Obesity is becoming a big problem in America
Slowly and slowly more and more people in USA is getting obese. According to a study it is reavelead that about 50% people are found obese in USA. So the question is What is Obesity? What are the cause of obesity? What are its effects? And what are the guidelines to weight loss?
Obesity : Well According to an article When a person's caloric intake exceeds his or her energy expenditure, the body stores the extra calories in the fat cells present in adipose tissue. These adipose cells function as energy reservoirs, and they enlarge or contract depending on how people use this energy. If people do not balance energy input and output by adopting healthy eating habits and regular exercise, then fat builds up, and they may become overweight.
Here I would like to mention that Obesity is not just about being fat; it is now considered a chronic disease like blood pressure or diabetes. It has serious consequences on a persons health, and is the second leading cause of preventable deaths in the U.S.
So how one can decide that who is overweight or who is not? Obesity is determined by measurement of body fat, not merely body weight. People might be over the weight limit for normal standards, but if they are very muscular with low body fat, they are not obese. Others might be normal or underweight, but still have excessive body fat.
BMI : Here one concept is very important to describe is what is BMI and how it is related to overweight? So that answer is the current best single gauge for body fat is a measurement called body mass index (BMI) Higher BMIs are associated with significant health problems. Experts argue, however, that being overweight may not harmful under various circumstances. For you knowledge I would like to mention that in general a BMI of 25 to 29.9 indicated being overweight and obesity is a BMI of 30 and above.
Research : According to research that has been conduced in past shows that the people who used weight-loss method, gain one pound weight back they lost in last few months. It is stated in a study that that every person has an inherited weight range that varies by only about 10% either up or down from some set point. (For instance, a man whose "genetically-determined" weight is 200 pounds would tend to swing from 180 to 220 pounds, but would be unlikely to lose or gain more than this.).
Weight gain or being obese is direct invitation to various diseases. For example most people with type 2 diabetes are found to be obese. Cancer is also somewhat related to overweight. Obesity also bring negative effects to our parts of body like, muscles and bones, cause eyes and mouth disorders, sleep disorders.
Obesity in USA : According to a survey billions of dollars are spending every year by Americans to lose weight. Major portion of their saving is going to diet programs, diet foods, books etc. Here one dangerous trend has started to skip you meals if you want to lose weight. What do you think about it? Do you think by doing this obesity can be eliminated?
The answer is straight-forward NO. By doing this body loses muscle and bone mass quickly and can lead to low blood sugar which is not good if you want to lose weight. Moreover skipping meal is invitation to overweight.
Solution : You need to eat sensibly and in a consistent manner if you want to lose weight. Regular exercise is also a good solution. Include crisp veggie salads in your meal instead of oily food. If possible steam, or bake you foods. Drink lots of water as it is essential to all bodily functions and has no calories. Avoid colas and other sweet drinks, instead drink fresh juices. Eat slowly and enjoy your food.
Why I am saying to eat properly is because obesity is related to your eating habits in a certain manner. By eating in proper manner it is possible to protect yourself of being overweight. Remember one thing that purpose of losing weight is to lead a healthy life, not to become thin.
This article is submitted by Madeleine, Editor to http://www.pillslim.com
Please Visit the website http://www.pillslim.comfor more solutions about Weight Loss.
Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts: Part 4Jesse Cannone CFT, CPRS, CSPN and Steve Hefferon, Welcome to article number 4 in our series Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts. In this article we are going to talk about how bodybuilders tend to create massive muscle imbalances and what you can do to not be one of them.
If you missed the first article, you can read it by clicking on the link below.
Heres a breakdown of the articles to look for:
1. Article 1 - Choosing The WRONG Exercises
2. Article 2 - Training Variations for Pain Relief and Maximum Results
3. Article 3 - Targeted Stretching
4. Article 4 - Targeted Exercises
5. Article 5 - Rest, Recovery, and Injury Prevention
Article 4 - Targeted Exercises
What is a Targeted Exercise and Why You Need To Be Doing Them?
While performing three different exercises for each area of the chest may sound targeted and it may work great for targeting the chest itself this is NOT what we mean by targeted
What we are talking about is choosing exercises with more than just size increases in mind remember, there is far more to muscle than just how it looks You can be really big, but also weak, slow and inflexible.
