Newspapers crying out ads such as --Trim your buttocks in a fortnight! Slim waistline in 3 weeks !!!!!!! are a common feature. So what do you think – Possible or IMPOSSIBLE?
Fat (adipose) tissue is all over the body, and is stored generally as - visceral (surrounding organs), or subcutaneous (beneath the skin), which forms 80% of total body fat.
Contrary to the popular opinion, body fat is highly essential as an insulator, a shock absorber, a fuel reserve. The locations where fat is “pre-dominantly” stored are predetermined by your genes and your gender.
Women - generally around the buttocks and thighs / pear-shaped / Gynoid
Men - generally around the abdomen / apple-shaped / Android
The body loses fat as a whole. However, you sometimes lose fat in some areas more quickly than in others-simply due to a genetic selective pattern.
Although fat is lost or gained throughout the entire body, generally the last areas to become lean tend to be those where an individual tends to gain fat first ( First In Last Out architecture !!!)
If spot reduction were indeed possible, then shouldn’t a tennis player’s dominant arm have lesser fat than the other arm?? But is this normally found? The answer is no.
The various spot reduction gimmicks that flood the market, are just those –gimmicks. These quick fixes are equally quick to lose effectiveness, due to the use of unnatural methods of stimulus to the body.
Exercise, on the other hand, results in more subcutaneous fat loss. Diet alone results in more visceral fat loss and less surface fat loss.
Moreover, muscle and fat have different minds of their own !!! The popular “ab crunches” are a strengthening exercise – meaning they tone the abdominal muscles. They do not cause fat loss around the mid-region !!!
So the solution ? Make caloric expenditure sufficiently high, and it will cause fat from the entire body to be reduced, including a particular target area.
No shortcuts to success, someone had said!!
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Occupational Health
How many days pass without anyone of us complaining about lower back pain or pain in the upper back-neck-shoulder region!!
Considering our increasingly sedentary lifestyles – especially at and to-and-fro from work, it does not take a rocket scientist to predict the range of health problems that will arise.
The problems arise since the discs of the spinal column are under more pressure when sitting than while standing or lying down, and specific muscles are under constant tension.
Let us consider the 2 main situations –
While Driving to and from Work –
In a moving vehicle, the body is subject to forces which include accelerations, decelerations, lateral swaying (from side to side), and multi-planar vibrations. Also since the feet are tied up manipulating the brake pedal and accelerator, they fail to support and stabilize the spine and the body, which increases the chance of back problems.
Keep the knees and hips at right angles, shoulders relaxed, and steering wheel at a comfortable distance from the body which does not involve flexing the arm too much.
While sitting at Work --
Sitting for prolonged periods tire and stress the back muscles.
Take frequent breaks from sitting every 1 hour or so.
Adjustable Chairs With Good Back Support Prevent Agonizing Back Pain.
Such chairs spread your weight over a large surface area in order to minimize the strain on any one part, which means a chair that leans backward as you're resting.
If you don't have access to a chair with a good back support, place a small pillow in the small of the back to correct the curve.
When sitting in a chair, the feet should be supported on the floor.
Neck pain is common while sitting.
Make sure your computer monitor isn't too high of low, it is at the level of eyes.
Avoid keeping your computer keyboard too high or too far away, else the arms have to be kept raised or extended, resulting in tense shoulder and upper back muscles and back pain.
Leaning your head over for prolonged periods of time is brutal on your neck muscles.
Keep the arm hanging at the sides while not using the computer .
Learn a few stretches for these muscle groups and de-stress !!!!!!!
Considering our increasingly sedentary lifestyles – especially at and to-and-fro from work, it does not take a rocket scientist to predict the range of health problems that will arise.
The problems arise since the discs of the spinal column are under more pressure when sitting than while standing or lying down, and specific muscles are under constant tension.
Let us consider the 2 main situations –
While Driving to and from Work –
In a moving vehicle, the body is subject to forces which include accelerations, decelerations, lateral swaying (from side to side), and multi-planar vibrations. Also since the feet are tied up manipulating the brake pedal and accelerator, they fail to support and stabilize the spine and the body, which increases the chance of back problems.
Keep the knees and hips at right angles, shoulders relaxed, and steering wheel at a comfortable distance from the body which does not involve flexing the arm too much.
While sitting at Work --
Sitting for prolonged periods tire and stress the back muscles.
Take frequent breaks from sitting every 1 hour or so.
