Top 10 Health & Fitness Articles Of 2011

In 2011 over a quarter of a million people read our blog articles as it has become more and more popular over the past several months. In this posting we take a look at the top ten most popular health and fitness articles posted in 2011. To determine popularity we looked not only at the number of ‘Likes’ and ‘Tweets’ but also factored in the number of readers and reader response. Hopefully some of your favorites made it into the final top ten list and I am sure that you will find a few other gems that you may have missed! Thanks again for the continued support!

Top 10 Health & Fitness Articles of 2011

10. The Anti-Aging Properties Of Weight Training & Resistance Exercise

A detailed look at how our body ages on a cellular  level and how weight training and resistance exercise can play a significant role in maintaining quality of life as you get older. You can read the article in its entirety here.

9. Sweating Has Nothing to Do With Losing Fat

Getting a good sweat is thought of as the key to a good fat burning workout, however sweating has nothing to do with fat loss and is a poor indicator of how much fat you are burning while training or doing any physical activity. Read the article in its entirety here.

8. Tongol Tuna- A Safe Real Food Choice

I started writing about the benefits of tongol tuna several years ago and in this article we go over the problem of mercury in fish and the role of tongol tuna as a lower mercury alternative to traditional albacore tuna. You can read the article in its entirety here.

7. Six Pack Abs- It’s Not What You Do- It’s What & How You Eat

The quest of six pack abdominals has become the Holy Grail for many as the ultimate goal of their diet and exercise program. Unfortunately a surge of exercise products and services have sprung up over the years offering consumers much in the way of false hope by promoting various exercises as the way to a chiseled midsection. As lucrative as these products may be they not only don’t work, but distract us from the reality that a six pack comes from what and how you eat more than what type of exercises you do. You can read the article in its entirety here.

6. Multi-Vitamins & Vitamin Supplements Do More Harm Than Good

Multi-vitamins have long been thought of as a must have for anyone serious about their health. However hundreds of studies show that not only are multi-vitamins unnecessary for a population that is not clinically deficient in any major nutrient, but that they may actually increase the likelihood of certain diseases. If you take multi-vitamins or any vitamin supplement this is an article that you owe it to yourself to read.  You can read the article in its entirety here.

5. The Economics Of Obesity- Why The Food Industry Needs Us to Overeat

One of the biggest problems we face in the fight against obesity and growing diet related problems is the fact that the government plays a key role in supporting and promoting the food industries that make the very foods that we ought to avoid. In this in depth two part article we take a look at how the industry makes us eat more and how important overeating has become for the sustainability of the American economy as we know it. A must read for anyone interested in the behind the scenes machinery that allows corporations to wreak havoc with public health. You can read the article in its entirety here.

4. Can Bread Make You Gain Weight?

There is a common belief that bread will make you gain weight but the truth is that if you eat anything more than you should you’ll put some extra pounds on. In this article we take a look at the history of one of our oldest foods and debunk some of the myths about bread while showing the major differences between what we eat today and the bread that sustained our forefathers. You can read the article in its entirety here.

3. How Do Muscles Get Bigger And Stronger?

While many slave away at the gym in the quest for bigger and stronger muscles, few take the time to understand the mechanisms by which our muscles grow. In this comprehensive piece we take a look at our body’s response to stress, how it translates into improvements in our physiques and our performance and why training less is best. You can read the article in its entirety here.

2. Rethinking The Need For Cardio- Why Aerobics Don’t Work Well For Fat Loss

Aerobic type exercise is without question the most popular fitness activity for those bent on losing weight- however numerous studies and an understanding of the physiology of how our cardiovascular and muscular systems interact show that it isn’t the most effect form of exercise if weight loss is your ultimate goal. You can read the article in its entirety here.

1. Are Protein Shakes Bad For You?

The most popular article of the 2011 is about the now ubiquitous protein shake. While a staple in the dietary regime of almost all gym goers there is yet no real evidence that protein shakes actually help increase muscle mass or improve performance. In fact, evidence suggests that they might not necessarily be a good choice for someone interested in getting into peak shape. You can read the article in its entirety here.

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Celebrity NYC personal trainer Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training and one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City. Get a copy of his free weight loss e-book here. You can contact Kevin at 1-800-798-8420.

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Fasting Is Not An Effective Form Of Weight Loss

Fasting is one of the oldest methods for fast weight loss. You don’t need a degree in thermodynamics nor do you have to make any major changes in your lifestyle. You just stop eating, and maybe drink some water and juices, and voila! The numbers on the scale start going down. It sounds like a fantastic idea and there are a slew of New Age products on the market that claim to help you get the most out of your weight loss fast and support your efforts. Fasting is a simple and non-invasive method and is touted by some self-appointed experts as the cure to obesity, when used in conjunction with their products and services, of course. It could be a possible solution except for one small problem; it doesn’t really work. Yes, you do lose some weight temporarily, but most of the weight loss occurs simply as a result of the reduction in fluid retention that comes from not eating. A weight loss that is short-lived at best as it is will be inevitably regained within days of resuming your normal eating patterns. In the previous article we took a look at the questionable role of fasting in detoxifying your body, (see Fasting Does Not Detox Your Body) and in this article we will explore a bit more of what fasting actually does to our bodies and what role if any it may have in a healthy lifestyle.

