Recovery Strategies
Exercise, Life Purpose and Happiness
Exercise, life purpose and happiness are a trio of ideas that enhance each other in meaningful ways. While your clients might not agree about the happiness part when they’re in the middle of a set of burpees, linking all the beyond-the-biceps benefits together can provide motivation and greater success.
Exercise and Sleep
Physical activity can mitigate the risk from poor sleep. This insight on exercise and sleep is according to new research findings.
Meditation Basics
What Is Meditation? Meditation is an approach to training the mind, similar to the way fitness is an approach to training the body. Someone with no knowledge of fitness tools…
The Connection Between Sleep and Gut Health
Do you have trouble sleeping? You may want to consider the link between sleep and gut health to understand how eating habits impact sleep.
Experience MELT: The What, How and Why of MELT
If you’re wondering what a MELT class is like, it’s not a silly question. Chances are MELT will feel familiar but also unlike anything else you’ve done before. We use a soft roller, but MELT is not foam rolling. We’re moving our bodies, but it’s not stretching and we don’t even consider it a workout. So no wonder there’s a bit of mystery around what it’s actually like.
Tai Chi Is Good for Older Adults
Why tai chi? These Chinese movement patterns have been around for centuries. In recent years, study after study has proven their benefits—particularly for older exercisers—yet most fitness professionals seem to…
Self-Care Tips for Summer
The past couple years have been a long haul for you and your clients, and now is a great time to review some self-care tips. Enjoy the summer with these…
Exercise Recovery: Active vs. Nonactive
Fitness specialists need to understand the interrelationship of exercise recovery and training, including active and nonactive techniques.
Breathwork Practices Gaining Popularity
Breathing programs are entering the mainstream, as breathwork was named one of the top seven trends to influence wellness in 2021 and beyond.
How to Help Someone Who Is Grieving
Sooner or later, most of us lose someone we care about, and since the start of the pandemic, loss has visited more of us than ever. The pain can be…
MELT Method: The Missing Dimension in Wellness
MELT is a gentle self-treatment technique that uses a specially designed soft roller and treatment balls to rehydrate connective tissue and rebalance the nervous system.
Turn Up Mindful Exercise to Turn Down Stress
Research on coronavirus-related stress suggests a link between exercise and stress: those who keep movement up have better mental health outcomes.
Growth in Mind-Body Therapies During the Pandemic
Mindfulness meditation and yoga classes have seen explosive growth since the onset of the pandemic, according to a report from USC.
Yoga and a Good Night’s Sleep
Yoga effectively reduces chronic lower-back pain and associated sleep disturbances, lowering the need for sleep medications.
Bad Sleep, Bad Diet
Below-par sleep habits can trigger below-par food choices, and the two together can equal a higher risk for conditions like heart disease and obesity.
10-Minute Natural Stress Relief
Your clients may feel fairly stressed after being quarantined, so why not advocate for their overall health by encouraging them to be active in nature?
Alternate Exercise Recovery Methods
You may be used to speeding up your exercise recovery via methods such as myofascial release with foam rollers and good sleep hygiene. While these techniques are tried-and-true, the rising enthusiasm for hard-hitting exercise routines has spawned a growing interest in alternative recovery techniques. Pete McCall, MS, personal trainer, exercise physiologist and an adjunct faculty member in exercise science at both Mesa Community College and San Diego State University, outlines six options for you to consider.
Prebiotics for Better Sleep
Prebiotics are best known for supporting gut health, but they can also improve sleep and enhance stress resilience, according to a study published in Scientific Reports. Researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder say prebiotics—dietary fibers that nourish the gut’s microbiome—create a symbiotic relationship with the body that affects the brain.
The Best Way to Use Ice Baths
If repairing and building muscle is a primary goal, people may want to think twice about taking an ice bath after training. New research conducted at Maastricht University in the Netherlands shows that cold-water immersion during recovery from resistance-type exercise reduces muscles’ ability to take up protein for repair and to synthesize protein to muscle building.
Your Gut Microbiome and Its Connection to Sleep
The gut and sleep? There is more to it than munching too many chips while binge-watching a favorite show and then tossing and turning all night. Home to thousands of bacteria that make up the microbiome, the gut affects appetite, metabolism, weight management, and whether or not a sound sleep arrives at night. To understand how nutrition, the gut and sleep interact, take a closer look at the purpose and physiology of sleep. Then discover the intricate web that ties together food and drink, the gut, and the health benefits of sleep.