Over Training

At first the over training state can be mild, and if an athlete rests, his body recovers fast. Later it may be more severe, and an athlete will be exhausted. The exhaustion is typical for experienced endurance athletes, who usually react in this way. Overtraining-like states can also be induced by mental, social, economical and environmental stress. These factors together with physical training cause total stress which influences on the body.

Stress can be caused by both positive and negative psychological factors. These may be e.g. holiday, vacation, personal achievement, change in residence, school or job, change in social and recreational habits, financial problems, divorce, trouble at school, trouble with the law, death or birth in the family.

Physiological factors cause stress as well. This kind of factors may be e.g. travel, sleep loss, races, changes in training, environmental changes (altitude, humidity, temperature), illness, injury, menstrual cycle or pregnancy.

Highly motivated athletes have to keep in mind that the balance between training, other stressors and recovery has to be right, i.e., they have to periodisize their training in the right way. If there is an uncompleted recovery time after exercises, fatigue starts to accumulate and after a few days or weeks symptoms of over training with a drop in performance will arise. As a result, recovery may take weeks or months.

Signs and symptoms of over training vary from athlete to athlete. The symptoms and signs are due to changes in the function of the autonomic nervous system, hormonal status, immunological parameters and other physiological and musculoskeletal changes of the body. Typically, an athlete feels tiredness and fatigue and notices a drop or stagnation in performance despite of continuing training.

KEEP YOUR BALANCE

Every year about one third of seniors take a tumble. Not all falls are serious, but they can be. In the past, several studies indicated that certain exercises could help seniors maintain stability, but now a new review of thirty-four studies confirms that exercise is the key to balance.

The studies included in the analysis looked at more than 2,800 participants. On average the study participants were over age seventy-five, generally healthy, and the majority were women. The review shows gains in balancing ability across different groups of adults who participated in a variety of exercises including walking, dancing, tai chi, and strength and balance training.

Here are some simple strength and balance exercises you can do at home that are proven to be effective. Always be sure theres a support nearby like a sturdy chair or a railing or bar, that you can grab onto in case you feel unsteady. The following exercises are recommended by the National Institutes of Health.

STAND ON ONE FOOT Stand behind a sturdy chair While holding the back of the chair, stand on one foot for up to ten seconds. Repeat this ten to 15 times, then switch and perform the same exercise on the other foot.

If youre feeling steady, challenge yourself further by holding on to the chair with just one hand, or releasing both hands from the chair if your balance is good.

Superior Performance for Athletes

Creatine is naturally produced in the body, but a supplement of it can help athletes with their performance in high-intensity workouts. Along with improving muscle strength, it also provides a quick energy boost. Because of this, it is commonly used by athletes before competitive events.

Glucosamine helps build healthy cartilage, so it is especially important for athletes who expend a lot of the energy that they take in through food. Cartilage degeneration is a long-term side effect of glucosamine deficiency. Normally, cartilage can regenerate on its own with sufficient rest and proper diet, but when the body is overworked, a person can suffer from joint pain. This is especially an issue for endurance runners who depend on strong knee joints.

Protein provides the nourishment that muscles need to recover from a strenuous workout. Bodybuilders, for example, use it to help them build bulk muscle, and—in some cases—gain weight to build that muscle. Even runners can benefit from protein supplements, despite the fact that their muscle mass is more lean than bulk. Without it, they are more susceptible to injury and longer recovery periods.

When exercise is a major part of your life, it can be difficult to get all the nutrients you need through your diet. This is why there are a myriad of sports supplements on the market from the likes of my protein, a recommended nutrition store for athletes, including creatine, glucosamine, and protein.

BOTTOM LINE TO WEIGHT LOSS

The bottom line to weight loss is to burn more calories than you consume all day. (The behavior isn't simple, but the equation is.) For example, if you eat 2,500 calories a day and only burn 2,000, you gain weight; if you eat 1,500 calories and burn 2,000, you lose weight; if you eat 2,000 and burn 2,000 you maintain weight.