Fasting & Weight Loss:  Understanding the Mechanisms Of Short Term Fasts

One of the key aspects to understanding what happens during a fast is to have a clear picture of exactly what occurs in your body when you stop or restrict your food intake. Sugars broken down and stored in the form of glucose is our body’s main source of fuel and is essential not only for our muscles to work efficiently but also for our brain. When food intake is restricted, even within the context of everyday life for more than 4 to 8 hours, the low blood sugar levels trigger a rise in the hormones glucagon and epinephrine. These hormones, among other things, stimulate the conversion of glycogen–a form of glucose stored in our liver and muscles–into a useable form of fuel by means of a process called glycogenolysis. Our liver and muscles have enough glycogen to last for two to three days, which is one of the reasons brief periods of fasting, be it forced by circumstances or for spiritual reasons, are usually harmless for healthy individuals.

Studies have also shown that when used moderately in conventional spiritual practices, intermittent fasting does not seem to increase risk factors for eating disorders even in young teenagers who are most at risk.[1] Fasting as a means of losing weight however has been long implicated as both a risk factor and symptom of eating disorders, especially in female adolescents. These disorders can have catastrophic effects on all the major organs of the body.[2,3] Most methods of fasting for weight loss last no longer than a day or two without some intake of food or juices which will supply much needed glucose to our bodies. That being said, there is no possible reduction in fat stores as the period of food restriction will not require our body to use fats as fuel. Any weight loss at this point will be due to the reduction in glycogen stores and water which will be quickly reversed when normal eating patterns return. Skipping a meal here or there thus, is not going to do anything to reduce the fat around your waist or anywhere else.

Spiritual fasting done in moderation does not appear to have any negative consequences.

Fasting And Weight Loss:  The Effects of Long Term Fasting

As we said, conventional weight loss fasting practices usually do not exceed a window of 24 to 48 hours without some intake of nutrients; however beyond this period our body will do its best to prevent the loss of skeletal muscle by using fats as a fuel. Fats from stored reserves in our body are broken down into glycerol and free fatty acids. Glycerol is used by the liver to help bring about gluconeogenesis (literally the new creation of glucose).[4] The free fatty acids are used by your body as an energy source, but not your brain–as fatty acids cannot be used to fuel brain tissue because their molecules are too large to cross the blood-brain barrier. To meet the brain’s large demand for glucose your liver will begin to synthesize compounds called ketones. Ketones, made famous by advocates of low carbohydrate diets, are shorter chain derivatives of fatty acids, which are small enough to cross the blood-brain barrier and be used by the brain as a fuel.

Our brains need fuel during periods of fasting and if extended for long periods of time our body will use proteins from muscle tissue as fuel.

The use of ketones as a fuel source for brain function is a stop gap mechanism by our body to reduce muscle breakdown during periods of food restriction. Given the historical reality of the countless famines and long periods without food endured by our ancestors for thousands of years, this mechanism makes sense as it allows us to have the energy to think clearly and be physically able to find food even in the face of long periods of starvation.[5] The use of ketones reduces the brain’s requirements for glucose but cannot completely satisfy it over time. For the remaining fuel your body turns to the protein in skeletal muscle. Without food for several days all cells in your body begin breaking down proteins. This releases amino acids into the bloodstream which are then converted into glucose by the liver (gluconeogenesis). It should be noted, given what we know of the fasting process, that the fear that many have in terms of muscle loss from missing a meal or two is in fact unfounded. Many bodybuilders in lesser developed countries are able to build and maintain muscle mass with often as little as one meal a day. I can attest to this personally having started bodybuilding in Trinidad, where from time to time I would have no more than one meal a day without any negative impact on my overall muscle mass. It might not feel that great, but the idea that muscle wasting begins within hours of not eating goes a long way to sell protein shakes and bars, but contradicts the facts of human biochemistry.

Muscle wasting is a last ditch effort by your body to stay alive in the face of prolonged fasting and food restriction and is evident in anyone who has not eaten or had inadequate nutrition for extended periods of time ( i.e. weeks or months). As fat stores get smaller, more protein will be used up as fuel by the body–which eventually results in organ failure and death. The heart and other essential organs such as the kidneys fail as a result of tissue degradation, and such organ damage can occur in those with prolonged and untreated histories of eating disorders as well. A cursory look at what happens to our bodies when we don’t eat for extended periods of time make it obvious, given the low food stores available to us for the greater part of our time on the planet, that we would not be designed to easily shed fat and muscle stores.

