Hassel Free Living

Posts Tagged ‘performance’

Achieve Long-term Health and Enhance Performance Through Plant-based Whole Foods

When you join Thrive in 30 you’ll learn:

- How to combat stress using whole, plant-based foods and high net-gain nutrition

- The whole food truth about protein, fats and carbs—and how balancing your diet will help you build a younger body

- How you can alkalize your body’s pH to combat disease, improve sleep and lose weight

- What superfoods to use to balance hormones, detoxify body or lower cholesterol

- How to identify common foods cause unexplained, mystery illnesses

- How to use nutrition to strategically fuel your body so you’ll have greater endurance, maximize the return from your workouts and recover faster

- Why nutrition, exercise and sleep are the secret to empowered mental health

- Long-term strategies that will help you transform your health for life

You can apply what you’ll learn in Thrive in 30 about the power of plant-based, whole foods to improve your whole body health whether you’re a vegetarian, a vegan or an omnivore.

Duration : 0:2:32

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: Brendan Brazier, cycling, diet, electrolytes, Endurance, free training, health, performance, performance nutrition, plant-based nutrition, Raw, recipes, running, sport, stamina, Thrive Diet, Thrive Fitness, Thrive in 30, Vega, Vega Sport recipes, Vegan, weight loss, wellness

Ten years ago, Gary A. was a successful realtor with a large network of contacts. Life was uneventful until his boss noticed that Gary was slurring his words. Unaware of the problem, Gary assured him that alcohol was not a factor, and went for a checkup.

He was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, or MS, a neurological disease that Gary had never heard of. Gary faced MS with the determination to achieve the best quality of life possible, and he encourages others to do the same.

When he heard that Kessler Foundation Research Center was conducting clinical studies aimed at improving function in people with MS, he volunteered to participate. In the Neuroscience & Neuropsychology Laboratory, researchers were testing memory retraining strategies that that help people remember. More than 100 people have done the training, reported lab director Nancy Chiaravalloti, PhD, which has helped them in everyday activities like work and shopping. Its exciting to see an individual benefit, to witness the change in a persons outlook, she acknowledged, but our long-term objective is to develop rehabilitation strategies that improve quality of life for the larger population of people with MS.

Other studies measure improvement in brain function using functional magnetic resonance imaging or fMRI. This technology allows us to make a movie of the brain at work. We can see how the brain with MS behaves while performing a task, Dr. Chiaravalloti said. Comparing brains with and without MS helps researchers understand to effects of the disease and devise better rehabilitation strategies to help patients think, learn and remember. Gary participated in another study that uses virtual reality to help people improve their driving skills. Driving is essential for Gary, whos back at work in real estate, where he puts his knowledge and experience to use working with clients who have disabilities.

Today, Garys growing network includes people with all types of MS and all types of disabilities. Theres no doom and gloom at the monthly meetings of Garys support group, which feature invited speakers who help people cope with medical care, finances, insurance, transportation, employment, and other issues. Gary recalls how hard it was to face MS initially. I was very negative, he said. Participating in clinical studies helped me put my disability in perspective. Now, I’m much more open-minded. Ive learned better ways to overcome obstacles.

For more information about Kessler Foundation, go to http://www.KesslerFoundation.org

Duration : 0:1:57

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: Center, foundation, human, Kessler, neuropsychology, performance, Research, sci, stroke, tbi

Before her spinal cord injury, Leigh Ann was very active and spontaneous. She took salsa lessons, roller bladed 50 miles a week, and loved jet skiing and wake boarding. She traveled several times a year, and enjoyed socializing with friends. When she injured her spinal cord, Leigh Ann was only 28 and had just received her degree in massage therapy. The way in which she was injured is somewhat unusual. My boyfriend came up behind me unexpectedly, tried to pick me up in a joking manner, and unfortunately, he slipped, and dropped me, Leigh Ann recalled. I only dropped from about two feet off the ground, but [because of] the way my body was angled, it broke my vertebrae, and left me paralyzed from the waist down.

Before this happened, Leigh Ann understood little about the dangers and complications of such injuries. I thought having a spinal cord injury meant that you couldnt walk, she said. I didnt realize it involved bladder and bowel complications, and you would experience bone loss, muscle fatigue, and severe back pain.

Living with the injury has caused major life changes for Leigh Ann. No longer able to participate in her favorite outdoor activities, she spends much of her time indoors, watching movies and relaxing. She tires more easily, and her daily routine has changed dramatically. Incorporating a bladder program and bowel management into the scheme of getting ready in the morning has really lengthened the process, said Leigh Ann. While it used to take me about 25 minutes to get ready in the morning, now it takes [up to] an hour and forty-five minutes.

Rehabilitation helped Leigh Ann adjust to living with a spinal cord injury. My rehab program was custom-designed for my specific needs, she explained. Every exercise I did, every transfer, was designed to tackle every obstacle. I didnt feel like I was part of a cookie-cutter program. Leigh Ann has also participated in many studies at the Kessler Research Center, which has improved her quality of life. She had chronic shoulder pain, a common problem for many users of manual wheelchairs. In one study, researchers looked at whether the angle at which she was pushing her wheelchair was directly associated with the pain she was experiencing. The research I performed made me more aware of how to push my wheelchair, she said. Kessler Research Center has a variety of studies that inpatients, outpatients, and members of the fitness gym can be involved in.
Inspired by her experience, Leigh Ann now works as a research assistant for Kessler Foundations research center. Everyday, I get to help people improve their quality of life. Although Leigh Ann is a mentor to other patients, she has noticed an increase in her own quality of life, as well. Now, she has a much more optimistic outlook on life, and refuses to sweat the small stuff. Adapt and overcome, she said. Understand that your life isnt over, it has just changed.
For more information about Kessler Foundation, go to http://www.KesslerFoundation.org

Duration : 0:2:2

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: Center, foundation, human, Kessler, neuropsychology, performance, Research, sci, stroke, tbi

http://www.trisoma.com
Clip of new Barefoot Deep Tissue DVD by John Harris, Olympic massage therapist who teaches at the Santa Barbara Body Therapy Institute. John teaches how to improve muscle condition, increase athletic speed, improve parasympathetic response, while avoiding injury to practitioner. Full DVD is available at discount on Trisoma.com
First ask your doctor if you may receive massage. More on Trisoma.com/barefoot-deep-tissue.html (with Fred Kenyon, Sara Hanson and Jay)

Duration : 0:3:20

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: barbara, barefoot, bodywork, deep, DVD, feet, foot, glutes, harris, John, legs, massage, myofascial, olympic, pain, performance, therapist, therapy, tissue