Stand-Up Paddle Boarding for Core Strength, Balance and Total Body Fitness!

Stand-up Paddle Boarding (SUP) is a fun activity that almost anyone can learn, and it is one of the best workouts available!   Stand-up Paddle Boarding is low impact and provides a combination of balance, core, strength, and endurance.     Since you are standing you have to use everything from your feet (wow do you use your feet!) all the way up through your entire shoulder girdle.    

Because you are standing your arms never have to go above shoulder height which means that there is much less stress on the rotator cuff muscles than kayaking.    You use your shoulders heavily but your shoulders are stressed in the position where they are naturally most stable and strong so much better than kayaking for those with shoulder and neck issues!

Just standing on a Paddle Board forces you to stabilize your entire body and core, and it is one of the best activities available to develop balance.   Best of all if you do fall you land in the water and getting back on the board is very easy!  

SUP Technique Breakdown

Learning to SUP is easy but mastering the stroke and maximizing your speed takes lot of practice.   The first thing to focus on is NOT pulling the water!     Instead you want to plant the blade in the water and pull yourself and the board up to the paddle blade.   Imagine that you are stabbing the paddle firmly into soft sand then pulling yourself and the board up to the paddle.     If you can clearly visualize the difference here it will go a long way to getting your stroke where it needs to be for optimum speed.   Think about grabbing the water NOT pulling the water by you!

Reach

Once you get a little feel for it start looking at how far you are reaching forward to put your paddle in the water.   You want to reach as far as possible each time you stroke, BUT there is a limit based on your particular anatomy, shoulder strength and balance.    If you reach too far you can overstress your low back, shoulder or just be off balance which is counter-productive.

Catch

This is where the blade of the paddle enters the water.    Make sure the entire blade enters the water before you begin to pull.   The catch should be as smooth and clean as possible with no splashing.

Pull

Now you are ready to apply power to the paddle.   Use your entire body for this part of the stroke.   It is NOT about using your arms.   Rather your arms merely connect you to the paddle through your hands and you use the rotation of your torso, hips, and shoulders to drive your paddle!  Try to relax your arms as much as possible to perfect this technique. Do not pull too far back as this will actually slow you down.   Once the paddle passes your hips if you keep pull you are actually pulling the paddle up meaning you are pulling the paddle board down and this only slows you down.

Release

After the pull you need to release the paddle from the water.    Like the catch you want this movement to be quick, smooth, and with zero splashing.   Feathering the blade of the paddle creates a smooth release and set-up for the next catch.   You feather by dropping your top shoulder, “breaking your wrist inward”, or a combination of both.  

Recovery

Once you release the paddle you are ready to set-up for the next catch and pull.   Try to relax during this phase – the key to optimum paddle technique is learning to set a rhythm between tension and relaxation and ultimately getting your breathing into a rhythm with the stroke.  The first time you feel this come together it is amazing – really zen!  So stay relaxed and let go of the tension you produced in the catch and pull and smoothly swing the paddle forward to prepare to drive the blade fully into the water for the next pull!

How many calories can you burn Paddle Boarding?

Obviously your actual calorie burn will depend on the intensity of effort you are putting into to paddling along with your height, weight, and the wind and water conditions you are paddling in.     However here are some estimates based on people weighing between 165 and 200lbs :

            Casual Paddle Boarding – 300 – 430 calories per hour

Yoga on Paddle Board – 416 – 540 calories per hour

Touring on a Paddle Board – 615 – 708 calories per hour

Surfing on a Paddle Board – 623 – 735 calories per hour

Racing a Paddle Board – 715 – 1,125 calories per hour

So if you have not taken the plunge yet – google “Stand-up Paddle Board Rental” and find a rental location and give it a whirl.   Rentals including paddle, board, and lifejacket are generally $25 - $35 per hour so get out there and give it a go!   

Muscle Increases Metabolic Rate and other Surprising Benefits of Resistance Training

Because the muscles function as the engines of our bodies they play a major role in maintaining our metabolic rate.    Even at rest, muscles account for almost 30% of the total calories burned because muscles require lots of caloric energy for muscle remodeling which happens 24 hours per day.    For those who do not perform resistance training exercise, each pound of their muscle uses approximately 6 calories per day.   However, for those of us who perform resistance exercise regularly each pound of our muscle uses approximately 9 calories per day because of higher levels of muscle remodeling and building stimulated by resistance training.

The key take home is that the resting energy requirements of strength trained muscles is 50% higher than the energy requirements of non-strength trained muscle!   In addition, stronger muscles allow you to perform physical activity at a higher level which increase the energy demands of exercise as well.    Actual overall resting metabolic rate increases approximately 7% for 3 full days following a strength training session!   Over the course of a year, this increase can add up to the energy contained in 10lbs of fat.   Put another way strength trained muscle can help you lose 10lbs of fat over the course of a year.