To drive this point home some more, remember the Turtle Back Syndrome we covered in article 1? So many body builders are plagued with this gruesome condition and they dont even know it! Are you?
The Turtle Back condition is a direct result of too much focus on building up the pecs and lats and not enough focus on the upper back. Also, the lack of focus on flexibility in the chest and shoulders makes it even worse
Not only does this look stupid, but it sets you up for back, neck and shoulder problems like rotator cuff tears and the like and I know you dont want any of those!
So by targeted, we mean exercises that will not just develop muscle strength and size, but more importantly work towards correcting muscle imbalances which will mean less pain and missed workouts, better performance and function, and most of all better and balanced total body development!
So How Do You Find Out Which Ones You NEED To be Doing?
As we discussed in the previous article on Targeted Stretching, its very important to know before hand what stretches you actually NEED to be doing the same applies to exercises
and the ONLY way to find out what specific areas you need to target is to perform physical evaluations so you can pin point the weak muscles that need strengthening and the tight muscles that need stretching.
We have developed a series of simple assessments you can do yourself to identify the muscles imbalances you have
and while they are intended for people suffering from back pain or sciatica, as a bodybuilder you stand to benefit greatly because you train so hard, you are far more likely to experience injuries like bulging and herniated discs, rotator cuff tears, knee pain, etc
Plus, even if you dont have any pain or injuries now, it would be very wise to learn how to assess yourself so you can target your training now before you create an injury, which not only will slow down your training and progress, but it can also become a life-long struggle with pain and a serious loss of your strength, size and fitness.
So be sure to check out our website to learn more about how you can quickly and easily identify and eliminate any muscle imbalances you have http://www.losethebackpain.com
Article by Jesse Cannone, CFT, CPRS, CSPN and Steve Hefferon, CMT, CPRS of http://www.losethebackpain.comIf youve got back pain or sciatic pain, youve gotta check out their website!
Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts: Part 3Jesse Cannone CFT, CPRS, CSPN and Steve Hefferon, Welcome to article number 2 in our series Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts. In this article we are going to talk about how bodybuilders tend to create massive muscle imbalances and what you can do to not be one of them.
If you missed the first article, you can read it by clicking on the link below.
Heres a breakdown of the articles to look for:
1. Article 1 - Choosing The WRONG Exercises
2. Article 2 - Training Variations for Pain Relief and Maximum Results
3. Article 3 - Targeted Stretching
4. Article 4 - Targeted Exercises
5. Article 5 - Rest, Recovery, and Injury Prevention
Article 3 - Targeted Stretching
Stretching can be great, but it can also make existing injuries worse or even bring about new ones!
The key to making stretching work for you is knowing which stretches you need to be working on and just because a muscle feels tight, that doesnt necessarily mean it needs to be stretched.
For example, many people stretch the hamstrings because they feel tight and they think the hamstrings are limiting their flexibility
the fact is, most of the time the hamstrings are tight because they are constantly being pulled / lengthened due to muscle imbalances that tip the pelvis forward.
As you can, when the pelvis tips forward the hamstrings get pulled upward and are constantly held in a stretched position
And this is why millions of people can stretch their hamstrings every freakin day and never make any improvement in their flexibility.
Are you one of those people?
If you are, you need to stop stretching your hamstrings and find out exactly which muscles you need to be targeting by reading the rest of this article
Not only does this forward tipping of the pelvis (which is caused by muscle imbalances) keep the hamstrings tight and make it very difficult to make improvements in the muscles flexibility, but it also leads to the following:
increased stress / wear and tear from the ankles all the way up the spine
For example, the forward tipping of the pelvis places uneven pressure on the ankle, knee and hip joints and also many of the vertebrae in the spine.
weakens the hamstrings, inhibits normal functioning and increases the likelihood of hamstring pulls
When the hamstrings are constantly being strained because of the muscle imbalances, the muscle is weak, not able to function as it normally would, prone to injury and without correcting the muscle imbalance recover can take up to 9 months to a year, or longer!
creates excess curvature in the lower and middle spine
This tipping of the pelvis places excessive amounts of abnormal stress on the muscles, vertebrae and discs in the lower and mid spine and this sets you up for potential injuries to the muscles of the lower and middle back
Plus, it also causes the discs between your vertebrae to wear down and deteriorate much faster than they normally would and this sets you up for degenerative, bulging, protruding and herniated discs along with numerous other spinal conditions like arthritis, spinal stenosis, and the oh so popular sciatica!
