Friday, July 23, 2010
Women know high heels aren't good for their feet, and they don't deny that they're uncomfortable. But the fact is, women would continue to wear high heels, even though they did not think them comfortable. Mark it up to the price of beauty.
Feet aren't made for heels
Despite what you're willing to tolerate as a lover of heels, you may be underestimating the damage that high heels can cause, beyond just having sore feet at the end of the day.
Not surprisingly, doctors of podiatric medicine (foot doctors) and orthopaedic surgeons see no value in high heels, which they generally define as pumps with heels of more than two inches.
You know those lovely curves you get with high heels? "It's not a normal anatomical position," says Teisha Chiarelli, a podiatrist in Glendale, Ariz.
Physicians say high heels are "biomechanically and orthopedically unsound," citing medical, postural and safety faults of such heels, according to the American Podiatric Medical Association. Among the litany of problems to which stilettos and their sister heels contribute are knee and back problems, disabling injuries in falls and shortened calf muscles, not to mention an awkward, unnatural gait.
Uncovering women's footwear problems
While most high-heel fans aren't so willing to totally abandon their high pumps, studies indicates that many might be willing to make some adjustments - to a point.
A study by the American Podiatric Medical Association, 39 percent of women still wear high heels daily. This is down from the 60 percent who wore high heels back in 1986. This same study showed that 42 percent of women would wear uncomfortable shoes and that 73 percent had shoe-related foot problems.
Common ailments from wearing high heels are:
* Calluses and heel pain were the top shoe-related foot ailments.
* Women also complain about such conditions as bunions, swelling of the joint at the base of the big toe; hammertoes, a permanent bend in the middle joint of a toe; neuromas, nerve problems that cause shooting pain into the toes; ingrown toenails; and even stress fractures.
Chiarelli says high heels are a particular cause of concern.
"I've got elderly women come in who swear they've worn high heel shoes all their lives and say they can't wear a flat shoe. They get a physiologically shorter Achilles tendon. Over a period of time, we accommodate that position," she says.
Typically, Chiarelli says feet swell throughout the day and poorly fitting shoes won't accommodate that swelling. Sometimes the pain is achy, "almost a bone bruising," she says, or a sharp pain between the bones in the ball of the foot.
"We're looking at bony problems where the toes are starting to curl up from being in a narrow or pointed toe box," she says. "Probably the patient with the ugliest feet is a dancer because she's wearing toe shoes or high heels for dancing."
"Bony problems" are such a big part of foot problems that podiatrists even have a high-heel nickname for one condition - a pump bump. "It's a big old bump on the back of your heel," Chiarelli says. "It's like a callus of bone on the back of the heel from the shoe rubbing the bone."
Nail problems also are common from the constant pressure of toes being pressed against the end of the shoe. That can cause the nail to thicken and promote the growth of foul-smelling fungus. Plus, if a person has curved toenails, it can induce or exacerbate painful in-grown nails.
If you just can't imagine life without heels, Chiarelli suggests choosing styles with squared-off toes and shorter, chunkier heels instead of stilettos. Limit the time you wear heels
If a wide-heeled shoe isn't you anyway, then follow some of Chiarelli's other tips for female shoe shoppers:
* Look for thicker soles for absorbing shock better and putting less pressure on the foot as well as an upper material, such as leather or microfiber, that will give a little to allow the foot to swell without pinching. "Those will still look nice and not hurt so badly," she says.
* If you simply must wear high heels, then limit the time you wear them. Alternate between high heel and low heel shoes to prevent the Achilles tendon from tightening. Wearing flatter shoes or tennis shoes for walking long distances, such as to and from the office and then changing into your heels once you get to work.
* Shop for shoes at the end of the day to accommodate the foot's normal swelling.
* Give your feet a nice massage or soak them in lukewarm water at the end of the day. "If your foot has been put in that funny position all day, it feels like it's stuck that way," Chiarelli says. "Treat yourself."
If you want to want to be good to your feet, then consider following the American Podiatric Medical Association's recommendation on "perhaps the best shoe you can buy from an orthopedic point of view" - a walking shoe with ties (not a slip-on), a Vibram-type composition sole and a relatively wider heel, no more than a half or three-quarters of an inch in height.
