With exercise and nutrition, there is a whirlwind of differing and contradicting information out there: high carb low fat vs. low carb high fat diets, strength training vs. cardio, crunches vs. no crunches, and so on. To clear some of the air, below are some common myths explained and backed up by extensive research and analyses: 1.) “Strength training will make me bulky” Many women are hesitant to do any sort of resistance training because they are afraid they will “bulk up.&...

Here’s a staggering statistic: according to the New York Times, “(a) study concluded that inactivity costs the world economy almost $68 billion annually in medical expenses and lost productivity.” Even worse, although the United States only accounts for less than 5 of these costs ($28 billion). Here’s part of the issue - most of us look at broad statistics like this and immediately turn outward. We begin to blame the society we live in and the people around us rather loo...

Low Back Pain Leading Cause of Disability Globally The Lancet recently published a series of articles on low back pain, with the authors featuring many of the leading experts on this topic. They essentially declare that low back pain is actually getting worse throughout the world, and that it has now become the leading cause of disability globally. So what are some of the collective insights on low back pain? Low back pain is a normal part of being a human and occurs in most people at some...

By nature, a lot of us are “flexaholics” - meaning we are in flexion (bent over, pushing, slouching, sitting, squatting) much more than we are in extension. Most times, this can lead to tightness in some areas and weakness in others. This can then result in muscular imbalances and, eventually, chronic pain and/or injury. The phenomenon described above are the precursors to what is coined as “upper and lower cross syndrome.” By definition, UCS/LCS is “characterized ...

The physical effects of aging are inevitable; even if we are healthy, our bones become weaker, body becomes stiffer, and cardiovascular system becomes less efficient. However, a recent study looked into potentially ‘reversing’ some of these latter effects. Our ability to pump blood to the rest of our body is based upon the elasticity of our heart. The more we age, the less elastic our hearts become and the less that oxygenated blood can be delivered to the body per heartbeat. This s...