Adjustable Chairs With Good Back Support Prevent Agonizing Back Pain.
Such chairs spread your weight over a large surface area in order to minimize the strain on any one part, which means a chair that leans backward as you're resting.
If you don't have access to a chair with a good back support, place a small pillow in the small of the back to correct the curve.
When sitting in a chair, the feet should be supported on the floor.
Neck pain is common while sitting.
Make sure your computer monitor isn't too high of low, it is at the level of eyes.
Avoid keeping your computer keyboard too high or too far away, else the arms have to be kept raised or extended, resulting in tense shoulder and upper back muscles and back pain.
Leaning your head over for prolonged periods of time is brutal on your neck muscles.
Keep the arm hanging at the sides while not using the computer .
Learn a few stretches for these muscle groups and de-stress !!!!!!!
Friday, February 8, 2008
Wellness
Have been hearing the word “Fitness” since ages…. Now what exactly is wellness?
Being healthy is merely being free of diseases, aches and pains. However, being FIT means having an ideal balance of the “Tripod of Fitness” – the 3 S – Strength, Stamina, Suppleness (Flexibility).
Now the new school of thought says, that, any fitness program should focus on a “Holistic” approach to a healthier life.
What that means is, to lead a healthier, happier, effective, and more productive life, we have to be not only physically fit, but also have to pay attention to wellness.
Wellness includes seven dimensions: Physical, Social, Environmental, Emotional, Intellectual, Occupational, and Spiritual.
None of these dimensions are mutually exclusive, and are completely interdependent.
For example, take the case of “Emotional Eaters”, who are people, who either overeat or starve themselves, under stress and pressure of performance, thus leading to health problems and complications !
Wellness is a way of life ; It requires lifestyle and behavioral modification.
Physical fitness can be achieved through exercising, but catering to the other 6 dimensions, is a challenge.
It's a mistake to think that you can modify just one factor and enjoy wellness. Wellness requires a constant and deliberate effort to change unhealthy, unproductive behaviors.
Social and family support play a very important role in achieving a state of wellness.
This is where the role of health and recreational clubs gains importance. Sharing your time with like-minded people gives an emotional boost and provides the right kind of motivation, however not without its own downside!
So, lets raise the bar –and aim at Wellness, through Fitness !!
Being healthy is merely being free of diseases, aches and pains. However, being FIT means having an ideal balance of the “Tripod of Fitness” – the 3 S – Strength, Stamina, Suppleness (Flexibility).
Now the new school of thought says, that, any fitness program should focus on a “Holistic” approach to a healthier life.
What that means is, to lead a healthier, happier, effective, and more productive life, we have to be not only physically fit, but also have to pay attention to wellness.
Wellness includes seven dimensions: Physical, Social, Environmental, Emotional, Intellectual, Occupational, and Spiritual.
None of these dimensions are mutually exclusive, and are completely interdependent.
For example, take the case of “Emotional Eaters”, who are people, who either overeat or starve themselves, under stress and pressure of performance, thus leading to health problems and complications !
Wellness is a way of life ; It requires lifestyle and behavioral modification.
Physical fitness can be achieved through exercising, but catering to the other 6 dimensions, is a challenge.
It's a mistake to think that you can modify just one factor and enjoy wellness. Wellness requires a constant and deliberate effort to change unhealthy, unproductive behaviors.
Social and family support play a very important role in achieving a state of wellness.
This is where the role of health and recreational clubs gains importance. Sharing your time with like-minded people gives an emotional boost and provides the right kind of motivation, however not without its own downside!
So, lets raise the bar –and aim at Wellness, through Fitness !!
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Going to a Health Club-- A necessity for Fitness?
How many of us have managed to keep our New Year resolution, about losing/gaining those extra pounds, having Sharukh’s 6-packs, or even manage to climb 3 floors, without praying to God, at each step, for enough strength, for the next step?
So, can you get fit only at these attractive health clubs? The answer is Yes and No.
Walking- Excellent for health “maintenance”, almost free of cost.
An aerobic activity, i.e. it helps burn off fat & improve efficiency of the cardio-respiratory system, which forms the basis of any activity.
A daily walk for atleast 30 – 60 min, done continuously, or accumulated over the day (5-10 min activities done 3-4 times over the day), helps to achieve noticeable benefits as well watch your weight.
However,
The human body possesses an amazing capacity to adapt to any stress/stimulus in 6-8 weeks, and hence for continuous improvement, the stress has to be altered periodically .In this regard, walking gives very little scope for variation & progression in walking. Moreover, it is very difficult to control speed.
