FitSugar

How to Avoid Foot Pain Caused by Running

FitSugar — Tue, 15 May 2007 09:30:00 -0700

According to the website Cool Running your feet pound the ground some 800 times when running just a mile. That's a lot of pounding!!! So you want to be sure to take care of your feet, especially if you are new to running. Rookies tend to experience more shin splints, blisters ankle sprains and other injuries than veteran runners (but those veterans had to start somewhere, right?).

Here are some ways to help you protect your feet and ankles that will hopefully help you stay injury and blister free.

Warm up: A few Sun Salutations will get your blood flowing before a run. Or try walking briskly or running slowly for 5 minutes, followed by gently stretching your leg muscles.
Buy good running shoes: Look for good shock absorption and construction that will provide stability and cushioning to the foot. Buy shoes at the end of the day when the foot is the largest. Here's a list of running sneaks that podiatrists recommend.
Keep your feet friction free: To avoid blisters, make sure your shoes fit well and try Thorlo's "blister-proof" socks. Give these socks a try, and in general keep in mind that nylon socks tend to be more abrasive than cotton. Try lubricating the friction prone spots with vaseline, and if that just sounds too icky try powder.

There's more, so read more

Strengthen your ankles: Weak ankles make you unstable on uneven surfaces, like trail running, and more prone to sprains. Try writing the ankle alphabet daily 3 to 5 times. This movement will strengthen your ankle joint through a wide range of motion.
Stretch your calves: Tight calves can really disrupt the foot's ability to function properly. Make sure to stretch your calves out after you run. I love holding the downward facing dog pose for 10 slow breaths to get this done.
Listen to your body: If you are experiencing pain in your feet, ankles or knees, slow it down a bit or take a couple of days off. Remember, ice can be your friend in these occasions and can help decrease inflammation and promote healing.

Hope these tips help keep your feet happy, because if your feet aren't happy you're going to be miserable.

10 Toxic Cosmetic Ingredients to Avoid

FitSugar — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 03:00:00 -0700

What you put on your body is just as important as what you put in it. Your skin is the largest organ in your body, and it absorbs everything including toxins. If you are concerned about not eating unhealthy foods like trans fat, then you'll definitely want to know which synthetic ingredients you should watch out for in the products you use.

Methyl, Propyl, Butyl and Ethyl Parabens: Used as a preservative to inhibit microbial growth and extend shelf life. Unfortunately, it can cause allergic reactions and skin rashes. Preliminary research found parabens in human breast cancer tumors.
Diethanolamine (DEA), Triethanolamine (TEA): These are used as foaming agents, but can cause allergic reactions, eye irritation, and dryness of the hair and skin. DEA and TEA are toxic if absorbed into the body over a long period of time, and are associated with cancer in lab animals.
Diazolidinyl Urea, Imidazolidinyl Urea: Often used as preservatives, the American Academy of Dermatology has found these chemicals to be a primary cause of contact dermatitis (irritation caused by foreign substance). Both these chemicals release formaldehyde, which can be toxic.
Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate: This is a cheap, harsh detergent used in many shampoos for its ability to cleanse and foam. Often derived from petroleum, it causes eye irritation, dry scalp, skin rashes and other allergic reactions. Be on the lookout for pseudo-natural products that list this ingredient with the phrase "comes from coconuts" - it's still bad for you.
Petrolatum: Also known as petroleum jelly, this is a mineral oil derivative that can clog your pores. This in turn disrupts your body's natural ability to moisturize its own skin, leading to dryness and chapping. Manufacturers use it because it's really inexpensive.

Want to know what else you should avoid? Then read more

Propylene Glycol: Ideally this is a vegetable glycerin mixed with grain alcohol, both of which are natural, but it's usually made from synthetic chemicals. It has been known to cause hives and eczema. Beware of related chemicals labeled PEG and PPG.
PVP/VA Copolymer: A petroleum-derived chemical that's used in hair styling products and some cosmetics. Considered toxic since if inhaled, it can damage the lungs.
Stearalkonium Chloride: This toxic chemical was designed by the fabric industry for use as a fabric softener. Companies use it in hair conditioners and lotions because it's much cheaper than natural conditioning ingredients such as proteins.
Synthetic Colors: Labeled as FD&C or D&C and followed by a number, these make products look pretty but can be carcinogenic.
Synthetic Fragrances: Labeled simply as "fragrance," there's no way to tell what chemicals are actually in the product. People can get headaches, dizziness, rashes, and respiratory problems from them. People may also experience hyper-pigmentation, which means this chemical may cause brown spots to form on your skin.

