Mental Fitness: Managing and Reducing Stress

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stress relief
A large part of fitness and wellness is a full maintenance of one’s self. Often times, people worry only about maintaining their physical fitness, but forget to take care of their mental health. One of the most common sources of trauma to the body is the manifestation of stress. There are a few easy ways to manage and reduce your stress, to maintain a healthy life both physically and mentally.

 

Reduction of Stress

 

Self Massage. It would be wonderful if we could all just get run to get a massage when we were feeling stressed; but that’s just not possible. What is possible is learning to self massage. Take some time to learn the technique of “self-myofascial” massage, where you put pressure on the tissue that covers your muscles. It helps to release tension knots that are related to stress.

 

Become aware of your breathing. Taking control of your breathing is one of the quickest ways to begin reducing your stress levels. When you notice that you are feeling stressed, take a moment to stop thinking about the cause of your stress. Instead, focus on your breath itself. Follow your inhales and your exhales and only focus on the breath for a few minutes. Then, begin counting up while you inhale (a count of 3 works best) and counting down while you exhale. Do this for at least five minutes if you have the time.

 

Management of Stress

 

Learn to Prioritize. Sometimes your current life situation may feel out of your control. One way to combat that, to make things more manageable is to create a list of tasks that you can be in charge of. Determine which items in the list need to be prioritized first, and create a schedule. That way, you can turn that stress energy into high quality, fast paced productive energy.

 

Talk it out. Find someone that you can share your feelings of stress with, and discuss. Being able to hear your own issues vocalized really helps with the connection to one’s self. The act of finding the words and knowing that they are being heard by someone other than yourself makes for a more positive environment to work out of.

 

For the reference article, click here.

 

A Guide to The (Real) Simple Superfoods

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Every time you turn around in the health and fitness industry, you hear the term “superfood”. More often than not, it’s some new exotic grain or impossible-to-find vegetable that is supposed to be the equivalent to the fountain of youth. We all know how that story goes, the superfood of the moment gains popularity for a few weeks (or months) and then fades away when it’s discovered that it didn’t actually do all that much for the body anyway.

But, there are a few foods that truly fit the definition of what a superfood should be. They’re far simpler than one would expect, and are readily available at any standard grocery store.  When someone says superfood, the food should be doing something extraordinary, and that’s what these do. The following foods do more than just provide the great nutrients; they are also packed full of phytochemicals, fiber, and antioxidants, which all have hugely important health benefits.

 

Blueberries

jamie stanos blurberries

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Blueberries are thrown into all kinds of desserts and sweets these days, so people forget how amazing they are on their own. There has been research that suggests blueberries have the ability to reduce high blood pressure and cholesterol. They also have qualities that benefit specific segments of society. For women who are post menopausal, hypertension and high blood pressure are common afflictions. When consumed in specific quantities, blueberries have been found to help these women reduce their diastolic blood pressure. Athletes can also benefit from blueberries, as they help combat the oxidative stress that occurs due to exercise.

 

Yogurt

jamie stanos yogurt

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Yogurt is often overlooked for it’s true value; people generally throw yogurt into their daily routine when dieting, but don’t really understand how beneficial yogurt really is. It’s full of calcium, potassium, and both vitamins A and B-12. Ingesting the correct amount of potassium (via yogurt) can contribute to a reduction of high blood pressure. Yogurt as a whole has also been found to help with weight loss and the prevention of type 2 diabetes.
 

 

 

 

Brassica Vegetables

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Image courtesy of Getty Images

Brassica vegetables are not as fancy as the name suggests. Brassica is the latin name for the cruciferous vegetable family (aka green vegetables):  broccoli, bok choy, brussels sprouts, kale, brussel sprouts, etc. The veggies in the brassica family are known for being very high in nutrients despite having a very low calorie count. They are helpful for anti-inflammation, healthy eyesight, and relieving the same oxidative stress mentioned earlier this article.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The article that inspired this blog was posted here by American Fitness, the official publication of The Aerobics and Fitness Association of America.

 

Train Like the US Women’s National Team this Soccer Season

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04-33-34-648_640The fall soccer season will be starting up soon, and the soccer-enamored youth of the world have undoubtedly been glued to the screen watching the U.S. Women’s National Soccer team making waves. During the 2015 World Cup, the U.S. team has been described as “unstoppable”. They’ve plowed through the Japanese team during a championship game and slammed through the Costa Rican team during their victory tour. The women are powerhouses of technique, fitness, and strength, and it’s apparent to everyone that their wellness routine is one that everyone should be keeping an eye on.

