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Keep Your Knees Healthy

2010-03-09T16:21:28Z

Strengthen your thigh muscles
In a 2009 study of 265 men and women with knee osteoarthritis, Mayo Clinic researchers found that those with the strongest quadriceps (thigh muscles) had less knee pain and better physical function than those with the weakest. But there's a right way and a wrong way to build those muscles. If you're an avid gym-goer, avoid the leg-extension machines, Kenny suggests. "They put far too much stress on the knee joint," he says.

Stretch regularly
Maintaining flexibility is important, especially in the muscles and tendons that connect directly to the knee, such as the hamstrings and the quadriceps. If these tissues become overly taut, they can pull the knee out of alignment.

Lose the weight, finally
Losing as little as 5 percent of your body weight can dramatically reduce your chances of developing knee arthritis, the most common cause of knee pain, according to the authors of a study presented last November at a meeting of the American College of Rheumatology.

Avoid Bad Falls by Exercising to Improve Balance

2010-03-04T00:34:33Z

More than one-third of adults age 65 and older fall at least once each year. Falls are the most common cause of nonfatal injuries and hospital admissions for trauma among adults over 65. A study released in March by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that in just a three-month period in 2006, nearly 16 percent of all Americans over 65 fell at least once. Close to one-third of them—1.8 million people—sustained an injury so serious that they visited a doctor or had to restrict their activities for at least a day. “We learned from this survey just how wide-spread falls are,” says Judy Stevens, an epidemiologist with the CDC’s Injury Center. “This is a huge public health issue.”

Pro-Athletes do Yoga

2010-03-02T19:39:41Z

Yoga isn’t just for ladies guys – it’s a unisex practice that quite a few male pro-athletes have taken a shine to. Just because they are lithe on the mat, it doesn’t make them any less masculine or brawny on the field.

Basketball player LeBron James says yoga keeps him healthy, and he’s even become so good that he can do a full headstand, all 6ft 8 inch of him! Another legendary NBA player, Shaquille O’Neal, also doesn’t think he’s too big for the eastern exercise as well as tennis star Andy Murray.

Sometimes an entire team gets involved in the action. The NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles have had Baron Baptiste, a yoga guru, as part of their staff for 4 years now. read more

Thai Yoga Massage

2010-02-25T02:59:25Z

Yoga: At the Heart of Fitness?

2010-02-22T23:10:58Z

Can the gentle, relaxing rhythms of yoga help your heart the same way as a briskly paced 30-minute walk or swimming laps at the local pool?

A new study seems to suggest that, at least for some people with heart disease, the answer is a surprising “yes.”

Researchers at Emory University School of Medicine measured the effects of regular yoga practice on older adults with chronic heart failure. The nine subjects, whose median age was 53, practiced yoga twice a week in a class setting. Each session involved a 10-minute warm-up, 40 minutes of standing and seated asanas (poses), followed by 20 minutes of relaxation and deep breathing exercises.

Sounds barely enough to break a sweat. Yet, the researchers found that in just eight weeks, the subjects improved their exercise tolerance (their ability to withstand the stress of physical activity) and increased their body’s ability to use oxygen efficiently. Answering a questionnaire designed to assess the effect of heart failure on physical and social functioning in older adults, the participants reported an enhanced quality of life. Yoga even seemed to have an effect on some key blood markers related to heart failure. “These were all improved with yoga in just a few weeks,” said Bobby Khan, M.D., lead researcher on the study. These results were presented at the American Heart Association’s scientific conference in fall 2007 and will be published in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Cardiac Failure.

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Obesity rates stabilize but remain high

2010-02-20T15:41:02Z

(Health.com) -- Obesity rates in the United States are still sky-high, but for the moment they appear to have stopped climbing higher, according to new data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

One out of every three American adults is obese, and two out of every three are overweight, according to the data. Among children and teens, the numbers aren't much better: Roughly 17 percent of children between the ages of 2 and 19 are considered obese. All of these percentages have increased sharply since 1980, the data show.

The obesity rate among women and children hasn't changed measurably over the past decade, however, and it has remained largely flat among men for the past five years, according to the CDC report, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Heart attack warning signs

2010-02-19T04:24:27Z

We Are The World 25 For Haiti - Official Video

2010-02-14T16:06:38Z

Future doctors support integrated therapies

2010-02-10T22:10:04Z

=It has taken a long time for complementary and alternative medical practices to gain acceptance in traditional Western medicine. But future doctors appear to be much more open to CAM therapies.

A national survey of medical students published today shows three-quarters of the students think conventional Western medicine would benefit by integrating more CAM therapies. CAM includes such treatments as massage, herbal medicine, yoga, acupuncture and meditation and encourages a mind-body approach to healing and prevention of illness. The survey was performed by researchers at UCLA and UC San Diego. They gathered 1,770 surveys from students at 126 medical schools throughout the country.

The study is published online today in the journal Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. -- Shari Roan

Pilates for Men

2010-02-09T00:17:49Z

Pilates is a comprehensive head-to-toe workout, but its often misidentified as womens exercise. In fact, it might surprise you that Pilates was originally created for men.

Pilates was designed by a German born gymnast and boxer named Joseph h Pilates. His exercise system emphasized the development of the core muscle groups (the spine, abdominals, hips and lower back). Many famous male professional athletes, such as Tiger Woods (professional golfer), Jason Kidd (NBA basketball star), Curt Schilling (MLB pitcher) and Ruben Brown (NFL offensive lineman), have added Pilates to their training programs, in order to enhance their strength, coordination and flexibility by developing these core muscle areas.