Conditioning Research

More Barefoot Research....

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 23:33:00 +0000

Thanks to Adam Dean for pointing this out.

Almost a year ago I had a couple of posts (here and here) about a Harvard Professor who was doing research into barefoot running. The research continues, and Wired Magazine had a feature on his two latest studies which have been published just this month. Their piece is called More Evidence Supports Barefoot Running and points to Daniel Lieberman's latest work:

If you’re a runner, start striking with your forefoot. And wear those goofy minimalist shoes while you’re at it. Your body will thank you.

Those are the findings of a pair of studies by Daniel Lieberman, a professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University. He found runners who use a forefoot strike face a significantly lower risk of repetitive stress injuries, and barely there running shoes produce more efficient movement than conventional kicks.

The two studies are:

Foot Strike and Injury Rates in Endurance Runners: a retrospective study.

PURPOSE:
This retrospective study tests if runners who habitually forefoot strike have different rates of injury than runners who habitually rearfoot strike.
METHODS:
We measured the strike characteristics of middle and long distance runners from a collegiate cross country team and quantified their history of injury, including the incidence and rate of specific injuries, the severity of each injury, and the rate of mild, moderate and severe injuries per mile run.
RESULTS:
Of the 52 runners studied, 36 (59%) primarily used a rearfoot strike and 16 (31%) primarily used a forefoot strike. Approximately 74% of runners experienced a moderate or severe injury each year, but those who habitually rearfoot strike had approximately twice the rate of repetitive stress injuries than individuals who habitually forefoot strike. Traumatic injury rates were not significantly different between the two groups. A generalized linear model showed that strike type, sex, race distance, and average miles per week each correlate significantly (p<0.01) with repetitive injury rates.
CONCLUSIONS:
Competitive cross country runners on a college team incur high injury rates, but runners who habitually rearfoot strike have significantly higher rates of repetitive stress injury than those who mostly forefoot strike. This study does not test the causal bases for this general difference. One hypothesis, which requires further research, is that the absence of a marked impact peak in the ground reaction force during a forefoot strike compared to a rearfoot strike may contribute to lower rates of injuries in habitual forefoot strikers.

(interesting that cross country running seems risky whatever you do!)

Effects of Footwear and Strike Type on Running Economy.

PURPOSE:
This study tests if running economy differs in minimal shoes versus standard running shoes with cushioned, elevated heels and arch supports, and in forefoot versus rearfoot strike gaits.
METHODS:
We measured the cost of transport (mlO2/kg/m) in subjects who habitually run in minimal shoes or barefoot while they were running at 3.0 m/s on a treadmill during forefoot and rearfoot striking while wearing minimal and standard shoes, controlling for shoe mass and stride frequency. Force and kinematic data were collected when shod and barefoot to quantify differences in knee flexion, arch strain, plantarflexor force production, and Achilles tendon-triceps surae strain.
RESULTS:
After controlling for stride frequency and shoe mass, runners were 2.41% more economical in the minimal shoe condition when forefoot striking and 3.32% more economical in the minimal shoe condition when rearfoot striking (p<0.05). In contrast, forefoot and rearfoot striking did not differ significantly in cost for either minimal or standard shoe running. Arch strain was not measured in shoes condition but was significantly greater during forefoot than rearfoot striking when barefoot. Plantarflexor force output was significantly higher in forefoot than rearfoot striking, and in barefoot than shod running. Achilles tendon-triceps surae strain and knee flexion were also lower in barefoot than standard shoe running.
CONCLUSIONS:
Minimally shod runners are modestly but significantly more economical than traditionally shod runners regardless of strike type, after controlling for shoe mass and stride frequency. The likely cause of this difference is more elastic energy storage and release in the lower extremity during minimal shoe running.

Lifehacker on the dangers of sitting

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:59:00 +0000

I've had stuff here before on the health impact of spending too much time sitting down. Lifehacker had a good piece on it today too:

Do you sit in an office chair or on your couch for more than six hours a day? Then here are some disturbing facts: Your risk of heart disease has increased by up to 64 percent. You're shaving off seven years of quality life. You're also more at risk for certain types of cancer. Simply put, sitting is killing you. That's the bad news. The good news: It's easy to counteract no matter how lazy you are.

