If You Missed The Show/Body Balance…

If you missed the show on Saturday… we were discussing how to bring balance in to your life and physical training…and just how important but overlooked it is.  To share in this conversation with us, we spoke Paula Owen, author of “The Power of 4” about how to live a well-rounded life!

The wellness wheel provides a visual representation of the concept of wellness that demonstrates the need for “balanced” or “well-rounded” lives. To attain and maintain harmony and balance in our lives, we must pay attention to each of the four dimensions of wellness. To neglect or over-emphasize any of the four dimensions will result in an out-of-balance (out-of-round) wellness wheel.

Imagine the wellness wheel as a tire made up of four separate air chambers – each one representing a dimension of wellness. If one or more of these air chambers is either over-inflated or under-inflated, the wheel will be unbalanced and the road of life will be a bumpy one. We roll along through life more smoothly when our lives are “well-rounded” or balanced. These ideas are represented visually through the three following graphics:

Balanced/Round Wellness Wheel

This wellness wheel belongs to a person who takes responsibility for achieving balance in his/her life. As a result, this person is rolling along smoothly through life – for whom everything is going “just right”.

Out-of-balance/Out-of-round Wellness Wheel #1

This wheel could represent a person who is overly concerned with having fun and socializing (social dimension), and neglects the physical dimension (e.g., has a low-level of physical fitness, and/or is overweight, and/or does not have a healthy diet, etc.).

Out-of-balance/Out-of-round Wellness Wheel #2

This wellness wheel is that of a person who is obsessed with the physical dimension of wellness. He or she engages in physical activity for so many hours each day that there is no time for attending to elements of wellness in the other dimensions (e.g., meaningful relationships, reading).

Balance, Body balance

For help developing your well-balanced training program, to podcast this show or simply for more fitness and health information, visit Totallyfitradio.com.

If You Missed The Show/Golf Fitness & Performance…

If you missed the show this morning… we were discussing how to improve your performance in your given sport through sports performance training.  And specifically…we spoke with Dr. Craig Davies, author of ‘Golf Anatomy”, about performance training for the golf pro…or amateur so you can improve your swing…and lessen your score!

Sports performance training is designed to meet the needs of many different athletes, and can prove instrumental in their over-all success.  Amateur and professional athletes may have different goals, but both are learning to utilize the same tools.    Discipline, focus and intelligence can be found in any winning athlete, and these are the things which are taught in sports performance training.

A healthier approach to sports! This is especially important with young athletes who are developing the work habits that with stay with them for many years.  Sports excellence training teaches the athlete how to achieve proper balance in their lives – so that sports do not overshadow personal or family life.

A more disciplined approach to sports! Sports mental training can help athletes achieve excellence by designing customized practice regimens – and then giving the individual the cognitive tools to stick with the plan every day.

Enhanced focus on the field! Focus training is one of the most important elements in athletic excellence coaching.    Counselors and mental trainers can help identify those areas which are causing athletes to become distracted on the field, and develop solutions that “retrain their brain” and shift focus back to the athletic activity.

Better mechanics! When a golfer or baseball player loses their swing mechanics, they can see their career sink rapidly in decline.  Sports excellence training uses technology and therapy to help athletes rediscover their swing and maintain it through thousands and thousands of repetitions.

Measurable results! Sports excellence training programs provide instant feedback on the athlete’s performance.  As the program progresses, they can see how, specifically, their training regimen is affecting what they do on the field.  This kind of reporting helps individual focus only on those areas that need the most work.

For help develop your sport specific training program, to podcast this show or    simply for more    fitness and health information, visit Totallyfitradio.com.

If You Missed The Show/Specificity Training…

If you missed the show this morning you missed “DDP”…Diamond Dallas Page…Former Pro-Wrestler, speaker and Actor.  Michelle and I spoke with “DDP” about his new workout program, YRG Fitness and how various workout programs may be better suited for a specific portion of the population.  We are not all the same and as individuals, our bodies are changing.  So to compensate for that, we need to change the way we workout!

Physical fitness should be an important part of all people’s lives, no matter what their age or gender. A healthy lifestyle is something that will not only help you to live longer, but will help the years you live to be more enjoyable. Everyone needs good nutrition and physical activity to give their bodies the best possible chance of health and longevity.

Starting the habit of healthy eating and daily exercise in early childhood can help children grow into healthy teens that carry their good health habits with them into adulthood. Although we all need basic activity and nutrition, the amount needed can be different depending on our gender, or as we age.

Children have lots of energy. That is a great thing! It means it shouldn’t be very hard to convince them to get out there to run and play. The NIH recommends that children get at least one hour of physical exercise every day. When adults think exercise, they usually think of being in the gym with some weights or the stair master, but when talking about children, exercise means playtime.

As we grow into adulthood our bodies require a little more than just some time on the playground, however, many of the activities we enjoyed as a child are still great exercise as adults. Jumping rope, swimming and games like soccer remain excellent cardiovascular exercises. These exercises work off fat, build up our stamina and help strengthen our circulatory system.

The recommended amount of exercise for adults over the age of 18 is at least 4 separate instances of physical activity that lasts for a constant 30 to 45 minutes every week. This number remains the same no matter if you are male or female. One thing males seem to take time for in their exercises that many women seem to shy away from is strength training.

