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sports drinks are good for you at any time of day TrishaNewman
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Some people use energy drinks as a booster or a kick to get their workout started. Many energy drink advertisements relay false perceptions of the effects of energy drinks. “Feeling tired, drink this. Having a down day, drink this. Instant energy to get through the day!” These drinks that people are purchasing include the substances guarana, taurine, B vitamins and glucuronolactone, which can cause serious side effects such as heart attacks and seizures when combined, according to science. howstuffworks.com. As a result of this, they can give you a jolt of energy for about an hour then a hard crash. In reality, the simpler, more natural beverages such as water, milk and green tea are better replacements that cost less, are better for your body, and can benefit you all around, according to John McBride.
When it comes to health, many rely on flawed sources for information. It is easy to believe the tips given by friends or read in magazines or online. The truth is, many of these tips are detrimental to one’s health. On these pages we take a look at several myths and research the information that lies behind them.
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For these stories we interviewed experts in the health field, Lyn Brock (left) and John and Nicole McBride. Brock is a registered dietician who works for the University of California Davis in the Nutritional Education program. John is a conditioning specialist who has trained Olympic athletes and Nicole is a personal trainer.
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fasting before a workout can help you lose weight
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Fasting: a reduction of food and/or drink for a period of time. Some see it as a way of cleansing the body, or even to prevent weight gain. But doing it once a week, every week can be harmful for long-term health. Usually with an athlete’s sport season on its way, it’s all about developing muscle, strength, and staying fit. In hopes of gaining the muscle and strength that is needed to play the sport, some athletes will fast on a weekly basis. They believe it’ll improve their endurance and help develop muscles faster. But this is false. “Fasting constantly actually results in losing more muscle, strength, and size,” conditioning specialist John McBride said. If an athlete were to try
intermittent fasting, periods of fasting and non-fasting while running on just water, it could be beneficial. It helps with cleansing the body. Although intermittent fasting can be helpful, relying on it just as plain fasting could be harmful. Our bodies are in need of protein and carbohydrates. Consuming raw fruit and vegetables have a more positive affect than just running on water. Some people have the mentality that if you fast before you exercise, you’ll lose weight quicker. Truth is, if you’re not eating you won’t be able to function. “They don’t have enough strength because they haven’t eaten,” varsity football coach Don Norton said. “There’s nothing there for them to get energy needed to exercise.” If someone wanted to gain
muscle mass the healthy way, they’d need to consume sufficient calories and protein. Also, the proper training has a lot to do with it. For someone who wants to lose or maintain weight, it’s helpful to eat every meal. Skipping meals has no effect on weight but can damage the body. Eating healthy before a nice workout is key to staying in shape. In the end, fasting just deprives your body from the nutrients needed to function with. There are more cons than pros. A balanced diet and proper training is key to a healthy body. “Educate yourself,” Nicole McBride said. “Get someone who can help you. Your dreams and aspirations won’t mean anything if you don’t have your health.”
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alternate weight lifting makes you bigger MicheallaFoules
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It’s your first time lifting the bar or dumbbells. If you’re hitting the curls, squats, or bench presses correctly, within the next couple of days your whole body will be sore. Though you will feel as if you can hardly walk, and your arms too heavy to grab a textbook, the only way to get used to the soreness is to continue through the pain. There is a misconception that once your whole body feels sore, taking a couple of days off will get you to recovery. The important thing is to “maintain strength,” conditionaling specialist John McBride says. If you do a lot of lifting in one day, then you should take a longer time to recover, he advises. On the other hand, the best way to do it is to do a little every day so recovery is quicker, with increased strength and less soreness. Another misconception that women in particular have is that lifting weights will lead them in becoming the female Incredible Hulk. In reality, having a buff, manly body is something a girl shouldn’t have to worry about. “The female body isn’t designed that way,” personal trainer Nicole McBride said. She would have to have a whole lot of testosterone to get super bulky.