Their prescription was:

Happily, you only need to do two things to counter the effects of sitting all day:

Remember to stand once an hour.

Get about 30 minutes of activity per day.

Whether you're a couch potato watching marathons of Firefly or an office worker sitting in front of a computer, an Australian study suggests short breaks from sitting once an hour can alleviate most of the problems described above

Inadequate sleep and obesity

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:51:00 +0000

Here is another one on sleep that I saw today in my trawl of the new research. Nothing that we have not seen before but this is a review that tries to pull together some of the studies:

Does inadequate sleep play a role in vulnerability to obesity?

The prevalence of obesity is increasing rapidly worldwide, which is cause for concern because obesity increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, reduces life expectancy, and impairs quality of life. A better understanding of the risk factors for obesity is therefore a critical global health concern, and human biologists can play an important role in identifying these risk factors in various populations. The objective of this review is to present the evidence that inadequate sleep may be a novel risk factor associated with increased vulnerability to obesity and associated cardiometabolic disease. Experimental studies have found that short-term sleep restriction is associated with impaired glucose metabolism, dysregulation of appetite, and increased blood pressure. Observational studies have observed cross-sectional associations between short sleep duration (generally <6 h per night) and increased body mass index or obesity, prevalent diabetes, and prevalent hypertension. Some studies also reported an association between self-reported long sleep duration (generally >8 h per night) and cardiometabolic disease. A few prospective studies have found a significant increased risk of weight gain, incident diabetes, and incident hypertension associated with inadequate sleep. Given the potential link between inadequate sleep and obesity, a critical next step is to identify the social, cultural, and environmental determinants of sleep, which would help to identify vulnerable populations. Future human biology research should consider variation in sleep characteristics among different populations and determine whether the associations between sleep and obesity observed in Western populations persist elsewhere.

There you go. We are back to the need for getting enough sleep if you want to be lean.

There was another related study today:

Sleep Duration and BMI in a Sample of Young Adults

In multivariable-adjusted linear regression models, an hour increase in sleep was associated with a −0.38 (−0.70, −0.048) BMI in men. Men who slept <7 h had a 1.4 unit higher mean BMI (27.9; 95% confidence interval (CI): 26.9, 28.9) than men who slept 7–9 h/day (26.5; 95% CI: 26.1, 27.0). Prevalence estimates of overweight (BMI ≥25) and obesity (BMI ≥30) were also inversely associated with sleep duration among men.

More on stretching...for Bozos?

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 23:36:00 +0000

I obviously wouldn't go that far seeing as I keep posting videos of Kelly Starret, but I do think that the arguments for indiscriminate stretching are limited. For some of us at some times to address particular issues i think there is an argument for stretching.

Anyway, Zero Drop has posted this list of

10 Reasons Why Runners Should Not Stretch

Stretching is exercise for the muscles like sea water is hydration for the body. When you're desperate for relief, it feels so right but only makes things worse.
All athletes, especially runners, are so passionate about stretching. They defend it like their political association, religion, or family. I think many of them may have pictures of their kids in their wallets doing all types of cool stretches that they show their coworkers every day at the water cooler.
Runners will follow any trend they think will make them run faster. Whether it's a new supplement, pair of socks, pair or shoes, custom orthotics, or stretching. They're the first in line for the Kool-Aid.
Stretching is a conditioned behaviour, not one we are innately born with. I see my kids run, jump, climb, throw things, and carry objects of all sizes. They move well, and efficiently. I've never seen them stretch. Their developing nervous systems know better.
The day I see my dog holding a stretch is the day I'll start stretching too.
Flexibility is a reflection of overall health and fitness. Stretching does absolutely nothing for health or fitness. It's not exercise. It's not a warm-up or a cool-down. And it definitely doesn't substitute for restful sleep or a wholesome diet.
Yoga is not stretching. Stretching is not yoga. Enough of that claim.
Make sure you stretch if you want to weaken muscles, promote injuries, decrease performance, delay tissue healing, and have absolutely way too much free time.
Stretching reduces injuries and improves endurance performance just like certain shoes will make you run or jump faster. Neither claim is true.
I enjoy watching runners stretch. They must stretch because they think they will run faster. I bet they believe in Sasquatch too.

