Research/Exercise Science Articles

One day, while stretching my client Jim, I was taken aback when I realized he wasn’t wearing underwear. His shorts were swim trunks with interior netting. I quickly looked away and continued to stretch him. This happened with Jim on several other occasions, but I never mentioned it because I wasn’t sure how to broach the matter. I also didn’t feel as if he was doing this intentionally, nor did I believe he meant harm.

When you’re designing a fitness program, you may or may not consider the endocrine system, and yet it’s a key component of wellness. A network of glands that secrete hormones to support bodily functions, the endocrine system regulates internal processes—including growth and development, metabolism, homeostasis, response to stimuli, and reproduction—via the bloodstream (Sargis 2016).

Feeling stressed? You’re not alone! The trick is knowing what to do about it. Research tells us that stress-relieving strategies include making a concerted effort to minimize stressors, engaging in meditation and physical activity, and nurturing strong social relationships. That’s good advice, but it ignores the common plan that many of us resort to: the “comfort food” strategy.

There’s a problematic F-word that the fitness industry rarely cares to discuss: failure. We’ve all experienced failure to one degree or another—and so have our clients—but you’d hardly know it in this industry where being positive and motivating is our specialty. We push success, and we push it hard, leaving little room for clients to feel accepted and supported during periods of low success or even spectacular failure.

Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system, allowing athletes of all stripes to complete longer, harder workouts. But new research suggests that people who usually avoid coffee and energy drinks likely benefit the most from caffeine.

It’s 10 p.m., you’re catching up on email, and it suddenly hits you: a Goliath-sized craving for chocolate-chunk ice cream. Findings in the International Journal of Obesity show why the evening hours pose such a high risk for overeating and unhealthy munching. For the study, researchers from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine recruited 32 adults with excess weight who volunteered for two experimental protocols:

Eating too much sugar is not only bad news for our waistlines; it can also make our diets less potent. Dietary survey data from 6,150 adults in an American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (AJCN) study revealed that high intakes of “free sugar” (sugar added to packaged foods like yogurt and cereal or to home-cooked foods) can coincide with lower consumption of several important micronutrients, including calcium and magnesium.

People who suffer from frequent cravings for unhealthy foods might benefit from tapping into the power of the mind. A review of studies published in the journal Clinical Psychology Review concluded that practicing mindfulness can effectively quell a hankering for “vice foods” like candies and ice cream, making it easier to achieve health and weight loss goals.

It turns out that people who make an effort to shed a few pounds aren’t just in it for themselves; they may be helping their significant others trim down, too. Research published in the journal Obesity recounted a University of Connecticut study that monitored the weight loss progress of 130 people for 6 months Ñhalf of them on a structured Weight Watchers® program and the other half on a self-guided program combining education, healthy eating and exercise.

Made famous by legendary baseball player Lou Gehrig, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS—a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord—has affected many athletes. As such, researchers have wondered if high levels of physical activity might have something to do with the disease. Data from a new study out of Europe furthers the conversation.