Healthy Habits

Squash

2009-05-29T20:46:00.000-07:00

Squash is a fun, fast and physically demanding sport. In addition to strength, endurance, speed and skill you need brains and a good tactics to win your opponent. This is the first Kiwikilos' article about squash and will be followed with articles about squash technique, off court and on court exercises.

Squash ball

The squash balls differ in speed and resilience.

Progress is bouncier than competition ball and it also is 6% larger than a normal size ball.
Competition ball needs a bit warming-up to bounce. It is a good choice if you already have experience in racket sports.
Pro ball needs a good warm-up to bounce properly and is meant for advanced and competing players.
Max is blue in colour and meant for beginners and juniors. It is 12% larger than a normal size ball.

(examples are Dunlop -brand balls)

Grip

Let the racket rest on your fingers without squeezing the grip too much. Support the racket with your first finger and and keep your wrist in a slight angle, as if you were shaking hands with someone. It is good to start with your hand in the middle of the grip. Advanced players may vary the position of their hand to improve the control.

Rules

I will be adding a clear and simple version of the squash rules later. To get you started here is a link to squash rules on Squashplayer -website.

The most importantly: hit the ball not your opponent. If there's a danger of hitting the opponent with your racket or the ball, always call “let”. In competition situation this means that the referee decides if the situation was a "no let", “let” (the ball will played again) or “stroke”(the obstructed player wins a point/service) situation. The next game helps you to understand what let, no let or a stroke means.

Cheers,
S

Home workout – The waistline workout with a Swiss ball

2009-05-25T23:57:00.000-07:00

This is a first part of the series about exercises you can do at home. It is not always possible to go to gym and therefore it is good to have a few different workouts up in your sleeve. I have found that sometimes it might be even more effective to do a workout at home rather than just go to gym and find out that you do not have the energy for an efficient workout. This workout is something your can do while watching the TV.

Level: beginner/intermediate
Duration: 15-25min
Target area: Abs and lower back
Equipment: a Swiss ball*

1. Warmup - knee rolls
Lie on your back with a cushion or a towel between your knees and arms stretched out to the side. With your knees in a 90 degree angle, move your knees to the right (at the same time holding your shoulders on the floor) keeping your abdominals contracted. Bring the legs slowly back using the muscles at the side of the waist.

One warmup round 10 times on each side.

Excellent warm-up exercise. This exercise strenghtens the sides of the waist (obliques) and deep abdominals and increases the mobility of the spine.
Controlled movement, remember to keep your shoulders on the floor.

2. Slow cycling

Lie on your back on the floor. Place your hands behind your head, touching your neck or back behind your ears with your fingertips.While straightening your right leg straight (keeping it a few inches from the floor), bring your left left knee over your chest. Curl your head, neck and shoulders up and rotate your torso so that your right elbow points towards your left leg. Stop for a moment and with a controlled movement reverse the legs and arms.

2-3 sets of 15-20 repetitions.

This exersice strenghtens the sides and obliques. Controlled movement, don't pull your neck with your hands.

3. Back extension on a Swiss ball
Lie on your stomach on a Swiss ball with your feet roughly shoulder width apart. Place your hands behind your head, touching your neck or back behind your ears with your fingertips and your elbows out to the sides. Lower your upper body down against the ball. Slowly raise your upper body until your hips and back are in straight line. Hold and slowly go back to starting postition.

2-3 sets 15-25 repetitions

Works mainly on your lower back, buttocks (gluteus maximus) and deep abdominal muscles. You can make the back extension easier by placing your feet against a wall for better suport. You can hold a weight plate against your chest for added resistance. Keep the movement controlled and your neck and back in a straight line. Don't lock your knees or let the ball move during the excercise.

4. Twisting curl-up
Lie on the floor with your knees bent with your core engaged and your spine neutral. Place your hands behind your head, touching your neck or behind your ears with your fingertips. Move your left ribs towards your right hip and your left elbow towards your right thigh. Pause and then return and curl to the other side.

2-3 sets of 15-25 repetitions.

This excercise works external obliques when rotating away, internal obliques of the side you are rotating to and rectus abdominis muscle. Can be done with or without the Swiss ball. Keep your neck aligned with your spine.

5. Reverse crunch
Lie on your back on the floor. Bend your knees roughly to 90-degree angle and lift up your legs until your thighs are perpendicular to the floor. Place your arms to your sides palms facing down for support and balance. Rest your head and your back on the floor. While keeping your hips on the floor, slowly lift your knees towards the ceiling with your buttocs raising off the floor. Pause for a moment and lower your buttocs back to the starting position.

2 sets of 15 repetitions.

This exercise works mainly the front abdominal muscles (rectus abdominis). Can be done with the Swiss ball between your legs. Focus on just lifting your buttocks. Keep your head and back on the mat. Do not swing your legs or arch your back.

-S-

* Selecting a right size Swiss ball (sometimes also called fit ball or physio ball). The right size of the exercise ball depends on your height. As a general rule, when you sit on the ball, your hips should be level with or slightly higer than your knees.