Pollution – Presence of pollutants like CO, Ozone etc. have profound long-term effects on the cardio-respiratory efficiency.
Even then it is no doubt one of the best forms of exercise & still remains the highly recommended activity for beginners, or special populations (Heart problems, diabetes, hypertension, etc.)
A progression to walking-- Jogging is an extremely high-impact activity, especially done on concrete roads.
Weekend recreational activities like tennis, golf, cricket also contributes to maintaining good-health.
However, such forms of exercise may not be “Specific” to achieve targets like weight loss, control Diabetes, rehab after bypass etc.
Now, focusing on the numerous Health & Wellness Clubs, they definitely offer features like emergency care, expert advice, personal training, etc. but the 2 most important areas where their role cannot be ignored are--
Special Populations—Members with heart problems, Hypertension, Diabetes, lower-back problems, need specially designed & supervised programs.
Aging – Aging has a profound negative impact on muscular strength & endurance, which can only be countered by resistance training, done preferably, under supervision at a health club.
Exercising in a group, with like-minded people promotes better social well being.
THE CHOICE IS YOURS! GO AHEAD AND GET FIT !!!
So, can you get fit only at these attractive health clubs? The answer is Yes and No.
Walking- Excellent for health “maintenance”, almost free of cost.
An aerobic activity, i.e. it helps burn off fat & improve efficiency of the cardio-respiratory system, which forms the basis of any activity.
A daily walk for atleast 30 – 60 min, done continuously, or accumulated over the day (5-10 min activities done 3-4 times over the day), helps to achieve noticeable benefits as well watch your weight.
However,
The human body possesses an amazing capacity to adapt to any stress/stimulus in 6-8 weeks, and hence for continuous improvement, the stress has to be altered periodically .In this regard, walking gives very little scope for variation & progression in walking. Moreover, it is very difficult to control speed.
Pollution – Presence of pollutants like CO, Ozone etc. have profound long-term effects on the cardio-respiratory efficiency.
Even then it is no doubt one of the best forms of exercise & still remains the highly recommended activity for beginners, or special populations (Heart problems, diabetes, hypertension, etc.)
A progression to walking-- Jogging is an extremely high-impact activity, especially done on concrete roads.
Weekend recreational activities like tennis, golf, cricket also contributes to maintaining good-health.
However, such forms of exercise may not be “Specific” to achieve targets like weight loss, control Diabetes, rehab after bypass etc.
Now, focusing on the numerous Health & Wellness Clubs, they definitely offer features like emergency care, expert advice, personal training, etc. but the 2 most important areas where their role cannot be ignored are--
Special Populations—Members with heart problems, Hypertension, Diabetes, lower-back problems, need specially designed & supervised programs.
Aging – Aging has a profound negative impact on muscular strength & endurance, which can only be countered by resistance training, done preferably, under supervision at a health club.
Exercising in a group, with like-minded people promotes better social well being.
THE CHOICE IS YOURS! GO AHEAD AND GET FIT !!!
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Thin = Fit ??? Or is it?
I can bet that 90% of the people have always thought that being thin is the ultimate road to fitness…Being thin is considered as being fit.
While having a thinner body frame is definitely a plus point healthwise, but being Fit demands a lot more!!!
Fitness is a mixture of basically 5 components which in simple terms are –
Muscular strength – strength of different skeletal muscles in the body
Muscular endurance – ability of a muscle to prolong an activity repeatedly
Cardiovascular endurance – ability of the heart to respond to a stress applied over a period of time
Flexibility -- elasticity of different muscles
Body composition – distribution of fat mass and muscle mass in the body
Thin people are usually seen to possess lesser muscle mass, which implies lesser muscle strength. This, however cannot be assumed as a general rule! Muscle strength is an essential component in all daily activities, like lifting your office suitcase, daily grocery, even putting your bike on main stand!!
I have also personally seen many thin people getting breathless after climbing 2 floors!!!! The cardiovascular endurance component is the key here.
While all these components can be developed optimally through a proper exercise regime, individual differences exist, which sometimes hamper with the desired results.
Which brings us to the remaining 10% of us, like me, who have had the jaw-dropping experience of knowing and working with not very “thin”, but extremely fit people, who can jog for an hour – NON -STOP !!!