This hamstring example is just one of many muscle imbalances are responsible for nearly every ache, pain, injury and condition out there!
Here are a few more examples of injuries / conditions that are caused by muscle imbalances and can easily be prevented and/or eliminated with targeted stretches and exercises:
upper back and neck pain
shoulder injuries (rotator cuff)
elbow and wrist pain (carpal tunnel, tennis/golfer/baseball elbow, etc)
knee pain (runners knee, chondromalacia, ligament tears, etc)
hip pain (IT band syndrome, bursitis, etc)
ankle pain (Achilles tendonitis, shin splints, plantar fasciitis, heel spurs, etc)
All of these conditions are caused by muscle imbalances and will NOT go away unless you work towards correcting the imbalances and the only way to know for sure which imbalances are causing your pain or injury is to do a series of physical assessments like the ones covered in our Lose the Back Pain Video which is designed for anyone suffering from back pain or sciatica.
What the heck is a targeted stretch?
This is a question we are asked often and heres the definition we give it:
Targeted Stretch - a stretch or stretching exercise that is chosen, based on physical assessments, to target a specific muscle or muscle group to increase the flexibility and range of motion in that area and bring the bones and or joints back towards the normal position.
When you compare a targeted stretch to general stretches like the ones found in Yoga, Pilates and the corny ones your doctor, chiropractor or physical therapist gives you, its no surprise they give little or no pain relief and almost always fail to get rid of the problem.
Conclusion
Remember, the key to eliminating injuries and preventing future ones is to identify what areas you need to target. In the next article well be discussing in detail, how to address various injuries like back, hip, knee, and shoulder pain with targeted exercises. In the meantime, be sure to read thru all of our detailed Back Pain Articles and if you have questions, please post them in our Discussion Forum.
Article by Jesse Cannone, CFT, CPRS, CSPN and Steve Hefferon, CMT, CPRS of http://www.losethebackpain.comIf youve got back pain or sciatic pain, youve gotta check out their website!
Obesity : Well According to an article When a person's caloric intake exceeds his or her energy expenditure, the body stores the extra calories in the fat cells present in adipose tissue. These adipose cells function as energy reservoirs, and they enlarge or contract depending on how people use this energy. If people do not balance energy input and output by adopting healthy eating habits and regular exercise, then fat builds up, and they may become overweight.
Here I would like to mention that Obesity is not just about being fat; it is now considered a chronic disease like blood pressure or diabetes. It has serious consequences on a persons health, and is the second leading cause of preventable deaths in the U.S.
So how one can decide that who is overweight or who is not? Obesity is determined by measurement of body fat, not merely body weight. People might be over the weight limit for normal standards, but if they are very muscular with low body fat, they are not obese. Others might be normal or underweight, but still have excessive body fat.
BMI : Here one concept is very important to describe is what is BMI and how it is related to overweight? So that answer is the current best single gauge for body fat is a measurement called body mass index (BMI) Higher BMIs are associated with significant health problems. Experts argue, however, that being overweight may not harmful under various circumstances. For you knowledge I would like to mention that in general a BMI of 25 to 29.9 indicated being overweight and obesity is a BMI of 30 and above.
Research : According to research that has been conduced in past shows that the people who used weight-loss method, gain one pound weight back they lost in last few months. It is stated in a study that that every person has an inherited weight range that varies by only about 10% either up or down from some set point. (For instance, a man whose "genetically-determined" weight is 200 pounds would tend to swing from 180 to 220 pounds, but would be unlikely to lose or gain more than this.).
Weight gain or being obese is direct invitation to various diseases. For example most people with type 2 diabetes are found to be obese. Cancer is also somewhat related to overweight. Obesity also bring negative effects to our parts of body like, muscles and bones, cause eyes and mouth disorders, sleep disorders.
Obesity in USA : According to a survey billions of dollars are spending every year by Americans to lose weight. Major portion of their saving is going to diet programs, diet foods, books etc. Here one dangerous trend has started to skip you meals if you want to lose weight. What do you think about it? Do you think by doing this obesity can be eliminated?