Fasting and Health

Fasting has yet to be proven as a means to increasing longevity in humans while proper diet and exercise has been proven several times over.

Many would argue that since fasting has been such an integral (forced) practice throughout the millennia that it could indeed be used as a method for weight loss. However there are no long term, peer-reviewed studies to support this claim and all studies on fasting and weight loss are small, short in duration and provide little evidence in terms of long term results. [6] Results which can be obtained by following a consistent regime of proper diet and exercise. Dieting for weight loss purposes also tends to distract people from the changes in lifestyle required for optimal health and weight management, but it may have some uses outside of the realm of weight loss.

Studies have found that intermittent fasting may reduce harmful cholesterol levels, [7] risk of chronic disease [8] and may even increase the effectiveness of chemotherapy treatments.[9] Since the dawn of modern medicine, fasting has been studied as a means of increasing overall health and longevity. Hundreds of studies have been conducted since to document this ancient method of health regulation and while rodent studies have shown increases in lifespan by 30-50%[10,11], no such studies have yet been confirmed in humans. The theory of caloric restriction as a way of prolonging life has many advocates in the health fields, however again no long term studies exist to confirm this[12] and short term studies of caloric restrictions have reported ill effects such as loss of muscle mass, strength and bone mineral density.[13] Studies of Mormons who fast at least once a month show that they tend to have a better life expectancy than the rest of the general population, but a similar finding in Seventh-Day Adventists suggests that fasting may have little or nothing to do with it. Members of both groups tend to make better choices in terms of their diet, patterns of regular exercise and avoidance of cigarettes and alcohol which may be more of a factor than anything else.[14]

Interestingly enough, there are hundreds if not thousands of studies documenting the role of proper diet and exercise in decreasing health risks across the spectrum and thus increasing longer lifespans. At the end of the day, fasting can be a useful spiritual or health practice, but not one geared towards losing weight.

Kevin Richardson is one of New York City’s most sought after personal trainers and the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts. Get a copy of Kevin’s award winning free weight loss ebook here and visit his official website at www.naturallyintense.net.

References
1. Erol A, Baylan G, Yazici F. Do Ramadan fasting restrictions alter eating behaviours? Eur Eat Disord 2008 Jul
2. Whitaker AH. An epidemiological study of anorectic and bulimic symptoms in adolescent girls: Implications for pediatricians. Pediatr Ann 1992
3. Stein DM. The prevalence of bulimia: A review of the empirical research. J Nutr Educ 1991
4. MacDonald IA, Webber J. Feeding, fasting and starvation: factors affecting fuel utilization. Proc Nutr Soc. 1995 Mar
5. Cahill, GF. Starvation in man. N Engl J Med.
6. Alternate-day fasting in nonobese subjects”. Ajcn.org.
7. Bhutani S, Klempel MC, Berger RA, Varady KA. Improvements in Coronary Heart Disease Risk Indicators by Alternate-Day Fasting Involve Adipose Tissue Modulations. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2010 Mar
8. Varady KA, Hellerstein MK. Alternate-day fasting and chronic disease prevention: a review of human and animal trials. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Jul
9. Johnson JB, John S, Laub DR. Pretreatment with alternate day modified fast will permit higher dose and frequency of cancer chemotherapy and better cure rates. Med Hypotheses. 2009
10. Wan, Ruiqian; Simonetta Camandola, Mark P. Mattson (June 2003). “Intermittent Food Deprivation Improves Cardiovascular and Neuroendocrine Responses to Stress in Rats”. The Journal of Nutrition (The American Society for Nutritional Sciences)
11. Johnson JB, Laub DR, John S. The effect on health of alternate-day calorie restriction: eating less and more than needed on alternate days prolongs life. Med Hypotheses. 2006
12. Spindler, Stephen R. (2010). Biological Effects of Calorie Restriction: Implications for Modification of Human Aging.
13. Morley, John E; Chahla, Elie; Alkaade, Saad (2010). “Antiaging, longevity and calorie restriction”. Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care
14. Enstrom JE. Health practices and cancer mortality among active California Mormons. J Natl Cancer Inst

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Do You Really Need Aerobics? Rethinking The Need For Cardio