Sock Doc's full article STOP STRETCHING is definitely worth reading

Stretching may increase your flexibility, but you will most likely be weaker and the results are often short-lived. Saying that stretching reduces injuries or improves endurance performance, (the two main reasons given for stretching), is like saying certain shoes will make you run or jump faster. Many continue to make both these claims, yet neither has ever been proven, and many still buy the shoes and stretch with them on. Stretching is not exercise and not a warm-up before a run or any activity. Aerobic activity is the best warm-up as it increases flexibility in a safe way while improving oxygen utilization, lung capacity, and fat burning.
So balance your muscles and your entire body by balancing your life with proper exercise, diet, and other lifestyle factors. Stop drinking that Kool-Aid propaganda and just say “No!” to stretching!

Super Squat Hip Sequence from K Starr

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:20:00 +0000

Sleep more and it is easier to lose wieght

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 21:54:00 +0000

Thanks to Matthew Clarke for pointing this out.

There is an interesting study in the International Journal of Obesity this month. Lots of times in the past I've pointed to things saying to get more sleep for lots of health reasons - inflammation, stress reduction etc. I have just drafted up an article on sleep and I talk about the signals that you give to your body. Compromised sleep sends a signal that you are under threat....so you produce stress hormones to get you ready for the threat.....and chronically elevated stress hormones (cortisol etc) lead to all sorts of problems....including obesity.

This new study found that those who slept more were better at losing weight! Lowered stress was also a success factor, although that is linked - sleep more a way of reducing stress.

Anyway, here is the abstract:

Impact of sleep, screen time, depression and stress on weight change in the intensive weight loss phase of the LIFE study

Background:

The LIFE study is a two-phase randomized clinical trial comparing two approaches to maintaining weight loss following guided weight loss. Phase I provided a nonrandomized intensive 6-month behavioral weight loss intervention to 472 obese (body mass index 30–50) adult participants. Phase II is the randomized weight loss maintenance portion of the study. This paper focuses on Phase I measures of sleep, screen time, depression and stress.

Methods:

The Phase I intervention consisted of 22 group sessions led over 26 weeks by behavioral counselors. Recommendations included reducing dietary intake by 500 calories per day, adopting the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) dietary pattern and increasing physical exercise to at least 180 min per week. Measures reported here are sleep time, insomnia, screen time, depression and stress at entry and post-weight loss intervention follow-up.

Results:

The mean weight loss for all participants over the intensive Phase I weight loss intervention was 6.3 kg (s.d. 7.1). Sixty percent (N=285) of participants lost at least 4.5 kg (10 lbs) and were randomized into Phase II. Participants (N=472) attended a mean of 73.1% (s.d. 26.7) of sessions, completed 5.1 (s.d. 1.9) daily food records/week, and reported 195.1 min (s.d. 123.1) of exercise per week. Using logistic regression, sleep time (quadratic trend, P=0.030) and lower stress (P=0.024) at entry predicted success in the weight loss program, and lower stress predicted greater weight loss during Phase I (P=0.021). In addition, weight loss was significantly correlated with declines in stress (P=0.048) and depression (P=0.035).

Conclusion:

Results suggest that clinicians and investigators might consider targeting sleep, depression and stress as part of a behavioral weight loss intervention.

Some MovNat

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 23:22:00 +0000

Although it looks a bit warmer, this is much like the seminar I attended with the great Erwan Le Core back in December 2010.

By the way if you are wondering how this fits with my Hillfit approach, I think High Intensity Training, resistance training can quickly get you the strength that you need in order to practice MovNat Skills. Without basic strength you will never get far in terms of climbing etc. I do not discount all these skills, and I think there is value in becoming expert in them.....but strength.....exercise is something else.