The answer is straight-forward NO. By doing this body loses muscle and bone mass quickly and can lead to low blood sugar which is not good if you want to lose weight. Moreover skipping meal is invitation to overweight.
Solution : You need to eat sensibly and in a consistent manner if you want to lose weight. Regular exercise is also a good solution. Include crisp veggie salads in your meal instead of oily food. If possible steam, or bake you foods. Drink lots of water as it is essential to all bodily functions and has no calories. Avoid colas and other sweet drinks, instead drink fresh juices. Eat slowly and enjoy your food.
Why I am saying to eat properly is because obesity is related to your eating habits in a certain manner. By eating in proper manner it is possible to protect yourself of being overweight. Remember one thing that purpose of losing weight is to lead a healthy life, not to become thin.
This article is submitted by Madeleine, Editor to http://www.pillslim.com
Please Visit the website http://www.pillslim.comfor more solutions about Weight Loss.
Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts: Part 4Jesse Cannone CFT, CPRS, CSPN and Steve Hefferon, Welcome to article number 4 in our series Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts. In this article we are going to talk about how bodybuilders tend to create massive muscle imbalances and what you can do to not be one of them.
If you missed the first article, you can read it by clicking on the link below.
Heres a breakdown of the articles to look for:
1. Article 1 - Choosing The WRONG Exercises
2. Article 2 - Training Variations for Pain Relief and Maximum Results
3. Article 3 - Targeted Stretching
4. Article 4 - Targeted Exercises
5. Article 5 - Rest, Recovery, and Injury Prevention
Article 4 - Targeted Exercises
What is a Targeted Exercise and Why You Need To Be Doing Them?
While performing three different exercises for each area of the chest may sound targeted and it may work great for targeting the chest itself this is NOT what we mean by targeted
What we are talking about is choosing exercises with more than just size increases in mind remember, there is far more to muscle than just how it looks You can be really big, but also weak, slow and inflexible.
To drive this point home some more, remember the Turtle Back Syndrome we covered in article 1? So many body builders are plagued with this gruesome condition and they dont even know it! Are you?
The Turtle Back condition is a direct result of too much focus on building up the pecs and lats and not enough focus on the upper back. Also, the lack of focus on flexibility in the chest and shoulders makes it even worse
Not only does this look stupid, but it sets you up for back, neck and shoulder problems like rotator cuff tears and the like and I know you dont want any of those!
So by targeted, we mean exercises that will not just develop muscle strength and size, but more importantly work towards correcting muscle imbalances which will mean less pain and missed workouts, better performance and function, and most of all better and balanced total body development!
So How Do You Find Out Which Ones You NEED To be Doing?
As we discussed in the previous article on Targeted Stretching, its very important to know before hand what stretches you actually NEED to be doing the same applies to exercises
and the ONLY way to find out what specific areas you need to target is to perform physical evaluations so you can pin point the weak muscles that need strengthening and the tight muscles that need stretching.
We have developed a series of simple assessments you can do yourself to identify the muscles imbalances you have
and while they are intended for people suffering from back pain or sciatica, as a bodybuilder you stand to benefit greatly because you train so hard, you are far more likely to experience injuries like bulging and herniated discs, rotator cuff tears, knee pain, etc
Plus, even if you dont have any pain or injuries now, it would be very wise to learn how to assess yourself so you can target your training now before you create an injury, which not only will slow down your training and progress, but it can also become a life-long struggle with pain and a serious loss of your strength, size and fitness.
So be sure to check out our website to learn more about how you can quickly and easily identify and eliminate any muscle imbalances you have http://www.losethebackpain.com
Article by Jesse Cannone, CFT, CPRS, CSPN and Steve Hefferon, CMT, CPRS of http://www.losethebackpain.comIf youve got back pain or sciatic pain, youve gotta check out their website!
Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts: Part 3Jesse Cannone CFT, CPRS, CSPN and Steve Hefferon, Welcome to article number 2 in our series Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts. In this article we are going to talk about how bodybuilders tend to create massive muscle imbalances and what you can do to not be one of them.
If you missed the first article, you can read it by clicking on the link below.
