Building Your Core
In our practice we repeatedly hear clients talk about wanting to strengthen their ‘core’. While most people understand why they’d want to improve this area, there appears to be huge confusion around exactly how to do this.
The inner unit (core) is actually comprised of four main muscle groups and these muscles work in unison, to provide a powerful stabilising system for the torso.
Your abdominal cavity is filled with organs and needs to be supported by other structures. Think of this cavity and the supporting structures as a drum. Your diaphragm is the top (lid) of the drum and is situated just under the base of your ribcage. The muscles making up the pelvic floor are situated at the base of your abdominal cavity and form the base of the drum.
Your transversus abdominis (TVA) wraps around your middle, like the sides of the drum. Think of this muscle as your natural corset, tightening around your middle when it contracts. Lastly, the multifidus provide stability to each segment of the spine. Imagine a column of glasses stacked one inside the next. If you took that stack and turned it on its side, the entire column would come apart. If we stuck the glasses together, the column – when turned on its side – would stay straight. This is effectively what your multifidus do.
Get More Exercise Outside The Gym
Knowing how much, what type and how hard to exercise are the key to both your optimal body shape and an excellent state of health.
We’re designed to move our bodies (the number of muscles we have is a dead giveaway) and in fact, our state of health depends upon it. Unfortunately, due to the fact that most people have jobs that require them to be seated most of the day, the potential for physical activity has diminished drastically.
Burn Fat: Exercise Before Breakfast
A new study suggests that exercising in the morning, before eating, can significantly lessen the ill effects of a poor holiday diet.
Researchers recruited healthy, active young men and fed them a bad diet for six weeks. A group of them that exercised before breakfast gained almost no weight and showed no signs of insulin resistance. What's more, they burned the fat they were taking in more efficiently.
According to the New York Times:
"... Working out before breakfast directly combated the two most detrimental effects of eating a high-fat, high-calorie diet. It also helped the men avoid gaining weight."
Sources:
New York Times December 15, 2010
Journal of Physiology Nov 1, 2010; 588 (Pt 21):4289-302
How To Burn Fat In The Gym
One of the first questions asked by people looking to get lean is “what type of activity should I do to burn the most fat?” The answer lies in resistance training. Not only is this type of training really important to prevent against conditions such as osteoporosis and postural dysfunction, but it is quite simply, the only way to ensure that you develop a body that is metabolically active throughout the day (not just when exercising).
What's Your Body Type?
Your body shape will determine what type of activity is best suited to you, helping to make the most of your natural talents.
There are three basic body shapes – mesomorph, ectomorph and endomorph. In between these three are ‘blends’, of their characteristics.
A good way to determine your body type is to clasp your thumb and middle finger of one hand around the wrist of your other arm. If your finger overlaps your thumb, it is likely you are an ectomorph. Should your fingers touch, chances are you’re a mesomorph. If neither touch you are probably an endomorph.