Exercise and insulin sensitivity: both hard AND easy training.......

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 20:46:00 +0000

We've had material up here before on the way in which exercise can promote insulin sensitivity - even brief intense exercise.

I spotted this new study that highlights that both endurance and resistance training can have an impact, but on different elements of that sensitivity:

Insulin Sensitivity After Maximal and Endurance Resistance Training

Maximum Resistance Training (MRT) led to a greater increase in glucose uptake capacity (in muscles), whereas Endurance Resistance Training (ERT) led to greater insulin sensitivity, supporting the recommendation of both MRT and ERT as primary intervention approaches for individuals at a risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

It is something that I point to in Hillfit - intense exercise to failure that can tap into all the muscle fibres - slow, intermediate and fast twitch - lets you drain them of glucose in a way in which endurance exercise does not allow....and endurance exercise does have some benefits.

Actually it is pretty much similar to what Mark Sisson has been saying for a while:

Lift Heavy things
Move around alot at a slow pace

Or indeed, Clarence Bass "barbell" strategy -

I do a combination of high-intensity intervals and low-intensity walking—and very little of the moderate-intensity aerobics that most people do. I call this my barbell aerobics strategy because, like a barbell, it uses both ends of the intensity spectrum—with almost nothing in between.

which is also of course Nassim Taleb's approach

Warm up?

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 23:24:00 +0000

I have had stuff on here before about warm ups, mainly discouraging static stretching as a warm up since it seems to impair performance and do nothing to prevent injuries or soreness. Dynamic stretches or mobility work seems to have more promise.

Anyway, there was a post on the excellent Sweat Science blog (reading that blog just makes me want to give up because he does all this stuff so well!) which looked at a recent study about the impact of different warm up protocols on swimming performance - The ideal warm up for swimmers

It is well worth reading the post and it prompted me to search around because initially I could not find the study to which it referred. I did find the actual thesis from the student who did the work however.

What is interesting to me is that 37% of the sample performed best with no warm up whatsoever. It may be specific to the event that was being measured and I am sure that there are confounding factors in the study, but it is something to think on. I think the conclusion that they reach - individuals differed in their response to different warm-ups is probably pretty accurate!

Dr M C Aldhous - Writer and Editor

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 22:55:00 +0000

Where I was this morning....

I suppose this is another post about my book - Hillfit. The reviews are still coming in and I've collected them on a page here. As I've said, the reason I train is to get out into the hills, so each trip will be easier, safer and more fun. This morning was up in my local hills to watch the sunrise. It was windy but stunning.

Anyway, this post is just to say that a big credit for the quality of the book goes to my editor / proof reader. Dr M C Aldhous went through the text, proof reading, reference checking and generally tightening up my prose. Her input was vital in getting the thing together in a decent state such that we were happy to put it up for sale.

It is one thing writing blogs, but pulling together something a bit more substantial and then being audacious enough to try to sell it is a different proposotion, having a proper professional editor was a huge help.

Dr M C Aldhous is an immunologist by profession with a background in HIV and IBD, but she has a sideline in freelance editing, so if you have any writing that you want to have checked over, checked and redrafted, then I would suggest that you get in touch for a quote. Email her at mcaldhousATgmail.com

Good quote from Coach Rutherford

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 09:26:00 +0000

I heard this as I was walking home last night after a long day at work and a crap week.

This week Robb Wolf had Michael Rutherford on the podcast and it was a fun listen, easvesdropping on some pals chatting away really. One quote stood out:

Your best ally as you age is to take as much muscle mass into your latter years as possible.

Of course it is.

Ha ha ....Cholesterol jokes...I trust them...they are doctors

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 21:42:00 +0000

Balance Training

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 21:11:00 +0000

Balance is fascinating. On Clarence Bass recommendation a couple of year ago I read Scott McCredie’s book Balance: In Search of the Lost Sense (2007). It is really interesting and gives you a new appreciation for the importance of balance.

