Exercise & Fitness

Could walking ease your back pain?

In the depths of winter, adults, as well as children, exert themselves to engage in enjoyable outdoor activities that will keep them warm and provide both excitement and entertainment. Cross-country skiing, downhill skiing, sledding, ice hockey, figure skating, and speed skating all have their enthusiasts. Many

The variegated songs of the mockingbird. The crack of the bat on the baseball diamond. The screaming of little children at play in the community pool. Wherever we turn, the sounds of summer surround us in a joyful uplifting cacophony. Summertime may mean barbecue and it may mean the beach, but it also

The world's supply of fossil fuels has been dwindling for a long time. It's been easy to pretend this wasn't happening because there seemed to be an endless quantity of oil and gas reserves. How could we ever run out? All we had to do was drill another well or lay down another pipeline. But now it seems

Marathon running is a sport that began in 1896 at the first modern Olympics held in Athens, Greece. Today, marathon road racing is big business. The Boston Marathon attracts about 20,000 participants. The New York City Marathon is twice as large, with more than 40,000 runners. Successful marathoners

We all know that 30 minutes per day of strenuous exercise will provide many health benefits. Recent Federal guidelines from the Department of Health and Human Services1 have even made this official. The real question for most of us is how to find the time to exercise regularly and consistently. All we

Core training is a no-longer-new catchphrase on the fitness landscape. The concept of core fitness, by now, has been promoted by every Pilates school, yoga center, and chain of fitness clubs around the world. Many doctors, including chiropractors, physiatrists, orthopedists, and even cardiologists, emphasize

In "The Producers", the riotous Mel Brooks movie classic from 1968, the wily and almost washed-up Broadway producer Max Bialystock (played famously by Zero Mostel) takes timid accountant Leo Bloom (Gene Wilder) to lunch. Bialystock steers Bloom to a hotdog vendor's run-down sidewalk stand just outside

You've finally decided to paint your kids' bedrooms. Not only that, but you're going to do it yourself. Congratulations. Or your rooftop gutters have become so filled with leaves that the only place for overflow rainwater to go is down the sides of your house and seep into the foundation, and you've

Most of us would agree that we want to be as healthy as we can. Thanks to a steady barrage of commentary by talking heads on television and articles by "experts" in weekend editions of newspapers and magazines, most of us are aware that enjoying good health has a lot to do with specific habits of nutrition

While some fitness enthusiasts relentlessly seek out the latest, trendiest exercise crazes, many others are returning to good, old-fashioned walking to help them feel great and get into shape. Whether enjoying the wonder of nature, or simply the company of a friend, walking can be a healthy, invigorating

The most important thing to do - every hour or so - is change your posture and get the body parts moving again. Stand up, take a few slow, deep breaths, and walk around for five minutes. Change your perspective. Go to the window, look around, see something other than the Power Point you've been working

Everyone knows that exercise is good for you.1,2 Many people who haven’t exercised in a while (possibly not in many years) want to know whether running will help them get fit. A follow-up question for those willing to take action in the important area of exercise is how to avoid running injuries. The

Should I stretch before or after I exercise?1 Should I even bother to stretch at all? These are the questions that every busy adult asks whenever he or she is planning to begin an exercise program. The correct answer to the first question is "do whatever is right for you." Some people need to lengthen

Professional dancers are a pretty select group. These elite athletes are arguably among the fittest people in the world. Dance training provides flexibility, strength, speed, and agility - qualities of which we'd all like to have more. As a result, the dancer's experience provides lifelong guidance for

Every five years or so a new fitness craze sweeps through the culture. Television news anchors blather on about the latest, greatest exercise programs. Newspapers and magazines publish features in their Sunday sections, filled with pictures of glistening, glowing, glamorous celebrities hard at work on

Which type of exercise is right for me? Is lifting weights going to give me the best result? Maybe I should concentrate on running - that will really help to strengthen my heart. What about yoga - everyone says yoga is good for flexibility. All of us, at one point or another, have had these conversations

Back in the day, there were no personal trainers. If you needed to learn how to exercise, you got a subscription to one of a few well-known "muscle magazines" and read several issues from cover to cover. Then you joined a "Y" and began to discreetly observe what was going in the weight room, trying to

