Category Archives: Fitness

Health Risks Of Adventure Sports

The popularity and appeal of adventure sports or extreme sports is on the rise, worldwide. Kayaking, skiing, rock climbing, cliff diving, trebuchet, mountaineering, snowboarding, ski boarding (snowblading),water rafting, base jumping, downhill mountain biking, bungee jumping are alluring the teenagers and  the young adults. They crave for the ‘adrenaline rush’ and excitement derived from such sports and do not hesitate to jeopardize their lives by indulging in adventure sports.

These sports are associated with high causalities or fatalities and risk is intricately woven into the very element of extreme sports. Despite having claimed thousands of young lives, they continue to attract individuals, who are drawn to such sports like powerful magnets.

Snow sports are obviously hot during the winter season, and are thus the charm of places with long winters like Scotland, Canada, Russia etc. Skiing dangers abound. One strange danger is the ‘tree-well’ deaths or NARSID, snow immersion deaths that are not related to avalanche, occurs when the victim falls in the deep pitted area near a snow-laden tree are common. When the victim tries to rise or extricate it results in more deposition of snow over them and they die from hypothermia and asphyxia.

Inside a tree well it is difficult for someone to be able to see or hear you, so the chances of rescue are very remote. Falls and collision with static objects like trees or other persons coming in the way account for a lot of fatalities and wearing a helmet may prevent this to a large extent.

One third of ski injuries involve the knee joint, affecting either the anterior cruciate ligament, medial collateral ligament or the meniscus. There may be ligament tears or lower leg fractures that may require knee replacement surgery. Other common sites of injury are the head or the skull, thumb, and shoulder joint.

Snowboarding has an altogether different injury profile. Here, upper limb fractures predominate due to falls with outstretched hands. According to Dr. Gorger, at Deadwood Regional Hospital, broken collar bones, dislocated shoulders, and wrist fractures are quite common in snowboarding. The incidence is quite high in children and novice boarders due to not wearing protective gear such as wrist guards that protect the person from wrist injury.

In this regards I would like cite my own example- last winter I visited my cousin in Scotland who is sports savvy. She took me along with her for snowboarding and taught me for the first time; she herself was self-taught. I ended up fracturing the talus bone of my ankle, and injury commonly known as “snowboarder’s ankle”. I learned an important lesson, not to gamble with your safety and health, and seek professional training or instruction before going for adventure sports.

Thrill Seekers 

The thrill seekers who are fanatic about the stimulation and boost they get from such sports are not just daredevils, but very often they are our best scientists, surgeons, CEO’s, inventors and explorers. For example Dr. Kenneth Kalmer, a New York based renowned surgeon of international acclaim, and one of the finest surgeons of America, is a high altitude mountaineer. He is well aware of the health risks associated with it, but feels that it makes the society more vibrant and progressive. He says that the predisposition to take risk is not new; it is hardwired into our core, our evolutionary makeup since times immemorial. Man took risks in order to survive.

He feels that sportsmen linked to adventure sports are adroit and highly skilled, trained athletes, who are safety conscious, disciplined and can take care of themselves in high risk zones. He feels if adventure sports are practised in the right way with all the safety measures they significantly contribute in the development of our evolving and diverse society. But on the other hand, in an attempt to seek name and fame, perhaps to attract the attention of media, too many of them neglect the safety protocols, inviting troubles.

Some Other Problems

Nowadays, to fulfill the innate need of exhilaration, some people resort to other activities, having potentially greater social, personal and economic risks than adventure sports. For example, they may turn to addictions like gambling, sex, drinking, smoking or taking narcotics, to get the ‘high’ or surge of adrenaline, the same feeling or euphoria that they get from adventure sports due adrenaline surge.