In Hillfit I mention balance as a complex of three different systems:

the visual
the proprioceptive
the vestibular - the inner ear sense that positions you in space relative to gravity, your equilibrium

One of the key things in balance in general I say is to be stronger - sometimes the muscles are not strong enough to maintain balance whatever the systems are saying.

I've mentioned the proprioceptive systems before in terms of ankle sprains. Anyway, all that is just introduction to this study which I found today.

Vestibular rehabilitation therapy: review of indications, mechanisms, and key exercises.

Vestibular rehabilitation therapy (VRT) is an exercise-based treatment program designed to promote vestibular adaptation and substitution. The goals of VRT are 1) to enhance gaze stability, 2) to enhance postural stability, 3) to improve vertigo, and 4) to improve activities of daily living. VRT facilitates vestibular recovery mechanisms: vestibular adaptation, substitution by the other eye-movement systems, substitution by vision, somatosensory cues, other postural strategies, and habituation. The key exercises for VRT are head-eye movements with various body postures and activities, and maintaining balance with a reduced support base with various orientations of the head and trunk, while performing various upper-extremity tasks, repeating the movements provoking vertigo, and exposing patients gradually to various sensory and motor environments. VRT is indicated for any stable but poorly compensated vestibular lesion, regardless of the patient's age, the cause, and symptom duration and intensity. Vestibular suppressants, visual and somatosensory deprivation, immobilization, old age, concurrent central lesions, and long recovery from symptoms, but there is no difference in the final outcome. As long as exercises are performed several times every day, even brief periods of exercise are sufficient to facilitate vestibular recovery. Here the authors review the mechanisms and the key exercises for each of the VRT goals.

The whole paper is available here
with some interesting simple exercises to develop this amazing sense.

More on messed up sleep and obesity

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:43:00 +0000

Hot on the heels of that last study here is another. It is again pointing to messed up sleep leading to messed up appetite and eating patterns.

The effect of sleep restriction on snacking behaviour during a week of simulated shiftwork.

Due to irregular working hours shiftworkers experience circadian disruption and sleep restriction. There is some evidence to indicate that these factors adversely affect health through changes in snacking behaviour. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of sleep restriction, prior wake and circadian phase on snacking behaviour during a week of simulated shiftwork. Twenty-four healthy males (age: 22.0±3.6 years, mean±SD) lived in a sleep laboratory for 12 consecutive days. Participants were assigned to one of two schedules: a moderate sleep restriction condition (n=10) equivalent to a 6-h sleep opportunity per 24h or a severe sleep restriction condition (n=14) equivalent to a 4-h sleep opportunity per 24h. In both conditions, sleep/wake episodes occurred 4h later each day to simulate a rotating shiftwork pattern. While living in the laboratory, participants were served three meals and were provided with either five (moderate sleep restriction condition) or six (severe sleep restriction condition) snack opportunities daily. Snack choice was recorded at each opportunity and assigned to a category (sweet, savoury or healthy) based on the content of the snack. Data were analysed using a Generalised Estimating Equations approach. Analyses show a significant effect of sleep restriction condition on overall and sweet snack consumption. The odds of consuming a snack were significantly greater in the severe sleep restriction condition (P<0.05) compared to the moderate sleep restriction condition. In particular, the odds of choosing a sweet snack were significantly increased in the severe sleep restriction condition (P<0.05). Shiftworkers who are severely sleep restricted may be at risk of obesity and related health disorders due to elevated snack consumption and unhealthy snack choice. To further understand the impact of sleep restriction on snacking behaviour, future studies should examine physiological, psychological and environmental motivators.

Body by Science recommends Hillfit

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:21:00 +0000

Doug had already given a great review to Hillfit, but today on Body by Science, he had more to say:

Chris Highcock over at www.conditioningresearch.com has a new book out called Hillfit. It is basically a high intensity training program directed toward hikers and climbers. Even though it is directed at this particular sport, it is pertinent to any sport as it effectively shows how to combine (and separate) physical conditioning and skill conditioning in the most user-friendly fashion I have seen to date.

