:: Anorexics.net ::

BASIC

Extreme or compulsive exercise is dangerous. The most significant dangers of extreme exercise are overuse syndromes such as stress fractures, low heart rate, amenorrhea, and osteoporosis.

Stress fractures are micro-fractures of the bone, typically in weight-bearing areas such as feet and lower legs. Stress fractures develop from repetitive, high-impact, weight-bearing aerobic activity. Eating disorder patients, because they often have bone loss from osteopenia or osteoporosis, are particularly susceptible to stress fractures. Often stress fractures do not show up on x-rays but require a bone scan or MRI. Stress fractures limit a woman’s ability to exercise, lead to pain during exercise and long-term pain if not allowed to heal, and increase the risk of major bone fractures which may ultimately promote curvature of the spine. Treatment includes resting the extremity, use of crutches if it is painful to walk, and avoidance of the repetitive activity that caused the fracture. In eating disorder patients with malnutrition, treatment also includes calcium and vitamin D supplementation, weight restoration, and resumption of normal menstruation.
Bradycardia, or low heart rate, result from reverse metabolism. In response to rapid weight loss, the body protects itself from further loss by slowing the metabolism. A woman will experience reduced body temperature and a decreased resting heart rate. She may incorrectly perceive her lowered heart rate as positive heart health due to exercise, but the heart has slowed in an effort to expend as few calories as possible. The long-term implications of reduced heart rate are the potential for arrhythmias and the prolonging of the heart’s electrical conduction with possible sudden death.
Amenorrhea results from significant and rapid weight loss and leads to osteopenia and osteoporosis—dangerous losses of bone density that may result in other more serious complications.

Excessive exercise offers a built-in reinforcement: it increases endorphin levels, providing the individual with a sense of well-being. The endorphin levels remain high even though the individual is seriously, and perhaps permanently, compromising their own health. Studies are currently being conducted to ascertain and better understand the addictive nature of exercise.

In trying to evaluate whether exercise levels have gone from reasonable to excessive, the following questions can be asked:

1. Do you feel guilty if you miss your workout?

2. Do you still exercise when you are sick or hurt?

3. Would you miss going out with friends or spending time with family, just to ensure you got your workout in?

4. Do you freak out if you miss a workout?

5. Do you calculate how much to exercise based on how much you eat?

6. Do you have trouble sitting still because you’re not burning calories?

7. If you’re unable to exercise, do you feel compelled to cut back what you eat that day?

Someone who answers “yes” to one or more of these questions may be exercising too much and endangering their health as a result.

You should use very light weights during the first week (the preparatory phase) which includes the first two to three workouts. This is very important, because the beginner must concentrate at first on learning the proper form for each exercise. Using light weights also helps minimize muscle soreness and decreases the likelihood of injury to the muscles, joints, and ligaments. During the second week, he should use progressively heavier weights. By the end of the second week (4 to 6 workouts), he should know how much weight on each exercise will allow him to do 8 to 12 repetitions to muscle failure. If he can do only seven repetitions of an exercise, the weight must be reduced; if he can do more than 12, the weight should be increased. The third week is normally the start of the conditioning phase for the beginning weight trainer. During this phase, one should increase the amount of weight used and/or the intensity of the workout as his muscular strength and/or endurance increases. He should do one set of 8 to 12 repetitions for each of the heavy-resistance exercises. When he can do more than 12 repetitions of any exercise, he should increase the weight until he can again do only 8 to 12 repetitions. This usually involves an increase in weight of about five percent. This process continues indefinitely. As long as he continues to progress and get stronger, he does not need to do more than one set per exercise. If he stops making progress with one set of 8 to 12 repetitions per exercise, he may benefit from adding another set of 8 to 12 repetitions on those exercises in which progress has slowed. As time goes on and he progresses, he may increase the number to three sets of an exercise to get even further gains in strength and/ or muscle mass. Three sets per exercise is the maximum many people will ever need to do. Once you've reached a high level of fitness, the maintenance phase is used to maintain that level. The emphasis in this phase is no longer on progression but on retention. Although training three times a week for muscle endurance and strength gives the best results, one can maintain them by training the major muscle groups properly one or two times a week. More frequent training, however, is required to reach and maintain peak fitness levels. Maintaining the optimal level of fitness should become part of each person's life-style and training routine. The maintenance phase should be continued throughout his career and, ideally, throughout his life. As with aerobic training, you should do strength training three times a week and should allow at least 48 hours of rest from resistance training between workouts for any given muscle group.

