Category Archives: Sports and Fitness

To Lunge or Not to Lunge?

When performed correctly, the lunge exercise can strengthen a wide range of muscles. The lunge challenges stability, which is what makes it so effective. A body attempting to remain balanced engages many muscle groups, from the hamstrings to the calves to the core. That makes the lunge a highly effective exercise for people needing to […]

Jersey Finger: Symptoms, Treatment, & Recovery

Jersey Finger: It’s Not What You Think If you’re experiencing finger pain or have recently suffered an injury, it’s important to understand the signs, symptoms, and treatment options for jersey finger. What is Jersey Finger? Jersey finger is a hand injury common among athletes who participate in tackle sports such as football and rugby. – […]

Strength Training: Stronger, Not Bigger

The thought of strength (weight) training may bring to mind body builders with six-pack abs and bulging biceps. As a woman, you may not aspire to that physique. You may also wonder, since women produce significantly less testosterone—a hormone that helps build muscle mass—than men, is there any reason to bother with the weights? Men […]

Treating a Sports Hernia

Athletic pubalgia is the technical term for the severe groin pain often called a sports hernia—although unlike a true hernia, no abdominal-cavity organs protrude where they should not. Because the cause of the pain is often missed or misidentified, an accurate diagnosis of athletic pubalgia is the first step in treating the condition and often […]

Add Strength Training to Your Stretching

Let’s face it: Stretching feels good. It is relaxing, and getting all the kinks out of scrunched-up muscles can be liberating. Unfortunately, improving flexibility through a stretching class is simply not enough, either as a therapeutic approach, or to protect your body from future damage. Strength training is a necessary companion to your stretching class. […]

Toning Shoes: Hype vs. Reality

Many people have purchased a new kind of footwear whose manufacturers claim will improve fitness and health. Toning shoes or rocker sole shoes allegedly help wearers burn more calories, tone their buttocks, improve posture and curb joint pain. But do these shoes really do what their boosters claim? According to the manufacturers, toning shoes are […]

Batter Up! Prep Your Child for Baseball Season

After a winter of inactivity often occasioned by bad weather, the one- to two-month period before baseball season begins is a great time to get your child in better physical shape. Start with stretching, aerobic exercise and strength-training at least two or three days a week, working up to five days by the time the […]

Team Sports: How Safe Are They?

The physical benefits of participating in sports are obvious in our increasingly obese society, but team sports also teach cooperation, responsibility to the team, mental preparedness and social development. What about the risk of injury? With the consequences of repeated concussions of football players as a hot topic in the news, it is reasonable to […]

Should You Lose the Shoes?

A 2010 Harvard University study suggested that running barefoot can reduce the risk of running-related injuries. These findings have many people wondering if they should get rid of their classic running shoes. The barefoot runners actually wear a sock-like shoe called “Five Fingers.” Runners who wear shoes tend to hit the ground on their heels […]

Getting Into the Swing for Tennis Season

Anyone for tennis? If winter has you longing for court time, you can pump up your enthusiasm—and reduce your chances of injury—by starting a fitness program before you touch a racquet. And it is not just about your swing. Effective preseason preparation includes a foundation of aerobic conditioning, strength training and skill drills. By increasing […]