As I said previously I have massive respect for Doug. He is my inspiration and mentor and to read these words from him is fantastic.

Read more about the book and order it from www.hillfit.com

Autophagy again - promoted by exercise

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:11:00 +0000

I've referenced autophagy before in relation to fasting. Scientific American today pointed to a new study in Nature which identifies exercise induced autophagy.

“Our findings demonstrate that exercise is a potent inducer of autophagy,” the researchers wrote. “Autophagy induction may contribute to the beneficial metabolic effects of exercise,” they concluded.

Here is the abstract - Exercise-induced BCL2-regulated autophagy is required for muscle glucose homeostasis

Exercise has beneficial effects on human health, including protection against metabolic disorders such as diabetes1. However, the cellular mechanisms underlying these effects are incompletely understood. The lysosomal degradation pathway, autophagy, is an intracellular recycling system that functions during basal conditions in organelle and protein quality control2. During stress, increased levels of autophagy permit cells to adapt to changing nutritional and energy demands through protein catabolism3. Moreover, in animal models, autophagy protects against diseases such as cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, infections, inflammatory diseases, ageing and insulin resistance4, 5, 6. Here we show that acute exercise induces autophagy in skeletal and cardiac muscle of fed mice. To investigate the role of exercise-mediated autophagy in vivo, we generated mutant mice that show normal levels of basal autophagy but are deficient in stimulus (exercise- or starvation)-induced autophagy. These mice (termed BCL2 AAA mice) contain knock-in mutations in BCL2 phosphorylation sites (Thr69Ala, Ser70Ala and Ser84Ala) that prevent stimulus-induced disruption of the BCL2–beclin-1 complex and autophagy activation. BCL2 AAA mice show decreased endurance and altered glucose metabolism during acute exercise, as well as impaired chronic exercise-mediated protection against high-fat-diet-induced glucose intolerance. Thus, exercise induces autophagy, BCL2 is a crucial regulator of exercise- (and starvation)-induced autophagy in vivo, and autophagy induction may contribute to the beneficial metabolic effects of exercise.

A vicious circle of stress

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:04:00 +0000

Stress can make you fat – and being obese can create stress.

A vicious circle of stress

Getting fatter can potentially trigger the stress response, which in turn encourages additional weight gain.

"When you go up in weight, your body also comes under stress. That probably has a self-reinforcing effect – so you get even fatter," Foss explains.

But dieting can also stimulate cortisol production, which in turn may trigger the stress response and thereby counter the weight loss.

"Should our hypothesis turn out to be correct, it would mean that you'll have to break this stress pattern if you want to halt the weight increase," says Foss.

The paper is in medical hypotheses....

Stress in obesity: Cause or consequence?

Abstract

Obesity is a global public health challenge that increases the risk of various diseases including type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension and cancer, and will in the future cause further increases in the incidence of chronic disease. Understanding the mechanisms of obesity is critical if we are to prevent and treat this pandemic challenge. Diet and physical activity have traditionally been the major tasks in preventing and treating obesity. However, other mechanisms are now also being considered in the quest for knowledge and understanding of obesity, including the body’s stress system and cortisol release. While it seems evident that stress is a cause of obesity, whether stress is also a consequence of obesity has up to now only briefly been discussed. The aim of this article is to elucidate how stress and obesity might be linked and discuss the cause/consequence relationship between the stress response and obesity. Our hypothesis is that stress and obesity interfere by positive feedback. This may be an important issue in both our understanding and coping of obesity.

So is coconut water just more hype and marketing spin?

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:00:00 +0000

Maybe. The full paper is available here. In terms of hydration it appears to be just another drink.....

Comparison of coconut water and a carbohydrate-electrolyte sport drink on measures of hydration and physical performance in exercise-trained men

Conclusion: All beverages are capable of promoting rehydration. Little difference is noted 3 between the four tested conditions with regard to markers of hydration or exercise performance in a sample of young, healthy men. Additional study inclusive of a more demanding dehydration protocol, as well as a time trial test as the measure of exercise performance, may more specifically determine the efficacy of these beverages on enhancing hydration and performance following dehydrating exercise.

