Stretching for Heart Health

Stretching has often been seen as a means to increase flexibility, improve muscle strength and tone as well as improve breathing and reduce stress. However, some of the latest  research suggests that having greater flexibility may also increase arterial flexibility which may put you at lower risk for a heart attack and/or a stroke. The study suggests that those with poorer flexibility may have more rigid arterial walls which make the heart work harder to pump blood.

However, the study also points out that stiff arteries don’t necessarily indicate or inevitably lead to arterial disease. That being said, this just might be reason enough to check out that yoga class at the gym in the mornings before/after work, pick up a yoga DVD for home or start an office stretching regime at your desk.

How to Get to Your Healthy Weight

Our daughter Lindsay, sent the following link as a suggested post for our blog.  Lindsay is a Registered Dietitian and is our "go-to" person when we are looking to get reliable and up-to-date information about food, eating, metabolism .....just about everything related to nutrition.  Lindsay is also a fitness instructor and is often asked these types of questions by her clients.  Rather than dissect anything from this article, you're getting the whole thing.  It addresses the following:

• Obesity and Health Risks
• What's a Healthy Weight? Body Mass Index (BMI) Defined
• Waist Size Matters Too:  Abdominal Fat and Health Risks
• Keeping Things Level
• What Causes Weight Gain?
• What Leads to Weight Loss?
• Lessons From Losers
• General Strategies for Achieving or Maintaining a Health Weight
• The Bottom Line:  Recommendations for Health Weight
• References

Many of the points above maybe questions you have too.

Here's the link:
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-weight/healthy-weight-full-story/

Standing Ab Exercises

It can be a defining moment in an adult's life, that moment when they realize they don't have to do a zillion crunches in their workout. In fact, it is entirely possible to work the Abs and back without a single crunch...without even getting on the floor.

Not only is it possible but, in some respects, it's preferable. Floor exercises have their place, of course, but working the Abs from a standing position, either with exercises that are integrated into your workout, or with targeted core exercises, focuses on the Abs the way they function in real life - as a support for all the movements you do each day ….walking, bending over to pick something up, lifting something overhead or twisting around to grab something behind you.

The study behind these exercises suggest these moves are the best for recruiting all those muscle fibers in your Abs but, with the shift towards functional training, we now understand that we need strong Abs, not just while lying on the floor, but for all the movements we perform each day.

We also know that working the body as a whole is a lot more effective than trying to isolate different muscle groups (like crunches do). What that means for your Abs is that, while crunches and other floor exercises still have a place in our training routines, standing Ab work can add a new depth and dimension to your workouts, giving you more than just strong Abs, but a strong core.

What do you think? Are you over crunches and looking for something new? How do you work your Abs and do you focus on both floor and standing exercises?

Here’s what I think are the 10 most effective Ab exercises:

Reverse Wood Chops

Reverse wood chops are great for the Abs because they involve rotating the body and bringing the arms from the hips and across the body to the opposite shoulder.  This dynamic exercise requires the Abs and back to stabilize the body throughout the movement.

Horizontal Wood Chops

Like the reverse wood shops shown above, horizontal wood chops take your body through a rotation, moving the arms from one side to the other and targeting every muscle in the Abs and back with some core stabilization thrown in.

Side Bends With a Medicine Ball

While side bends won't necessarily whittle your waist (that comes from losing body fat), this overhead side bend is a great way to strengthen the muscles of the waist (the obliques) while also targeting the Abs and lower back.

Windmills

The windmill is an excellent exercise for the entire body with a strong focus on the obliques and the lower back.  With this move, formis everything.  You can add intensity by holding weights in both hands.

Overhead Squats

The overhead squat is an advanced Ab exercise that looks easier than it is.  Your Abs and back work hard to keep the body in position as you squat and rotate to bring the arm overhead, making this a dynamic, whole body exercise.  Start with no weight.

Medicine Ball Circles

Medicine ball circles are one of my favourite exercises for warming up the entire body, especially the Abs and back.  The idea is to circle the weight, making the biggest circle you can while using your whole body in the process.

Medicine Ball Rotations with Static Lunges

The static lunge with a med ball rotation is another great exercise for working the Abs and back while building endurance in the lower body.  The idea is to engage the stabilizer muscles in your legs and hips to hold a lunger while rotating the medicine ball slowly to one side and then the other.  As a modification, keep the medicine ball close to the body as you rotate, focusing on keeping the entire movement centered on the torso. 