The are many factors at play while considering the above fact. However, the basic point is that any exercise regime should aim at making the person more fit and not more thin……
So what is the Moral of the Story : Being fit is more than being thin or fitting into a size 24 pair of jeans!
Or may be, “Its all in the mind” !!
Which reminds me that according to one of my friends (who wants to live beyond 120 yrs), logically speaking, since all major complications have a common solution – losing weight, “thinness’ can be equated with “immortality”!
While I call that the heights of exaggeration, if this thought is enough to motivate him to hit the gym at 6.00am sharp, well……
While having a thinner body frame is definitely a plus point healthwise, but being Fit demands a lot more!!!
Fitness is a mixture of basically 5 components which in simple terms are –
Muscular strength – strength of different skeletal muscles in the body
Muscular endurance – ability of a muscle to prolong an activity repeatedly
Cardiovascular endurance – ability of the heart to respond to a stress applied over a period of time
Flexibility -- elasticity of different muscles
Body composition – distribution of fat mass and muscle mass in the body
Thin people are usually seen to possess lesser muscle mass, which implies lesser muscle strength. This, however cannot be assumed as a general rule! Muscle strength is an essential component in all daily activities, like lifting your office suitcase, daily grocery, even putting your bike on main stand!!
I have also personally seen many thin people getting breathless after climbing 2 floors!!!! The cardiovascular endurance component is the key here.
While all these components can be developed optimally through a proper exercise regime, individual differences exist, which sometimes hamper with the desired results.
Which brings us to the remaining 10% of us, like me, who have had the jaw-dropping experience of knowing and working with not very “thin”, but extremely fit people, who can jog for an hour – NON -STOP !!!
The are many factors at play while considering the above fact. However, the basic point is that any exercise regime should aim at making the person more fit and not more thin……
So what is the Moral of the Story : Being fit is more than being thin or fitting into a size 24 pair of jeans!
Or may be, “Its all in the mind” !!
Which reminds me that according to one of my friends (who wants to live beyond 120 yrs), logically speaking, since all major complications have a common solution – losing weight, “thinness’ can be equated with “immortality”!
While I call that the heights of exaggeration, if this thought is enough to motivate him to hit the gym at 6.00am sharp, well……
Posture Perfect
“Sit straight”, my school teacher would shout!!! “Walk erect “ my father would shout !!! Haven’t we been hearing this since ages???
So was there any substance behind their commands? The answer is yes.
What is good posture and why is it so important? Posture is defined as the body's alignment and positioning with respect to the ever-present force of gravity. Good posture entails distributing the force of gravity throughout our body so as not to overstress any one particular joint, muscle or structure.
Posture is affected by muscle imbalances, congenital factors and most importantly – lifestyle.
A well proportioned posture optimizes breathing, circulation of bodily fluids, range of motion at joints, and helps relieve stress.
A bad posture overstresses one particular area of the body and inturn creates an overall imbalance in the body leading to aches and pains.
In simple words, imbalances arise when one part of the body is more tight or tense than the other. Most common example would be the imbalance in the mid-section of the body. Due to excessive fat distribution in the abdominal area, the gravity tends to pull the body anteriorly. To counteract this pull, and keep the body erect, the muscles of the back tense up !! Over a period of time, the back muscles get tight thereby affecting the adjacent muscles, which then develops to “lower back pain” .
The spine – most important contributor in our body to a good posture – has an S curved appearance starting from the neck to the tailbone. Any muscle imbalance affects these curves and results in musculo-skeletal problems.
6 steps to ensure good posture –
Chin up and pointing ahead
Keep shoulders relaxed (most of the times, unknowingly, shoulders get tensed especially while driving, typing , cooking etc.)
Pull your abdominal muscles in
Keep your knees soft (avoid locking your knees)
Keep feet shoulder width apart
While sitting, align your head and hips in a straight line
Generally, strengthening the weaker muscles and stretching the tighter muscles is used to minimize imbalances and other problems. However, there can be many underlying reasons for these imbalances too.
Hence , Dosage: As recommended by the exercise doctor !!!!
So was there any substance behind their commands? The answer is yes.
What is good posture and why is it so important? Posture is defined as the body's alignment and positioning with respect to the ever-present force of gravity. Good posture entails distributing the force of gravity throughout our body so as not to overstress any one particular joint, muscle or structure.
Posture is affected by muscle imbalances, congenital factors and most importantly – lifestyle.
A well proportioned posture optimizes breathing, circulation of bodily fluids, range of motion at joints, and helps relieve stress.
