May 2020 Newsletter

As we’re all getting accustomed to our self-quarantine way of life, I want to focus this newsletter on methods of regulating your fitness and nutritional needs to make sure the healthy habits you’re creating now will last post-quarantine.

We all know what prolonged sitting does to our posture, but did you know that sitting all day can make you hungrier? Two hormones that regulate your appetite are leptin and ghrelin, and when you sit down all day, they can send signals to your brain that you need food even when you really don’t.

A study done by Gustaffson et al published in 2017 discussed how weightbearing thru your bones can can also affect those two hormones. Osteocytes are cells in your bone that help regulate bone mass. Sitting removes the force of our body weight from our leg bones, making the osteocytes think you weigh less, so it sends signals to the brain to restore homeostasis to increase our appetite by stimulating leptin and ghrelin.

So the next time you’re sitting down and feeling hungry, get up and walk around!

Do you find your neck, shoulder and back muscles are tight after sitting at your desk all day? Here’s a checklist to make sure you are sitting in the proper position to alleviate your symptoms:

1.Feet flat on the ground

2.Knees and hips at 90 degrees

3.Elbows in line with your shoulder at 90deg

4.Forearm resting on the arm chair

5.Shoulders relaxed and down from your ears

6.Computer screen in line with your eyes

Well, sometimes it can be what you eat, but portion control is a HUGE factor in determining our overall relationship with food and energy level. This picture is a great guide to help you figure out what portion of each main food group you should be eating. Even though fruits aren’t included, they would be the same portion size as veggies.

Every joint in your body has a functional range it moves through, but anything beyond that is considered excess motion, or hypermobility. The more your joint has the ability to move beyond its normal range, the less stable the joint. That instability can create problems when participating in high impact exercises because the increased stress on an already unstable joint can create pain, swelling, inflammation and a higher risk for injuries.

Answer these Qs to see if you’re hypermobile at ANY of your joints. The more questions you answer YES to, the more likely you are to have global instability:

1.Are you double-jointed?

2.Can you place your hands flat on the floor without bending your knees?

3.Do your knees lock when you stand up straight?

4.Can you bend your thumb down back to touch your forearm?

5.Do you experience joint tenderness/swelling after intense or high impact exercises?

6.Can you do splits?7.Have you ever dislocated your shoulder or kneecap more than once?

When you’re confident, you’re standing with a tall spine, open chest and arms wide open, making you feel like you can take on anything life throws at you. So why not do exercises that help you achieve just that? Warm up your body with the unilateral camel on a regular basis as a power pose:

1.Start in a kneeling position; if this bothers your knees, place a pillow or towel underneath them.

2.Place both hands on the small of your back and start arching your back.

3.Place one hand either on your leg or heel (whichever is more comfortable) as you extend the opposite arm over your head as shown.

4.Hold for 15 seconds, focusing on a 4 second inhalation + 4 second exhalation out thru your mouth.

5.If there’s too much strain on your low back, keep your hand on the small of your back to make this stretch more comfortable.

6.Repeat on the other side.

At a time when so much of the world is bringing situations you CAN’T control, this chart will help you remember the things you CAN.