No body is an island
Hot on the heels of my “bring fitness to the people” ideas comes this brilliant (as usual) essay from the folks at Exuberant Animal…
Giving her old life a knockout
I’ve been lucky enough to know the incredible people at Toronto Newsgirls. They are a fantastic, brilliant group of folks who are life transformation magicians.
Jacqueline Scott has gone from a life of hard knocks to delivering knockouts in the ring. The 29-year-old single mother, who grew up in foster care, is on her way to becoming a plumber with dreams of competing in the 2012 Olympics. She credits the Shape Your Life boxing program, run out of the Toronto Newsgirls Boxing Club for giving her the strength to turn her life around.
Please don’t comment about how boxing is mean and violent. Nothing could be more mean and violent than the shit some of these women have gone through. Hand-holding “let’s rap about our feelings” does not work when you are struggling to get off drugs, kick out your deadbeat abusive boyfriend, and get food on the table in a very tenuous day-to-day existence. You need to find a safer, welcoming space where people let you smash inanimate objects and release your anger in a healthy way.
Follow up on “A for effort, F for execution”
Well, it seems that the folks who wanted over-fat students to take mandatory exercise have re-thought their strategy…
I think (about dessert), therefore I am (taking up sugar)
Even the anticipation of sweets may cause our muscles to start taking up more blood sugar, say researchers reporting in the December issue of Cell Metabolism. That message is delivered via neurons in the brain’s hypothalamus containing the chemical known as orexin and the sympathetic nervous system, the studies in mice and rats suggest.
20 min a day to sanity!
A large-scale observational study shows that physical activity improves your chances of staying happy. The more you exercise, the better you feel.
At least 20 min/week of any physical activity (including domestic, walking or sports activities) meant a lower level of psychological distress. Participation in sports helped the most. [clicky to read the full study abstract plus discussion…]
Exercise and preventing weight gain in premenopausal women
A recent study shows that even fairly moderate regular activity helps maintain a healthy body weight.
Researchers examined the relationship between physical activity (PA) and weight maintenance/weight gain in a large group (46,754) of premenopausal women (aged 25 to 43 years old). Participants signed up for the study in 1989 and checked in again in 1997. 62% of the population gained more than 5% of their baseline weight by 1997.
One important difference between weight gainers and weight maintainers was physical activity. [clicky to read more…]
Fas times at inflammation high
For the biology nerds in the group, here’s some interesting work on how obesity functions as an inflammatory state. The basic premise, as I’ve indicated in previous posts, is that a “critical mass” (if you will) of adipose tissue produces a particular hormonal environment, because fat tissue is hormonally active. A cellular receptor known as Fas or CD95 is an important player here…
Exercise: It’s like Oil of Olay for your cells
People who run everyday do it to keep their hearts strong, spirits up and waistlines trim, but how many could guess that sweating it out on the treadmill may actually fight aging? Research indicates people who exercise are biologically younger. A new study in the journal Circulation shows that vigorous exercise may be inducing a natural anti-aging effect that goes right down to our DNA.
Hormones in concert
The Scientist has a fascinating overview of some of the hormonal mechanisms behind appetite and obesity.
“Upon intensifying insulin treatment, most diabetes patients gained weight and many grew frustrated with the unpredictable glucose swings and constant insulin dose adjustments. Likewise, the vast majority of patients in our obesity clinic saw a relentless regain of their body weight. In the clinical setting, it was not uncommon for doctors to advise their patients to try harder and be more disciplined. After all, with adequate willpower and meticulous tracking of blood sugars and ingested calories, there had to be a way to do better. From a scientific perspective, however, it was quite evident that the root of the problem was far more complex.”
I <3 endocrinology, if only because it speaks to the elegant, frustratingly mysterious complexity of nature. The human body is an intriguingly self-regulating set of systems that work in delicate harmonies. Even if you aren't partial to pharmacological treatments, this is an interesting read for biochem nerds who like to know the major players.
Metabolic Syndrome and Insulin Resistance in Division 1 Collegiate Football Players
This is an interesting study that follows on the recent discussion of the “40% average body fat” post.
I mentioned heavyweight football players as examples of folks who are very fit, but risk experiencing health difficulties nevertheless. A recent study explores this…