Back To Top

SAFETY FACTORS

Major causes of injury when strength training are improper lifting techniques combined with lifting weights that are too heavy. Each person must understand how to do each lift correctly before starting his/her strength training program. One should always do weight training with a partner or spotter, who can observe performance while exercising. To ensure safety and the best results, both should know how to use the equipment and the proper spotting technique for each exercise. A natural tendency in strength training is to see how much weight one can lift. Lifting too much weight forces compromise in form and may lead to injury. All weights should be selected so that proper form can be maintained for the appropriate number of repetitions. Correct breathing is another safety factor in strength training. Breathing should be constant during exercise. Never hold your breath, as this can cause dizziness and even loss of consciousness. As a general rule, one should exhale during the positive (concentric) phase of contraction as the weight or weight stack moves away from the floor, and inhale during the negative (eccentric) phase as the weight returns toward the floor.

EXERCISE SELECTION

When beginning a resistance-training program, one should choose about 8 to 16 exercises that work all of the body's major muscle groups. Usually eight well-chosen exercises will serve as a good starting point. They should include those for the muscles of the leg, low back, shoulders, and so forth. You should choose exercises that work several muscle groups and try to avoid those that isolate single muscle groups. This will help him train a greater number of muscles in a given time. For example, doing lat pull-downs on the "lat machine" works the latissimus dorsi of the back and the biceps muscles of the upper arm. On the other hand, an exercise like concentration curls for the biceps muscles of the upper arm, although an effective exercise, only works the arm flexor muscles. Also, the concentration curl requires twice as much time as lat pull-downs because only one arm is worked at a time. Perhaps a simpler way to select an exercise is to determine the number of joints in the body where movement occurs during a repetition. For most people, especially beginners, most of the exercises in the program should be "multi-joint" exercises. The exercise should provide movement at more than one joint. For example, the pull-down exercise produces motion at both the shoulder and elbow joints. The concentration curl, however, only involves the elbow joint.

Back To Top

TIMED SETS

Timed sets refers to a method of physical training in which as many repetitions as possible of a given exercise are performed in a specified period of time. After an appropriate period of rest, a second, third, and so on, set of that exercise is done in an equal or lesser time period. The exercise period, recovery period, and the number of sets done should be selected to make sure that an overload of the involved muscle groups occurs. The use of timed sets, unlike exercises performed in cadence or for a specific number of repetitions, helps to ensure that each person does as many repetitions of an exercise as possible within a period of time. It does not hold back the more capable performer by restricting the number of repetitions he may do. Instead, soldiers at all levels of fitness can individually do the number of repetitions they are capable of and thereby be sure they obtain an adequate training stimulus.

Flexibility is an important area that is all too often neglected. Flexibility can be defined as the ability to flex, extend or circumduct the body's joints through their extented range of motion without loss of strength. On the flip side, you can also bee too flexible; increasing the probability of muscle tears and pulls. Most people get stiffer with age as muscles and tendons tend to get shorter with disuse. The remedy for this stiffness is to be more active and use some of the techniques described below. This flexibility though cannot be achieved overnight, and takes time to achieve.

Back To Top

STRETCHES

Contrary to what many people think, warmup and stretching aren't the same thing. Before stretching, it is extremely important to warm up. Stretching a cold muscle could lead to injuries, including tears. Five to ten minutes of a light cardio exercise can help warm up the muscles and get your body ready for the workout. A warm up is thought to improve the body's range of motion and prevent soreness. Warming up means loosening the muscles and raising the body temperature and heart rate gradually to prepare the body for exercise.

How you stretch is also very important. The effective and safest stretches are gentle and static, that is performed without any straining or bouncing. The idea is to get into a position where you can feel the stretch but no pain. It consists of slowly moving in to your extreme range of motion and upon reaching the desired tension and holding it for a certain amount of time. Relax, and repeat the stretch if needed. It is important to avoid any jerky movements which could lead to injuries.

Rather than following a long routine of stretching exercises to be performed daily, it is much more efficient to go with a moderate program of stretches to be done on alternate days. Such a program has the best chance to be maintained, something essential for success. Stretching after your work out (especially if a weight training workout) is also supposed to be of great utility. Stretching after workouts helps to reduce soreness from the workout.

An additional component in flexibility and gaining better control of your body, is learning muscle control. The ancient Indian technique of Yoga is as much an art as exercise, and can be of great utility to some people.

