Health And Beauty

Regular Exercise Can Make You Smarter

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Defining Your Exercise Personality

Comments: 0 - Date: March 30th, 2009 - Categories: Uncategorized

30 Mar 2009 03:32 PM

Do you gravitate towards certain types of gym equipment more than others? Do you struggle to stick with your exercise routine? Experts say the way you answer those questions plays a big part in defining your fitness personality type.

Researchers at the American College of Sports Medicine suggest that there are five distinct personality types that exercisers can use to develop successful fitness regimens. What's more, experts maintain that using the personality types is a great way to structure a lasting exercise routine.

The following are the fitness personality types as defined by researchers at the American College of Sports Medicine:

SQUARE

Squares are considered the most reliable, stable and predictable of the five personality types. They create a fitness plan and stick with it because they thrive on routine. The downfall to being a square is that you often end up doing the same exercise routine for years and neglect to see results once you plateau.

RECTANGLE

Rectangle fitness types perform best with social interaction and don't do as well when exercising alone. Rectangles should join running groups or consider signing up for aerobic classes to stay fit.

TRIANGLE

Triangles are considered the most competitive and driven of the five personality types. Researchers define them as task-oriented individuals who enjoy monitoring their progress. The pitfall of being a "triangle" is that you typically don't work out as hard unless you are exercising with an equally competitive partner. Experts suggest training for an event, like a half-marathon, as incentive to follow your fitness routine.

CIRCLE

Circles are known as the social butterflies of the fitness world, and the most emotionally driven of the five types. The problem with being a circle is that you tend to socialize rather than exercise. "Circles" tend to talk the entire way through a workout and visit gyms more for the camaraderie than to exercise.

SQUIGGLIE

Experts say squigglies possess the least structured personality type, and don't do well with routines. Squigglies must derive pleasure from an exercise, or they may quit. Fitness experts suggest squigglies try an extremely varied routine that includes lots of different classes and new activities to maintain interest in exercise.

Yet Another Reason to Run

Yet Another Reason to Run

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Regular Exercise Can Make You Smarter

Comments: 0 - Date: March 28th, 2009 - Categories: Uncategorized

27 Mar 2009 09:51 PM

It's not a claim made by a chain fitness club, but the results of a new study: Regular exercise can help stimulate your brain functions.

According to new research published in the journal Hippocampus, elderly adults who are more physically fit tend to have bigger hippocampi and better spatial memory than those who are less fit.

The hippocampus is a brain structure vital to certain types of memory. It is located deep inside the medial temporal lobe of the brain, and according to researchers, bigger is better when it comes to hippocampus size. Researchers believe certain activities modify hippocampus size in humans.

For example, the new study found that exercise could affect hippocampus size and memory in humans. It also tested participants' spatial reasoning and found that too was positively affected by regular exercise.

"The higher fit people have a bigger hippocampus, and the people that have more tissue in the hippocampus have a better spatial memory," the study's author told reporters.

"Even ignoring the hippocampus data, we see there is this significant and substantial relationship between how fit you are and how good your memory is, or at least a certain kind of memory, a certain kind of memory that we need all the time," researchers noted.

Lead researchers maintain their findings are "clinically significant" in that they support the notion that lifestyle choices and behaviors may influence brain shrinkage in old age. Basically, the findings prove that if you stay physically fit as you age you will retain key regions of your brain involved in learning and memory. As a result, you might be able to live independently longer. Translation: If you don't want to be forced to give up your driver's license and your home until you are very, very old, then you should consider maintaining a regular exercise plan that includes cardio activities as well as strength training exercises.

The Best Part of Marathon Training: Tapering

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Yet Another Reason to Run

Comments: 0 - Date: March 27th, 2009 - Categories: Uncategorized

26 Mar 2009 10:46 PM

We all know that running is an excellent way to get fit. An exercise program, which includes running, can help you lose weight, build stamina and muscle, lower your blood pressure, increase metabolism, and decrease body fat. Now, health experts are adding one more benefit to the list: Prevention of bone mineral density (BMD).

A new study conducted by researchers at the University of Missouri found that high-impact activities, such as running, might have a greater positive effect on BMD than resistance training. The new information is welcome news for individuals who are at high risk of developing osteoporosis. The condition affects more than 200 million people worldwide and is a serious public health concern.

For decades doctors recommended weight lifting and other types of resistance training to increase and prevent loss of BMD. However, University of Missouri researchers now say running appears to have a greater beneficial effect. According to the researchers, individuals should add resistance training to their fitness regime and engage in activities, such as running, swimming or rowing to strengthen their bones and prevent osteoporosis.

According to the study, running helps increase bone strength like no other sport. High-impact, dynamic, multi-directional activities, including structured jump-training (plyometrics), also result in greater gains in bone strength as does basketball, volleyball, and soccer, but none compare to the benefits achieved with running.

In the study, the researchers found that runners had greater spine BMD than cyclists. Lean body mass was positively associated with BMD in both resistance-trained individuals and cyclists but not in runners; therefore, high-impact activity may override the benefits of lean body mass on BMD, according to researchers.

Bottom line: If you are looking for a way to burn calories, strengthen bones and prevent osteoporosis, then consider running rather than cycling or swimming. However, if you have a problem maintaining an exercise routine that includes running, then opt for another high-impact activity to stay fit and healthy.

Runners vs. Drivers-Sharing the Road with Lunatics on Four Wheels

Marathon Vacations

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Sleep More Weigh Less

Comments: 0 - Date: March 25th, 2009 - Categories: Uncategorized

24 Mar 2009 10:58 PM

How many hours of sleep do you average per night? Now, answer this: How much do you weigh? According to health experts, the two are co-related.

Sigh!

New mothers, single parents trying to juggle three jobs and raise decent kids, and you ladies working the nightshift, I have bad news for you: According to a new study, women who sleep 5 hours or less per night weigh more on average than those who sleep 7 hours.

Double sigh!

The study, conducted by researchers at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, found that women who slept for 5 hours per night were 32% more likely to experience major weight gain (defined as an increase of 33 pounds or more) and 15% more likely to become obese over the course of the 16-year study compared with women who slept 7 hours. By the way, women who slept for 6 hours aren't off the hook; they were 12% more likely to have major weight gain and 6% more likely to become obese compared with women who slept 7 hours a night.

The study included 68,183 middle-aged women, whose weight and sleep habits were tracked for 16 years. Of the study participants, the women who slept 5 hours or less per night weighed 5.4 pounds more at the beginning of the study than those sleeping 7 hours and gained an additional 1.6 pounds more over the next 10 years.

While that may not sound like much, I should note that some women gained much more than that. What's more, doctors are quick to point out that even a small difference in weight can increase a person's risk of health problems such as diabetes and hypertension.

Bottom line: According to this study, reduced sleep increases the risk of gaining weight over time.

Interestingly, researchers say they don't have a definite answer from this study about why reduced sleep causes weight gain. They theorize that sleeping less may affect changes in a person's basal metabolic rate (the number of calories you burn when you rest) and that if you sleep less, you move around less, and therefore burn up fewer calories.

Either way, if you needed another excuse to hit the sack earlier, this is it.