Not everyone will admit this, but there's something magical about exercise. Your brain produces endorphins in response to vigorous exercise and you feel energized, alert, and alive. You derive tremendous satisfaction from doing something you said you'd do. You feel good about yourself all day long. Beyond

Mao Asada, Silver Medalist in Ladies Figure Skating at the 2010 Winter Olympics, landed three triple axels in the competition, a feat no competitor had done before. There are no easy figure skating jumps, spins, or technical elements, but the triple axel is particularly difficult. This jump has many

If a great Shakespearean protagonist had, anachronistically, joined a gym, his internal existential inquiry might have been, "To lift or not to lift?". Many centuries later, the identical inquiry, or controversy, persists. Joining a gym (health club) usually implies the new club member is going to engage

Cross-training refers to a combination of different methods of exercise. Specifically, cross-training refers to the combination of strength training and cardiovascular training in your overall exercise program. Whether you're a 14-year-old just starting out on your first fitness program, or whether you're

Thanks to effective public health campaigns regarding healthy lifestyle choices, many people have incorporated regular, vigorous exercise, a nutritious diet, and getting sufficient rest in their daily routines. For many people, an additional important component of a healthy lifestyle is regular stretching. Regular

Game-changing plays in any sport and at any level are tremendously exciting. Whether we're watching Pop Warner football, middle school recreational soccer, high school basketball, or Major League Baseball, an extraordinary athletic play makes us stand up and cheer. If our team takes the lead as a result,

Strength training, otherwise known as weight training, is one of those activities that provides a wide range of benefits for the person who does it regularly. Like yoga, strength straining makes all your muscles stronger, enhances flexibility, and improves cardiovascular capability and capacity. In fact,

Interval training is an important part of aerobic exercise. If you're a walker or a runner, run intervals once a week. Walking and running build endurance by strengthening your cardiovascular system. Doing interval training once a week enhances your endurance by dramatically increasing the amount of

"To stretch or not to stretch." That wasn't exactly Hamlet's question. The Prince of Denmark had matters of state to consider, especially the most effective method to avenge the murder of his father. Getting ready for his next fencing lesson had taken low priority. But for the rest of us who aren't

Here comes summer! Fun in the sun. Barbecues, fireworks, and cool drinks. And outdoor activities - hiking, biking, running, swimming, skating, blading, and even canoeing. Getting back into shape seems like a very good idea right about now. We want to look good in our shorts and tee shirts, and more

Most people are aware of the worldwide epidemics of diabetes and obesity. The World Health Organization definition of overweight is a body mass index (BMI) equal to or greater than 25. Obesity is defined as a BMI equal to or greater than 30.1 Worldwide obesity has doubled since 1980. In 2008, 35% of

We all know that five 30-minute sessions of vigorous exercise each week is necessary for obtaining and maintaining high levels of health and well-being. The type of exercise doesn't matter, although a combination of aerobic exercise and strength training provides optimal benefit. However, what many people

We all want to get the most out of the time we spend exercising, and it's natural to think that exercising harder is going to provide a bigger, faster payoff. But exercising harder without adequate preparation often leads to injury. Then there's recovery time, possibly the need for rehabilitation, and

As Martha and the Vandellas sang back in the 1960s, summer's here! There's so much to do and we want to make sure we have a great time. Baseball, basketball, volleyball. Swimming and surfing. Walking and running. Hiking and climbing. Rollerblading and skateboarding. Now that summer's here, everything's

Climbing a hill is a useful metaphor for activities involved in accomplishing a major goal, overcoming longstanding obstacles, or achieving a noteworthy milestone. But you must be prepared to engage in such a climb. Striking out without a metaphorical map, compass, bottle of water, or raingear will consistently

It seems as if every few months there’s a new diet whose rules and requirements we must follow if we’re going to reach the goal of good health. The “paleo” diet provides a great example of this phenomenon. We’re exhorted by paleo proponents to eat lots of fats and animal protein. Carbohydrate

We think mostly of chiropractic treatment in terms of lower back pain, neck pain, and headaches. In fact, there are numerous additional wide-ranging benefits to chiropractic health care. Many of these benefits are related to getting more out of our exercise activities. For example, aerobic exercise