Mediterranean Diet reduces Diabetes Risk

What is the Mediterranean diet? Well, it is one typically rich in pasta, bread, fruit, and vegetables, (high in fiber and low in trans fats) with moderate amounts of poultry and fish, using liberal amounts of virgin olive oil and a moderate amount of alcohol (specifically red wine). The Mediterranean diet is reputed to be among the healthiest in the world. Multiple research studies have shown that Mediterraneans suffer less heart disease than people from northern Europe.
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Nutrition experts believe that the typical Mediterranean diet reduces ‘bad’ or saturated fat and increasing the level of natural antioxidants such as vitamins C and E, significantly reducing the risk of heart attack. A landmark research study (prospective, cohort) showed a startlingly positive, strong correlation between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and a decreased risk of developing diabetes.

Mediterranean diet: research

This study involved over 13,000 graduates from the University of Navarra, Spain (with no history of diabetes), whose dietary habits and health were tracked over 8 years. Initially, participants completed a food frequency questionnaire designed to measure the entire diet, including questions on the use of fats and oils, cooking methods and dietary supplements.
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Every two years participants were sent follow-up questionnaires on diet, lifestyle, risk factors, and medical conditions. During the follow-up period the researchers from the University of Navarra found that participants who stuck closely to the diet had a lower risk of diabetes. A high adherence to the diet was associated with an 83% relative reduction in the risk of developing diabetes.
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Adherence measures how closely the participant followed the Mediterranean diet guidelines using a numerical scale. On a ten-point scale (0-2 for low, 3-6 for medium and 7-9 for high Mediterranean diet adherence) researchers discovered that each 2 point increase on the adherence scale had a corresponding 35% reduction in diabetes risk! Benefits from consuming a diet rich in plant foods (including fat) and low in processed foods? Who would’ve thought?

Push-ups workout for your best upper body

You might be surprised to learn just how effective body-weight exercises can be for muscle endurance klonopin clonazepam no rx and toning. Push-ups are in the ‘push and pull’ force category. Push-ups are excellent overall upper body toners, that require no external resistance. Body-weight exercises, such as push-ups are ‘functional’ exercises, or those that train your body to handle real-life situations.

Push-ups Muscular Emphasis

There are dozens of variations to the traditional wide-grip push-up. These push-up variations emphasize different muscle groups (target, synergists and stabilizer muscles); from your chest to your back to your shoulders to your upper arms. You can even do push-up drills (walk out push-up to a plyometric jump) which elevate your heart-rate and engage lower body muscles to burn more calories.

Push-ups: military-style

Modify push-ups to make them more appropriate for a beginner (on your knees) or an advanced exercisers (push-ups on toes, decline push-ups). The push-up we are all familiar with is the military-style, wide-grip push-up (on toes or on knees).

Diamond or close-grip push-ups

The ‘diamond’ or ‘close-grip’ push-up targets the triceps muscles more than any other push-up variation. For this push-up, instead of placing your hands shoulder or chest-width apart, place them together below your sternum, forming the shape of a diamond or triangle (hands may be touching at the index fingers and thumbs or slightly farther apart). As you push-down, toward the floor, your elbows should splay outward, slightly toward your klonopin online no rx lower body. Push-up to return to the beginning get ambien online without prescription position, repeat. This one is tough, start on your knees and advance to your toes.

Stability ball push-ups

Adding a new dimension to a traditional push-up, such as controlled instability, offers multiple benefits. Performing push-ups on a stability ball (under your shins for a decline push-up or under your upper body in place of the ‘floor’ for an incline push-up) recruits additional muscle fibers, particularly core and stabilizer muscles, throughout the movement. Adding balance to this functional exercise also increases muscle fiber activation because you have to control the movement without the help of an exercise machine. Some experts consider the push-up to be more effective for muscular development than the chest press.

Flexibility Training

Dedicated athletes looking for an edge in their field of competition need an exercise regimen based on four critical areas of training. These four areas increase speed, size, and power in any athlete. They include (1) flexibility (2) core strength (3) explosive movements, and (4) the strengthening of the posterior kinetic chain.  When combined with an upper body strength routine one can almost guarantee improvement on the court, the field or the ice. In this piece, we’ll focus on the flexibility component of athletic training and conditioning.

Importance of Flexibility

Increasing an athlete’s flexibility (as well as warming up prior to workouts) helps to decrease risk of injury. If an athlete lacks flexibility he/she is unable to enjoy a full range of muscular motion. Think about a new rubber band. It stretches only to a point before snapping. By ‘working’ it, repetitively, it stretches further and further without snapping. Much like your muscles. Not being able to perform an exercise completely, through a full range of motion, makes the exercise or movement incomplete or stilted. That lack of flexibility, in combination with other factors such as inadequate recovery periods, unbalanced training and/or using poor form all inhibit muscular development.

More often than not, flexibility in athletics is incorrectly incorporated into an exercise routine. It’s dangerous to stretch cold muscles. Performing a ‘dynamic’ warm up before a workout, event or game instead of static stretching is the best option. A dynamic warm-up may include movements such as walking lunges, knee raises, butt kicks, arm circles and squats. You don’t need equipment – use your own body-weight only.

Active Vs Passive Stretching for enhancing Flexibility

Passive stretching involves using an external force to push a joint beyond its active range of motion. Performing a standing calf stretch against a wall or using a partner to push you into a deeper stretch are examples of passive stretching. Instead of passive stretches, engage in ‘active’ stretching exercises. Active stretching uses your own muscular strength and effort to hold a position. Active (isolated) stretching is safe and effective as you eliminate external forces. You use your own muscle strength to achieve the desired range of motion. As the one muscle contracts the target muscle (opposite the contracting muscle – the one you want to stretch) relaxes and lengthens.

An example of an ‘active’ stretch for the chest is extending your arms out to the sides and retracting your shoulder blades. To actively stretch the hamstrings, extend your leg straight in front of you and relax it by contracting the quadriceps. When you contract your quadriceps, your brain sends a signal to your hamstrings to ‘relax.’ This allows you to achieve a deeper stretch without force.

Now that we’ve covered flexibility, we’ll move on to the second major component in athletic training and conditioning: core strength.