9 Reasons To Avoid Mobility Training

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Why might someone not want to do mobility training? Here are some important reasons:

Make an informed choice

Here’s Liv’s hit-list of reasons to skip mobility training:

  • Poor Circulation: Avoid mobility training if you don’t want to improve or maintain good blood circulation, which aids muscle recovery and reduces soreness.
  • Low Energy Levels: Mobility training increases oxygen flow to the brain and muscles, boosting energy. Skip it if you prefer feeling sluggish!
  • Digestive Health: Stretches that rotate the torso aid digestion and relieve bloating. Definitely best to avoid it if you’re uninterested in improving digestive health.
  • Joint Health: Mobility work stimulates synovial fluid production, reducing joint friction and promoting longevity. You can skip it if you don’t care about comfortable movement.
  • Sleep Quality: Gentle stretching triggers relaxation, aiding restful sleep. Avoid it if you enjoy restless nights!
  • Pain Tolerance: Stretching trains the nervous system to handle discomfort better. Skip it if you prefer suffering 🙂
  • Headache Reduction: Mobility work relieves tension in the neck and shoulders, reducing the occurrence and severity of headaches. No need to do it if you’re fine with frequent headaches.
  • Immune System Support: Mobility training boosts lymphatic circulation, aiding the immune system. Avoid it if you prefer your immune system to get exciting in a bad way.
  • Stress Reduction: Mobility exercises release endorphins and lower cortisol levels, reducing stress. So, it is certainly best to skip it if you prefer feeling stressed and enjoy the many harmful symptoms of high cortisol levels!

For more on all of these, enjoy:

Click Here If The Embedded Video Doesn’t Load Automatically!

Want to learn more?

You might also like to read:

Mobility As Though A Sporting Pursuit: Train For The Event Of Your Life!

Take care!

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  • Signs That Are Present When Someone Is Dying

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    You’ve probably been there a few times, although given the emotional nature of the thing, it’s likely that you weren’t taking notes. Hospice workers, on the other hand, do take notes, so here are some things you might want to know, and if anything makes the next time even a little easier, that’ll be good:

    Last stages

    Here are the discussed signs of the “active dying” phase:

    • Increasing unconsciousness:
      • The person will be mostly unresponsive most of the time.
      • Eyes may be open or partially open but not making eye contact.
      • Mouth will likely remain open due to muscle relaxation.
    • Cessation of food and water intake
      • The person will likely not eat or drink for several days.
      • This is a natural process and does not cause suffering per se (e.g. thirst, hunger).
      • Dryness of mouth, however, can be treated with a little moistening, for comfort.
    • Changes in breathing
      • Breathing patterns will change and may be irregular.
      • This is a natural metabolic response, and is not a sign of distress.
      • Terminal secretions (“death rattle”) may occur:
        • A gurgling sound caused by saliva buildup due to loss of swallowing reflex.
        • Not painful or distressing for the person.
        • Can be managed by repositioning or using medication to dry secretions.
    • Skin color changes / mottling:
      • First appears on fingers and toes (purple or gray discoloration).
      • May spread to knees, nose, or other extremities.
    • Temperature fluctuations:
      • The body loses its ability to regulate temperature.
      • Person may feel hot but be cold (or vice versa).
      • Fevers are common—cooling measures and/or Tylenol can help.

    A person in discomfort may appear restless, have a furrowed brow, or show physical agitation. If on the other hand they appear peaceful and unresponsive, they are almost certainly not in distress. At such times, it’s best to focus on just keeping them clean and comfortable.

    For more on all of these, see:

    Click Here If The Embedded Video Doesn’t Load Automatically!

    Want to learn more?

    You might also like to read:

    Managing Mortality: When Planning Is a Matter of Life and Death

    Take care!

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  • Longans vs Lychees – Which is Healthier?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our Verdict

    When comparing longans to lychees, we picked the lychees.

    Why?

    These two fruits are more closely related than they look from the outside, both being members of the soapberry family. However, there are some differences:

    In terms of macros, longans have more protein while lychees have more carbs, and they are equal on fiber, giving longans the lower glycemic index. They’re both good, but longans nominally take the win on this one.

