Gym rats call the abs and the back muscles the “Core Muscles.”

When these muscle groups are in good shape, back pain caused by back muscle strain or soft tissue injury can be prevented. The body is also supplied with the needed strength to keep it upright.

Oftentimes, we tend to focus too much on ab crunches and exercises for the chest, shoulders, and biceps – the so-called “show muscles” – and pay little attention to the back muscles.

This is unfortunate because the muscles are partly responsible for helping keep us upright, and when they’re properly toned, we’re less likely to be injured from bending or lifting heavy objects.

The abs, as another core muscle, also supports your body.

When the abs are weak, your posture can be affected, imposing undue stress on the other parts of your body. When your abs are too weak to do its job of holding your body up, the neck and back muscles step in and do the job. This is why both muscle groups have to be in a healthy condition.

Simple Exercises For The Back…

These routines won’t give you impressive bulges, but they’re essential for good posture and support.

Lower back exercises

Superman:

Lie face down on the floor with your hands at your sides. To lift your face off the floor, use a small bolster pillow or a rolled towel.

To support your back, tighten your abs; and with the feet still touching the floor, slowly “float” your head and chest off the floor, keeping your neck in line with your spine.

Extend your arms to the sides, and then overhead, to increase resistance.

Return to starting position and repeat 10 to 15 times.

Arm and Leg Raises:

Start with your knees and hands on the floor and your hips flexed at a 90-degree angle.

Raise your right arm and your left leg at the same time while keeping your balance with the abs and the back muscles. Your raised extremities should be level with your back.

Return to the starting position. Do the same with the opposite extremities – the left arm and the right leg this time – and repeat 10-15 times.

Upper Back Exercises:

Dumbbell Raises.
Using a bench, position your body parallel to it and put your right knee on it. Place your right hand on the bench as well, and hold a dumbbell with your left hand.

Next, slowly pull the weight up to your abdomen and stop for a second or two.

Now gently lower the weight back to its starting position. Do about 10-15 reps. Afterwards, shift positions and do the same thing for the other side of your body.

Reverse Fly.
With your feet together, bend forward at the waist while keeping your back parallel to the ground.

Don’t overdo it and use large weights. Remember, the shoulder muscles are small and should not be overworked.

Next, raise the weights up to your sides until your elbows are in line with your shoulders. Pause for a couple of seconds, and return to the starting position. Do 10-15 reps.

An orthopedic surgeon at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Dr. Angela Smith, recoomends standing up straight to keep our backs in its optimal position.

M. Jamal

P.S. What kind of core exercises do you normally perform? Any favorites?

She’s been named one of the “50 Most Beautiful People” in People Magazine in 2004 (that’s the eight time she’d appeared on the list).

Did you know that today stunning actress Halle Berry scored the top spot in Yahoo searches?

Did you know you can get Halle’s 8 part workout video clips?

You can check out all videos by clicking here. Make sure you can see the animation, then click ‘Yes’ and select “Halle’s Workout” from the menu on the right.

Check out the simplicity of the abs workout. Give it a try. Focus, squeeze in a controlled motion.

Did you find this useful? How does it compare to your current workout?

M. Jamal

If you feel that you’re not getting the results you want from your exercise regimen, check this list of the most common mistakes about exercising and see how you can modify your routine to your advantage.

1) Lack Of Direction:

Set your goals right from the moment you start your workout plan. Start a journal where you’ll jot down everything that’s essential to your objective.

This includes:

• What you went to get out of your workout: weight loss, muscle toning, improvement of your cardiovascular health, or increase in muscle mass?You may be thinking of multiple objectives at once, and this is perfectly fine. What’s important is you list down each one and see if the exercises you’re performing are appropriate for the goal you have in mind.
• How long you’re giving yourself to achieve this objective.Do you want to lose ten pounds in 2 months? Do you want to finally remove those love handles before hitting the beach this summer?

  Don’t be tempted to have an open-ended timeframe. If you give yourself too much leeway, you’ll easily slack off.

2) Thinking That More Is Always Better:

Exercising effectively involves a combination of quality and quantity.

There are certain types of exercises that, no matter how many repetitions you make, won’t give you significant results. On the other hand, there are also routines that just take a small amount of time but are so taxing that you’ll see amazing results in just a few days.

You can also decrease the number of repetitions in a set to avoid exhaustion, but make sure you increase the number of sets.