Lack of sleep makes you hungry

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 20:58:00 +0000

We've been saying this for a while. Good health - the optimal operation of all your systems - is built on quality sleep. Of course I know this and preach this but must admit that my own sleep habits are not what they should be. Work and family problems are worrying me and I am waking too early, thinking about things.

Good sleep....in pitch black.

Anyway, here is a study I spotted today - Lack of Sleep Makes Your Brain Hungry

"After a night of total sleep loss, these males showed a high level of activation in an area of the brain that is involved in a desire to eat. Bearing in mind that insufficient sleep is a growing problem in modern society, our results may explain why poor sleep habits can affect people's risk to gain weight in the long run. It may therefore be important to sleep about eight hours every night to maintain a stable and healthy body weight."

There is a journal referenced, but I can't find the article yet.

Acute Sleep Deprivation Enhances the Brain's Response to Hedonic Food Stimuli: An fMRI Study. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 2012; DOI: 10.1210/jc.2011-2759

New Interview with Bill DeSimone

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:41:00 +0000

I've been a great fan of Bill's work since I first came across him via Doug McGuff's site. I've interviewed him, featured his videos and reviewed his books. Indeed I need to get a more extensive review up of his new book - Congruent Exercise.

Anyway, Dave Durrell has just posted a great 1 hour plus interview with Bill over on his site High Intensity Nation.

Do yourself a favour and check out some innovative and inspiring thinking.

More Gut Brain Axis stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 23:50:00 +0000

Chris Kresser has spoken a bit on the gut brain axis - for example in his podcast here . There was an article in the Wall Street Journal today that went through these ideas more. It is fascinating and definitely worth reading:

A Gut Check for Many Ailments

The Body's Other Mind

The enteric nervous system, or 'gut brain,' can operate independently of the brain.
Neurons in the gut produce neurotransmitters also found in the brain, such as serotonin.
Disruptions to beneficial gut bacteria may affect mood.
Neurotransmitters made in the gut help control the formation of bone.
Stimulating gut neurons may help treat obesity and diabetes.

what happens if you walk 1000 miles in 1000 hours?

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 23:03:00 +0000

Last year I wrote my reading about Captain Barclay; his most famous exploit was the walking of 1,000 miles (1,600 km) in 1000 hours for 1000 guineas in 1809. There is good analysis here.

Anyway, I just noticed that a case study has been published looking at the physiological impact of repeating this feat: (presumably it was Richard Dunwoody) It sounds easy..one mile in 1 hour.....but doing that every hour for 1000 hours....little sleep, curtailed rest. Hard stuff.

The biochemical, physiological and psychological consequences of a “1,000 miles in 1,000 hours” walking challenge

Abstract

The combined effects of 42 days of chronic sleep disruption and repeated hourly bouts of physical exertion have not been described. This case study reports the physiological and psychological demands placed on one individual who walked 1 mile in each consecutive hour for a period of 1,000 h (42 days), covering a total distance of 1,000 miles. The participant walked at a mean speed of 1.75 m/s completing each mile in approximately 15 min. Over the course of the challenge, the individual lost 1.6 kg in body weight. Markers of skeletal muscle damage, increased gradually whilst free testosterone levels decreased over the course of the challenge. Stress hormones increased whilst inflammatory markers (CRP) initially rose but then returned towards baseline over the course of the study. Cognitive motor performance measured via reaction time was maintained throughout the 42 days. The participant also displayed mood states typical of an elite athlete at baseline and throughout the challenge. Participation in this novel ‘1,000 mile 1,000 h’ walking challenge evoked considerable physiological stress in a fit, healthy middle-aged participant but did not markedly alter cognitive performance or mood over the 42-day period.

Stretching doesn't do jack squat for reducing muscle soreness.