Back To Top

WEIGHT LOSS

There is a big difference between fat loss and weight loss. Weight loss is the difference you see from weighing youself on a scale over a certain time period. The scale does not really tell you much - you do not know what and where you have gained/lost. On the other hand, fat loss does not necessarily show up when you weigh yourself on the scale. It is quite possible that a person on a fitness routine gains muscle, lose fat and still gain weight (that might be because muscles are denser than fat). For people targetting fat loss, it is often more relevant to see how you clothes fit. Every person is unique, and will have a way of losing weight that is unique to him/her. Someone might have lost weight by taking up running but that might not be for you and each person must figure out the best way forward.

One of the biggest excuses one hears is having no time to work out. It is true that there are only twenty four hours in a day, but individuals have to decide what is important to them. If become fitter and healthier is not a high priority with you, chances of failure are all but certain.

No matter how good a diet you follow, exercise is an important part of any gradual weigh-loss and management plan. To loose weight effectively you need to do two key things; decrease your total calorie intake and increase your body's metabolism, that is the ability to burn these calories, through exercise. Dieting without the requisite exercise might actually slow down your metabolism as your body will try to conserve fat from the limited calories being consumed. Dieting on its own is more likely to force the body to utilize precious muscle tissue for energy, whereas the inclusion of exercise burns the fat and conserves the body's muscle tissue. A diet too low in calories and essential nutrients could lead to tiredness and possible sickness.

A good workout along with a sound diet is likely to leave you more energized and relaxed. You are also much less likely to break the diet and eat out of boredom or nervous tension. To lose weight and keep it off, it is essential to exercise regularly - say three times a week - and working up the diet and workout regimen even after meeting your weight loss goals. Refer to some of the weight loss articles listed on the left for help on this complicated and often stressful topic.

Back To Top

WORKOUT TIPS

Avoid Common Weight Training Mistakes.
On any given day, you can walk into any gym and find well-intentioned, but frustrated members. No matter what exercise program they try, they can't seem to achieve their goals. Some have gotten positive results for awhile, but have flatlined and just can't seem to get off a plateau. If you are serious enough to dedicate your valuable time to improve your health and appearance, then make it count and get the maximum return from the time you are investing. If you avoid the following common mistakes, you will have a much better chance of building the physique you desire.
Too Much Time Between Sets - Most people socialize far too much in the gym. If you want to socialize at the gym, do it after you finish your workout. Make your lips the last muscle group you train. Unless you are a powerlifter, you should never let the muscle group fully recover between sets. A good rule of thumb for minor exercises (ex. bicep curls, calf raises, tricep extensions) is 60 seconds of rest between sets. For major exercises like squats, 90-120 seconds may be necessary.

Trying To Reduce Fat In A Certain Area - I know men who do endless sit-ups to burn the fat in their abdominal area to get that six pack of abs and get rid of those love handles. I receive e-mail from women who want to get rid of unwanted fat in their legs, rear-end and arms, and think the solution is increased weight training for that particular body part. You can not spot reduce bodyfat. To get positive results, you need to reduce your bodyfat throughout your entire body. You can not pick and choose. To reach your goals you need a balanced program of weight training, proper diet and cardiovascular exercise. As you decrease your overall bodyfat percentage, your problem areas will improve.

To Gain Size And Muscularity, You Must Stick With Free Weights - This is a common misconception. Barbells and dumbbells are a staple for increasing muscularity, but by all means complement them with machines. Machines and cable exercises allow you to specifically concentrate on certain areas of a muscle group, and significantly decrease your risk of injury.

Rushing Through A Set - A classic example that comes to mind is the young novice trying to show off on the bench press. With no form, rhyme or reason, he bounces the weight off his chest fast and furiously. Other than increasing your chances of injury, this serves no purpose. By slowing down the pace and concentrating on muscle contraction and form, you will get the maximum return from your weight training and significantly decrease your chances of injury.

Doing The Same Old Routine - One of the main reasons people plateau is they do not shake things up a little. By doing the same thing day after day, your muscles adapt to the routine and you will stop making gains. Mix things up by adding in new exercises, switching exercise order, and varying the amount of weight and the number of repetitions in a set. Changing your routine will shock your muscle groups and help prevent stagnation.

More Is Better - For a large muscle group like your chest, you may do 12 sets to muscle failure. If you train your triceps after chest, they are already pre-fatigued from your chest exercises. All you really need is 6-9 sets to properly finish off your triceps. Two or three exercises, three sets each is plenty. Anything more is over training which increases your chances of injury and slows your progress.