Working out with free weights has shown to be the best way to build lean muscle mass. Due to the higher levels of testosterone produced by males, they build larger muscles faster.  Muscle mass helps to burn calories while the body is in rest. It also adds strength and balance to the entire body.

Women lack the testosterone levels that men have to build muscle. A woman following the same weight lifting routine as her male counterpart would not grow large like the man, even if they did the exact same workout.  When women strength train, their bodies become tighter and more toned, the dense muscle tissue is more compact than fat, making the body appear longer and leaner.  All men and women should add strength training to their recommended physical activity levels.

As we continue to age into our golden years, physical fitness remains extremely important. It is suggested that seniors should make sure to get a variety of exercises for balance to help prevent fall, stretching to keep the joints flexible and limber, strength training to reduce age related muscle loss and low impact cardio to maintain cardiovascular health.

The recommended amount of activity is 30 minutes on most, if not every day. Seniors should follow the same diet as an adult but with added attention to getting enough servings of fiber.  With their regular diet, however, seniors need a bit extra of a few vitamins and minerals than adults under the age of 50. These vitamins are B12, B6, Vitamin D and Calcium. Healthy eating habits and physical activity play and important role in our lives. Although amounts of activity needed and amounts of vitamins may vary, the basics of good health remain the same for men and women of all ages.

YRG Fitness, Specificity Training, Core, Yoga

For help develop your specific training program, to podcast this show or simply for more    fitness and health information,  visit Totallyfitradio.com.

If You Missed The Show/Fun With Exercise…

If you missed the show this morning you missed an opportunity to feel like a kid again. Hey…jumping rope isn’t just for kids anymore! We interviewed jump rope conditioning expert and CEO of Jump Rope Tech, Buddy Lee about how jump rope training helps improve balance, coordination and performance. The reality is; it’s not only a great cardiovascular exercise, but it truly increases body awareness and develops hand and foot coordination.

It’s easy to get started. Just find some comfortable shoes and a good rope and you’re on your way.  The best shoes for jumping rope are either aerobic shoes or cross-trainers.  Make sure your shoes are reinforced and provide a lot of cushion for the balls of the feet and arch support.

Ropes aren’t what they used to be!   Some have weighted handles these are usually too cumbersome.  You should choose a light-weight rope with foam grips so it won’t slip away from you even if your palms get sweaty.   So here’s how to choose the right length rope:  Step one foot on the center of the rope and bring both handles up to the chest. The handles should reach about chest high.

Getting started:

•  Lightly grip the handles near the end closest to the rope.

•  Keep your shoulders relaxed and your elbows close to your body.

•  Your knees should be bent slightly.

•  Turn the rope from the wrist and aim to keep a smooth arc in the rope as it passes over your head.

•  Never hunch over. Keep your back straight and your head up.

•  Jump low to keep the impact on your knees and ankles to a minimum.

If it’s been a while since you jumped rope, don’t worry, nothing has really changed.   But what you need to know is that it’s one heck of a workout that can be really fun!  One way to make it fun is to turn on some high-energy music. Now once you have the basics down, try getting a little creative.  Jump backward or vary your foot patterns.  Try bringing your knees to your chest, scissoring your legs or twirling the rope from side to side.   But most importantly…stick with it.  If you do you will see results in cardiovascular strength and endurance.  And who knows…you might even feel like a kid again!

Jumping rope, Jump rope exercises, jump rope fun

For help building cardiovascular strength while having fun, to podcast this show or simply for more    fitness and health information,  visit Totallyfitradio.com.

If You Missed The Show/Organ Health…

If you missed the show just hours ago…hey, I’m a poet! Anyway, all too often people think that a body that looks good and feels good…is in good health. So not true! There are many factors that can cause organs to become toxic and potentially lead to failure. And to help us explain this very important fact this morning and what can be done, we spoke with Willa Lange, CEO of the National Kidney Foundation of America.

So let’s discuss what the major organs our, their function and how they work. The Major organs are the: brain, heart, lungs, kidneys, stomach, liver, gall bladder, spleen, and pancreas and believe it or not, your bones and skin. I am pretty certain you already have a basic understanding of these organs, but here’s a refresher and hopefully a little additional information. So here is how the process works of creating your organ systems:

• Your cells are living units that making up your body.

• Groups of cells form specialized tissues.

• Groups of tissues form your organs.

• There are eleven organ systems that govern all of your physiological activities.

These organ systems are:

1. Nervous System

2. Endocrine System

3. Cardiovascular System

4. Respiratory System

5. Digestive System

6. Urinary System

7. Muscular System

8. Skeletal System

9. Integumentary (Skin) System

10. Immune System (includes Lymphatic System)

11. Reproductive System

Each of your organ systems are groups of organs that work together to carry out specific duties in your body. For example, your digestive system is an organ system that requires contributions from a number of organs, including your stomach, small intestine, large intestine, liver, pancreas, and gall bladder; all of these organs work together to digest the foods that you eat, and transfer the nutrients in the foods that you eat from your small intestine to your cells. To find out how to pay special close attention to the function of your systems of organs, visit www.totallyfitradio.com and podcast the show.

For help protecting your organs, to podcast this show or simply for more    fitness and health information,  visit Totallyfitradio.com.