Mesothelioma and the Health Risks of Asbestos

Asbestos has been in use since the mythological era of
Ancient Greece, but asbestos can be a modern-day killer.
Widely used for fireproof insulation purposes in the
nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, asbestos has
since been found to cause the deadly cancer mesothelioma
along with other lung conditions.

Occupational Exposure and Dangers To Workers

After noticing that chronic diseases, especially cancers of
the lung such as mesothelioma, were extremely common in
construction workers who were exposed to asbestos, doctors
began making a connection between asbestos and
mesothelioma. Unfortunately, construction and other workers
who were exposed to asbestos from the 1950s through the
1970s, when the dangers of asbestos were more fully
recognized, are still suffering from the ill effects of
asbestos exposure at work. There are now laws and
regulations in place that are designed to prevent workers
from exposure to toxic asbestos; however, these laws cannot
undo years upon years of exposure to this deadly mineral in
the workplace.

Delayed Diagnosis Due To Long Dormancy Period

Workers may have been exposed to asbestos in the 1970s, but
may only just now be developing the tell-tale symptoms of
mesothelioma. This is because the disease is slow to
manifest, which challenges doctors struggling to diagnose
and treat mesothelioma patients in time. Because its
symptoms take so long to manifest and often align
themselves with those of other diseases, mesothelioma in
workers may be misdiagnosed as pneumonia or other diseases
during its early stages.

Mesothelioma Symptoms

Symptoms of mesothelioma can include:

A shortness of breath, abdominal swelling, pain of the
abdomen, blood clotting problems, chest pain, chronic
cough, heart palpitations, fever, labored breath, and
weight loss.

Pleural, peritoneal and pericardial mesothelioma are all
possible variations of the deadly cancer, with pleural
(lung) mesothelioma the most commonly manifested version of
the disease.

High-Risk Professions

Though the use of asbestos is now regulated by laws and
regulations, the disease's long dormancy period means that
it still has a high number of potential victims.
Professions at a high risk for asbestos exposure and
mesothelioma are those which involved repeated exposure to
asbestos in its industrial forms.

These professions include:

Electricians, painters, insulators, carpenters,
bricklayers, construction, workers, mechanics, and other
tradespeople, especially those who were involved with
commercial or home construction before the 1970s.

The families of these workers were also at risk, since they
may have inhaled or ingested asbestos through the
employee's clothing or hair.

Legal Options

Because of the huge number of potentially affected workers,
there has been a significant amount of litigation against
companies who irresponsibly used asbestos, exposing their
workers to the threat of mesothelioma and other
life-threatening asbestos-related illnesses. If you are
suffering the ill effects of asbestos exposure, talk to
your doctor and determine a reasonable treatment plan. Then
contact an asbestos attorney who is experienced in
mesothelioma litigation. A competent asbestos lawyer may be
able to help you recover damages for the pain and suffering
incurred through asbestos exposure and mesothelioma, defray
the costs of treatment, and provide for your children if
you die of the disease.

----------------------------------------------------
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matters, individuals need only visit
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on a vast number of legal issues. Also, LegalView.com has
an attorney referral service that can put visitors in touch
with experienced legal counsel, such as an auto accident
attorney or a brain injury lawyer. For more information
about mesothelioma, visit
http://mesothelioma.legalview.com/ .

Selecting a Personal Trainer

A personal trainer can help you lose weight the right way.
Despite efforts by doctors to teach people how to properly
lose weight and keep it off, fad diets are just as popular
as ever. The companies have gotten sneakier though by
touting their products as nutritionally sound.

Right From Wrong!

Good nutrition means eating those foods that provide
essential nutrients for life. Skipping meals or
substituting vitamin and mineral pills is not good
nutrition. Consistently eating the wrong foods is just as
unhealthy.

A personal trainer can help you start and maintain a weight
loss program through exercise and nutrition and not by
excessive food deprivation. The truth is the body needs a
balance of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, and essential
vitamins and minerals to operate efficiently.

The body also needs regular exercise. Losing weight means
losing fat and there's no more effective way to do so than
through a targeted exercise program and careful meal
planning. A personal trainer will work with you to design a
fitness program that helps you lose weight while providing
other important health benefits.

