Latest Fitness Industry News
Blame Your Taste Buds for Liking Fat: Receptor for Tasting Fat Identified in Humans [news]
Why do we like fatty foods so much? We can blame our taste buds. Our tongues apparently recognize and have an affinity for fat, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. They have found that variations in a gene can make people more or less sensitive to the taste of fat.
Many Strategies to Increase Physical Activity for Kids Lack Injury Prevention Measures [news]
A new study by researchers documents a need for increased injury prevention efforts in many of the most popular activities for kids (walking, bicycling, swimming, sports and playground use) in the United States. Injury is the leading cause of death for young people in the U.S., yet many public health efforts to promote physical activity in kids do not consider the numerous available strategies to incorporate injury prevention.
High Animal Fat Diet Increases Gestational Diabetes Risk [news]
Women who consumed a diet high in animal fat and cholesterol before pregnancy were at higher risk for gestational diabetes than women whose diets were lower in animal fat and cholesterol, according to researchers
Bad news for fashionistas: high heels do ruin the way you walk [news]
High heels can permanently change the way women walk and put them at greater risk of strain injuries, scientists have determined. Researchers in Australia found that regular outings in towering heels shorten the fibres in women's calf muscles and can change the position of joints and muscles in the feet.
Gene linked to fat storage capacity [news]
Some people are fatter than others even when they eat similar food because of genes that encourage fat storage, according to a new study. Researchers at the University of Edinburgh identified a number of genes in fat tissue that may lead people to retain weight unnecessarily in the body.
Why diets make you fatter [news]
Fact: Almost without exception, anyone who tries to lose weight rapidly with a diet fails. They might shed kilos in the short term but will ultimately put it all back on - and then some. In fact, one of the authors of a study published in the American Psychologist journal in 2007 went so far as to call dieting ''a consistent predictor of future weight gain''. Perversely, it seems, if you want to get fatter, just go on a diet and wait for a bit.
Exercise smart - heed your heart [news]
Whether you're interested in running a marathon or staving off the chronic diseases of ageing, to reap the rewards of your efforts getting into the zone is essential. Experts say knowing and staying within your heart rate training zone is an easy way to pace the intensity of your workout. "Your goal is to get to a stage where you're fit enough to exercise within your heart rate training zone."
Scientists Identify an Innate Function of Vitamin E [news]
It's rubbed on the skin to reduce signs of aging and consumed by athletes to improve endurance but scientists now have the first evidence of one of vitamin E's normal body functions. The powerful antioxidant found in most foods helps repair tears in the plasma membranes that protect cells from outside forces and screen what enters and exits. Everyday activities such as eating and exercise can tear the plasma membrane and the new research shows that vitamin E is essential to repair.
How Poor Maternal Diet Can Increase Risk of Diabetes [news]
Researchers have shown one way in which poor nutrition in the womb can put a person at greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes and other age-related diseases in later life. This finding could lead to new ways of identifying people who are at a higher risk of developing these diseases and might open up targets for treatment.
Targeting Leg Fatigue in Heart Failure [news]
Doctors should not only treat the heart muscle in chronic heart failure patients, but also their leg muscles through exercise, say researchers in a major new study. Heart failure causes breathlessness and fatigue that severely limits normal daily activities such as walking. The University of Leeds research team has, for the first time, shown that leg muscle dysfunction is related to the severity of symptoms in heart failure patients.
When Warming Up for the Race, Less Is More [news]
Coaches, physiologists and athletes alike will attest to the importance of warming up before athletic competition. Warming up increases muscle temperature, accelerates oxygen uptake kinetics and increases anaerobic metabolism, all of which enhance performance. However, the question of how long and strenuous a warm-up should be is more contentious, with some in the sports community advocating longer warm-ups and others espousing shorter ones. Now researchers have found evidence indicating that less is more.
How Muscle Fatigue Originates in the Head [news]
A low-calorie diet eliminates insulin dependence and leads to improved heart function in obese patients with type 2 diabetes, according to a study presented in November. "Lifestyle interventions may have more powerful beneficial cardiac effects than medication in these patients".
Fitness Levels Decline With Age, Especially After 45 [news]
Men and women become gradually less fit with age, with declines accelerating after age 45, according to a report in the October 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, however, maintaining a healthy body mass index (BMI), not smoking and being physically active are associated with higher fitness levels throughout adult life.
Physical Fitness Trumps Body Weight in Reducing Death Risks, Study Finds
If you maintain or improve your fitness level -- even if your body weight has not changed or increased -- you can reduce your risk of death, according to research. In a study of 14,345 adult men, mostly white and middle or upper class, researchers found that...
Where it Hurts isn't where the Problem is [news]
Traditionally when our clients/patients have come in to see us with sore spots we’ve assessed the sore spots and treated the sore spots to make them go away. This assumes that the cause and the symptom are one in the same, an assumption that this article will show, is not one we can make. Here is an example of two patients to demonstrate the point that where it hurts isn’t where the problem is.
The Fat-Burning Zone: News On Burning Fat [news]
Obesity-related diseases are an increasing health problem. Researchers at the University of Oslo have now uncovered a central component of fat metabolism. It is well known that exercise results in "fat burning." Physical activity and fight-or-flight responses increase the levels of hormones like adrenaline, inducing the metabolism of fat. Until recently, some of the molecular details of exactly how this works have been a mystery.
Physical Activity Impacts Overall Quality of Sleep [news]
People sleep significantly better and feel more alert during the day if they get at least 150 minutes of exercise a week, a new study concludes. A nationally representative sample of more than 2,600 men and women, ages 18-85, found that 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity a week, which is the national guideline, provided a 65 percent improvement in sleep quality. People also said they felt less sleepy during the day, compared to those with less physical activity.
Mid-Morning Snacking May Sabotage Weight-Loss Efforts [news]
Women dieters who grab a snack between breakfast and lunch lose less weight compared to those who abstain from a mid-morning snack, according to a study led by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. In the course of the year-long study, the researchers found that mid-morning snackers lost an average of 7 percent of their total body weight while those who ate a healthy breakfast but did not snack before lunch lost more than 11 percent of their body weight.
Does Specific Isolated Muscle Training have a Place? [news]
Over the last 10 years there has been ongoing controversy amongst health and movement professionals as to whether training specific local muscles to control joint movement is necessary. It is true that local stabiliser muscles do not work in isolation from global muscles in normal function. But does this mean that there is no place for specifically isolating them in the initial phase of training? What do we mean by training? Is it training for fitness and conditioning, for injury prevention, or to rehabilitate an injury?
Does strength training increase stability? [news]
If you're strong, surely you'd have good stable joints. Strength training improves joint stability - right? This article explores some of the key concepts that show that this isn't necessarily the case. Firstly we'd better differentiate between local and global stability. To get an understanding of the difference it's useful to look at muscle function (Comerford and Mottram, 2001). While these muscle functions are integrated in "real life", it's useful to have these artificial classifications to understand how to develop a treatment plan. Local stabilisers such as multifidus and transverse abdominus act to control segmental translation. When applied to the lumbar spine, think of controlling the axis of rotation of each segment and the facet joints.
