Wellness Articles

Knees are extremelycomplex joints. They’re made up of many ligaments, tendons, and cartilage that cushion and connect bones and muscles of the upper and lower legs.

Our knees may become sore or injured from overuse, exercise, or simply as a result of daily wear and tear.

Strengthening and stretching supporting structures and musculature will help but may not prevent all issues with the knees.

A number of general tips for promoting knee health and decling the chance of injury include

• Maintain overall flexibility and strength - strong muscles support your bones and joints.

• Be certain to check your footwear - the wrong footwear, athletic or otherwise, can exacerbate existing conditions or trigger new problems. Excessive wear on one side might indicate an issue with gait and is a good indicator to seek help.

• Be sure to take it easy - your body knows when it needs to rest and your knees are no different. Tune in to what your body is telling you.

• Maintain a healthful weight - chronic knee pain is often triggered by additional weight.

• Buckle up! Protecting your knees from injury in a car accident is yet another reason to use your seatbelt.

You can increase the likelihood of having healthful knees by strengthening the muscles in your legs. Because some person might have knee problems, or be prone to them, it’s a great idea to talk with a licensed trainer before starting a new routine.

If a fitness trainer isn’t an choice, relying on health club staff for basic instructions on equipment can also be useful.

It is especially important to work with a physical therapist or other healthcare provider when you’re rehabilitating after an injury.

Stretching the muscles that support the knees is an important component of any workout program. Stretches ought to include the hamstrings (back of the upper thigh) and quadriceps (front of the upper thigh).

The calf muscles and shins also need to be stretched and strengthened as they contribute to the structure of the leg.

Quadriceps stretch (lying on one side)

1. Lie on your side with your thighs side by side.

2. As you bring the ankle of your top leg back towards the buttocks, reach back with the free hand and grab hold of your ankle (keeping the leg parallel to the ground).

3. Press your hip forward and slightly extend it, then hold the stretch for at least 30 seconds and repeat for each leg

Standing quadriceps stretch

1. Make sure to use a chair or wall for support.

2. With your right hand, grab the lower part of your shin, right above your foot and bring your right leg behind your body.  

3. Push your hip forward slightly and keep your knees together. the emphasis is on pushing your hip forward a little, not pulling your leg backward (otherwise, you might injure your knee).

4. Hold for 30 seconds.

5. Repeat on the left side.

Hamstring stretch

1. Lie on your back, with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor.

2. Raise one leg without lifting your hips from the floor.

3. Gently push your heal up to the ceiling - beginners may grasp their leg behind the upper thigh or use a stretching band. Movement must be slow and steady.

When you’re experiencing any knee pain, rest is ordinarily a good idea, as is seeking medical attention for any concerns. Since knees are so complex, many things can go wrong.

Normally, when your knees hurt, avoid activities that put a heavy load on the joints. Some examples may be squats, lunges, stair climbing, and running up and down hills.

Crosstraining with activities like swimming and cycling reduce load yet still work the muscles of the lower body.

All lifters could probably use a few refreshers as it is easy to get into a routine without thinking about those basics. Are you giving yourself sufficient time to rest between sets?

Are you lifting a challenging, but manageable amount of weight? These may be important factors in assisting keep your lifting sessions balanced.

You mention that you take care not to eat an hour before training. That might be working against you and it’s possible that you might be experiencing hypoglycemia.

Working muscles need fuel and exercising leads to increased levels of insulin that transport blood glucose to the muscles, possibly creating a hypoglycemic condition that may make you feel nauseous.

It may actually be useful to have a small snack 20 to 30 minutes before you decide to lift.

Consider an apple with some peanut butter, a granola or protein bar, or another balanced snack to help sustain you through your workout.

Beyond a snack, be certain that your normal diet is high in complex carbohydrates and minimal in any refined simple sugars.

Complex carbohydrates, as they’re stored in the body and then used as fuel, enter the blood stream at a more constant rate and will help alleviate the quick insulin response followed by the low that often comes with consuming simple sugars.

It may make sense to experiment with the time between your sets, number of repetitions, and the amount of weight you’re lifting.

Do not forget, the science of exercise has moved away from the “no pain, no gain” philosophy. Less repetition with lower weights can still have considerable benefits.

A well trained personal trainer, exercise physiologist, or sports medicine expert might be able to provide some insight and helpful tips.

When you do not experience relief from changes to your workout and diet, it could make sense to visit with a provider.

A few small changes in your before workout snacks and some minor adjustments to your regimen may let you get on with getting pumped.

Protein is not necessarily the most important food source for muscle building. Actually, when bodybuilding, your main consideration ought to be taking in adequate energy, or enough calories.