Strength training is also highly effective for regulating blood sugar.   Your muscles are your largest storage area for sugar, in the form of glycogen, so larger and stronger muscles help pull out more sugar from your blood.   Strength training also increases insulin sensitivity and glycemic control for enhanced sugar transport from your blood to your muscles.

Resistance training has also been shown to reduce resting blood pressure and decrease LDL (bad) cholesterol.   In fact, the American Heart Association and the American Diabetes Association both recommend regular resistance training to combat cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Used properly resistance training bands can provide a unique overload that maximizes muscle fiber recruitment, muscle fatigue and thereby rapidly increases muscle strength and hypertrophy.    Flat, circular resistance bands provide increasing resistance the more they are stretched, and this protocol takes advantage of this fact.

Key movements for maximum strength and muscle size include:

              Squats with band

              Deadlift with band

              Overhead Press with band

              Chest Presses with band

              Upright Rows with band

              Bent Over Row with band

              Bicep Curl with band

              Tricep Push-down with band

The key to this protocol is how you perform each set.   Since the resistance increases as the band stretches you start out by performing full range of motion exercise (short of lockout for squat, overhead press and deadlift) and perform smooth repetitions under control until you reach a level of fatigue where you cannot complete the full range.    Continue to perform repetitions to the farthest point possible (say 50 – 75% of the full range of motion) and keep going until you cannot reach that point and are performing reps to 25 – 35% of the possible range of motion.

The key is that you chose a level of resistance band that will challenge you to complete full repetitions after 4 – 6 reps limiting your ability to go full-range.   What you are doing is maximizing force output and muscle fiber recruitment and fatigue at portion of the range of motion.

Done properly this is an incredible stimulus for increasing muscular strength and size.

Here is how you do each exercise.   

For Squats best to use a flat, circular band – and there are several ways to hold the band:

You can step into the band with feet shoulder width apart and band looped over the top of your arms.   Bend both arms at the elbow with forearms crossed and hands on shoulder with band held over the top of both arms near the chest with elbows held high so that upper arms are parallel with the ground/foor.  Here is a great video demonstration:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNDYUhYIrTA

Using two bands looped over shoulders – see video here:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jxMPjOfMTg

Using bands with a bar and squat rack - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eDi193zFm8

Using band with bar and weight - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRjgVS6AS68

Deadlift with bands

Stand on band and put hands through both loops and peform a deadlift - https://youtu.be/TfpoYK4nCRc- you can also use the handles that attach to the flat, circular resistance training band or use bands with handles.

Using Bar and squat rack - https://youtu.be/qze4CP0f7o8

Overhead Presswith bands

            Standing on band - https://youtu.be/24QR6DDWvFI

You can also attach the handles to both ends of the band standing in the center of the band and press overhead using handles.

Chest Press with bands:

              Multiple variations with bar or handles - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nMIhTGjgiU

Upright Rows with bands:

              Standing on bands:   https://youtu.be/m0hs7l2XNlQ      

Bicep Curls with bands:

Stand on flat, circular band and put both hands through the two loops on end and perform curls or attach band handles and perform

Overhead Tricep Press with bands:

              With flat circular band:   https://youtu.be/tJvXMQ5dSQs

Start by practicing each exercise and set-up and organizing the bands you will need for each exercise in the sequence.   Once you are ready perform each set to failure at multiple points within the range of motion without stepping between each range for one giant set:

              Full Range of Motion

              75% of Full Range of Motion

              40 – 50% of Full Range of Motion

              25 – 35% of Full Range of Motion

Buying Bands
A great source for these flat circular bands is either Amazon or  https://resistancebandtraining.com/ and another great option is the X3 bar.  https://www.jaquishbiomedical.com/x3-bar/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw17n1BRDEARIsAFDHFezeg-39ehieKy1MOjoqQ1DlB_GXMCQTwbnrB3Aqsu4FV0H21Iqpr74aAgZgEALw_wcB

Exercise and COVID-19

We all know that exercise can be beneficial for overall health, but what about exercise and COVID-19?    According to a new research review cardiovascular exercise may help protect people from a major complication of COVID-19 infection called acute respiratory distress syndrome or ARDS for short.

Specifically, regular bouts of cardiovascular exercise increase the production of ecSOD which is “Extracellular Super Oxide Dismutase” – a crucial antioxidant that is produced by the body to protect cells from oxidative damage.

Zhen Yan, the director of the Center for Skeletal Muscle Research at UVA’s Robert M. Berne Cardiovascular Research Center, who conducted the review recommends 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise every day to help ward off ARDS. “We cannot live in isolation forever,” he said. “Regular exercise has far more health benefits than we know. The protection against this severe respiratory disease condition is just one of the many examples.”

