Knee Thrust

Total-Body Stress-Buster Workout
No time for hour-long exercise? No problem. Here is one amazing workout that takes just 15 minutes. It can be completed without sacrificing much of your precious time. Plus, they don't require much equipment, so there's no need to even set foot in a gym; you can do them anywhere. Perform as many reps as you can in 60 seconds, then move to the next exercise and so on. After completing all seven moves back to back, rest for 60 seconds, then repeat the circuit.

Knee Thrust - Assume a left-foot-lead boxing style stance, knees slightly bent, fists in front of your chin, palms facing in. Quickly raise your right knee toward your chest, drive it back down and without changing your left-foot-lead stance, do the same with your left leg. That is one rep.


Source: Men's Health

Save The Earth, Simply

Tighten Your Car's Gas Cap - In the United States every year, 147 million gallons of gas evaporate due to loose, damaged or missing caps. That's enough to fill the tanks of almost 8 million sedans, says the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Stay In The Game

Stop and Start to fight muscle strains - Sprint-based sports like baseball and basketball churn out a lot of lower-body muscle strains. The fix: stop-and-start drills.

"If you train your body to do something that's specific to your sport, then that training should take you through a full season," says Arizona Diamondbacks veteran shortstop Royce Clayton.
Try his drill: Run 40 yards at about 70 percent of your maximum effort, slow to a jog for 10 yards, then pick it up again for another 40 yards. Repeat four or five times. You'll be conditioned to sprint to first base, slow down, and charge for second, or run out for a pass if your teammate steals the basketball. There's glory for the first man down court.

Source: Men's Health

Soy Disappointing

Soy milk seems healthier, but is it another thing that's too good to be true?
Keep reading to find out the knitty gritty on how soy milk could cost you more than just money….

Sometimes when you see a new product claim to be healthy, you have to dig a little deeper. Don’t believe everything you read on the container. Be a skeptic when you go grocery shopping for weight loss. The soy industry is making a lot of claims. For example, soymilk is popular among menopausal women for its claimed ability to reduce hot flashes and slow the effects of osteoporosis, and among middle aged men to reduce the risk of prostate cancer. As you can imagine, this would drastically increase sales for soy producers. As great as soy says it is, there is a darker side to soy milk.

Soy in its raw form is inedible. Soy has to go through a complicated fermentation process or a high temperature processing and acid washing to be usable by the human body. Soy also contains enzyme inhibitors and phytic acid. Both of these can block good vitamins and minerals you get from the other foods you eat, potentially causing malnutrition.

The question is: Do the benefits of soy outweigh the dangers?
Soy milk is getting so popular that cows actually have to market their goods!
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly on Soy Milk


The Good…
Studies have shown that where the consumption of soy is higher, like in the Orient, there is a lower percentage of breast, uterus, and prostate cancer.Soy has been proven to help women through menopause and lessen the symptoms of PMS due to the high level of estrogen-like component, called isoflavones, it contains.

The Bad…
 Asians do, however, have a higher rate of thyroid, esophagus, stomach, pancreas, and liver cancer.The amount of phytoestrogens in soy milk is so high that it can cause infertility.

The Ugly…
Soy has been shown to cause thyroid cancer in laboratory rats. Hmm? Think there is a connection here? A baby that is fed soy formula is given the same amount of estrogen as it would if you fed it five birth control pills per day! If that isn’t scary enough, most soy is one of the most pesticide contaminated, aluminum laced, and genetically modified product you can eat.

The Final Verdict
If you are one of the few who used to swear by soy milk and you feel as if you have been violated by the soy industry, don’t beat yourself up.There are many more products out there that are marketed as being a “healthier choice” but are actually worse than the original. For example 100 calorie snack packs are tempting for those who are on a diet, but they still aren’t good snack choices. A good trick to decide whether a food is healthier is to choose it in its most raw form. In this instance, soy milk isn’t available in its raw form, so stay away from it.

Source: Thefatlossauthority.com

Beauty Questions

Q: Undereye treatments come in so many different textures. How do I decide which is best?

A:  It depends on your skin's condition and your age. Because younger skin is thicker and plumper, a 20-something would probably do best with a lightweight serum which will hydrate. As people progress into their 30s and 40s, the eye area becomes thinner and drier and might require a more emollient cream. For skin that shows severe dryness and signs of aging like deep wrinkles, Dr. Jeannette Graf suggests using a richer eye balm with moisturizing oils like apricot oil and corn. InStyle magazine suggests Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Eye ($36 kiehls.com), L'Oreal Paris' Age Perfect Hydra-Nutrition Golden Balm ($20 Drugstores), and Dior's Capture Totale Eyes Essential ($70 dior.com)

Source: Glamour

How Does My Body Build Muscle?

Let's say you want your construction crew to erect bigger biceps. They'll rely mostly on two key building matierials: myofibrils (ropelike strands made up of thinner protein filaments) and sarcoplasm (a gel-like fuel that surrounds the myofibrils). Now, if you lift low reps of heavy weights, the crew will mainly thicken your myofibrils, increasing size and strength. If, on the other hand, you lift high reps of medium weights, those hard hats will boost the volume of your sarcoplasm, building size and endurance.

