“Bodybuilding Sins” That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts

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It’s one thing for someone who sits at a computer all day and never exercises to have back pain, but for a bodybuilder, someone who spends hours and hours each week pouring everything they’ve got into building muscle, it should be criminal!
The reason we say this is because, if you are going to spend so much time, money, and energy trying to build the “perfect body”, you have to make sure that you not only look good but also feel good…
We’ve identified what we call “Bodybuilding Sins” that lead to back pain, sciatic pain, and other injuries… read them and take action now if you are serious about bodybuilding and are fed up with your back pain.
Because there is so much information to share with you, we’ve broken it down into a series of 5 articles, each covering a different component of how back pain affects bodybuilders.
Here’s a breakdown of the articles to look for:

Article #1 - Choosing The WRONG Exercises (below)
Article #2 - Training Variations for Pain Relief and Maximum Results
Article #3 - Targeted Stretching
Article #4 - Targeted Exercises
Article #5 - Rest, Recovery, and Injury Prevention

 

Article #1 - Choosing the Wrong Exercises
Get ready, this is gonna hurt! The exercises most bodybuilders focus on the most are the ones that cause the most problems… hopefully, you’re different J
But before we share with you what those exercises are, let’s talk real quickly about what bodybuilding is…
The goal of bodybuilding isn’t to get as big as you can, or at least to us it isn’t and shouldn’t be, but to build a balanced body that is as strong as possible in every way. For example, while being freakishly big may get people’s attention, it serves you no purpose at all…
while on the other hand, what if you were not only big, but also extremely strong and powerful, lightning-fast, flexible, and agile enough to kick ass if needed?
So many bodybuilders build massive amounts of muscle yet are so unbelievably weak and inflexible… for example, we know a guy who can bench press over 350 lbs but can’t do a measly 50 push-ups!
The point is, the exercises you choose and how you perform them not only determine how big, strong, and flexible you are, but also affect how your body functions and whether or not you suffer from aches, pains, and injuries like back pain and sciatic pain.
Ok, here they are… the exercises that create the most problems and are most likely to lead to back pain: Bench Press
Leg Extension So, any of your favorites on this list?
While there are others, these are the two that cause the most damage.
There are several reasons why these exercises made our list of the “worst bodybuilding exercises”. First, all of the target areas that already tend to get worked a lot in everyday life and often times are overdeveloped…
and by focusing so much on these exercises you end up creating muscle imbalances, or worsening existing muscle imbalances, which pull your bones and joints out of their normal position…
and this leads to uneven pressure and wear and tear on your muscle, ligaments, tendons, bones, and joints and will sooner or later lead to a breakdown or injury.
For example, chronic overuse of the bench press, coupled with little or no exercises targeting the upper back, leads to an overdevelopment of the chest and a lack of strength and development in the upper back…
This all too common combination leads to what we call “TurtleBack”. You know what we’re talking about when the shoulders are pulled so far forward, lats are as wide as a barn, and from behind, their back looks like a giant sea turtle shell!
This “TurtleBack” posture can create neck, upper back, and shoulder pain and injuries faster than you can pop an Advil!
Plus, how many times during your day are you forced to lie on your back and push up a bar loaded with weights? There are so many better exercises for chest development that not only stimulate more muscle but also build more usable strength.
Now let’s talk about the fabulous thigh builder, the leg extension…
Not only does it place an unbelievable amount of strain on the knee joint, but it also will quickly overdevelop the quads, which are already getting far more work than their counterpart, the hamstrings.
An imbalance between the quadriceps and hamstrings, which is also extremely common in bodybuilders, is a key contributor to back pain. This imbalance is easily identifiable by what people often call “Bubble Butt” or “Ghetto Booty”.
So hopefully you can see how important it is to choose your exercises wisely. We strongly recommend you cut out these exercises, or at least cut back on using them and add in targeted exercises for the opposing muscle groups and targeted stretches for those tight, overdeveloped muscles.
The key to eliminating back pain, or any other ache, pain, or injury for that matter, is to bring your body closer to balance…
What good is muscle if you can’t use it? How many more workouts are you going to miss because of back, neck, or shoulder pain? How much bigger and stronger could you be if back pain and other injuries weren’t ruining your training?
Just imagine how bad things will be 10, 20, or 30 years from now if you don’t make changes to your training now… but don’t take our word for it, ask some of the older bodybuilders who are paying the price now... you can spot them easily at the gym because they limp around trying to find something they CAN do.
Look for the next article, “Training Variations for Pain Relief and Maximum Results” very soon, and in the meantime, if you are suffering from back pain or sciatic pain, here’s what you need to do…
Head on over to our website http://www.losethebackpain.com now to find out exactly what’s causing your back pain and the specific steps you need to take to get relief fast and get back to training at 100%.