Walk into any major gym in America and the first thing you will see is the cardio equipment. Mention the word  ‘exercise’ and for most people the first images to come to mind are aerobic in nature- running, treadmills, Zumba classes, elliptical machines, Stairmasters and the like. Say ‘weight loss’ and the images get sharper, as it is a commonly held position that you need to do cardio if you want to lose weight and maintain a healthy body weight. Gyms are filled with people eager to shed a few extra pounds, and yet in spite of the innumerable  number of hours spent sweating, few ever attain the lean and sculpted look that has become the Holy Grail of our time. Most of us double our efforts after seeing so little in terms of improvement after slaving away doing hours of aerobics in the hope that maybe just a little more of the same will bring us that all-so elusive look. We persist for months, sometimes for years, trying to eat better and train harder until finally, over-trained, frustrated and very often injured, we quit. Relegating ourselves to the ranks of those-who-can’t-lose-weight-because-of-bad-genes. It can be an incredibly disheartening and depressing experience to do so much work and get so little back in terms of tangible changes in your body, but it most of the time has nothing to do with our inability to lose weight. In most cases the blame lies squarely on the fact that cardio is not an efficient method for weight loss and that it simply cannot give you the toned and trim body of your dreams. Perhaps millions can attest by their lack of results, that using aerobics as a tool for getting in shape is driven primarily by advertising and misinformation, not results. And yet many experts in the field cling to the idea that cardio is an irreplaceable part of any fitness regime. The science of how our bodies work don’t support this notion, nor do the countless number of frustrated gym goers still waiting to see their six packs. The reality is that you don’t need cardio and anaerobic resistance exercise alone can provide superior results in  terms of weight loss, increasing endurance and improving overall health parameters.

Cardio and Weight Loss- The Case For Anaerobic Exercise Over Aerobics

It goes without saying that if everyone who ever ventured out regularly for a run or frequented a cardio machine was able to lose weight and keep it off that we would have had a simplesolution to our growing obesity problems several decades ago, (as well as an influx of six pack sporting magazine cover models.) We all know this not to be the case and many recent studies affirm what so many have learned the hard way, namely that cardio is a poor method of weight management. One study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine tracked the results of 58 sedentary overweight/obese men and women who participated in a 12 week course of supervised aerobic exercise. The results were positive in terms of increased endurance and decreased systolic and diastolic pressure but not at all glowing in terms of weight loss. The mean weight loss was only a bit over seven pounds in three months, with most of the group losing barely half of that amount. [1]

In terms of fat burning, new research has continued to show that short high intensity, anaerobic type exercise do far more to reduce body fat than conventional aerobic exercise. A study done at Laval University investigated the impact of aerobics versus high intensity anaerobic exercises on body fat using young adults and the findings were quite eye opening. Participants took part in either a 20 week endurance training regime of sustained aerobics or a 15 week high intensity intermittent training protocol. Despite the fact that participants doing the aerobic exercises expended over twice as much energy as the anaerobic group- (120.4 MJ as opposed to 57.9 MJ), those in the anaerobic group lost significantly more body fat than the cardio exercise group.[2] When corrected for the energy cost of training, the decrease in the sum of six skinfold tests induced by the anaerobic exercise was impressively nine times greater than that of the aerobic group.[2]

Many other studies show similar outcomes. A study done at the University of New South Wales inadvertently found that women taking part in anaerobic high intensity interval training burned fat at a rate three times higher than those doing aerobic exercises.[3] This result came from a total of only 20 minutes of anaerobic exercise on a stationery bike, while the second group exercised at a consistent pace in standard target heart rate zones for twice as long. After 15 weeks, researchers found that the women in the high intensity group lost three times more weight than those who rode the bicycles for twice as much time.[3] A testament to the inefficiency of cardio over more intense anaerobic forms of training.  Other studies have found similar patterns with even shorter durations of high intensity anaerobic exercise.

Dispelling The Myth Of Cardio’s Afterburner Effect

For years the party lines for using cardio to promote fat loss have that that increased activity burns more calories- which is true and not at all in dispute and that aerobic exercise elevates the metabolism for prolonged periods after the training session. As standard an idea as this has been for many, it has not stood up to the test of scientific scrutiny, nor has it helped produced a new generation of trim and slim waistlines. The afterburning effect sought by cardio enthusiasts is really what scientists call excess post-exercise oxygen consumption or EPOC. Exercise brings about a change in the equilibrium of our body (See our article on responses to exercise stress here). Our body will always do its best to revert to a resting state of homeostasis and this requires an increase in the amount of oxygen (EPOC) which is needed for our bodies to return to its normal state and adapt to the exercise performed. As a result, there is a measurable increase in metabolism and fat burning after exercise. [3,4,5] This increase was originally thought to occur only with aerobic exercise, but studies have shown that it actually is far more prevalent in anaerobic exercise of sufficient intensities.[2]

Cardio And  Heart Health- Do You Really Need It?

Weight loss aside, you must need some form of cardio to increase your endurance and to keep your heart healthy, right? Again, the science disagrees with what has become practiced convention. Aerobic exercise can indeed increase lung capacity and strengthen the heart muscle which is related to a decrease in cardiovascular disease[6] but it isn’t the only way to do it nor the most efficient.  With regards to your heart and lungs it should be noted that

THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM WORKS TO SUPPORT THE MUSCULAR SYSTEM AND NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND!