The fitness and performance coach who’s behind it all is Dawn Scott.  She has ten years of experience working with the professional men and women’s soccer teams in her native England, and has been working with the US Women’s National Team for six years. Dawn knows her stuff, and has some very wise words that will be of great help to the youth getting ready to train for the fall soccer season:

  • Training between male and female soccer players will be different. The physiological truth is that women’s bodies are not going to be as muscular as a male’s, but the basic routines for both are the same (just shorten the lifting sessions a bit for the women). Women and men both need to work towards increasing endurance and strength, and there’s no doubt that woman can endure and be incredibly strong.
  • Female soccer players should be especially conscious of their knees. Be sure to warm up and strengthen leg muscles around knees
  • Make sure you focus on recovery. Constant training and strengthening will be moot if time isn’t dedicated to recovering. Starting the next session exhausted is dangerous and unbeneficial.

Here’s How To Recover:

  • Cool Down – Jog gently to avoid blood pooling, stretch lightly, fill bathtubs with cold water and ice and sit for 10 minutes
  • Use Foam Rollers – Make sure not to overdo it, but use them to find areas that are tight and/or sore
  • Sleep – Create a healthy sleep environment by unplugging from phones, laptops, and tv.

To read the full interview with Dawn Scott, click here.

Positively Coping with Athletic Injury

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heel injury Often times, there are specific and extremely apparent responses when someone who is hugely physical and active becomes injured and is forced to stop their normal athletic routine. Studies have shown that there is a direct negative correlation between injury and emotional well being. It is very important for the injured athlete to learn to cope positively, in order to heal in the most efficient and healthy way. There are a few ways that this can be achieved:

Acknowledge the Power of Positive Thoughts

There has been research stating that keeping up a positive attitude is directly related to a faster rehabilitation period. It’s important not to fall into the trap of only thinking negative thoughts or maintaining an air of pessimism.

Create Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-Specific Goals

This is a pretty common structure for setting goals. When dealing with an injury, it’s easy to slip into thinking recovery is impossible, because the end goal of full recovery is so far away. When smaller, specific and measurable goals are set, recovery becomes more manageable. It’s important to make sure these goals align with the information the doctor provides, so that the healing process is safe and doesn’t result in further injury.

Meditation & Relaxation Training

Going through the healing process as an athlete or active fitness fanatic is extraordinarily stressful. There is always the worry that things won’t get better, or that fitness/athletic skills are being depleted.  Learning relaxation techniques is a fantastic way to manage that stress. When practiced properly, relaxation techniques can reduce the activity of stress hormones and improve concentration and mood. Some strategies are based on guided imagery, and others are meditative breathing practices. It’s important to find the technique that works the best, and to use it throughout the rehabilitation process.

 

Sources: 1 2

 

#ChangeTheTune | The Truth About Coca Cola

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The Center for Science in the Public Interest is an organization committed to health advocacy. Recently, they brought attention to the health effects of drinking soda and sugary drinks like Coca Cola. It did this by releasing a revised theme for a popular Coca Cola advertisement. It shared a re-written version of the song lyrics from the original. The goal was to critique the historical advertising strategy that Cola brings happiness and replace it about the true health implications tied to consuming the drink. Attached to this ad spoof is a social media hashtag called #ChangeTheTune to raise awareness on misleading ads.

Soft drinks and sweetened energy drinks are known to place American diets in jeopardy. Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health has a fact sheet that supports this claim. Soda is known to cause weight gain due to the high caloric value of the sugary drink. People usually don’t end up eating less food after drinking something so high in calories and therefore end up packing on pounds. This contributes to the country’s overall obesity rates.According to Harvard, on soda per day without a reduction of calories anywhere else could result in a five pound weight gain each year.

The JAMA Internal Medicine journal recently released data stating that of all individuals in America over the age of twenty-five, 67.6 million of them are obese. This information deserves a call to action. The fact that obesity can lead to chronic health issues should also be aggressively made clear. The Coca Cola ad spoof highlights those with hypertension, tooth decay, and diabetes singing about the soft drink from within a hospital exam room and not from a joyous hillside in the sun. These people want viewers to see that soda does not equal happiness.

To learn more about CSPI and their rendition of a popular Coca Cola ad, visit Deseret National News online here.