I spent this past weekend at the American Aerobic Association International/International Sports Medicine Association (AAAI/ISMA) "2010 One World" Conference in Atlantic City. The conference was comprised of various "stars" in the health conditioning field such as Rob Glick, Shaun "T" Thompson and Leslee Bender. (Sure, I have never heard of these people either until recently. Rob Glick is a star trainer on "Exercise TV" and has many fitness videos. Shaun "T" has appeared on numerous TV shows and danced with Mariah Carey. Leslee Bender is the founder of the Bender Ball Method and The Pilates Coach, and also stars in over 25 DVD's and infomercials). My training for the weekend mainly took place in a classroom setting with Todd Bezilla, DO, who specializes in personal training. He was an excellent speaker and very full of knowledge. In addition to learning where the Flexor Digitorum, the Soleus, and the Vastus-Intermedius muscles are located (the forearm, the inside of the calf, and the thigh), we studied how the brain sends signals to the muscles to do their thing, how to design strength and conditioning programs, and client assessment methods among other things. I also picked up some of those more interesting facts along the way. Here are just a few:
1. I heard the word, "homunculous" spoken again. A homunculus is a "little person", a miniature, fully formed individual. One of the diagrams we viewed was a homunculous. The first time I heard this word was just a few weeks ago on "The Big Bang Theory" when Sheldon, the brainiac, referred to Leonard as a HOMUNCULOUS!
2. According to Dr. Bezilla, the best remedy for most ailments we face is the CTHD Prescription, or better known as the Calm The Hell Down method! Most of the problems of most of the people walking around is they are too stressed and need to learn to Calm The Hell Down!
3. Muscle cells develop through what is known as Hypertrophy, they thicken, as opposed to hyperplasia, which would be an increase in the number of cells. (This is generally not a good thing as cancer is caused by hyperplasia). Fat cell, however, grow both by hypertrophy and hyperplasia; they increase in thickness and number. Then the increased number will continue to increase in number as well!
4. Taking one's pulse at the coratid artery, the pulse you feel in the neck, can result in a lowering of one's blood pressure, and if one pushes too hard on the coratid artery, one can cause passing out!
5. Muscle is not grown during a workout! It is grown during sleep! So anyone who brags about always working out and never sleeping is a fool! How much sleep do we need? Depends on the individual. One should feel rested after waking, and be able to make it through the day. If you're falling asleep at 2PM, you probably did not get enough sleep. Some people need alot of sleep, some only need a shorter amount, and some need naps throughout the day.
6. Buddy got Back! It's better to have a big butt than a big belly! Proud of that beer belly, you know the big, hard belly alot of people have! That is a sure sign of trouble brewing down the road. It's a sure indication of heart problems to come!
7. You can indeed blame your parents for alot of your abilities and weaknesses. Genetics plays a major role in the muscle fiber types we have. There are fast-twitch muscle fibers, which are needed for those sports/activities that require quickness and bursts of speed. Then there are slow-twitch muscle fibers that are better for endurance type activities. Your ability depends on these muscle fiber types. No matter how hard you train, depending on the type fiber your body is mostly comprised of, you will not excel if you don't have the correct muscle fiber type!
8. There are 2.2 pounds per kilogram! Good info to know.
9. Overtraining does nobody any good! As a matter of fact, it causes just the opposite desired effects. Again, if someone brags because they work out 8 hours a day, they are probably overtraining and doing themselves no good whatsoever. They also are at risk for injury. Moderation is the key.
10. I am left-eye dominant. We did a little test to find this out. Ask me sometime and I can explain it to you.
That was my exciting weekend!
