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Lead Stories: Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Whole Body Vibration Training: Can it provide the competitive edge you’ve been searching for?

Posted May 31st, 2007 at 1:30 PM by Megan Hueter

Section: Health & Fitness, Injury & Rehab, Exercise

Elite athletes around the world constantly scour through the hottest research in sport and exercise science for the latest and greatest training trend for their field. One of the newest topics to surface is whole body vibration (WBV) training.

WBV training is a neuromuscular training method that has been widely used for rehabilitation purposes. Recent studies examined the effects of WBV training for athletes. WBV training is a fairly new concept in the field of health and exercise science. It was invented by Russian scientists who combined vibration stimulation with resistance training in hopes of enhancing resistance training techniques.
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Hill Repeats vs. Weight Training: Which training workout is more important?

Posted March 16th, 2007 at 11:30 AM by Jim Fortner

Section: Running & Training, Training Tips

Jim Fortner is a weekly, guest contributor to TFS. Also check out his own personal running and advice site: “Jim2’s Running Page”.

I wholeheartedly agree with the value of hill repeats. Too many runners overlook them and focus almost entirely on intervals and tempo runs. Hard hill repeats provide both strength and cardio-respiratory development; making them an essential ingredient of any serious runner’s regimen. In addition, as many easy and long runs as possible should include some hills, rather than being completely flat.

Hills are a great resistance training tool for strength development … and not just in the form of structured hill repeats. Let me explain:
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What’s the best time for future athletes to start training?

Posted March 6th, 2007 at 8:25 AM by Martha Jones

Section: Health & Fitness, Exercise

A study from Sweden suggests that the best time for future athletes to start training is probably before they go into puberty, because strength training before puberty gives a person larger and stronger bones.

The study also shows that the best way to prevent osteoporosis may be to start exercising against resistance before puberty and continue weight bearing exercise for the rest of your life.

Having large strong muscles makes you a better athlete, and muscle growth is limited by the size of the bones on which they attach. Training before puberty enlarges bones more effectively than at any other time in a person’s life.
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Type 2 Diabetes: How diet and exercise could save your life (PART 4)

Posted December 20th, 2006 at 2:05 PM by Megan Hueter

Section: Health & Fitness, Exercise, Weight Loss

This is the final installment of a four part series. Part 4 is entitled: “Type 2 Diabetes and the Benefits of Resistance Training”.

Attention type 2 diabetics: studies show that adding resistance training to your exercise program can enhance its benefits and improve insulin control. With a total change in lifestyle (through education about type 2 diabetes, adherence to a strict diet, aerobic exercise and resistance training) you can restore you body’s sugar to a non-diabetic level.

The treatment goal for type 2 diabetic individuals is to achieve and maintain near to normal blood sugar levels and optimal fat levels in the body. With exercise the body becomes less resistant to insulin. Aerobic exercise is commonly prescribed.
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Type 2 Diabetes: How diet and exercise could save your life (PART 1)

Posted November 29th, 2006 at 12:00 PM by Megan Hueter

Section: Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Health & Fitness, Exercise

This is the first installment of a four part series. Part 1 is entitled: “Understanding Type 2 Diabetes”.

Do you or someone you know suffer from type 2 diabetes? If you answered yes, you’re not alone. Recent studies show that a nutritional diet combined with physical exercise such as aerobic exercise and resistance training can restore the body’s sugar levels to a non-diabetic level. Understanding how this happens could save your life.

Diabetes mellitus is one of the leading causes of death and disability in the United States. There are currently 20.8 million people in the country suffering from diabetes, which is 7% of the population (1). Approximately 90-95% of these cases are categorized as type 2 diabetes. (3,4) Type 2 diabetes is strongly related to being overweight and obese, which has become a very serious public health problem of the past 25 years. Read the rest of this entry »

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You don’t know “SQUAT”: Part 2

Posted November 6th, 2006 at 4:00 PM by Jonathan Faccone

Section: Running & Training, Training Tips, Cross Training

This is the second and final part of my series on beginner strength training for endurance athletes. Make sure to also go back and read Part 1.

We understand WHY strength training is important for runners, but now we’re left wondering HOW to start a program.

There are so many variables and concerns in commencing a weight training regimen. Unfortunately, many people choose not to properly research what they are doing; nor do they have the money to spend on personal trainer. The good news is training programs do not have to be complicated, nor they should they (especially for beginners). When starting a training program it is best to keep it simple because, that way, it will allow you to focus on the fundamentals and make it easier for you to stick with it.

For endurance runners, one great exercise to start with is the one-leg squat. Owen Anderson, of Peak Performance Online, believes this exercise is great for runners because it:

Mimics the basic biomechanics of the footstrike portion of the running gait cycle, and therefore can dramatically improve running-specific strength and coordination.

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You don’t know “SQUAT”: Part 1

Posted November 3rd, 2006 at 9:00 AM by Jonathan Faccone

Section: Running & Training, Training Tips, Cross Training

I’d like to begin by clearing up the misconceptions concerning the importance of strength training in an endurance runner’s training regimen. Some runner’s feel that strength training is not as important as their endurance training. Others, fearful of putting on additional mass, believe that it may hurt running performance.

However, both notions are far from the truth. Several studies have shown that strength training can be incredibly beneficial to performance and help with injury prevention.

According to Owen Anderson of Peak Performance:

Recent scientific research has linked strength training with a 4 percent improvement in running economy, reduced heart rates while running, and improved race times at distances ranging from the 5K to marathon.

In addition, Wayne L Westcott, Ph.D. and fitness research director, believes that injury prevention might be the most benefit of weight training. Read the rest of this entry »

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