Osteoporosis refers to a loss of bone mineral density – resulting in bones losing strength and becoming more brittle. While significant on its own, the nature of this condition is amplified by the prevalence of falls and the...
People with diabetes are constantly challenged by oscillating blood glucose levels. The magic of exercise, and the reason for its vital importance in the treatment of diabetes, is that muscular contractions have the exact same effect on the body as insulin. Exercise...
Vast research has explored this psychological component of exercise, and the pure volume of these non-physical benefits speaks for itself. Perhaps the overriding psychological benefits are an improvement of quality of life and general wellbeing, which are, in turn,...
Exercise, almost by definition is hard. To cause the body to adapt via an increase in strength, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, or any other facet; a stimulus must be applied. Not only must this stimulus be applied, but to...
We exercise right, we eat healthily and then we go to work and sit in an injurious position for eight hours. Something’s not quite right. Here’s the solution. Perhaps the most common position we find ourselves in is sitting at a...
Let’s look to the research. This excerpt is taken direct from: American Association for Cancer Research (2009, April 22). Charred Meat May Increase Risk Of Pancreatic Cancer. ScienceDaily. Retrieved September 26, 2010,...
Let’s look to the research. This excerpt is taken direct from: American Association for Cancer Research (2009, April 22). Charred Meat May Increase Risk Of Pancreatic Cancer. ScienceDaily. Retrieved September 26, 2010,...
Most of the food we eat should perishable. Tinned tuna can be a convenient exception. Fresh tuna is best – more of the healthy OMEGA-3 Fatty Acids – but for pure convenience you can’t beat fish in a can. That being said – it...
The literature shows a spike in the incidence of heart attacks and stroke during rose pruning season. I have said before that correlation does not imply causality (just because two things happen at the same time does not mean...
Every meal you consume should have a balance of protein, carbohydrates and fats. Let’s play a quick game. What did you have for breakfast yesterday? What constituted the protein, what constituted the carbohydrates, what...
Maintaining a neutral spine during complex movements is the single most important technique based skill there is. First – some definitions: Neutral spine is the position where the spine and pelvis are least likely to suffer...
Chronic pain is that nagging long term pain that doesn’t go away – even after the damaged tissues should have long since healed. This form of pain is characterized by its long term effect on the body, lasting at least three...
In the majority of cases, we can emply a basic model in the treatment and prevention of musculo-skeletal injury. By understanding this compensatory effect we can use it to our advantage in treating and preventing injury. The best...
The importance of function, or more specifically, the ability to function must truly be the most important of all the benefits of exercise. A vast percentage of the major indicators of physical ageing can be countered by an...
BMI is one of the main criteria by which the Australian Medical System determines your health. How short you are, and how heavy you are – or more accurately, how heavy you are relative to your height. BMI. Body Mass Index. BMI = Mass (kg) / height (m) squared. Now...
Evolution is a wonderful thing. But then along comes Cultural Evolution. We learn to change our environment rather than evolve to suit it. Occasionally it works. Thick clothes keep us warm so we can survive cold climates....
Fats are good. They get a bad wrap, but we need them. But what happens to fat when it's cooked? Heating olive oil actually causes a negative chemical change in the fatty acids, releasing 'toxic oxygenated aldehydes'. These TOA's cause oxidative stress (basically...
In the first post in this series (Improving Athletic Performance Through PNF Stretching Part 1) we covered the mechanics of muscle and how the length and strength of a muscle are related. In this, we deal with how to perform PNF...
'Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except in the Light of Evolution'. We shine this light on obesity and see what it reveals. We must first journey back to our 'environment of evolutionary adaptiveness'. This is just a technical term for the time in our evolutionary past...
Is there a set of questions we can ask of any questionable health pseudoscience to better form a science based opinion? Turns out there is and it's been developed by Michael Shermer, publisher of 'Skeptic Magazine'. Next time you...
For bodies evolved to do so much – we spend a lot of our time doing so little. The vast majority of our day is spent in a very limited number of positions. This is never more true than in our sedentary occupations. In fact – the...
Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Faciliation is a method of increase muscle length and the range over which force can be applied. PNF has the potential to give you: More strength - without having to make your muscles stronger, More...