"Both kinds of growth require stressing your muscles beyond what they're used to, and they way you train dictates which kind of growth you emphasize," says Alexander Koch, Ph.D., C.S.C.S., an associate professor of exercise science at Truman State University. That's why he recommends cycling through weights that are moderately heavy (8 to 12 reps), heavy (4 to 6 reps) and maximally heavy (1 to 3 reps), over a period of several weeks.

Swell - When you do a high number of reps with a moderate weight, some myofibril growth occurs, but your body also sends a signal to increase the size and number of mitochondria, the mini motors inside all your cells. As your mitochondria multiply to handle the endurance demands of a high-rep workout, your supply of sarcoplasm increases to make your muscles function more efficiently. Sarcoplasm is made up of adenosine triphosphate, creatine phosphate, glycogen, and water - a combination that not only transports energy to your muscles but also adds volume to your myofibrils.

Shred -  A workout of heavy weights and low reps causes microtears in your myofibrils. These tears trigger your immune system to send white blood cells to clear away damaged cell fragments, preparing the site for rebuilding. At the same time, your body experiences a boost in human growth hormone, which has a twofold effect: The extra HGH activates dormant stem cells and makes it easier for your body to use the amino acids in protein. Those newly awakened stem cells flock to your injured muscle. There, with the help of the amino acids, they may grow new filaments or fuse with the existing filaments, making your myofibrils denser, larger, and stronger.

Source: Men's Health

Questions Women Ask About Their Body

Q: I work out and I'm slim, but I still have a belly! What can I do to get rid of it?

A: "Start by looking at the stressors in your life," says Pete McCall, a personal trainer and exercise physiologist with the American Council on Exercise. Being continually anxious about anything drowns your system in stress hormones like cortisol, which is thought to make your body store excess fat around your middle. Find an outlet for your anxiety: Writing, running or meditation are all good options. Taking a hot bath while watching TV on your laptop, doing a beauty regimen while listening to your ipod, cleaning out a closet. One things to avoid is overdoing your workouts. "Exercising hard every single day may seem like a good idea, but it actually puts you into a stressed state that makes your body hold on to stored fat for dear life. A final thought: Even at a healthy weight, if you eat a lot of salty or over processed foods or sip soft drinks, the issue may be a serious case of bloat. Cut back.

"Root out" Cancer

Ketchup isn't the only cancer-fighting condiment. Wasabi and horseradish may help stop tumors, too. When scientists at Michigan State University applied extracts to both roots to several cancers, cell growth declined by as much as 70 percent. Wasabi and horseradish belong to the mustard family of vegetables, which contain sulfur compounds that have been previously identified as cancer killers. Since most wasabi is reconstituted from powder, put your money on horseradish; it's ground fresh from the root, making it more likely to contain a surfeit of sulfur compounds.

Source: Men's Health

Eat...More Sushi!

The calories have been counted for you. Which would you choose?

You can have this...


Shrimp tempura roll (8 pieces)
533 calories, 26.7 grams fat

Or you can have this...

Sushi Meal
1 California roll (8 pieces), 1 cup miso soup, seaweed salad and 3 pieces yellowtail sashimi
484 calories, 11.7 grams fat

SO REMEMBER: Avoid “special” rolls with fried and mayo-laden fillings, and you could have a whole sushi dinner—including seaweed salad, sashimi and soup!

Eat More to Weigh Less

Add at least six of these powerfoods to your diet a day and your body will have the fuel to become a fat-burning machine

A - Almonds (and other nuts)
B - Beans (and other legumes)
S - Spinach (and other green vegetables)

D - Dairy
I - Instant Oatmeal
E - Eggs
T - Turkey (And other lean meats)

P - Peanut Butter
O - Olive Oil
W - Whole Grains
E - Extra Protein Powder (Whey)
R - Raspberries (and other berries)

Sunscreen Safety Update

The Environmental Working Group released a list of over 1,500 sunscreen brands with a rating of how effective/dangerous they are. This site is so informative, I'm very grateful for this source. The link is here:  http://breakingnews.ewg.org/2011sunscreen/

 

Health Threats You Can't Ignore!

Usually when you get a nosebleed or a pimple your first instinct is to head to the doctor's office. Most of the time, it's not something to worry about. Sometimes something that seems small is an indication of something bigger going on. These are "third-tier" complaints that just might be trying to warn you about a first-tier problem.

Leg Pain - It's easty to shrug off leg pain as a cramp, soreness, or the dog attached to your ankle. But it can also mean something's awry up top in your heart. The first sign of a gunked-up circulatory system is often leg pain, not chest pain, because the legs' longer blood vessels become blocked by plaque earlier, resulting in a shortage of oxygen to the muscles. When the pain occurs is more specific. Leg pain with arterial blockages usually gets worse as you exercise. The greater the exercise intensity, the greater the oxygen demand.