    When it comes to vitamins, longans have more of vitamins B1, B2, and C, while lychees have more of vitamins B3, B6, B9, E, K, and choline, making for a respectable win for lychees in this category.

    In the category of minerals, longans have more copper and potassium, while lychees have more calcium, iron, manganese phosphorus, and zinc. Thus, a win for lychees here too.

    It’s worth looking at polyphenols too—lychees have around 10x more, which is notable.

    Adding up the categories makes for an overall win for lychees, but by all means enjoy either or both! Diversity is good.

    Want to learn more?

    You might like to read:

    Replacing Sugar: Top 10 Anti-Inflammatory Sweet Foods ← longans and lychees both make the list

    Take care!

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  • What is ‘double pneumonia’, the condition that’s put Pope Francis in hospital?

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    Pope Francis has been in hospital for more than a week with what some media reports are now calling “double pneumonia”.

    The Vatican released a statement on Tuesday evening saying

    laboratory tests, chest X-rays, and the clinical condition of the Holy Father continue to present a complex picture.

    The 88-year-old Catholic leader has a long history of respiratory illness.

    So, what makes this bout of pneumonia – a severe lung infection – so “complex”? And how will it be treated?

    Marco Iaccobucci Epp/Shutterstock

    What is double pneumonia?

    Pneumonia is a serious infection that fills the lungs with liquid or pus and can make it difficult to breathe. People may also have chest pain, cough up green mucus and have a fever.

    “Double pneumonia” is not an official medical term. It may be being used to describe two different aspects of Pope Francis’s condition.

    1. A bilateral infection

    Pope Francis has pneumonia in both lungs. This is known as “bilateral pneumonia”.

    An infection in both lungs doesn’t necessarily mean it’s more severe, but location is important. It can make a difference which parts of the lung are affected.

    When just one part of the lung or one lung is affected, the person can continue to breathe using the other lung while their body fights the infection.

    However when both lungs are compromised, the person will be receiving very little oxygen.

    2. A polymicrobial infection

    The Vatican has also said the infection affecting Pope Francis’s lungs is “polymicrobial”.

    This means the infection is being caused by more than one kind of microorganism (or “pathogen”).

    So, the cause could be two (or more) different kinds of bacteria, or any combination of bacteria, virus and fungus. It’s vital to know what’s causing the infection to effectively treat it.

    How is it diagnosed?

    Usually, when someone presents with suspected pneumonia the hospital will sample their lungs with a sputum test or swab.

    They will often also undergo an X-ray, usually to confirm which parts of the lung are involved.

    Healthy lungs look “empty” on an X-ray, because they are filled with air. But pneumonia fills the lungs with fluid.

    This means it’s usually very easy to see where pneumonia is affecting them, because the infection shows up as solid white mass on the scan.

    A doctor inspects an x-ray of a lung.
    Lungs infected with pneumonia will have solid white areas on an X-ray. Komsan Loonprom/Shutterstock

    How is it treated?

    The sputum or swab helps detect what is causing the infection and determine treatment. For example, a specific antibiotic will be used to target a certain bacterium.

    Usually this works well. But if the infection is polymicrobial, the normal treatment might not be effective.

    For example, the antibiotics may work on the bacteria. But if there’s also a virus – which can’t be treated with antibiotics – it may become the dominant pathogen driving the infection.

    As a result, the patient may initially respond well to medication and then begin deteriorating again.

    If the infection is caused by multiple bacteria, the patient might be given a broad-spectrum antibiotic rather than a single targeted drug.

    A viral infection is harder to treat, as the anti-viral drugs that are available aren’t very effective or targeted.

    In severe cases, a patient will also need to be in intensive care on a breathing machine because they can’t breathe alone. This helps make sure they receive enough oxygen while their body fights the infection.

    Who is most susceptible?

    It’s possible to recover, even from severe infections. However having pneumonia can damage the lungs, and this can make a repeat infection more likely.