It is physically impossible to train your muscles without working your heart as well. The two are not disconnected, yet this basic fact of physiology is often overlooked in discussions regarding aerobic exercise requirements. Any improvement in muscle mass and strength brought on by anaerobic exercise of adequate intensity will correspond with an improvement in cardiovascular health parameters as well. The impact of a high intensity workout to your cardiovascular system should not be underestimated, and those who argue that it doesn’t stimulate your heart and lungs have simply never executed a compound resistance movement to a point of momentary muscular failure or beyond. Needless to say, a high intensity set of squats to even close to the threshold of muscular failure leaves even the most conditioned of athletes gasping for air. You can’t work muscles at high intensities without significantly elevating your heart rate.

Cardio Is Not The Only Way To Increase Endurance

The idea of a need for repetitive steady state aerobic exercise to improve endurance has been a constant theme in modern sports medicine, however this theory also fails to hold up to the rigors of scientific testing. A study done by Martin Gilba of McMaster University in Ontario found that short, anaerobic high intensity bouts of exercise produced far greater improvements in endurance as compared to conventional aerobics and not only in terms of performance but also with regards to molecular changes in mitochondria related to increased endurance.[7] In one group participants were made to cycle as hard as they could for 20 to 30 seconds for a total of two to three minutes per session while the other group rode a stationary bike at a sustainable pace for 90 to 120 minutes. Each group trained three times a week, and at the end of the two week study both groups showed almost the same increases in overall endurance, with the high intensity anaerobic exercise group having slightly better aerobic performance over their aerobic exercise counterparts, even though they only trained for six to nine minutes a week in while the other group had trained for an weekly average of five hours.[7] Similar findings have been reported in studies by the National Institute of Health and Nutrition in Japan and many experts in the field of sports medicine have begun to question the validity behind the theory of sports specificity for increases in endurance and performance given the new findings on anaerobic high intensity training.[8]

Anaerobic Exercise Conveys The Same Benefits As Aerobics If Not More

So what about the other benefits of aerobic exercise? Pretty much all of them can be replicated or improved upon with resistance exercise of adequate intensity. High intensity anaerobic training has been shown to:

• Improve depression as well as aerobics.[9,10,11,12]
• Reduce insulin sensitivity and the risk of diabetes.[13,14,18]
• Increase bone mass and decrease the risk of osteoporosis.[15]
• Reduce visceral abdominal fat and decrease the risk of metabolic syndrome.[16, 17, 18
• Improve circulation, blood pressure and the risk of cardiovascular disease.[18]
• Strengthening and safely enlarge the heart muscle, to improve its pumping efficiency and reduce the resting heart rate [20, 21, 22, 23]

Cardio Won’t Give You ‘The Look’

It should be said that the toned and defined look sought by most gym-goers is unattainable from simply doing aerobic exercise. As with all steady state type movements, the body quickly adapts and learns to burn less and less calories the more the exercise is continued and there are no profound changes in body fat or muscle mass as there is no stimulation intense enough to bring about an adaptation response in skeletal muscle. No matter how hard you may think that aerobics class may be or that session on the bike was- it can’t make profound changes in the way you look the way weight training can as there is no continued overload. Doing aerobics in conjunction with weight training doesn’t always give the best of both worlds either as the extra work can have a counterproductive effect on your weight loss efforts, since the added workload can lead to overtraining and consequently less results than you would get from resistance exercise alone.

Now it would be inaccurate to say that aerobic exercise is without merit- as such a statements fly in the face of countless studies that show very real benefits to doing it, but it may not be the only path to optimum health and fitness. I personally have not done any aerobic type exercise over the past 23 years and during that time I have been able to distinguish myself as a successful drug free bodybuilder, maintain year round body fat percentage of 6% all while  sustaining an extremely high degree of cardiovascular conditioning. I have personally trained endurance athletes such as triathletes, marathon runners and distance cyclists and helped them increase their performance times using only three ten minute high intensity weight training a week and no cardio exercise whatsoever. Add to that twenty years of helping dozens of fitness models and bodybuilders get into contest winning shape using only high intensity training and proper dietary practices and the  hundreds I have helped lose anywhere from 30 to as much as a 100 pounds- all without the use of aerobics or steady state exercises.

The appeal of cardio is easy to understand, as it requires little in terms of instruction and women for one tend to find it less intimidating than weight training. Cardio exercise are also easy for researchers to study, as creating controlled exercise protocols for groups is far less involved and costs far less to supervise and execute as compared to anaerobic type resistance training. Logically there are more aerobic exercise studies than anaerobic ones, which explains the initial bias towards cardio over resistance exercise in terms of weight loss and health benefits, but as more studies emerge using resistance training, we are learning that it can be equally beneficial and far less time consuming. There are also entire industries based on aerobic exercise- gyms, home exercise equipment, exercise classes and even the sneaker industry all invest heavily in promoting it, while there is very little in the way of promotion of weight training as dumbbells don’t sell gym memberships- cardio machines do. Nevertheless if you are serious about getting into great shape or looking for a more efficient way to improve your health and fitness, high intensity training might be a better fit for you over cardio. So get off the treadmill and pick up the weights if you really want ‘the look’ and don’t forget to watch what you eat as neither aerobic nor anaerobic exercise can negate the ill effects of an unhealthy diet.