"Banking Calories": Eat Less Now To Pig Out Later???

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Suppose you’re on a diet and you have a banquet or a holiday party coming up. You’re expecting a big meal to be served for dinner, and there will be an open bar with lots and lots of “party snacks.” You’re not sure if there will be any healthy food there, but you are sure that you’re going to be in a festive, partying mood! What should you do? Should you cut back on your food earlier in the day to make room for the big feast?
What I’ve just described is commonly known as "banking calories," which is analogous to saving calories like money because you're going to consume more later, and it’s a very common practice among dieters. If you’re really serious about your diet and fitness goals, however, then the answer is no, you should NOT “bank calories! Here's why and here's what you should do instead:
First of all, if you're being really honest with yourself, you have to agree that there's almost always something healthy to eat at any gathering. You know those tables you see at holiday parties that are covered with yards of chips, dips, pretzels, cookies, salami, candies, cheese, punch, liquor, and a seemingly endless assortment of other goodies? Well, did you also notice that there's usually a tray full of carrot sticks, cauliflower, celery, fruit, turkey breast, and other healthy snacks too?
No matter where you are, you always have options, so make the best choice you can based on whatever your options are. If nothing else, you can choose to eat a small portion of "party foods" rather than a huge portion.
If you skip meals or eat less earlier in the day to bank calories for a big feast at night, you are thinking only in terms of calories, but you're depriving yourself of the valuable nutrition you need all day long in terms of protein (amino acids), carbohydrates, essential fats, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients that come from healthy food, as well as the small frequent meals required to stoke the furnace of your metabolism.
Not only that, but eating less early in the day in anticipation of overeating later is more likely to increase your appetite, causing you to binge or eat much more than you thought you would at night when the banquet does arrive.
Eating healthy food earlier in the day is likely to fill you up and you'll be less likely to overeat in the evening. High fiber foods, healthy fats, and especially lean protein tend to suppress your appetite the most.
I don’t like the concept of "banking calories." Your body just doesn't work that way - it tends to seek equilibrium by adjusting your appetite to the point where you consume the same total amount of calories in the end anyway.
Even if it worked the way you wanted it to, why would you eat less (starve) in an attempt to burn more fat, then overeat (binge) and put the fat right back on? Why allow yourself to put on fat in the first place?
A starving and bingeing pattern will almost certainly cause more damage than an occasional oversize meal. Some dieticians might even say that this kind of behavior borders on disordered eating.
A better approach is to stay on your regular menu of healthy foods and small meals through the entire day - business as usual - and then go ahead and treat yourself to a "cheat meal" but sure to keep your portions small.
It should be a big relief to know that on special occasions, whether it's a party, restaurant meal, banquet, or holiday dinner, you can eat whatever you want with little or no ill effect on body composition, as long as you respect the law of calorie balance. However, you CANNOT starve and binge and expect not to reap negative consequences.
To burn fat and be healthy, you don't have to be a "party pooper" or completely deny yourself of foods you enjoy, but you do need to have the discipline to stick with your regular meal plan most of the time and control your portion sizes all of the time.

