Conditioning Research

H/T to Mike via his Facebook It is pretty impressive, but 67 or not some of those moves  - like the plyos  or the roll outs or those burpee things at the end - would wreck me.  Survivorship bias I suppose and now people will think that this is how we should train to be like him.  If I did that at 42 I'd soon hurt myself...... Do no harm

Mike O'Donnel has been around the internet for a while writing about several things but particularly Intermittent Fasting.   A couple of years ago I bought his book - The IF Life - and enjoyed it very much as a good accessible introduction to the science and practice of intermittent fasting. He has spent a lot of time recently updating his book.  It is now called The 2 Meal Solution .   As a previous customer I got a free update. It is really a totally new book and I would really recommend that you check it our - definitely worth the money. What I like about the book is that it doesn't make IF the solution to all your problems - it is clear that there are times when it might not be a good idea.  Like Robb Wolf it emphasises that sometimes IF cold be an additional stressor that you don't need.  The idea of 2 meals is also a nice take on IF, stressing the eating not the fasting. The historical quotes are interesting too, putting a case forward that in many...

If you have any familiarity with the Scottish hills you may have heard of the Aonach Eagach - a long ridge that forms the northern wall of Glen Coe.  It is challenging enough to walk it.....let alone cycle. The question of course is....WHY?

This is a bit disturbing High doses or prolonged use of glucosamine causes the death of pancreatic cells and could increase the risk of developing diabetes,  So, all those people taking this for their sore joints need to exercise some caution "The key point of our work is that glucosamine can have effects that are far from harmless and should be used with great caution," concluded Professor Picard. The results obtained by Picard and his team coincide with recent studies that cast serious doubt on the effectiveness of glucosamine in treating joint problems.

Here is an interesting one.  I've watched a couple of important people in my life decline markedly through various types of dementia recently.  It is really sad to see once vibrant intelligent people so limited by changes in their brains. Insulin Sensitivity as a Mediator of the Relationship Between BMI and Working Memory-Related Brain Activation This study has a simple conclusions:  obesity in middle age was related to alterations in brain activation during a cognitive challenge and this association appeared to be mediated by insulin sensitivity. Insulin sensitivity again.  What can we do to maintain insulin sensitivity?  It is all the regular stuff - low carb/paleo diet, sensible exercise, adequate sleep, minimal chronic stress.....

I spotted this in a couple of places today: " Marathon runners can be a lot less fit than they think ," Dr. Eric Larose today told the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress 2010, co-hosted by the Heart and Stroke Foundation and the Canadian Cardiovascular Society. Lack of real aerobic fitness may directly impact the ways the heart organizes itself to survive the stress of marathon running, says Dr. Larose. His research found that the magnitude of abnormal heart segments was more widespread and significant in a group of less fit runners. During the marathon, they had signs the heart might be at greater risk of damage than that of runners who had better training or at least had better exercise capacity. "Without proper training, marathon running can damage your heart. Fortunately the exercise-induced injury is reversible over time," said Dr. Larose. "But it could take up to three months to completely recover." Read more at Future pundit

The other day I posted about the upcoming MovNat clinic here in Edinburgh.   I am really looking forward to it - I hope to see some readers there. I just spotted this blog post from someone who attended a clinic this weekend: My MovNat Experience.   Interesting reading.