Sitting for long hours to play video games or computer games is a leading cause of postural problems, obesity and other lifestyle diseases, but if one participates in such sports they will never fall prey to such lifestyle disorders. Challenging outdoor activities, even adventure sports are better outlets than these addictions according to Dr. Peter Katzmarzyk , who is linked with Canadian Heart Foundation. So, if practised in a proper way with all the safety protocols adventure sports are actually a boon in disguise. So, if you follow your sport’s guidelines and are trained, the risks are greatly reduced.

Author: Hi! I’m Rit, a causal writer at nutrition website FreshBeetle. I am fond of exploring every possible aspect in life that involved improving your health. I’ll be happy to see you from time to time on our site – FreshBeetle. 😉

Why You Should Get Yourself Checked Up First Before Scuba Diving

Going scuba diving for the first time is definitely something to look forward to. You’ve seen all those gorgeous underwater pictures in travel blogs, and you can’t wait to transport into that other-worldly place yourself.

Of course,it’s not just about putting on the wet suit and turning on that oxygen tank. You will have to undergo training and certification before you can even be allowed anywhere near those depths. That is to ensure your safety and security underwater. Obviously, your physical capacities will be limited by the environment, and so you should know the basic ABC’s first.

Visit Your Doctor First Before Visiting The Deep Sea

Before you even get into training, you should visit your doctor first for a rudimentary check-up. You might as well do it before you leave before your trip, too, because either way, the diving training will still require you to get that check-up from their own doctor, especially if you do have a pre-existing medical condition.

In particular, wannabe-divers with a history of heart or lung conditions require their physician’s thumbs up. The conditions underwater are not exactly the best for those with this physical condition, especially because the heart and the lungs are the first to be directly affected, in the event of an underwater emergency.

Medication Issues

If you are under medication for whatever reason, it would be better too if you ask your own doctor during your check-up about the possible effects of taking these drugs, and going diving.

Basically, your purpose of going to your doctor before making that diving trip is to be responsible about your own health. As soon as you’re in the clear, then you can go ahead and enjoy getting that diving certification.

The official website of Arbeitsmedizin should help you better understand the importance of visiting your doctor for a check-up before getting into any extreme outdoor activities, like deep-sea diving.

The Best Strapless Heart Rate Monitor Watches

Have you ever noticed how some people in the gym are constantly checking their heart rate monitor watch for data about their exercise routines but never seem to have to fiddle around with the monitoring chest strap that goes hand in hand with them? Well there is a secret. There is no chest strap!

Strapless HRMs are not only getting more and more accurate, they are getting more and more popular. Amongst the best strapless heart rate monitor watch brands are MIO and Impact Sports Technologies. So remove the strap, breathe easily and gear up with the best strapless heart rate monitor watch for your budget and needs.

MIO has been in the strapless heart rate monitoring industry for over a decade and are known for their cute watches that get the job done. Great choices in the MIO range include the MIO Motiva with its built-in calorie counter, the MIO Motion FIT with its built-in pedometer, or the no-nonsense MIO Drive+ which will have you up, running and working within the training zone within minutes.

The ‘ePulse2’ on the other hand from Impact Sports Technologies stands out as being one of the few, if not only, continuous strapless heart rate monitor watches. Because it continuously monitors your heart, it precisely calculates your average heart rate over time. Most other strapless heart rate monitors are not continuous, meaning that they only give you an on-demand heart rate reading for a given moment in time. Other great choices include the Bowflex ‘Fit Trainer’, the Omron ‘HR-210’ and the ‘SOLO’ range of strapless heart rate monitor watches from Sportline.

Women often are sensitive to chest straps and many won’t use heart rate monitors due to this physical requirement. One great alternative however are sports bras that have the chest strap integrated into them. In this case women can kill two birds with one stone enjoying the benefits of chest support and continuous heart rate monitoring in one device!

So consider a strapless heart rate monitor watch next time you hit the trail, track or gym. A lightweight tool to stay in touch with just how hard you are pushing your body.