Girls (and boys) who lift weights will actually form lean muscle, speeding up the metabolism—helping maintain weight by burning calories more efficiently, according to Livestrong.com. Without fuel that your body needs, it cannot properly function and heal. “You want to engineer performance,” John McBride said. It is important to consume the right amount of protein during your weight lifting regime. Muscles need protein to rebuild from the strain that they are put through. Some foods that are packed with protein are meats — beef, chicken, pork — eggs, beans, and peanut butter. Protein shakes and bars are also some alternatives to bring to your diet. John McBride advises people who are just starting to lift weights to first “educate yourself.” Begin with basic workouts, starting with weights that aren’t too heavy to lift. Gradually work your way up to the heavier weights, to keep it safe and minimize injuries. “Technique is always more important than speed.”
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Drinking water is always the best choice. It may sound bland, but you can add flavor to it by adding strawberry slices, cucumber, or anything that is enticing. Milk is also a great alternative. It has nine essential amino acids that help build healthy tissues, like muscle, and prevent unhealthy eating habits. Before a workout, it provides a simple carbohydrate in an easily digestible form. Milk is not only a great source of calcium but also has vitamin D. According to The Daily Meal, green tea is one of the best sources of the antioxidant ECGD. The herbal beverage has been shown to have weight loss benefits and has a great source of vitamin B that our body needs to run at its full potential. It also contains caffeine, which, unlike in coffee, benefits a workout because of the lack of sugars and other unhealthy substances.
illness prevention Get vaccinated. Everyone should get vaccinated for the flu every year. Steer clear. Keeping your distance from people who are sick and dodging one simple sneeze or a cough could spare you from illness.
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Due to the added caramel colored syrup in dark sodas, such as colas or root beer, people naturally tend to the think it is worse than the lighter, clear lemon flavored sodas. The only real difference between the two is the amount of caffeine you would like to intake, which, according to Shape.com averages the same. Yes, darker sodas can discolor your teeth, but the main effect is through the caffeine intake. And like colored sugar sweetened beverages, the myth that diet sodas are “healthier” for you than a regular soda is found to be not true. According to John McBride, diet sodas contain artificial sugars that trick your brain into thinking that what you are drinking is real sugar when it really isn’t. Shape.com adds that this false appearance of sweetness releases calories to can slow your metabolism down and increase your appetite. There are also studies that show that diet soda can lead to diabetes,
Sleep well. Without a good night’s sleep your immune system will weaken and your body won’t have time to restore itself. The ideal amount of sleep for maximum effect is eight hours. Drink fluids. Drinking water is a great way to help your body stay hydrated, eliminate headaches and help fight off a cold. Avoid stress. When you’re stressed, your immune system weakens. If you don’t allow yourself to get stressed, you’re less likely to get a cold.
Wash hands. Not everyone washes their hands after sneezing or coughing. By washing them, you can kill most germs and bacteria. Araceli Valencia
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heart attacks, and strokes. “Diet soda may have fewer calories,” McBride said. “But soda in general is never really healthy for you.” However, Lyn Brock said that soda in general won’t hurt you tremendously when it is consumed sparingly. “But it doesn’t offer you anything nutritional.” She said. “It gives you calories, and that’s about it.” The artificial sweeteners in diet soda can make you want more of it, which can dehydrate you. Also, heart problems, like irregular beating, have been reported by heavy soda drinkers. It’s important to remember how extreme and fast you personally want to get healthy because if soda is a big part of your diet, then cutting down on your consumption of it is better than completely taking it out of the picture. And it’s especially important to recognize truth from myth. “Getting information off the internet is like drinking from a fire hydrant,” Brock said.
Coffee stunts your growth. Coffee shortens your lifespan. Coffee causes cancer. There are myths out there that people will believe. The Internet makes it hard to distinguish the truth from lies. “Sometimes nutrition information is right,” nutritionist Lyn Brock said. “Most of the time, flat out wrong.” You may feel sleepy after drinking a cup of coffee. Or it may make you feel alert and awake. “Caffeine does increase alertness level, but people react differently,” Brock said. Despite the different reactions, there are no studies that show real harmful effects. Coffee affects your nervous system but coffee is a plant food that’s meant to be good for consumers. It has antioxidants that are helpful for the skin, but according to Brock, “Don’t overdo it.” And energy drinks in general may cause alertness and make the consumer feel good, but it doesn’t
help your body. Athletes tend to drink energy drinks before a game or workout. One gets the misconception on what it’s really doing to your body. “It’s like leaving an engine running without the car moving,” said John McBride, conditioning specialist. “It irregulates your body’s metabolism.” It damages you in many ways. Energy drinks contain an acid that destroys tooth enamel, may cause insomnia, and changes heart rhythms. Studies don’t prove that energy drinks lead to substance abuse, but there’s a strong correlation. There are downfalls to drinking energy drinks, but it all depends on the consumer’s choice. “There is little reason to drink an energy drink,” Brock said. The only acceptable time to consume an energy drink, she added, would be when a professional athlete is going strong and nonstop — not high school athletes. While it may seem to improve performance, water should be drunk instead.