Nutrition Basics

2009-05-19T22:21:00.001-07:00

Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are our body's primary energy source. They come in two forms – complex and simple. Simple carbohydrates are easily converted into energy whereas complex carbohydrates provide longer and steadier release of energy to our body. The glycemic index and glycemic load concepts have been developed to characterize food behavior during human digestion. They rank carbohydrate-rich foods based on the rapidity of their effect on blood glucose levels.

Protein
Protein is the main structural component of all muscle tissues and is needed for muscle growth and repair. The building blocks of proteins are called amino acids. Human body is able to produce many of the amino acids needed. The ones body can't produce are called essential amino acids. From the required 20 amino acids, body can produce 11.

According to the RDI (recommended dietary intake) guidelines women need 46g and men need 64g of protein / day. Physical activity increases your protein need.

Fat
It's not enough to know which foods are high or low in fat, we also need to know why some fats are good for us and others can pose serious health risks. Unlike unsaturated fats, which play an essential role in our body, saturated fats increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Cholestrole is a waxy substance in your blood stream that is a major component of every cell wall in your body and is required for the production on some hormones. Most of the needed cholestrole your body can produce, the rest is obtained from saturated fats in food. Excessive amounts of cholestrole can cause cardiovascular disease.

Vitamins and Minerals
Because our body makes only a few vitamins itself, a balanced diet is very important. Vitamins are necessary for the body to use the energy provided the food we eat by helping in the processing of the proteins, carbohydrates and fats. Vitamins are also involved in building cells, tissues and organs.
Minerals act and important part in making and breaking down the body tissues and in regulating our metabolism. Minerals are stored in our bones so that in the event of mineral deficiency, some can be released in our bloodstream.

Water
Two thirds of our body is water. Drinking enough water helps with the digestion and to cleanse toxins out of the body. The average person needs to drink 8-10 glasses of water each day. Working out, drinking large quantities coffee or alcohol, increses your water demand.

Fibre
Fibre is essential for maintaining a healthy digestive system. There are two types of dietary fibre: soluble, which dissolves in water and insoluble, which does not have the ability to dissolve in water. Fibers increase the feeling of fullness after the meal and slow down the rise of blood-sugar levels thus helping with weight control.

Calories
A calorie is a unit of energy and is used to measure the energy value of foods. The amount of calories that a person needs on a daily basis depends on the gender, age, and level of activity.

Caffeine
Caffeine is a stimulant, that can temporarily boost the metabolism, raise the heart rate and blood pressure. There has been a lot of controversy about caffeine's health benefits and risks. It is not recommended to consume over 2-3 cups of coffee(200mg of caffeine) / day.

Alcohol
Alcohol is a depressant which slows down your body's ability to metabolize fats. Calories gained from alcohol are called empty calories, because have little or no nutritional value.

Tips for healthy eating

Eat a wide variety if foods on a daily basis.
Eat slowly, chew on your food thoroughly and stop eating, when you are full.
Try eating 5-6 smaller meals / day rather than 3 large meals.
Avoid processed food and eat fresh food instead.
Avoid frying food. Grilling or boiling is healthier.
Make a habit of reading food labels to learn more about the nutrition and ingredients.
Instead of a dieting, aim for long term healthier lifestyle.
Keep a food diary to monitor you eating.

References:
Nutrition: The definitive Australian guide to eating for good health, 2007.
Maran Illustrated: Weight Training, 2005.
Wikipedia.

Basics of Warming Up and Cooling Down

2009-05-15T17:38:00.000-07:00

Warming up prepares the mind, heart, muscles and joints for the upcoming exercise. It improves performance, helps you to become mentally prepared and prevents injuries. Cooling down after the exercise is equally important. It helps the body to recover and gradually return to its normal temperature.

Do some easy exercise (eg jogging, cycling and skipping) continuously for about 10 minutes to raise the body temperature so the body is sweating lightly. You can also perform exercises frequently used in your sport to warm up.

Some benefits of warming up

Increased performance and efficiency of movement.
Reduced risk of injury.
Reduces muscle soreness during exercise.
Allows the heart rate to adjust to cope for the stress it is about to encounter.
Helps to warm muscle fibre which in turn helps with fat burning.
Helps us work towards obtaining a better mind/body connection.

Dynamic stretches are more appropriate to the warm up as they help to reduce muscle stiffness. Sport professionals use dynamic stretching as a regular part of their pre game / race routine.

Some benefits of cooling down

Helps to get rid of waste products e.g lactic acid.
Helps to prevent the pooling of blood at the extremities. (Pooling may lead to dizziness, fainting or the development of varicose veins).
Helps to reduce the level of adrenaline in the blood.
Allows the heart rate to return to its resting state.

-s-

Basics of Stretching

2009-05-15T17:25:00.000-07:00

Our age, our gender, our activity levels, our genetics and past injuries affect our flexibility. Our flexibility is not however set in concrete. With 15-30 minute stretching programme 3 times a week you will notice an increase in your flexibility after just a few weeks.

Tips for stretching

Warm up your muscles to prevent injury.
Perform at least 5 minutes of aerobic excercise before stretching.
Hold each stretch for 15-30 seconds
Stretch slowly and smoothly to the point where you feel a mild tension in your muscles.
Inhale deeply through your nose before each stretch.
Exhale through your mouth when performing the stretch.