Fit's Tips: Before buying beauty products, check the ingredients list. These ingredients can be found in make-up, lotions, shampoos, conditioners, perfumes, baby care products, sunscreens, toothpastes, nail products, and deodorants. If you're looking for a good brand that doesn't contain these nasty ingredients, check out Aubrey Organics.

Don't Want the Flu? Don't Touch Your Face

FitSugar — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 03:00:49 -0700

If someone sick with swine flu happened to be so rude as to cough in your face, you would have a 50 percent chance of catching the bug, according to environmental health experts at both UC Berkeley and the University of Illinois. A more likely scenario is touching your face after touching an object covered with the H1N1 virus. The flu virus cannot penetrate our skin, but it thrives in the mucus membranes of the nose, mouth, and eyes. New advice on avoiding the flu: don't touch your face. But this simple advice can be difficult to follow, since in observational studies we touch our faces 16 times an hour on average. Since flu viruses can survive on hard surfaces from 24 up to 48 hours, your hands could be come into contact with the virus. Your best defense is to wash your hands well and keep your hands away from your face.

As a side note, in writing this post, I've touched my face at least four times. I'm going to need some serious retraining.

10 Eating Tips For Avoiding the Freshman 15

FitSugar — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 05:50:12 -0700

The dorm dining hall can be dangerous - like a giant, all-you-can-eat buffet available all day, every day. It's no wonder most of us gain some weight when going off to college, though the infamous "freshman 15" is really more like 10 pounds.

Whether you're eating in a dining hall or cooking for yourself in your first apartment, a few simple strategies can help you avoid that first-year college weight gain. Here are my tips for eating healthy at the university level.

Don't skip meals, especially breakfast. Starting with a filling breakfast helps steady your metabolism throughout the day. Here are five ideas for quick but healthy starts.
Drink lots of water. At the dining hall, during lectures, throughout cram sessions, whenever! Skip the soda and carry a water bottle that you can refill throughout the day to prevent constipation and bloating.
Include at least three food groups in every meal. When choosing from the endless dining hall bounty, make an effort to get plenty of fresh fruits and veggies, lean protein, and calcium - not just pizza and chicken fingers.

For the rest of my top 10 healthy eating tips, read more.

Control your portions. Just because you can fill your plate every time doesn't mean you should. Familiarize yourself with what proper portions look like and stick to them.
Treat yourself once a day. From sundae bars to fresh baked cookies, desserts abound at the dining hall. Go ahead and indulge, but limit yourself to one treat a day. If you have a cookie after lunch, skip the ice cream after dinner.
Avoid a fourth meal. In my dorm-room days, there were always late-night pizzas being delivered or roommates making mac and cheese at midnight. It's OK to fortify yourself with the occasional snack while studying, but make sure it's actually a snack, not the equivalent of a second dinner or dessert.
Stock healthy snacks. For those late-night study sessions when you do get hungry, keep your dorm room full of healthy snacks, like nuts, pretzels, fruit, popcorn, and nutrition bars.
Pick your liquor carefully. Freshman aren't supposed to drink! But chances are, you will anyway. Remember: alcoholic beverages are full of empty calories, and sugary cocktails are the worst for both calories and hangovers.
Shop smart. If you live in an apartment, learn to shop for one person by choosing healthy foods that won't go bad before you can finish them: frozen vegetables and fruit, yogurt, low-fat string cheese, and healthy frozen meals are all great options.
Exercise! OK, this isn't really a healthy eating tip, but it's an essential part of keeping the pounds off in college. Walk or bike to class, frequent the school gym, or join an intramural team and get moving!

What are your tips for incoming freshmen looking to avoid the traditional weight gain?

