Posts Tagged ‘fitness’
Copyright (c) 2007 SharpBrains
A year ago we wrote a Glossary where we defined Brain Fitness as “the general state of good, sharp, brain and mind, especially as the result of mental and physical exercise and proper nutrition” and a Brain Fitness Program as a “structured set of brain exercises, usually computer-based, designed to train specific brain areas and functions in targeted ways, and measured by brain fitness assessments.”
Now, thanks to a recent ELDR magazine article, we can add Brain Fitness Vacation to the glossary:
“A brain fitness vacation is like a regular vacation, only you attend events, do exercises, and arrange for experiences that address the aspects of good brain health: physical exercise, mental exercise, good nutrition, and stress management.”
Dave Bunnell, the founder and editor of new magazine ELDR (and previously editor of PC World, PC Magazine, Upside, and many other magazines) met Dr. Goldberg and myself after our speech in San Francisco State University last May. When he showed an interest in writing a story, and I mentioned half-jokingly that it would have to wait a few weeks since my wife and I were about to take a much needed “brain fitness vacation”, he said, well, maybe that’s the story!.
Here you have some of the activites mentioned in the article:
1) Guesstimation. Lisa asks Alvaro a question, “How many trees are there in San Francisco?” To come up with an answer, Alvaro first tries to guess how many trees, on average, there are in a city block. He then calculates approximately how many blocks there are in a square mile, followed by how many square miles there are in San Francisco, and so on.
2) Number Series. Alvaro says, “Two, three,” and Lisa replies, “four, six.” Alvaro then says, “Six, nine,” and Lisa replies, “Eight, twelve.” He says,”Ten, fifteen,” and the sequence goes on as long and as fast as you can keep doing it.
3) Haiku. During the entire vacation, Alvaro and Lisa composed haiku for each other every morning. The rule was they couldn’t write them down. They had to create them in their heads and remember them.
4) Sensory training. Lisa puts a piece of chocolate into Alvaro’s mouth while his eyes are closed. He lets it melt completely without chewing and without opening his eyes. Next, he puts a grape in Lisa’s mouth.
5) Visualizations. Alvaro and Lisa sit quietly for about 15 minutes, breathe deeply using their diaphragms, and visualize special moments from their past, such as the most beautiful view they’ve ever seen, or a loving personal moment.
I hope this gives you some ideas for your next trip with your partner!
Alvaro Fernandez is the CEO and Co-Founder of SharpBrains.com, which provides the latest science-based information for Brain Health and Brain Exercises, and has been recognized by Scientific American Mind, MarketWatch, CBS, Forbes, and more. Alvaro holds MA in Education and MBA from Stanford University, and teaches The Science of Brain Health at UC-Berkeley Lifelong Learning Institute. You can learn more at http://www.sharpbrains.com/
I just have a few questions for the experienced personal trainers…
I plan on opening up my own kickboxing studio because I have been involved in Martial Arts since I was 5 and would love to teach others about it as well as give them the best workout.
I know quite a bit about fitness due to reading tons of articles and magazines but I graduated with a business degree, so I’ve never had proper education when it comes to fitness.
I want to get my personal training certificate so I can work at some local gyms and such before I venture off into the small business world. Ive looked into ISSA, NASM as well as AFAA (to get licensed to teach classes).
Where do you suggest I start? Is it important to have more than one certification? And I guess my last question would be how much do you love your job as a personal trainer?
Participate in the conversation by leaving your comment below.
Physical fitness plays an important role in managing stress. If the person fitness is good he can easily manage their stress. Stress can be developed any time after changing activities or doing some important work in a given timeframe. Whenever a person changes his or her level of activity, risks are involved. This is especially true if a person has a physical unfit such as a spinal cord injury or heart disease. It is significant that trainers emphasize that person make sure with a physician before starting an exercise program.
Adopting a physically active way of life does not have to need much time or effort. This is especially true for people who are extremely inactive. A slight increase in a person’s action level can lead to important benefits. Discuss ways a person can boost his physical movement. There are several things to think when a person is planning to boost his activity level by starting an exercise program. A person will have to figure out where he will work out, what equipment he might require, what time he will exercise, and how to do the exercise correctly.
A health club and yoga classes would help answer these questions, but most persons are not going to be able pay for membership to a club or classes. The information below should give some direction for those who need and / or want to boost their activity levels. Before discussing a few information of exercise, review following principles of exercise – Start slow and gradually increase your capacity. A person should ask a doctor before beginning the exercise program. Try to exercise regularly without skipping at least three to four times a week. To get the maximum advantage, you should go beyond normal demands placed on the body.
For example, if a person can walk a mile with small difficulty, he may have to walk faster or longer. Doing the same exercise day after day can damage your motivation, change your exercises and try to spice things up. Take a day after demanding a group of muscles. This principle typically applies to running and lifting weights. Set targets and plan exercise program to meet those targets. If you want to run a 5 mile race, you should run slowly in the starting instead of ride a bike.
