Are you stronger in one leg, or arm than the other? Most of us are. Because one hand (or leg) dominates that hand (or leg) gets stronger while the other gets weaker. if you play a sport,like tennis or baseball where one hand predominates, this will only make the imbalance greater. An injury will also compound the problem as your body automatically moves to protect the injured side from being re injured.
Unfortunately these imbalances can lead to even more injuries, as it often means you have one side tighter than the other too, which will make your overly tight muscles pull your skeleton out of alignment.
Unfortunately, some of the equipment we use at the gym only reinforces this. If you only use barbels or only ever do squats, you're probably only making this imbalance worse.
So, next time you're at the gym try a dumbbell or cable machine instead of a barbell, and try squats instead of lunges. You'll probably notice the differences between sides right away, but persist with this 'single sided' training and you'll soon correct the imbalances.
Adrienne Jerram
Thursday, February 6, 2014
Are you a little lopsided?
Are you stronger in one leg, or arm than the other? Most of us are. Because one hand (or leg) dominates that hand (or leg) gets stronger while the other gets weaker. if you play a sport,like tennis or baseball where one hand predominates, this will only make the imbalance greater. An injury will also compound the problem as your body automatically moves to protect the injured side from being re injured.
Unfortunately these imbalances can lead to even more injuries, as it often means you have one side tighter than the other too, which will make your overly tight muscles pull your skeleton out of alignment.
Unfortunately, some of the equipment we use at the gym only reinforces this. If you only use barbels or only ever do squats, you're probably only making this imbalance worse.
So, next time you're at the gym try a dumbbell or cable machine instead of a barbell, and try squats instead of lunges. You'll probably notice the differences between sides right away, but persist with this 'single sided' training and you'll soon correct the imbalances.
Unfortunately these imbalances can lead to even more injuries, as it often means you have one side tighter than the other too, which will make your overly tight muscles pull your skeleton out of alignment.
Unfortunately, some of the equipment we use at the gym only reinforces this. If you only use barbels or only ever do squats, you're probably only making this imbalance worse.
So, next time you're at the gym try a dumbbell or cable machine instead of a barbell, and try squats instead of lunges. You'll probably notice the differences between sides right away, but persist with this 'single sided' training and you'll soon correct the imbalances.
Never say never
So this blog nearly didn't happen. Too much training (other people and myself). Too much life. Too much stuff.
But, when I was swimming today my mind finally got to wander and this is what I thought.
Some twenty years ago when my daughter was born I fell into a pretty horrendous depression. Drugs, psych ward, the whole lot. I remember once, right at the beginning being at a baby health clinic when the nurse got a call from a friend. Did she want to go for an evening swim that night? It was February. It was warm. It was daylight saving. A swim sounded lovely.
And I remember thinking 'My life has changed. How can I ever swim again. I'll never swim again.' The whole swimming thing seemed impossible.
And yet, this evening, there I was, on a warm February daylight savings type of evening. Swimming. And who knows, maybe, earlier that day, I'd got a call about the swimming and maybe someone had overheard me and thought they'd never go swimming again.
I wonder if I'd known that twenty years ago if it would have made any difference.
But, when I was swimming today my mind finally got to wander and this is what I thought.
Some twenty years ago when my daughter was born I fell into a pretty horrendous depression. Drugs, psych ward, the whole lot. I remember once, right at the beginning being at a baby health clinic when the nurse got a call from a friend. Did she want to go for an evening swim that night? It was February. It was warm. It was daylight saving. A swim sounded lovely.
And I remember thinking 'My life has changed. How can I ever swim again. I'll never swim again.' The whole swimming thing seemed impossible.
And yet, this evening, there I was, on a warm February daylight savings type of evening. Swimming. And who knows, maybe, earlier that day, I'd got a call about the swimming and maybe someone had overheard me and thought they'd never go swimming again.
I wonder if I'd known that twenty years ago if it would have made any difference.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Flexible or a push over?