A bad posture overstresses one particular area of the body and inturn creates an overall imbalance in the body leading to aches and pains.
In simple words, imbalances arise when one part of the body is more tight or tense than the other. Most common example would be the imbalance in the mid-section of the body. Due to excessive fat distribution in the abdominal area, the gravity tends to pull the body anteriorly. To counteract this pull, and keep the body erect, the muscles of the back tense up !! Over a period of time, the back muscles get tight thereby affecting the adjacent muscles, which then develops to “lower back pain” .
The spine – most important contributor in our body to a good posture – has an S curved appearance starting from the neck to the tailbone. Any muscle imbalance affects these curves and results in musculo-skeletal problems.
6 steps to ensure good posture –
Chin up and pointing ahead
Keep shoulders relaxed (most of the times, unknowingly, shoulders get tensed especially while driving, typing , cooking etc.)
Pull your abdominal muscles in
Keep your knees soft (avoid locking your knees)
Keep feet shoulder width apart
While sitting, align your head and hips in a straight line
Generally, strengthening the weaker muscles and stretching the tighter muscles is used to minimize imbalances and other problems. However, there can be many underlying reasons for these imbalances too.
Hence , Dosage: As recommended by the exercise doctor !!!!
Body Mass Index ……..What is all the fuss about?
Did you come across the story carried by the newspapers sometime back about models with BMIs less than 18 being banned from modelling ? So what was all the fuss about?
Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple numeric measure of a person's "fatness" or "thinness", based on his weight and height.
The mathematical formula is, BMI = (Weight in Kg) / (Height in metres x Height in metres).
Note that generally height is measured in feet or centimetres.
For a layman, it defines categories which say BMI ( 18.5 to 24.5) = Normal Category
BMI ( 25 to 29.5) = Overweight
BMI (30 and above) = Obese ( Grades 1,2,3)
BMI ( < 18.5) = Underweight
Infact a BMI < 17.5 is a sign of Anorexia Nervosa or Bulimia,as is becoming increasingly common, especially among the teenaged girls!!!!!
BMI can be used to give a rough idea about the health risks for any person.
Although a very useful tool for health professionals to discuss weight problems more objectively with their patients, it is prone to few misgivings as well.
BMI does not give any idea about the distribution of fat across the body, which is more important to predict health risks. Like for example, higher fat deposits around the waist are a greater health risk than those around the hip, especially in case of ladies.
With the increasing “Gym-Culture”, the emphasis is on fat loss or increasing the muscle mass, which leads to an increase in body wieght. However, although this is a desirable increase in weight, it may increase the BMI value to overweight or even obese categories!!!!!
It does not give any idea about the percentage of fat in our body. Its perfectly possible for a person with a normal BMI to have a very high fat percentage.
However, use it as a general yardstick to motivate yourself in this New Year, to get enrolled in your neighbourhood gym / jogging park / yoga class, or whatever it is that you enjoy among the loads of options available……
Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple numeric measure of a person's "fatness" or "thinness", based on his weight and height.
The mathematical formula is, BMI = (Weight in Kg) / (Height in metres x Height in metres).
Note that generally height is measured in feet or centimetres.
For a layman, it defines categories which say BMI ( 18.5 to 24.5) = Normal Category
BMI ( 25 to 29.5) = Overweight
BMI (30 and above) = Obese ( Grades 1,2,3)
BMI ( < 18.5) = Underweight
Infact a BMI < 17.5 is a sign of Anorexia Nervosa or Bulimia,as is becoming increasingly common, especially among the teenaged girls!!!!!
BMI can be used to give a rough idea about the health risks for any person.
Although a very useful tool for health professionals to discuss weight problems more objectively with their patients, it is prone to few misgivings as well.
BMI does not give any idea about the distribution of fat across the body, which is more important to predict health risks. Like for example, higher fat deposits around the waist are a greater health risk than those around the hip, especially in case of ladies.
With the increasing “Gym-Culture”, the emphasis is on fat loss or increasing the muscle mass, which leads to an increase in body wieght. However, although this is a desirable increase in weight, it may increase the BMI value to overweight or even obese categories!!!!!
It does not give any idea about the percentage of fat in our body. Its perfectly possible for a person with a normal BMI to have a very high fat percentage.
However, use it as a general yardstick to motivate yourself in this New Year, to get enrolled in your neighbourhood gym / jogging park / yoga class, or whatever it is that you enjoy among the loads of options available……
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