It's true that there are several medical conditions, and medications, that can make weight loss difficult (see below). But even if one of those factors applies to you, you still need to burn more calories than you consume to lose weight.

The good news is this: You can lose weight with a very modest amount of exercise.
People lose weight all the time without exercise by reducing their caloric intake. But keeping the weight off without exercise is another matter. Many experts agree that exercise is the single best predictor of long-term weight control. If you lose weight and don't start exercising, there's a very good chance you will regain it. Here are some factors that can keep you from losing weight and/or cause weight gain:

Thyroid or adrenal gland problems.
Medications like antidepressants.
Stopping smoking.
Rapid weight loss. This can lower metabolism because the body senses it is starving and make it harder to lose weight. The decrease in metabolic rate is often due to loss in muscle (when you lose weight, approximately 25% of the loss comes from muscle), so lifting weights is a good idea.
Menopause (and premenopause).

If you think any of these things are factors for you, your doctor may be able to help.
Otherwise, patience, determination, regular physical activity, and attention to your diet are the keys to long-term weight control. Doing these things will give you your best shot at reaching your weight loss goals and keeping the weight off.

BODY FITNESS EXERCISE

Exercise, even after age 50, can add healthy and active years to one's life. Studies continue to show that it is never too late to start exercising and that even small improvements in physical fitness can significantly lower the risk of death. Simply walking regularly can prolong life in the elderly. Moderately fit people, even if they smoke or have high blood pressure, have a lower mortality rate than the least fit.

Resistance training is important for the elderly, because it is the only form of exercise that can slow and even reverse the decline in muscle mass, bone density, and strength. Adding workouts that focus on speed and agility may be even more protective for older people. Flexibility exercises help reduce the stiffness and loss of balance that accompanies aging.

Studies indicate that regular exercise helps keep arteries elastic, even in older people, which in turn keeps blood flowing and blood pressure low. Sedentary people have a 35% greater risk of developing hypertension than athletes do. No person with high blood pressure should start an exercise program without consulting a physician. Studies have shown that high-intensity exercise may not lower blood pressure as effectively as moderate intensity exercise.

In one study, for example, moderate exercise (jogging two miles a day) controlled hypertension so well that more than half the patients who had been taking drugs for high blood pressure were able to discontinue their medication. Studies have indicated that T'ai Chi, an ancient Chinese exercise involving slow, relaxing movements may lower blood pressure almost as well as moderate-intensity aerobic exercises. Before exercising, people with hypertension should avoid caffeinated beverages, which increase heart rate, the workload of the heart, and blood pressure during physical activity.

One of the most common complaints of modern men and women, lower-back pain, afflicts up to 80% of all Americans. Sedentary living, obesity, poor posture, badly designed furniture, and stress all contribute to back pain. An appropriate exercise program focusing on flexibility and strengthening the muscles in the abdomen may help prevent back problems. Yoga stretching is beneficial and can be incorporated into the warm-up and cool-down periods. The best exercises for athletes with bad backs include swimming, walking, and cross-country skiing.

High-impact sports, including aerobic dance and downhill skiing, should be avoided. Exercises that strengthen the abdominal muscles such as partial sit-ups, which maintain the back's normal curve and help support the body's weight, can alleviate stress on the lower back. However, the classic full sit-up (raising your head and shoulders off the floor up to your knees) may aggravate back pain and should be avoided by anyone at risk for lower back problems.

SIX PACK

If you could sculpt one body part to perfection for next summer, what would it be? Let me guess - six pack abs! I don't know anybody who does not want to shrink there waistline, lose body fat, eliminate low back pain and develop a jaw dropping set of rock-hard six-pack. Too bad that your brain has been poisoned with contaiminated information.

Before you can start learing how to get six-pack abs and discover the truth about what it really takes to build a beach-worthy abdominal section, you must first expose the lies, myths and rumors. Before we talk about how to get six-pack abs, the right way, we must re-program your hard drive and empty the trash can of garbage you have been fed.