Stretching techniques

Dynamic stretching(movement stretches) consists of controlled leg and arm swings, taking you gently to the limits of your range of motion. Dynamic stretching improves dynamic flexibility and is quite useful as part of your warm-up for an active or aerobic workout (such as a dance or martial-arts class). Maintain tension in the lower abdominals to protect your lower back and to control movement of your trunk.
Static stretches (passive stretches / held stretches) are good during the cool down phase. Static stretches help muscle to relax and to re-establish the normal range of movement. Static stretches should initially be held for approximately 20 seconds.
PNF stretches(Proprieceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation)alternates stretch with isometric contraction. This form of stretching is usually done with a trainer and involves the application of resistance to the muscle being stretched for 6-10 seconds followed by a period of relaxation and stretch for about 20 seconds. This is repeated 3-6 times.

Some benefits of stretching

Increases performance and efficiency of movement.
Reduces the risk of muscle soreness and injury.
Improves your posture.
Improves your co-ordination and mind-body connection.

-s-

Supercompensation - recovery vs. exercise

2009-05-04T15:04:00.000-07:00

How many times should I excercise - Is twice a week enough or should I hit the gym four times a week to see some results? This is one of the first questions people ask when starting or thinking about changing their training routines. The answer depends on many things; your goal, age, experience, the intensity of the workout, the type of the workout...If we assume that you are willing to put in the work and you have a working fitness programme, then the answer boils down to recovery and supercompensation (also referred as overcompensation).

Initially training is three phased process. Training, recovery and supercompensation. Supercompensation means the phase after the recovery, when your muscles are particulary prepared for the next challenge you decide to throw at them. If no training is done before the supecompensation period ends, the body will eventually return back to its initial fitness level. Too much is too much and too few times is not good either. To be able to create an effective workout shedule you got to get to know your own body and it's response to different types of training – Unfortunately what works for one does not work for the other.

The next graph explains three phases of training.

If you excercise during:
1. Recovery period: overtraining may occur (although this is sometimes used to reach bigger supercompensation effect).
2. Supercompensation period: The fitness level will increase.
3. After the supercompensation period: The fitness level will most likely stay the same.

The challenge of getting it right

The challenge is to learn how long it takes to reach the supercompensation peak after a certain intensity training. This becames more complex when we are not talking just about gym workout, but include cardiovascular training, nutrition, stress level and hormonal changes to the equation.

If you don't have an access to a laboratory to measure your muscle protein synthesis rates to determine your supercompensation phase, an excellent and fairly easy way to do the same thing is to maintain a training log. This means writing down the information about your workouts and your body's reactions to them. With the help of a personal trainer you can then analyze your log and tweak your training programme to match match your body's recovery schedule.

The best training programme is the one that helps you to do as much quality training as possible during a given time period - without doing too much work. After all the quality of the training is as important as the training frequency. There are guidelines, but without good knowledge about your fitness level and your workout rutine these guidelines might do more harm than good.

A fresh view

Sports training and music education should both learn more from each other. Sports sciense has a long history of research that can be used to benefit musicians by teaching how to excercise safely and how to recover from hard physical training (believe me - playing 4 hours of etydes is hard work). On the other hand coaches and personal trainers should take a good look at musicians and get to know what the "quality of exercise" means. After all training is also about learning good training habits.

-S-

See the links below for more information:
wikipedia - Supercompensation
Sibelius Academy - music university in Finland

Healthy Habits

2009-04-27T19:22:00.000-07:00

I started my sports career because one small victory. I can still remember the first time I managed to run a whole kilometer without stopping. For a 13 -year-old overweight kid that was a huge victory. This victory gave me the energy to keep on training and eventually to become a sports instructor and a personal trainer.

The fitness industry didn't win me over completely - In my opinnion mirrors aren't the way to measure health or happiness. Fitness industry is full of abusers trying to make living out of other people's misery. New diets pop out daily and the information, both scientific and rubbish, keeps flooding the internet and the magazines. The world is full of truths about fitness and nutrition.

Am I preaching against the industry? Not at all. I think good fitness and healthy diet are the foundation for succesful and enjoyable life. Without healthy habits we can't achieve happiness, without goals and a good plan it is hard to achieve healthy habits. That is why we need professionals. Fitness instructors and personal trainers are there to help us evaluate our goals, map out the strategy how to achieve those goals and to give us that extra kick on the rear when we feel like staying home instead pulling on our runners.

The first goal of this site is to provide a platform to learn. I will go through the latest material and give you my view and opinnion on the ongoing trends. I will try to shorten and make the articles reader friendly - who needs the jargon anyways. Welcome and enjoy!

--

32 year old Fitness, Social Work and Music professional. Originally from Finland and now living in Auckland.

Qualifications:
Certificate in Sports and Recreation
Diploma in Sports and Recreation
Bachelor Degree of Health and Education
Certificate in audio engineering and music production

Other interrests:
Learning, music, poetry, reading, films, marketing and webdesign.