Acne Scar Solution

 

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After deciding to visit a dermatologist, you may wonder whether prescription drugs are effective for the prevention of acne as well. Experts say that all standard dermatological treatments for adult acne should also be used for prevention.
If a topical combination therapy of traditional medicine is unsuccessful, then your dermatologists may suggest that you begin taking oral antibiotics such as tetracycline, erythromycin, or minocycline while using topical creams. They may also suggest that you undergo some laser treatments just to get rid of those acne scars.
Fortunately, there are other ways to do it naturally. There are skincare products these days that have natural ingredients and biological substances that are effective in treating acne scars as well.
However, these acne scar treatments will be useless if you fail to identify the causes of acne. Chances are, it will only re-occur and get back to being a problem once again. So, it’s always better to identify its causes before you treat the acne and get rid of the scar.
Some experts explain acne breakouts based on a psychological dilemma. They say that a persistent skin symptom can be a message from your inner self. Stress and an imbalanced diet may be triggering this skin problem.
Avoid stress as it can trigger the accumulation of acne. Try saying no more often, it’s just like when your plate is full, don’t put more on it. Instead, practice finding some quiet time for yourself and try to rest more on weekends.
Indeed, there are no nippy fixes in treating acne and acne scars. It may involve a lot of processes and products which may vary depending on how you will utilize them or what your doctor will prescribe.
However, the best part of treating them is to stay on the natural side. Use skincare products that contain biological substances and try to maintain a no-stressed life. In this way, you will surely obtain that wonderful skin you had before.
Bio Skin Care cream is a natural treatment for Acne scars due to its natural components. Clinical trials have shown that the best skin renewal and skin repair results are achieved when exfoliation of damaged cells is combined with SKIN REGENERATING ACTIVATORS. That’s why this cream will resolve your skin problems.
Other reasons:
1. This cream also contains natural antibiotics that fight infection
2. It has natural skin regenerating ingredients that eliminate, if not eradicate, dark or red spots which cause the ugly appearance of scars.
3. It has glycolic acid that facilitates skin renewal.
4. It has vitamins that curb swelling and irritation.
5. It promotes the elaboration of the two most important ingredients that facilitate skin renewal: elastin and collagen. These two are the ones responsible for maintaining the moisture in the skin at the same time preserving its elasticity as the skin is on its healing process.

"B" Vitamins, Unleash The Beast Inside You

 

article: This is another vitamin article that I have written, but the only difference is that this one goes into more detail about specific vitamins. My previous articles do not do that. Those articles were more of a short introduction to vitamins, their role, and their best food source. I'll start with 2 water Soluble Vitamins and 1 fat-soluble vitamin.
Water Soluble Vitamins: These are water-soluble vitamins that are not stored in the body and must be replaced each day. These vitamins are Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, Folic Acid, Pantothenic Acid, Biotin, and vitamin C.
Let's start with the b vitamins: Vitamin B1 is needed to process carbs, fats, and proteins. Vitamin b1 is required by everybody to form the fuel the body runs on. Every nerve cell requires vitamin b1 to function properly. Wheat germ, peas, beans, enriched flour, fish, peanuts, and meat are all excellent sources of vitamin b1. People with advancing age, a poor diet, and too much alcohol consumption may result in vitamin b1 deficiency. The suggested RDA for vitamin b1 is unclear but The amount found in most multivitamin supplements is more than enough. Vitamin b1 works hand in hand with vitamin b2 and vitamin b3.
Vitamin b2: Helps release energy from foods. Essential for healthy eyes, skin, nails, and hair. Their sources are Whole grains, brewer's yeast, torula yeast, wheat germ, almonds, sunflower seeds, cooked leafy vegetables. The suggested RDA for vitamin b2 is unclear but The amount found in most multivitamin supplements is more than enough.
Please note, be aware that vitamin b3 or Niacin, as its commonly known, may cause a reaction in some people. Itching and or burning are two of the symptoms. The author of this article found that out the hard way. Fat-soluble vitamins: These vitamins are A, D, E and K. These vitamins are dissolved in fat and stored, therefore they are not needed every day in the diet. Overconsumption of fat-soluble vitamins may pose a risk of toxicity.
Vitamin A: Vitamin a is a fat-soluble vitamin and as mentioned before, should not be consumed in excess. For the maintenance of skin, mucous membranes, bones, teeth, and hair; eyesight. Their sources are green vegetables, melon, squash, tomatoes.
Well, that's it for this article. Look for more of my vitamin articles coming soon.
The information presented in this article is for informational purposes only and is not meant to diagnose, treat or cure any disease or condition. This article is not a substitute for a health care professional. Please consult a medical professional before beginning any vitamin program.

