I'm just going to quote my sports nutrition book here:
"Available data support the notion of gender differences in carbohydrate metabolism in exercise. During submaximal (steady state) exercise at equivalent percentages of VO2max (or same relative workload), women derive a SMALLER proportion of total energy from carbohydrate metabolism than men. This gender difference in substrate oxidation does not persist into recovery." Interesting. So, women rely more on fat than tap into their carb stores than men, which is why females may be able to run/bike/swim longer, in GENERAL, not everyone. And, especially once you start getting into very long distances.
And looking into the physiology further..." With similar endurance-training protocols, both women and men show a decrease in glucose flux for a given submaximal power output. But at the same relative workload after training, women display an exaggerated shift toward FAT catabolism (fat breakdown), whereas men do NOT. This suggests that endurance training induces greater glycogen-sparing at a given relative submaximal exercise intensity for women than for men. This gender difference in substrate metabolism's response to training may reflect differences in sympathetic nervous system adaptation to regular exercise (i.e. a more blunted cholamine response for women). The sex hormones estrogen and progesterone may affect metabolic mixture indirectly via interactions with the catecholamines or directly by augmenting lipolysis (fat breakdown) or glycolysis (carb break down). Five potential sites for endocrine regulation of a substrate (fat/carbs) use include:
1. Substrate availability (via effects on nutrient storage)
2. Substrate mobilization from body tissue stores
3. Substrate uptake at tissue site of use
4. Substrate uptake within tissue itself
5. Substrate trafficking among storage, oxidation, recycling
Any glycogen-sparing metabolic adaptations to training could benefit a woman's performance during high-intensity endurance competition."
Wow, cool! So, men are more powerful and stronger than women, but it seems women can last longer when it comes to endurance events, especially ultra's. I have been searching around for research to back up that theory I have been reading about over the course of 2 years.
From the book Sports and Exercise Nutrition by William D. McArdle, Frank L. Katch, and Victor L. Katch.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Obesity in America
Happy New Year! I guess the focus of this blog is again, health and fitness. That's right. HEALTH AND FITNESS. Not trying to fit into an ideal body image, no diet advice, and I'm going to try to not talk about myself in this blog (maybe a little, haha)
So, I just finished reading this interesting book that has changed my thinking about the "Obesity Epidemic" in America. Now, within my major, I have learned about 3 different bodies types-the ectomorph (thin, lean, light muscles, hard to gain weight), the mesomorph (gain muscle easily, athletic, muscular, hour glass body shape), which, I think mostly describes my body haha, and the 3rd, endomorph (more stockier, also gains muscle easily, maybe softer skin in terms of thickness). Or perhaps I'm a combination of all 3, who knows. Take a look at this website-it's legit. http://www.bodybuildingpro.com/bodytypeinformation.html
So, now that we know the 3 body shapes, it is very hard for one to change that body shape. Which, I believe, is why some people are better runners, swimmers, cyclists, weight lifters, etc. The book I read is called "The Obesity Myth," by Paul Campos. He had a number of good arguments that the fear of getting fat is hazardous to your health. For 1, those BMI tables? No scientific value whatsoever. You can still be fit and "fat" with a BMI of 28. Heck, someone of 130 lbs and 170 lbs at 5'5" can be the same in terms of health. As long as your triglycerides, cholesterol, blood pressure, heart rate, and all that stuff your doctor tests for each year are within the normal range, folks :) It's the truth.
Of course, it's also bad for health to be thin, or fat, or at any weight, actually, if you do NOT eat healthy and do NOT exercise. In other words, like I said, you can be thin, average, or bigger, but still be healthy and fit, hence the 3 different body types :)
What has America done? We label foods as "good" or "bad." We constantly limit ourselves, try the newest and greatest weight loss drug, constantly cut calories or fat. Well, guess, what, we NEED fat. Not the fat in processed foods, fast foods, convenient foods, etc, but the fat in almonds, walnuts, peanuts, avocados, meat, oh and sugar? Not so bad, as long as we don't over do it. So go ahead and eat some ice cream, as well. Eat when you're hungry, stop when you're full, don't deny yourself your favorites foods or you'll go crazy and binge later-not good for health. Did you know the French have the highest fat diet, yet they are the slimmest? That's because they know how to eat in moderation, eat 5-6x a day, and get the satiety they actually need from foods.
Low fat and fat free? Those foods often have additives, preservatives, chemicals, etc that our bodies do not need, and probably don't know how to process, making us gain unnecessary weight, or worse, develop some sort of disease that maybe we carry the gene for, but would have never turned the gene on had we been eating a healthful diet in the 1st place and exercising.
Now, I have been a culprit of that thinking. Yep. I would recommend this book to anyone. Helped give me a better idea of what's going on in the food, diet, and weight loss industry. Now, I have never taken any diet pills, have always believed to keep healthy from good eating and exercise, but if I ever considered diet pills (which I have not-why would u waste $ on something that doesn't work?) they are terrible. People who go on them will lose the weight, but almost all of them gain it back and then some. While also doing other negative things to your body. Not getting enough nutrients. Or the right nutrients. Stay away from low carb and low fat diets (of course, unless your Dr. tells you this).
Also, it would benefit us to balance omega 3's and 6's! A lot of American's eat mostly 6's and virtually no 3's!
Anyways, I'd like to share some numbers of mine. I recently went to the Cleveland Clinic for a physical, hadn't had 1 in yrs. (Bad! You should go once a year!) My total cholesterol is 138 (should be under 200). My HDL cholesterol is 60, for women, should be above 55. My LDL (bad cholesterol) is 68. Should be under 130. My triglyceride value is 48, should be under 200. My blood pressure was 100/62 (should be 120/80, or, even more optimal, which the medical field is trying to push to be 110/70, but that won't work with the insurance companies, at least that's what I learned through a class) And resting heart rate is 44bpm. Current weight=147lbs. at 5'5". Which means I have a 24.5 BMI, meaning if I gain 3lbs, I'll soon be classifed as overweight, according to our stupid government tables. I was between 150-155 this summer with training, it was crazy! lol :) But what I'm getting at here, is the focus should be on eating healthy and being active (and you DON'T have to be as active as me, only moderately active! My sis, who exercises for maybe 30-60min 4-5x a week had similar values :) Even though I have been "overweight" this summer, and close to it now from those BMI tables, means nothing. Look at the true evidence. Oh, and 20% body fat-very good for my age and gender. My obsession/passion is health and fitness, not trying to fit into a virtually unrealistic ideal that society has molded. I have big hips, yay! They help me do what I want to do-have great endurance while enjoying the outdoors.
A teacher of mine just sent me an email about a summer internship (pretty decent pay, yeah!!) for a behavior coach opportunity at weight loss camps across the U.S. for kids/teenagers who are overweight/obese. I was reading about it, and the focus is on mentoring, teaching about healthy eating, and physical activity. If I do happen to get this awesome internship, I would be so greatful because then I can truly pursue my dream of helping others through health and fitness to enjoy life :) (Although I am still unsure of my future job, this will help because it's in my field!!)
So, I just finished reading this interesting book that has changed my thinking about the "Obesity Epidemic" in America. Now, within my major, I have learned about 3 different bodies types-the ectomorph (thin, lean, light muscles, hard to gain weight), the mesomorph (gain muscle easily, athletic, muscular, hour glass body shape), which, I think mostly describes my body haha, and the 3rd, endomorph (more stockier, also gains muscle easily, maybe softer skin in terms of thickness). Or perhaps I'm a combination of all 3, who knows. Take a look at this website-it's legit. http://www.bodybuildingpro.com/bodytypeinformation.html
So, now that we know the 3 body shapes, it is very hard for one to change that body shape. Which, I believe, is why some people are better runners, swimmers, cyclists, weight lifters, etc. The book I read is called "The Obesity Myth," by Paul Campos. He had a number of good arguments that the fear of getting fat is hazardous to your health. For 1, those BMI tables? No scientific value whatsoever. You can still be fit and "fat" with a BMI of 28. Heck, someone of 130 lbs and 170 lbs at 5'5" can be the same in terms of health. As long as your triglycerides, cholesterol, blood pressure, heart rate, and all that stuff your doctor tests for each year are within the normal range, folks :) It's the truth.