“All you hear now is either social distancing or ventilator, as if all we can do is either avoid exposure or rely on a ventilator to survive if we get infected.”  Yan said.  “The flip side of the story is that approximately 80% of confirmed COVID-19 patients have mild symptoms with no need of respiratory support.   The question is, ‘why?’ Our findings about an endogenous antioxidant enzyme provide important clue and have intrigued us to develop a novel therapeutic for ARDS caused by COVID-19.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has estimated between 20 and 42 percent of all patients hospitalized with COVID-19 will develop ARDS.

Research predating the pandemic suggested that approximately 45 percent of patients who develop severe ARDS will die, according to a news release from the University of Virginia Health System.

The Incredible Single Leg RDL

The Single Leg RDL – Romanian Deadlift – is one of the most important exercises you can use to tone, shape, and strengthen the entire posterior chain (your butt, low back and hamstrings)...It is also one of the most important corrective exercises you can do to help self-identify and correct muscle imbalances that are the most common cause of movement dysfunction and injury.

Like a two leg RDL the Single Leg RDL is hip hinge exercise and the hip hinge is one of the key functional exercises everyone should do along with squats, lunges, pushes, and pulls.   The best way to do this exercise is barefoot in front of a mirror where you can see your whole body throughout the entire sequence of the exercise.   Ideally you should be on a firm and level surface as well.

This exercise challenges your entire body from head to toe and particularly the feet because of the significant asymmetrical loading which challenges you to compensate and stabilize!   This is very important because when we walk and run we spend much of our time on one foot so this ability is critical for proper movement.

Start by facing the mirror standing on one foot with the other leg flexed so your thigh is parallel with the floor and knee flexed to 90 degrees with hands on your hips.     Look in the mirror and make sure your hips are perfectly level and if not fix that!   

Next, without moving the upper body extend the flex leg down and hinge forward at the hip of the standing leg.    As your swing leg passes the other leg you should try to straighten it, and ideally you hinge forward at the upper body while keeping your swing leg and upper body in a straight line the whole time.

As you hinge try NOT to let your swing leg hip drop and keep your stance foot pointing directly forward with no angle.    The stance leg should flex slightly but the knee should NOT move forward – rather you should “sit” back into the hinge at the hip.

Pause when you reach at or near parallel with the floor with your upper body and swing leg then smoothly return to standing and flex the swing leg.    Slower is harder AND better and do NOT use any load at first.

Master the movement first!    10 repetitions on each side – do all 10 on each side one time per day and you will see some amazing changes in your hips, booty, and legs along with increased strength, balance and athleticism! 

Here is a great tutorial on how to do the Single Leg RDL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc21IwnIcwk

Quercetin for Allergies and Inhibition of Viral Infection

For much of the country allergy sufferers are seriously suffering, but the good news is that there is a well-proven nutritional supplement that can help mitigate allergy symptoms without the side effects of over the counter (OTC) antihistamines.    

Unfortunately even over the counter antihistamines are not without issues including being linked to the progression of dementia with long-term use: (https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/common-anticholinergic-drugs-like-benadryl-linked-increased-dementia-risk-201501287667)

Research on Quercetin

Quercetin is a flavanol found in apples, plums, red grapes, green tea, elder flower, and onions to name a few.   In addition to acting as an effective antihistamine quercetin is proven to be effective for inhibiting viruses such as the common cold and the flu. 

A 2007 study from Appalachian State University was funded by the Department of Defense.  The study had two groups of 20 people ride a bike for three hours per day for three days in a row.    One group received 1,000 mg of quercetin along with vitamin C and niacin and the other group received a placebo.

45 percent of the placebo group contracted a viral illness after the physical stress compared to just 5 percent of the quercetin supplement group.

In a 1985 study, researchers found that quercetin reduces the infectivity and replication of Herpes Simplex Type 1 virus, Polio-Virus Type 1, and parainfluenza type 3 along with respiratory syncytial virus.

A 2016 study found that quercetin inhibited a wide range of influenza strains including H1N1, H3N2, and H5N1.

How Quercetin inhibits certain viruses

Inhibiting a virus's ability to infect other cells (viruses infect cells and then take control of them and make them produce more virus!)

Inhibiting replication of already infected cells

Reducing infected cell's resistance to treatment with anti-viral medication

Quercetin Supplements

In collaboration with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) a supplement called "Q-Force" was developed that is proven to:

Increase Mental Alertness

Strengthen the Immune System

Provide Sustained Energy

Reduce Oxidative Stress and Muscle Soreness Post Exercise

Q-Force is available at www.qforce.com and quercetin supplements are available from many online retailers including Amazon and often include bromelain and Vitamin C which are proven to help with absorption and utilization of quercetin.

