This is an ironic question another kind friend tossed at me considering my track record with injuries. For those who do not know, I have been involved with Martial Arts and Combative Sports for 18 years. Because I have been doing it for so long I have basically broken, torn, sprained, strained, pulled and dislocated everything that I could that has not left me permanantly disabled or dead. Twice. So I understand injuries and how much they suck.
The question is not so much "Can I train injured" as "Should I train injured". The answer depends on the injury.
If it is a tear, dislocation, or break. The answer is an overwhelming no. These need to be treated by medical professionals and could require surgery in order for you to properly recover so you can resume training once you heal. And I do mean it, these are serious issues that need to be properly treated. (However, if it's a broken toe, not your big toe, tape it and suck it up buttercup.)
Sprained, strained and pulls. I still advise consulting a medical professional and giving it sometime to recover before resuming. Some sprains can actually be worse than breaks, in the case of the ankle joint. In April 2007 I severely sprained my ankle to the point that I either pulled the ligaments to the point they were loose and bleeding internally. The side of my ankle and foot was black from the bleeding/bruising. And me being the stupid 20 year old that I was, I kept training on it and did not take proper care of it. Almost 4 years later and I am still having issues with stability and pain. Little over a month ago I stood up from my chair and my ankle rolled over.
If it is not a serious injury (ie pull or strain) your best bet would be to rest it, put some ice on it (for no longer than 20 min at a time to avoid damage to the skin) and take something like advil or tylenol (whichever works for you). Then once it starts to feel better you can get back into training as the injury will let you.
Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness or DOMS. When we either start lifting heavier, or running further/faster or start a new activity from being sedentary for so long this will occur to you. In can vary from a slight soreness to being unable to get out of bed and usually does not really set in until the first or second day after the activity.
DOMS happens because, atleast with strength/weight training as you lift you are causing micro-tears to the tissue of the muscle. Which when these tears recover they actually increase in size and thusly cause the muscle to grow. Ways to limit the soreness are to stretch out after your workout and (this works great for me) eat something that is high in protein. Protein is what your muscle tissue will be screaming for to help the rebuild.
So I hope that helps.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Sunday, December 26, 2010
How do I read nutrition labels?
This is another good question. Being able to read these labels does include some math and translation of those scientific names of ingredients.
The math:
Fat, Protein, Carbs and Alcohol all have the following calories per gram (or in the case of the Alcohol per ml)
Fat : 9 kcal
Protein : 4 kcal
Carbs : 4 kcal
Alcohol : 7 kcal
So if something says it has, for example, 150 calories per serving and 10g of fat, 6g of protein and 9g of carbs.
10 x 9 = 90 kcals from fat.
6 x 4 = 24 kcals from protein.
9 x 4 = 36 kcals from carbs.
So if this were a real product, if the fat were saturated or trans fat it would not be something healthy you consume.
Types of fat:
Saturated, this is a perserving fat used to extend the shelf life of products.
Transfat, alot of snack foods like chips, cookies and some crackers have this in varying ammounts. This is horrible on your body, and should be avoided or atleast very limited in your diet.
Poly-unsaturated, This is good fat that is not usually found in the North American diet. These are the Omega Fats, like Omega 3, 6 and 9 these are awesome for your brain and heart. Usually found in fish oils.
Mono-unsaturated. Another good fat that is found in nuts and avocados.
Any ingredient that ends with ous. Like fructous, dextrous and alike. This is a fancy name for sugar. Unless it is sugar from fruits or veggies it should really be consumed in very limited ammounts.
I do hope this helps you figure out the labels on food a little easier.
The math:
Fat, Protein, Carbs and Alcohol all have the following calories per gram (or in the case of the Alcohol per ml)
Fat : 9 kcal
Protein : 4 kcal
Carbs : 4 kcal
Alcohol : 7 kcal
So if something says it has, for example, 150 calories per serving and 10g of fat, 6g of protein and 9g of carbs.
10 x 9 = 90 kcals from fat.
6 x 4 = 24 kcals from protein.
9 x 4 = 36 kcals from carbs.
So if this were a real product, if the fat were saturated or trans fat it would not be something healthy you consume.
Types of fat:
Saturated, this is a perserving fat used to extend the shelf life of products.
Transfat, alot of snack foods like chips, cookies and some crackers have this in varying ammounts. This is horrible on your body, and should be avoided or atleast very limited in your diet.
Poly-unsaturated, This is good fat that is not usually found in the North American diet. These are the Omega Fats, like Omega 3, 6 and 9 these are awesome for your brain and heart. Usually found in fish oils.
Mono-unsaturated. Another good fat that is found in nuts and avocados.
Any ingredient that ends with ous. Like fructous, dextrous and alike. This is a fancy name for sugar. Unless it is sugar from fruits or veggies it should really be consumed in very limited ammounts.
