August 1, 2024

“Pickleball” Elbow? New Sport… New Injuries

 

 

The Association of Pickleball Professionals (APP) recently unveiled updated pickleball participation research that revealed 48.3 million adult Americans – nearly 19% of the total adult population – have played pickleball at least once in the past 12 months. But with its surging popularity have come a rise in injuries related to the game. While many believe that pickleball is less strenuous and easier on the body than tennis, given the small size of the court, there are a number of contributing factors.

Dr. Donald Rose M.D., an orthopedic surgeon in New York City says the onset of pickleball has led to many different types of injuries. A lot of his patients are former tennis players, who feel they can’t play tennis anymore, and want an alternative. “Whereas they may have played an hour of tennis, they feel they can play multiple hours of pickleball because they don’t have to cover as much ground. They go out thinking it’s just a simple game.”

Although the average age of players is 34.8 years old, revealed in that same APP study, patients Dr. Rose sees are generally 50 and over, who he says perhaps are not as conditioned as they were or should be. The other problem, he says, is pickleball is played on hard courts. Resulting injuries are due to chronic repetitive overuse like stress fractures, hip bursitis, planter fasciitis, achilles tendinitis, as well as ankle and knee strain.
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June 15, 2024

Why Fake Sugar is Fat Sugar

 

 

A few months ago, we featured a nutritional reset program created by Robin Barrie Kaiden. More than a quick fix, it was about establishing lifelong healthy habits to lose weight and keep it off. Taking part in the program myself, Kaiden pointed out the number of seemingly healthy shakes, protein bars, and powdered latte mixes I was consuming daily, made with monk fruit sweetener. She said they were sabotaging my fat burning efforts.

As the editor of STYLE of SPORT, I’m quite knowledgeable about nutrition, or so I thought. How could this zero calorie, natural sweetener made from plants possibly be making me fat? I didn’t want to believe her until I finally got rid of all the monk fruit sweetened products in the kitchen and saw my lean body start to return.

The percentage of the population who are obese and the incidence of diabetes has increased over the past few years, primarily due to eating habits and physical inactivity. The irony is this has also coincided with an increase in the use of artificial sweeteners. The belief has been it is better to use these non-caloric alternatives than sugar, especially the new “natural” sweeteners like stevia and monk fruit, for weight loss. Read More

 

June 1, 2024

Soul Survivor

 

 

Trammell Logan is a SoulCycle instructor. He’s one of the most popular SoulCycle instructors. He’s one of my favorite SoulCycle instructors. Young, fit, and healthy, Trammell almost died in the back seat of an Uber 6 years ago. He suffered a pulmonary embolism that should have killed him. Rushed to the hospital and taken into surgery, they discovered massive blood clots in his lungs and heart. When he woke up the next morning, the doctors said it was a miracle he survived. Trammell’s life was in fact saved that day thanks to one of his dedicated riders.

A few weeks ago on a Saturday morning I went to ride Trammell’s class. He was celebrating his 10th anniversary as a SoulCycle instructor. But it was a celebration of his life as well. Sitting in the front row was Dr. Roopa Kohli-Seth, MD, Director of the Institute For Critical Care Medicine at Mount Sinai. He acknowledged and thanked her for putting together the team that saved his life that day. Trammell joked that he didn’t really know her that well at the time, other than the fact she took his class regularly, and was always asking him to turn on the fans.

Roopa saved his life not just once but twice. Trammell suffered a stroke 2 years later.

I knew bits and pieces of all these events, but on that 10th anniversary I asked if he’d share the full story from start to finish, and how these life-altering, death-defying experiences have changed him as a man and as an instructor. Read More

 

May 3, 2024

The Karma of Dharma

 

SRI DHARMA MITTRA

Sri Dharma Mittra is 84 years young. He has been teaching yoga for over a half-century at his school in New York and around the world, sharing the pathway to radiant health and spiritual enlightenment from the wisdom accumulated from years of practice. He opened his first yoga studio in 1975, long before yoga was as ubiquitous as it is today.

Dharma Yoga is described as a modern interpretation of classical Eight-limbed Yoga. According to Yoga Sutras of Patañjali, the ancient doctrine of yoga philosophy, there is an eight step progression to an infinite state of bliss. The word Ashtanga, as in yoga, is derived from “ashta”, which means “eight”, and “anga” which means “limb”. Each limb prepares you for the next, and the “asanas” or physical poses are just one of the 8 limbs. In addition, the word Asana literally means seat, and refers to poses like Lotus you would take for the practice of meditation — very different from the “power yoga” workout we now associate with Ashtanga.

For those like myself, who thought yoga was only practiced on a mat, the outline below provides the basic foundation for my conversation with yoga master Sri Dharma Mittra. The Eight Limbs of Yoga are as follows: Read More

 

March 7, 2024

Sunshine and Eggs

 

 

As winter starts to thaw, we put away the puffers, and peel off the layers, many of us have a spring awakening by what’s left underneath. The body is not as toned as we’d like, and there is a spring realization that it’s time for a spring cleaning. The search begins for a quick fix: a restrictive diet, cutting out a food group, intermittent fasting, a juice cleanse – something radical to lose that winter weight fast. But what if the answer was a back-to-basics approach of 3 balanced meals a day, real food, and eating more, not less?