"A Better You" Your 7 days program to self-improvement

self-improvement & self-growth

Article:
I seem to lost count on how many times I've read and heard of celebrity marriages failing almost left and right. Not that I care (and personally I don't), it seems strange that we often see movie and TV stars as flawless people, living the fairytale life of riches and glamour. I suppose we all have to stop sticking our heads in the clouds and face reality. There are many ways to lose your sense of self-esteem regardless of how trivial it could get. But whatever happens, we should all try not to lose our own sense of self. So what does it take to be a cut above the rest? Here are some of the things you can think and improve on that should be enough for a week. 1. Know your purpose
Are you wandering through life with little direction - hoping that you'll find happiness, health, and prosperity? Identify your life purpose or mission statement and you will have your own unique compass that will lead you to your truth north every time. This may seem tricky at first when you see yourself to be in a tight or even dead end. But there's always that little loophole to turn things around and you can make a big difference to yourself. 2. Know your values
What do you value most? Make a list of your top 5 values. Some examples are security, freedom, family, spiritual development, learning. As you set your goals for 2005 - check your goals against your values. If the goal doesn't align with any of your top five values - you may want to reconsider it or revise it. The number shouldn't discourage you, instead, it should motivate you to do more than you can ever dream of. 3. Know your needs
Unmet needs can keep you from living authentically. Take care of yourself. Do you have a need to be acknowledged, to be right, to be in control, to be loved? Some so many people lived their lives without realizing their dreams and most of them end up being stressed or even depressed for that matter. List your top four needs and get them met before it's too late! 4. Know your passions
You know who you are and what you truly enjoy in life. Obstacles like doubt and lack of enthusiasm will only hinder you, but will not derail your chance to become the person you ought to be. Express yourself and honor the people who have inspired you to become the very person you wanted to be. 5. Live from the inside out
Increase your awareness of your inner wisdom by regularly reflecting in silence. Commune with nature. Breathe deeply to quiet your distracted mind. For most of us city slickers, it's hard to even find the peace and quiet we want even in our own home. In my case, I often just sit in a dimly lit room and play some classical music. There's sound, yes, but music does soothe the savage beast. 6. Honor your strengths
What are your positive traits? What special talents do you have? List three - if you get stuck, ask those closest to you to help identify these. Are you imaginative, witty, good with your hands? Find ways to express your authentic self through your strengths. You can increase your self-confidence when you can share what you know with others. 7. Serve others
When you live authentically, you may find that you develop an interconnected sense of being. When you are true to who you are, living your purpose, and giving of your talents to the world around you, you give back in service what you came to share with others -your spirit - your essence. The rewards for sharing your gift with those close to you are indeed rewarding, much more if it were to be the eyes of a stranger who can appreciate what you have done to them. Self-improvement is indeed one type of work that is worth it. It shouldn't always be within the confines of an office building, or maybe in the four corners of your own room. The difference lies within ourselves and how much we want to change for the better.

