O2 Blog

Healthy eating is about more than the food on your plate it is also about how you think about food. Healthy eating habits can be learned and it is important to slow down and think about food as nourishment rather than just something to gulp down in between meetings or on the way to pick up the kids.

• Eat with others whenever possible. Eating with other people has social and emotional benefits particularly for children and allows you to model healthy eating habits. Eating in front of the TV or computer often leads to mindless overeating.
• Take time to chew your food and enjoy mealtimes. Chew your food slowly, savoring every bite. We tend to rush though our meals, forgetting to actually taste the flavors and feel the textures of our food. Reconnect with the joy of eating.
• Listen to your body. Ask yourself if you are really hungry, or have a glass of water to see if you are thirsty instead of hungry. During a meal, stop eating before you feel full. It actually takes a few minutes for your brain to tell your body that it has had enough food, so eat slowly.
• Eat breakfast, and eat smaller meals throughout the day. A healthy breakfast can jump start your metabolism, and eating small, healthy meals throughout the day (rather than the standard three large meals) keeps your energy up and your metabolism going.
• Avoid eating at night. Try to eat dinner earlier in the day and then fast for 14-16 hours until breakfast the next morning. Early studies suggest that this simple dietary adjustment eating only when you’re most active and giving your digestive system a long break each day may help to regulate weight. After-dinner snacks tend to be high in fat and calories so are best avoided, anyway.
  

Healthy eating and staying fit has to start from your home don’t expect it only from the gym or the exercise. There are many changes you can make in your home that not only make living a lot easier for all family members, but will make your home an assistant in your weight loss endeavor. Right now we will focus on the kitchen. One of the first changes you should tackle is your refrigerator. Focus on what you put on the middle shelf. The middle shelf is the first place our eyes go when we open our fridge door. Let’s make sure you spot the food that will work for you and not against you. That’s where you should store single serving sized containers filled with cut fruits, veggies , boiled egg , boiled peanuts , boiled chana / rajma .

If you are into making your own 100 calories snack packs, the middle shelf is a good home for them also. Of course, this is going to leave you with some items that need storing elsewhere. If you or your family members just cannot stand the thought of giving up those sugary or high energy drinks, store them in the lower vegetable drawer. That way they are out of sight. It’s important to make as much room as you can for healthy, unprocessed food. Single serving containers sure make life easier for us. Keep at least 6 single serving sized containers of protein. Go even further, if you like, by using a color coded system. Green containers are for veggies, orange are for fruits, maybe yellow for low fat dairy. We even have the option to use those tiny containers for items like salad dressing, condiments and such.There’s no denying that those cute containers can make life easier. There are many more ideas for streamlining your home into your own weight lose assistant.

Don’t get overwhelmed by taking on too much at once. Make one change or modification at a time . We encourage you to make changes in your kitchen to make your life and dieting easier and more enjoyable. Go on, you can do it.

There are all kinds of exercise routines from which active people can choose, and the choice depends on what you want to accomplish. For example, some exercise routines are specifically designed to help you lose body fat by improving aerobic energy systems, and yet another may help you to gain muscle mass or power output by improving anaerobic systems. But for those of you who have no health problems or physical limitations that would limit exercise performance, and who want to improve both aerobic and anaerobic energy systems, the Tabata exercise routine may be for you.

Named after the Japanese researcher who published his findings in 1996[1], Tabata is a type of interval training comprised of a combination of high-intensity bouts of exercise and alternating rest periods. Its benefits were demonstrated by Tabata’s research team who compared the training results of two groups of individuals put on two different exercise regimens. One group was placed on a typical endurance exercise program that comprised of submaximal intensity cycling on a leg ergometer for 30 minutes per day, five days per week. The other group was placed on an intermittent high intensity exercise routine that comprised of eight sets of maximal intensity cycling for 20 seconds with 10 seconds rest, five days per week. Each group underwent pre- and post- VO2 max and anaerobic capacity tests. Results of the study indicated the endurance training group improved their aerobic capacity (e.g., VO2max) as expected, but not their anaerobic capacity, and the high-intensity training group demonstrated improvements in both aerobic capacity and anaerobic capacity.

