Grip Strength Training Tips

Joe Weir has started a grip stength training tip sheet at TipDrop.com…a subject that is near and dear to his heart.  Grip strength I mean. There is also a little help from me.

Check it out: Strength Training and a Strong Grip

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Diverticulitis

Image via Wikipedia

Diverticulosis is the presence in the large intestine (colon) of small saccular outpouchings, termed diverticula. Diverticulitis refers to inflammation and infection of diverticula.

Here is a  complete overview on diverticulitis by Dr. Amanda Peppercorn covering definitions of the condition, causes, and treatment.

Topics include:

What are Diverticulosis and Diverticulitis?

What causes diverticulosis and diverticulitis?

What are the symptoms of diverticulitis?

How is the diagnosis of diverticulitis made?

How is diverticulitis treated?

What dietary modifications should be made following acute diverticulitis?

What evaluation should occur after resolution of acute diverticulitis?

Conclusions

References

Continue Reading >> Diverticulitis

Exercise Protects You From Colds?

You’ve heard that exercise builds immunity, right? You may be surprised to know that there is very little scientific basis  for this common belief. Not that I’ve ever found, anyway.  The immune factors in well trained people tend to fall well within the normal range.

Today I got an email from the ACSM and it kind of set the hairs on the back of my neck on end.

The email was concerning how to know when to work out when you’re sick. The common guidelines were given which basically say if it’s above the neck only it’s okay to exercise. If it’s below the neck, then don’t.

So in other words, if you just have the sniffles you can exercise. If you have a cough, you can’t. I don’t really know where this advice came from.  I can tell you that the intensity and duration of your exercise comes into play and if you have a head cold and go out an run ten miles you just might end up with cough! I really hate one size fits all guidelines and I’d say you should be your own judge.

But after that whole thing the email linked to an article which claimed that exercise protects us from colds.  Does it really? I posted a piece on my blog at GUS on this article so,

Continue Reading >> Ground Up Strength: Exercise Protects You From Colds.

Organic Food: Is it Safer? Article by Jamie Hale

Image by DennisSylvesterHurd via Flickr

By Jamie Hale

Over the past two decades the sale of organic foods has increased annually nearly 20%. Today’s organic food system includes a combination of small and large food producers, local and global distribution networks, and a wide variety of products including processed foods, fruits, vegetables, meats and dairy [1]. Recent food crises such as mad cow disease and foot-and-mouth disease may have decreased consumer confidence in conventional foods and swayed their buying tendencies to what they perceive as safer foods – Organic, All Natural Foods.

Continue Reading >> Ground Up Strength: Organic Food The Real Story.

Strength Training Tips and More

TipDrop.com is a new micro-blogging service that allows users to post concise tips on areas they have a particular expertise in. Similar to Twitter and others but focused on actual tips rather than “I just swallowed my gum” sorts of posts. Users can create focused tip sheets so that tips are organized by subject.

I will be using TipDrop to post many useful tips and I hope that they will be of service. My “vision” is that these types of short tips will allow my visitors who are just getting into training to either figure out what questions they want to ask or to help them find a direction for their research. Sometimes knowing where to start is about knowing what you want to know!

You may (I hope) desire further discussion about some of the tips you find there. Please feel welcome to drop by the GUS Forum and post a thread on it and ask me (Eric) directly if you want. If something I say doesn’t sit right then I’ll be happy to defend my statements or revise them as needed.The link is below:

Eric Troy’s Tips at TipDrop

Herbs Can Work if You Know How to Work Them

Ginkgo Biloba image via Wikipedia

I recently published some very informative articles on ergogenic dietary supplements by Melvin Williams. Or at least “supposedly” ergogenic dietary supplements. Obviously, while many supplements may have health benefits, some are more ergogenic than others.

As you may recall, an ergogenic is anything that can help us do work or increase our capacity to do work. In other words improve our performance.

Out of all the links to those artices that people can click on, such as vitamins, minerals, aminos, or metabolites (like creatine) it is no surprise to me whatsoever that HERBS is the most popular.

Herbs seem to promise so much, well, promise compared to thecommon and mundane nutritionals. Unfortunately, most of the herbals that athletes and strength trainees turn to as “apaptogens” are pretty much worthless.

Some “herbs” that are currently marketed as dietary supplements or even “miracle cures” actually have a great deal of nutritional value and have been used in cooking for thousands of…for a very long time.

While they are not miracles by any stretch of the imagination but they have some surprising uses.

As well, there are some humble herbs that you may never have considered that can be helpful.  They don’t have the “star quality” of ginseng or ginkgo biloba but image, these days, is rarely a true measure of ability!

The trick is knowing what they are really good for as opposed to what the supplement industry would have you think they are good for. I’m not sure I should admit it, but I know a little bit more about these kind of uses than the average bear.

So read on if you want to know some of those uses. In this post I discuss an herb you probably thought wasn’t even for humans, catnip, and something I KNOW fennel  to be good for. Also, associated herbs are discussed. I am sticking to the topic of what I do with these herbs and am refraining from rambling on about their many supposed attributes.

Ground Up Strength: What Are Herbs Really Good For?.