Research shows that consuming an additional 2270 to 3630 calories each week (approximately 500 additional calories a day), along with appropriate resistance training, will result in one pound of muscle gain.

Muscles rely on glycogen (the energy they use for fuel) to perform work. When bodybuilders replace carbohydrate with protein in their diet, they’ve lower muscle stores of glycogen.

For that reason, a high protein/low carbohydrate diet cannot provide enough glycogen for our muscles, so they may feel weak, tired, and fatigue quickly.

In addition, our bodies need to convert any excess protein we eat to burn it as energy or to store it as fat.

Protein conversion helps us get rid of the nitrogen contained in amino acids (the building blocks of protein), which we eliminate through urination; nevertheless, it can also contribute to dehydration, muscle cramping, and excess stress on liver and kidneys.

As a result, it is important for a bodybuilder to take in enough carbohydrates. Carbs are used to fuel the muscles you’ll use to help build lean body mass.

Lots of additional protein by itself won’t add muscular bulk - carbohydrates actually spare protein so that it may be used to repair muscle tissue, which is how we build muscular strength and size.

How much protein do bodybuilders need? First figure out how many calories you need. If you are not taking in enough calories, you cannot build muscle tissue efficiently.

That’s because your body will be burning most of your calories, not using them to repair muscle tissue. For  instance, take a 180 pound guy - when he’s moderately active, he probably needs about 2700 calories a day (plus or minus a few) to maintain his weight.

Besides his moderate daily activity level, he may burn about 500 calories during an hour of heavy weightlifting.

If he wants to add one pound of muscle weight weekly, he needs approximately 500 additional calories per day plus about 500 more to make up for the energy deficit from intense weightlifting. This makes his grand total to be around 3700 calories a day.

So how can we translate this number to his protein needs? the RDA for protein has been established at 0.8 grams/kg of body weight for adults. This isn’t enough to build muscle mass for intense athletes.

Although it is challenging to pinpoint a specific number because you’ve to take into account based on  variables, research has determined an acceptable range - even at the very high end, the top protein intake needs to be 1.5 to 2.0 g/kg of body weight. For our 180 lb. (divided by 2.2 = 82 kg) lifter, this would be 122 to 164 grams of protein per day.

Since protein has 4 calories per gram, then this amount of protein would comprise 13 to 18% of his daily caloric intake of 3700 calories; the usual recommendation is about 12 to 15%. As you can see, a gigantic excess of protein isn’t needed.

It’s easy to get enough protein from food - and quite easy for quite a few individuals to overdo it. If too much high-fat protein is taken in, and not used, gains could be seen in fat tissue rather than in muscle tissue.

Resistance training, strength training, and strength training all relate to the use of free weights and/or weight machines to increase muscular strength and muscular endurance.

Weight and power lifting involve the use of free weights (usually heavier than those used in weight training).

Some of the major lifts engaged in during weight and power lifting may cause  injury, in particular if the athlete is not physically mature enough to handle the movement and/or weight.

Proper technique is also very important for injury avoidance and for maximum results - no matter what the age of the lifter is.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that

• kids be well supervised by certified adults.

• any weight-training program be appropriate to the child’s stage of maturation and examined objectively by medical personnel. (Proper bone development is one of the key factors to assess.)

• kids avoid weight training, power lifting, bodybuilding, and the use of maximal amounts of weight until they have met certain developmental criteria.

See the American Academy of Pediatrics position paper for additional specific details on the above points.

Here’s another question - Where’s your son planning to lift? Supervision by a coach or athletic trainer with an academic degree in exercise physiology or a closely related field could make the activity a lot safer and much more effective.

Experience working with preteens and teens, and certification from a nationally recognized organization, such as the National Strength and Conditioning Association, wouldn’t hurt either.

Now that physical education in quite a few schools has in conclusion shifted to accommodate students’ sum health and interests, weight-exercise programs are more widely available as a curriculum option.

Health clubs are also providing more fitness programs designed for kids.

For sure, strength is only one component of fitness - cardiovascular endurance and flexibility are the others.

Make sure to encourage your child to experience “life” sports - those that can last him a lifetime and that he can participate in with others or alone - e.g., swimming, cycling, skating, walking, etc.

Team sports are also excellent for children because they foster camaraderie, teamwork, and the art of graceful losing, in addition to winning.

Weight training is an important component of fitness. As in any exercise program, rest is an essential factor. It’s important to leave a day between exercising a specific body part or muscle for reap the advantages of your hard work.

That’s because weightlifting can cause micro-tears in the muscle fiber(s) that temporarily reduce strength. These tears are thought to cause some of the soreness you feel after a new exercise or tough workout.