Of course, it's also bad for health to be thin, or fat, or at any weight, actually, if you do NOT eat healthy and do NOT exercise. In other words, like I said, you can be thin, average, or bigger, but still be healthy and fit, hence the 3 different body types :)
What has America done? We label foods as "good" or "bad." We constantly limit ourselves, try the newest and greatest weight loss drug, constantly cut calories or fat. Well, guess, what, we NEED fat. Not the fat in processed foods, fast foods, convenient foods, etc, but the fat in almonds, walnuts, peanuts, avocados, meat, oh and sugar? Not so bad, as long as we don't over do it. So go ahead and eat some ice cream, as well. Eat when you're hungry, stop when you're full, don't deny yourself your favorites foods or you'll go crazy and binge later-not good for health. Did you know the French have the highest fat diet, yet they are the slimmest? That's because they know how to eat in moderation, eat 5-6x a day, and get the satiety they actually need from foods.
Low fat and fat free? Those foods often have additives, preservatives, chemicals, etc that our bodies do not need, and probably don't know how to process, making us gain unnecessary weight, or worse, develop some sort of disease that maybe we carry the gene for, but would have never turned the gene on had we been eating a healthful diet in the 1st place and exercising.
Now, I have been a culprit of that thinking. Yep. I would recommend this book to anyone. Helped give me a better idea of what's going on in the food, diet, and weight loss industry. Now, I have never taken any diet pills, have always believed to keep healthy from good eating and exercise, but if I ever considered diet pills (which I have not-why would u waste $ on something that doesn't work?) they are terrible. People who go on them will lose the weight, but almost all of them gain it back and then some. While also doing other negative things to your body. Not getting enough nutrients. Or the right nutrients. Stay away from low carb and low fat diets (of course, unless your Dr. tells you this).
Also, it would benefit us to balance omega 3's and 6's! A lot of American's eat mostly 6's and virtually no 3's!
Anyways, I'd like to share some numbers of mine. I recently went to the Cleveland Clinic for a physical, hadn't had 1 in yrs. (Bad! You should go once a year!) My total cholesterol is 138 (should be under 200). My HDL cholesterol is 60, for women, should be above 55. My LDL (bad cholesterol) is 68. Should be under 130. My triglyceride value is 48, should be under 200. My blood pressure was 100/62 (should be 120/80, or, even more optimal, which the medical field is trying to push to be 110/70, but that won't work with the insurance companies, at least that's what I learned through a class) And resting heart rate is 44bpm. Current weight=147lbs. at 5'5". Which means I have a 24.5 BMI, meaning if I gain 3lbs, I'll soon be classifed as overweight, according to our stupid government tables. I was between 150-155 this summer with training, it was crazy! lol :) But what I'm getting at here, is the focus should be on eating healthy and being active (and you DON'T have to be as active as me, only moderately active! My sis, who exercises for maybe 30-60min 4-5x a week had similar values :) Even though I have been "overweight" this summer, and close to it now from those BMI tables, means nothing. Look at the true evidence. Oh, and 20% body fat-very good for my age and gender. My obsession/passion is health and fitness, not trying to fit into a virtually unrealistic ideal that society has molded. I have big hips, yay! They help me do what I want to do-have great endurance while enjoying the outdoors.
A teacher of mine just sent me an email about a summer internship (pretty decent pay, yeah!!) for a behavior coach opportunity at weight loss camps across the U.S. for kids/teenagers who are overweight/obese. I was reading about it, and the focus is on mentoring, teaching about healthy eating, and physical activity. If I do happen to get this awesome internship, I would be so greatful because then I can truly pursue my dream of helping others through health and fitness to enjoy life :) (Although I am still unsure of my future job, this will help because it's in my field!!)
Friday, December 9, 2011
Growing Up
Well, I can say I am in a much better place than I was 1 year ago when I thought my world was crumbling apart. When PT school did not work out for me, and when I was crying once, if not 2-3 times a week because I was failing and not enjoying it. Thought I was failing in life. Sometimes I wonder if I brought that upon myself, thinking I had to be studying every second of the day. (Which...we almost did! It was legit hard!)
The exercise science/kinesiology major is definitely for me. I got 100% on my physiology of aging final, and 97.5 on my exercise physiology final. Clearly, I'm in the right place. :) I think I'll have a 4.0 this semester, or close to it (haha-not sure about research methods-that's more of a challenge for me, but hoping for an A!) This is also the 1st semester I haven't cried over a tough class. I even cried every semester in undergrad-because I had to take some harder classes to get into PT school like chem and physics-challenging for me!
I'm in such a great mood today, thought I'd write a blog about it. I taught my first whole spin class this morning, and it went real well. The other trainer said I did a great job, and some of the members came up to me after and said they really enjoyed the class! I also get compliments on when I sub for a strength training class :) I definitely feel like I was meant to teach fitness classes. I just need to get a GroupEx certification so I can have my own class in a few sessions I'm hoping! I work at the Y, have my personal training certification as well as a Spin cert. I'm allowed to sub for other group ex classes because of those certifications. Anyways..I think one of the reasons I am pretty good at teaching them is because I learned a lot from fitness DVDs I used to follow like Denise Austin, and various others, as well as taking classes myself. I mean...every day in the summers or on break I would throw in a tape and workout! I was thinking..maybe I could make my own DVD 1 day, but I don't even know how to go about that, I'd need help.
So, I am still unsure of where I want to go with this degree, but I have options :) Either in a more clinical setting (cardiac or pulmonary rehab), or corporate fitness (I like fitness the most...but then, I also enjoy older adults and working with them too in a clinical setting...I'm very thorough, which I think would be good in the hospital). I could maybe take 1 class a semester toward the PhD+work. Ahhh I don't know.
Ideally, though, this is my dream job that I made up: Owning a fitness center within a ski resort out West. I don't even know if they have those. But I should start one. Then, I could own the fitness center, personal train, teach classes, and teach snowboard lessons. Haha :)
Oh, and I have an AWESOME boyfriend who is an avid cyclist, and doesn't mind the amount I work out, because he often spends 14 hrs a week on his bike in season. Nice. I support that.
My sister has been working out more too. Also wrote my mom an interval workout for her bike this winter-she gets bored riding the same moderate level all the time. She enjoyed it-even sweated more wooo! I wish I was closer to home sometimes so I could train her! Us Perchinske's work hard! Seriously, though, it's my mom's "always working at the best of your ability, no slacking" attitude, and my dad's super strong work ethic that has produced the same results in my sister and I :) We have AWESOME parents! Now...if only I could be promised a great job in the future where I can make an impact in people's lives, and Kristen a good job for next semester, she's graduating next week woo hoo!
Ok, I better get started on some schoolwork today, haha, I haven't yet!
"Those who think they have not time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness." Edward Stanley
"God is with those who persevere."
"Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it." Helen Keller
The exercise science/kinesiology major is definitely for me. I got 100% on my physiology of aging final, and 97.5 on my exercise physiology final. Clearly, I'm in the right place. :) I think I'll have a 4.0 this semester, or close to it (haha-not sure about research methods-that's more of a challenge for me, but hoping for an A!) This is also the 1st semester I haven't cried over a tough class. I even cried every semester in undergrad-because I had to take some harder classes to get into PT school like chem and physics-challenging for me!
I'm in such a great mood today, thought I'd write a blog about it. I taught my first whole spin class this morning, and it went real well. The other trainer said I did a great job, and some of the members came up to me after and said they really enjoyed the class! I also get compliments on when I sub for a strength training class :) I definitely feel like I was meant to teach fitness classes. I just need to get a GroupEx certification so I can have my own class in a few sessions I'm hoping! I work at the Y, have my personal training certification as well as a Spin cert. I'm allowed to sub for other group ex classes because of those certifications. Anyways..I think one of the reasons I am pretty good at teaching them is because I learned a lot from fitness DVDs I used to follow like Denise Austin, and various others, as well as taking classes myself. I mean...every day in the summers or on break I would throw in a tape and workout! I was thinking..maybe I could make my own DVD 1 day, but I don't even know how to go about that, I'd need help.