Figure 8s with a Medicine Ball

Figure 8 lunges are a total body exercise emphasizing core strength and stability along with lower body endurance and overall balance and coordination.

The key to making this move effective is to start by performing each move separately.  Step forward into a lunge with the right leg and hold that position, getting your balance.  Then, take the ball to the opposite hip, rotating through the torse, and sweep the ball down and up in the first half of your figure 8.  Then step the right foot back to start before taking the same leg back into a reverse lunge.  Hold that position as you complete your figure 8 motion to the other side.  Do all reps on one side before switching legs.

Standing Side Crunch

The standing side crunch is all about the obliques, with an added challenge to your balance and stability.  To really engage the obliques, go through a full range of motion and keep the movement slow and controlled.  As you bring the knee toward the elbow, keep the chest open rather than rounding forward - imagine that your back is against a wall and you're sliding along the wall as you do this exercise.

Standing Crossover Crunch

The standing crossover crunch looks a lot like the bicycle move done on the floor, with an emphasis on the obliques.  To really get the most out of this exercise, go slow and focus on bringing the shoulder towards the hip, rather than the elbow to the knee.  This will put the focus through the torso and engaging the core rather than swinging the arm towards the knee.

Ways to Stay Motivated...

Play video Marina Kanno and Giacomo Bevilaqua from Staatsballett Berlin perform several jumps captured in slow motion at 1000 frames per second. Directed by Simon Iannelli & Johannes Berger Camera by Dr. Frank… 00:03:17 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4X5z8AQc3s&feature=player_embedded   I hope you enjoyed that 3+ minutes of elegance.  Maybe the best way to stay motivated to exercise is to become a ballet dancer. There's something about having every inch of your body captured on film (like the above), then having that image reproduced for all the world to see, that makes working out more of a necessity rather than a luxury. Getting a paycheck based on maintaining a certain shape or size helps too. Since most of us don't have the kind of job that motivates us in quite the same way (thank God!), we have to work a little harder to keep the momentum flowing. The hard truth is, motivation isn't something you wait for and it isn't something that just happens when the time is right. It's something you have to work to find, not just today, but every day. Sound depressing?  .... What about you? What keeps you going day after day? Do you find that what motivates you one day doesn't always work the next? Leave a comment and tell us your ideas for how to stay motivated to exercise. Here’s some ideas to help make the process easier: Re-Visit Your Past Think back to previous attempts at losing weight or exercising. What made you quit before and are you on the same path now? If so, you may be stuck in a pattern you haven't noticed before. Break it by figuring out what went wrong before. Make your own list and then figure out how to get around these issues. If the diet is too strict, make smaller changes you can live with every day. If you're busy, try shorter workouts. Change what you're doing until it works. Get Real Most people fail at their fitness goals because they're waiting for something spectacular to happen. Losing weight isn't always a spectacular process...in fact, it isn't even a linear process sometimes. What you may find is that you lose a little, gain a little and repeat the process again and again. There are no shortcuts to weight loss so even if you're frustrated that your body hasn't changed, don't give up. If you're burning more calories than you eat, your body is changing, even if it's slower than you'd like. Make sure your goals are realistic and, most importantly, that you give your body the time it needs to respond to what you're doing. It can be weeks, often months before changes start to show. Get Pumped We all get a spurt of motivation when deciding to lose weight and that energy carries us through the first few weeks of a workout and diet plan. However, it's normal to lose some of that energy after a month or two and wonder if you should just give up. Before you do, try these tips: ·         Revisit your goals - Do they still mean something to you? ·         Think about how far you've come - Don't just look at how much weight you've lost, but other ways your life has improved. Are you stronger or faster? Do you feel better about yourself? Could you use those feelings to keep going now? ·         Change things up - Variety can infuse more energy into your workouts. Try changing your workout schedule or trying something new to stay interested in exercise. Reward Yourself It's surprisingly easy to get excited about exercise and it's called massage. There's nothing that feels better than finishing up a week's worth of workouts followed by a relaxing massage. Schedule one once a month if you can or, if massages aren't your thing, try some other ideas: ·         Buying new workout gear ·         A weekend getaway ·         A night chilling out with your favorite TV show ·         A new book or song you've been wanting ·         An MP3 player for your workouts ·         A new computer game you can only play after exercise Exhaust Every Avenue Before you quit, try everything you can to stay on track. Instead of drifting away from exercise without acknowledging it, give yourself a minimum amount of exercise to get in each week. When you dip below that (or stop altogether), promise yourself you'll try other things before you quit altogether: ·         Hire a personal trainer or work with one online ·         Find a workout buddy ·         Join a fitness group or gym ·         Try a new way of exercising - a video, a class, a sport, etc. Sometimes you just need something new and fun to keep you going. Stop Waiting for a Miracle Some people think if they exercise long enough, they'll wake up one day and suddenly love exercising and eating healthy. While it does get easier, you'll always have to find ways to motivate yourself for your workouts. If you're waiting for a shining moment of excitement, you might be waiting for a long time. Instead, you can make it happen! Lose the Excuses Every day is different. What motivated you yesterday may not work today, so sift through what inspires you to find that one thing that will get you out the door. It may be pants you want to fit into or competing with your friend (he's working out--you don't want to fall behind, do you?).  Before you skip your workout, try these ideas to get moving: ·         I'll feel good about myself if I finish my workout ·         I'll just warm up and, if I want to stop, I can ·         I'm going to dinner tonight, so I know I need this workout to balance my calories ·         This workout will give me more energy for the rest of my day ·         If I finish this workout, I can spend some time reading, watching TV or playing around on the computer Open Your Mind Being bored is the perfect time to try something new. You'll be more willing to try things you may have dismissed because they didn't fit within your definition of exercise. It could be belly-dancing, a latin dance class or that spinning class at the gym. Or try something more mind/body like Pilates or Yoga. If what you're doing isn't working, it's time to find something that will. Sometimes even just a new piece of equipment or a workout is enough to get you moving again ....or maybe you will become a ballet dancer!

