Lifestyle

Benefits Of Walking

Benefits Of Walking

Staying active is good. It improves your health, and we can help boost your potential for that at BioFit Performance in Oviedo, FL. You need more activity in your life to be truly healthy, and while some of it can occur in the gym, increasing your activity level outside the gym is also important. Something as simple as walking can make a difference. There are benefits of walking that people often overlook. Not only do you get outside to soak up some much-needed vitamin D to be your healthiest, you’re giving your body a workout at the same time.

Walking increases circulation and is a perfect way for those out of shape to start getting fit.

If you think you have to run to get fit, think again. According to some studies, walking may actually be better for your overall health than running. A study in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology concluded that people who walked received more health benefits than those who ran. You can modify your walk to become a HIIT—high intensity interval training—-workout by adjusting your speed throughout, walking moderately for a while and then at top speed, then returning to a moderate recovery rate. That makes it even more effective.

If you’re intimidated by the gym, walking is a good place to start a fitness regimen.

Some people are intimidated and afraid to go to the gym, because they are extremely out of shape. Personal trainers and gyms were made for people like that, but even though its not logical, it’s what they feel. Rather than give up on exercise entirely, why not start with something simple, like walking. It helps get your body ready for more rigorous exercise. Start by walking a few blocks and build until you can walk a half mile away from your home and return. If you aren’t sure how far you can walk, walk a short distance from your home, turn around and repeat a few times.

When you walk, you help improve your overall health and lower your risk of serious conditions.

Whether it’s diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol or hypertension, walking can help reduce the risk and isn’t as hard on joints as running. It helps improve your mood and builds bone strength, reducing the risk of osteoporosis. It’s a good way to improve your balance and improve your coordination. Just adding walking to your daily regimen can also help you lose weight by increasing the number of calories you burn.

  • Even though walking is an excellent exercise, you still need other types of workouts, such as flexibility and strength training, to be fit. It’s a good start that you can build on later or good on your days out of the gym.
  • If you’re cramped for time or so out of shape a half hour of walking is out of the question, you can break up a walking session into three ten minute walks and will get the same benefits.
  • When you walk, make sure your posture is good. Put your shoulders back, stand tall and try to imagine you’re pushing the top of your head into the clouds. Just like any type of exercise, proper form is important.
  • You don’t need any special clothes for walking, except proper footwear. There are other ways to boost your activity, like taking the stairs. When you walk, make it brisk for the most benefit. Longer strides and more rapid ones are best.

For more information, contact us today at BioFit Performance



Contrast Bath Therapy

Contrast Bath Therapy

By Kevin Masson MSc, CSCS, CPT, USAW, FMS

What is contrast wet therapy and how will it benefit my recovery?

Contrast wet therapy also known as “hot/cold immersion therapy”, is a form of treatment where a limb or the entire body is immersed in warm water followed by the immediate immersion of the limb or body in ice water. This procedure is repeated several times, alternating hot and cold. The goals for a Contrast Bath include:

  • Decreasing pain
  • Decreasing swelling
  • Decreasing/controlling inflammation
  • Improving mobility
  • Improve muscle recovery after exercising

The cold water causes blood vessels to constrict or tighten, thereby reducing inflammation and flushing out the waste products that were accumulated during exercise. Combine this with hot water immersion which rapidly causes dilation or opening of the blood vessels that were constricted during the cold-water therapy.

This contrast in temperature immersion facilitates rapid constriction and dilation of the blood vessels. Typically, in a contrast wet therapy session you would cycle through several cycles of cold followed by warm to create a muscle pump effect via the effect it has on blood vessels.

Contrast wet therapy assist in recovery by alterations in tissue temperature and blood flow; reduced muscle spasm and inflammation; and improved range of motion. In comparison to passive recovery, contrast wet therapy is by far the superior, with studies proving results of significantly greater improvements in muscle soreness (DOMS) and reduced muscle strength loss (Contrast Water Therapy and Exercise Induced Muscle Damage: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis, 2013).

Not only is contrast wet therapy proven to help with muscle soreness from exercise and everyday life it can also help with alleviating pain associated with arthritis and people with poor circulation.

Can I just have a bath of ice and then a warm shower with the same effect?

Yes, you can and it would still be effective in helping reduce muscle fatigue and soreness, however full body water immersion is far greater and will have an impact on the whole body and the added benefits of emotional wellbeing that goes along with it. At BioFit Performance we recommend that you use the contrast bath therapy and infra sauna to ultimately improve recovery.

So, the really important question is, do you finish off with warm or cold?

“There is no evidence to suggest that ending with either heat or cold is more effective” National Athletic Trainers’ Association. The choice is all yours, you can leave feeling warm and fuzzy or cool and invigorated.  I would advise, it all depends on when you are doing the therapy. If you are the type of person that like to workout in the morning and want to have a quick relaxing moment in the bath before work then probably end with a cold bath, that way you will feel sharp and ready to deal with your day. On the other end if you want to relax after a long day at the office or a hard workout, end with a nice relaxing hot bath or even warm sauna will leave you a cozy relaxing mood ready for you to go home and relax.

Conditions to watch for:

If you suffer from rheumatoid Arthritis then consider ending with the hot and make sure to dry thoroughly.
Another condition is if you have an acute injury or suffer from a swollen joint, only use the cold immersion on that joint.

CONTRAINDICATIONS FOR CONTRAST BATHS

DO NOT do Contrast Baths for any of the following problems:

  • Local malignancies
  • Peripheral vascular disease (PVD)
  • Impaired sensation
  • Bleeding and acute inflammation.
  • Diabetes and neuropathy
  • If there is a good pulse in the extremities, diabetics and those with neuropathies can benefit from a contrast bath, but it needs to be under the supervision of a physical therapy.

Again, you should consult your physician or physical therapist if you are unsure if this treatment is right for you.

What is the procedure for contrast bath?

  • Sit in the hot water (98 -110 degrees Fahrenheit) for 3-4 mins. (If swelling is present around the joint use only cold bath.)
  • Once you had a good 3 mins in the hot bath switch to the cold water (45 – 70 degrees Fahrenheit) for 1 minute or until you cannot tolerate it anymore.
  • Repeat the above steps three to four more times (about 20 minutes)

References:

US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health. 2013. Contrast Water Therapy and Exercise Induced Muscle Damage: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3633882/. [Accessed 21 February 2017].

National Athletic Trainers’ Association. 1998. Contrast Therapy Does Not Cause Fluctuations in Human Gastrocnemius Intramuscular Temperature. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1320584/pdf/jathtrain00012-0042.pdf. [Accessed 21 February 2017].