Dull, yes, but safe.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Heart problems and Hypertension which lead to heart or other organ failures has been on the rise for the past 2 decades. People above the age of 40 have been suffering from such problems due to their unbalanced dietary habits. Its always advisable to control these factors if you want to reduce your risk.
Clinically chest pain is the pain or discomfort in the area between our upper abdomen and neck. A tightness and stiffness in the chest are also the symptoms of chest pain. It is a common misconception among the people that chest pain is always an indication of heart attacks.
Preventing Diseases Heart
When there are excess deposits of fat, cholesterol or other substances in the inner wall of arteries, the arteries narrow and harden into a condition known as atherosclerosis, the most common cause of heart trouble. A planned diet and regular exercise are the key to prevent atherosclerosis.
Friendly and Unfriendly FATS
FAT should not exceed 30 per cent of your total calorie intake, which includes a maximum of 10 per cent saturated fat and 10 per cent mono-unsaturated fats. Saturated fatty acids in full-cream milk and red meat increase your cholesterol level. Use non-fat or low-fat milk and milk products instead of full-cream milk and avoid sources of saturated fatty acids like lard, butter, cream, palm oil, coconut oil, ghee and vanaspati.
Diet Low Cholesterol
Dietary cholesterol should be limited to 300 mg per day. Since it largely comes from animal products, consumption of non-vegetarian foods, whole milk and milk products should be restricted. For example, an egg has 250 gm of cholesterol and it is not advisable to take more than two to three eggs a week.
Take healthy alternatives like chicken, fish, beans, vegetable, fruits, bread, pulses, whole wheat flour, cereals, rice, millet, skimmed milk and skimmed milk products and vegetable oils like corn, sesame, soyabean, sunflower, canola, olive and mustard.
Heart disease is less frequent among those who eat high carbohydrate and fibre-rich foods. Carbohydrate and fibre-rich foods. Carbohydrates should provide at least 55 per cent of your daily calories. Foods like bread, chapattis, cereals, rice and dals provide an adequate amount of carbohydrates.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Although many people go to the gym, a large majority of people that go make several errors while there that are limiting or preventing optimal gains. Check out the most common mistakes to see if you may be limiting your success in the gym, and putting your body at risk too! Top Weight Training Errors
No warm-up. Muscles don't stretch or contract fully until warmed. Expecting them to do so without preparing them sets you up for tears and pulls. If you want to stay injury free, your body absolutely must warm up properly. Do something to gently increase the temperature of your muscles - walk a few minutes very easy on the treadmill or do a set of reps on the machines at a very low weight.
Lack of intensity. While you don't want to push yourself too hard, especially if you're just starting an exercise program, you need to work intensely enough to get results. It's a fine balance - one that's much easier to maintain with the guidance of a personal trainer.This can occur as a result of inexperience, socializing, laziness, etc. Whatever the cause; it does not matter. What matters is that you STOP!
Exercising too hard. If you've skipped several workouts, don't try to make up for lost time in one session. You're only setting yourself up for soreness and possible injury.
Weekend Warrior Mentality. If you've skipped several workouts, don't try to make up for lost time in one session. You're only setting yourself up for soreness and possible injury.
Training supporting muscles before target muscles. You do NOT want to train the smaller supporting (secondary muscles) before the target muscle. Supporting muscles help lift the weight use for the target muscle's growth. If supporting muscles are fatigue you will not be able to lift as much weight needed to develop the larger target muscle. An example would working triceps before chest; orworking out biceps before back.
Talking too much in the gym. If you're at the gym to make progress, cut down on the talking and focus on your workout. If you are there to socialize try to chat before and after your workout and keep conversations to a minimum during your workout. Your workouts will be more intense, you will make better gains and you'll spend less time at the gym.
Working out too long. It's a common misbelief that in order for your exercise plan to keep being effective, you have to add more exercises or to do longer stretches of cardio. Many people have a hard time believing that my weight-training workouts normally last about 30-45 minutes and my cardio sessions are less than 30 minutes.Taking too long to complete your workout results in under training and sub par results. The trick is to work harder, not longer. That's done by lifting heavier, resting less in between sets, and it also means employing circuit training, or interval training so you are working out harder and not longer. It's simple, but it works - try it! .
Friday, June 25, 2010
Warnings
Image: Via
Text Source:
