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Sports Health

Using Strength Training for Children

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What many sports medicine professionals realize that parents do not is that strength training can do so much more for your child than simply giving them muscle mass. Important in helping to ward off injuries as well as building overall strength a proper strength training program can benefit your child both in long term and short term goals.

From the very first athletic attempt your child has, to the very last having the strength necessary to execute the sport effectively is one of their single most important needs. Ensuring the proper strength levels can be beneficial in both normal life, as well as the athletic field and provides a great way to children to help avoid injury as well as create healthy strength habits for life. While the exact type of strength training varies from child to child, the far reaching benefits are attainable to everyone.

Regardless of whether your child is playing soccer, basketball, football, or even running track or swimming having the proper muscle strength necessary can often help avoid overuse injuries that are so prevalent amongst young children. Forcing the muscles to strengthen up allows the muscles to work harder before an injury occurs. Experts have all agreed the children as young as six can safely work on strength training when closely monitored by an adult.

The ability to start strength training at such a young age helps to ensure that while children are busy learning about sports, they are also able to embrace the benefits of proper safety precautions rather than merely learning how to treat injuries. While not all children become huge fans of strength training it is still a wise idea to teach it.

Overall, it is very important for the adults involved in strength training to closely monitor the child. The sports medicine doctor working together with a fitness coach can usually advise about the correct amount of time as well as repetitions for each exercise to ensure that the maximum benefits are achieved, without potentially causing the child injury.

It is vital to also ensure that your child understands exactly what is expected of them. While the idea of allowing a young child to life weights may not seem appealing to many, it is something that does appeal to others. However, setting limits to the amount lifted, as well as how long is very important to ensure that the child is not injured in any way.

Parents can also work with children and a fitness coach to work out the best strength routine for them based upon age, sports, and body type. It is important to only allow a child to engage in strength training with proper supervision both by a doctor and by a knowledgeable trainer. Your childs doctor should be aware that strength training is going to be occurring before your child starts so that a through check up can be conducted to ensure that your child is well enough to handle the rigors of strength training.

Other considerations that are very important is the equipment that your child uses. Most sports medicine professionals can agree that while a child is encouraged to engage in strength training they should almost always avoid using the same equipment as adults. Instead, it is vital that children engage in exercises and training that is designed for their smaller bodies. Most children are not big enough to safely use the adult sized equipment. It is essential that you find a gym that can accommodate your child has needs, or consider purchasing small sets of weights for your home.

With proper precautions, and careful supervision strength training for children can reduce the number of injuries, increase strength, improve endurance and provide excellent health benefits overall. By focusing on age appropriate exercises and ensuring that your child is properly supervised you can be assured that you are helping your child develop into the strongest possible, while fighting off injuries and other problems.

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Sports Health

Carbohydrates the Essential Energy Source

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Most athletes know and realize just how important it is to get the proper nutrients however many athletes are being drawn into the idea of using low carbohydrate diets as a way to help control weight. Needless to say, the sports medicine field is quite alarmed at this recent trend. The number of athletes that are starting to use low carbohydrate diets is alarming in recent years. Even scarier is the fact that these diets can cause harsh long-term complications such as making weight loss even harder.

Carbohydrates are the essential energy source that all athletes need in order to maintain the stamina to work out. Without this vital energy, it is much easier for injuries to occur from exhaustion as well as body strain. This is never an advisable outcome, but sadly, it occurs much more often in recent years. A proper diet for an athlete involves consuming quite a few carbohydrates.

Typically, the amount of carbohydrates that are required to be consumed by athletes is much higher than the amount required for people who are sedative. The proper amount of carbohydrates that each athlete needs varies greatly with some requiring much more than others. To determine the exact amount of carbohydrate consumption that you should personally aim for it is important to talk to your sports medicine doctor.

There are times when athletes are especially encouraged to increase their carbohydrate intake, this is especially common during tournaments, competitions and if you are engaging in more than one sport at the time. This is to ensure that your body has enough energy to handle the rigors that you are placing upon it during especially strenuous activities. In addition, there are other times when your doctor may recommend cutting back carbohydrate consumption, however all serious adjustments to your diet should be carefully monitored by your sports medicine team to ensure that you are getting the proper nutrients.

As the number of fad diets appearing on the markets increases, it is especially important to listen to what your doctor says about your diet. Athletes are recommended to store as much as 15 grams per kilogram of body weight in the form of carbohydrates. This translates into as much as 15 grams for every 2.2 pounds. For an average 180-pound athlete this translates into as much as 1227 grams of carbohydrates.

In terms of how carbohydrates are related to calories, it is easiest to use the following conversion. One gram of carbohydrates translates into four calories of energy. This means that for our example of the 180-pound athlete, the 1227 grams of carbohydrates they should consume would equal as much as 4909 calories. This is an enormous number for most people; however, there are some athletes that would require higher calorie intake while other would be able to handle much lower intake levels. Ultimately, it is up to you working with your doctor to determine the best level for your individual needs.

Remember, cutting back on carbohydrate levels can be quite damaging to the body. If your body is not consuming enough carbohydrates, then the body starts using protein as energy. This can be dangerous because protein is designed to help fuel your muscles and provide the muscle mass for the body, rather than simply providing energy for the body. The end result for many who are not consuming enough carbohydrates is an overall weakened condition and less energy to actively engage in the sport of their choice.

An important consideration is who is giving you the advice on your dietary needs. Many coaches do not always know the most up to date nutrition information. This makes it highly risky to simply take a coaches word about how much you should be consuming each day in calories and carbohydrates. In order to achieve the best results possible you can consult with your coach as well as your doctor to work out the best possible solution that has both your fitness goals, athletic goals and your health goals in mind.

Keeping your own personal health as the top priority is vital to ensuring you are as healthy as possible. Remember, it is sometimes necessary to adjust your carbohydrate consumption however; it should always be done with a doctors supervision to ensure that you are not potentially damaging your body or your overall health. Your physical safety is a much greater consideration that reducing your carbohydrate intake.

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Sports Health

Appropriate Eating Habits Before Competitions

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As athletes work to prepare for competitions and tournaments, it is very important that nutritional needs be met. This includes both in eating habits, what is consumed, and when it is eaten. The old saying that you should not eat before swimming is a very real concern for athletes regardless of which sport they are involved in.

In order to allow the body to fully convert the good foods that you are eating into energy it needs time. The amount of time it needs varies depending on the exact foods that you are eating but the process is certainly not instant. In order to achieve the best results it is ideal if you break up your eating habits before competitions and try to limit the amount of food that you are eating right before engaging in sports. For example, if you are going to be running track at 10a.m. you should not eat anything after 9:30a.m. unless it is an emergency. This allows your stomach time to start converting the food you consumed into energy.

While it is necessary to drink liquids during a work out it is also essential to know what foods are safe before a work out. In order to ensure that your athletic experience goes as smoothly as possible you should always consult your sports medicine doctor for specifics based upon your body type, athletic activity and any other variables that are specific to you. In the meantime, there are some general guidelines that are acceptable to use and can assist in helping you ensure that you are ready to go.

Before you exercise, you should look at eating about 4 hours before your exercise. This means a real meal with components from all of the food groups. This does not mean simply snacking on an energy bar, or even an apple. Instead, it should be a complete meal, this may require you to adjust your workout schedule to better coordinate with your eating habits, or if your schedule handles it better adjust our eating habits around your workout schedule. Either way, it is important to eat a full meal 4 hours before your work out.

Once you are finished eating it is a good idea to eat a snack or even an energy drink that is loaded with carbohydrates. This gives your body an extra burst. It is best to look into this high carbohydrate snack about 2 hours before your workout. Remember, worrying about the calories you are consuming is not as important as ensuring that you are giving your body the fuel that it needs to function. In addition, about one hour before your workout looking into a sports drink is a really good idea. Following this schedule should have your body well stocked with plenty of energy to handle the rigors of your workout.

In the time immediately before a workout or even a competition of any type it is best to stick to small foods that are healthy and offer high amounts of carbohydrates. Examples include fruits, fruit juice, vegetable juices, and even sports drinks are all healthy choices that keep your energy levels full. They are also light enough that they will not cause any problems with your stomach while you are engaged in your athletic activity.

In addition to eating the healthy foods, sports medicine doctors also recommend consuming something sugary approximately 45 minutes before any highly strenuous activities. This includes candy bars, energy bars, and even some soft drinks. Keeping your energy levels up is not always a simple task but if you focus more on your energy levels and less on the calorie intake that you are consuming your body will appreciate it once you are moving and using the stores of energy.

Remember, limiting the amount of sugar that you consume is best since it only gives you energy for the initial start to the activity. The carbohydrates that you consumed before will provide you with the long-term energy that you need to be successful. With some careful planning it is possible to work with your sports medicine doctor and coach and decide exactly what your best eating routine is to keep you in top notch shape.

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Healthy Food

Microwave Cooking is the Wave of the Future

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When it comes to cooking there are few tools that are more versatile in the kitchen than the microwave. This device offers thereupon many functions when it comes to cooking that incredibly people never bother to profit by. Its sad really. In most homes, the microwave has been relegated to doing obstruction as a drink defroster, popcorn popper, and coffee warmer rather than using is as the fabulous device for precise food preparation that it really is capable of over.

Before you set up to change your ways, you need to understand that when unaffected comes to microwave cooking, not all microwaves were created equal. Wattage is extremely imperative as is the quality of your microwave. The everyday el cheapo microwave that you can find in discount stores will simply not stand up to the rigors of regular full meal preparation though they are perfectly acceptable for many wonderful dishes that can be prepared due to bite dishes. The correct microwave however, can purely brown and bake a full sized Thanksgiving turkey.

Microwave cooking is even so not something that is meant for those who are afraid of trying something untouched or those that are afraid of moulding mistakes along the way. This is a process that is one part science and one part figuring it out. Research helps a great deal but even many of the recipes you will find for microwave cooking are written for microwaves of varying wattage so you will need to ferret out what times and temperatures would be congruous for your microwave. This is to a large degree going to be a process of crack and error unless you are using the recipe book that came with your microwave.

Do not despair however, most that have tried microwave cooking find it to be a much better process for their meal preparation needs. While microwave cooking is great for big families it is an outstanding way to save money when cooking for and feeding one. It is further rather understandable. In other words, even college students can benefit by learning microwave cooking for one or more as it will help them limit their expenses while still eating healthy fresh make-believe meals.

Another great thing about microwave cooking that is often overlooked is that there are far less messes to be made than when cooking bit of a meal stove top, part of a meal in the oven, and part of the tuck elsewhere. By and large, microwave cooking keeps any spills and splatter isolated to your microwave. Most of these engagement be cleaned and controlled rather easily by using a removable plate in your microwave ( that can be washed in the dishwasher ) and covering your food whenever possible to avoid splatters.

Microwave cooking is gaining popularity despite the fact that is hasnt drawn on as well as the inventors would have liked. The proof of this is in the many products that posses been created to make microwave cooking a little bit easier. From omelet makers to special trays for cooking bacon in the microwave industrious people are working to make the easy way of cooking that much easier.

If you have a microwave in your home that is used mostly for melting butter and warming pizza, then you have a microwave in your homey that is being terribly under utilized. It is time you hit the search engines for recipes that will be appropriate for your microwave and get persevering trying something new and different that will have your family awed and amazed. Visualize having them toss accolades for your tireless devotion and standing over a sizzling stove for hours when in existence you only checked on the microwave when the proper time approached.

Microwave cooking very well may be the wave of the future. Get a head start and begin building your collection of wonderful microwave recipes right away for the best selection. The day will arrive when you can make microwave cooking the rule rather than the exception.

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