This is part of what I try to preach as a health advisor, coach, personal trainer, massage therapist and advocate of loving life and enjoying time with your family in a healthy manner. Go ahead and laugh at me, it is meant for your entertainment!!!
Enjoy.
Stay strong YYC!!
Month: September 2013
Confidence.
This is funny!
I found this to be quite funny and thought I would share. The look on his face is priceless.
Stay strong YYC!!
Protein explained
This article was fantastic to read and refresh my protein physiology. It is a little scientific, so not for everyone to fully understand, but the basics are there for protein content, amount and type.
I hope you enjoy!
Stay strong YYC!!
http://www.gssiweb.org/Article/sse-107-protein-consumption-and-resistance-exercise-maximizing-anabolic-potential
Strength training principles
A review of the basic principles behind strength training. Now, everyone is going to have a different view on sets, reps, weight and failure. Please understand that these are the principles that have been researched and proven over years of scientific studies and the principles followed by the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.
General strength training would be 8-10 reps for 3-9 sets depending on body part. One minute rest between sets and 2 minutes rest between exercises.
Again, these are general guidelines for the layperson. For strength training. Not power, speed or explosiveness. Just strength. Many believe that more sets are better. The key is to know what you are doing first, then experiment safely with new methods or different sets with different exercises. 8-10 reps with wright that you can barely lift for those reps.
Please do not start off with a strength training program if you have not been doing resistance training for at least six months. You increase chance of injury substantially!!
Stay strong YYC!!
Fictional doctor-humour
Chinese Doctor Woo’s wise advice concerning exercise.
Q: Doctor, I’ve heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life. Is this true?
A : Your heart only good for so many beats, and that it…don’t waste on exercise.
Everything wear out eventually. Speeding up heart not make you live longer; it like
saying you extend life of car by driving faster. Want to live longer? Take nap.
Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables?
A : You must grasp logistical efficiency. What does cow eat? Hay and corn.
And what are these? Vegetables. So steak is nothing more than efficient mechanism
of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain? Eat chicken. Beef also good source
of field grass (green leafy vegetable). And pork chop can give you 100% of recommended
daily allowance of vegetable product.
Ice Cream even better – everything Cow eats in one package!
Q: Should I reduce my alcohol intake?
A : No, not at all.. Wine made from fruit. Brandy is distilled wine, that mean they take
water out of fruity bit so you get even more of goodness that way. Beer also made of grain.
All people who don’t drink unhappy – happy people live longer so drink more. Bottom up!
Q: How can I calculate my body/fat ratio?
A : Well, if you have body and you have fat, your ratio one to one. If you have two bodies,
your ratio two to one, etc.
Q: What are some of the advantages of participating in a regular exercise program?
A : Can’t think of single one, sorry. More people killed running on street than lying on couch.
My philosophy is: No pain…good!
Q: Aren’t fried foods bad for you?
A : YOU NOT LISTENING! Food are fried these day in vegetable oil. In fact, they permeated by it.
How could getting more vegetable be bad for you?!?
Q: Will sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the middle?
A : Definitely not! When you exercise muscle, it get bigger. You should only be doing sit-up if you
want bigger stomach.
Q: What about food additives?
A: You want to complain about something for free? If it added – must be better – like fuel additive!
Q: Is chocolate bad for me?
A : Are you crazy?!? HEL-LO-O!! Cocoa bean! A nother vegetable! It best feel-good food around!
Q: Is swimming good for your figure?
A : If swimming good for your figure, explain whale to me..
Q: Is getting in shape important for my lifestyle?
A : Hey! ‘Round’ a shape!
Well, I hope this has cleared up any misconceptions you may have had about food and diets.
And remember:
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an
attractive and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways – Chardonnay in one
hand – chocolate in the other – body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and
screaming “WOO-HOO, what a ride!!”
AND…..
For those of you who watch what you eat, here’s the final word on nutrition and health. It’s a relief to know the truth after all those conflicting nutritional studies…
1. The Japanese eat very little fat
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
2. The Mexicans eat a lot of fat
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
3. The Chinese drink very little red wine
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
4. The Italians drink a lot of red wine
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
5. The Germans drink a lot of beer and eat lots of sausages and fats
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
CONCLUSION:
Eat and drink what you like.
Speaking English is apparently what kills you.
Try this workout!
Tired of boring old cardio?
Try this to spice it up a bit without going crazy crossfit on everyone.
Please remember that you should have a fitness assessment and/or doctors permission to exercise safely before embarking on ANY exercise program, regardless of age!!
1. Pick your piece of cardio equipment (treadmill, bike, elliptical, rowing machine…)
2. Warmup 5-10 min at a moderate pace. (Light sweat). This pace will be your resting pace, remember it. (Usually 50 rpm is good, 60-70 if you are fit).
3. These are called intervals. You will increase the tension by 50% and increase the speed by 20 rpm during the work portion of your interval.
4. First interval, increase tension, increase speed and go for 45 seconds.
5. First rest interval, decrease everything back down to warmup pace and ‘rest’ for 30 seconds.
6. Repeat 6-15 times as necessary.
As you get better, you can increase the work interval or decrease the rest interval.
