Via: Nutronics Labs
The Elusive Midday Exercise
Dec. 12, 2012 Leave a Comment
So new research out of UCLA’s Brain Institute says that midday exercise may be best for your body.
My question is the same as always: how the heck do I squeeze in substantial exercise at work?! There needs to be a health policy sweep that changes our work day structure.
Taking the stairs is great, but it doesn’t count for this, so don’t suggest it. And fine, I’ll try to not eat cheap Chinese food.
“After several weeks of running, the exercising mice, no matter when they ran, were found to be producing more
proteins in their internal-clock cells than the sedentary animals. But the difference was slight in these healthy animals, which all had normal circadian rhythms to start with.
But after several weeks of running, the animals’ internal clocks were sturdier. Messages now traveled to these animals’ hearts and livers far more frequently than in their sedentary counterparts.
The beneficial effect was especially pronounced in those animals that exercised in the afternoon (or mouse equivalent).
“The consequences of clock disruptions extend beyond sleepiness. Recent research has linked out-of-sync circadian rhythm in people to an increased risk for diabetes, obesity, certain types of cancer, memory loss and mood disorders, including depression.”
Source: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/12/why-afternoon-may-be-the-best-time-to-exercise/
Be Fierce
Sept. 11, 2012 1 Comment
I try to detangle what 9/11 means for me each year. Whether it is pain from the attacks on my country, the hate for my religion becoming synonymous with patriotism and turning mainstream, or the fear I felt in my own appearance because of hijaab – I’m learning that the cure to all of these is the same.
On this 9/11, I am reminding myself to be fierce with kindness and love on 9/11 to give hate a real challenge.
Picture-Perfect: The Power of Habit
Sept. 9, 2012 Leave a Comment
Charles Duhigg’s “The Power of Habit” was an excellent read. I recommend it for anyone looking for an easy to read book that’s relevant – even if you’re busy and have no time to read.
Check out the infographic below on how to change a habit:
Boom.
Getting Back in the Game.
Sept. 9, 2012 Leave a Comment
Work and applications have taken over my life.
I miss writing.
I’m coming back focused.
Until then…
Sponsored by: Sensa
July 21, 2012 Leave a Comment
Via: Try Sensa Weightloss
What are people doing to lose weight? Jenny? Weight Watchers? Trend diets? What can you do to fight obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and more? See for yourself!
Once Again… Happy Ramadan!
July 20, 2012 1 Comment
It’s Ramadan once again and the days are super, super long. 3:50 am to 8:20 pm kind of long. That’s about 17 hours of no food, no water. Sorry, rephrase: that’s 17 hours of no coffee, no snacks, no brownies, no iced teas…
Despite the heartbreak in my stomach, this is not what Ramadan is about. Ramadan is a beautiful time to exercise the much-weakened muscle of constraint and discipline, helping one refine these qualities in oneself for a 30 days marathon period.
Ramadan is also an opportunity to be appreciative of what one has through realizing all that is at our disposal – food anytime we want, water on every floor of where ever we are, and no worry of whether there will be food on our plates at night. The only worry is perhaps what we will have as our brains and stomachs are paralyzed with a plethora of choices.
Added to the mix for me is making sure Ramadan doesn’t become a numbers game for me as I monitor my blood sugar levels like an investor would the stock market. I don’ t have to fast, but because I feel like I can (all in a healthy and safe scope), I try. I also try because there is something so sweet about a challenge and conquering it. Again, that’s not what Ramadan is about. That’s an ego fix. That is me feeding my ego. That fasts too during Ramadan.
Anyway, that’s my very long overdue post and this is my Ramadan greeting to you: may All of your fasts be sweet and beneficial.
May your long days of fasting not be about hunger but about growth as a person. May you give, give, give and live up to the month of mercy.
And may your caffeine detox not take away from any of these things.
Happy Ramadan to you and yours 
Take the Damn Stairs!
March 20, 2012 3 Comments
Happy first day of Spring!
After a 1 hour So Fly class (yes, that’s the instructor…), I decided to jump on the treadmill for a mile long run. The second I stepped off of it, I felt a few things at once: endorphin high, raging hunger, and the realization that my sugars were gonna hit the floor tonight.
So my endorphin high ran its course, I had dinner and now I’m preparing for my sleep post-late-exercise. The only thing I really did to prepare was cut my insulin by about 20% – a substantial cut. Instead of my normal 8 units, I took 6 instead to stay on the safe side – 5 units would have probably done the trick just fine.
Adjusting my insulin reminded me of this article I read a few weeks ago called Why It’s So Important to Keep Moving in the NYTimes Health section, reporting findings from a hot new study.
Basically, healthy patients that are normally active were told to cut their steps per day by at least half. Using a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM), researhers observed that when patients were active, there was no spike in blood sugar level after meals. When they looked at information collected when patients had cut their steps in half, the story was quite different. The article reports:
“during the three days of inactivity, volunteers’ blood sugar levels spiked significantly after meals, with the peaks increasing by about 26 percent compared with when the volunteers were exercising and moving more. What’s more, the peaks grew slightly with each successive day. This change in blood sugar control after meals “occurred well before we could see any changes in fitness or adiposity,” or fat buildup, due to the reduced activity, Dr. Thyfault says. So the blood sugar swings would seem to be a result, directly, of the volunteers not moving much.”
So, in conclusion, keep moving and take the damn stairs!