During this vital rest time, your muscles are building protein and getting stronger. It takes about two days to heal the muscle fibers torn by weightlifting.

If you would like to lift weights every day (remember to take at least 1 day per week off for rest), focus on different muscle groups in three-day cycles, leaving two days in between the same group. For  instance

• Day one - back and biceps

• Day two - chest and triceps

• Day three - legs and abs

• Day four - repeat day one

Other tips to consider for safer weightlifting

• to help prevent injury, begin with some light cardiovascular activity to warm up your muscles.

• Prevent rushing through your weightlifting workout - slow and steady is the way to go.

• Limit your weightlifting motions while making sure you are keeping correct form. When you aren’t certain that you are weightlifting properly, ask a trainer for some assistance.

• Don’t forget to inhale and exhale ordinarily while you lift.

• Rest muscle groups adequately between workout sessions (as mentioned above).

The most important thing to consider is that there’s been a shift in mentality on exercise. the days of “no pain, no gain” are long past.

Any kind of activity that causes pain shouldn’t be continued; fortunately there are a number of methods for exercising your thighs - read on.

The exercises that you describe - lunges and squats - employ the gluteus muscles (muscles in the rear end) more than the quadriceps (muscles in the front part of the thigh).

Because of the movement required in these exercises, you may experience added strain on the joints of the hips, knees, ankles, and feet.

You may also find that running and high impact activities cause similar strain or pain.

It’s possible to do exercises to tone your thighs without standing. One idea you may consider, is to spend a little time with an individual trainer.

Spending a little one on one time with a fitness professional might have lasting benefits for your training and your comfort.

You could also want to consult with your primary care provider to determine when you must be referred to an orthopedic doctor or physical therapist who may recommend orthotics.

Specific exercises that may be better suited for you are varied. an appointment or two with a trainer will help find those that best meet your specific needs.

Your personal trainer may recommend

• Leg extensions and leg curls using a machine weights or other types of resistance

• Be sure to use of a physioball to reduce the pressure on your joints

• Make sure to use of resistance bands or other tools best suited to your range of motion

Your frustration is understandable, but could be overcome by consulting with the right individuals to help you.

Some guidance from a trainer or therapist can provide you with the skills necessary to keep up your workout, without the pain.

Almost all people have one part of the right arm or leg one quarter of an inch to over one inch bigger or smaller than their left in circumference. and often even feet are .-a-size different from one another.

That said, there are ways of making your legs more similar in size, even when the upper or lower portion of your right leg is larger than the left.

So that you can achieve hypertrophy (muscle growth), you will need to train your legs, just as as you need to with all parts of your body.

This weight training could include lifting weights at least three days per week at 60 to 85 percent of your leg’s one-repetition maximum (i.e., the most a individuals can lift at one time).

You might find it works to do three sets of 8 to 12 repetitions for these leg lifts, but working with an individual trainer would be your best bet to get a workout tailored to your needs.

So that you can have the left leg catch up in size and circumference with the right, you will need to work only the left leg for an additional set or two, doing each exercise that you had completed for both legs earlier in the workout.

Examples of exercises to complete for both legs that you can also do with just your left are

• leg press

• leg curl

• leg extension

• squat

• standing and seated calf raise

Again, an individual trainer or exercise physiologist will be your best partner in helping your left leg become roughly equal in circumference to your right.

Research studies suggest that the reason person benefit from working with personal trainers so much is that the personal trainers encourage their clients in using and tolerating greater training loads.

As a result, the clients elicit greater gains than exercisers who simply push themselves to complete their full workout regimen on their own.

When you can’t afford a personal trainer at a health club you might contemplate using an online personal trainer.

This alternative offers a qualified trainer to craft a workout regimen and communicate adjustments while monitoring your progress via e-mail.

These services are often much less costly than working with an individual trainer in person, but the disadvantage is that you won’t have the personal attention of the fitness trainer to ensure that you are consistently performing the exercises most efficiently, effectively, and safely.

You might wish to start with a trainer for at least a few sessions.

This will allow you to observe and practice proper form for the variety of exercises you’ll include in your training regimen.

How’s this for a breath of fresh air - there is no right or wrong pattern to breathing while working out.

Although you may often hear people say it’s best to exhale during exertion (or as you wrote, contraction) and inhale during relaxation, the most important part is to make certain you are breathing evenly and regularly during exercise.

Almost all individuals may think they are breathing while they are working out, but they are actually holding their breath in short bursts.

To see if this applies to you, take several seconds to focus on your breathing next time you are engaged in strenuous exercise, whether it is at the health club running to catch a bus, or going up a flight of stairs.

You may surprise yourself by finding out you are holding your breath most of the time!

