Gym etiquette

Approaching a new gym can be intimidating, especially if you’re new to the gym scene. However, if you have a basic knowledge of gym etiquette, you can feel more comfortable about getting started and becoming a good gym citizen.

First, it’s important to think about the gym and its equipment as your rented space. Everyone within the gym is sharing both the space and equipment, so it’s important to refrain from viewing a machine as “yours” or spending an inordinate amount of time with one machine. Be cognizant of others who may want a turn using the weights or machine you are using. Consider moving through various machines to free them up for others.

Another important concept is allowing others their space. This includes not staring at others who are working out. Recognize that there is a difference between surveying the landscape and getting a good feel for who is in the gym and simply staring at others. This can make everyone uncomfortable. Focus on what you are doing. Try not to select a machine that is immediately next to another person when there are others available that provide more of a buffer.

Ensure that you are wearing proper gym attire. If you’re going to a new gym, check in advance with gym staff if they have any restrictions on attire. If you need a spot, feel free to ask someone nearby and similarly, help someone out if they need assistance. When you’re done using a machine, you must wipe it down. During cold and flu season, you may want to wipe the machine before and after use. In fact, if you are sick, you should avoid the gym entirely. Prior to using the machine, check it quickly and make sure there are no issues. This will help to avoid injury and assist gym staff. When using free weights, try not to drop them and always rerack the weights when you’re finished.

Be a good gym citizen and follow these tips. This will help to make the gym a more fun, safe place for everyone.

How to of strength and mass

2 weeks to a younger brain | Dr. Gary Small

Dr. Gary Small is a professor of psychiatry and the director of the UCLA Longevity Center. He is one of the leading innovators in science and technology. He has written six books, including 2 Weeks to a Younger Brain.

Dr. Small explains that an older brain doesn’t work as fast and usually doesn’t remember as well as a younger brain. Though we really can’t see brain aging, there is much we can do to compensate for memory decline and improve brain health as we age. One technique involves engaging in mental pursuits that challenge you, but are not too overwhelming, nor too easy. Additionally, engaging in more physical exercise can reduce your brain’s susceptibility of Alzheimer’s Disease.

If you’re having memory struggles, you need to adopt a method that is easy to remember. Dr. Small talks about focus and frame. The focus is a reminder that we need to pay attention. The frame involves building a framework around the information to make it meaningful, thus making it easier to remember.

Dr. Small also notes that excess weight will impact one’s cognitive abilities. Studies have shown that middle-aged, obese adults have an increased risk of Alzheimer’s Disease. Inflammation associated with weight gain can lead to inflammation in the brain, which can have an impact on memory. When we lose weight, we can actually experience an improvement in memory performance.

Exercise can not only help you to lose weight, but it enables the heart to pump more oxygen to the brain cells. The body also produces endorphins which can lift your mood. Strength training can provide additional cognitive benefits. Stress, food, and relationships are other factors that should be addressed to improve brain health.

In 2 Weeks to a Younger Brain, Dr. Small includes a two-week program to help you develop a younger brain. One such activity is playing Sudoku, or even creating a Sudoku puzzle if you find doing the puzzles to be too easy of a task. To connect with Dr. Gary Small, visit http://www.drgarysmall.com/.

Get the Sudoku puzzle at http://older.fitness/sudoku

Healthy brain happy life | Dr. Wendy Suzuki

Weak handshake, early grave

Is it true that there is a correlation between grip strength and longevity? Could the quality of a handshake really tell more about how long one will live? Actually, an April 2007 study in the American Journal of Medicine examined this very idea. Among men and women ages 45 to 75, there was in fact a correlation between a weaker grip strength and a higher likelihood of passing away.

Perhaps grip strength is a proxy for overall body strength. After age 35, the body reduces its muscle mass through natural processes. It can become difficult to open jars or hold onto things when they’re heavy. This is why it’s so important to continue building your strength, including grip strength, as you age.

One technique is to use strength gripping tools designed specifically to help your grip strength.  This is especially great to consider if you sit at a desk all day or if you don’t have access to a gym. If you use the bars at the gym, you can opt to wrap a towel around the bar to make it bigger, thus requiring a larger grip and building better grip strength. You can also purchase actual grips that can be placed around the bar, instead of using a towel.

Other exercises or techniques can be incorporated such as basic compound carries, dead lifts, hanging from a bar, and a farmer’s carry. These will not only improve grip strength, but work to increase your overall body strength as well.

A handshake can be very telling, as it is a window into one’s level of grip strength. Grip strength may even become a limiting factor in the ability to get stronger, if the grip gives out before the larger muscles. Improving grip strength will not only help you build overall strength, but it may even help you live longer.

Uncommon exercises

Sleep smarter | Shawn Stevenson

Shawn Stevenson is the creator of The Model Health Show, the number one fitness and nutrition podcast on iTunes. He also founded the Advanced Integrated Health Alliance and is the author of Sleep Smarter.

In his early 20s, Shawn was diagnosed with degenerative disc and bone disease. At age 20, he had the spine of an 80 year-old person and couldn’t change positions in his sleep without waking up. This had a critical impact on the quality of sleep he was getting. He made a decision to take action and was able to completely regenerate the tissues in his spine. As a result, he began working with thousands of others in similar situations through his clinic.

However, some patients were not seeing results. Once Shawn quizzed those patients about their sleep patterns, he wondered if there might be a connection. Shawn helped these clients employ proven strategies to improve their sleep, and interestingly enough, they began seeing positive results in their health.

Shawn explains that sleep is very important to our overall health, noting that sleep deprivation is one of the biggest factors that can reduce our lifespan. Additionally, taking 20 Ambien pills per year doubles one’s risk of dying early. While the true impact will be different from person to person, everyone can use documented, natural methods to improve sleep. Medication should be used only where deemed extremely necessary.

