Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
July 6, 2009
Two years down on the blogging front.
Key stats (compared to the 12 months previous in brackets):
Posts:
84 (209)
- I see a pattern developing….
- I would also like to think quality rather than quantity has prevailed this year, although that is debatable.
Busiest Day:
I can not get any data on this (for free at least) as the 29th of January 2008 is still the busiest day ever. (1,760: 29th January, 2008)
Most common search terms people use to find my blog:
Most popular post:
Chin Up vs Pull Up (What’s more important: Exercise or Nutrition?)
Top referrers:
Tags:Blogging
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July 3, 2009
To say I am an fan of exercise/training would be an understatement. However there are always people who highlight the inherit risks of exercise. Perhaps they know someone who had an heart attack whilst exercising, or maybe they got injured in the gym and just don’t see the point.
You may have also remembered reading a while back on KitchenPT how if you analyse all the Marathons run in the US over the last 30 years you find something quite amazing: they have actually decreased the number of deaths that would have otherwise occurred had the roads the races were run on were open to cars! Perhaps this says more about roads and cars than it does about exercise?
But I believe there must be a ceiling to it all. I really wonder if ultra marathon runners (for example) are really doing their bodies more good than marathoners? I doubt it.
Diligent readers would have read in the article I posted on yesterday how
recent research has shown that the risk of dying from a heart attack in a triathlon is nearly double that of dying in a marathon alone.
It would be interesting to collaborate all the data available on exercise & death, and find the ‘optimal’ frequency, duration, type, volume, & intensity of training/exercise on health. I would hypothesise it is significantly lower than what many top endurance athletes are performing.
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November 20, 2008
Great news out today for London tourists, cyclists, and greenies. London is to follow many other cities throughout Europe, and have 6,000 bikes available for hire from 2010.
Obviously you could hire a bike in London today if you wished, but this scheme should make cycling much more accessible, cheaper, and provide increased infrastructure (bike lanes, stands, pumps etc).
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October 24, 2008
Who is fitter: Dancers or Swimmers?
It seems like a simple question really. Swimmers are much fitter… right?
Wrong… it seems.
What it really comes down to is exactly how you define and measure ‘fitness‘. I would say most people measure it in terms of endurance and body composition. In fact, these are just two of many: agility, strength, power, flexibility, range of motion, balance, coordination are all considered fitness variables also.
So it really depends where you come from, and what interests you. A Yoga instructor would no doubt put an emphasis on range of motion, flexibility and balance. An Ironman on endurance. A Basketballer on agility, power, and body composition (height) perhaps.
There used to be a great program on TV called Clash of the Codes that pitted great sportsmen from different codes against each other. Even this is not a reliable measure of fitness though because it really depends on precisely what events were held as to who would win. I imagine the events chosen had more to do with TV appeal than they did ensuring all the possible fitness variables were tested.
In the aforementioned dancers vs swimmers study the researchers compared 10 factors of ‘fitness’ and found that dancers gained better results in 7 of the 10 – when taking into account body size.
I have always considered gymnastics to be a sport I wish I had taken up at a young age. The reason is because to me they seem to be the most rounded athletes out. But even gymnastics is not the ‘perfect’ sport – the one obvious fitness variable they lack is endurance.
Posted in Athletics, Bodybuilding, Cycling, Exercise, Fitness, Football, Golf, Hockey, Olympics, Rugby, Running, Sport, Swimming, Triathlon, Uncategorized, Weight Training | Leave a Comment »
October 4, 2008
Below is a Free Diet Record Sheet (aka Diet Diary). It is an incredibly valuable tool to use whether your goal is to prevent/cure disease, lose fat, or put on muscle (I would say one these three options covers over 99% of people who go to a nutritionist).
It is one I use when working with clients, and is far superior to any others I have seen. The reason is because it is extensive. Trying to formulate a plan for a client and having important data missing is frustrating. This Diet Record Sheet ensures that everything that needs to be recorded is recorded.
I have included the 3-day version, but if you are doing a longer record then you can simply print out more days.