MOTIVATION

We know that exercise is good for us. From reducing the risk of heart disease, weight management, controlling cholesterol, diabetes, and high blood pressure levels to boosting energy levels and managing stress, study after study have shown that exercise can not only save our lives in the long-term but improve its quality as well. Moreover, according to the Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity and Health, higher levels of regular physical activity are associated with lower mortality rates for both older and young adults. Even those who are moderately active on a regular basis have lower rates of mortality than those who are least active.

So, why are less than 50% of Americans leading a moderately active lifestyle?

In a study which appeared in the May/June 1998 issue of the Archives of Family Medicine, 16,890 women and 12,272 men at least 18 years old were asked abut their leisure-time physical activities. Only 38% met the Surgeon General's Guideline of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity most, if not all, days of the week. Most alarmingly, however, is that women, ethnic minorities, adults with lower educational attainment, and older adults were least active. Furthermore, according to the Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity and Health, about 25% of adults report no physical at all in their leisure time.

The Same Old Exercise Excuses
Too busy to exercise? Incorporate it into your day. You've probably heard them all. Park farther away from the entrance of your office or shopping mall. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Engage in play with your kids or the dog.

Not enough time in your day to exercise? Is time really the enemy or is it our modern habits? What are most Americans doing for most of the day? Whether it is watching television, working at our desks, or driving hither and yon, we are sitting down. However, a life of convenience may actually shorten your life.

Too tired to exercise? Get out of the habit of rushing everywhere and take time to take care of your body. If the store is a few blocks away and you only need 1 or 2 items, walk instead of driving. Instead of going to the movies on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, go to the zoo, stroll through an art gallery, or go for a hike. Rushing everywhere puts unnecessary stress on our minds and our bodies. Get your heart pumping for another reason. Be interactive instead of inactive.

Get off your "BUTT"
Make time for exercise. Get up a half-hour earlier, walk during lunch, or turn off the television in the evening.

Make it fun. Choose activities that you enjoy. Gardening and walking are the two most popular forms of exercise among adults.

Make sure you have a variety of activities to choose from so that you don't get bored and drop your exercise program.

Be creative. Instead of calling a friend, arrange to get together for a walk-and-talk once or twice a week.

Involve your family. Take the kids along for walks and bike rides. Spend quality time with your partner while enjoying an outdoor activity.

Set fitness goals. Commit to walking or running a certain distance in one month, three months, or six months. Work on increasing the number of laps you swim each day.

Train for an event. A walk-a-thon, bike-a-thon, or triathlon. If you need support, get a friend to join you.

Give yourself a reward for your fitness accomplishments.

Find a convenient time and place for your exercise. Schedule this time and honor it. If you are unable to for some reason, MAKE IT UP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. This is the biggest reason why we backslide. We miss one, then two workouts, and before you know it, it's been two weeks, and who wants to start over?

Start slowly and work up to exercising 3-5 times a week for 30- 60 minutes.

The more often you work out, the less time you have to set aside for it. For example, working out 3 times a week for 60 minutes requires a bigger time commitment than working out 5 times a week for 30 minutes. If you are really pressed for time, break the 30 minute session into two 15 minute segments or three 10 minute segments.

Once you have made regular exercise part of your lifestyle, don't just stop there. Greater health benefits can be obtained by engaging in physical activity of a more vigorous intensity or of longer duration. Moreover, recent recommendations from experts also suggest that endurance activity should be supplemented with strength-developing exercises at least twice per week for adults.

ELLIPTICAL TRAINERS

Since bursting on the fitness scene five years ago, millions of elliptical trainers have been installed in health clubs and homes. Elliptical cross-trainers are the only real breakthrough aerobic product of the past few years," says Gregory Florez, spokesman for the American Council on Exercise (ACE). "They are absolutely not a gimmick." According to the American Sports Data, Inc., "the elliptical motion trainer, continued to grow in popularity, with 6.2 million users in 2000, up from 2.4 million when first measured in 1997." Elliptical trainers combine the natural stride treadmill and the simplicity of a stair climber. On an Elliptical trainer, you stand comfortably in an upright position while holding onto the machine's handrails and striding in either a forward or reverse motion.

What makes a trainer unique is the ability to offer a weight bearing workout that puts minimal stress on the joints. Your feet never leave the pedals of an elliptical trainer, thereby eliminating any impact in your workout. Whether you go forward or reverse, and regardless of the level of resistance, there is a reduced risk of injury from overusing any one-muscle group. Weight bearing exercises like running, hiking and aerobics benefits the body in ways that non-weight bearing exercises like rowing and cycling cannot. Weight resistant workouts builds bone density and burns calories more efficiently.

