Size does matter, even for the ladies

We have all heard of the term thunder thighs right. And some of you unfortunately would of been ridiculed by others by being called thunder thighs. Well I am here to tell you the size of your thighs could help determine how long you live. It seems that small thighs under a certain size are linked to heart disease and premature death.

A study found on the British Medical Journal (BMJ) website has revealed having thighs around the 60cm measurement mark means you are less susceptible to disease and premature death. Providing you are carrying out a healthy lifestyle of course. The Copenhagen Uni Hospital revealed that after twelve years of research thigh size is an even bigger risk factor than waist circumference. In measures if you have thighs less than 55cm you may be at risk.

What does this mean for you? Most people equate big thighs to fat but this study may highlight the bigger the thighs the more muscle content which in turn means better metabolism. More lean muscle stores we have the more blood supply needed and nutrition to feed it. So why not take the studies advice, it can't do you any harm. Focus on doing more lower body activity such as walk, ride, resistance training focusing on lower body (squats, lunges and so on).

This may help if you are such for ideas to increase lower body activity.

1. Increase steps taken in a day . In essence get your legs moving and carrying your body weight around
2. Bend your knees more when you are standing up. This may mean focusing on correctly bending to pick things up or sitting down. Stop falling into the lounge, picking objects up with a straight back.
3. Use your hips more by whenever bending or lifting occurs learn to activate your gluteals (butt muscles) to save you loading up your back and increasing the weight taken by your legs.

Hopefully these tips can start you off. If you require any more assistance lease feel free to contact me anytime, it may lengthen your life.

Busy? You need some EPA in your life

Placing extra and inflexible fitness regimes on already busy people is setting everyone concerned up for failure. In my experience you need to resist a one size fits all approach and try the individualised approach. The only way to do this is empower the busy and often out of balanced individual to look for a way that he can employ into his routine and then offer professional fitness advice from there. It flips the thinking but has massive results in terms of you the busy person’s conformance. Use EPA to get you to this point.

1. Get Emotional. Empower yourself to see why it is you need or want to fit in or keep a fitness regime into your already busy lifestyle. What is most important to you, health, six pack abs, performance in your career, family (if you don’t keep fit and overwork, sickness and disease may take you away from your family). Also find out what it is you enjoy in an activity sense. Again what are your values; do you like adventure, weights, running etc

2. Prioritise fitness. If you are already busy you will perceive there is no time for exercise or activity. Once you feel you want to do it for the right reasons (Point 1) then you would be well advised to book it into your weekly schedule or make a date with yourself. Just like a meeting, book in another meeting only this time it is to invest in yourself. Put it in a diary; tell your Personal assistant that you will be busy for these times in the week.

3. Be Accountable. Now you are emotionally charged and want to keep fit and healthy for all the right reasons and you have booked it in your diary. All that is missing is accountability. It is too easy to say when the time comes I am too busy. So getting accountable means getting a personal trainer, a fellow worker or a mate to meet you and even do the run or the training session with you. You will feel less inclined to let someone else down than yourself. And don’t think paying for a gym membership will solve the problem – you only have to look at the drop out rates for gyms.

We are all time poor which make us all time poor so the last thing we need to do is force ourselves to do something that is going to make us busier. But if you associate the benefits of an activity to your deep inner core values then you may stand half a chance of making it a priority and factoring it into your weekly routine.

What's up with this alcohol thing?

In my local neighbourhood recently I saw a hotel building that had been revamped ready for business again but there was no indication as to what the new venture would be. There was shopping trolleys out the front so I automatically presumed it would be a mini super market or something to that effect. 2 weeks later I saw it had opened as a discount liquor store outlet. The car park was full and a steady trickle of people coming in and out with purchases.

What is my point? Why can a new shop instantly create a mild sense of hysteria selling alcohol and yet a gym which is a mini version of a discount liquor store except the product is health, fitness and wellness not have that mini hysteria effect? The only reasoning I can put it down to is the sensation and release alcohol gives the user. But exercise and activity can offer the same effects just not as quickly. Maybe it is the huge marketing dollars the alcohol industry spends but again the Government, the media and the fitness industry itself also spends big dollars on marketing and actually gets lots of free publicity. So I can only put it down to the fact that alcohol is a quick fix release that people perceive will take them away from their troubles and create happiness for them.

Now please don't judge me as a wowser as I enjoy a drink, in moderation of course, as much as anyone. But it was just something that made my little brain start working overtime. And I also don't begrudge operators from making money out of selling alcohol. But what is the attraction?

I want to leave you with a pitch and a plea for your health and wellbeing. Please try and get as passionate about your health and wellbeing as the masses and maybe you get about alcohol. Remember these important points.

1. Physical activity stimulates your feel good hormones and can give you the feeling of euphoria afterwards without the hangover
2. Physical activity will improve your performance and will be cheaper in the long run. If you add up health compared to medical complications, accident costs etc as a result of excess alcohol consumption.
3. You will look and feel better in the real world rather than looking and feeling invincible in an alcohol fueled haze.

Something to think about and I would love to hear your views. Maybe I am way off the mark here and don't mind being told so.