I do hope this helps you figure out the labels on food a little easier.
How do I start and stick with a new fitness program?
A very kind friend of mine posed this question to me and I have decided to write up a way to accomplish this. Since it is the time of year where people are now making those resolutions to get and stay healthy in the New Year but the vast majority of people and up quitting by the second week of January.
There are, like most things, many different reasons why people cannot stick with this goal. The most common being that they come to the realization that they have bitten off more than they can chew and want to quit. They get so into it that they don't realize they don't really know what they exactly want to do beyond losing weight.
So here we go, ShinKicker Fitness's own how to design a program that you can stick to!
1. Know your goals. It's kind of hard to design and stick to a program if you don't know what you want to accomplish when you finish it. If you want to lose fat, gain muscle, improve your cardio so you can keep up with your kids or improve for a sport. This will make it so much easier for you to figure out how to go about accomplishing your goals if you know what it is.
2. Know your commitment level. How much time per day or week do you have to work towards your goals. You do not need to spend 3 hours a day in the gym to see results. But you do really need to devote time to it, say 30 minutes 3 times a week to start off and then build from there as you get stronger.
3. Start off slow. Do not start with an advanced level workout if you have are just getting back into being active. The reasoning for this is two fold. You will get discouraged if you are unable to complete it and thusly lose the will to stick with your program. You also could injure yourself and no one wants to get injured. It's just unpleasent to say the least.
4. Know what you have available to you where you are. Do you have a gym handy? Is there a class you want to take locally? Do you have a partner to keep you motivated?
5. Have a workout buddy. It doesn't matter if it's a personal trainer, your mom, dad, sister, cousin, friend or your dog. As I just mentioned in number 4 it does help to have someone to keep you motivated to keep going and accomplish those goals.
6. Have fun. So many people forget this. But if you make your routine fun you are more and more likely to accomplish your goal let alone actually stick with your program. Don't like running on a treadmill because it's boring? Then don't. Find exercises and activities that you love to do and do them.
7. Do not compare you and your results to those of other people. If you do you will find yourself getting discouraged. Every single person is different and will get fit at different rates based on any number of different factors ranging from gender, age, body chemistry and ability. Keep this motto in mind while you work towards your goal. "Your best is not my best. My best is my best." Fitness is 50% book and 50% people. You need to find what works for you and to hell with what works for someone else.
If you can keep these in mind while you decide on your New Years Resolutions. You will increase your chances of accomplishing them by 10 fold.
There are, like most things, many different reasons why people cannot stick with this goal. The most common being that they come to the realization that they have bitten off more than they can chew and want to quit. They get so into it that they don't realize they don't really know what they exactly want to do beyond losing weight.
So here we go, ShinKicker Fitness's own how to design a program that you can stick to!
1. Know your goals. It's kind of hard to design and stick to a program if you don't know what you want to accomplish when you finish it. If you want to lose fat, gain muscle, improve your cardio so you can keep up with your kids or improve for a sport. This will make it so much easier for you to figure out how to go about accomplishing your goals if you know what it is.
2. Know your commitment level. How much time per day or week do you have to work towards your goals. You do not need to spend 3 hours a day in the gym to see results. But you do really need to devote time to it, say 30 minutes 3 times a week to start off and then build from there as you get stronger.
3. Start off slow. Do not start with an advanced level workout if you have are just getting back into being active. The reasoning for this is two fold. You will get discouraged if you are unable to complete it and thusly lose the will to stick with your program. You also could injure yourself and no one wants to get injured. It's just unpleasent to say the least.
4. Know what you have available to you where you are. Do you have a gym handy? Is there a class you want to take locally? Do you have a partner to keep you motivated?
5. Have a workout buddy. It doesn't matter if it's a personal trainer, your mom, dad, sister, cousin, friend or your dog. As I just mentioned in number 4 it does help to have someone to keep you motivated to keep going and accomplish those goals.
6. Have fun. So many people forget this. But if you make your routine fun you are more and more likely to accomplish your goal let alone actually stick with your program. Don't like running on a treadmill because it's boring? Then don't. Find exercises and activities that you love to do and do them.
7. Do not compare you and your results to those of other people. If you do you will find yourself getting discouraged. Every single person is different and will get fit at different rates based on any number of different factors ranging from gender, age, body chemistry and ability. Keep this motto in mind while you work towards your goal. "Your best is not my best. My best is my best." Fitness is 50% book and 50% people. You need to find what works for you and to hell with what works for someone else.
If you can keep these in mind while you decide on your New Years Resolutions. You will increase your chances of accomplishing them by 10 fold.
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Diets and why I am not a fan of them
Weird title to come from a fitness pro right? I know, it is but let me explain.
