Brian February 27th, 2009
When it comes to Personal Trainers, all are not created equal. There are over 50 certifying bodies and over 100 certifications available. To the lay person, just hearing “certified” is enough to consider a trainer qualified. This could not be further from the truth. The rigors that a trainer must go through and the knowledge base they must possess vary greatly between certifications. Would you trust your car to an unqualified mechanic? If not, why trust your health to an unqualified trainer?
The National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) has been identified by IHRSA (International Health, Racquet and Sports Association) as being a credible certifying agency. Click the following links for the full length IHRSA article and a list of accredited certifications.
http://www.ihrsa.org
http://www.noca.org/ncca/accredorg.htm
Visit the links page for webpage links to some of the top certifications.
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In Health,
Brian Ramage
Brian February 18th, 2009
Check out this link from IHRSA (International Health, Racquet and Sports Association) for some interesting information about diet, health and exercise.
http://download.ihrsa.org/ilost/2009/09ILI-newsletter2.pdf
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In Health,
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Brian Ramage
Brian February 11th, 2009
This is your most important meal of the day (breakfast being a close second) and most people blow it. After a hard training session your body is primed to use the nutrients you consume to replenish what was lost during the session, and help start the recovery process. Your breakfast and post-workout meals should contain the bulk of your carbs for the day and have a higher amount of protein than your other meals. I will list what you should include in your post-training nutrition regimen below.
Carbohydrates:
- Take in 100 grams of simple carbs (waxy maize, glucose, glucose polymers) if you are lean and looking to gain mass.
- Take in 1 gram/kg. of body weight (divide body weight in pounds by 2.2) if you are trying to stay lean and don’t want to gain a lot of mass. Ex) A 180lb. person would consume 81 grams of carbs.
- Stay at 50 grams or less if you are holding extra weight that you want to lose
Protein:
- For males aim for 40 grams of high quality protein (whey protein isolate, hydrolyzed whey protein) post workout and 30 grams for females. This should be consumed along with the carbohydrates.
Other:Â
- 5 gram of glutamine can be used post workout to help with recovery and strengthen the immune system. Some proteins have glutamine added so check to make sure you are not taking more than you need.
- Vitamin-C can help attenuate cellular damage following hard training. A few hundred milligrams should do the trick.
Don’t make the mistake of eliminating carbs from your post workout nutrition because this is what drives the amino acids (via an insulin response) into the muscles to help start recovery and growth. After 1-1.5 hours consume a post-workout meal with another 30-40 grams of protein and some complex carbs (the amount will vary based on your goals).
Athletes doing endurance type activities (1 hr or longer) would benefit from supplementing with BCAA during and after the activity. These amino acids are preferentially used for energy during strenuous endurance training.Â
In Health,
Brian
Brian February 3rd, 2009
Anyone who lives in the Northeast knows how hard shoveling snow can be. Just how hard is it though? Shoveling can elicit a heart rate above 90% of max heart rate. During my first semester Physiology class we did an experiment that mimicked snow shoveling with a medicine ball. Most subjects had a heart rate above 85% of their max heart rate within just a few minutes (these were young, 20 something subjects)! This can spell disaster for anyone in poor health (i.e heart disease) not to mention the stress on the lower back. Below I list a few tips to make shoveling as ergonomically correct and safe as possible.
Shoveling Tips:
- Use the correct tool for the job: use a push shovel for light snow and a heavier duty shovel for lifting heavy snow. No sense using a heavy shovel for light snow.
- Take breaks:Â if you are clearing yourself out for work and in a hurry give yourself a little more time. Try to shovel a little and rest a little.
- Breathe: holding your breath while straining (Valsalva maneuver) is normal, but it will raise blood pressure. Maintain a normal breathing pattern while shoveling.
- Minimize rotation: limit the amount of spinal rotation while holding and throwing the weighted shovel. Spinal rotation while under a load is a leading cause of low back injury. Try to throw straight ahead.
- Keep your low back flat: keep your low back flat and lift with your legs.
In Health,
Brian Ramage