So, I am still unsure of where I want to go with this degree, but I have options :) Either in a more clinical setting (cardiac or pulmonary rehab), or corporate fitness (I like fitness the most...but then, I also enjoy older adults and working with them too in a clinical setting...I'm very thorough, which I think would be good in the hospital). I could maybe take 1 class a semester toward the PhD+work. Ahhh I don't know.
Ideally, though, this is my dream job that I made up: Owning a fitness center within a ski resort out West. I don't even know if they have those. But I should start one. Then, I could own the fitness center, personal train, teach classes, and teach snowboard lessons. Haha :)
Oh, and I have an AWESOME boyfriend who is an avid cyclist, and doesn't mind the amount I work out, because he often spends 14 hrs a week on his bike in season. Nice. I support that.
My sister has been working out more too. Also wrote my mom an interval workout for her bike this winter-she gets bored riding the same moderate level all the time. She enjoyed it-even sweated more wooo! I wish I was closer to home sometimes so I could train her! Us Perchinske's work hard! Seriously, though, it's my mom's "always working at the best of your ability, no slacking" attitude, and my dad's super strong work ethic that has produced the same results in my sister and I :) We have AWESOME parents! Now...if only I could be promised a great job in the future where I can make an impact in people's lives, and Kristen a good job for next semester, she's graduating next week woo hoo!
Ok, I better get started on some schoolwork today, haha, I haven't yet!
"Those who think they have not time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness." Edward Stanley
"God is with those who persevere."
"Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it." Helen Keller
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Exercise Slows the Aging Process!
So, my teacher sent me some articles she found on cognitive function and aging. For those of you who read this and don't know, I'm doing my thesis on it. (Yes, for sure, I know I get excited about other things, but the mind is extremely fascinating to me, and so are studying the effects of aerobic exercise on the body, including the brain.)
Well, this article is titled, "Long-term treadmill exercise induces neuroprotective molecular changes in rat brain"
Rodents are similar to humans in the physiological workings of the body. Anyways, they compared 3 groups-moderately exercised rats, handled but nonexercising group (handled on the treadmill somehow I guess), and a sedentary group. What they found: That exercise...
-improved many brain parameters especially in the hippocampus.
-upregulated sirtuin-1, a protein in the brain that extends life
-stimulated mitochondrial biogenesis
- activated AMPK
-preventions of signs of neurodegeneration
"These findings are consistent with other reports showing that physical exercise has positive effects on hormesis."
I wasn't quite sure what mitochondrial biogensis was, so I looked it up, and came across this from another study.
"Moderate exercise also mimics CR by inducing mitochondrial biogenesis. Negative regulators of PGC-1alpha such as RIP140 and 160MBP suppress mitochondrial biogenesis. Another mechanism involved in mitochondrial maintenance is mitochondrial fission/fusion and this process also involves an increasing number of regulatory proteins. Dysfunction of either biogenesis or fission/fusion of mitochondria is associated with diseases of the neuromuscular system and aging, and a greater understanding of the regulation of these processes should help us to ultimately control the aging process." CR is caloric restriction. I've read some studies for class saying that in rodents as well as 1 study involving humans for a short period of time, calorie restriction also helps slow the aging process and diseases associated with aging. However, not many people are going to want to restrict their calorie intake so much for the rest of their lives :) So it's good news that exercise, and just a moderate amount, can slow the aging process.
This, I've kind of always known, and been scared of chronic illnesses later in life. Yes, I worry about these things now, even though I'm young lol. My grandmother had a heart attack, and my grandpa had a # of them, with triple by-pass surgery. My other grandma has Alzheimer's. I am going to try to do everything I can to avoid these diseases. This is why I do what I do. I want to see if I can live a very long, diseased free life. This is why during my 40hr internship I decided to train for a full marathon at the age of 22. This is why in grad school, I still work out just as intensely as the summer months. This is why I sometimes workout twice a day in grad school. Sometimes I lose sleep (only sometimes, don't worry) in order to get workouts done (still producing great school work!). I am fully confident that when I have a full time job I'm still going to be able to work out for at least an hour a day. I did it once and can do it the rest of my life, and I'm doing it now because school+assistantship is like a full time job. Oh and if I decide to have children someday-I'll be that crazy jogging with a stroller or attaching the baby thing on the back of my bike. Nothing will slow me down unless I get injured or die from the crazy adventures I tend to take on! :) Plus, if I didn't workout this much...I wouldn't be as fit to do the things I really love doing...like snowboarding for 8hrs a day or going surfing or backpacking through mountains...:) Live the life you love! Who cares what everyone else thinks.
Of course...you don't have to work out as intensely as I like to...this study..and a number of others show that it's just moderate exercise that is needed :) (Although I think more intense exercise few days a week can produce even greater benefits....:)
I am also proud to say that I have no gray hairs at 24, almost 25, and my mom had her first at 18 LOL :) Of course, she's wasn't as athletic like me :) But I sure do look like her! She looks pretty well for her age of 55-she still walks or rides her bike regularly.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18662766 (mitochondrial biogenesis article)
and
http://jap.physiology.org/content/111/5/1380.abstract (the exercise and brain health article)
It's so cool that sirtuin-1 extends life! And that exercise can boost this protein!!
Well, this article is titled, "Long-term treadmill exercise induces neuroprotective molecular changes in rat brain"
Rodents are similar to humans in the physiological workings of the body. Anyways, they compared 3 groups-moderately exercised rats, handled but nonexercising group (handled on the treadmill somehow I guess), and a sedentary group. What they found: That exercise...
-improved many brain parameters especially in the hippocampus.
-upregulated sirtuin-1, a protein in the brain that extends life
-stimulated mitochondrial biogenesis
- activated AMPK
-preventions of signs of neurodegeneration
"These findings are consistent with other reports showing that physical exercise has positive effects on hormesis."
I wasn't quite sure what mitochondrial biogensis was, so I looked it up, and came across this from another study.
"Moderate exercise also mimics CR by inducing mitochondrial biogenesis. Negative regulators of PGC-1alpha such as RIP140 and 160MBP suppress mitochondrial biogenesis. Another mechanism involved in mitochondrial maintenance is mitochondrial fission/fusion and this process also involves an increasing number of regulatory proteins. Dysfunction of either biogenesis or fission/fusion of mitochondria is associated with diseases of the neuromuscular system and aging, and a greater understanding of the regulation of these processes should help us to ultimately control the aging process." CR is caloric restriction. I've read some studies for class saying that in rodents as well as 1 study involving humans for a short period of time, calorie restriction also helps slow the aging process and diseases associated with aging. However, not many people are going to want to restrict their calorie intake so much for the rest of their lives :) So it's good news that exercise, and just a moderate amount, can slow the aging process.
This, I've kind of always known, and been scared of chronic illnesses later in life. Yes, I worry about these things now, even though I'm young lol. My grandmother had a heart attack, and my grandpa had a # of them, with triple by-pass surgery. My other grandma has Alzheimer's. I am going to try to do everything I can to avoid these diseases. This is why I do what I do. I want to see if I can live a very long, diseased free life. This is why during my 40hr internship I decided to train for a full marathon at the age of 22. This is why in grad school, I still work out just as intensely as the summer months. This is why I sometimes workout twice a day in grad school. Sometimes I lose sleep (only sometimes, don't worry) in order to get workouts done (still producing great school work!). I am fully confident that when I have a full time job I'm still going to be able to work out for at least an hour a day. I did it once and can do it the rest of my life, and I'm doing it now because school+assistantship is like a full time job. Oh and if I decide to have children someday-I'll be that crazy jogging with a stroller or attaching the baby thing on the back of my bike. Nothing will slow me down unless I get injured or die from the crazy adventures I tend to take on! :) Plus, if I didn't workout this much...I wouldn't be as fit to do the things I really love doing...like snowboarding for 8hrs a day or going surfing or backpacking through mountains...:) Live the life you love! Who cares what everyone else thinks.