10 Ways to Avoid Gaining Weight at Work

FitSugar — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 05:50:00 -0700

Working nine to five can wreak havoc on your waistline. The stress makes you crave junk food, and often you're too overworked to have the energy or time to exercise. When I asked FitSugar readers how they avoid gaining weight at work, here's what they said.

"Stairwell stair climbing . . . My heart is racing and my legs are burning." - YumYucky
"I just keep lots of healthy snacks around (fruit, Kashi granola bars, and crackers) and bring my own lunch to avoid temptation." - Renee3327
"I spend most of my lunch breaks walking outside (there's a park down the street) or running on the treadmill (my gym is 7 minutes from my work giving me just enough time to drive there, change, run 3 miles, change, drive back.) Also, willpower is key. Today was a birthday so there was chocolate cake, and I just think how much I'd have to exercise to burn off one piece - not worth it!" - Vanonymous
"I always pack my lunch and keep fruit at my desk or my cubby fridge." - jessy777

To see the other great tips from FitSugar readers, read more.

"I never eat out or use the vending machine. " - Niami
"I always make sure to work out first thing in the morning . . . I always take stairs instead of the elevator . . . I make sure to have a healthy protein-packed breakfast, and I'm usually not hungry until 2 p.m." - Mila_83
"I don't avoid all of the free temptations, but I limit myself to one or two small ones a week." - darc5204
"I stopped carrying loose change. Whether it was $1 or 50 cents, I don't take it to work. It stops me from buying a soda and chips and candy to get that little, worth-nothing jolt of energy to meet deadlines." - tamaradulva
"I also avoid the break room, where there's usually free food. When there are birthdays or people bring treats in, I go but don't have a slice. I'm usually not the only one who abstains, so it doesn't make me feel awkward." - deanna024
"I graze on fruits and veggies and take a walk during my lunch break instead. Eating a big meal at midday makes me tired." - Anonymous

Source

Germaphobes, Avoid These Five Things

FitSugar — Wed, 28 May 2008 09:00:00 -0700

Germs definitely freak me out because I hate getting sick, especially in the Spring and Summer. If you feel the same way, then you may want to disinfect these five things, or avoid touching them altogether:

Your vacuum. Since you're sucking up germs, dirt, and other nasty things, vacuums aren't exactly clean. Actually, scientists found that 50 percent of vacuum brushes contained fecal bacteria and 13 percent had E. coli. All contained mold. Since the brush is so gross, to avoid contaminating clean surfaces, spray the brush with a disinfectant spray after you're done with it.
Your weightlifting gloves. Staph infections bind strongly to the polyester, which is often used to make gloves. It's best to ditch the gloves altogether, since not only will you avoid bacteria, but you'll also strengthen your grip.
Gym Equipment. If you belong to a gym, you might want to know that a 2006 study in the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine found rhinoviruses (what cause colds) on 63 percent of the gym equipment at the fitness centers they tested. To avoid the germs, try not to touch your face, nose, or eyes while working out, and as soon as you're finished, wash your hands and face thoroughly to prevent getting sick.

What else contains tons of germs? To find out read more.

The grocery cart and basket. Think of all the hands that grip those handles. Eww. A 2007 University of Arizona study discovered that two-thirds were contaminated with fecal bacteria. More eww. Definitely pack disinfectant wipes with you and wipe the handles down before touching.
The restaurant menu, doctor's office magazines, and other public reading material. You think these are ever cleaned? Since cold and flu viruses can survive up to 18 hours on a surface, there's a good chance those germs can get passed on to you. Don't let the menu touch your plate or silverware, and wash your hands thoroughly before your food comes. Remember that the bathroom door handle isn't the cleanest thing in the world, so when leaving the bathroom, open it while holding a clean paper towel.

