SoCo Trainers Forum

May 31

Study finds TV can decrease self esteem in children, except white boys -

damnlayoffthebleach:

If you are a white girl, a black girl or a black boy, exposure to today’s electronic media in the long run tends to make you feel worse about yourself. If you’re a white boy, you’ll feel better, according to a new study led by an Indiana University professor.

Nicole Martins, an assistant professor of telecommunications in the IU College of Arts and Sciences, and Kristen Harrison, professor of communication studies at the University of Michigan, also found that black children in their study spent, on average, an extra 10 hours a week watching television.

“We can’t deny the fact that media has an influence when they’re spending most of their time — when they’re not in school — with the television,” Martins said.

Harrison added, “Children who are not doing other things besides watching television cannot help but compare themselves to what they see on the screen.”

Their paper has been published in Communication Research. Martins and Harrison surveyed a group of about 400 black and white preadolescent students in communities in the Midwest over a yearlong period. Rather than look at the impact of particular shows or genres, they focused on the correlation between the time in front of the TV and the impact on their self-esteem.

“Regardless of what show you’re watching, if you’re a white male, things in life are pretty good for you,” Martins said of characters on TV. “You tend to be in positions of power, you have prestigious occupations, high education, glamorous houses, a beautiful wife, with very little portrayals of how hard you worked to get there.

“If you are a girl or a woman, what you see is that women on television are not given a variety of roles,” she added. “The roles that they see are pretty simplistic; they’re almost always one-dimensional and focused on the success they have because of how they look, not what they do or what they think or how they got there.

“This sexualization of women presumably leads to this negative impact on girls.”

With regard to black boys, they are often criminalized in many programs, shown as hoodlums and buffoons, and without much variety in the kinds of roles they occupy.

“Young black boys are getting the opposite message: that there is not lots of good things that you can aspire to,” Martins said. “If we think about those kinds of messages, that’s what’s responsible for the impact.

“If we think just about the sheer amount of time they’re spending, and not the messages, these kids are spending so much time with the media that they’re not given a chance to explore other things they’re good at, that could boost their self-esteem.”

Martins said their study counters claims by producers that programs have been progressive in their depictions of under-represented populations. An earlier study co-authored by her and Harrison suggests that video games “are the worst offenders when it comes to representation of ethnicity and gender.”

Other research is starting to show the impacts of other kinds of entertainment sources, such as video games and hand-held devices. It indicates that young people are becoming creative at “media multitasking.”

“Even though these new technologies are becoming more available, kids still spend more time with TV than anything else,” Martins said.

Interestingly, the young people were asked about their consumption of print media, but the results were not statistically significant.

Martins conducted the research while she was completing her Ph.D. at the University of Illinois, as part of a larger longitudinal study done with her co-author, Harrison. They sought out certain school districts in Illinois because of their diversity, but African-Americans were the predominant minority group.

BRHood: WHAT’S THIS? A STUDY DONE TO SHOW JUST HOW DEVASTATING A WHITEWASHED MEDIA CAN HAVE ON POC’S SELF ESTEEM? REALLY?

I FOR ONE, AM SHOCKED

Interesting study!

(Source: sparkamovement, via blackbutshining)

We should be in a race for prevention, not cures -

frugi-namaste:

There are two paths to managing the challenge of preventable chronic illnesses: treating the disease effectively, and preventing the onset of disease. Today, the balance in our research investments is skewed. For all of the research on drugs and surgery, there is very little attention to building the evidence base for effective disease-prevention programs. There should be. Disease prevention costs much less than disease treatment.

So we should be looking to examples that will spare people the many kinds of costs of the disease, and also save the health-care system significant amounts of money.

Read James Knickman’s piece at The Atlantic

Agreed!

(via theatlantic)

GMO’s (Genetically Modified Organisms) in food

Food for thought - literally. Have you ever stopped to consider what you are putting into your body? I have recently been doing some major changes to my diet including becoming hyper aware of what I put in it. Initially, I just dropped those foods that cause allergic/intolerant type of reactions. For me those were dairy and soy. Then I decided to only consume meats that were never injected with hormones or antibiotics and were processed humanely.

Recently I have noticed letters like GMO and started wondering what that was all about. I learned they have genetically altered food for the all mighty dollar. Here is a link to a great site that explains GM foods and most importantly how do these things effect the body.

If you are a person who has at any time had reactions to food you know that you reach a point that the symptoms just aren’t worth the pleasure of consuming certain foods. For me those symptoms included bloated and distended abdomen, frequent illnesses, extreme gas, skin break outs, and with soy extreme hormone fluctuations.

What’s the scariest part? In my opinion, it’s the fact the these foods aren’t regulated or labeled by the FDA (unlike other countries). Just read these side effects of GM food and think to yourself “do I care about having these symptoms or even worse do I care that my children will have these symptoms because I control what they eat”.

toxic and allergic reactions
antibiotic resistance
immune suppression

This paragraph scares me more:

“Conventional milk products such as cheese, yogurt, ice cream, and butter may be altered with a synthetic GE bovine growth hormone (rBGH). The rBGH effect on humans has been linked to elevated risks of cancer. As a side effect of rBGH, cows have been known to suffer from shortened life spans, mastitis, increased birth defects, and high rates of diseases, infertility, and stress.”