Of course...you don't have to work out as intensely as I like to...this study..and a number of others show that it's just moderate exercise that is needed :) (Although I think more intense exercise few days a week can produce even greater benefits....:)
I am also proud to say that I have no gray hairs at 24, almost 25, and my mom had her first at 18 LOL :) Of course, she's wasn't as athletic like me :) But I sure do look like her! She looks pretty well for her age of 55-she still walks or rides her bike regularly.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18662766 (mitochondrial biogenesis article)
and
http://jap.physiology.org/content/111/5/1380.abstract (the exercise and brain health article)
It's so cool that sirtuin-1 extends life! And that exercise can boost this protein!!
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Dreams
This weekend was amazing. When my teachers told us during the first week that they needed grad students to go to the MWACSM (Midwest Chaptor of American College of Sports Medicine), I made sure to tell them right away I wanted to go :) I always enjoy reading research articles from them online, and it's the organization I got certified through for personal training. (Which, my teachers told me that is the most highly recognized organization, so we should get certified by them, if possible, in case anyone wants to know :) My teacher was the executive director this year. I remember I was on the 2008 jeopardy team when they came to BGSU. I got to watch that this weekend, it was fun, our team of undergrads didn't win, though :( They pulled questions like which muscle flexes the knee and internally rotates it? I couldn't remember, but it was Popliteus. LoL, who would remember that muscle? Now I'll never forget it :)
There were 5 of us grad students, we had to have at least 2 students working registration at all times, I felt a little guilty I kept leaving, but my teacher said it was ok, they wanted us to learn and see what was being done in the field. I sat in on The Female Athlete Triad, Patellofemoral Syndrome, Resistance Training for Triathletes, Genetics and Sport, Physiological Adaptations to Long-Term Exposure: Implications for Exercise Performance (which was very interesting, but the way, they studied natives in the Andes and Himalyays and compared the two, interestingly, the andes natives had way more hemoglobin than at sea level, and I forget what else, but the himalayans adapted more physiologically to their climate. Anyways, what was the most interesting to me was that from living at high altitudes for all their lives, their brains can actually atrophy, and have some cognitive impairment. The researcher wasn't sure if that was from the altitude or nutritional deficiencies, they didn't study it further), I also listened to the Physiology of Endurance Performance: What do we Really know? Basically, it was about environmental factors like heat, carbohydrate intake (they talked about depleting carbs somewhat the week before, then a few days before eating more of it to help increase performance, and caffeine actually helps. I'm sorry I can't go into much of this further because I was very tired at this point, and although interesting, I couldn't pay attention fully :( And I'm exhausted right now, it's been a long weekend)
Anyways, I enjoyed chatting with the guys who talked about resistance training in triathletes-no one really knows the exact doseage of resistance training for triathletes. They said either lifting heavy with low reps, OR lifting light with high reps worked the same. Interesting, as I have always been taught in undergrad that for endurance athletes, you want them to lift light but with high reps, for some strength and more importantly muscle endurance. However, some people may respond differently to it, (like me, I think, I gain muscle so fast), and you also want to help these athletes train for power, because duh, you need powerful arms, powerful legs on the bike and run. Yes, you can train for these sports, but important to get in the weight room during off season, at least twice a week, if not 3-4. Now, during the summer, they told me to back off resistance training (I usually do anyways, ha, but I was curious as to what they did, so I had a chat with them afterwards and today :) So...yeah...if I want to get faster, I'm going to have to make lifting a priority as well. It will not increase VO2max, BUT it will help these athletes train at a higher percentage of their VO2max if their muscles are stronger and more powerful-this means you will be able to exercise for a longer period of time without fatigue at a higher intensity. Cool. I think I knew that, somewhere back in the cobwebs. This is what I like about exercise science. There are always new findings in the field, and what we were once taught, could change. It's a very humbling field. You think you know it all, then we come out with new insights and studies, and information, and it completely changes.
So, the one guy gave my his contact info and told me to email him. So I did already :) Northern Kentucky. Now, I know I keep talking about the West, haha, but Kentucky may have what I'm looking for, too. Ah, this is why I take the road less traveled by. Always an adventure, life, not knowing where you're going. Sorry, this is probably poorly written, I'm very tired from the weekend, I didn't even get to workout 2 days in a row! (figured I needed a break anyways, I'm still not fully recovered from trail running up and down hills 3 days in a row last weekend.)
Got to know my classmates better. I don't think I'll be as nervous standing up in front of the class. Now, I have a paper due Monday I need to finish tomorrow, and present it on Wed. It's on fitness and activity levels in older adults and how it impacts their cognition. It'll be fun to talk about. I wanted to do my masters thesis on it. But..again...is this what I PERSONALLY enjoy doing, or am I doing it just because my grandmother has Alzheimer's and I want to find ways to help improve cognition and at least delay the onset of the disease. No...I am personally more interested in endurance performance. I may have to have a talk with my teachers...ugh. I can't let this be like PT school. I have to do things for myself, or I'm never going to be fully happy. I may radiate happiness (most of the time, unless I'm stressed from school, yes, it happens with deadlines and training and lack of sleep, but in the end, I'm glad I'm doing this :) but I have to do what I want to do.
So...I emailed that professor who studies endurance athletes in Kentucky, he seemed interested in chatting with me (especially after I told him what I did this summer...:) and he knows one of our new professors at BGSU. Awesome. So..maybe I can keep in touch with him. Also got the contact info from the guy who studies altitudes. I LOVE THE OUTDOORS. Options...OH! My classmate asked if I wanted to be in our new professors study-he's testing runners-having them do intervals and testing VO2max, I believe, as well as blood lactate, I think, and other things. So...I told him I was interested. I'm not the best runner, though, but it'd be cool to be in that study.
Now I've made some of my dreams come true already. I'm unsure of my future. I have options. I'm waiting to here back from Rev3 for a sponsorship( lol, I still find it weird saying those words...me? sponsored?) It prob won't happen, it's probably really competitive, but I sure am motivated. All I like to do is train and study exercise physiology. I'm not your average 24 yr old, I'd rather stay at home and write a blog on this than go out LOL :) Besides...I have a 2hr run and 1hr resistance workout I need to get done tomorrow morning before I start my project. No time for drinks, did that last night with my classmates and teachers haha :)
Sorry my blogs are more emotional and personal than they are scientific. I'll post my writings towards the end of the semester if I get good grades on them, lol. And adventurous lately, no big races. Sleeping Bear Dunes, MI was fun last weekend though! Beautiful area, lots of outdoorsy stuff to do.
I should end this with a quote, as I'm tired and can't blog anymore!
"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I---
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."