NOTE:  Quercetin is NOT proven to prevent or treat Coronavirus although clinical trials are currently being conducted including to determine the effects of quercetin supplementation including this one:  https://www.persavita.com/blog/uncategorized/possible-effectiveness-quercetin-helping-prevent-treat-coronavirus-covid-19-infection/

 

THESE STATEMENTS HAVE NOT BEEN EVALUATED BY THE FDA. THIS PRODUCT IS NOT INTENDED TO DIAGNOSE, TREAT, CURE OR PREVENT ANY DISEASE.    WORKOUT ANYTIME FRANCHISING DOES NOT SELL ANY QUERCETIN SUPPLEMENTS AND HAS NO AFFILIATION OF ANY KIND WITH ANY ENTITY WHO SELLS ANY SUPPLEMENTS CONTAINING QUERCETIN.

Sleep In The Time of Coronavirus

During this stressful time, it is common for people to have problems falling asleep and staying asleep, and by now everyone should know that good sleep is absolutely critical for health and in particular to maintain a strong immune system.

Key Lifestyle Recommendations for Better Sleep

Set a consistent bedtime and waking schedule that you adhere to EVERY day – not just weekdays!

Unplug and eliminate screen time of all types for at least 1 full hour before bed.    Reading is fine as is listening to music, meditating, or listening to an audio book.    

If you use your phone or tablet to read (which is NOT ideal) consider downloading a free red-light app such as “Twilight” which progressively eliminates more and more blue-light from the screen as you approach bedtime.  The Blue portion of the light spectrum is a stimulant and helps wake us up in the morning but also keeps us awake at night.

Eliminate all caffeine after 11am and consider eliminating it entirely – many find that this is all it takes to get a great night’s sleep.

Eliminate or dramatically limit alcohol – and if you are going to have a glass of wine do so early and stop drinking at least 2 hours before bed time to give your body time to eliminate the alcohol from your system (1 drink per hour of time not drinking).

Hydrate very early in the day by consciously drinking two large glasses of water first thing in the morning and tapering fluid into after 5pm to limit the need to go to the bathroom while sleeping.

Exercise early in the day – an amazing antidepressant and a known sleep aid as long as you do not exercise vigorously right before bed!

Stop eating anything or drinking any calories 3 hours before bed to avoid heartburn and digestive issues while sleeping.

Nutrition Supplements for Sleep and Stress

While you can try over the counter sleep medications like diphenhydramine which is an antihistamine (aka Sominex, Unisom, and Benadryl) even this basic drug has side effects including prostate issues and contributing to dementia if taken for long periods of time.

Sensoril Ashwaganda – is a specific form of the Ayervedic herb which is HIGHLY effective for safe stress reduction, improved sleep and improved energy levels and sex drive during the day.  Completely safe with almost no contraindications and also very inexpensive.  Available from many sources online including from several different manufacturers on Amazon.  Take 500mg per day in single or divided doses with or without food.  This herb is incredibly good for overall health and vitality – to learn more click here:  https://neurohacker.com/sensoril-ashwagandha-withania-somnifera-root-and-leaf-extract

L-Theanine – is an amino acid derived from Green Tea.    L-Theanine is another fantastic and safe stress reducer.   Like Sensoril it actually improves daytime concentration and focus but facilitates sleep by dramatically reducing the stress response.    Dosage should be 100 – 400mg up to four times per day.   For sleep start with 100mg about an hour before bed and adjust dosage accordingly.   Very safe with almost no side effects or interactions.     Available on Amazon from many fine manufacturers.   You CAN absolutely combine L-Theanine and Sensoril and several supplements are available with both ingredients including this author’s favorite: Jarrow Gaba Soothe!

Jarrow Gaba Soothe contains l-Theanine, Sensoril and PharmaGABA – see below.   In the author's experience this supplement almost never fails to produce a dramatic and noticeable reduction in stress and improved sleep response with side benefits like more daytime energy, increased focus, and improved sex drive with no stimulants or hormones.

PharmaGABA is a very specific form of Gaba that crosses the Blood-Brain Barrier which no other form of Gaba does.   Gaba is an inhibitory neurotransmitter that puts the brakes on the excitatory neurotransmitter norepinepherine which is part of the stress -fight or flight response that is at the heart of anxiety and sleep disorders.

Unlike anti-anxiety drugs like Valium, which affect the Gaba receptors and are highly addictive – PharmaGABA is proven to decrease the stress response without sedation, or addiction, and IMPROVE daytime concentration.

To get the best of all three of these supplements try Jarrow Gaba Soothe which includes all three – great company and a fantastic and safe stress reduction supplement with side benefits instead of side effects!