Related Articles: Aerobics & Strength Training- Does It Help Or Does It Hurt?

Kevin Richardson is one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City and the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training™. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here. If you live in the New York metropolitan area and need help losing weight or taking your body to the next level give Kevin and his team a call at 1-800-798-8420. Check out Kevin’s personal training services here.

References

1. Beneficial effects of exercise: shifting the focus from body weight to other markers of health, N. King, M. Hopkins, P Caudwell, J. Stubbs, J. Blundell. The British Journal of Sports Medicine 2009

2. Impact of exercise intensity on body fatness and skeletal muscle metabolism. Tremblay, A. et al., Physical Activities Sciences Laboratory, Laval University, Quebec, Canada Metabolism.1994;

3. Bahr R (1992). “Excess postexercise oxygen consumption–magnitude, mechanisms and practical implications”. Acta Physiologica Scandinavica. Supplementum

4. Bahr R, Høstmark AT, Newsholme EA, Grønnerød O, Sejersted OM (September 1991). “Effect of exercise on recovery changes in plasma levels of FFA, glycerol, glucose and catecholamines”. Acta Physiologica Scandinavica

5. Bielinski R, Schutz Y, Jéquier E (July 1985). “Energy metabolism during the postexercise recovery in man”. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

7. High-intensity Interval Training: A Time-efficient Strategy for Health Promotion. Martin J. Gibala, PhD, Department of Kinesiology, McMaster University, Ontario, Canada Current Sports Medicine Reports 2007

8. Specificity of training adaptation: time for a rethink? John A. Hawley-J. Physiol. 2008

9. Singh NA, Clements KM, Fiatarone MA. A randomized controlled trial of progressive resistance training in depressed elders. Journal of Gerontology Medical Sciences

10. Doyne EJ, Ossip-Klein DJ, Bowman ED, Osborn KM, McDougall-Wilson IB, Neimeyer IB. Running Versus Weight Lifting in the Treatment of Depression. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

11. Martinsen EW, Hoffart A, Solberg O. Comparing aerobic and non aerobic forms of exercise in the treatment of clinical depression: a randomized trial. Comprehensive Psychiatry

12. Singh NA, Stavrinos TM, Scarbeck Y, Galambos G, Liber C, Singh MA. A randomized controlled trial of high versus low intensity weight training versus general practitioner care for clinical depression in older adults. Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences

13. Pedersen BK, Saltin B: Evidence for prescribing exercise as therapy in chronic disease. Scand J Med Sci Sports 2006

14. Extremely short duration high intensity interval training substantially improves insulin action in young healthy males- John A Babraj , Niels BJ Vollaard , Cameron Keast, Fergus M Guppy, Greg Cottrell and James A Timmons

15. High-intensity resistance training and postmenopausal bone loss: a meta-analysis.Martyn-St James M, Carroll S. Osteoporos Int. 2006

16. Influence of exercise intensity on abdominal fat and adiponectin in elderly adults. Coker RH, Williams RH, Kortebein PM, Sullivan DH, Evans WJ.Metab Syndr Relat Disord. 2009

17. Effect of exercise training intensity on abdominal visceral fat and body composition. Irving BA, Davis CK, Brock DW, Weltman JY, Swift D, Barrett EJ, Gaesser GA, Weltman A.Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2008 Nov;40(11):1863-72.

18. Resistance training in the treatment of the metabolic syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effect of resistance training on metabolic clustering in patients with abnormal glucose metabolism. Strasser B, Siebert U, Schobersberger W.Sports Med. 2010

19. Resistance training in the treatment of the metabolic syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effect of resistance training on metabolic clustering in patients with abnormal glucose metabolism. Strasser B, Siebert U, Schobersberger W.Sports Med. 2010

20.  Graf Ch., e.a.: Fachlexikon Sportmedizin: Bewegung, Fitness und Ernährung von A-Z, Deutscher Ärzteverlag, 2008, p. 209, ISBN 3769112237, here online

21. Reuter P.: Der grosse Reuter: Springer Universalwörterbuch Medizin, Pharmakologie und Zahnmedizin, Birkhäuser Verlang, 2005, p. 1300, ISBN 3540251049, here online

22 Woolston, Chris. “Ills & Conditions – Athletic Heart Syndrome”. CVS Caremark Health Information. 17 January 2007

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The Best Health And Fitness Articles Of 2010

2010 was a landmark year!  My blog won several awards for and most importantly had an average of over ten thousand people reading my articles each month! With a tight writing schedule of one new article every week, fifty-two articles a year, it isn’t always easy. I spend a lot of time painstakingly researching each post, but it is worth it! My thanks to all of my readers for the continued support and to commemorate this successful year I have complied for your browsing pleasure the most popular health and fitness articles on our blog for 2010. Be sure to subscribe to our monthly newsletter so you won’t miss a post!