Free Diet Record Book – Click Here
Remember filling this out is only the first step. Having your diet analysed and interpreted by a qualified person is the next…
Tags:Diary, Diet, Diet Diary, Diet Record, Diet Record Sheet, Food Diary, Record
Posted in Anthropometry, Athletics, Bodybuilding, Cycling, Diet, Fat Loss, Fitness, Food, Football, Golf, Health, Hockey, Nutrition, Olympics, Pregnancy, Rugby, Running, Sport, Supplements, Swimming, Triathlon, Uncategorized, Weight Gain, Weight Loss, What I'm Eating | 5 Comments »
July 2, 2008
An article on CNN last year gave some good advice and info: Snack Strategies.
There is an interesting note made in the article on a study done on people who snacked at night. If these people had milk and cereal 90 minuets after dinner they were more likely to lose weight in the long term. This is possible due to the fiber and protein in the cereal and milk that fills you up – or to the fact it contains less energy that a packet of biscuits. I guess you can question how hungry you really are after dinner by asking yourself if you feel like cereal and milk. If the answer is no, then I would suggest it is more likely you are just reacting to a habit to eat [insert your favorite unhealthy post dinner snack here].
Posted in Diet, Fat Loss, Food, Nutrition, Uncategorized, Weight Loss, What I'm Eating | Leave a Comment »
July 1, 2008
I used to work with a successful PT who told his weight loss clients that he wanted them to put on weight in the first few weeks of their training. His reasoning was that they will put on muscle from the training (and we all know muscle weighs more than fat).
Of course from a strictly physiological point of view if the only change the client makes in their life is the training then this is almost impossible.
However, I still think this is an important point to get if you are just starting out an exercise program – you are going to put on muscle. This is a good thing. Embrace the muscle. Muscle is your friend. No, you won’t start to look like a bodybuilder unless your diet allows it (and you take illegal drugs). Realise that your muscle burns more calories when doing nothing. But whatever you do, don’t tolerate weight gain for long. If you find yourself in this situation then you need to address one of the three most important aspects of fat loss:
- Nutrition
- Nutrition
- Nutrition
(I would reference this simple concept to Alwyn Cosgrove but I can not find where he said it).
Posted in Fat Loss, Gym, Uncategorized, Weight Loss | Leave a Comment »
June 28, 2008
Imagine for a second that you have to go on a long journey – say 30 days walking, and you had to carry all of the food you were going to survive on – except water. What would you take? Why?
Disregarding the health benefits of foods with low energy density, foods that are very energy dense are the obvious choice. Why? Because gram for gram they contain more than double the energy than low density food. This is why when Antarctic explorers used to go on long expeditions they had butter with everything. Butter gave them the biggest bang for their buck – and as they had to carry it all (or store it on sleighs), energy density was terribly important to them.
This is the reason you have to be so careful with oils, butter etc – because you can have a lot of energy in them for their weight. For example, there is about the same amount of energy in a tablespoon of oil as there is in a banana.
This is why fruits and vegetables – especially salads – should be such a staple for someone wanting to lose weight/fat. They have hardly any energy in them for their bulk.
Posted in Diet, Fat Loss, Food, Health, Nutrition, Uncategorized, Weight Loss | Leave a Comment »
June 26, 2008
After Tiger Woods won his 14th Major last week there were comments made by Retief Goosen suggesting Woods only seemed to hurt when he hit a bad shot, and that when he drained long puts his (supposedly injured) knee did not seem to bother him.
Goosen has been somewhat shown up by the fact Woods has announced he will take 6 months off to let it fully recover. Enough time I imagine to hit good form before the Masters in early April.
But Goosen still makes an interesting point. Why was it that Woods did not seem in pain after great shots? I think there is a logical explanation that we have all experienced: The instant euphoric feeling that comes from winning (or hitting a good shot as the case may be) temporarily suppresses any pain that we may be feeling.
To make my point I present 4 pictures. Check out all the facial expressions and body language of all the people in them:
1. 
2. 
3. 
4. 
I bet in all of these photos the person at the front who could not look happier is probably experiencing as much, if not more, pain than the people behind them.
Posted in Athletics, Golf, Injuries, Sport, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