It is important to breathe during exercise because your muscles are working hard and use oxygen as their main source of fuel. It is okay to breathe with your mouth, your nose, or both - all of these choices are normal and help the body to get oxygen.

Relaxing your jaw and keeping your mouth slightly open during exercise will help you breathe generally and naturally without much thought or effort.

It is specifically important to breathe ordinarily during strength training, such as weightlifting; otherwise, your blood pressure (BP) can climb to dangerous levels.

Also, feel free to breathe easily - if you’re breathing, the rhythm makes absolutely no difference in the performance. That means that breathing quicker won’t make you run faster (and vice versa).

If you have asthma, severe allergies, or other respiratory issues, it’s important to give extra thought to the types of the activity you’re doing and what they mean for management of your health.

In conclusion, pain does not lead to gain, so make certain to stop if you are feeling dizzy, have chest pains, or become severely out of breath.

Walking on pavement increases the stress on your joints and connective tissue. Shin splints are an inflammation of the muscle and/or tendons of the lower leg caused by repetitive walking or running on a hard surface.

The signs are pain on the inner side of the shinbone (tibia) in the front part of the leg. Sometimes, it comes on very slowly and gradually and eventually becomes quite severe.

Shin splints rarely lead to permanent damage.

The best cure is to rest. Try taking the bus or train to school for a week. Wearing good footwear when you walk, and stretching your legs in an effective flexibility program before your walks, can help prevent the problem from getting worse or recurring.

When choosing shoes, do not hesitate to spend several additional dollars — you spend more time than you think every day walking back and forth to campus. Because you are walking on pavement, be sure the shoes have adequate cushioning.

The shape of the shoe should correspond to the shape of your foot, without areas of pressure or pain, or a feeling of binding. Solicit advice from friends and from several specialty stores about what brands and styles are best.

Flexibility exercises help to reduce muscle soreness and the chance of injury.

Examples of simple exercises are the Sitting Heel-Cord Stretch, where you sit on the floor with one leg extended and the opposite leg bent with the foot against the inside of the thigh.

Hook a towel around the ball of the foot and pull the toes towards the knee. Be sure to keep your knee straight, and repeat ten times for each leg.

Or, try the Lying Knee-Pull, where you lie on your back with your legs extended and bring your left knee to your chest, grabbing just under your knee with both hands.

Pull until you feel the stretch, and hold for 10 seconds. Repeat 10 to each side.

Before you start the exercises, take some time off from your regular pavement walking, allow your shins to rest, purchase some good footwear, and then get into a reasonable exercise routine.

Although walking sometimes seems innocuous, it actually is excellent aerobic activity, and utilizes and strengthens your muscles.

Consequently, you also need to treat your walks as you would any other form of exercise, and use proper equipment and stretch beforehand.

Swimming may be a wonderful form of exercise. It uses nearly all the major muscle groups, and places a vigorous demand on your heart and lungs. It develops muscle strength and endurance, and improves posture and flexibility.

The buoyancy factor makes it namely useful for people who are pregnant, have injuries like leg or lower back problems, or who find high-impact exercise uncomfortable. It is a excellent sport for people of all ages and all proficiency levels.

To lose weight, you could want to keep your swimming regime (speeding up your pace a little bit and increasing the length of your swimming sessions, if necessary), and supplement it with some good-paced, arm-swinging walks.

Research shows that swimming and weight loss, however, has produced inconsistent and contradictory results.

Research shows that swimmers lost weight (and body fat), gained a few pounds, and had no weight changes at all.

In most of the cases where swimmers gained weight, it was lean body mass (muscle) and not fat.

One research study found that individuals who swim in cold water may consume more calories post-workout than individuals who swim in warmer water.

So when you are swimming primarily to lose weight, make sure that you aren’t inadvertently consuming unneeded calories during post-workout snacks and meals.

In addition, the number of calories you burn while swimming depends on how fast you go and for how long.

At a slow pace, twenty laps may burn only fifty calories - little more than simply staying afloat. On the contrary, a swimmer doing a brisk forward crawl will often burn as much as eleven calories per minute.

Swimming in a pool may be more conducive to the type of workout you are looking for than swimming at a beach or lake; pools often have lap swim hours, and you will not have to contend with rolling waves or boats.

For a guaranteed workout, you can also join up with a United States Masters Swimming group near you.

In the end, weight loss is dependent on a simple formula; more calories are burned than are consumed. No one exercise is necessarily better than another for weight loss; what matters is that you eat a healthy, well balanced diet and remain regularly physically active.

Swimming may be a fun activity to add to your workout routine, whether you’re a novice or a master. Enjoy!