I hope in this article you have got some useful information on importance of physical fitness.
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Nick Mutt is an active writer and blogger on health related topics. He has published many ebooks on natural health.
For anyone who makes a great effort to lose weight and keep that weight off, this article offers help. One of the simplest ways to achieve both the benefits of health and fitness is by ensuring that as you perform your workout and exercise routine on a regular basis, you likewise make it a point to protect your body from breakdown. It is a known fact that an individual has a dominant side that is naturally stronger. That is the reason why it pays that your strong side has to make up for the weak side. However, doing so will only result to physical injuries in the process. With this major predicament laid before you, it is best that you look for an exercise that will foster both the gains of having a fit and healthy body and a stronger and sturdier physique, which strikes balance to your overall body in general.
To somehow make your left and right sides generate equal work, here are the following exercises that you can include in your strength routine:
1. The Dual Warrior Exercise – This specific strength exercise targets the shoulders and the glutes. All you have to do is grab a pair of dumbbells preferably one that weighs 8-10 pounds. Commence your position by standing with you right toe on the ground. Next, as you try to lean your upper body forward with your right hand pointing upward, slowly raise your right leg behind you. This stance is akin to a flying position, but this time, it’s your other leg (left) supporting your entire body weight. Finally, bend your knee into 90 degrees. Do 20 reps more, and make sure to rest in between sets.
2. The Half Squat Leg Raise – To properly exhibit balance brought about by health and fitness exercises, this particular routine works the upper and lower body by and large. All you have to do is grab a pair of dumbbells (this can be between 5 to 10 pounds) and stand with your right toe on the floor. On the other hand, slowly bend your left knee and your other leg behind you as high as it can get. However, as you do this specific routine, it is important that you do not lose your balance, as this serves as the essence of the entire exercise. Perform 15 reps and complete a total of 30 reps for both sides.
3. The Sphinx Position – If you want to work your core, this strength exercise is the right one for you. With this workout, you need to have a stability ball to properly execute the routine. Start off by kneeling and facing the stability ball with both your forearms and hands positioned just above the ball. With clasped hands, slowly roll the ball forward with the entire support relying on your forearms. Brace your abs as you roll the ball with the use of your forearms and hold to the position for 15 seconds. Make sure that while doing this strength exercise, you’re also putting enough pressure and effort to work your abdominals. As you get stronger, hold and work up to 30 seconds, then 50, or even up to 60 seconds of bracing your abs. Repeat this for 20 times and take some rest in between reps.
Mark writes articles and reviews for a number of subjects including weight loss and dieting. His most recent product reviews on Kids Shower Curtains and Palm Tree Shower Curtain offer further information for the online consumer.
I recently saw this on a forum.
‘Running on roads can be very detrimental to your joints and future health. Surgeons are currently seeing a rise in the amount of knee and hip operations they are doing on young and healthy individuals who exercise/run regularly…’
The way this continued suggested that all road running was bad. I protested in a sentence or two and got this back:
‘This page: http://answers.google.com/answers/thread… talks about running on different surfaces, it has links to other journals, articles and advice from experts. If you read down far enough it goes in enough detail to state that you are 50% more likely to injure yourself when running if you run on a hard surface (ie; concrete, tarmac and other road surfaces). It also goes on to say that running on a softer surface may help prevent/reduce the symptoms of illiotibial band’ – I don’t know very much about this. Is this right?
The following paragraphs summarize the work of health experts who are completely familiar with all the aspects of health. Heed their advice to avoid any health surprises.
Here are ten tips to improve your fitness health. Even athletes who are incredibly fit may not be really healthy. They often tread a fine line between health and illness or injury.
1) Listen to your body. As you are training it is easy to become preoccupied with the repetitions you are doing, or the time you’ve been exercising. Leave your watch at home and slow down or walk when your body hurts.
2) To improve your fitness health you need to eat a varied diet. Five fruit and vegetables a day should be your minimum target. Your health will improve if you eat at least five different kinds of fruit, then any vegetables will be a bonus.
3) Take a complete day off from exercise every once in a while. It doesn’t have to be every week, but doing extra training when you are tired may have a detrimental effect on your health and fitness. You become fitter and healthier through rest as much as exercise.
4) Limit the number of supplements you take. Adequate amounts can in fact be absorbed by modifying the diet without the risks involved by taking a dietary supplement. Consult a professional dietician. Many sprinters and power athletes, for example, take creatine supplements because it gives them a legal edge. There is a risk, though, as it is possible that they have been contaminated by banned substances. This is a risk to your fitness health, and a risk financially if you are a professional athlete.
