All entries for February 2012
Let's Get to The CORE of Our Beings
We’re hearing the words Core and Strength a lot these days throughout the fitness world. What, exactly is our core and what exactly, are we strengthening? I like the way Thomas C. Weiss describes it in an article he published: http://www.disabled-world.com/fitness/exercise/core-muscles.php#ixzz1lWz52j3J “A person's functional movements are greatly dependent upon their core. People who lack core development may experience a predisposition to injury. The major muscles of a person's core reside in their belly area and in their mid and lower back, to include their hips, neck, and shoulders. The major muscles involved include the pelvic floor muscles, multifidus, transverse abdominus, rectus abdominus, internal and external obliques, erector spinae – particularly the longissimus thoracis, as well as the diaphragm. The minor core muscles involved include the gluteus maximus, latissimus dorsi, and trapezius. The function of the core is to stabilize the person's thorax and pelvis during dynamic movement, as well as to provide internal pressure in order to expel substances.” That’s quite an impressive description, and well it should be, regarding the CORE unit of our bodies. There’s a lot of interaction within the musculature of our core simply to move our arms and legs, let alone when we challenge our bodies through more intense physical activity. Let’s appreciate the core of your beings. Not only is it the powerhouse from which all movement is established and made in our bodies, but it also houses our internal organs. We focus on knitting together the musculature of the abdominus, and obliques to create that carved-out six-pack, eight-pack, and v-cut through the hip flexor area. Sexy, yes? Think, organ prolapse… Sexy, no! A tighter, toner core keeps our organs in place! In yoga, an ancient pose called “Pavanamuktasana” or Wind Removing Pose - smile, it's okay - does the job of tightening and toning your core muscles while in an anatomically safe and supported position. When practiced to create an opposing force within the upper and lower musculature of your core, you’ve got one static strengthening “exercise,” tightening the unit supporting your heart and lungs, as well as, toning your shoulders, abs, back and glutes, making you look fABulous on the beach! Let me also mention that practicing this pose will massage your digestive organs as you engage and breathe deeply…
With your back lying upon a firm surface, tuck your knees tightly to your chest. Keep your feet side-by-side to one another. With your head remaining on the ground, dip your chin downward toward your throat. Press your shoulders away from your ears and lock down your wings. Reach for your opposite elbows and draw your arms inward. Engage your upper-body strength and roll your knees in tightly to your chest. Engage your lower-body strength and press your tailbone down toward the ground. You create an opposing force within your core unit toning and tightening even the intercostal muscles between your back ribs. This engagement also helps to hold your spine firm and straight. Breathe as deeply as you can with your mouth closed in this position, and gain the revitalizing massaging effect for your digestive organs at the front of your belly. In Pavanamuktasana, the core of your being is engaged, your organs beomce stimulated, your back strengthened, spine straightened. It's a one-stop, core-plus-more, yoga pose. Enjoy your body. Get to know the CORE of your being. Infuse it with goodness and gratitude for being able to move and breathe, and to feel the opposing forces you create within your musculature. LIVE in your body better, today. Be happy. Live healthy. Karen Cutrona Underwood, Better-Body-Inhabiter, and Owner of Blue Moon Yoga and Fitness, Inc. 
sugar sugar sugar
Sugar is so harmful to public health it should be controlled like alcohol and cigarettes, U.S. scientists claim. Researchers from the University of California-San Francisco said Wednesday that the public's excessive consumption of sugar not only is contributing to a global obesity pandemic but also is critically altering people's hormones, metabolism and blood pressure and causing "significant damage to the liver." In an article entitled "The Toxic Truth About Sugar," published in the journal Nature, the scientists said that sugar consumption tripled worldwide over the past 50 years and now is contributing to 35 million deaths a year. "As long as the public thinks that sugar is just 'empty calories,' we have no chance in solving this," Dr. Robert Lustig said. "There are good calories and bad calories, just as there are good fats and bad fats, good amino acids and bad amino acids, good carbohydrates and bad carbohydrates. But sugar is toxic beyond its calories." The researchers said that the effects of consuming an excess of sugary foods and drinks mimic the effects of drinking too much alcohol -- which, they pointed out, is made from distilling sugar. They recommended using taxation, controlling access to sugary products and tightening licensing requirements to sell sweet snacks and drinks in schools and workplaces. The American Beverage Association said it feels the authors' comparison of sugar to alcohol and tobacco is without scientific merit. "There is no evidence that focusing solely on reducing sugar intake would have any meaningful public health impact,” the ABA said in a statement. “Importantly, we know that the body of scientific evidence does not support that sugar, in any of its various forms – including fructose, is a unique cause of chronic health conditions such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease or metabolic syndrome.” The Sugar Association agreed with the ABA. “The alleged consumption assumes total supply equals human consumption,” the Sugar Association said in a statement. “Total supply includes the amount sold for food plus what is allotted for unsold inventory.” “Second, when the comment authors used total supply amounts to estimate consumption, they disregard the fact that reliable estimates of consumption require total supply amounts to be reduced by processing losses and consumer waste (estimated at 29 percent in the U.S.), the practice used by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. During the same time that consumption of cane and beet sugar was decreasing, the obesity epidemic, which the authors cite as a “marker” for the metabolic dysfunctions that lead to many of these non-communicable diseases, increased.” The Sugar Association said it feels the authors are being irresponsible by using their platforms to scare people – especially when using words like ‘diabetes’ or ‘cancer.’ Dr. Laura Schmidt, who was involved in the research, said, "We're not talking prohibition. We're not advocating a major imposition of the government into people's lives." She added, "We're talking about gentle ways to make sugar consumption slightly less convenient, thereby moving people away from the concentrated dose. What we want is to actually increase people's choices by making foods that aren't loaded with sugar comparatively easier and cheaper to get." NewsCore contributed to this article.
|
Meet Our Experts
CategoriesArchives
Tags |
