House Call, MD: Health Carefully Explained

by Courtney Walberg RD, NASM-CPT | CW Nutrition for Body & Mind

We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with turkey and all of the fixings! Now it’s time to burn those calories off. As we jump into this holiday season filled with parties and pastries, exercise is the key to staying fit, maintaining your weight and feeling healthy.  You need to be eating right, sleeping right and training hard to build muscle and continue to improve your overall fitness. It’s a simple formula for proven results.

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by G. John Mullen | mullen@myhousecallmd.com

Go to any gym across the country and you’re likely to find quite the variety of folks “getting their workout on.”  You may notice a couple Tara Reid doppelgangers on the stair stepper who appear to have been there for the past 12 hours, a cluster of guys wearing 1980’s style muscle shirts swarming around the bench press, a few big-boned characters “jogging” on the treadmill and, last but not least, a smattering of normal folk trying to stay in shape.  You can’t help but wonder, “What motivates these people to exercise day in and day out?”  Is it pure physical gains? Psychological?  Neuro-chemical?  Social?  The answer is probably a combination of all of the above.  Of note, however, is the psychological effect of exercise.  We’ve all experienced the endorphin-rich high after a good workout.   What if we harnessed that positive feeling…could it help with depression?  This simplistic yet promising thought has to have crossed the mind of a psychiatrist somewhere.in the world.  Well, it turns out is has.  We decided to hit the textbooks and scientific journals to get to the bottom of the issue.

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by Courtney Walberg, RD, NASM-CPT | CW Nutrition for Body & Mind

Life is about rising to the challenge. The more you try, the greater the chance to succeed. “Functional fitness” is exercise that trains you using movements from your daily life and subsequently improves your performance. One important note is that you do not need to always go to the gym to exercise. The more diverse your training regimen is the better.  Diversity constantly challenges your body in new ways and keeps your training exciting.

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees states that, “you have to know your body and listen. There’s such thing as good pain and bad pain. It’s knowing the difference between the soreness that you can work though, and the times that I feel like my muscles are so fatigued that it’s counterproductive to my goals and the team’s goals.” This month, we will focus on a variety of exercises to improve total body strength, power, speed and rotational core, while preventing overtraining.

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by Courtney Walberg, RD, NASM-CPT | CW Nutrition for Body & Mind

The best way to fight sports related injuries is to avoid them entirely. According to a report published in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, 70% of ACL injuries occur when players are pivoting or landing awkwardly after a jump. Hitting the ground with your knees bent instead of nearly straight greatly reduces the risk.  This month, we will focus on staying flexible and keeping muscles lose, while simultaneously increasing lean muscle mass through strength training and plyometric exercises. “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.  Stretching is usually the thing that is skipped when you are short on time, yet keeping your muscles flexible and lose is vital to prevent injury. “If you know better, do better.”

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by Courtney Walberg, RD, NASM-CPT | CW Nutrition for Body & Mind

The July and August Training programs focused on a variety of different exercises including cardio, core, resistance, strength and agility exercises, will leave you feeling fit and fast.  This month, we are going to bring you exercises to keep that summer swim body as the fall rolls in. We will focus on your core musculature, which includes 29 muscles total.  Chronic low back pain affects 85% of the U.S., which is largely attributed to a weak or inefficient core. It is vital to strengthen your core as this is your center of gravity and your central point for movement.

Aside from looking great, building a strong core can yield greater athletic performance (improve your running speed, increase power in agility drills and increase your vertical for sports like basketball or volleyball). It can also reduce the likelihood of injury and reduce the amount of existing pain you experience. It is important to remember that no matter how many crunches or core exercises you do, your diet is equally important if you want to show off those toned abs.  The Registered Dietitian in us can’t help but throw out a diet tips: eat a balanced diet including fresh fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, whole grain carbohydrates and low-fat or nonfat dairy products.  The link between nutrition and fitness is the key to overall health—looking and feeling great!

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