Elliptical Trainer Machine – Burning Away Calories This Summer

Bidding goodbye to winter means saying hello to the warm days of summer and to the burning of calories gained during the cold months. For many people this is not an easy task, and with the swimsuit season rapidly approaching many people are desperately searching for a fast way to lose the weight. Well the search is over and it stops with elliptical trainer machines. The next few paragraphs will help you understand how to use elliptical machines to lose weight and get in shape very quickly.

Melting away the fats can’t be easier with the low impact workout that one can do with an elliptical machine. You need to execute the workout in accordance to a plan and not just by doing some erratic movements in the machine. It is advisable that one starts easily at the beginning of the exercise program until a certain level of fitness is achieved to graduate to a more intensified exercise routine.

When working out with an elliptical trainer machine you should be using a model that allows you to work your upper body as well as your lower body; this is normally accomplished with levers that are attached to the machine. By working out the upper and lower body during the workout, the workout can lead to a more efficient way of burning the calories towards a leaner body mass.

One way to determine the attainment of the exercise goals each time is to keep the heart working that is evident in the heart rate monitor. It is wrong to think that simply going through the motions can help one accomplish something relevant to the real goals of the exercise. For an efficient process of melting away unnecessary calories and stubborn fats, there is the necessity to increase the heart rate to the aerobic levels and stay there for not less than 15 minutes. The efficiency of burning calories and losing weight is increased when the aerobic heart levels is kept longer. The heart beat range of 120-190 per minute signifies aerobic heart level which is normally a function of age, gender and body weight.

By staying dedicated to a workout program that properly incorporates elliptical trainer machines and working out you can quickly and easily lose that winter weight and look great in your swimsuit this summer!

The Perfect Diet And Routine For Muscle Building

A body builds muscle when it is put through a strenuous activity for a prolonged period. Muscles grow during the period when the body rests and not during exercise. When we lift weights the muscles are put through stress and they break down which results in production of thicker muscle fibers. But before you can hit the gym, you need to get stronger, gain some mass and get the energy to train hard.

What To Eat

It is very essential to have a muscle building diet because if you don’t eat enough all that hard work would go to waste. Eat the right stuff in the right amounts to see the right results. Try to manage more than 3 meals a day to give your body enough fuel to build muscle. Don’t eat to fill yourself but eat to complete yourself with what the body needs.

Eat a good breakfast, then eat before workout, eat after workout and besides that try to eat every three hours to keep your body powered up.

Eat foods with proteins and carbohydrates. Protein gives you the energy and carbohydrates help build up muscles. Carbohydrates are found in everything that you eat already in your daily diet, rice and potatoes being the prime example.

Supplements are a good way to gain energy and help in muscle building and muscle repair but it being supplement means it will only work with a good exercise routine and an excellent diet.

The most important thing to do is to stay away from fats and sugars, as fats hinder in muscle building unless they are healthy fats and sugars cause craving for more food. Good fat comes from stuff like olive oil, fish oil, butter and many other things in our daily diet.

Keep these little things in mind and it will help you with muscle gain.

Make A Routine

Make a schedule of what exercises to do on what day and which muscle to focus on each day. It is best to focus two muscles per day, try making pairs like

  1.  Biceps and triceps
  2. Shoulder and back
  3. Chest and abs
  4. Legs and thighs

Push your body to the limit and try to lift as heavy weights as you can. Add weights day by day to take your body out of the comfort zone. More weight is more stress which automatically results in more muscle. Lift weights to get tired. By the time you finish your exercises your muscles should be fully exhausted.

Rest is as important as exercise. If you don’t give enough time to your muscles to relax they will hinder in muscle growth. And increase your sleeping hours to give extra time to the muscles for a complete rest.

Bottom line

The final verdict is that if you want to gain and build muscles, you need to eat more to get a good amount of calories and lift heavy weights to get the effects you want. In one line, eat more every day and lift more, day after day to make your workout worth it.  “The pain you feel today is the strength you will gain tomorrow!” (Quite literally).