Some people could care less about things like terminology, whereas other people will tell you that to speak the jargon of a field is to know that field. Either way, here are some terms that you may want to know as you embark on your journey towards Total Fitness.

Abduction and Adduction

Abduction is defined as those bodily movements which involve actions that are away from the midline of the body or one of its body parts. Abduction occurs in the frontal plain. The muscle that causes this movement is called the abductor.

Adduction is the opposite of abduction and involves movement towards the midline of the body. The muscle that causes adduction at a joint is called adductor.

Agonist

The agonist is the muscle which is directly responsible for the movement at a joint.

Anaerobic Activity

Anaerobic activity is a term used to define activities undertaken without the presence of oxygen e.g. weight lifting and sprinting. Such activities cannot be undertaken for long periods of time.

Anaerobic Capacity Test

A test that is used to measure the ability of the body to undertake exercises of short durations and of very high intensity.

Antagonist

An antagonist is a muscle that has an action opposite to muscles directly responsible for the movement of a joint.

Concentric Muscle Contraction

Concentric muscle contraction involves muscle shortening while contracting, such as the bicep while lifting the weight during the bicep curl.

Eccentric Muscle Contraction

Eccentric muscle contraction involves the lengthening of a muscle during movement, such as the bicep while lowering the weight during the bicep curl.

Extension

Extension may be defined as any movement that involves an increase in the angle of the articulating bones, such as straightening a bent elbow. The muscle which causes an extension is called an extensor.

Fast Twitch Muscle Fiber

Fast twitch muscle fiber is a type of muscle fiber that is suited for high intensity exercise.

Flexion

Flexion is a movement that leads to a decrease in the angle between two articulating bones, such as at the elbow during the bicep curl when the weight is bought up towards the shoulder. The muscle that causes flexion is called the flexor.

Isokinetic Muscle Contraction

Isokinetic muscle contraction occurs when the speed of shortening of the muscle remains constant over the entire range of motion. This type of contraction usually relies on special gym equipment.

Isometric Muscle Contraction

Isometric muscle contraction occurs when the muscle length remains static during exercise. This occurs when the force of the muscle equals the weight of the force applied on the muscle, such as if you hold a weight in your hand with an outstretched arm for 10 seconds.

Isotonic Muscle Contraction

Isotonic muscle contraction occurs when the tension remains constant and where the muscle shortens. Weight training is a classic example of isotonic muscle contraction.

Ligament

Ligaments are strong fibrous connective tissue that attaches one bone to another.

Muscular Endurance

Muscular endurance refers to the ability of a muscle to undergo repeated contractions without fatigue.

Plyometrics

Plyometrics is a type of training that is designed to improve both power and strength. It usually involves exercises such as an athlete jumping from one block to the floor and then to another block.

Progressive Overload

In order to improve the body’s strength or endurance, we must put it under some kind of stress, and as the body becomes stronger we should increase the amount of stress in order to continue achieving gains.

Resistance Training

Resistance training refers to any type of training or exercise where resistance is applied to the body

Slow Twitch Muscle Fiber

Slow twitch muscle fibers are the muscle fibers that are designed for endurance and high aerobic activity. They can produce a large amount of energy using oxygen. For example, marathon runners and cyclists have a lot of slow twitch fibers.

Strength

Strength refers to the maximum force that can be developed within a muscle or group of muscles during a single contraction.

Synergist

Synergist is the muscle which contracts to enhance the efficiency of the muscle primarily important for the movement of a joint.

Tendon

Tendons are connective tissues which are responsible for attaching skeletal muscle to bone.

Some research has shown that the traditional abdominal crunch can actually cause certain problems. This particular exercise provides a very isolated contraction of the abdominal muscles that is in no way geared towards the real world strength needs of our bodies. The crunch also shortens the rectus abdominis, which can result in a postural imbalance in some people that could actually leave your lower back open to injury.

A much better exercise to consider replacing the traditional ab crunch with is the Swiss ball crunch. Swiss balls are inexpensive and available at most sporting goods stores, as well as major retail chains like Target, Wal-Mart, Sears, KMart, etc., or online.

The Swiss ball crunch is completed as follows: Lie on the ball so that your back conforms to the shape of the ball. Hold the sides of your head very lightly (only for support), and then curl your spine such that your entire upper back comes up off the surface of the ball. In this position, pause and make sure that you can feel your abs contracting, pulling in towards the spine, and your lower back should be digging into the ball. Hold, inhale, then lower yourself back to the starting position.

Replacing your old floor crunches with Swiss ball crunches should make a significant difference in how you feel afterwards, particularly if you already have lower back problems or occasional back pains.

To your fitness,

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It’s fairly common for meat-eaters to ask non-meat-eaters (especially athletes) how on earth they get their protein. Depending on which studies you believe, the typical adult requires somewhere around 0.4 grams of protein per day per pound of body weight in order to maintain proper cell processes, metabolic functions, and all the other wonderful things that protein does for our bodies. Most junk foods contain incredibly low amounts of protein, but are usually high in carbs and fat, which is one of the reasons that we like them so much, but also one of the reasons that they throw off the grand harmony of balance within our bodies.