    Most people will never have a severe infection from these same pathogens. They may only experience a minor cold or flu, because their immune system can adequately fight the infection.

    However, certain groups are much more vulnerable to developing a serious case of pneumonia.

    Risk factors include:

    • age: babies under two, whose immune systems are still developing, and adults over 65, who tend to have weakened immune systems
    • lung damage: previous infections can cause scarring
    • lung disease: for example, if you have emphysema or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
    • being a smoker
    • immunosuppression: if your immune system is weakened, for example by medication you take after a transplant or during cancer treatment.

    Pope Francis has a number of these risk factors. The pontiff is 88 years old and has a history of respiratory illness.

    He also had pleurisy (a condition that inflames the lungs) as a young adult. As a result, he had part of one lung removed, making him susceptible to lung infections.

    On Tuesday, the Vatican said Pope Francis remains “in good spirits” while he receives medical care and is grateful for the support he has received.

    Brian Oliver, Professor, School of Life Sciences, University of Technology Sydney and Min Feng, PhD Candidate in Respiratory Disease, University of Technology Sydney

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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  • Heal Your Stressed Brain
  • What are compound exercises and why are they good for you?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    So you’ve got yourself a gym membership or bought a set of home weights. Now what? With the sheer amount of confusing exercise advice out there, it can be hard to decide what to include in a weights routine.

    It can help to know there are broadly two types of movements in resistance training (lifting weights): compound exercises and isolation exercises.

    So what’s the difference? And what’s all this got to do with strength, speed and healthy ageing?

    What’s the difference?

    Compound exercises involve multiple joints and muscle groups working together.

    In a push up, for example, your shoulder and elbow joints are moving together. This targets the muscles in the chest, shoulder and triceps.

    When you do a squat, you’re using your thigh and butt muscles, your back, and even the muscles in your core.

    It can help to think about compound movements by grouping them by primary movement patterns.

    For example, some lower body compound exercises follow a “squat pattern”. Examples include bodyweight squats, weighted squats, lunges and split squats.

    A woman does a Bulgarian split squat.
    A Bulgarian split squat is a type of compound movement exercise. Evelin Montero/Shutterstock

    We also have “hinge patterns”, where you hinge from a point on your body (such as the hips). Examples include deadlifts, hip thrusts and kettle bell swings.

    Upper body compounded exercises can be grouped into “push patterns” (such as vertical barbell lifts) or “pull patterns” (such as weighted rows, chin ups or lat pull downs, which is where you use a pulley system machine to lift weights by pulling a bar downwards).

    In contrast, isolation exercises are movements that occur at a single joint.

    For instance, bicep curls only require movement at the elbow joint and work your bicep muscles. Tricep extensions and lateral raises are other examples of isolation exercises.

    A woman sets up to lift a heavy weight while her trainer observes.
    Many compound exercises mimic movements we do every day. Photo by Ketut Subiyanto/Pexels

    Compound exercises can make daily life easier

    Many compound exercises mimic movements we do every day.

    Hinge patterns mimic picking something off the floor. A vertical press mimics putting a heavy box on a high shelf. A squat mimics standing up from the couch or getting on and off the toilet.

    That might sound ridiculous to a young, fit person (“why would I need to practise getting on and off a toilet?”).

    Unfortunately, we lose strength and muscle mass as we age. Men lose about 5% of their muscle mass per decade, while for women the figure is about 4% per decade.

    When this decline begins can vary widely. However, approximately 30% of an adult’s peak muscle mass is lost by the time they are 80.

    The good news is resistance training can counteract these age-related changes in muscle size and strength.

    So building strength through compound exercise movements may help make daily life feel a bit easier. In fact, our ability to perform compound movements are a good indicator how well we can function as we age.

    A woman gets a box down from a shelf.
    Want to be able to get stuff down from high shelves when you’re older? Practising compound exercises like a vertical press could help. Galina_Lya/Shutterstock

    What about strength and athletic ability?

    Compound exercises use multiple joints, so you can generally lift heavier weights than you could with isolation exercises. Lifting a heavier weight means you can build muscle strength more efficiently.