Heres a breakdown of the articles to look for:
1. Article 1 - Choosing The WRONG Exercises
2. Article 2 - Training Variations for Pain Relief and Maximum Results
3. Article 3 - Targeted Stretching
4. Article 4 - Targeted Exercises
5. Article 5 - Rest, Recovery, and Injury Prevention
Article 3 - Targeted Stretching
Stretching can be great, but it can also make existing injuries worse or even bring about new ones!
The key to making stretching work for you is knowing which stretches you need to be working on and just because a muscle feels tight, that doesnt necessarily mean it needs to be stretched.
For example, many people stretch the hamstrings because they feel tight and they think the hamstrings are limiting their flexibility
the fact is, most of the time the hamstrings are tight because they are constantly being pulled / lengthened due to muscle imbalances that tip the pelvis forward.
As you can, when the pelvis tips forward the hamstrings get pulled upward and are constantly held in a stretched position
And this is why millions of people can stretch their hamstrings every freakin day and never make any improvement in their flexibility.
Are you one of those people?
If you are, you need to stop stretching your hamstrings and find out exactly which muscles you need to be targeting by reading the rest of this article
Not only does this forward tipping of the pelvis (which is caused by muscle imbalances) keep the hamstrings tight and make it very difficult to make improvements in the muscles flexibility, but it also leads to the following:
increased stress / wear and tear from the ankles all the way up the spine
For example, the forward tipping of the pelvis places uneven pressure on the ankle, knee and hip joints and also many of the vertebrae in the spine.
weakens the hamstrings, inhibits normal functioning and increases the likelihood of hamstring pulls
When the hamstrings are constantly being strained because of the muscle imbalances, the muscle is weak, not able to function as it normally would, prone to injury and without correcting the muscle imbalance recover can take up to 9 months to a year, or longer!
creates excess curvature in the lower and middle spine
This tipping of the pelvis places excessive amounts of abnormal stress on the muscles, vertebrae and discs in the lower and mid spine and this sets you up for potential injuries to the muscles of the lower and middle back
Plus, it also causes the discs between your vertebrae to wear down and deteriorate much faster than they normally would and this sets you up for degenerative, bulging, protruding and herniated discs along with numerous other spinal conditions like arthritis, spinal stenosis, and the oh so popular sciatica!
This hamstring example is just one of many muscle imbalances are responsible for nearly every ache, pain, injury and condition out there!
Here are a few more examples of injuries / conditions that are caused by muscle imbalances and can easily be prevented and/or eliminated with targeted stretches and exercises:
upper back and neck pain
shoulder injuries (rotator cuff)
elbow and wrist pain (carpal tunnel, tennis/golfer/baseball elbow, etc)
knee pain (runners knee, chondromalacia, ligament tears, etc)
hip pain (IT band syndrome, bursitis, etc)
ankle pain (Achilles tendonitis, shin splints, plantar fasciitis, heel spurs, etc)
All of these conditions are caused by muscle imbalances and will NOT go away unless you work towards correcting the imbalances and the only way to know for sure which imbalances are causing your pain or injury is to do a series of physical assessments like the ones covered in our Lose the Back Pain Video which is designed for anyone suffering from back pain or sciatica.
What the heck is a targeted stretch?
This is a question we are asked often and heres the definition we give it:
Targeted Stretch - a stretch or stretching exercise that is chosen, based on physical assessments, to target a specific muscle or muscle group to increase the flexibility and range of motion in that area and bring the bones and or joints back towards the normal position.
When you compare a targeted stretch to general stretches like the ones found in Yoga, Pilates and the corny ones your doctor, chiropractor or physical therapist gives you, its no surprise they give little or no pain relief and almost always fail to get rid of the problem.
Conclusion
Remember, the key to eliminating injuries and preventing future ones is to identify what areas you need to target. In the next article well be discussing in detail, how to address various injuries like back, hip, knee, and shoulder pain with targeted exercises. In the meantime, be sure to read thru all of our detailed Back Pain Articles and if you have questions, please post them in our Discussion Forum.
Article by Jesse Cannone, CFT, CPRS, CSPN and Steve Hefferon, CMT, CPRS of http://www.losethebackpain.comIf youve got back pain or sciatic pain, youve gotta check out their website!
Labels: brookhaven-obesity-clinic, obesity-in-the-united-states, obesity-pictures
Posted In Obesity Facts at
11:33 PM