A fitness trainer understands that different people have
different fitness goals and can customize a program to
achieve results no matter the circumstances. Some people
want intensive exercise programs, while others are
interested in exercises that can be done at home as well as
the gym.

Getting Down to Business

The best way to lose weight is to do fat burning exercises
coupled with reduced calorie intake. A personal trainer can
assist you with both. Reducing calories doesn't mean
starving yourself. In fact, the goal is to prevent
starvation!

A weight loss program includes several components.

Balanced nutritional plan

Fat burning cardio exercises

Strength training exercises

A personal trainer is expert at creating a program that
attacks excessive weight through a carefully designed
calorie-burning program. There's really only one way to
lose weight. You have to use more calories than you eat.

The best way to burn calories is through exercise.
Aerobics, or cardio exercises, raise the heart rate to
somewhere between 60% and 70% of the maximum rate for at
least 30 minutes. Aerobic exercise forces the body to burn
fat instead of muscle glucose for energy.

Trying to lose weight by depriving the body of a whole food
group such as carbohydrates is unhealthy and seldom
successful for the long haul. A personal trainer can help
you adhere to a fitness program so you can lose weight in a
way that can be maintained over your lifetime.

In other words, a personal trainer can help you develop a
whole new fitness lifestyle. By getting regular exercise,
you strengthen your heart, tone your muscles and reduce
your chances of developing weight related diseases. All
ages can benefit from the services of a fitness
professional.

If you're tired of trying to lose weight using
quick-weight-loss plans that don't work, the next step is
to hire a personal trainer. A personal trainer will show
you how to finally get down to business – the business of
losing weight.

----------------------------------------------------
Hut Allred is the President of New Wave Fitness. Inc.
located in Dallas, TX. His company provides in home
personal fitness coaching throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth
area. His website is
http://www.bestdallaspersonaltrainer.com

The REAL Effects of Alcohol On Your Body - Part 2 of 2

This is Part 2 of the continuation of the effects of
excessive alcohol on your bodybuilding workouts.

4- Decrease in vitamin and mineral absorption

When you consume large quantities of alcohol, your liver is
busy converting the alcohol to acetate and any vitamins and
minerals that it might process are taken up by the
detoxification process.

Alcohol interferes with the metabolism of most vitamins,
and with the absorption of many nutrients. Alcohol
stimulates both urinary calcium and magnesium excretion.
[13]

This just means that you'll get less of a benefit from the
"healthy" meal you may be consuming.

Food in the stomach will compete with ethanol for
absorption into the blood stream. It is well known that
alcohol competes and influences the processing of nutrients
in the body. [12]

5- Decrease in protein synthesis of type II fibers

This means the actual building of muscle is slowed down by
20%+ or more. This included a 35% decrease in muscle
insulin-like growth factor-I (GF-I). [9]

6- Dehydration

A common side effect of alcohol is dehydration. Alcohol is
a diuretic. Drinks containing 4% alcohol tend to delay the
recovery process. [11]

Considering how important water is to muscle building and
general health, it's clear that dehydration can put a
damper on your progress. After alcohol consumption the
first thing you might want to do is drink coffee. But
that's a diuretic as well. How to avoid dehydration?
Drink more water.

7- Sleep

Alcohol consumption, especially at the times when you would
normally sleep, can have effects on the quality of sleep.
Clearly high quality sleep is extremely important to the
rebuilding and growth process of muscle. Without proper
rest and recovery, your gains will be affected.

Alcohol consumption can induce sleep disorders by
disrupting the sequence and duration of sleep states and by
altering total sleep time as well as the time required to
fall asleep. [10]

8- The next day

A rather obvious conclusion but if you plan on drinking on
a Friday night in excess then the leg workout you thought
of doing on Saturday morning won't be top notch. It takes
a bit to recover, your body to detoxify and for you
mentally to be prepared to workout.

Not to mention you need energy for the workout ahead.

Sure you can hit the weights but my point is...

It's not going to be the best workout you've ever
experienced.

At this point you might be totally discouraged to ever
drink any alcohol again. But there's some good news.

Here's proof...

In the November 2004 issue of the International Journal of
Obesity [7] they did a study on the effects of moderate
consumption of white wine on weight loss.

Each group consumed 1500 calories. 150 calories came from
white wine in one group and 150 calories from grape juice
in another.

The conclusion?

An energy-restricted diet is effective in overweight and
obese subjects used to drinking moderate amounts of
alcohol. A diet with 10% of energy derived from white wine
is as effective as an isocaloric diet with 10% of energy
derived from grape juice.

It's simple: Moderation is the key! (with first place
being abstinence as you already know).

In any event...

The effects of alcohol on your body when it comes to
building muscle and burning fat are quite clear. It is a
lot more than just some extra calories stored as fat. If
you consume too much, it can derail your goals a lot longer
after your head has hit the pillow and you've gone to sleep.

References:

1. Heikkonen, E., Ylikahri, R., Roine, R., Valimaki, M.,
Harkonen, M., & Salaspuro, M. (1996). The combined effect
of alcohol and physical exercise on serum testosterone,
luteinizing hormone, and cortisol in males. Alcoholism,
Clinical and Experimental Research, 20, 711-716

2. Kvist, H., Hallgren, P., Jonsson, L., Pettersson, P.,
Sjoberg, C., Sjostrom, L., & Bjorntorp, P. (1993).
Distribution of adipose tissue and muscle mass in alcoholic
men. Metabolism, 42, 569-573

3. Raben A, Agerholm-Larsen L, Flint A, Holst JJ, Astrup A.
(2003). Meals with similar energy densities but rich in
protein, fat, carbohydrate, or alcohol have different
effects on energy expenditure and substrate metabolism but
not on appetite and energy intake. American Journal of
Clinical Nutrition, 77, 91-100

4. Siler, S.Q., Neese, R.A., & Hellerstein, M.K. (1999). De
novo lipogenesis, lipid kinetics, and whole-body lipid
balances in humans after acute alcohol consumption.
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 70, 928-936

5. Tremblay, A., & St-Pierre, S. (1996). The hyperphagic
effect of a high-fat diet and alcohol intake persists after
control for energy density. American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition, 63, 479-482

6. Valimaki, M.J., Harkonen, M., Eriksson, C.J., &
Ylikahri, R.H. (1984). Sex hormones and adrenocortical
steroids in men acutely intoxicated with ethanol. Alcohol,
1, 89-93

7. Flechtner-Mors, M., Biesalski, H.K., Jenkinson, C.P.,
Adler, G., & Ditschuneit, H.H. (2004). Effects of moderate
consumption of white wine on weight loss in overweight and
obese subjects. International Journal of Obesity and
Related Metabolic Disorders, 28, 1420-1426

8. Buemann, B., Toubro, S., & Astrup, A. (2002). The effect
of wine or beer versus a carbonated soft drink, served at a
meal, on ad libitum energy intake. International Journal of
Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders, 26, 1367-1372

9. Lang CH, Frost RA, Kumar V, Wu D, Vary TC. (2000).
Inhibition of muscle protein synthesis by alcohol is
associated with modulation of eIF2B and eIF4E, 3, 322-31

10. Alcohol Alert, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and
Alcoholism, No. 41 July. 1988

11. Shirreffs, Susan M., and Ronald J Maughan. 91997).
Restoration of fluid balance after exercise-induced
dehydration: effects of alcohol consumption, Journal of
Applied Physiology, Vol. 83, No. 4, pp. 1152-1158

12. "Alcohol, chemistry and you," Kennesaw State
University, chemcases.com, Aug. 2002

13. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Report to Congress,
1990

14. "Why alcohol calories are more important than you
think," Christian Finn, TheFactsAboutFitness.com

----------------------------------------------------
Do you suffer from any of these effects of alcohol on your
body? Who else wants to discover the simple but proven
methods of nutrition and training that will allow you burn
fat and build muscle quickly? Sign up for Marc David's
Crash Course on Bodybuilding at
http://www.beginning-bodybuilding.com

Sleep herbs

Here's a solution to your sleep related problems – new
wonder herbal supplements made from naturally occurring
sleep herbs that have been in use for precisely this
purpose for thousands of years.

Herbal supplements made from Mulungu, Lemon Balm
(Toronjil), Damiana, Graviola, or Passionflower herbal
extract ensure that you get adequate rest by normalizing
sleep patterns, relaxing your muscles, and calming your
nerves. These sleep herbs reduce anxiety and feelings of
restlessness. The best part is that these sleep herbs do
all this without any side effects or hangovers the morning
after. Unlike sleep inducing drugs, natural sleep herbs are
not habit forming.

The sleep herbs used in the manufacture of these herbal
supplement are nature's gifts to mankind and have been in
use for relaxing and relieving tension. Damiana is a small
shrub that is traditionally used for inducing relaxation
and sleep. This sleep herb finds a mention in the British
Herbal Pharmacopeia, which cites anxiety neurosis and
depression as the indications for its use. Graviola is a
small rain forest tree that grows to a height of 5-6
meters. The fruits, leaves, bark, roots, and seeds of this
plant possess medicinal properties that have been used
traditionally for thousands of years. The plant is known to
have sedative, antispasmodic and hypotensive properties.
Graviola is widely used in South America as a sedative and
anti-depressant.

Mulungu is a medium sized tree that grows to a height of
10-15 meters and is commonly found in Peru and Brazil.
Mulungu reduces blood pressure and acts as a sedative. The
bark and root of Mulungu are used as stress and pain
relievers, and to induce restful sleep. They are also used
for treating asthma, bronchitis and liver conditions. A
study conducted in 2002 has validated the traditional
claims.

Passionflower is a woody perennial vine that is found in
Peru and Brazil. It has a profusion of aromatic flowers and
grows very quickly. Its fruit has many medicinal
properties. Passionflower has been traditionally used as a
nerve tonic, and to reduce stress and bring down high blood
pressure.

Lemon Balm or Toronjil is grown in Peru, and has been found
to be effective as a sedative and anti-anxiety herb.

These herbs to provide you with a safe sleep herb without
any side effects. Sleep herbs are available in three forms:
tincture, capsules or pills and tea. The tincture is
prepared from 100% pure herbs distilled in water and 40%
alcohol. The recommended dosage is ½ tablespoon (7.5 ml)
under the tongue or added to water or juice. The tea is
prepared by mixing 1 teaspoon of the sleep herb tea mixture
in hot water for 10 minutes. The tea is to be taken half an
hour before bedtime.

If you are suffering from low blood pressure or taking
medication for controlling low blood pressure, you may need
to consult your physician before taking these herbal
supplements. Both Mulungu and Graviola have the effect of
lowering blood pressure, and a change in the dosage of your
medication may be required when you take them. Long-term
use of Graviola might reduce friendly bacteria in the
digestive tract. In case you are using this herbal
supplement on a long term basis, you should supplement your
diet with probiotics to compensate for this.

----------------------------------------------------
Patricia McDougall B.Sc. is a Chartered Herbalist and
graduate of the Dominion Herbal College, British Columbia,
Canada. Originally from Peru, Patricia is the Director of
Research and Development for Amazon Botanicals LLC of
Newark Delaware.
http://www.amazon-botanicals.com/Sleep_herbs_s/44.htm

10 Things To Avoid When Attempting To Lose Weight

Losing weight and dieting is never easy. Actually, it is
one of the hardest things for some people to do. Here's 10
things to avoid that could make you shatter your diet and
start eating. Avoid all of these like plague if you want to
be successful.

1. Avoid rushing into the strictest diet you can find.

This is a common mistake. Many people, in desperation,
decide to follow a super-strict diet and that usually leads
to failure. Don't rush into any diet that may be too strict
for you. If you don't have any dieting experience and are
not 100% sure you can stick with the diet, choose another
one.

2. Avoid losing touch with reality.

You can't realistically expect things to happen over night.
When choosing your goal, start small, but be prepared to go
far. If you hear someone saying that he lost a large number
of pounds in a short time, don't make it your goal to match
his performance. Diet results are different from one person
to another.

3. Avoid going to the gym every day.

Another common mistake is to use the excitement of the
first days to hit the gym every day. This won't help you at
all. Your body needs time to heal and expand the muscles
after each work-out and going to the gym every day
interferes with this natural process. A week of non-stop
training could never offset ten or twenty years of couch
potato lifestyle anyway.

4. Avoid getting tough on calories.

We all know that cutting down on calories is one of the
foundations of all diets, but be careful about it. Cut down
on too many calories and your body will start storing
anything it possibly can. This is not a good way to lose
weight.

5. Avoid skipping meals.

Some people think that skipping one or two meals could help
them lose weight quicker. They don't understand that
dieting is all about eating the right food and not starving
yourself.

6. Avoid daily weight checks.

Everybody is eager to see the results of their efforts in
the form of pounds lost, but you should not let this drive
you to checking your weight everyday. The daily
fluctuations of your weight will soon have you depressed
and ready to quit dieting. This is something you want to
avoid at all costs.

7. Avoid letting emotions get the best of you.

Aside from the eagerness that drives people to check their
weight every day, there are other emotions that influence
dieting. If you know you're used to reaching out for
ice-cream or snacks when you are bored, frustrated or
angry, then you should deal with these issues and not allow
them to come between you and your purpose.

8. Avoid refusing to get help.

Not everyone was born with iron will and nerves of steel.
If you need advice or help, don't hesitate to ask it from
your friends or from professionals. Don't try to solve all
problems by yourself.

9. Avoid denying yourself your favourite foods.

Treats are a great way of raising your determination and
willpower. Diets are just food control methods, not
prisons. So what, if you eat something you said you
wouldn't once in a while, especially if it's one of your
favorite foods? If these treats are not indulged in
frequently, they won't make any difference in the long run.

10. Avoid relying on willpower alone.

Use your head too. If you need to know how much you
actually eat, write down everything you are eating and go
over the list with a fine-toothed comb for things that
should not be there. Sometimes hunger creeps up on you and
makes you eat things that you shouldn't be eating. If you
stay honest with yourself and keep a clear head as you go,
you'll be fine.

----------------------------------------------------
For more tips and articles on losing weight the healthy
way, visit:
http://www.newweightlossreview.com .
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http://www.newweightlossreview.wordpress.com too.

6 Ways to Slow Down the Adult ADD Brain

If you have adult ADD, then you know that sometimes,
slowing down is a very hard thing to do. There are so many
tasks to accomplish and so little time to get them done.
So your mind goes into high speed, trying to accomplish it
all and more, or worrying about the fact that it seems
impossible to get it all done. As a result, you spend a
lot of time stressing, and very little time enjoying life.

While slowing down is a difficult skill to build, it can be
done. Here are 6 proven ways to slow down the adult ADD
brain:

1. Leave Work
Set your business hours and stick to them! Although
sometimes it's necessary to work late, don't do it unless
you absolutely have to! You'll work more efficiently
during the day when the time you have to accomplish your
tasks is limited. And take weekends off (or at least 2
days a week)! You deserve it.

2. Plan a Night Out with Others
Nothing is more fun than a night out with people you like.
This could be coworkers, friends, family, or members of a
group you belong to. Enjoy yourself.

3. Make a Weekly Commitment (Like Taking a Class or
Participating in a Group)
Get an excuse to get out of the house and out of the office
every week! Take a class, preferably learning something
you always wanted to know how to do. Make sure you *pay*
for the class in advance so you won't be tempted to skip it!

4. Journal
Journaling forces you to stop, reflect and process. It
helps you manage stress and gain clarity. Make the
decision to do it every day - even if it's just for 10
minutes! Don't worry about grammar, spelling, punctuation,
or flow because no one else ever has to see it.

5. Meditate
There are many different ways to meditate, but I prefer
mindfulness meditation. Mindfulness meditation is simply
the act of being in the present moment - whether you are
working, walking, or doing the dishes! Try to keep your
mind in the moment, and don't follow stressful or worrisome
thoughts when they arise. It's okay to begin slowly by
doing 5 minutes of mindful meditation a day, and then
building on your practice as you become more comfortable.

6. Turn off Your Computer 2 Hours Before Bed
Computers are quite stimulating, especially for ADDers.
Oftentimes, you'll find yourself sitting at your computer
at 3 o'clock in the morning totally engrossed in
researching something completely random. You just can't
step away from it to go to sleep, and that's because the
computer wakes up your brain. Turn the computer off two
hours before bed in order to properly wind down, and slow
down, at night.

----------------------------------------------------
Jennifer Koretsky is the Founder and Chief Visionary
Officer of the ADD Management Group, LLC. Jennifer and her
team work with ADD adults who are overwhelmed with everyday
life in order to help them simplify, focus, and succeed.
For free resources and more information, visit
http://www.ADDmanagement.com .

Bodybuilding Tips - Back to the Muscle Building Basics

Have you been struggling to achieve your bodybuilding and
muscle mass goals? Sometimes getting back to the basics is
the key to overcoming your training plateau. Often as we
look for the next best thing, we get away from tried and
true keys that always work for being successful.

Muscle Mass Bodybuilding Tips

Set Realistic Goals: Too often we set goals that we can't
reach or at least in the time frame we have given
ourselves. When you set realistic goals it gives you
motivation as you complete them, and you can always set
more goals to achieve more as you continue. Don't burn
yourself out by unrealistic goals. More than just a
program: Most people have a program they are following.
If you don't stop know and find one to follow. Also, if
you have been following the same basic program for a long
time find a new one that will give your body a new
stimulus. Important to make sure you train your entire
body that leaving smaller muscles out only causes a lack in
overall results.

With your program, set up from the start how many days a
week, how much time per workout, and does that fit into
your schedule and the program you have chosen. I see more
people stressed because the time they have allocated
doesn't support the program they have picked. You have to
be committed: I personal feeling is that people quit one
step from their results changing. This kind of comes back
to realistic goals. Every week and every month isn't going
to be the greatest mass building month of your life
especially if you are serious and have made this a
lifestyle. I believe it is those with faith and what we do
on our bad weeks and bad months that make a difference.

Enjoy it: Sometimes we can get so rapped up in the results
that we forget to enjoy the daily workouts and the good
tasting protein shakes. Bodybuilding is a lifestyle so I
find the more you enjoy all the small aspects the better
your results are. A positive attitude goes a long way.

Create a flow: Creating a successful training habit during
your workout keeps you in the right mind set to get the
most out of every set. There is no sense spending all the
time training only to go through the motions.

The more you stay in the moment of your training program
the greater your results. Bodybuilding is about a
lifestyle more than just a 90 minute muscle building
workout. I believe the details matter, and the difference
in people's results doing the same workouts and same
supplements is the little consistent details.

----------------------------------------------------
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Variety is the Spice of Brain Fitness: Part II – Nutrition and IQ

This is not going to be an article about all the good foods
you should eat and the stuff you should avoid. Many
articles, including some of my own, have already beaten
that horse. Most people know that carrots are better than
cheeseburgers and I'm not going to get into that again at
this time. What I want to do instead is give you a
different perspective on the value of nutrition in
improving and maintaining brain fitness – and what that
really means.

Data supports the value of healthy foods for improving
performance on intelligence tests and for reducing the risk
of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. Foods like
fruits, vegetables, red wine (or moderate use of other
alcohols), chocolate, soy protein, fish, olive oils, and
others you have heard about, seem to help your brain.

We don't know what we don't know

The difficulty comes when scientists try to break down
these foods and purify the specific natural chemicals
responsible for their good effects. Usually, these types of
experiments fail, although there are a few successes. But
do you really care that it's the polyphenols in fruits or
the bisdemethoxycurcumin in tumeric that seem to be the
active players? It's not like your going to take some
blueberries into your home chemistry lab and isolate the
'most important' ingredient – you're just going to eat a
handful of blueberries.

Imagine an alien coming down to Earth and trying to figure
out what the most important part of a car is. Is it the
wheels, the spark plugs, the axle, what? Obviously, all
these parts work together to make the car drive and none of
them work without the others. You don't need to understand
how an internal combustion engine works in order to drive
your car from point A to point B.

The real value of quality nutrition comes from all of the
good foods working together. Usually when we try to take
them apart, the effect disappears. I'm all for high quality
multi-vitamin supplements and take them daily myself.
However, when you see all of the ads for highly purified
specific components touting to improve your memory, your
sex life or whatever you have to be careful. We simply
don't know enough yet about all the different healthful
components of our food. Any good nutritionist or reputable
nutrition company will tell you that supplements are never
substitutes for a quality diet.

When it comes to brain fitness, good nutrition is simply
the way to supply raw materials to the brain so that it can
do the job it is designed to do. Eat the right stuff and
let your brain work it out. All of the foods listed above
contain hundreds or thousand of different kinds of
molecules that the brain uses to run smoothly. There is no
single ingredient that is better than everything else.

Good food for good thoughts

The more quality materials you give your brain, the better
it works. That translates to clearer thinking, better
problem solving and increased intelligence and IQ. The more
junk you give you brain, the more you gunk it up and that
leads to lethargy, increased odds for dementia later in
life and a general feeling of blah today – it's that simple.

You have heard all the healthy food advice in the past. You
know what's good for you and what's not. If you want to get
smarter now and keep your brain sharp into your older years
then quality nutrition is something you need. If you don't
care about maintaining your brain function then don't worry
about it. One of my favorite pieces of advice that I have
heard is "only brush the teeth you want to keep".

Here's another way to think about it. The brain is
constantly undergoing construction and demolition. You are
building new circuits and taking old ones down all the
time. If you are using high quality building materials and
have quality tools (through good nutrition) then your new
circuits will be stronger and last longer. As we age our
construction equipment and tools age as well. But if we
keep our repair shops stocked with quality raw materials
(good nutrition) then we keep our tools in good working
condition and continue to build good circuits. If we don't
(poor nutrition) then our construction equipment and tools
begin to fail, our circuits don't get built correctly, we
start to forget things, don't feel as sharp as we used to
and we increase our chance of dementia.

Nutrition is a key part of the brain fitness formula.
Simple errors in judgment about what to eat today,
compounded over time can only lead to regret. Whereas,
simple disciplines today to eat good stuff will lead to
life-long vibrant brain health.

----------------------------------------------------
Master Brain Fitness techniques for you and your family.
The Brain Code is the key to unlock your maximum potential.
Dr. Simon Evans puts together the right ingredients in
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Fitness Fads Come And Go, But

What's hot in the world of abdominal and core training
today seems to change as fast as the latest clothing
styles. New gurus, new infomercials, new machines – today's
fitness marketplace is all about "what's new." I often
write reviews about the latest, greatest ab and core
training gadgets, usually debunking most of them, but this
time I'm actually going to do the opposite.

As new products push their way into the fitness scene, some
truly legitimate, cost effective devices get pushed out,
forgotten, or even worse – dismissed as "fitness fads."
Such is the case with the swiss ball (also known as a
"exercise ball", "gym ball" or "stability ball")

Why Some Fitness Experts Condemn

The Swiss Ball Swiss balls have been around a long time in
physical therapy and rehab settings and when they crossed
over into the mainstream fitness world, they were probably
hyped a bit too much. It's not that they didn't deserve the
attention, its that many fitness "experts" placed the swiss
ball up on a pedestal as the end-all be-all of abdominal,
core and fitness training, rather than representing the
ball for what it really is - a single training tool among
many– just like barbells, dumbbells, cables or any other
fitness equipment.

As a result, entire training systems were built around the
swiss ball (neglecting other forms of training), and people
misused and overused the ball. Some trainers used the ball
for "exercises" that were nothing more than circus acts.
I've seen it all – everything from standing on top of the
ball and squatting to bench pressing on the ball with 400
pounds..

As a result of the over-hyping and misuse of the swiss
ball, some coaches and trainers have recently spoken up and
publicly renounced the ball as a " gimmick." This has
caused a flood of emails to pour into my office as
consumers and fitness enthusiasts have become more confused
than ever.

It's no wonder: Trainer A says, "The ball is the best thing
since sliced bread" and trainer B says "the ball is and
always was a gimmick." I believe the ball is a very
valuable training tool and that the truth is somewhere in
the middle, so I'd like to help put things back into proper
perspective.

Swiss balls are powerful, portable, inexpensive and
versatile training tools

I use swiss balls nearly every day in my own workouts and
in workouts for my clients. The versatility of the swiss
ball is simply unmatched as proven by the fact that I can
use a swiss ball to help a 65 year old sedentary woman
overcome muscle weakness and improve balance or use the
same ball to help a professional boxer build stamina and
add power to his punches. I can also show you how to use
the swiss ball to develop "six pack abs" as well as train
literally every muscle in your entire body.

New Research Reveals That The Swiss Ball Can Make Abdominal
Exercise Up To 104% More Effective

To give you a research-proven example of just how effective
a swiss ball can be, let's focus on one of the most basic
and well-known of all abdominal exercises: The Crunch

As most people know, the crunch is a modified (partial) sit
up that involves raising the head, neck and shoulder blades
up off the floor. Many personal trainers believe that the
crunch is highly overrated and overused. I won't argue, as
I agree there's a lot of truth to that. However, the crunch
can be greatly improved with one simple change: Do your
crunches on a swiss ball.

Electromyography (EMG) studies have demonstrated that the
swiss ball crunch (unstable surface) effectively recruits
more muscle fibers than the floor crunch (stable surface).
This leads to greater strength, stability and muscle
development in your core region.

In 2000, a study by Vera-Garcia and colleagues showed a
significant increase in muscle activity in the core area
while performing a crunch on the swiss ball, as compared to
a floor crunch. The swiss ball improved the level of
muscular activity as well as the co-recruitment of spinal
stabilizers. The researchers said:

"Performing the curl over the gym ball with the feet on the
floor doubled activity in the rectus abdominis muscle, and
activity in the external oblique muscle increased
approximately fourfold."

Although research results have been mixed in the past, the
studies showing no increase in abdominal muscle activity
using a swiss ball may have been due to the exercise
technique used on the ball, including velocity and body
placement on the ball. Earlier this year, Dr. Eric
Sternlicht and colleagues at UCLA designed a study to test
this hypothesis and they measured for differences in muscle
activity while using different positions on the ball.

The EMG analysis confirmed their hypothesis and
demonstrated that body position on the swiss ball could
decrease or increase the amount of muscular activation.
When the ball was positioned with the upper back high on
the ball (just below scapulae), the muscular activity was
less than a floor crunch. But by strategically positioning
the ball so it was firmly placed at the lower lumbar
region, there was a 66%, 93% and 104% increase in upper
abdominal, lower abdominal and external oblique activity,
respectively.

More Proof That Form Is Everything And Little Things Make A
Big Difference

For years I have preached about proper form on all
abdominal and core exercises and I have taught my clients
"little tweaks" and "tricks" in technique that look minor,
but which can lead to huge improvements in results. This
new research is proof. It also reveals how the ball is a
versatile tool for exercise progression: The high on back
position is easier, while the ball lower on the back is
more difficult, accommodating for different strength and
fitness levels. Further progression can be added by using
resistance (dumbbell or weight plate held on chest or at
arms length from chest).

Swiss balls are only one of many training tools, but in my
opinion, when used properly, they are one of the best of
the bunch. I created an entire core training system that
uses the ball for many of the exercises, I put all my
clients on swiss balls and I highly recommend that you use
the ball as well. Just remember, the swiss ball is only a
tool – it's not the "end all be all" of core training and
it can't work miracles. It will also not burn fat off your
stomach – you need a caloric deficit to achieve body fat
reduction.

Use the ball as one part of a balanced training program
that includes other tools such as free weights, cables and
your own body weight. Forget the potentially dangerous
"circus act" swiss ball stunts, use good exercise form,
purchase only quality, high-strength exercise balls, use
them in a clear area, clean them often, check them for
leaks and I promise you will have a fantastic versatile
training aid that will last you for years and never go out
of style. Fitness fads will always come and go, but the
swiss ball is still a winner.

----------------------------------------------------
David Grisaffi is a Sports Conditining Coach and holds
multiple certifications including three from the
prestigious CHEK Institute. Plus he is also the author of
the popluar selling e book, "Firm and Flatten Your Abs,"
which teaches you how to develop a ripped abdominal region.
Lean how to shead bodyfat and eliminate low back pain and
recieve his free newsletter by visiting:
http://www.flattenyourabs.net