"Cookie Cutter" Low Carb Diet Plans Explained

Diet

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Most diet plans, including low carb diet plans, are best taken with a grain of salt, because although one may work for your best friend, it may not work for you. For those with serious weight problems and have co-existing issues such as hyperglycemia (high blood sugar levels) or as some of us hypoglycemia (low blood sugar levels) etc., the popular diet plans usually will not be able to cater to individual needs. We are all individuals and as such we need to feed ourselves as individuals, having said this some diet plans will be more beneficial for the general population than others.
To assess which particular diet plan will be beneficial, you can follow these guidelines. They are very much common sense points and provide a good framework which many nutrition professionals would broadly follow, and within which you can divide the scammy diet plans from those that can offer you safe and healthy diet ideas.
Diet offers sufficient balance and a variety of carbohydrates, protein, and fats.
Diet does not exclude one particular food group and encourages excessive consumption of another.
Diet encourages exercise to complement sensible eating habits.
Diet encourages awareness of portion sizes.
Diet does not encourage unrealistic quick weight loss.
Diet is backed up with medical research data.
In addition to these points, I've broadly outlined the low carb diet plans, which seem to be occupying the minds of dieters and researchers alike, as well as the research for and against pertinent to the low carb diet plans.
Low Carb Diets
A lot of the diet plans these days center around low-carb diet plans. These low-carb diet plans are considered by some diet fads, others consider it the new wave in healthy eating. Diets such as The New Atkins Diet Revolution maintain that obese people are insulin sensitive and carbohydrates make them gain weight. Low carb diet plans such as The Zone lay down the specific proportion of carbohydrates, protein, and fats that should be consumed to lose weight and while fats are reduced, the main source of energy comes from the consumption of protein.
Low carb diet plans such as Sugar Busters, believe that sugar is your body’s most heinous weight loss enemy and since carbohydrates are the foods that are processed into sugars – carbohydrates should be limited. The Scarsdale Diet also is a low carb, high protein diet and offers a 2-week crash dieting plan.
Popular diets such as the South Beach Diet and the Carbohydrate Addicts Diet are also low-carb diet plans that have become popular with dieters who have tried and failed at the Atkins diet. All these diets see themselves as the world's answer to the obesity problem.
To be fair, there are significant and many research papers that support and argue against the low carb revolution, as yet the wider medical community has not fully made its mind up as to whether the diets are favorable in the long term.
Recent research by Layman et. al., and Saris have found that low carb and high protein diets provide little benefit to dieters. Researchers found that when protein was moderately increased and carbohydrates proportionately decreased, insulin levels stabilized but no significant weight was lost. Saris in his review concluded that it is probable that a low carb, high-fat diet will increase the likelihood of weight gain.
While there is a lot of evidence against the low-carb philosophy, there is also a lot of evidence to support it. Research published in May 2004, found that when patients on a low carb diet were compared with patients on a low-fat diet, those patients who had consumed a low carb diet had a greater weight loss, decreased triglyceride levels, and increased levels of HDL's - in other words their cholesterol levels had improved. To put the icing on the cake research has just been published to support the long-term efficacy of eating a low-carb diet. Despite the evidence to support low-carb diet plans, mainstream medicine still does not recommend them. The main point of contention with the low carb, high protein diets is that they don’t offer balance and variety and could prove dangerous for people at risk of heart disease. Particularly with low carb diet plans such as the Scarsdale diet, they are not realistic and cannot be maintained in the long term causing yo-yo dieting and no one wants that! References:
Wim HM Saris Sugars, energy metabolism, and body weight control Am J Clin Nutr 78: 850S-857S
Donald K. Layman, Harn Shiue, Carl Sather, Donna J. Erickson, and Jamie Baum Increased Dietary Protein Modifies Glucose and Insulin Homeostasis in Adult Women during Weight Loss Nutrition.org
Yamashita T, Sasahara T, Pomeroy SE, Collier G, Nestel PJ. Arterial compliance, blood pressure, plasma leptin, and plasma lipids in women are improved with weight reduction equally with a meat-based diet and a plant-based diet. Metabolism. 1998 Nov;47(11):1308-14.
Yancy WS Jr, Olsen MK, Guyton JR, Bakst RP, Westman EC. A low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diet versus a low-fat diet to treat obesity and hyperlipidemia: a randomized, controlled trial. Ann Intern Med. 2004 May 18;140(10):769-77.

7 Simple Tips to Help Fulfill Your Weight Loss Resolutions

health

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"Goals...

…and resolutions."

Yes, it's that time of the year again.

Why is it that every time Jan 1st comes around, everyone starts to think about their new resolutions for the year? Or perhaps "new" isn't the correct word -- perhaps "recycled" is more apt? After all, isn't it true that for most people, "resolutions are made to be broken?"