If you’re an active person, then your protein needs go up as well. Since muscle is primarily protein-based, your protein requirements are highest when you’re actively engaged in building significant muscle bulk. Many professional body builders consume 1 to 2 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day!

If your dietary restrictions keep you from eating meat, consider these alternative high protein foods. Items are listed as food, then serving size, then protein content per serving, in grams:

Peanut butter, 2 tablespoons, 20 grams protein
Tofu, firm, 3 ounces, 13 grams
Soy milk, 1 cup, 11 grams
Tempeh, 2 ounces, 11 grams
Whole-wheat pasta, dry, 2 ounces , 9 grams
Black beans, 1/2 cup, 8 grams
Chickpeas (garbanzos), 1/2 cup, 8 grams
Lentils, cooked, 1/2 cup, 8 grams
Almonds, 1 ounce, 6 grams
Oatmeal, cooked, 1 cup, 6 grams
Shredded wheat, 2 ounces, 6 grams
Tahini, 1 ounce, 6 grams
Whole-wheat bread, 2 slices, 6 grams
Baked potato, 1 medium, 5 grams
Barley, quick, 1/4 cup, 5 grams

This list also does not include dairy proteins, such as milk, cheese, and yogurt. All of these tend to be good sources of protein as well, so if your personal dietary restrictions don’t exclude them, they’re worthy of consideration.

To your fitness,

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Fire up the blender, it’s time for smoothies. And smoothies aren’t just for summer, bitch.

Strawberries are one of nature’s super foods. They are packed with nutrition, including plenty of folate, fiber, and Vitamin C. A serving of strawberries actually has more Vitamin C than a medium-sized orange.

What does this mean for your health? Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that protects the body against premature aging and is often associated with reduced risk of stomach, colon and lung cancers. Folate, one of the B vitamins, helps break down the amino acid homocysteine in the blood, which helps lower risk of heart disease and stroke. It’s also suggested that folate may lower the risk of colon cancer.

To make your own strawberry smoothies, try the following recipe:
2 C. fresh strawberries, stemmed and rinsed
1/3 C. frozen lemonade concentrate (about half of a 6-ounce can)
1/3 C. confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar)
3 C. ice cubes

1. Place strawberries, lemonade concentrate and sugar in a blender container.
2. Blend at low setting until mixed.
3. Blend in ice cubes, 1/2 cup at a time, until the mixture is slushy.
4. Serve in frosted glasses.

Super-duper yummy-time!

Until next time,

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Perhaps the first thing to be said about diet and fitness is that there’s a glut of programs out there, the overwhelming preponderance of which are sheer baloney.

Here are a few facts:

A calorie is in scientific terms “a unit of heat required to raise the temperature of a kilogram of water 1 degree (Celsius) at a specified temperature.” (Note: this is called a “food calorie,” also known as a “large calorie.” The so-called small calorie, which is the type used in chemistry, is defined as “a unit of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree Celsius.”)

Every food contains calories.

A gram of fat contains about 8 calories.

A gram of carbohydrate or protein contains about 4 calories.

A pound of body fat contains about 3,500 calories.

Thus, by cutting caloric intake by, for instance, 500 calories a day, you will burn approximately 1 pound a week.

To lose weight, you must simply burn more calories per day than you take in.

No amount of hype changes these basic biological facts.

According to the National Research Council, the average woman (5′4″, medium frame) who does absolutely nothing, burns between 1,600 and 2,400 calories per day; the average man (5′8″, medium frame) burns 2,300-3,000 calories per day.

The body burns most of its calories replacing tissue, processing food, pumping blood, and so on.

The most accurate equation for calculating how many calories the body burns is called the Mifflin equation. For 78% of the people tested, the Mifflin equation estimates the number of calories a person burns to be within 10% of the measured number of calories they burned at rest.

But there’s a simpler formula for estimating how many calories you burn when you’re completely at rest: add a zero to your weight (if you weigh 175, make it 1,750) and then add your actual weight twice to that figure (1,750 + 175 + 175 = 2,100). Thus 2,100 is roughly how many calories a 175 pound person uses in a completely sedentary state.

Using these same figures:

“To determine your total calorie needs, you have to add calories for general activity and exercise. With your desk job and workouts, you probably burn one-half again your resting needs, for a total of 3,150 calories (2,100 plus 1,050 equals 3,150). If you were engaged in a regular aerobic exercise program, you would require more calories. On average, walking or jogging a mile consumes about 100 calories” (From the desk of Clarence Bass).

These are, of course, only estimates, and in the end you must get to know your own body, as indeed the Stagyrite once sagely advised.

There is, ultimately, only way to get and stay in shape, and that by wanting it with all your heart and soul. All the fads and all the hype will never, I’m afraid, provide a shortcut for that, although some things may motivate you more than others.