One factor that can be detrimental to sound sleep is inner chatter. While the bed should be a place of calm and relaxation, often times the brain is hyperactive at night. This can make it difficult to go to bed early. The key is to train your brain to calm down, which is typically achieved through meditation. An effective treatment for insomnia, meditation enables you to channel your focus. Incorporating deep breathing exercises can also help you feel more at peace and more present.

Sleep Smarter contains 21 sleep strategies and 14-day makeover plan—everything you need to reboot your sleep. To connect with Shawn Stevenson directly or to get the book, visit www.sleepsmarterbook.com or http://www.themodelhealthshow.com/.

Something else from 40+ Fitness Podcast you may enjoy

How is sleep affecting my weight loss?

The magic of sleep

Healthy habits | Dr. Cris Beer

Dr. Cris Beer studies biomedical science and integrative medicine. She is a health consultant for the Biggest Loser retreat, a personal trainer, and the author of Healthy Habits.

Dr. Beer explains that we are creatures of habit, and that what we practice most will become a habit. Some of these habits enter our lives by chance, but then with repetition they are incorporated into our lifestyles. When this repetition occurs consistently, new pathways are formed within the brain that makes this new habit a sort of automated process. Typically, it takes 21 to 40 days to form a new habit.

One of the ways to help form a habit is through positive association. If the act is making you feel good, you will want to keep doing it. Another factor is ensuring that the act is achievable. This will help to set you up for success. Similarly, to avoid certain habits, make them inaccessible. Accountability is another important factor in building habits. It is helpful to have someone or something to hold you accountable. This will prevent you from talking yourself out of doing what you have committed to doing.

Dr. Beer also shared the top five habits to incorporate in order to make a big difference to one’s overall health in a short period of time.

The first is to avoid a shrinking brain by avoiding caffeine and alcohol, as these can dehydrate you and cause anxiety. Alcohol in particular is a sugar that can impact your overall health as well. The second habit is to sleep well consistently, ideally getting seven to nine hours of sleep per night. Additional habits include eliminating toxic stress, balancing your blood sugar, and learning to breathe properly.

By adopting these healthy habits, you can truly take control of your health and see real change in your life. For more information on Healthy Habits or to contact Dr. Cris Beer directly, visit www.drcris.com.au.

You Can Run Pain Free | Brad Beer

The estrogen window | Mache Seibel

Dr. Mache Seibel is a leading expert on women’s wellness, estrogen, and menopause. He is also the editor of My Menopause Magazine, creator of mymenopause.com, and the author of The Estrogen Window.

Dr. Seibel explains that many once thought that having too much estrogen could lead to breast cancer. This was actually the result of a misguided study from 2002 called the Women’s Health Initiative. Though this was supposed to be an age-matched, controlled study, that was not the case, which led to inaccurate information being produced and disseminated.

Since then, other studies have refuted these findings by showing a 23% lower risk of breast cancer and heart disease, and a 25% lower risk of dementia in those who take estrogen. For those who enter menopause early and don’t take estrogen, they have shown to have a 70% increased risk of dementia. Lowering the risk of osteoporosis is another benefit.

Dr. Seibel explains that the benefits of taking estrogen are evident when estrogen is taken at the proper time or during the estrogen window. This is a window of opportunity where women can optimize their treatment, which begins with the onset of menopause. After all, the timing of menopause among women is quite varied. Five to 10% of women go into menopause before age 45, though the mean age is 51.   However, symptoms can start up to a decade before menopause begins.

When women begin taking estrogen at the time of menopause, they can lower the risk of chronic illnesses and see the potential for the greatest benefit. To see where you are in menopause, take a quiz at www.menopausequiz.com. You can also get great feedback and tips at this site. To connect with Dr. Mache Seibel, visit his website at www.drmache.com or learn more about The Estrogen Window at http://www.estrogenwindowbook.com/.

The menopause solution | Dr. Stephanie Faubion

Vision for life | Dr. Meir Scheider

Dr. Meir Schneider is the founder and head teacher of the School for Self-Healing in San Francisco, and the author of Vision for Life. Dr. Schneider was born blind and taught himself to see, and now shares his remarkable findings and results regarding vision and eyesight.

Dr. Schneider explains that your flexibility and strength, including that within your eyes, depends on you. As people have begun staring at computer screens and using fluorescent lights over the years, eyesight has declined. In the 1970s, 25% of children wore glasses. This figure is 48% today.

To combat this, Dr. Schneider explains that there are nine principles of vision that people can improve to aid their vision. First, Dr. Schneider states that people are not relaxing their eyes enough. Emotional tensions and overstimulated vision can cause fatigue of the visual system. Palming is a technique that can be used to relax the eyes.

Dr. Schneider recommends not wearing sunglasses, as they tend to weaken the pupils. He also suggests looking into the distance for four to six minutes at a time throughout the day. This is a great way to prevent cataracts and drain fluid from the eyes. People should also pay more attention to visual details and their periphery. Balanced use of each eye is also important.

People also need better blood flow to the eyes. Unless there is enough blood flowing to the optic nerve, brain, and the whole visual system, the eye exercises will not be successful and vision may be hampered.

To improve overall vision and eyesight, Dr. Schneider recommends blinking often, taking frequent breaks from the computer, and integrating the periphery. Never strain to see. Rest your eyes on a regular basis by rubbing your hands over the eye orbits and visualizing darkness. Don’t let fatigue build up throughout the day. Look out into the distance. These practices will give the eyes life again. To learn more about Dr. Meir Schneider or his book, visit www.self-healing.org.

Vision for life | Dr. Meir Scheider