I've always wondered where to draw the line between when to be flexible and accommodating of other people's needs and when to 'draw the line' and put my own needs first. There's a balance there somewhere and I don't think I've found it.
Ponder on this this. There's a chocolate you like, but when you get to the supermarket there's only one left, and two of you reaching for it at the same time. What do you do?
I'd definitely offer it up to the other person. Which is fine sometimes ... but always??? Am I not equally as deserving? Why wouldn't the other person offer it up to me? Does taking it myself make me greedy? If so why would I never see the other person as equally as greedy?
I'm not offering up a solution here, because I don't have one, other than to say there is nothing wrong with being selfish.
I'd love to hear what other people think ...
A
Ponder on this this. There's a chocolate you like, but when you get to the supermarket there's only one left, and two of you reaching for it at the same time. What do you do?
I'd definitely offer it up to the other person. Which is fine sometimes ... but always??? Am I not equally as deserving? Why wouldn't the other person offer it up to me? Does taking it myself make me greedy? If so why would I never see the other person as equally as greedy?
I'm not offering up a solution here, because I don't have one, other than to say there is nothing wrong with being selfish.
I'd love to hear what other people think ...
A
Monday, February 3, 2014
Clean eating
I wanted to tackle the issue of 'clean eating'. A catch phrase that's banded around without much discussion abourt what it actually means (except that most people agree that there's loads of chicken and broccoli involved). From Paleo, to no sugar, to counting macros ... there are loads of options that all proclaim to be 'clean'.
So what is clean eating? The truth is there is no one definition. To me its just eating to achieve your goal in a way that is not destructive to your body. So, if your goal is to stress less, maybe your diet will include a few more take away options in a week, if it's to enter a body building comp you'll be eating to bulk or lean out. If your goal is to fit into those skinny jeans again, you'll be reducing overall calories and staying away from carbs in the evening.
My goal at the moment is to complete a long course triathlon. With all the training associated with endurance sports, I find I get exhausted if I don't eat enough. So I'm eating a lot, including carbs with dinner, just to ensure I feel fresh enough to train. I'm not weighing myself, or spending too long in front of the mirror because at the moment I don't want to stress if the extra eating adds a couple of extra kilos, I just want to stay focussed on getting these arms and legs to power me through a 2km swim, 83km cycle and 20 (gulp) km run.
But no matter what my goal there are a few guidelines I try to follow.
1. I try to fit as many green (and orange and red and white) vegetables into my diet as I can
2. I try to stay away from ingredients I can't pronounce
3. I try and make sure any meat and dairy is organic, or raised and killed humanely
4. I try not to become so extreme it becomes anti-social and make sure I make sure I have some treat meals scheduled in
5. Stress is the enemy of good health, so if it stresses me out, it's not healthy.
So what is clean eating? The truth is there is no one definition. To me its just eating to achieve your goal in a way that is not destructive to your body. So, if your goal is to stress less, maybe your diet will include a few more take away options in a week, if it's to enter a body building comp you'll be eating to bulk or lean out. If your goal is to fit into those skinny jeans again, you'll be reducing overall calories and staying away from carbs in the evening.
My goal at the moment is to complete a long course triathlon. With all the training associated with endurance sports, I find I get exhausted if I don't eat enough. So I'm eating a lot, including carbs with dinner, just to ensure I feel fresh enough to train. I'm not weighing myself, or spending too long in front of the mirror because at the moment I don't want to stress if the extra eating adds a couple of extra kilos, I just want to stay focussed on getting these arms and legs to power me through a 2km swim, 83km cycle and 20 (gulp) km run.
But no matter what my goal there are a few guidelines I try to follow.
1. I try to fit as many green (and orange and red and white) vegetables into my diet as I can
2. I try to stay away from ingredients I can't pronounce
3. I try and make sure any meat and dairy is organic, or raised and killed humanely
4. I try not to become so extreme it becomes anti-social and make sure I make sure I have some treat meals scheduled in
5. Stress is the enemy of good health, so if it stresses me out, it's not healthy.
The plank
When I was a kid 'the plank' was the name of an 'hilarious' British comedy starring Eric Sykes and various actors from Dad's army. I guess it was a classic because it was on all the time.