Note: do not increase work and decrease rest at the same time unless this is absolutely easy for you.
Remember: these workouts that I post are fairly generic and are intended for a large, general population. If you are training for something specific your best bet is to seek out professional help to guide you properly. Please remember what your target heart rate is during this workout, you need to know it!! See previous blog for calculations.
Stay strong YYC!!
How to deal with injury
Injury is a part of sport, exercise and being active. It IS going to happen. It happens often sometimes and other times you have a long stretch of being injury free.
How you deal with injury is important for fast and complete recovery. Now I understand that injury is a large scope and this will not ring true to all, but for the general sake of helping, for basic soft tissue injuries, here are a few tips on how to best handle them.
1. If you are truly injured, or think you may be, go get diagnosed!! For goodness sake, go!! How do you know how to help yourself get better if you don’t know what is broken?
2. Don’t be macho (guys). Working through the pain can make an injury more serious. Better yet, don’t be a wimp either. Know the difference between muscle soreness and injury. If you don’t, start paying more attention to your body!
3. Get a massage!! From a qualified, professional Registered Massage Therapist. This should be a part of your injury prevention protocol already anyway, right? Massage speeds healing time, making you better, faster!
4. Ice the heck out of it! Now I know there are current studies showing that ice doesn’t work, well, from experience, it does. So, ice the heck out of it!!
5. Seek out a soft tissue specialist to help with timing of stretching, strengthening and back to training protocols. A CEP (certified exercise physiologist) or CSCS (certified strength and conditioning specialist) should be able to help.
6. Finally, don’t dwell on it. The longer you feel sorry for yourself the longer it will take to heal. This is normally due to slight depression which makes people not follow through with protocols and rehab. Stay positive, set new goals and push forward!
Remember, injuries will happen. How you deal with it will be the difference between back on track or off the track!!
Stay strong YYC!!
Arthritis and exercise
Exercise and Arthritis
Well, if you have been reading my articles up until now you know that exercise can help with almost all ailments, injuries, conditions and mental function. Well guess what? That’s right, it helps arthritis as well!
The tricky thing is to find what kind of exercise is best for your arthritis. First of all there are two main types of arthritis; osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. It is important to know which your are ailing from before seeking any exercise prescription. Knowing is the first step, understanding is the second. You need to keep track of pain; types of (shooting, stabbing, achy, sharp…), when the pain occurs, how long the pain lasts, is it debilitating. If you can track this kind of information you will be helping your Certified Exercise Physiologist to be able to narrow down what kinds of activities you are able to perform and they can build a specific program for you.
Knowing what type and the effects of the arthritis can make exercise prescription very specific. Some examples of exercises that are good for arthritis sufferers include water workouts such as swimming, deep water classes, deep water running, aquasize, walking and range of motion exercises. Most of these can be performed on your own at a local City of Calgary recreation center. If you need help with any program design you can always consult me or any qualified exercise specialist.
With all the talk of water exercising, walking and range of motion we cannot forget strength training. Strength training is one of the more important types of exercises (if doable) for arthritis as it strengthens the muscle surrounding the effected joints, adding stability, support and functionality. That helps to ease the pressure on the joints effected resulting in decreased pain. Strength training has been pigeon- holed in the past as training for that big bulky body. Nothing could be further from the truth these days. Strength training regimes are being given to anyone from arthritis sufferers to the developmentally challenged to rehab clients to people suffering from osteoporosis. In this day and age strength training has become one of the premiere training techniques that can span across a very diverse field of users.
If you think you may have arthritis, have your doctor check you out. If you have been diagnosed and know your symptoms, contact us and we will be able to help out in whatever way we can to help you live a pain-free, active life!
Stay strong YYC!!!
Refocus for Fall
Have you gotten off track with your workout routine over the summer? Not to worry, you’re not the only one! With summer vacations coming to an end and kids heading back to school, now is an excellent time to get back on track. Here are a few tips to help get you back into the swing of things this fall:
Set a Schedule
Now that schedules are filling up with homework, after school activities, and busy work schedules – set yourself a weekly workout schedule and stick to it! Be realistic in your planning so you don’t get discouraged from the start. It is helpful to schedule it into your day like you would any other important appointment.
Consistency is Key
Regardless of whether you like to workout before school or after work, try to stick with a consistent time of day. This will help you develop a routine. Don’t be discouraged if you miss a workout here or there, pick it up where you left off next workout (unless it’s turning into a regular occurrence – then you should rethink your plan).
Goal Setting
It’s a great time to revisit those goals you may have made earlier this year or to set some new goals. Try to make your goals Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and set a Timeframe. Having a goal that you are working towards puts purpose to your workouts and will give you that motivation you need to be consistent with your workouts.
Make it a Family Affair
Exercise is good for everyone – young or old! So why not get the whole family involved? Plan a weekly bike ride or hike with the family.
Get on Track with a Kinesiologist
It can be hard to get back into the swing of things after vacation especially after enjoying long, warm summer days. A little help from a Kinesiologist/Certified Exercise Physiologist can help you get back on track and stick to your plan. Maybe you are tired of your old workout routine. We can help you develop a new, exciting and challenging workout routine.