Fitness

September 23, 2014 In Fitness, News, Product Reviews, Spotlight, Yoga, Yoga By Vancouver Health Coach

REVIEW: The Basic Poses package for iYoga Premium

As a yoga teacher and trainer, I can fully appreciate the amount of work it must have taken to create this beautiful app. The images are anatomically gorgeous and move in a very lifelike way, which can make it relatable for students. However, I found the repertoire to be far more anatomically-inclined than asana-inclined. This would make a good post-yoga teacher training reference for students who would like to refresh their memory regarding which parts of the body are affected and how. The multiple views and visuals of muscles contracting, stretching or both are great references. I also really enjoyed the different...

September 22, 2014 In Fitness, News, Running, Spotlight, Video, Yoga By Vancouver Health Coach

Going with the Yoga Running Flow: Yoga Heals Injuries

If you are a runner or an athlete, life may throw you a curve ball. The important part is how you react to this curveball. Injuries are an unfortunate but common occurrence with runners. Yoga can help move the healing process along. From a yogic standpoint, going with the flow means to modify as things change, on and off the mat. When our circumstances change, we must make conscious decisions about how we can continue to flow, even with the changes. Healing the injury is very important. Relaxing and trusting the whole process is even more important. The meaning of yoga...

September 20, 2014 In Fitness, Green & Healthy Living, News By Vancouver Health Coach

Excessive Sweating: Exploring A Sticky Topic

When you workout on the treadmill, take a hot yoga class or barely survive a boot camp, you will notice several things happen to your body. Your heart will beat quicker, breathing will be heavier and you will most likely begin to sweat. The human body will sweat in a response to keep itself cool and safe when our internal temperature increases above 98 degrees. Sweating during exercise is a sign of an efficient cooler and this mechanism is extremely vital for avoiding heat illness such as heat exhaustion, muscle cramping and the most dangerous of all, heat stroke. While fit...

September 19, 2014 In Fitness, News, Spotlight, Yoga By Vancouver Health Coach

Homeopathy for Bikram Yoga

As an experienced homeopath who has reaped the benefits of Bikram Yoga for many years, I would like to share some holistic and homeopathic tips that will help Bikram/hot yoga enthusiasts with their yoga practice. Balancing Electrolytes This is one of the most common problems encountered with Bikram Yoga practitioners. The intense heat and sweating can lead to an imbalance of electrolytes, which can then lead to dizziness, nausea, tiredness and/or headache. It is now trendy to sell coconut water in Bikram Yoga studios. Drinking a can or bottle of good quality coconut water before, during or after practice will balance electrolytes. Personally,...

September 18, 2014 In Fitness, News, Spotlight, Workouts By Vancouver Health Coach

An Injury Treatment Tip: When to Heat, When to Ice

When should you use ice and when should you use heat? This is a common question that we get asked at Treloar Physio and fortunately, the answer is not all that complex! Ice is often used for inflammatory injuries. Inflammation is the body’s initial response to injury. It is a normal response designed to protect the injured area and start the healing process. Signs of inflammation include: redness, swelling, palpable heat, and pain when touched. Ice works to constrict or close the capillaries which will contain or reduce blood and fluid flow to an area. Other benefits of icing include: decreasing...

September 17, 2014 In Fitness, News, Spotlight, Uncategorized By Vancouver Health Coach

Why Cycling In The City Is A Great Idea

You love the city. You love the energy that the city gives you – the people, the sites, the smells, the sounds – there truly is nothing like being in the action of an urban area. And when you’re on your bicycle, there is nothing more exhilarating than exploring the streets of it. You’re not confined to a car – you’re out in the open air, feeling the roads and sidewalks beat with life. So whatever cycling gear you have – BMX, mountain bike, a street bike, road racing bikes, or hybrid bike – traveling a city by bike gives you the chance to...

September 13, 2014 In Fitness, News, Spotlight, Workouts By Vancouver Health Coach

A Closer Look at Tabata Interval Training

Across the board, interval training has plenty of benefits. From fat loss, maintaining muscle, helping to strengthen aerobic and anaerobic metabolism personal trainers have prescribed this kind of training to their clients as well as the average gym goer. In summary, intervals usually consist of a high intensity bout of exercise followed by a low intensity bout (or a complete rest) and will repeat this for several rounds. For example, a person may run on the treadmill at a very fast speed for 30 seconds followed by a light jog or walk for 30 seconds and repeat that for 15-20...

September 12, 2014 In Eliminating Toxins, Fitness, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

What Is Inflammation?

What is Inflammation? Inflammation is the body’s response to injury. Injury to soft tissues can arise from a number of sources. Physical traumas such as a strain, sprain or contusion are most common, whereas injuries can also occur from bacterial or viral infections, heat, or chemical injury. Trauma causes direct damage to cells in the immediate area of injury, causing bleeding. The bleeding initiates a cascade of events in the inflammatory process that promote healing of the injured tissue. Progression from acute to chronic inflammation can result from persistent injury or individual factors (eg. diabetes, corticosteroid use, blood disorders). How...

September 8, 2014 In Fitness, News, Product Reviews, Running By Vancouver Health Coach

3 Must Haves for Running Outdoors

Even if the warm summer months have passed, there are many of us who still love to sweat and get dirty outdoors during the damp and colder days. Running outside is fun and a nice change from the treadmill but requires that we be aware of our surroundings. Some of the benefits of running outdoors are; you can run anywhere, enjoy the scenery, get fresh air, and it's generally more challenging as you expend more calories. Here are a couple of items to help you stay safe while running outside. The Gear: Reflective Gear ($10): With less daylight running time, you need gear...

September 5, 2014 In Fitness, News, Spotlight, Workouts By Vancouver Health Coach

The Importance of Rest Between Sets

In general, we all know that we need some rest between workouts to allow for recovery and to achieve the best results. What a lot of us don't know is that rest between sets during a workout is just as important (if not more important) and can greatly affect your results. So why is rest between sets so crucial and how much is enough? Intensity Gauge How much rest you need is an important gauge of how hard you are working. If you don't need to rest between sets, then chances are you're not working hard enough. When performing a set of a weighted exercise,...