The medical name for clogged leg vessels is peripheral arterial diseaser (PAD), and one of the best tests for it is Doppler ultrasonography. If the ultrasound detects narrowed arteries and they don't pose an imminent threat, your doctor witll probably prescribe exercise, a statin to lower LDL cholesterol, and a drug such as cilostazol to improve bloodflow. The best ways to prevent PAD in the first place? Quit smoking, cut out trans fats, take at least 400 micrograms of folic acid daily. It has been shown to lower the risk by 32 percent.

Source: Men's Health

Stop It. Right Now

Simply eliminate these activities and streamline your world!

1. Using one email address - Your broadband internet deal includes a bunch of inboxes. Use one for your friends and family, the other for shopping and spam.

2. Joining - You have your pilates class, softball league, golf league, poker night... Give up two, because your leisure time is killing you.

3. Engaging in "Appointment TV" - Let DVR emancipate you from commercials and watching the crap like 90210 before your favorite show (Like Ringer) comes on.

4. Watching Network News - It's crap. Overwrough, oversold, overbiased crap. Get on the internet and you'll be informed of everything in 15 minutes.

5. Juggling Three Women/Men - Let two down gently and hold the third up for everyone to see.

6. Overpromising - No one believes you anyway.

7. Overpacking - Have you ever needed the extra shoes?

8. Overnegotiating - You spend the day nibbling the guy down to a hunder over invoice. I'm going to read a book.

9. Overworking - The more you do, the more they'll give you.

10. Undervacationing - Take a 3 day weekend immediately. And don't overpack.

11. Opening Junk Mail - Their willingness to welcome you to the DVD club should not be linked to your self-esteem.

12. Micromanaging - Delegating is not a form of outsourcing.

Waterworld

Running, biking, tennis... They're all great workouts. This summer, go amphibious with your exercise. This chart shows what a typical waterlogged man burns in a half hour. Compare it with running at an 8 minute/mile pace (512 calories), tennis (287 calories), and biking at a moderate pace (328 calories)

Calories burned by a 180 pound man in 30 minutes

Butterfly - 451                               Dog Paddling - 246
Freestyle (fast) - 410                     Treading water - 164
Freestyle (slow) - 287                   Water polo - 410
Breaststroke - 410                        Water volleyball - 123
Sidestroke - 328                           Scuba Diving - 287
Water Jogging - 328                      Kayaking - 205
Backstroke - 287                          Paddleboating - 164
Canoeing - 144                             Sailing - 123
Powerboating - 103


Source: Men's Health

Anti-Acne/Anti-wrinkle In the Same Product!

Wow! I can't tell you how excited I am to write this post. I have not been this excited about a product since I found Body Shop's Tea Tree line. For those of you who are in your early twenties through your early thirties, I'm sure that most of you have been thinking about your skin and what you want to look like when you get older. You might be noticing a few fine lines that just don't go away anymore, and you've started moisturizing every night and morning to keep them from progressing into deep wrinkles, and you've invested in a sunscreen product.

First of all, great job. Being in your twenties or thirties, I'm also sure that acne is still a problem for you. I thought that after age twenty-one my acne would never come back! Well I'm 24 and I still feel like I'm in high school. I have very oily skin and have white head and black head problems. Like you, I wanted to make sure I did everything I could to slow the process of wrinkles and aging skin, so I started looking at products. The biggest problem is that most acne products dry out your skin to get rid of oil, while anti-aging products pile on the oil to keep wrinkles from forming. I had to choose whether I wanted acne or wrinkles, and I had to live with one of them. AUGH!

Then, one day last week I was at the store and realized that I've never really given Neutrogena products a chance at helping me. I also noticed a product in their Healthy Skin line, called Anti-Wrinkle/Anti-blemish and I gasped. A product that helps me with both?! It has both alpha-hydroxy and salicyclic acid. 'SA' doesn't seem to be working for me, but I bought the wash and decided to give it a try. They also have a moisturizing cream but I decided to try one at a time. I also bought their Anti-Wrinkle Day Cream that has SPF 15 (which isn't THAT amazing, but it's at least something) and Retinol. A dermatologist assured me that even though Retinol does break down in sunlight, that it should be fine since it's mixed with a sunscreen. I also bought the Neutrogena Naturals Night Cream which has no parabens or sulfates, and has olive oil in it. (Olive oil does not clog your pores! It is full of antioxidants that soak directly into your skin and help with dirt removal and oil control) I've been using it for the past week and haven't had many breakouts at all. I've definitely noticed my skin having a little more fullness, like I was getting my youthful baby fat back in my face (Which does not bother me one bit). I'm going to give this regimen another three weeks before I make a decision to keep going or discontinue use.

I am planning on trading in the day cream with retinol for the night cream with retinol just to make absolutely sure that I'm getting my money's worth. Retinol not only helps with aging skin, but is also used in prescription creams for acne. Neutrogena has a day cream that instead of retinol, has alpha-hydroxy-acid, which is a fine line smoother and collagen producer. It does increase sensitivity to sunlight, so they mix in a sunscreen. For more information on AHAs and Retinol, use the search box on the upper right hand corner of my homepage and type in the keyword, it will help you find the entries that explain them in more detail.

-B