    One study divided a group of 36 people into two. Three times a week, one group performed isolation exercises, while the other group did compound exercises.

    After eight weeks, both groups had lost fat. But the compound exercises group saw much better results on measures of cardiovascular fitness, bench press strength, knee extension strength, and squat strength.

    If you play a sport, compound movements can also help boost athletic ability.

    Squat patterns require your hip, knee, and ankle to extend at the same time (also known as triple extension).

    Our bodies use this triple extension trick when we run, sprint, jump or change direction quickly. In fact, research has found squat strength is strongly linked to being able to sprint faster and jump higher.

    Isolation exercises are still good

    What if you’re unable to do compound movements, or you just don’t want to?

    Don’t worry, you’ll still build strength and muscle with isolation exercises.

    Isolation exercises are also typically easier to learn as there is no skill required. They are an easy and low risk way to add extra exercise at the end of the workout, where you might otherwise be too tired to do more compound exercises safely and with correct form.

    In fact, both isolation and compound exercises seem to be equally effective in helping us lose body fat and increase fat-free muscle mass when total intensity and volume of exercises are otherwise equal.

    Some people also do isolation exercises when they want to build up a particular muscle group for a certain sport or for a bodybuilding competition, for example.

    An older man does bicep curls in the gym
    Isolation exercises have their role to play. Photo by Kampus Production/Pexels

    I just want a time efficient workout

    Considering the above factors, you could consider prioritising compound exercises if you’re:

    • time poor
    • keen to lift heavier weights
    • looking for an efficient way to train many muscles in the one workout
    • interested in healthy ageing.

    That said, most well designed workout programs will include both compound and isolation movements.

    Correction: This article has been amended to reflect the fact a weighted row is a pull pattern, not a push pattern.

    Mandy Hagstrom, Senior Lecturer, Exercise Physiology. School of Health Sciences, UNSW Sydney and Anurag Pandit, PhD Candidate in Exercise Physiology, UNSW Sydney

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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  • Never Too Old?

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    Age Limits On Exercise?

    In Tuesday’s newsletter, we asked you your opinion on whether we should exercise less as we get older, and got the above-depicted, below-described, set of responses:

    • About 42% said “No, we must keep pushing ourselves, to keep our youth“
    • About 29% said “Only to the extent necessary due to chronic conditions etc”
    • About 29% said “Yes, we should keep gently moving but otherwise take it easier”

    One subscriber who voted for “No, we must keep pushing ourselves, to keep our youth“ wrote to add:

    ❝I’m 71 and I push myself. I’m not as fast or strong as I used to be but, I feel great when I push myself instead of going through the motions. I listen to my body!❞

    ~ 10almonds subscriber

    One subscriber who voted for “Only to the extent necessary due to chronic conditions etc” wrote to add:

    ❝It’s never too late to get stronger. Important to keep your strength and balance. I am a Silver Sneakers instructor and I see first hand how helpful regular exercise is for seniors.❞

    ~ 10almonds subscriber

    One subscriber who voted to say “Yes, we should keep gently moving but otherwise take it easier” wrote to add:

    ❝Keep moving but be considerate and respectful of your aging body. It’s a time to find balance in life and not put yourself into a positon to damage youself by competing with decades younger folks (unless you want to) – it will take much longer to bounce back.❞

    ~ 10almonds subscriber

    These will be important, because we’ll come back to them at the end.

    So what does the science say?

    Endurance exercise is for young people only: True or False?

    False! With proper training, age is no barrier to serious endurance exercise.

    Here’s a study that looked at marathon-runners of various ages, and found that…

    • the majority of middle-aged and elderly athletes have training histories of less than seven years of running
    • there are virtually no relevant running time differences (p<0.01) per age in marathon finishers from 20 to 55 years
    • after 55 years, running times did increase on average, but not consistently (i.e. there were still older runners with comparable times to the younger age bracket)

    See: Performance, training and lifestyle parameters of marathon runners aged 20–80 years: results of the PACE-study

    The researchers took this as evidence of aging being indeed a biological process that can be sped up or slowed down by various lifestyle factors.