Now days the plank is something completely different. Named the king of all ab exercises the plank involves holding yourself prone on your forearms and toes (or knees if you really have to). The ability to hold yourself in plank position for 3 minutes straight is sign of a rock solid core. The plank works a range of upper, lower and abdominal muscles, including shoulders, abdominals, flutes and even the neck.
Plank looks simple, but it's not, it's tough physically and mentally. A minute sitting on the sofa watching TV seems to last, well, a minute. A minute held in plank feels more like an hour.
The plank can be made easier by dropping to your knees, or harder by raising one leg, flipping onto your side (on arm and one leg) or adding additional instability (try it with your feet in a TRX).
The best way to improve your plank time is to hold the plank as long as you can, take a rest of half that duration, then repeat twice more. As soon as you can do three one minute plank with 30 second rest between, start decreasing the rest.
In no time you'll be planking like the best of them. And, who knows, if your plank time ever gets up to 45 minutes, you can do it while watching The Plank
Now days the plank is something completely different. Named the king of all ab exercises the plank involves holding yourself prone on your forearms and toes (or knees if you really have to). The ability to hold yourself in plank position for 3 minutes straight is sign of a rock solid core. The plank works a range of upper, lower and abdominal muscles, including shoulders, abdominals, flutes and even the neck.
Plank looks simple, but it's not, it's tough physically and mentally. A minute sitting on the sofa watching TV seems to last, well, a minute. A minute held in plank feels more like an hour.
The plank can be made easier by dropping to your knees, or harder by raising one leg, flipping onto your side (on arm and one leg) or adding additional instability (try it with your feet in a TRX).
The best way to improve your plank time is to hold the plank as long as you can, take a rest of half that duration, then repeat twice more. As soon as you can do three one minute plank with 30 second rest between, start decreasing the rest.
In no time you'll be planking like the best of them. And, who knows, if your plank time ever gets up to 45 minutes, you can do it while watching The Plank
Saturday, February 1, 2014
Break it down
Big goals overwhelm me. Sometimes, if they're really bid, they feel like they're crushing me and I'll never achieve them. But, instead of quitting, lately I've been trying to break those big suckers down into something that seems achievable.
Running sucks. Short runs ruck, and long runs suck even more. Unfortunately they are the inevitable ending (usually after an okay swim and fantastic ride) to every triathlon. And the longer the triathlon, the longer the run.
In three weeks time I will be running 20 kilometres after having swum 2km and cycled 83km. I'm determined not to let it beat me. So, instead of looking at it as one, long run, I'm training my mind to break the sucker down into small components. Early on in the race it will be to think about making it to the next aid station (2km away). But when things really get tough. I'm going to have to think about running in much shorter intervals, like the next tree, or lamp post. Eventually, lamp post by lamp post I'll cross the finish line.
If, at the beginning of the run, I allowed my mind to on everything left to complete, I would never be able to reach my goal. But, by tricking my mind, I'm giving my body the opportunity to fulfil its true potential.
Running sucks. Short runs ruck, and long runs suck even more. Unfortunately they are the inevitable ending (usually after an okay swim and fantastic ride) to every triathlon. And the longer the triathlon, the longer the run.
In three weeks time I will be running 20 kilometres after having swum 2km and cycled 83km. I'm determined not to let it beat me. So, instead of looking at it as one, long run, I'm training my mind to break the sucker down into small components. Early on in the race it will be to think about making it to the next aid station (2km away). But when things really get tough. I'm going to have to think about running in much shorter intervals, like the next tree, or lamp post. Eventually, lamp post by lamp post I'll cross the finish line.
If, at the beginning of the run, I allowed my mind to on everything left to complete, I would never be able to reach my goal. But, by tricking my mind, I'm giving my body the opportunity to fulfil its true potential.
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