See how much you can learn about health when you take a little time to read a well-researched article? Don’t miss out on the rest of this great information.
5) Your health will improve if you minimize the number of tablets that you take. Paracetamol may seem okay, but you will be surprised how often a headache can be cured by drinking water, having something to eat or sitting in a quiet room.
6) You will improve your health and fitness by stretching more. Your muscles get shorter through exercise, and if you never stretch you will get injured. One method is to warm up slowly first, then spend several minutes stretching before the main workout. Stretch thoroughly after exercise as well.
7) You need to stay hydrated if you are exercising more. This means drinking water and sports drinks if you are sweating a lot. You lose minerals in your body while sweating. It is recommended to drink five glasses of water a day, but if you are working out you need to drink more than this. Don’t get carried away, though, because it can be just as dangerous to drink too much as too little.
Exercise with other people. You will meet new friends, and your fitness will improve if you have other people to motivate you.
9) Don’t become too competitive as this may harm your health. Motivation from other people is good, but you should only compete against yourself. Try too hard to keep up with someone else, and you could become injured.
10) Have fun! Your health and fitness will improve if you are having fun because you will stick to your exercise program.
This article’s coverage of the information is as complete as it can be today. But you should always leave open the possibility that future research could uncover new facts.
Michael Hehn writes articles about various topics.
Find out what he has to say about health at Health
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Every sport needs commitment and hard work. A player should be always healthy and fit. Golf fitness is different form other games. If somebody wants to improve his game he needs to perform some special type of exercises. A player should stick to a regular exercise program. Regular workouts give flexibility and strength. The most important part of golf is swing. A swing can be improved with the help of special stretching exercises. It is a good idea to research on every topic related to golf. The most important topics related to golf are nutrition, exercise, training and biomechanics. It is very important to understand the biomechanics of the game.
A player should have strong bones, muscles and ligaments if he wants to play better golf. The most important muscles which should strong are lower back muscles. Most of the exercises are performed to make these muscles strong. Every game needs some special skills. A full swing is a fast movement and needs lot of power and flexibility. A player is always at the risk of sport injuries if he is not physically prepared for the game. It is very important to go under a regular physical assessment. Physical assessment can evaluate the state of your body. A player should always try to find his weakness. A professional instructor can help you a lot in planning an exercise program.
A proper combination of diet and exercise can give you amazing results in couple of months. Golf performance can be easily improved if proper tips and techniques are followed.
If you want to know more about Golf Stretching then feel free to visit Golf Blog.
Although you may love to exercise and are typically cheerful and energetic most of the time, it still makes sense to bring an iPod.
You can listen to lectures, to audiobooks, or music. You can study, and you can be inspired by music. There is so much educational material, literature and music, you will never want for variety.
You could get a college education while exercising. Half an hour every day is the equivalent of a three hour class every week. There will be little reason why you cannot afford the time if you multi task. If you were in
a college program this is the perfect time to study. I am doing that myself with a course I am taking
You can google for literature, self help, music, college courses in mp3 format. That is the format that is perfect for an iPod.
Much of what is available is actually free. If you go to the website below, you can download a list of the best sites. How great to exercise and listen to whatever you wish. Modern day technology works for you.
There is no less choice when it comes to music. An iPod will hold a gig of music will entertain you through many, many, many fitness routines.
iTunes and an iPod make this so very convenient. And the quality of music is great.
It is easy to put music on an iPod. Makes sure it is an iPod shuffle. They are inexpensive (just recently reduced to under $50), really small and light, and have no moving parts to break, no matter how rough you are during exercise. The most recent design grips your clothing firmly. If you put it under your clothes, it will hardly be noticed.
If you have any question about how to use an iPod or iTunes, go to your closest Apple Store, where they will be happy to instruct you. I would make an appointment, but if it is at a Mall, you may not mind shopping while you wait your turn.
Research has shown that the music you listen to, creates energy that moves you. You can download a copy of an article from the New York Times about some of the latest studies at the website below. Numerous studies have shown that listening to music improves exercise results. It also makes the experience enjoyable. Music motivates you to exercise longer and more thoroughly. Music encourages you to give yourself more to the process.
The song’s tempo is one of the most important elements. It should be somewhere between 120 and 140 beats-per-minute, or B.P.M. That pace falls within the range of most dance music, and many rock songs are close to that. It is also close to the average person’s heart beat during an average workout of about 20 minutes.
Experiment to find what works best for you. There are no rules other than do what works for you. You will know by the results.
Music provides rhythm, it inspires, it occupies your mind, it gives positive messages, it encourages you, it helps you continue for a definite amount of time.
Bring music you love.
Peter Woronoff is a psychotherapist and fitness enthusiast. Claim your complimentary list of websites that provide music and literature, many of them free at www.SeniorFitnessNow.com/audiosites