People, I WILL finish a half ironman, full ironman, more 5k swims, 10k swims, maybe the Channel, maybe ride across USA, ultramarathons, and snowboard in CO. I'm thinking no full on marathons for awhile, I need to cross train if I have some talent and motivation in triathlons. Oh and more backpacking and extreme hiking and snowboarding :) I want to backpack a little of the AT this spring break if I can :) Oh, and I'm thinking, I might possibly try to write out a triathlon training plan for myself this winter break, but I'll need some help. Maybe I can email that guy from Kentucky after I write it. Hopefully I have time with all the snowboarding :)
sorry for typos,
Your adventurous, nerdy endurance sport/physiology loving friend,
Roseann
P.S. Ask me anything you want. I love talking about this stuff. I hope I never come off as arrogant, and because like I said, this field is always changing, one must have an open mind to study in the field of the exercise sciences and sport performance as well as the physiology and biology behind all of this. I don't even know the half of it yet, nor will I ever, I'm sure. :) I'm just really passionate about all this and like to share it with others who like it, too :)
P.S.S. the National ACSM meeting is in San Francisco this year, but I don't think the school has funds to send me to that one...darn..:)
There were 5 of us grad students, we had to have at least 2 students working registration at all times, I felt a little guilty I kept leaving, but my teacher said it was ok, they wanted us to learn and see what was being done in the field. I sat in on The Female Athlete Triad, Patellofemoral Syndrome, Resistance Training for Triathletes, Genetics and Sport, Physiological Adaptations to Long-Term Exposure: Implications for Exercise Performance (which was very interesting, but the way, they studied natives in the Andes and Himalyays and compared the two, interestingly, the andes natives had way more hemoglobin than at sea level, and I forget what else, but the himalayans adapted more physiologically to their climate. Anyways, what was the most interesting to me was that from living at high altitudes for all their lives, their brains can actually atrophy, and have some cognitive impairment. The researcher wasn't sure if that was from the altitude or nutritional deficiencies, they didn't study it further), I also listened to the Physiology of Endurance Performance: What do we Really know? Basically, it was about environmental factors like heat, carbohydrate intake (they talked about depleting carbs somewhat the week before, then a few days before eating more of it to help increase performance, and caffeine actually helps. I'm sorry I can't go into much of this further because I was very tired at this point, and although interesting, I couldn't pay attention fully :( And I'm exhausted right now, it's been a long weekend)
Anyways, I enjoyed chatting with the guys who talked about resistance training in triathletes-no one really knows the exact doseage of resistance training for triathletes. They said either lifting heavy with low reps, OR lifting light with high reps worked the same. Interesting, as I have always been taught in undergrad that for endurance athletes, you want them to lift light but with high reps, for some strength and more importantly muscle endurance. However, some people may respond differently to it, (like me, I think, I gain muscle so fast), and you also want to help these athletes train for power, because duh, you need powerful arms, powerful legs on the bike and run. Yes, you can train for these sports, but important to get in the weight room during off season, at least twice a week, if not 3-4. Now, during the summer, they told me to back off resistance training (I usually do anyways, ha, but I was curious as to what they did, so I had a chat with them afterwards and today :) So...yeah...if I want to get faster, I'm going to have to make lifting a priority as well. It will not increase VO2max, BUT it will help these athletes train at a higher percentage of their VO2max if their muscles are stronger and more powerful-this means you will be able to exercise for a longer period of time without fatigue at a higher intensity. Cool. I think I knew that, somewhere back in the cobwebs. This is what I like about exercise science. There are always new findings in the field, and what we were once taught, could change. It's a very humbling field. You think you know it all, then we come out with new insights and studies, and information, and it completely changes.
So, the one guy gave my his contact info and told me to email him. So I did already :) Northern Kentucky. Now, I know I keep talking about the West, haha, but Kentucky may have what I'm looking for, too. Ah, this is why I take the road less traveled by. Always an adventure, life, not knowing where you're going. Sorry, this is probably poorly written, I'm very tired from the weekend, I didn't even get to workout 2 days in a row! (figured I needed a break anyways, I'm still not fully recovered from trail running up and down hills 3 days in a row last weekend.)
Got to know my classmates better. I don't think I'll be as nervous standing up in front of the class. Now, I have a paper due Monday I need to finish tomorrow, and present it on Wed. It's on fitness and activity levels in older adults and how it impacts their cognition. It'll be fun to talk about. I wanted to do my masters thesis on it. But..again...is this what I PERSONALLY enjoy doing, or am I doing it just because my grandmother has Alzheimer's and I want to find ways to help improve cognition and at least delay the onset of the disease. No...I am personally more interested in endurance performance. I may have to have a talk with my teachers...ugh. I can't let this be like PT school. I have to do things for myself, or I'm never going to be fully happy. I may radiate happiness (most of the time, unless I'm stressed from school, yes, it happens with deadlines and training and lack of sleep, but in the end, I'm glad I'm doing this :) but I have to do what I want to do.
So...I emailed that professor who studies endurance athletes in Kentucky, he seemed interested in chatting with me (especially after I told him what I did this summer...:) and he knows one of our new professors at BGSU. Awesome. So..maybe I can keep in touch with him. Also got the contact info from the guy who studies altitudes. I LOVE THE OUTDOORS. Options...OH! My classmate asked if I wanted to be in our new professors study-he's testing runners-having them do intervals and testing VO2max, I believe, as well as blood lactate, I think, and other things. So...I told him I was interested. I'm not the best runner, though, but it'd be cool to be in that study.
Now I've made some of my dreams come true already. I'm unsure of my future. I have options. I'm waiting to here back from Rev3 for a sponsorship( lol, I still find it weird saying those words...me? sponsored?) It prob won't happen, it's probably really competitive, but I sure am motivated. All I like to do is train and study exercise physiology. I'm not your average 24 yr old, I'd rather stay at home and write a blog on this than go out LOL :) Besides...I have a 2hr run and 1hr resistance workout I need to get done tomorrow morning before I start my project. No time for drinks, did that last night with my classmates and teachers haha :)
Sorry my blogs are more emotional and personal than they are scientific. I'll post my writings towards the end of the semester if I get good grades on them, lol. And adventurous lately, no big races. Sleeping Bear Dunes, MI was fun last weekend though! Beautiful area, lots of outdoorsy stuff to do.
I should end this with a quote, as I'm tired and can't blog anymore!
"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I---
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."
People, I WILL finish a half ironman, full ironman, more 5k swims, 10k swims, maybe the Channel, maybe ride across USA, ultramarathons, and snowboard in CO. I'm thinking no full on marathons for awhile, I need to cross train if I have some talent and motivation in triathlons. Oh and more backpacking and extreme hiking and snowboarding :) I want to backpack a little of the AT this spring break if I can :) Oh, and I'm thinking, I might possibly try to write out a triathlon training plan for myself this winter break, but I'll need some help. Maybe I can email that guy from Kentucky after I write it. Hopefully I have time with all the snowboarding :)
sorry for typos,
Your adventurous, nerdy endurance sport/physiology loving friend,
Roseann
P.S. Ask me anything you want. I love talking about this stuff. I hope I never come off as arrogant, and because like I said, this field is always changing, one must have an open mind to study in the field of the exercise sciences and sport performance as well as the physiology and biology behind all of this. I don't even know the half of it yet, nor will I ever, I'm sure. :) I'm just really passionate about all this and like to share it with others who like it, too :)
P.S.S. the National ACSM meeting is in San Francisco this year, but I don't think the school has funds to send me to that one...darn..:)
Saturday, October 15, 2011
What the Heck is Lactic Acid and What is Responsible for the "Muscle Burn"?
While studying for my Exercise Physiology Exam, I came across lactic acid. I remember my teacher telling us the "burn" in our muscles isn't actually from lactic acid, but from Hydrogen ions. I couldn't remember why, exactly, and where lactic acid played a role. So, I looked it up in my book. It's pretty common language among athletes to blame the burning in their muscles from sprinting or racing, on lactic acid. But actually....while it is somewhat true, it's not the real reason. Let's dive into the underlying science behind it so you can actually understand why lactic acid accumulates in the blood and what, exactly, is responsible for the fatigue!!
I'm just going to quote my book here-
-"Various metabolic byproducts of metabolism have been implicated as factors causing, or contributing to, fatigue. One example is Pi, which increases during intense short-term exercise as PCr and ATP are being broken down. Additional metabolic by-products that have received the most attention in discussing fatigue are HEAT, LACTATE, and HYDROGEN IONS."
-Lactic acid is a byproduct of anaerobic glycolysis (what is broken down by anaerobic metabolism, anaerobic means without oxygen, aka-working out above lactate threshold, aka- sprinting)
-Here is the important part: "Although most people BELIEVE that lactic acid is responsible for fatigue in all types of exercise, lactic acid accumulates within the MUSCLE FIBER ONLY during relatively brief, highly intense muscular effort. Marathon runners, for example, may have near-resting lactic acid levels at the end of the race, despite their fatigue. Their fatigue is likely caused by INADEQUATE ENERGY SUPPLY, NOT EXCESS LACTIC ACID". This is true for any endurance sport.--it's actually pretty hard to take in enough calories during exercise, despite your efforts, especially in a long race, hence, the fatigue (For me, when I race, it's usually at a higher intensity, and I don't know about you, but sometimes the last thing I want is food, but I know you have to get it down, little bit at a time, as long as you can get some energy in, that's good)
So, what is responsible for this type of fatigue (for short efforts), you say, if it is not what we all commonly think of, lactic acid? (Well, not all, but at least I, and a number of others I'm sure, have misinterpreted!)
Well, it's actually due to the accumulation of Hydrogen ions, wow!!
-"Short sprints in running, cycling, and swimming all lead to large accumulations of lactic acid"-What most of us believe to be true, yes.