Be sure to vote for your favorite!

The Best Health And Fitness Articles Of 2010

Food And Self Control- How Do You Stop Cravings?
Self control is one of the hardest things when it comes to following a diet and research from the now famous ‘Marshmallow Experiment’ gives us some scientific insight into how we can increase our own self control.

Overcoming The Fear Of Going to The Gym
While lack of time is often cited as the number one reason why people don’t exercise- the fear involved in joining a gym is another often overlooked factor.

5 Tips For Eating Well And Losing Weight On A Budget
Can you lose weight and eat healthy while on a tight budget? Of course you can and here are five easy ways to do it!

Keeping Us Fat- Why Not Losing Weight Is Profitable
Given that we spend more money on weight loss than ever before the number of overweight people continues to climb, could not losing weight be more profitable?

Obesity And Chronic Disease- Is It Genes Or Lifestyle?
Many blame genes for the prevalence of obesity and metabolic disease in society, but research shows that lifestyle and environmental factors are to blame.

5 Reasons Why You Should Never Take Weight Loss Supplements
Here are five very valid reasons and eye opening reasons why you should never use weight loss supplements.

Being Skinny Doesn’t Mean Being Healthy
Contrary to popular belief being skinny isn’t always an indication of how healthy you are and you can be overweight and still be physically fit!

Is Exercise As Effective For Relieving Depression As Therapy and Medication?
Exercise has been proven as a preventive aid to major depression, but can it relieve depressive symptoms as well as medication and conventional therapies? Some research says it can!

You Can Eat Nuts Guilt Free And Not Gain Weight
Research shows that although nuts are high in calories, you can eat them with a very low risk of weight gain. Eating nuts also seems to help you stay on your diet!

As Little As One Drink Of Alcohol A Week Can Significantly Reduce Fat Loss
As little as one or two drinks a week can have a marked effect on your efforts to lose fat! Here is why.

The Dangers Of Visceral Abdominal Fat
Once it was thought that all fat was the same, but we know now that visceral abdominal fat can increase risk of metabolic syndrome, chronic inflammation, cancer and impair daily life.

Is It Safe To Exercise With A Cold?
A common question about the common cold- should you or should you not exercise when you have the sniffles. The answer may not be what you think it is!

Out of the 52 articles posted for 2010 there were some notable runner ups. Here they are:

The Best Health and Fitness Articles Of 2010- Honorable Mentions:

High Intensity Training Workouts For Women Increases Bone Density

The Biggest Loser- A Bad Example For Weight Loss

Does Weight Training Reduce Breast Size In Women?

Agave Isn’t A Healthy Sugar Alternative- It’s Worse Than Sugar

Short High Intensity Workouts Can Help Regulate Blood Sugar

Changing Your Diet Forever- Why Is It So Hard?

Not to forget our pick of most popular health and fitness article of 2009. With a total of almost 22,000 page views in 2010, this article tops the list as the most viewed post of the year-

Best Health & Fitness Article 2009

Is Subway Really Healthy?

Thanks again for reading and be sure to let me know in the comments which one was your favorite!

Get a copy of Kevin’s free weight loss ebook here!

Kevin Richardson- celebrity NYC Personal Trainer, is the creator of Naturally Intense™ High Intensity Training, a lifetime natural bodybuilder and arguably the most sought after personal trainers in New York City

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Obesity And Chronic Disease- Is It Genes Or Lifestyle?

While there is a clear correlation between physical inactivity and bad dietary habits to most chronic diseases in the world today, many offer up genetics and not lifestyle as the major reason for our higher incidences of obesity and the metabolic syndrome that tends to accompany it. Almost 60% of the adult American population is either overweight or obese [1, 2,3] and it is becoming increasingly common to hear genes blamed as the root of our current health crisis. In many ways this rather defeatist attitude would lead one to believe that the leading causes of death in Western society (coronary heart disease, hypertension, stroke Type 2 diabetes and cancer) are not preventable and that to succumb to the ravages of these diseases is simply a normal part of the aging process. Taken as a whole, these diseases combine to account for almost 70% of all of the deaths here in the United States [4], and few realize that that these health problems have been for the most part non-existent in many underdeveloped countries for decades, but rise as Western diet and lifestyles become more popular in those countries. [5]

Do Other Cultures Have The Same Problems With Obesity & Disease That  We Do?