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 22:52:00 +0000

Bret Contreras repeats what we've said here before:

Stretching and DOMS
DOMS (delayed-onset muscle soreness) typically arises within a day of exercise and peaks in intensity at around 48 hours. Many strength & conditioning practitioners believe that stretching before or after exercise will reduce soreness.

Henschke and Lin (2011) reviewed the research on this topic and concluded that stretching does not affect muscle soreness. Twelve total studies were included with a combined 2,377 participants. Pooled estimates showed that pre- and post-exercise stretching reduced soreness on average by one point on a 100-point scale one day following exercise, increase soreness on average by one point on a 100-point scale two days following exercise, and had no effect on soreness by day three.

Findings were consistent across settings (lab vs. field studies), types of stretching, intensity of stretching, populations (athletic, untrained, men, women) and study quality, so the conclusions are not likely to change with future research. To reiterate, stretching doesn't affect muscle soreness.

The Book: Free the Animal, Beyond the Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 22:03:00 +0000

It looks like we are all writing books at the moment! Richard Nikoley of the Free the Animal blog has just published a book which condenses the lessons of several years of his blog into a great little introduction to the "paleo" philosophy. I say philosophy because, rightly, Richard looks holistically at lots of elements - diet, exercise and general health lessons.

I have always thought of Richard as a proper blogger - he writes thoughtful posts that analyse and explain, that argue and promote positions. He explains his own experiments and explorations.

(I always feel that my blog is a bit more modest - it started as somewhere to collect bits and pieces of interesting things about fitness to resource my own thinking, a set of bookmarks really.)

I've been following his blog for years. In fact, in my Google Reader it is still called Honesty Log, the name of the blog before he began to focus fully on paleo issues. In those years I've seen him grow as a writer and thinker but mostly I've watched his physical transformation. He has always been a pragmatist, taking a wide angle lens view of all this. He is not a fundamentalist, he thinks things through rather than simply rejecting what doesn't fit orthodox paleo dogma.

There is no single prescription here for a diet - just as there are multiple ancestral diets, so there are multiple ways in which we can mimic them today. Well maybe there is a prescription - EAT REAL FOOD and AVOID THINGS THAT ARE NOT REALLY FOOD. Richard explains what these 2 classes are and contain.

So this book condenses years of his blog into 12 chapters, each with a different theme. With clarity, wit and passion Richard explains his journey, his discoveries in these areas forging a nice consistent body of knowledge, bound by simple principles. I've read most of the key paleo texts - Ray Audette, Robb Wolf, Mark Sisson, Loren Cordain and several others. However I still got something from this book, as I said because of its passion and its style. It exploits the new reality of ebooks - it is full of hyperlinks, to be read like a website. It is a book for "surfing" - it leads you to explore other ideas, to research more and see where these ideas come from.

I like it - simple, logical, structured. It tells a story of how Richard got to where he is and what that means. He exploits the potential of ebooks to make something potentially much bigger than the basic 110 pages as you follow the links.

And the price.....$3.99! He is giving it away at that price!

You can read more at Richard's blog here or just go via the links below:

How To Get It

To acquire your copy you have a number of options. You can purchase from the publisher, Hyperink, in PDF format at this link. Purchasing from them gives you not only a lifetime, 100% money back guarantee, but lifetime updates as well. I will be expanding the book over time.

You can also purchase it from Amazon for Kindle or Barnes & Noble for Nook. An edition for Apple iBook is planed for the near future and a print version will be out soon. For those without web-enabled devices or who purchase the print version, a website URL has been provided in the book that will give you a chapter-by-chapter breakdown of all of the dozens of links used as references to research and other articles on the Internet.

Hip Flexor Stretch

noreply@blogger.com (Chris) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 07:20:00 +0000

Although I have previously pointed to studies which question the general value of stretching particularly in terms of impact on sports performance, injury and muscle soreness. Stretching before exercise has been especially challenged.

However, stretching to restore deficits caused by poor posture or the environment - like too much sitting - is still something that I do and recommend. Here is Tom Furman on a simple stretch series for the hipflexors. Tom says "Stretching, and eliminating hip flexor tightness can improve posture and reduce back ache."