The Tabata research protocol used a leg cycle ergometer, but you can use any form or mode of exercise in your Tabata routine. Simply use the Tabata protocol of 20 seconds maximal intensity exercise followed by 10 seconds of rest (totaling 240 seconds or four minutes) , repeating seven more times with no lapse between sets. Because timing is so important, you will need a stopwatch or a clock with a second-hand. The number of reps in each set is not stipulated, but be sure to do them in good form, slowing down if you start to get sloppy. Never sacrifice form for speed or number of reps.

Each four-minute cycle is called a Tabata, and beginners may want to start out with one Tabata per exercise session. For the more adventurous, highly trained, and athletically inclined, you may add Tabatas to your exercise routine. For example, a Tabata session may include one Tabata of leg cycling plus a Tabata of jumping jacks with no lapse between Tabatas. A Tabata circuit can be created by adding other modes of exercise.

Here is a sample Tabata circuit that could be used:

Exercise at maximal intensity 20 seconds Rest 10 seconds >>Repeat 7 times for a total of 8 sets >>Go directly to next exercise mode.

Exercise #2 Stair Climbing

Exercise at maximal intensity 20 seconds Rest 10 seconds >>Repeat 7 times for a total of 8 sets >> Go directly to next exercise mode.

Exercise #3 Jumping Jacks

Exercise at maximal intensity 20 seconds Rest 10 seconds >> Repeat 7 times for a total of 8 sets  >> Go directly to next exercise mode.

Exercise #4 Stationary Cycling

Exercise at maximal intensity 20 seconds Rest 10 seconds >> Repeat 7 times for a total of 8 sets >> Go directly to next exercise mode.

Exercise #5 Pull-ups

Exercise at maximal intensity 20 seconds Rest 10 seconds >> Repeat 7 times for a total of 8 sets >> Go directly to next exercise mode.

Exercise #6 Abdominal Crunches

Exercise at maximal intensity 20 seconds Rest 10 seconds >> Repeat 7 times for a total of 8 sets >> Go directly to next exercise mode.

Exercise #7 Rowing

Exercise at maximal intensity 20 seconds Rest 10 seconds >>Repeat 7 times for a total of 8 sets >> Go directly to next exercise mode.

Exercise #8 Push-ups

Exercise at maximal intensity 20 seconds Rest 10 seconds >> Repeat 7 times for a total of 8 sets >> Go directly to next exercise mode.

Benefits of Tabata: These short, intense workouts have not only been shown to improve aerobic and anaerobic conditioning, but also provide improved glucose metabolism and increased fat burning

1. Yoga is very friendly to your heart whether its in great shape or its in need of help.

2. Yoga exercises hardly increases the Workload on the Heart especially once you are a bit more seasoned in combining breathing with your Poses or Suryanamaskars.

3. Yogic Suryanamaskars combines the benefit of Cardiac Strengthening with Cardio vascular Endurance.

4. Yoga is very calming on the nerves that connect the heart and the Brain as well the Blood vessels and the other Spinal nerves. Because of this with regular practice of Yoga the Blood

pressure is regulated.

5. Yogic forward bends ie the poses that brings the head close to foot are observed to act on the Para sympathetic nervous system and bring about Para symnpathetic dominance. This helps a

person to Stay calm even during adverse situations.

6. Yogic pranayama techniques can improve the blood oxygen levels as well as the Prana content in your blood.

7. Yoga works the heart at a comfortable rate as against other Aerobic activities hence it is suitable for even people with some Heart conditions.

8. The topsy turvy poses in Yoga upon holding for a specific duration, directly reduces the gravitational effects on the heart and hence it actually eases the Heart muscles.

9. Anahatha Chakra located on the Physical Heart upon blossoming transcends a Human mind to Godly qualities and opens up the conduit for Universal love.

10. Yoga is the best for your Heart! Sincerely practice it everyday.

It is well known that body composition is a major component of fitness and that excess body fat is not healthy. However, the distribution of body fat, e.g., where fat is located, is also an important health factor. Overall excess body fat can give someone a “pear” shape –where fat is deposited on the hips and buttocks, or an “apple” shape—where fat is deposited around the middle of the body. Research has shown that these two shapes have very different health implications.