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• Ergogenic Supplements: Vitamins, Minerals, Aminos, ETC. (gustrength.wordpress.com)

How To Read and Understand Food Labels

Image by Mr Miyagi via Flickr

There is more to understanding food labels than meets the eye. This page covers much more than the standard “let’s just get something up” type of page on food labels. I borrowed heavily from the FDA but also included a great deal more including some ‘trick’ used by manufacturers to delude us, many of which are illegal. The average consumer is probably not aware of just how little shenanigans food makers can get away with.

Problem is, many things that could well be be considered “foods” by any reasonable standard are sold as dietary supplements. To my mind, whey protein and other proteins sold as powders are such foods. If these proteins are used as an ingredient in a food, they are food. Put them in a big jug as a “nutritional supplement” and they are no longer subject to the labeling requirements of foods. I’ve included an example on protein powder labeling to illustrate this.

Topic covered:

The Nutrition Facts Panel

Serving Size

Serving Size and Portion Distortion

Protein Powders and Serving Size

Calories and Calories from Fat

Nutrients

Trans Fats (Trans Fatty Acids)

Comparing Nutrient Density with Sites like NutritionData

The Footnote at the Bottom of the Nutrition Facts Panel

The Percent Daily Value (%DV)

Compare foods using the %DV

Nutrients Without a %DV: Trans Fats, Protein, and Sugars

Nutrient Content Claims

Free, Low, and Reduced/Less

Fat Free Cooking Sprays

Ingredients List

Using the Ingredients List

Spices, Flavorings, Natural Flavor or Artificial Flavor

Artificial Colors

Chemical Preservatives

Ingredients and Natural Claims

Labeling for Food Allergens

Ground Up Strength: How To Read Food Labels.

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The Romanian Deadlift (RDL

The Romanian deadlift is a deadlift variation that is begun from the hang position rather than from the floor. This exercise was originally used by weightlifters¹ to improve performance in the competitive lifts but the RDL is not really as similar to any phase of the clean or the snatch as many believe.

It is however useful as a cross-training movement to develop specific musculature and specific movement schema. Just don’t think of it as “mimicking” any part of a clean or a conventional deadlift. With that in mind, it is an excellent movement and even if you are not interested in maximum strength or power, you can use the RDL as a part of your resistance training for training the posterior chain (and to help get a great butt and hamstrings).

Continue Reading >> Ground Up Strength: Romanian Deadlift (RDL).

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Exercise and ADD

Image via Wikipedia

Just read an interesting Medscape interview with Prof. John J. Ratey in regards to attention-deficit disorder (also called attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) and exercise.

According to Dr. Ratey ADD effects 8 to 10% of children and about the same number of adults and is now considered a bioligical brain disorder and may have genetic roots.

He says that the neurotransmitters norepinephrine and dopamine are drivers of the attention system and that exercise increases the concentration of both of these chemicals, as well as others.

Dr. Ratey believes that “a dose of exercise is like taking a bit of methylphenidate (Ritalin®) or amphetamine/dextroamphetamine (Adderall®); it’s similar to taking a stimulant.”

Furthermore, makes the brain better, over time at making these neurotransmitters as well as their postsynaptic receptors. The more you exercise the more the system grows.

Although studies on the relationship between exercise and dopamine/norepinephrine have been going on for some time, studies regarding exercise and ADD specifically are just now getting under way. But the doctor believes that chronic exercise is much like a medication for this disorder and that whatever treatment is begun; exercise should be a part of that.

He recommends strength training and aerobic training but also says that balance training is important for ADD. Yoga or Tai Chi, or other balance exercise. But just 10 to 15 minute exercise breaks thoughout the day could be very helpful.

He mentions Michael Phelps as an athlete who’s training has helped him overcome ADD.

Sounds promising and, really, exercise is good for everyone. So who wouldn’t want their child to try, at least, to replace some of the medication with exercise? But what struck me the most was not the potential effect of exercise on the the biology but what Dr. Ratey said about it’s effect on outlook. It prevents “learned helplessness” in a child who has been convinced he is doomed to fail.

What more can you ask?

John J. Ratey, M.D. is Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Dr. Ratey is author of the book Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain, as well as several related books in the popular press. He also has consulted on clinical studies pertaining to exercise and psychiatric conditions.

P.S. to view articles on Medscape you need an account. It’s free.

Overuse Injuries in Female Athletes

You’ve heard that women can train the same as men except for a few physical differences, right? Well, what are they?

Actually, there are some anatomical, physiological, and psychological difference between women and men which leads to a prevalence of certain overuse injuries in women.

The last three decades have witnessed a tremendous increase in female sports participation at all levels. However, increased sports participation of female athletes has also increased the incidence of sport-related injuries, which can be either acute trauma or overuse injuries. Overuse injuries may be defined as an imbalance caused by overly intensive training and inadequate recovery, which subsequently leads to a breakdown in tissue reparative mechanisms.

– Ivković, et al.

Dive into this great article to get the low-down on these anatomical, physiological, and psychological differences between female and male athletes.

Topics covered:

Special characteristics of female athlete

Anatomical considerations

Muscles:

Ligaments and joints:

Physiological considerations

Psychological considerations

Overview of most frequent overuse injuries in female athletes

Stress fractures

Patellofemoral pain syndrome

Patellar tendinitis – jumper’s knee

Lateral epicondylitis

Iliotibial band friction syndrome

Ground Up Strength: Overuse Injuries in Female Athletes.