-"But the presence of lactic acid should not be blamed for the feeling of fatigue in itself. When not cleared, the lactic acid dissociates, converting to lactate and causing an accumulation of HYDROGEN IONS. This Hydrogen ion accumulation causes MUSCLE ACIDIFICATION, resulting in a condition known as acidosis."
-"Activities of short duration and high intensity, such as sprint running and sprint swimming, depend HEAVILY on ANAEROBIC GLYCOLYSIS (remember, anaerobic=exercising without oxygen, which is why you can only do this for a few min, if that.) and produce LARGE AMOUNTS OF LACTATE and HYDROGEN IONS within the muscles" (remember, lactic acid is converted into lactate, which then is responsible for the accumulation of hydrogen ions).
-"Fortunately, the cells and body fluids possess buffers, such as bicarbonate (HCO3), that minimize the disrupting influence of the Hydrogen Ion. Without these buffers, Hydrogen ion would lower the pH to about 1.5, killing the cells. Because of the body's buffering capacity, the hydrogen ion concentration remains low even during the most severe exercise, allowing muscle pH to decrease from a resting value of 7.1 to no lower than 6.6 to 6.4 at exhaustion."--I learned in class that the better trained you are, the better you are able to buffer lactic acid. Cool.
-However, those 6.6 and 6.4 levels are pretty low, and "most researchers agree that low muscle pH is the major limitor of performance and the primary cause of fatigue during maximal, all-out exercise lasting more than 20s to 30s."
-Now, "reestablishing the preexercise muscle pH after an exhaustive sprint bout requires about 30-35 min of recovery"--crazy!
How does this apply to athletes? Well....
"Even when normal pH is restored, blood and muscle lactate levels can remain quite elevated. However, experience has shown that an athlete CAN continue to exercise at relatively high intensities even with a muscle pH below 7.0 and a blood lactate level above 6 or 7 mmol/L, 4-5x the resting value.
"Some coaches and sports physiologists have attempted to use blood lactate measurements to gauge the intensity and volume of training needed to produce an optimal training stimulus. Such measurements provide an index of training intensity, but they might not reflect the anaerobic processes or the state of acidosis in the muscles. Because lactate and hydrogen ion are generated in the muscles, both diffuse out of the cells. They then are diluted in the body fluids and transported to others areas of the body to be metabolized. Consequently, blood lactate concentrations depend on rates of production, diffusion, oxidation, and clearance. A variety of factors can influence these processes, so measuring blood lactate is of questionable value for fine-tuning training."
There ya have it. I hope this cleared up what exactly lactic acid is and what it does inside your body during exercise. It's converted to hydrogen ions!
Wilmore, J., H., Costill, D., L., & Kenney, L., W. (2008). Physiology of Sport and Exercise.
Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
I'm just going to quote my book here-
-"Various metabolic byproducts of metabolism have been implicated as factors causing, or contributing to, fatigue. One example is Pi, which increases during intense short-term exercise as PCr and ATP are being broken down. Additional metabolic by-products that have received the most attention in discussing fatigue are HEAT, LACTATE, and HYDROGEN IONS."
-Lactic acid is a byproduct of anaerobic glycolysis (what is broken down by anaerobic metabolism, anaerobic means without oxygen, aka-working out above lactate threshold, aka- sprinting)
-Here is the important part: "Although most people BELIEVE that lactic acid is responsible for fatigue in all types of exercise, lactic acid accumulates within the MUSCLE FIBER ONLY during relatively brief, highly intense muscular effort. Marathon runners, for example, may have near-resting lactic acid levels at the end of the race, despite their fatigue. Their fatigue is likely caused by INADEQUATE ENERGY SUPPLY, NOT EXCESS LACTIC ACID". This is true for any endurance sport.--it's actually pretty hard to take in enough calories during exercise, despite your efforts, especially in a long race, hence, the fatigue (For me, when I race, it's usually at a higher intensity, and I don't know about you, but sometimes the last thing I want is food, but I know you have to get it down, little bit at a time, as long as you can get some energy in, that's good)
So, what is responsible for this type of fatigue (for short efforts), you say, if it is not what we all commonly think of, lactic acid? (Well, not all, but at least I, and a number of others I'm sure, have misinterpreted!)
Well, it's actually due to the accumulation of Hydrogen ions, wow!!
-"Short sprints in running, cycling, and swimming all lead to large accumulations of lactic acid"-What most of us believe to be true, yes.
-"But the presence of lactic acid should not be blamed for the feeling of fatigue in itself. When not cleared, the lactic acid dissociates, converting to lactate and causing an accumulation of HYDROGEN IONS. This Hydrogen ion accumulation causes MUSCLE ACIDIFICATION, resulting in a condition known as acidosis."
-"Activities of short duration and high intensity, such as sprint running and sprint swimming, depend HEAVILY on ANAEROBIC GLYCOLYSIS (remember, anaerobic=exercising without oxygen, which is why you can only do this for a few min, if that.) and produce LARGE AMOUNTS OF LACTATE and HYDROGEN IONS within the muscles" (remember, lactic acid is converted into lactate, which then is responsible for the accumulation of hydrogen ions).
-"Fortunately, the cells and body fluids possess buffers, such as bicarbonate (HCO3), that minimize the disrupting influence of the Hydrogen Ion. Without these buffers, Hydrogen ion would lower the pH to about 1.5, killing the cells. Because of the body's buffering capacity, the hydrogen ion concentration remains low even during the most severe exercise, allowing muscle pH to decrease from a resting value of 7.1 to no lower than 6.6 to 6.4 at exhaustion."--I learned in class that the better trained you are, the better you are able to buffer lactic acid. Cool.
-However, those 6.6 and 6.4 levels are pretty low, and "most researchers agree that low muscle pH is the major limitor of performance and the primary cause of fatigue during maximal, all-out exercise lasting more than 20s to 30s."
-Now, "reestablishing the preexercise muscle pH after an exhaustive sprint bout requires about 30-35 min of recovery"--crazy!
How does this apply to athletes? Well....
"Even when normal pH is restored, blood and muscle lactate levels can remain quite elevated. However, experience has shown that an athlete CAN continue to exercise at relatively high intensities even with a muscle pH below 7.0 and a blood lactate level above 6 or 7 mmol/L, 4-5x the resting value.
"Some coaches and sports physiologists have attempted to use blood lactate measurements to gauge the intensity and volume of training needed to produce an optimal training stimulus. Such measurements provide an index of training intensity, but they might not reflect the anaerobic processes or the state of acidosis in the muscles. Because lactate and hydrogen ion are generated in the muscles, both diffuse out of the cells. They then are diluted in the body fluids and transported to others areas of the body to be metabolized. Consequently, blood lactate concentrations depend on rates of production, diffusion, oxidation, and clearance. A variety of factors can influence these processes, so measuring blood lactate is of questionable value for fine-tuning training."
There ya have it. I hope this cleared up what exactly lactic acid is and what it does inside your body during exercise. It's converted to hydrogen ions!
Wilmore, J., H., Costill, D., L., & Kenney, L., W. (2008). Physiology of Sport and Exercise.
Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
The Benefits of Daily Exercise
I'm just going to post the many benefits of physical exercise and prove why disuse is one of the factors of aging rather than disease and time. Aging can help slow down some of the physiological processes that are associated with aging. I'm just going to list what I read in my book, "The Physical Dimensions of Aging." I should really be writing papers right now, lol, but I felt the need to post this and point out some important things and misconceptions about aging and exercise.
-4 of the top 5 causes of death in adults are attributable to deterioration of the cardiovascular and respiratory system. Aging and disuse degrade these systems, whereas systematic exercise generally enhances them. (I'm sure you've heard this before!)
-The primary structural changes of the aging cardiovascular system include an increased thickening of the walls of the blood vessels and left ventricle, an increased stiffness in the aorta and arterial tree, and an increase in size of the left atrial chamber of the heart (exercise and prevent/slow this from happening...but it has to be habitual exercise throughout life.)