Clinically known as central obesity, this location of excess fat has been associated with the incidence of a wide variety of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, in particular, hypertension, dyslipidemia, insulin insensitivity and diabetes, as well as the presence of knee pain and osteoarthritis and asthma. Most recently, central adiposity hasalso been linked with Alzheimer’s disease.

A percent body fat measurement will not distinguish between the two body shapes. It is more useful to determine the waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) which takes a person’s body structure into account (see WHR measurement protocol below). According the World Health Organization, abdominal obesity is defined as a WHR above 0.90 for males and above 0.85 for females.

Other ways of determining abdominal obesity includes:

•  Absolute waist circumference (>102 cm in men and >88 cm in women)
•  Index of Central Obesity
•  Sagittal Abdominal Diameter

It is important to note here that a differential diagnosis includes distinguishing central obesity from ascites and intestinal bloating, either of which could influence the WHR measurement.

There are two types of central abdominal fat, visceral and subcutaneous. Subcutaneous fat is located underneath the skin and can easily be measured in millimeters by skinfold calipers. A common

abdominal measurement is a vertical skinfold taken just to the right of the umbilicus. Visceral fat, also known as organ fat, is located inside the peritoneal cavity, packed in between internal organs

within the torso. A skinfold measurement on the abdomen of a person with a pot belly would not take the visceral fat into consideration. But visceral fat can be seen with powerful imaging techniques

such as magneticresonance imagining (MRI). It is this type of fat that makes the abdomen protrude excessively and is jokingly known as a beer gut or pot belly.

Of the two types of centrally located fat, it is believed that intra-abdominal fat conveys the bigger health risk. Research has shown that

• Surgical removal of visceral fat, but not subcutaneous fat, has been shown to extend the mean and maximum lifespan of rodents.
• Visceral fat, unlike subcutaneous fat, is implicated in many aging-associated diseases, for example, abdominal fat is a major source of increased inflammatory Interleukin associated with aging.                as well as other inflammatory responses;
• Higher volumes of visceral fat, regardless of overall weight, has been associated with smaller brain volumes and increased risk of dementia
• There is a relationship between abdominal obesity and lung function.

Though there are medical treatments which have proven to be successful in reducing fat weight, a lifestyle change of increasing caloric expenditure through a permanent exercise routine and moderately reducing caloric intake is still necessary in order to maintain a target weight and percentage body mass when it is achieved. A combination of aerobic/cardio exercises and resistance training has been shown    to be more effective than either mode alone. Your trainer should be able to prescribe an exercise program that will help you reach your weight goals.

WHR Measurement Protocol: Proper placement of a stretch-resistant measuring tape is important: for the hips, place the tape at the widest portion of the buttocks (usually at mid-point of buttocks from the side view), and for the waist, place the tape at the narrowest point (from the front view). If the waist is not apparent, place the tape at the midpoint between the bottom of the rib cage and the top of the iliac crest. For both measurements, the individual should be standing with feet close together, arms at the side, body weight evenly distributed, and wearing little clothing. The person should be relaxed, and the measurements should be taken at the end of a normal expiration, with tape measure placement parallel to the floor.

Fascia is a systemic net of connective tissue an extra-cellular matrix (ECM), which includes everything in your body that isn’t cellular. It’s a web that wraps your muscle and attaches to the bone. Its also found in internal structures, the viscera etc.

Remodeling and Tensegrity

Just as your muscles remodel themselves in response to training, the fascia remodels itself in response to direct signaling from the cells ; injury; long-held mechanical forces; use patterns; gravity; and certain chemistry within your body

The idea of tensegrity (tension and integrity) and the phenomenon of remodeling are the basis for structural therapy, including yoga and the forms of soft tissue manual therapy, including foam rolling. Change the demand and the fascial system responds to that new demand.

How to Train the Fascia

1.      Specific training can enhance the fascial elasticity

What’s in: Plyometrics: Make use of elasticity of the muscle

Jump drills:  When you land on the ball of your foot, you decelerate and accelerate in such a way that you not only make use of but actually build elasticity into the tendons and entire fascial system.