Source

5 Supplements to Avoid

FitSugar — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 12:00:00 -0800

We are constantly bombarded with supplements that we should be taking and buying and while some of them are good there are some that you should just try and avoid all together. CNN (with Health.com) gives us a helpful list of supplements that may do more harm than good:

Cascara: This is a natural laxative -- not a safe way to shed pounds.
Dandelion: It's a natural diuretic, so you lose only water weight.
Ephedra: The Food and Drug Administration banned it in 2004; now, court challenges hope to put it back on the shelf [GASP]. Ephedra increases the risk of heart problems and stroke.
Garcinia: There are possible links to liver damage.
Hoodia: There's been lots of hype about hoodia gordonni, a cactuslike South African plant with appetite-suppressing chemicals.
But that hoodia isn't available right now, says University of California, Los Angeles, expert and Health Advisory Board member David Heber, M.D., Ph.D. He says the hoodia products in stores or online probably contain other hoodia types that don't work -- or none at all. The British company Phytopharm, which has a global patent on hoodia for weight loss, says real products are years away. Bottom line: The available hoodia products may be safe, but they're useless.
Usnic acid: Found in some bodybuilders' formulas, it's been linked to severe liver damage.

Fit's Tip: Check the labels and avoid proprietary blends, which is a way that makers avoid revealing their contents.

Foods to Stop Avoiding: Mushrooms

FitSugar — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 15:30:00 -0800

Just like anything else foods can get a bad reputation. The thing about reputations is that they can be repaired and scientist are working round the clock to make sure we're not skipping out on foods just because we've heard it through the grapevine that they're bad. Mushrooms, avocados, peanuts, eggs, and coffee top the list of foods with the worst reputations to stop avoiding.

Here are highlights on why you should stop avoiding mushrooms:

Mushrooms
Misconception: Mushrooms are a low-calorie food with little nutritional benefit.
Why they're good for you: They may be 90 percent water and have only 18 calories per cup, but mushrooms are getting serious scientific attention. Laboratory reports and animal studies show that compounds in mushrooms may do everything from bolster immune function to suppress breast and prostate cancers and decrease tumor size. And now, Penn State researchers found that mushrooms, from the humble button to the giant portobello, harbor large amounts of an antioxidant called L-ergothioneine. The scientific buzz is that fungi, for the moment, are the only foods that contain this compound.

Source

Foods to Stop Avoiding: Coffee

FitSugar — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 02:00:00 -0800

Just like anything else foods can get a bad reputation. The thing about reputations is that they can be repaired and scientists are working round the clock to make sure we're not skipping out on foods just because we've heard it through the grapevine that they're bad. Avocados, peanuts, eggs, and coffee top the list of the top foods with the worst reputations that you should stop avoiding.

Here are highlights on why you should stop avoiding coffee:

Coffee
Misconception: The only thing you get from drinking coffee is a caffeine buzz.
Why it's good for you: The average cup of coffee has hundreds of different chemical compounds. Maybe that's why news reports about coffee vacillate between lauding its health benefits and labeling it harmful. Still, the benefits of coffee seem to outweigh the negatives.

To name just a few: Some Arizona researchers recently discovered that caffeinated coffee helps improve memory in older adults. A new study from the United Kingdom suggests that small amounts of coffee consumed throughout the day can increase alertness and improve performance on all kinds of tasks, including those that require hand-to-eye coordination and attention to detail. Preliminary studies suggest regular coffee drinking may lower risk of type 2 diabetes.

Source

Foods to Stop Avoiding: Eggs

FitSugar — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 10:15:00 -0800

Just like anything else, foods can get a bad reputation. The thing about reputations is that they can be repaired and scientists are working round the clock to make sure we're not skipping out on foods just because we've heard, through the grapevine, that they're bad. Mushrooms, avocados, peanuts, eggs, and coffee top the list of the top foods with the worst reputations that you should stop avoiding.

Here are highlights on why you should stop avoiding eggs:

Eggs
Misconception: Eggs are high in dietary cholesterol, so they don't have a place in my heart-healthy diet.
Why they're good for you: Eggs contain a variety of substances that appear to promote good health. Choline, a nutrient that is critical to brain function, is one example. Eggs, it seems, are one of the richest food sources of choline. Scientists at the University of North Carolina found adding choline to the diets of pregnant animals improves memory performance in their offspring. It may seem like a leap to apply this finding to people, but researchers are already encouraging pregnant women to eat eggs and other choline-rich foods (such as beef liver) during pregnancy.

Source