Because of all this hyped up and misguided information - even among so-called 'fitness experts' - you should skeptical of discerning about all abdominal training equipment and programs. Let's first eliminate the top four ways not to get a six-pack:

Learning how to get a six-pack does not require expensive workout equipment promoted through obnoxious infomercials. You can't flick on the TV anymore without seeing two new abdominal exercise machines being promoted at once. There are so many of them, that if you get suckered into these 'ab workout' gimmicks, you will be broke quicker than Ben Johnson sprints the 100 m dash! And get this: Of the $520 million dollars a year spent on exercise equipment, abdominal machines get a $208 million dollar piece of the pie!

Learning how to get a six-pack does not require thousands or even hundreds of crunches a day. So much for the Brittany Spears ab workout! Crunches are decent but totally overused and associated with more being better. Crunches is a very general exercise and general exercises get general results. Excessive floor crunches shorten the abdominal wall, pull your head forward and emphasize poor posture. They also involve a very low level of stimulation which negelets adequate muscle fiber recruitment.

Learning how to get a six-pack does not involve starvation diets. Starvation diets starve the muscle when instead, you should be feeding the muscle. Guess what happens when you starve your body? Your metabolism shuts down out of survival and causes your body to store fat. Your body must get energy from somewhere so guess what gets sacrificed? That's right, your precious muscle which is in fact responsible for a maintaining a high metabolism. Starve your muscle - great logic!

Learning how to get a six-pack does not require fat burning pills. What did the last weight loss pill you bought do for you? The same thing the next one is going to do - nothing! Except give you a thinner wallet but not a thinner waist line. The entire concept of taking pills to 'burn fat' is built on a sandy foundation and misleading because diet pills only treat the symptons and not the root cause.

Without focusing on the root problems of a flabby mid-section, like nutrition, lifestyle and proper training, you will just end up where you started - farther away from having a six-pack for summer instead of closer.

WOMEN EXERCISE

The body needs exercise; there is no arguing that. Exercise not only helps us burn the excess load our body carries, making us lose weight and look trim, but it also promotes health and well-being. Regular exercise prevents our body from being afflicted with ailments such as heart disease, depression, and even cancer. Exercise gives the body more energy and strength, and makes the mind sharper and more alert.

Exercise is good for the body. Most people know this fact, that the body needs exercise. And yet, they still do not want to do it. Oh, they have their reasons. Some believe that exercise is too bothersome, or that they cannot set a regular time for exercise in their busy, busy schedules. There are some who think that doing exercise is too strenuous for their body, while some think that exercise is just plain boring. So, how do you bridge the gap between the obvious fact that the body needs exercise and the person wanting it in the first place?

For people who find exercise boring, they should do some form of physical exertion that they would find fun in doing so they would do it regularly and even look forward to it. You could do a few laps on the pool. Maybe you could walk the dog and have the dog chase sticks or Frisbees. If you do not have access to a pool or does not own a dog, maybe a game of tennis your best friend would do the trick. Or maybe just a walk up and down the block would be enough. Exercise does not have to involve a trip to the gym all the time after all.

For people whose excuse is that they do not have time for exercise, or that they do not like exercising in the morning as most fitness gurus preach, then the solution is to find time for exercise that is convenient for them. It does not matter when this is, as long as it is done regularly and consistently. The right time for exercise is the time you make it right for you. For people who feel discouraged because they do not really see any changes on themselves with their exercise routine, the answer to this concern would be to keep an exercise journal. By taking note of the number of sets and repetitions you did, how you are feeling before and after the workout as well as the intensity of the workout, you would have an actual record of your progress, not just a guess or a gut feel.

And knowing how much work you are putting into your exercise and the actual results would definitely motivate you into going on with your routine and even trying harder. For people who are bored with exercise, the answer to this would be to put variety in your routine. You don't have to stick to the same routine day in and day out. Also, take a rest and a day off from exercise if you need to.

Exercise should be something you find fun in doing rather than a chore. Your exercise routine should suit you, and never the other way around.