That’s right cancer. It is one of the scariest 5 letters in our language. When diagnosed people have a whirlwind of emotions and why me questions. But all to often, people think that will never happen to me or I’m not concerned about my health down the road. (why not? It’s your body)

Take charge and responsibility of your own life. Educate yourself and control your health and happiness.

Chika Christenson, MS
Owner and Personal Trainer: Results Personal Training

May 30

Heat Stroke and Heat Exhaustion symptoms

With summer temps slowly climbing, I thought it was a great idea to post signs and symptoms of heat stroke and heat exhaustion. If you workout outside (including yard work) please keep yourself cool and hydrated.

Heat Exhaustion symptoms:

Pale, cool moist skin
Profuse sweating
Muscle cramps or pains
Feeling faint or dizzy
Headache
Thirst
Nausea
Weakness
Core temperature elevated

Heat Stroke symptoms:

Unconsciousness
Dizziness
Confusion
Hallucinations
Coma
Flushed hot and dry skin
Initial elevated blood pressure
Hyperventilating
Core temperature > 105 degrees (F)

If you or someone you know experiences any of these symptoms while working out out doors seek medical attention immediately.

Chika Christenson, MS

Owner and Personal Trainer: Results Personal Training

May 25

fabgerard:

Borg Warner Trophy #indianapolis #indy500 #holygraal (Pris avec Instagram à Pit Lane Indianapolis 500)

May 23

5 Benefits of Eating Fruits -

fitnessrepublic:

It’s no secret that eating fruits is healthy for you! Fruits are something that we have been eating since our early childhood! There is a huge variety of fruits to choose from! Each being unique and equally delicious! However that’s not all! Fruits are also extremely healthy and nutritious!

Cherries, berries, citrus fruits, apples, bananas! You name it! So why not perk up your diet and add in some fruits to create an absolute fruity blast! Here are some benefits of eating fruits! (Read More)

May 21

Food timing

Are you one of those people struggling to lose weight? Do you have such a busy schedule that you are only eating a couple of times a day? Did you know that leaving so much time between eating can cause your metabolism to slow down and put your body in “starvation mode” where it panics and store things as fat?

Eating small meals and snacks throughout the day keeps your metabolism ramped up. Those afternoon crashes are your bodys way of asking for more fuel. If you’re solely attempting to fight off that afternoon lull with caffeine you are not doing your body the justice it deserves. Caffeine beverages are lacking in important vitamins and nutrients your body requires to keep you at your peek performance (regardless if that is physical or mental).

If you are freaking your body out by only eating a couple of times a day. You are sending yourself in to this panic of “when will my next meal come from”. Your body says hey I’m not sure when I will get the calories and nutrients I need to operate the brain and important organs required for survival. This panic causes the body to hold on to whatever it can from the last meal to hold out through this food drought.

For more information on food timing and more examples of how you can apply this to your life email me at: chika@austinresultstraining.com

Chika Christenson, MS

Owner and Trainer: Results Personal Training

May 19

YUMMMMMM this looks amazing!!!!

greedygardener:

Grilled halibut with asparagus and chervil beurre blanc.

Our first crop of home grown asparagus has been such a revelation, it deserved to be served with an equally delicious piece of fish and a delicate sauce using one of my favourite herbs. Thanks to Mr Satchwell on the Bullring market for recommending such a perfect accompaniment. .

Hip hinging

One side effect of sedentary jobs or lifestyles is muscle imbalances in the pelvis that cause movement compensations that could lead to low back pain and injury.

Basically, being in the seated position for prolonged periods of time can shorten the hip flexors (front of the hip) and lengthen the glutes. These shortened hip flexors can actually prevent the glutes from firing in important movements such as the dead lift, squat, or lunge. This is called reciprocal inhibition. When the glutes aren’t doing their share in this movement the low back muscles have to take over.

This can be seen when someone is attempting the squat movement and there is more flexion (or forward bending) of the spine, generally the low back. This causes extreme loading forces through the low back which can lead to serious injury.

Loosening the hip flexors and activating the glutes prior to doing a squat may help this movement but often reteaching the body to hinge at the hip is also imperative to injury prevention.

This site has an excellent picture of incorrect movement compared to the correct movement of hinging at the hip instead of the low back.

An important thing to be aware of when you are working out: notice your pelvis (think of it as a bowl lined with muscles) is it tipped forward spilling out it’s contents in front of you, is it tilted backwards (like people tend to do when slouching in the seated position) spilling it’s contents out the back.

These are signs of instability of the important muscles that stabilize the pelvis during movements and could also prevent an efficient hip hinge during movement.

For more questions please email me at: chika@austinresultstraining.com

Chika Christenson, MS

Owner and Personal Trainer: Results Personal Training

May 18

Spinach

My apologies for yesterday’s Spinach blog as it was apparently full of code. Let’s try this again!

Spinach is not just for sailors with pointy elbows and freakishly large forearm muscles. There are many documented health benefits from eating spinach and they are:

Anti-inflammatory
Anti-Cancer
Antioxidants
Glycoclycerolipids-digestive tract protection
High vitamin K levels -support bone health

You should join Popeye and add more spinach to your diet. Your body will thank you!

Chika Christenson, MS

Owner and Personal Trainer: Results Personal Training