To fully understand the impact that our genes have on our health it is useful to observe how other cultures fare when Western diet and relatively sedentary habits are not a factor in daily life.  Studies on the Tarahumara Indians of Northern Mexico, (best known for their running ability), the Pina Indians of Southern Arizona and the Machiguenga Indians of Peru give us interesting insight as to just how much Western lifestyle seems to adversely affect our health. The Pina Indians living on the Indian reservation in Arizona have one of the highest incidences of diabetes known, with approximately 50% of them being Type 2 diabetic. However a group of Pina Indians with the same genetic background as their reservation-living counterparts following a more physical indigenous life in Mexico eating the traditional diet of natural foods have an incidence of Type 2 diabetes of only 10%.[6,7] Similarly when the Tarahumara Indians consume a mostly Western diet they rapidly experience a rise in their blood lipids when compared to their native counterparts. [8]. The Machiguenga Indians, due to the physical requirements for survival without the luxuries of supermarkets and packaged foods expend one third more calories than the average American [9] and chronic diseases as we know them are simply non-existent in modern hunter gatherer societies, highlighting the role of lifestyle in the development of obesity and metabolic disease. [10]

Genes Cannot Be The Only Answer To Obesity & Metabolic Disease

In a paper published in the Journal of Applied Physiology by Frank Booth et al. called, Waging war on modern chronic diseases: primary prevention through exercise biology, researchers note that

“100% of the increase in the prevalence of Type 2 diabetes and obesity in the United States during the latter half of the 20th century must be attributed to a changing environment interacting with genes, because 0% of the human genome has changed during this time period.” [11]

In essence, we have not changed. Our genes have not changed, but our way of life and the foods we eat have changed and this more than anything else explains the problems faced by in Western societies. We all inherit the same genome that makes us designed for daily physical activity and a high fiber diet[12] thus sedentary life, processed foods combined with other factors such as smoking alcohol consumption, stress and hazardous elements in our environment inevitably bring about the onset and progression of chronic disease. [10] Most of these factors are easily modified and therefore are realistically preventable through proper diet, exercise and a lifestyle of moderation or abstinence from smoking and excess alcohol consumption. Within the framework of our own society it has been observed that Seventh-Day Adventists have higher life expectancies than other Caucasian groups in the United States thanks in part to choices regarding their diet, patterns of regular exercise and avoidance of cigarettes and alcohol. Research funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health has shown that the average Seven Day Adventist in California lives 4 to 10 years longer than the average Californian. Similarly Mormon studies show that they have a low standardized mortality rate compared to the general U.S. population attributed to their close to the earth lifestyle.[13]

Lifestyle & Environment Not Genes Create Our Health Problems- Not Genes

What does this mean? It means that for the most part genes don’t cause metabolic disease. In some individuals genetic factors may predispose them, but environmental and lifestyle factors are what determines whether disease manifests itself or not [10]. It also means that we are indeed the masters of our own destiny, captains of our own ships and that an individual’s choice to incorporate exercise into their daily life, manage stress and avoid modern processed foods makes far more of a difference in our susceptibility to the cocktail of chronic disease than the genes that we are born with. Make your choice today.

References:

1. Flegal KM, Carroll MD, Kuczmarski RJ, and Johnson CL. Overweight and obesity in the United States: prevalence and trends, 1960–1994. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord

2. Mokdad AH, Bowman BA, Ford ES, Vinicor F, Marks JS, and Koplan JP. The continuing epidemics of obesity and diabetes in the United States. JAMA 286: 1195–1200, 2001.

3. Mokdad AH, Ford ES, Bowman BA, Dietz WH, Vinicor F, Bales VS, and Marks JS. Prevalence of obesity, diabetes, and obesity-related health risk factors, 2001. JAMA

4. Arias E, Anderson RN, Kung HC, Murphy SL, and Kochanek KD. Deaths: final data for 2001. Natl Vital Stat Rep

5. Diet, nutrition, and the prevention of chronic diseases. World Health Organ Tech Rep Ser

6. Bennett PH. Type 2 diabetes among the Pima Indians of Arizona: an epidemic attributable to environmental change? Nutr Rev 57: S51–S54, 1999

7. 1Valencia ME, Bennett PH, Ravussin E, Esparza J, Fox C, and Schulz LO. The Pima Indians in Sonora, Mexico. Nutr Rev

8.  McMurry MP, Cerqueira MT, Connor SL, and Connor WE. Changes in lipid and lipoprotein levels and body weight in Tarahumara Indians after consumption of an affluent diet [see comments]. N Engl J Med 325: 1704–1708, 1991

9. Montgomery E. Towards representative energy data: the Machiguenga study. Fed Proc

10. Roberts CK, Barnard RJ.  Effects of exercise and diet on chronic disease. J Appl Physiol

11. Booth FW, Gordon SE, Carlson CJ, and Hamilton MT. Waging war on modern chronic diseases: primary prevention through exercise biology. J Appl Physiol

12. Eaton SB and Konner M. Paleolithic nutrition. A consideration of its nature and current implications. N Engl J Med

13. Enstrom JE. Health practices and cancer mortality among active California Mormons. J Natl Cancer Inst

Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts™ and one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here.

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