-Now, thickening of the vessel walls is a strong predictor of stroke and cardiovascular disease. (Ahhhh! When blood vessels are thicker, blood cannot flow as freely, eventually clotting somewhere in there, leading to decreased oxygen to the brain, which=a stroke! or decreased blood flow to the heart, which=some heart disease)
-By age 75, 54% of men and 66% of women report no physical activity :(
-Now, the recruitment of skeletal muscle during exercise results in an increase in oxygen consumption (VO2)
-The more intense the level of exercise, the greater the oxygen requirement. VO2 increases as a linear function with increasing exercise intensity and will reach a max value at exhaustion.
-Longer endurance training programs of moderate to high intensity elicited increases in VO2max in older adults SIMILAR IN RELATIVE MAGNITUDE TO THOSE SEEN IN YOUNG ADULTS (keep fit your whole life so you can better use oxygen as you age and will not be dependent on others when you get really old!)
-This was really interesting to me-The highest levels of VO2max, at any age, are those exhibited by competitive runners who maintain an intense, daily training schedule and who compete regularly-(this shows it's important to be physically active your whole life! And my guess is why runners, not swimmers or cyclists, have the highest VO2max values is because running is the most basic form of human movement. You can push yourself to your max very easily. With swimming, it requires more skill and technique, one may not be pushing themselves to their max or even able to get up to their max values if they can't even swim right. With cycling, again, foreign object under you; you're only using your legs. Using your arms as well helps to get your heart rate up even more. I'm not going to develop these ideas more fully, don't have time. Anyways, of course there are some people who are swimmers and cyclists who can maintain very high levels of their VO2max throughout life :) Look at Lance! ha
-This was awesome-"Shepherd (1987) suggested that an increase in VO2max of 20% is not trivial. He maintained that a gain of this size "offers the equivalent of 20yrs of rejuvenation-a benefit that can be matched by no other treatment or lifestyle change"-again, goes to show habitual physical activity really is the best medicine....
-Frequency of exercise, rather than intensity, is more important for optimizing blood pressure. Daily exercise is the most beneficial activity. And this reason, is why I believe I must do something every single day. Obviously if I go real hard one day, I take the next day or two easy (in a different sport, perhaps!). But I still do something. I want to get the increased oxygen blood flow to my brain to help me think more clearly, and help my mood, as well as keeping my health #'s low. I may be OCD about this, but hey, I don't care, it's being healthy. Sometimes it is OK to take days off, though.
-Again, the American College of Sports Med states that the important exercise criterion is frequency rather than intensity, with daily exercise being most beneficial.
-Active people have lower blood triglycerides and more high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (helps off set a cholesterol imbalance, the more you have, the more you are protected against heart disease), and they generally report less anxiety and depression (oh God, if I didn't exercise, I can't imagine how moody I'd be. I still get moody even though I exercise regularly!)
-Coronary arteries of endurance-trained individuals can expand more, are less stiff in older age, and are wider than those of unfit subjects (meaning more oxygen-rich blood flow!)
-There is some evidence that exercise may decrease the potential for clot formation; thus, with larger, more compliant coronary arteries and a diminished likelihood of forming clots, the active individual of any age is at a lower risk for a heart attack. Additionally, the heart muscle itself becomes bigger and stronger with regular exercise. Cool.
-It is clear that daily physical activity is important for optimal physical and psychological function even for the extremely old and frail, although the goals of the exercise program as well as the exercises will be altered to accomodate individual disabilities.
-However, it cannot be assumed that the physical work capacity of all individuals, if they followed a similar lifestyle, would be similar to that of masters athletes, because about 40% of an individual's physiological athletic capability is attributed to genetic factors-interesting.
-Some researchers suggest that highly trained endurance athletes and moderately trained fitness participants who maintain high-intensity training may experience less decline in aerobic capacity than sedentary individuals (book and teacher pointed out that if you were once an athlete, this does NOT protect you. you must continue to train.)
-The major determinants of changes in VO2max with age were the initial level of aerobic power and the subject's reduction in activity level.---ahhhh stay active so you will be able to use oxygen very well throughout life; activities of daily living won't be a challenge for you when you're older.
-The encouraging aspect of these studies of highly trained aged competitiors (masters athletes) is that a decade of aging (50-60) may have little effect on a highly exercised cardiovascular system. The VO2max values of current masters athletes reveal strikingly youthful cardiovascular function--see, we can slow down the aging process with regular exercise!
-So....some measures of fitness decline by 50% within 3 weeks, and light or moderate exercisers who quit exercising may lose all exercise benefits within a few months.
-Again, my book states "To provide long-term benefits, exercise must become an integral, daily part of an individual's life."
Take a look at what disuse, bed rest, and deconditioning can do to your body:
-Experiments on bed rest have shown that even a short period of physical inactivity, even in relatively YOUNG SUBJECTS, can have NEGATIVE effects on the cardiovascular function, blood pressure, and hormonal responses to exercise. Twenty days of bed rest in young adults led to a 25%! decline in VO2max, whereas 4 months of detraining in older adults led to a complete loss of endurance training adaptations of the cardiovascular system.
-In the detraining study for 60yr olds, there was an increase in VO2max of 16%! after 16 weeks of supervised training on a cycle ergometer. However, all of this gain in aerobic power was lost when the subjects were discharged from the study.
-A lifetime of physical disuse can have catastrophic effects, eroding strength and mobility, and may eventually lead to frailty, immobility, and total dependency. ahhhhhhh!
-One last fun fact: Exercising the lower limbs assists in venous return (returning blood to the heart thru the veins), improving the blood flow and pressure needed to maintain adequate perfusion of the brain.
One story my book shares: Effects of Disuse: A Personal Testimony
Bortz (1983) articularted the deleterious effects that disuse has on the body from he personal experience with a leg broken during a skiing accident:
"When the cast was removed, I found my leg giving all the appearance of the limb of a person 40 or 50yrs older. It was withered, discolored, stiff, painful. I could not believe this leg belonged to me. This similarity of changes due to enforced inactivity to those commonly attributed with aging was striking. And, in fact, if one were to go to all the standard textbooks of geriatrics and write down all the changes which seem to accompany aging, set the list aside, and then go to the textbooks of work physiology and write down all the changes subsequent to inactivity--and then compare the 2 lists, one would see that they are virtually identical. The coincidence is not random. It is intense. It forces the conclusion that at least part of what passes as change due to age is not caused by at age at all, but by disuse." Scary. Stay active so you can enjoy and live life to it's fullest when you're 50, 60, 70, 80, 90...etc. :)
-also if interested, read this story about an 80yr old who was inactive her whole life, got a ton of diseases related to aging, but once started walking, was off meds in a yr or 2 and started competing and winning events in the Senior Olympics. Darn, I can't post the site here I guess, but look up Eula M. Findley Weaver.
Also I have been taught this and read an article this morning including a study by this guy Steven N. Blair who works at the Cooper Institute in Dallas, TX who studies heart disease...that you can be fit and fat, as long as you're #'s are low (heart rate, blood pressure, cholesterol, etc.) and you generally eat pretty well and exercise on a regular basis. Cool. :)
Also, I am doing my masters thesis on how exercise can help improve cognitive function/prevent short term memory loss. I already know that it helps increase blood flow to the brain, and I've been reading studies that this can help prevent/or maybe I should say prolong the risk of dementia and alzhiemer's in older adults, but only if they are moderate to high intensity regular exercisers. Interesting, because as you age oxygen to the brain slowly decreases, resulting in some memory loss there. Also, the structure of the brain and the cell processes there are also altered. I'll post papers when I get them done...I just felt the need to post this because I feel everyone should know what I know and I want people to age well! lol Sorry if there are typos.
Oh and I didn't paraphrase anything really, so I got the info from the book Physical Dimensions of Aging, by Waneen W. Spirduso, Karen L. Francis, and Priscilla G. MacRae
Take-Home-Message-Exercise is good for every body system.
-4 of the top 5 causes of death in adults are attributable to deterioration of the cardiovascular and respiratory system. Aging and disuse degrade these systems, whereas systematic exercise generally enhances them. (I'm sure you've heard this before!)