In weight training, another effective technique to make your exercise more effective is to cut the weights you are using in half but do the repetitions to fatigue. This method has been shown to quickly improve strength.

3) Settling Into Your Comfort Zone:

If you keep doing the same routine over and over, you’ll eventually stop gaining muscle mass. “No pain, no gain” is still true to some extent in this sense, if you want to see the results you’re aiming for.

Muscle is built when they repair themselves after a rigorous routine.

When you feel pain after a difficult session, this means that your muscle fibers have sustained tiny tears, but these are soon repaired.

Those who are new at exercising may commit the mistake of overworking themselves, not allowing sufficient time for these tears to heal. What happens is that the ligaments, tendons, and muscles may become permanently damaged, making exercising excruciating.

Always remember to perform stretching exercises as warm-ups and cool-downs too, no matter how physically fit you are.

This point also touches on another exercise mistake – not putting enough variety into one’s exercises.

To keep from getting bored and from getting the same results (which, in many cases, may mean no results if no changes are made), try a new variation of your usual exercises.

Also try those that push you to use different body joints, such as lunges and squats.

4) Focusing On The Wrong Things:

Many people stick to doing what they’re good at, what’s easy for them, or enhancing their assets. However, for overall health, you also need to focus on your weaknesses.

If you have a well-developed upper body, for instance, perform exercises that would help your lower extremities, too.

5) Taking Power Bars And Sports Drinks For Non-Strenuous Workouts:

Well, okay, they may be strenuous to you, but researchers believe that if you haven’t exercised for more than 2 hours in a day, these bars and drinks will only add to your calories.

Just drink plenty of water and have a balanced diet to be able to meet your daily exercise needs.

6) Resorting To The Gym Slouch:

This is when you lean on the equipment too heavily instead of just holding on to the bars for support.

When you do the gym slouch on, say, a treadmill or the Stairmaster, you lean over and round your back, thus not giving your spine the required support.

7) Starving While Exercising To Quickly Lose Weight:

This may seem contrary to that point mentioned above, but there are too many people skipping breakfast, taking a hurried lunch, and gorging at dinner.

This is an ineffective weight loss formula because it slows down metabolism.

A better plan is to have 5 or six meals in smaller portions, with meals evenly spaced throughout the day. This facilitates digestion and improves metabolism in the long run.

M. Jamal

P.S. How often do you come across these common mistakes? Have you seen friends run into these things and other mistakes that drives them away from their set goals? Would love to hear your thoughts.

It’s rather inspiring to hear about everyday people with real lives making a difference and getting closer to their dream bodies. So when I saw this post by Traci talking about “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly” of her recent ‘Healthier Lifestyle’ goals I had to tell you about it.

She voices her thoughts in 22 points that sum up her experience since starting what she calls “The Big D” on Valentie’s Day.

It definitely touches with how many women feel, one poster said:

“I think you put into words what so many of us moms feel every day.”

And another one said…

“Good for you-for voicing what most women think and for having a healthier life style.”

I’d suggest taking a moment to check it out (surely let me know if it does touch base with you’re experience so far).

But first, I’d like to run through 3 concepts that Traci explained briefly…

1. Healthy Food Feels Better:

   Traci says, “I have discovered healthy snacks that I love and actually, truly do prefer over the crap I was eating nonstop before.”Surely there’s no one nutrition menu that fits all, so it helps to experiment and find out what fires your taste buds and nourishes your body.

   One week, I’m trying Sprouts… next week it’s Baby Carrots… then it’s Asparagus (all this in an attempt to add some flavor to my lunch).

   Yet here’s the big one…

   When most people think of ‘healthy food’ they usually assume it’s boring and doesn’t feel right. This is especially true if they’re big on takeout.

   But, if you give it a chance… and replace just one meal or snack with a healthy choice… and keep at if for 2 weeks… you’re body’s natural tendencies will shift in remarkable ways.

   Here’s an example, replace Pepsi/Coke with water or lemon juice for 2 weeks.

   After that, Pepsi won’t taste the same. In fact, after doing this years ago I remember how awful it tasted… it shocked my system and I wasn’t so hung up on it anymore (or as Traci puts it “the burn that I thought I lived for was decidely less than thrilling and the taste was bleh”).

   Another example could be having raisins instead of cookies or sweets. This can really fill up your sugar craving in a good way.

   Have you experienced something like this before?