Robin Barrie Kaiden MS, RD, CDN, CSSD, one of the nation’s leading experts in wellness, nutrition, and fitness, and frequent contributor to CBS, NBC, ABC, Parenting, and Forbes.com, among other media outlets, says of her 2-week Reset program, “It’s not a strict diet where you lose a pound only to gain three the next week. I want to teach people lifelong healthy habits to take with them going forward. The only way to lose weight and keep it off is to change your habits.”

Kaiden is a graduate of Cornell University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutritional Sciences and an Exercise Science minor. She has a Master of Science Degree from Columbia University as well. Her post graduate work was at Mount Sinai Beth Israel, studying nutrition and dietetics at the hospital level. Read More

 

January 15, 2024

Pumped Up Pilates

 

 

WEEK 2 OF 52 WEEKS OF FITNESS:

PILATES MEETS STRENGTH TRAINING AT VAURA PILATES, TOP; RE/GEN METHOD, BOTTOM

 
According to ClassPass, Pilates was the most popular workout of 2023, overtaking strength training as the number one choice of fitness enthusiasts. There are countless Pilates fitness studios across the country — many of which we have featured like SLT, SolidCore, Club Pilates, and Lagree Fitness – with classes on a Pilates reformer machine or a variation thereof. All are slightly different, but at their core is core – core strength that is.

A few new studios have popped up on the fitness landscape like Vaura Pilates and Re/Gen Method that combine the popularity and benefits of Pilates and strength training into one workout. It’s a new approach to Pilates and a new approach to strength training. Though there is an emphasis on core work, core strength alone is not the end goal. Maintaining your stability and form on the Reformer as you slide the platform and pull the straps against the resistance of the spring makes Pilates classes a total body workout. These new classes add weights into the mix for added difficulty and results.

Vaura Pilates is a new Australian import that just opened in NYC, and I took their first class opening day. Billed as an “athletic” Reformer class, Vaura mixes dumbbells, a weighted ball, and the traditional Pilates ring into moves on the Reformer. Every class is different and each teacher encorporates the equipment in their own way. My instructor, for example, integrated upper body dumbbell moves like bicep curls, triceps extensions, and shoulder presses into lower body moves like lunges and squats on the Reformer. Read More

 

January 5, 2024

Jitter-Free Jolts

 

 

Pop into almost any 7-11, CVS, or convenience store, and you’ll see the refrigerated section filled with assorted flavors of Celsius. The top-selling energy drink on Amazon, Celsius has taken over the market from brands like Red Bull, Monster, and other sugar and caffeine enhanced energy drinks that once dominated the market. While this “natural” energy drink still contains 200mg of caffeine, almost twice the amount in a cup of coffee, the boost in Celsius comes from the alternative plant-based ingredients like Guarana and Green Tea, which offer other health and fitness benefits as well. Plus Celsius contains no added sugar.

In addition to Celsius, there are other naturally caffeinated, low or no sugar energy drinks on the market, promoting sustained energy and mental focus without the caffeine jitters. Accelerator Active Energy, endorsed by football and Swifty fan favorite Travis Kelce, also gets its caffeine boost from Guarana and Green tea, along with Yerba Mate, a thermogenic blend said to boost metabolism and burn more calories.

 

“Many energy boosting, focus-inducing beverages on the market today do contain the same amount of caffeine that you would find in a cup of coffee,  but the addition of ingredients that calm the nervous system reduce the ‘jitters’ associated with caffeine, and therefore can make the user feel more focused”

-Sarah Herrington, MS, CNC, CPT 

 

Other energy drinks have added adaptogenic and nootropic ingredients like Ashwagandha, Gaba, and L-Theanine, known for their cognitive and relaxation enhancing benefits.  Adaptogens support the body’s response to stress, including the stimulation from caffeine, while nootropics elevate cognitive function such as memory, focus, and mental clarity. Drinks like BioLift, Kin Spritz, and MTE have been formulated and are marketed to promote those benefits. Read More

 

December 12, 2023

Fit From Home

 

CLICK ABOVE FOR SHOPPING LINKS

Get fit, feel good, and have fun at home. This collection of new health and fitness gear will amp up your workout and recovery too.

 
CLOCKWISE TOP LEFT: THERAFACE MASK $599. A LED skincare mask that delivers Red + Infrared and Blue light with added tension-relieving vibration therapy for firmer, smoother, healthier-looking skin.

HIGHERDOSE INFRARED PEMF GO MAT $699. The PEMF Go Mat provides pain relief, workout recovery, and total-body relaxation from the comfort of your chair. Pulsed Electromagnetic Field (PEMF) grounds you in the earth’s magnetic field for a full-body reset, while Infrared’s deeply-penetrating heat doubles your dose of recovery and detox.

REP SHEATHED BATTLE ROPE $79.99. It’s muscular endurance and cardio conditioning all in one with these easy-to-install, high-quality Sleeve Battle Ropes. Grippy handles help keep the rope from slipping. Read More

 
 

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