Author Unknown, for now
I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to a new feature on Lee County Live. Fitness and health issues affect every one of us every day and our busy lifestyles leave little time for learning, exercising, and taking care of ourselves and our families. Starting today, Lee County Live will post bi-monthly fitness, training, and health related articles designed to help readers make good fitness and health related decisions for themselves and their families.
These articles will be written from a
unique perspective, striving to break down the latest medical studies,
exercise systems, equipment and fitness fads.
Also, with youth sports very popular in
Exercise and fitness have always been a part of my life although I realized this in my late twenties. I have fallen off the fitness wagon from time to time, but for the past year and a half I have been focusing on daily exercise and eating healthier. I truly believe everyone can have a better quality of life, no matter their age, with proper diet and exercise.
Who am I?
That brings me to the subject of this first article.
As my status is currently anonymous, I will provide clues as to
my identity and you, using your best detective skills can try to
determine my identity.
First clue, I live in
My community coaching experience began about ten years ago as my oldest child enrolled in soccer. All the parents voted me coach as I had played soccer in middle school, thus being the most experienced for the job. Along with soccer, I have coached or assistant coached youth baseball, basketball, and flag football. Needless to say, I have learned a lot over the years.
Not all of my coaching experience
occurred in
My experience with youth is not limited to coaching.
For those of you who need one more clue, you may have seen me driving around Giddings in the "Italian Job".
I have been a volunteer working with a local youth group and have had a hand in a few Vacation Bible Schools. Think you know who I am? Send an e-mail to FitnessTrainingCoach@msn.com and the first correct answer will receive a small prize, very small actually, because I am paying for it. Using this same e-mail let me know your health, fitness, and training questions and issues. I will include submitted questions in future articles. You may even receive a small prize if I use your question.
Exercise, Confusing? Maybe It Should
Be!
2/25/09
Anyone who has started an
exercise routine will remember finding themselves fatigued, quickly,
out-of-breath, and have muscle soreness after; this is the body’s
normal reaction to exercise.
After several weeks of consistent exercising, the body begins
to show signs of adapting to the stress, fatigue does not set in as
quick, breathing becomes easier during the workout, and muscle
soreness lessens. This
is an example of the stress adaptation theory formulated by Dr. Hans
Selye (1907-1982), an Austrian physician and endocrinologist, and
professor and director of the
Becoming
accustomed to a workout and feeling less “stress” during and after
the routine would appear to be the ultimate goal of exercising, not
really. The human body
has a natural ability to respond to a stressor and once the limits
of that stressor are met the body stops adapting; this is called the
“plateau effect”. The
“plateau effect” is a result of doing the same routine over an
extended period of time; the body simply does not respond to the
workout to the extent it did in the beginning.
Sometimes you can even loose some of the gains made.
You are still in better shape, but you are not getting the
same returns from the time invested.
I have a tip to help you get the most out of every workout -
“Muscle Confusion”.
“Muscle Confusion” is simply changing your exercise routine to avoid
letting your body become accustomed to the workout.
The term “muscle confusion” is an accepted term
in
the fitness industry, but you are not actually confusing the muscle.
By varying a workout, you stress all the physical systems of
the body in new ways forcing the adaptive process to kick in.
This principle works for the elite athlete as well as the
three times a week walker.
Take some time, rethink, and mix things up by trying some different activities’, Yoga, Plyometrics, Resistance Training, or just rearrange or modify your current workout. Consult with an exercise professional, knowledgeable coach, or personal trainer to find out how to best incorporate muscle confusion into your routine. Make your routine less routine, keep your body and mind adapting, and optimize results by getting “confused”.
The views and information presented in this article do not reflect the opinions of Lee County Live or its advertisers. They are the creation of the author and are presented for entertainment and informational purposes only. You should consult your doctor before you begin any exercise or training activity, change your diet, begin a sport, or consume any dietary supplements.
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