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Is Exercising Outdoors Good for your Longevity?

If you’re determined to get into shape and make exercise a part of your longevity plan, why not take it outside? Increasingly, the effect of nature on our frame of mind and overall health is being investigated. For conditions ranging from obesity to schizophrenia and heart disease, promising data suggests there are significant benefits (including promoting a longer life) to being in fresh air and the wide open.

Benefits of being outdoors: A 2011 review of 38 different research projects, published in the Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, found that people suffering from many different physical and mental problems improved with some form of “nature-assisted therapy”, probably because natural environments tend to promote relaxation. For example, patients with congestive heart failure showed significantly improved heart rate and mood scores after gardening programs. Weight loss was greater among obese subjects undergoing an outdoor exercise program, and subjects suffering a variety of diseases – including breast cancer and dementia – reported improved mental focus after their nature program. A reduction in anxiety, anger and depression were common findings.

In all of the studies, participants were surveyed about their mood and energy level after a single episode of walking or running indoors, and then again after doing the same activity outdoors on a separate occasion.

What they found: Overall, exercising outdoors was associated with feeling more revitalized, more energetic, and less tense, angry or depressed, than after their indoor activity. In one of the trials, subjects reported that they felt less fatigued after exercising outside. In addition, most of the participants said they felt more satisfied, and had greater enjoyment outdoors. Perhaps most significantly, the majority of subjects also said they were more likely to stick with the outdoor activity in the future.

Walking and running outside may also offer better fitness benefits than using a treadmill, since the varied terrain offers muscles and joints greater challenge for balance and endurance.

Still to investigate: Though none of the studies tracked long-term adherence to an outdoor exercise program, other research has shown that even a small amount of exercise done regularly improves longevity. Perhaps future investigation will prove whether being outside helps people continue to be active.

Since there are so many types of green spaces, ranging from wilderness areas and wildlife reserves, to urban parks, further studies will determine which environments promote the greatest activity. The University of Exeter review cites a 2005 survey of European cities that found simply having access to green spaces made a difference, with citizens in areas of greatest greenery being three times more likely to be active, and 40% less likely to be obese. Other research cites green spaces improves a sense of connectivity and companionship, which in turn promotes longevity.

What it means for you: Since regular exercise – even just 15 minutes a day – has been shown to help you live longer, why not double up on the rewards, by being active outdoors?