Stretch – Shorten Fascia:  : Preparing for a movement by making a countermovement—for example, winding up before a pitch makes maximum use of the power of fascial elasticity to help make and smooth out the movement.

2: The fascial system responds better to variation than to a repetitive program.

The evidence suggests that the fascial system is better trained by a wide variety of vectors—in angle, tempo and load

What’s in

Whole-Body Movements. Engaging whole-body movements is the better way to train the fascial system. Every exercise is stimulating multiple nerves, involving multiple muscles and employing fascial tissues all around the site of effort, as well as “upstream” and “downstream” from it.

Proximal Initiation. It’s best to start movements with a dynamic pre-stretch (distal extension) but accompany this with a proximal initiation in the desired direction, letting the more distal parts of the body follow in sequence, like an elastic pendulum. Imagine Throwing.

Adaptive Movement. Complex movement requiring adaptation.

Variable loads build different aspects of the fascia. Sticking with near-limit loads will strengthen some ligaments but weaken others. Varying the load is the better way.

Varying the tempo of your training allows different fascial structures to build strength and elasticity.

3: Proprioception and kinesthesia are primarily fascial, not muscular.

What’s in:

Skin and Soft Tissue Stimulation Enhance Proprioception. Rubbing / foam rolling and moving the skin and surface tissues is important to enhance fascial proprioception.we have seen our ancient wrestlers and kabaddi players rubbing some sand and tapping the muscle before performance.

Feel the Fascial Tissues. Focusing on multiple joint/fascia stretch in a yoga pose can help prevent injury and make the perception of kinesthesia more accurate and fully informed, rather than focusing on an isolated muscle stretch.

Shift from ligaments to Joint-Receptor for stability. Given that the ligaments are often tensed by the muscles, the emphasis on joint receptors for joint position sense, co-ordination and balance with a more general attention to the whole area, from the skin on down to the joint.

A deeper understanding of the role of fascia in training changes your perspective, your work, your words and your effect. Fascia is not just a sling or a wrap. It has a life of its own!!

4. Stretch as a Whole

What’s in

Fascia is a wholistic structure, not starts from one joint and finishes in the next like the muscle. Stretching the biceps or quadriceps alone are not the way ahead.

Stretch your body as a whole, your posterior chain of muscles, anterior, lateral, spiral chain etc.,

Isolated muscle stretches are out and wholistic stretches like yoga, taichi, gymnastic (ballistic) stretches are in!!

Eat Mindfully

When you are mindful you are fully present, in-the-moment without judgment. When it comes to eating, mindfulness helps increase the volume of your body’s cues so you can hear loud and clear when you are hungry and full. Many social and environmental factors can stand in the way of being able to accurately decode your body’s feedback. Mindfulness helps you break free from routine eating habits by examining the thoughts ,  feelings and internal pressures that affect how and why you eat (or don’t eat).

Shift out of Routine Eating  :

What did you have for breakfast? Be honest. Many people eat the same thing day in and day out. Notice whether you are stuck in any kind of rut or routine.

Take Mindful Bites :

Did you ever eat an entire plate of food and not taste one single bite? Bring all of your senses to the dinner table. Breathe in the aroma of a dish . Notice the texture on your tongue. Truly taste your meal. Experience each bite from start to finish.

Attentive Eating:

Sure, you’re busy and have a lot “on your plate.” It’s hard to make eating a priority rather than an option or side task. If you get the urge for a snack while doing your homework or studying, stop and take a break so that you can give eating 100% of your attention. Try to avoid multitasking while you eat. When you eat, just eat.

Gauge your hunger :

How hungry am I on a scale of one to ten? Gauging your hunger level is a little like taking your temperature. Each time you eat, ask yourself, “Am I physically hungry?” Aim to eat until you are satisfied, leaving yourself neither stuffed nor starving.

Emotional eating  :

Just because you think, doesn’t mean you have to act on them or let them sway your emotions. Negative thoughts can trigger overeating or stop you from adequately feeding your hunger. Remember: A thought is just a thought, not a fact.

Mindful Eating Support :

Friends provide an enormous amount of support, but often it’s helpful to obtain assistance or a second opinion from a trained professional. 