For individuals trying to burn calories and trim down, the weight-bearing arm/leg exercise optimizes energy expenditure during self-selected exercise of moderate intensity in overweight subjects. In recent studies it was concluded that energy expenditure among overweight subjects was higher on the elliptical machine than a treadmill, or leg cycles with and without upper body motion. For overweight individuals who are initiating a regular exercise program to decrease excess body fat, they will find that elliptical treadmills optimize energy expenditure.

Elliptical Motion
The low impact, intensive cardiovascular workout of an elliptical trainer is achieved through smooth and natural motion. The fluid, non-jarring motion makes the elliptical trainer ideal for anyone with back, knee, hips and joint problems. The dual action machines utilize both the legs and arm in providing a full upper and lower body workout. Motion studies over the last decade show that the human foot moves through an elliptical pattern as we walk, run or jog. Fitness products that imitate and support this motion are the fastest growing new category of cardiovascular equipment.

With scarce time, a major factor in people's daily lives, total body exercise can be truly beneficial. A total body exercise machine meets three goals that are most desired - weight loss, time efficiency, and motivation. Total Body Exercise involves more muscle mass in an aerobic exercise activity. For the average person, the larger the muscle mass involved in exercise, the more effective that exercise is for improving fat mobilization, burning calories and building muscle endurance in an efficient period of time, and at a reduced perceived rate of exertion. The upper and lower body workout of a trainer utilizes the quadriceps. hamstrings, glutes, chest, back, triceps and biceps.

Elliptical Technology
Within the fitness industry, "Elliptical Technology" has become the generic name for devices that incorporate the various linkages/mechanisms in an effort to create a preferred pattern of movement for a pair of foot pedals. The shape of this preferred movement is intended to mimic the natural path of the ankle, knee and hip joints experience during locomotion - walking, striding, jogging and/or running. In its most rudimentary form, Elliptical Technology consists of a crank arm (similar to the crank of a bicycle) that revolves around an axis at one end and that is attached to a bar at the other. The opposite end of the bar moves in a reciprocating, linear pattern when the crank rotates. Since one end of the bar rotates in a circular pattern while the other moves linearly, points between the two ends of the bar move in elliptical patterns. The points of the bar closest to the crank move in wider, more circular ellipses (closest to a circle) and the points closest to the other end move in thinner, flatter ellipses (closer to a straight line).

The most obvious advantage of Elliptical Technology is the lack of impact to the lower limbs and back. Unlike a treadmill in which the foot of the user is continuously lifted off of the running surface, striking that surface upon the return, the foot and foot pedal of an elliptical machine are in constant contact. Effectively eliminating impact. Impact force is also felt on stairstepper devices. Although the foot often remains in contact with the foot pedal when such devices are used, the foot pedal undergoes a virtually instantaneous direction reversal. Essentially, the foot pedal is moving in one direction, must stop and then is pushed in the opposite direction. The force required to reverse the movement of the mechanism results in "impact" to the joints of the lower body.

The mechanism incorporated in an elliptical machine moves in a smooth, continuous motion and does not suffer the effects of direction reversal. The exercise experienced on elliptical machines is weight bearing (versus exercise bikes) which has ramification in the inhibition of the onset of osteoporosis. In addition, although cycling is a well-recognized and safe tool to improve cardiovascular conditioning, the elliptical modality is a more functional pattern of movement. Since ellipticals simulate a natural walking pattern, they easily lend themselves to an upper body component of exercise. Many other devices, either due to their mechanical structure (treadmills) or the pattern (cycling) do not readily adapt to a total body configuration.

The various manufacturers of elliptical machines have developed many iterations of this basic technology. As a result, the field is full of machines that have a different "feel" - the articulation of the ankle, knee and hip is different. The true nature of Elliptical Technology has been somewhat obscured by the preponderance of these questionable devices. Many lack the design and mechanism to duplicate a fluid, natural motion. As with all forms of exercise equipment, there are cheap versions that offer negligible physical benefits. Due to the natural motion, combined with an upper and lower body workout, quality elliptical trainers will continue to grow in popularity and their sales will substantially increase. They appeal to a population that is increasingly overweight and looking for an optimum workout for burning fat and calories. Elliptical trainers also appeal to an aging population that seeks a total body workout, minus the impact.