exercice squats 1.png (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Jimson Lee,  speedendurance.com

There’s an alarming trend of Coaches who do not like the conventional double leg squats with the bar behind your head.

But for those who like to do the double-legged squats, it is recommended to do “front squats” with the bar on your front shoulders and collar bone, because if you fail at a given weight, you can easily throw it in front of you and abort the squat safely.  (of course, watch the mirror and people in front of you first!)

Please visit here to read the full article

Finding your Core

Collage of varius Gray's muscle pictures by Mi...

Collage of varius Gray’s muscle pictures by Mikael Häggström (User:Mikael Häggström) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Matt Fitzgerald, Active.com

 

Core conditioning is trendy these days, among runners as much as any other group. But even though we’re all talking about core conditioning, and some of us are actually doing it, many of us misunderstand its purpose and practice it incorrectly.

The most common misconception about core conditioning is that its main purpose is to strengthen the muscles of the trunk. In reality, developing strength is only a secondary purpose of core conditioning. Its primary objective is to teach you how to activate important stabilizing muscles and coordinate the use of these muscles with other muscles in sport-specific movements.

The reason this objective is so important is that most of us are unable to functionally activate some of our most important stabilizing muscles during running, and this problem reduces our efficiency of movement and contributes to overuse injuries. It doesn’t take any special strength to use the key stabilizers correctly. It takes coordination between the brain and muscles.

Consider the example of the deepest muscles of the abdominal wall (the transversus abdominis and internal obliques). According to Michael Fredericson, M.D., a sports medicine specialist at Stanford University and one of the world’s premier experts on core conditioning for runners, these muscles are vital to proper stabilization of the pelvis during running.

Transversus abdominis muscule

Transversus abdominis muscule (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Yet the vast majority of runners (including most elite runners) are unable to activate these muscles functionally to maintain pelvic stability on the run.

Again, weakness isn’t the issue. “It only takes a 10 percent contraction to do the job,” says Fredericson. Rather, the problem is a lack of neuromuscular communication. Our brains literally can’t find these muscles, probably because of the absurd amount of time we spent slouching in seats — a posture that requires no use of the deep abs.

So correcting the problem doesn’t require that we increase the maximum force generating capacity of the deep abs. Instead it requires that we learn how to use them, especially in sport-specific movements.

Read full article here

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