    See also:

    Age & Aging: What Can (And Can’t) We Do About It?

    this covers the many aspects of biological aging (it’s not one number, but many!) and how our various different biological ages are often not in sync with each other, and how we can optimize each of them that can be optimized

    Resistance training is for young people only: True or False?

    False! In fact, it’s not only possible for older people, but is also associated with a reduction in all-cause mortality.

    Specifically, those who reported strength-training at least once per week enjoyed longer lives than those who did not.

    You may be thinking “is this just the horse-riding thing again, where correlation is not causation and it’s just that healthier people (for other reasons) were able to do strength-training more, rather than the other way around?“

    …which is a good think to think of, so well-spotted if you were thinking that!

    But in this case no; the benefits remained when other things were controlled for:

    ❝Adjusted for demographic variables, health behaviors and health conditions, a statistically significant effect on mortality remained.

    Although the effects on cardiac and cancer mortality were no longer statistically significant, the data still pointed to a benefit.

    Importantly, after the physical activity level was controlled for, people who reported strength exercises appeared to see a greater mortality benefit than those who reported physical activity alone.❞

    ~ Dr. Jennifer Kraschnewski

    See the study: Is strength training associated with mortality benefits? A 15 year cohort study of US older adults

    And a pop-sci article about it: Strength training helps older adults live longer

    Closing thoughts

    As it happens… All three of the subscribers we quoted all had excellent points!

    Because in this case it’s less a matter of “should”, and more a selection of options:

    • We (most of us, at least) can gain/regain/maintain the kind of strength and fitness associated with much younger people, and we need not be afraid of exercising accordingly (assuming having worked up to such, not just going straight from couch to marathon, say).
    • We must nevertheless be mindful of chronic conditions or even passing illnesses/injuries, but that goes for people of any age
    • We also can’t argue against a “safety first” cautious approach to exercise. After all, sure, maybe we can run marathons at any age, but that doesn’t mean we have to. And sure, maybe we can train to lift heavy weights, but if we’re content to be able to carry the groceries or perhaps take our partner’s weight in the dance hall (or the bedroom!), then (if we’re also at least maintaining our bones and muscles at a healthy level) that’s good enough already.

    Which prompts the question, what do you want to be able to do, now and years from now? What’s important to you?

    For inspiration, check out: Train For The Event Of Your Life!

    Take care!

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  • 5 Steps To Quit Sugar Easily

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Sugar is one of the least healthy things that most people consume, yet because it’s so prevalent, it can also be tricky to avoid at first, and the cravings can also be a challenge. So, how to quit it?

    Step by step

    Dr. Mike Hansen recommends the following steps:

    • Be aware: a lot of sugar consumption is without realizing it or thinking about it, because of how common it is for there to be added sugar in things we might purchase ready-made, even supposedly healthy things like yogurts, or easy-to-disregard things like condiments.
    • Recognize sugar addiction: a controversial topic, but Dr. Hansen comes down squarely on the side of “yes, it’s an addiction”. He wants us to understand more about the mechanics of how this happens, and what it does to us.
    • Reduce gradually: instead of going “cold turkey”, he recommends we avoid withdrawal symptoms by first cutting back on liquid sugars like sodas, juices, and syrups, before eliminating solid sugar-heavy things like candy, sugar cookies, etc, and finally the more insidious “why did they put sugar in this?” added-sugar products.
    • Find healthy alternatives: simple like-for-like substitutions; whole fruits instead of juices/smoothies, for example. 10almonds tip: stuffing dates with an almond each makes it very much like eating chocolate, experientially!
    • Manage cravings: Dr. Hansen recommends distraction, and focusing on upping other healthy habits such as hydration, exercise, and getting more vegetables.

    For more on each of these, enjoy:

    Click Here If The Embedded Video Doesn’t Load Automatically!

    Want to learn more?

    You might also like to read:

    Take care!

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    Learn to Age Gracefully

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