-The primary structural changes of the aging cardiovascular system include an increased thickening of the walls of the blood vessels and left ventricle, an increased stiffness in the aorta and arterial tree, and an increase in size of the left atrial chamber of the heart (exercise and prevent/slow this from happening...but it has to be habitual exercise throughout life.)
-Now, thickening of the vessel walls is a strong predictor of stroke and cardiovascular disease. (Ahhhh! When blood vessels are thicker, blood cannot flow as freely, eventually clotting somewhere in there, leading to decreased oxygen to the brain, which=a stroke! or decreased blood flow to the heart, which=some heart disease)
-By age 75, 54% of men and 66% of women report no physical activity :(
-Now, the recruitment of skeletal muscle during exercise results in an increase in oxygen consumption (VO2)
-The more intense the level of exercise, the greater the oxygen requirement. VO2 increases as a linear function with increasing exercise intensity and will reach a max value at exhaustion.
-Longer endurance training programs of moderate to high intensity elicited increases in VO2max in older adults SIMILAR IN RELATIVE MAGNITUDE TO THOSE SEEN IN YOUNG ADULTS (keep fit your whole life so you can better use oxygen as you age and will not be dependent on others when you get really old!)
-This was really interesting to me-The highest levels of VO2max, at any age, are those exhibited by competitive runners who maintain an intense, daily training schedule and who compete regularly-(this shows it's important to be physically active your whole life! And my guess is why runners, not swimmers or cyclists, have the highest VO2max values is because running is the most basic form of human movement. You can push yourself to your max very easily. With swimming, it requires more skill and technique, one may not be pushing themselves to their max or even able to get up to their max values if they can't even swim right. With cycling, again, foreign object under you; you're only using your legs. Using your arms as well helps to get your heart rate up even more. I'm not going to develop these ideas more fully, don't have time. Anyways, of course there are some people who are swimmers and cyclists who can maintain very high levels of their VO2max throughout life :) Look at Lance! ha
-This was awesome-"Shepherd (1987) suggested that an increase in VO2max of 20% is not trivial. He maintained that a gain of this size "offers the equivalent of 20yrs of rejuvenation-a benefit that can be matched by no other treatment or lifestyle change"-again, goes to show habitual physical activity really is the best medicine....
-Frequency of exercise, rather than intensity, is more important for optimizing blood pressure. Daily exercise is the most beneficial activity. And this reason, is why I believe I must do something every single day. Obviously if I go real hard one day, I take the next day or two easy (in a different sport, perhaps!). But I still do something. I want to get the increased oxygen blood flow to my brain to help me think more clearly, and help my mood, as well as keeping my health #'s low. I may be OCD about this, but hey, I don't care, it's being healthy. Sometimes it is OK to take days off, though.
-Again, the American College of Sports Med states that the important exercise criterion is frequency rather than intensity, with daily exercise being most beneficial.
-Active people have lower blood triglycerides and more high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (helps off set a cholesterol imbalance, the more you have, the more you are protected against heart disease), and they generally report less anxiety and depression (oh God, if I didn't exercise, I can't imagine how moody I'd be. I still get moody even though I exercise regularly!)
-Coronary arteries of endurance-trained individuals can expand more, are less stiff in older age, and are wider than those of unfit subjects (meaning more oxygen-rich blood flow!)
-There is some evidence that exercise may decrease the potential for clot formation; thus, with larger, more compliant coronary arteries and a diminished likelihood of forming clots, the active individual of any age is at a lower risk for a heart attack. Additionally, the heart muscle itself becomes bigger and stronger with regular exercise. Cool.
-It is clear that daily physical activity is important for optimal physical and psychological function even for the extremely old and frail, although the goals of the exercise program as well as the exercises will be altered to accomodate individual disabilities.
-However, it cannot be assumed that the physical work capacity of all individuals, if they followed a similar lifestyle, would be similar to that of masters athletes, because about 40% of an individual's physiological athletic capability is attributed to genetic factors-interesting.
-Some researchers suggest that highly trained endurance athletes and moderately trained fitness participants who maintain high-intensity training may experience less decline in aerobic capacity than sedentary individuals (book and teacher pointed out that if you were once an athlete, this does NOT protect you. you must continue to train.)
-The major determinants of changes in VO2max with age were the initial level of aerobic power and the subject's reduction in activity level.---ahhhh stay active so you will be able to use oxygen very well throughout life; activities of daily living won't be a challenge for you when you're older.
-The encouraging aspect of these studies of highly trained aged competitiors (masters athletes) is that a decade of aging (50-60) may have little effect on a highly exercised cardiovascular system. The VO2max values of current masters athletes reveal strikingly youthful cardiovascular function--see, we can slow down the aging process with regular exercise!
-So....some measures of fitness decline by 50% within 3 weeks, and light or moderate exercisers who quit exercising may lose all exercise benefits within a few months.
-Again, my book states "To provide long-term benefits, exercise must become an integral, daily part of an individual's life."
Take a look at what disuse, bed rest, and deconditioning can do to your body:
-Experiments on bed rest have shown that even a short period of physical inactivity, even in relatively YOUNG SUBJECTS, can have NEGATIVE effects on the cardiovascular function, blood pressure, and hormonal responses to exercise. Twenty days of bed rest in young adults led to a 25%! decline in VO2max, whereas 4 months of detraining in older adults led to a complete loss of endurance training adaptations of the cardiovascular system.
-In the detraining study for 60yr olds, there was an increase in VO2max of 16%! after 16 weeks of supervised training on a cycle ergometer. However, all of this gain in aerobic power was lost when the subjects were discharged from the study.
-A lifetime of physical disuse can have catastrophic effects, eroding strength and mobility, and may eventually lead to frailty, immobility, and total dependency. ahhhhhhh!
-One last fun fact: Exercising the lower limbs assists in venous return (returning blood to the heart thru the veins), improving the blood flow and pressure needed to maintain adequate perfusion of the brain.
One story my book shares: Effects of Disuse: A Personal Testimony
Bortz (1983) articularted the deleterious effects that disuse has on the body from he personal experience with a leg broken during a skiing accident:
"When the cast was removed, I found my leg giving all the appearance of the limb of a person 40 or 50yrs older. It was withered, discolored, stiff, painful. I could not believe this leg belonged to me. This similarity of changes due to enforced inactivity to those commonly attributed with aging was striking. And, in fact, if one were to go to all the standard textbooks of geriatrics and write down all the changes which seem to accompany aging, set the list aside, and then go to the textbooks of work physiology and write down all the changes subsequent to inactivity--and then compare the 2 lists, one would see that they are virtually identical. The coincidence is not random. It is intense. It forces the conclusion that at least part of what passes as change due to age is not caused by at age at all, but by disuse." Scary. Stay active so you can enjoy and live life to it's fullest when you're 50, 60, 70, 80, 90...etc. :)
-also if interested, read this story about an 80yr old who was inactive her whole life, got a ton of diseases related to aging, but once started walking, was off meds in a yr or 2 and started competing and winning events in the Senior Olympics. Darn, I can't post the site here I guess, but look up Eula M. Findley Weaver.
Also I have been taught this and read an article this morning including a study by this guy Steven N. Blair who works at the Cooper Institute in Dallas, TX who studies heart disease...that you can be fit and fat, as long as you're #'s are low (heart rate, blood pressure, cholesterol, etc.) and you generally eat pretty well and exercise on a regular basis. Cool. :)
Also, I am doing my masters thesis on how exercise can help improve cognitive function/prevent short term memory loss. I already know that it helps increase blood flow to the brain, and I've been reading studies that this can help prevent/or maybe I should say prolong the risk of dementia and alzhiemer's in older adults, but only if they are moderate to high intensity regular exercisers. Interesting, because as you age oxygen to the brain slowly decreases, resulting in some memory loss there. Also, the structure of the brain and the cell processes there are also altered. I'll post papers when I get them done...I just felt the need to post this because I feel everyone should know what I know and I want people to age well! lol Sorry if there are typos.
Oh and I didn't paraphrase anything really, so I got the info from the book Physical Dimensions of Aging, by Waneen W. Spirduso, Karen L. Francis, and Priscilla G. MacRae
Take-Home-Message-Exercise is good for every body system.
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