   (I’m not talking about perfection here, just a simple shift in perspective and realizing how we’re so hung up on many food choices which aren’t necessarily as good as we’d like to think).

2. Next, in point 3 Traci talks about the ‘taken for granted nutrient’…Water:
   
   “And speaking of the water consumption, I think I am fully hydrated for the first time in my whole life.”

   Sounds obvious?

   Sounds simple to do?

   Then, how come I see way too many people skipping this simple concept everyday!

   I hope you’re having plenty of water.

   I won’t try to entice you by listing all kinds of benefits here… just try this for a week and tell me how different you feel: Don’t wait until you feel thirsty (you’re already dehydrated when you feel thirsty!)… try to have a glass of water every 2 hours or so.

   It’s not a race to drink up 13 glasses of water a day, make it a gradual shift… and, soon enough, you’ll find yourself drinking water without waiting to be thirsty.

   Here’s 2 more points worth keeping in mind:

   • Your ‘thirst mechanism’ becomes less sensitive if you’re not getting enough water.
   • It’s said that even MILD dehydration can slow down your metabolism as much as 3% (on the flip side, water can actually help suppress your appetite)
3. “I’ve really started thinking and feeling that it’s much too early in my life to feel frumpy and tired, which I have for the last five or so years.”

   I guess this one’s big because way too many magazines focus on the aesthetics of exercising and eating well.

   That’s not fair, there’s a major difference in the way you feel… your energy level, how you perform everyday tasks even your confidence level shoots up as you get a healthy dose of exercise and great nutrition.So go for it and feel your best.

Listen, I just went through 3 items of the 22 that Traci covers in her blog post.

It’s worth taking a minute to check it out here.

M. Jamal

P.S. Another interesting comment by Traci:

“In high school I thought I was one of the “big” girls. I wore big clothes because I couldn’t look the way I was supposed to in the stylish clothes. I’ve since realized that I was curvy. Big difference. I have boobs and a butt. That is not going to change.”

That’s the core idea behind my report “What’s Your Body Type And How To Train To Get That Shapely Physique”. So if you haven’t downloaded your free copy already you can do that in less than a minute by going here.

Long hours spent sitting in front of your desk, driving on long-haul trips, or traveling on planes or buses can leave you feeling worn-out and cranky.

This is because not all chairs are ergonomic, or your work area may not be set up in a manner that encourages proper posture.

Back pain is the most common cause of work-related disability in the United States and is one of the most common causes of absence from work, second only to the common cold.

Although our bodies aren’t designed to stay in a sedentary position for long periods, many jobs nowadays force us to stay in the same position for several hours on end, and most likely with bad posture, at that.

For instance, when you’re working with a computer having a monitor that’s set too low, you tend to slouch and sit with a rounded back – a position that creates considerable stress on your spine.

How Sitting For Long Hours Can Cause Back Pain:

When you slouch, the back muscles are weakened because they are held in an abnormal position for a long period.

A rounded back also collapses the intervertebral discs – cartilaginous joints sandwiched between adjacent vertebrae of the spine – pushing them outward to the back.

When this happens, the disc herniates, resulting in a slipped disc.

A disc that severely bulges outward can press on the nearby nerves, causing pain that can radiate down to your legs.

Not only that – slouching can also exert pressure on the soft tissue on the neck, giving you not just back pain but neck pain as well.

How To Prevent Back Pain:

There are many causes of back pain, but you can determine if it’s due to poor posture and ergonomics.

You can tell that this is so if the back pain:

1. Goes away after you switch positions;
2. Gets worse at certain times of the day – usually at the end of the day – but not during the weekends when you’re not working;
3. Begins at the neck area, moving down the upper and lower back and radiating towards the extremities;
4. Is felt after, say moving into a new office and using new chairs or desks.

Here Are A Few Tips To Prevent That Annoying Back Pain:

1) Break The Sedentary Position Several Times A Day.

It’s not enough that you get up from your seat for your coffee break or lunch break. Stand up, pace the room, and do a few stretching exercises every half-hour or every hour at least.

2) Use A Lumbar Roll.

There are several models of lumbar rolls available at online stores, but it’s easy to improvise one.

What’s important is that a wedge is used to fill in the curved space that non-ergonomic chairs have, to prevent your back from assuming the position of a hammock. The lumbar roll “forces” you to straighten out and assume a more natural posture.

3) Set Up An Ergonomic Physical Environment.