Many people equate eating healthy with eating less. Some also belive that while they are dieting they must go hungry. This is simply untrue.
Yes if you wish to lose weight for the short term you would have to suffer aka going hungry. Yes the weight does come off but at the same time you are hungry, angry and lacking energy to do things.
If you want to lose the fat or the weight, you would be better off changing things in your lifestyle that aide in the loss and that help maintain your new found weight. Like using the stairs at work instead of the elevator, taking a dance class with your spouse, parking further away from work or the mall and jogging to the building and etc.
The old idea of if you want to drop the pounds you need to stop snacking and only eat 3 big meals a day is just that; an old idea. In order to drop the weight you would be better suited to eating 5 smaller meals that consist of 300-400 calories per meal and snacks are permitted. These meals of course should follow the recommended daily intake of the four food groups (Canada Food Guide).
In the coming days I will start posting meal plans or ideas in order to help my readers reach their goals. I will also write up how to calculate calories on food labels. Once you know how to do that you can do it standing in the asile at the grocery store, it is that easy.
Many people equate eating healthy with eating less. Some also belive that while they are dieting they must go hungry. This is simply untrue.
Yes if you wish to lose weight for the short term you would have to suffer aka going hungry. Yes the weight does come off but at the same time you are hungry, angry and lacking energy to do things.
If you want to lose the fat or the weight, you would be better off changing things in your lifestyle that aide in the loss and that help maintain your new found weight. Like using the stairs at work instead of the elevator, taking a dance class with your spouse, parking further away from work or the mall and jogging to the building and etc.
The old idea of if you want to drop the pounds you need to stop snacking and only eat 3 big meals a day is just that; an old idea. In order to drop the weight you would be better suited to eating 5 smaller meals that consist of 300-400 calories per meal and snacks are permitted. These meals of course should follow the recommended daily intake of the four food groups (Canada Food Guide).
In the coming days I will start posting meal plans or ideas in order to help my readers reach their goals. I will also write up how to calculate calories on food labels. Once you know how to do that you can do it standing in the asile at the grocery store, it is that easy.
Water and your weight
Ladies and Gentlemen as a fitness professional I am often asked questions about ways for people to lose weight a little quicker.
When it comes to water there are 2 options;
Drink Ice Cold, and I literally mean ice cold water. Doing this causes your metabolism to work harder because your body wants to heat that water up to body temperature. Doing this won't cause 20 lbs to drop off overnight, this may add to roughly 5 extra pounds lost during the course of the year. Not to mention the water does help you eliminate waste.
Shed water weight, this can be done by limiting the amount of sodium you intake daily *. The sodium can cause you to retain water and thus appear bloated. I have been told that some people can be walking around with 5 to 10 lbs of excess weight do to water retention. While you are limiting your intake of sodium you need to increase you intake of water in order to flush out the excess sodium.
There is also another way to shed the water weight. I do not recommend this for the average person looking to lose weight because it can be very dangerous if not done with supervision. This way is to sweat out that water through moderate to high intensity cardio exercise while wearing say long pants and a long sleeved shirt. Again I do not suggest or advise this for the average person because dehydration can set in and could result in fainting, kidney failure and possible death. So unless you are a very expierenced exerciser DO NOT DO THIS.
* Limiting sodium intake can be tricky to do because if you look at the labels on most foods you will see an obscene ammount of sodium. For instance if I take a can of soup from my cupboard I can see the sodium is nearly 50% of your daily required intake.
When it comes to water there are 2 options;
Drink Ice Cold, and I literally mean ice cold water. Doing this causes your metabolism to work harder because your body wants to heat that water up to body temperature. Doing this won't cause 20 lbs to drop off overnight, this may add to roughly 5 extra pounds lost during the course of the year. Not to mention the water does help you eliminate waste.
Shed water weight, this can be done by limiting the amount of sodium you intake daily *. The sodium can cause you to retain water and thus appear bloated. I have been told that some people can be walking around with 5 to 10 lbs of excess weight do to water retention. While you are limiting your intake of sodium you need to increase you intake of water in order to flush out the excess sodium.
There is also another way to shed the water weight. I do not recommend this for the average person looking to lose weight because it can be very dangerous if not done with supervision. This way is to sweat out that water through moderate to high intensity cardio exercise while wearing say long pants and a long sleeved shirt. Again I do not suggest or advise this for the average person because dehydration can set in and could result in fainting, kidney failure and possible death. So unless you are a very expierenced exerciser DO NOT DO THIS.
* Limiting sodium intake can be tricky to do because if you look at the labels on most foods you will see an obscene ammount of sodium. For instance if I take a can of soup from my cupboard I can see the sodium is nearly 50% of your daily required intake.
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