Increasing interest with running marathons, whether full, half 5k or 3k has opened a serious of discussions on technique, training, shoes, injuries etc. There are so many doubts in an avid runner on how to go about it. Most runners are recreational runners / joggers whose objective is to keep fit, healthy and stress free.

Health Fitness & Medical Screening:

This should be the first step any novice runner should embark on before starting the physical activity. If you are a male and above 40 and not used to vigorous form of exercise or activity, it’s

a wise option to undergo the medical screen & clearance with a physician’s consultation.The next step is to meet a Health & Fitness Specialist or a Sports Physiotherapist and get

evaluated on your Cardio vascular fitness, muscle strength and endurance, flexibility and body composition. A good posture evaluation to find out if you have any bio mechanical faults (like,

flat foot, knock knees, etc) soft tissue tightness, preexisting injuries, if any  and based on the findings she/he may advice you on a corrective exercise program, which can help you to enhance

performance and prevent injuries. Get your running mechanics evaluated.

Shoes & Terrain:

Investing on a good pair of shoes is of paramount importance. Shoes with good cushioning, toe room and arch support are things to look for in a shoe. It’s also important to pick up the shoe in

the evening when the toes are little expanded. Remember to change your shoes roughly after every 500kms of use.

Hard surfaces give you a push or bounce to run, with more impact, softer surfaces like the lawns, beach sand might offer less impact, but increases the muscle force or activity. So choose

a firm running surface like the running tracks, level grounds or good treadmills to train. Running up hill and downhill , cross country will enhance your fitness, but also will cause

injuries. If you are running out doors, be aware of the environment.

The FIT principle of training:

How often, how long and how intense should you train? It is the frequency, Intensity and the duration principle. If you are doing a less duration (less than 60mins) and low intensity (walk-

jog speed) you need lesser recover time and hence can train 5-6 days a week. If you are training at a high intensity (say running or sprinting) or longer duration (70 minutes

or more) you need longer recovery time and hence 2-3 times a week, not on subsequent days is advisable. You can however cross train those days with swimming, cycling or yoga.

Always start slowly and build gradually, giving time for the tissues to adapt. When you can walk or jog without going out of breath, you can progress to running!

Always warm up before the training, if you are planning to jog, a brisk walk for 5-10minutes would be a good option, followed by stretches of the muscle groups that are going to be in

action, obviously your calf, thighs back and shoulders. Do the same for a cool down.

Types of Training:

There are different types of training, the common ones are continuous training (steady speed through out), interval training ( 3 minutes run and 2 minute walk ), cross country (different

terrains) and fartlek training, which blends the continuous and interval training. If you are someone beginning to jog use the interval training and progress to continuous mode after

gradually increasing your percentage of jog.

Strength & Flexibility:

A 2 to 3 days a week of strength training on non-subsequent days to strengthen the core amd legs with moderate intensity with 8 to 12 repetitions, 2 sets for each major muscle groups

will be ideal.

Flexibility exercises like yoga or sports stretches can be done for 20-30minutes for the major muscle groups with 15 seconds hold for each, without breath holding, 2 sets each will be good.

Add to that the foam roller for glutes, hamstrings, IT band and calf muscles and foot.

Running Injuries & How to handle them!

Injuries happen, if you try and progress too quickly, if your frequency, intensity and duration are high, if you have poor strength and flexibility, improper foot wear, poor running mechanics

and bio mechanics, and other external factors, like fall etc.

Remember RICE; Rest from activities that cause pain, Ice for 15-20mins 3-4 times a day (if not more often), Compression in case of swelling with elastic bandage and elevation above heart

level, in case of swelling.

The common running injuries are mostly because of overuse. Stress fractures of the metatarsals, plantar fasciitis, runners knee, muscle strain,, Achilles tendinitis, groin pulls, low

back ache etc.,

Hydration & Nutrition:

Remember to hydrate well, with water or isotonic solution. There are various ORS drinks available in the market, to prevent cramps and to fuel. Carbs are the fuel for any endurance

activity, so make sure your carbs are not depleted, by vigorous training the previous days. On the day of the run have enough carbs and depending on the distance have a moderate or

low glycemic index fruit or snack 30 minute before the run.