If I sleep less on weekdays, I can catch up on it on the weekends. False! It is unwise to cut sleep on school nights and try to pile them on weekend nights. Doing so can upset your body’s sleep-wake cycle. Sleeping in on the weekends ruins the sleep cycle for the upcoming school week. It forces the body to “reset” and start a new wake cycle that begins early in the morning.
This makes it harder for your body to obtain the adequate amount of daily rest it needs. Too little sleep on weeknights is unhealthy as it can impair academic performance and the ability to pay attention in class. You might feel sleepy during morning classes and fall asleep or start to daydream, leading you to ignore the teacher and the lesson that is being taught. If you have enough willpower to not let yourself sleep, you can
then feel the effects of drowsiness and laziness that can lead to unfinished work. For student drivers, driving performance may be negatively affected as well. The immune system is also susceptible to blows from lack of sleep, according to nutritionist Lyn Brock, making people sick easier and more frequently. The more time you spend coughing in bed means less time you are in school learning important material.
Donna Arand, Ph.D., a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, wrote in an article that the body loves consistency and it is best to rise at around the same time every day, even on the weekends. Of course, this does not necessarily mean that you need eight solid hours of sleep every night. Every body has their own sleep needs and demands different amounts of rest and relaxation.
smoking won’t hurt your athletic performance
gateway drugs won’t lead to more intense ones
Grey smoke slowly rolling off the tongue, maybe escaping the nose as it fogs the air, leaving behind the stench of stale musk. No worries, though. The smell might not be that great but it’s not like there are any downfalls to it! Heck I’ll probably even do better than I would without it. Some athletes have started the habit of smoking before practice or a game with the thought of it helping them to relax and perform better. However, Adriana Martinez, a sophomore at the University of the Pacific who is part of the Students in Prevention program, feels that it is not a good idea. An example let’s say a basketball player has a points per game average of 20 and after they smoke they then only have a 9 points per game scoring “Marijuana acts as a depressant and slows their body down and at the same time doesn’t allow it to function at a normal state.” How does it do this? Well, it harmfully effects the nervous system by slowing down the memory and movement of the persons brain and body. Martinez also believes that it could possibly make the athlete not aware of their surroundings and slow their reaction rate down so they wouldn’t work as efficiently as they would without smoking. Healthy alternatives can include listening to music, preparing before the game with the team, and breathing techniques.
The term “gateway drug” is used to describe any drug that a non drug-user might try out, obvious ones being marijuana, alcohol, and tobacco. Often a gateway drug is not perceived as harmful or addictive, giving the potential user the feeling that “it can’t hurt me.” Even with the use of these common drugs, painkillers fall into this category as well. Let’s say you take ibuprofen before a workout, thinking that if you take a small dosage, you will not feel any pain. However, conditioning specialist John McBride said that ibuprofen is meant to reduce the inflammation of muscles after a workout. “Even though they are good to use for that reason, taking painkillers before a workout does not offer any benefit and causes physical damage, mostly in the stomach.” Once a person is accustomed to taking a weak drug, they feel an urge to use a stronger one. Since gateway drugs lower inhibitions just like more powerful and addictive drugs, people turn to something else while they are in the middle of experimenting with them, in this case a stronger dosage of painkillers. The best way to not fall into this death trap is to be aware of the risks that will cause injury to your body, whether it be alcohol or even painkillers.
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Stay active. At least 30 minutes a day, you should just move around, take a walk around the block or go out for a jog. As a result, you can reduce stress and stay fit.
caffeine will help you get through the entire day
you can catch up on sleep during the weekend NuviaCervantes
Eat right. Eating right will not only keep you healthy, but will help to strengthen your immune system.
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diet and dark soda is healthier than the regular kind
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