We’re often assigned to workstations with standard measurements, such as the size of the chair, the distance of the tabletop from the floor, and the computer monitor level.

However, since people are of different heights and body sizes, a standard measurement cannot possibly be applicable to everyone.

If you’re the boss, invest in workstation designs that are tailor-fit to the users. It may seem like added expense but it will definitely result in healthier, happier workers.

If you have a home office, check the best positions for you before having anything constructed. You can also use an external keyboard for your laptop to allow you to have a more relaxed posture.

4) Be Aware Of A Few Posture Myths.

Contrary to popular belief, sitting with your spine at a 90-degree angle to your thighs is Not the most ideal way to go!

A study conducted at the Woodend Hospital in Scotland showed that a 135-degree body-thigh sitting position, with the feet remaining on the floor, was the best biomechanical posture.

In a study of 22 volunteers without histories of surgery or back problems, scientists found that a slouched, or C, position showed a decrease in spinal disk height, indicating wear and tear.

The 90-degree upright sitting position showed a high degree of disk movement, while the 135-degree posture fared best in terms of the degree of pressure placed on the spinal discs.

5) Exercise Regularly.

The importance of regular exercise cannot be emphasized enough, and long hours at the office is no excuse.

There are several simple strengthening exercises that can be done while in the office, and they could help you avoid excruciating back pain.

On the other hand, if you do have the time to spare, you can engage in bicycling, swimming, or walking – just a few of the best exercises to keep your back aerobically conditioned.

M. Jamal

The principle behind a sauna’s therapeutic benefits is based on the belief that our mothers held when treating our fevers in the past.

Many of them wrapped us in thick blankets to induce heavy sweating and to release the toxins from the body, helping us to feel much better right after the unconventional practice.

When one sits in a sauna, the body is tricked into thinking that it is experiencing a fever, speeding up the production of white blood cells.

What happens to your body when you’re in a sauna?

The skin temperature is increased by about 3 degrees Centigrade, simulating a fever and possibly killing bacteria, viruses, and toxins inside the body.

During your time inside a sauna, you will be breaking out into a sweat.

As this happens, your body will require a larger amount of oxygen.

This sets off a chain of events, such as creating a demand for the lungs to work harder and thus expel more toxins. Other organs react similarly, that is, working overtime and squeezing out more poisonous substances through sweat.

A good side effect is that the skin, which is incidentally the body’s largest organ – also gets a tune up as we perspire. Just as an automobile becomes less efficient when not in use, so too will our skin.

Your heart rate increases even as you’re only sitting down, and your circulation improves as well.

Lactic acid, formed during workouts, is also expelled during a sauna session.

This is why it’s advisable to have a sauna treatment after a heavy workout – but only after an adequate rest period and a cold shower.

It is also said that a sauna treatment aids in the production of interferon in your body.

This is a protein which is known for its anticarcinogenic properties.

Did you know that in Europe, clients are made to have a sauna session prior to a body massage at spas?

This is because a sauna treatment prepares the body muscles by loosening and relaxing them, making them more receptive to kneading and massaging.

In the U.S., on the other hand, the sequence is reversed.

The massage is normally administered first, followed by a sauna treatment to eliminate the toxins that have been freed with the massage treatment.

“Can I Lose Weight With A Sauna Treatment?”

First, a sauna or a steam bath is not a recommended method for weight loss. If it were, we’d probably see less people in the gym and more in saunas.

Most, if not all, individuals want a loss of body fat, but the fact is that water is primarily what’s lost during a sauna session.

You become extremely thirsty after coming out of the steam room because of the fluid loss through perspiration.

When you take water after the session, whatever weight you lost will be regained.

When you take a high-calorie drink instead of water, however, you may even end up gaining fat because of that drink’s caloric content. This shows you that the weight loss after a sauna treatment is merely a temporary loss.

Saunas are more beneficial in detoxifying the body than in losing weight.

It is also great for giving the cardiovascular system a workout and for improving blood circulation.

However, you can only stay in the sauna room for so long as there is danger of dehydration and of overstraining the heart.

New technologies are being introduced to enable you to enjoy a sauna for longer than 20 minutes, such as the infrared sauna.

Here, the heat is able to reach into the body much deeper and you can thus get a good cleansing sweat at only 120 degrees, as opposed to traditional saunas where a temperature of 180 degrees has to be reached before results can be seen.

M. Jamal