Happy running!!

Sweating is the production of a clear, salty fluid secreted by millions of eccrine or sweat

glands in the skin which are located all over the body. Sweat is comprised mostly of

water, but also contains a tiny amount of electrolytes (e.g., sodium, chloride, potassium,

magnesium) and urea, a colourless nitrogen-containing substance also found in the urine.

Even though people have about the same number of sweat glands, the amount of sweat

differs among individuals. How much sweat released by each gland is determined

by several factors, including age, gender, environmental conditions and a person’s

acclimatization to them, and, pertinent to this discussion, fitness level. Of all the official

rules and guidelines set for prescribing exercise and ensuring a training response, the

principle of perspiration or “sweat” response is hardly ever mentioned. So, it is not

surprising that many exercisers and exercise professionals ignore, take for granted, or

do not recognize the importance of breaking a sweat during exercise sessions. On the

contrary, sweat response should be considered as one of the major training responses to

watch for. Why? The major function of sweating is to keep the body’s core temperature

at a safe level. Exercising turns up your body’s internal heating system. While you pump

your arms and legs, your body temperature rises and millions of those tiny sweat glands

are activated and sweat is released. As your sweat evaporates, it cools you off. Sweating

is your body’s built-in cooling system–it is your body’s way of getting rid of that extra

heat. In general, as a person’s aerobic fitness level increases, so does his/her ability to

sweat. That means, as a person’s exercise capacity improves, sweating begins earlier in

the exercise session and increases in the overall volume of sweat. The body is simply

becoming acclimatized and more efficient at cooling.

During moderate intensity exercise, sweat losses can average up to 2 L of water per hour.

You need to stay hydrated during exercise for this very reason. Without an adequate

supply of water, your body cannot sweat and your internal temperature will be too high

for you to workout normally, putting you at risk of heat exhaustion or worse. Remember

to drink more water when humidity is high—sweat evaporates more slowly on humid

days when the air is already saturated with moisture.

Side note: Usually, sweat from exercise has no odor, but increased nitrogen in sweat can

have a “sour” smell. An increase in nitrogen can be due to

1) ingesting more protein thanis being utilized for building muscle tissue and maintaining important body functions

(usually seen in high-protein diets),

2) fasting or very low calorie diets–the body breaks down its own muscle to supply needed nitrogen to maintain important functions, and

3) muscle-wasting diseases.

So, next time you exercise, make a mental note of when you begin to sweat. If you are

not sweating at all, you need to increase your intensity. Talk to your trainer to work out a

plan to start sweating.

Dr. Sheri Melton, PhD is Professor, Assistant Chair &

Coordinator of Graduate Studies, Exercise Science Division.

Department of Kinesiology, West Chester University,

West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA. She is also an American College of Sports

Medicine (ACSM). Certified Exercise Specialist and a Fulbright-Nehru Scholor.

She is a renowned researcher and scholar in the field of exercise science.

Although it’s often neglected, the warm up is a quick and easy safeguard from any injury. The perfect warmup has five elements that are essential to maximize the benefits from a workout.

MOBILITY

Dynamic mobility is the body’s ability to move in multiple directions safely. Think of “mobility” as a combination between flexibility and strength. Dynamic mobility gently increases your range of motion, thus preventing

MOVEMENT

Think of this like turning on your car before heading out for a drive. You need to turn on the parts of your brain that control the motions you’ll be doing in your workout. Why warm up with squats if you’re bench-pressing? Doing some pushups is a better alternative, plus they’ll give you a little volume to stimulate muscle growth as well as strength increase.

PLIABILITY

Warmups increase blood flow, raise core temperature, and improve the pliability of muscles. The more pliable the muscle, the less likely for strain.

AWARENESS

Running through a warmup allows the body to adapt to specific movement patterns and minimize muscular imbalances.

JOINT INTEGRITY

In order to keep the joints healthy, your muscles need to be reminded that the ligaments and tendons they work with are elastic, and they won’t tear as long as form is good and the weight is appropriately heavy (or light) for the exercise being performed.