Raw Food Blog

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Back Pain Muscle Spasms - How to Deal

The two most common locations of muscle spasms are the neck and back regions. Most of us hold a lot of tension in these areas, which leads to tightness. Thus, they are the most vulnerable to stress due to relatively casual events. Such muscle pain could happen due to a chill while golfing or playing tennis, for example, or from spending too long at the computer without taking a break. (In case you are reading this online now, and wondering how often that is, most ergonomic specialists recommend standing and stretching about once an hour.)

What happens when a muscle spasms? The fibers in the muscle core contract all at once. And what causes this? The cause of back pain muscle spasms is a tensed muscle due to over extension or sudden movement. In other words, if the muscle hasn't relaxed sufficiently prior to moving or extending it, a spasm can result.

A muscle spasm is not the same thing as a muscle cramp. Both involve a sudden contraction, but a cramp releases with movement. When your back spasms, it locks up and you cannot move.

There are a number of ways you can deal with a muscle spasm: rest; temperature change; ice massage; mindful movement; and over-the-counter pain reliever.

You can relieve the strain of stressed tissues by lying down. For back pain muscle spasms, try bringing your knees slowly to your chin, then hold the position for at least a minute. If this causes you pain, however, stop and try something else.

You can rub an ice cube over the sore region using a slow, circular motion. It takes a few minutes to numb the pain. Once the area numbs and relaxes due to the cold, fresh blood rushes to the area, which helps unclench the muscle fibers. Just be sure to keep the ice moving, and use a gentle massaging motion. Of course, this works best when you have help, since you can relax completely and not concern yourself with extending your arm to reach the back or neck area.

(Only apply heat if the area is still in spasm after 72 hours, since this gives your muscles enough time for any acute pain and swelling to subside. If you want to use temperature change prior to that, experts recommend that you apply cold.)

Once you have iced the spasm, slow and gentle movement helps bring back normal circulation and coaxes muscle fibers to return to their usual patterns. Avoid too aggressive a stretch, or you could make the spasm worse.

Once any pain and swelling begin to subside -- again, probably after several days -- you can also try breaking up any left-over muscle knot, simply by pressing a thumb or other finger into the region. At this point, the idea is to continue relaxing the muscle by breaking up any residual fluid or muscle fibers.

Any over-the-counter pain reliever such as aspirin, ibuprofen, or naproxen works best on this type of pain due to the anti-inflammatory effect. Acetaminophen is less effective since it is not an anti-inflammatory.
Finally, any abrupt neck or back spasm that includes a numb sensation, tingling, or a weak feeling could indicate a ruptured disk or injury to the nerve, and it is important to have it checked out by a qualified medical professional as soon as you can.

Find out how you can treat your back pain through my easy to follow course. Find out more on Back Muscle Pain. Seth Cooper runs a site on Back Pain Muscle Spasms.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Seth_Cooper

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Sunday, September 27, 2009

How to Build Muscle Quickly - Two Strategies to Help Build Muscle Quickly

Professional bodybuilders make it seem like building muscle mass is a quick and easy process. Unfortunately, many people who are new to bodybuilding find that it is time-consuming and difficult to gain good tone and muscle definition, often times because they are not using the proper type of exercises.
In this article, we go over two important strategies that you can use so that you gain muscle as quickly as the pros: balanced exercise routines and cardio plus high intensity interval training.

Use A Balanced Approach To Build Muscle Quickly
A common mistake for people who are new to bodybuilding is to focus too much on one particular area of the body that seems to have poor development. In fact, this can slow down your progress toward building muscle, because overworking can lead to increased strain and even injury.

In addition, many people don't realize that muscle growth is due more to the way in which exercise improves metabolic processes than direct action on a particular muscle. In other words, no matter what type of training you do, every single muscle in your body ends up benefiting due to increased oxygenation, blood flow, and glucose tolerance.
Combining Cardio, Interval, and Strength Training
According to pro bodybuilders, the best strategy to build muscle fast is to develop a balanced exercise program that works every part of your body regularly. You'll want to combine several sessions of cardio per week with several sessions of whole-body strength training.

Also look into adding another type of exercise session called high intensity interval training, in which you work your body to its maximum potential for short "bursts". Interval training speeds up the muscle building process without wearing you out or causing overuse injury.

This balanced approach using cardio, interval, and strength training has a proven success record, whether you decide to use simple weight training equipment at home or you join a gym with the latest high-tech machines. And it leads to quicker muscular development than ab, glute, or other single muscle system training by themselves. Are you a hardgainer and just can't seem to build muscle? This free report will reveal how to build muscle quickly.

Average build? Discover the muscle building secrets used by top bodybuilding competitors.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Gerry_Marsh

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Thursday, September 24, 2009

Muscle Abs

Getting muscle abs is what so many people try and fail to do. This is because they are fed the wrong information! All you need to get visible abs is the right knowledge, followed by the desire and dedication. In this article, I'm going to reveal the top 3 myths that people think are how to get a ripped six pack quickly, and how you can avoid these myths and get a great set of abs!

The 1st myth is that if you do lots of cardio on the treadmill, you'll burn away the belly fat and reveal muscle abs. To get a six pack that are visible, you do need to burn the fat around your belly. Although cardio is not the best way to do this. In fact, doing hours of cardio can actually harm your attempts at burning fat quickly! This is because a cardio workout is what's known as a catabolic workout. Catabolic means tissue destroying, therefore you're burning away more muscle than fat! Your body will then slow your metabolism gradually to stop this from occurring. If you slow your metabolism, your body burns less fat. Not good! To burn fat efficiently, you need to do a short, sharp anabolic workout. Anabolic means tissue building, and will force your body to build muscle! As you build muscle, your body will release hormones to raise your metabolism, meaning you'll burn fat like crazy!

Bodybuilder Amin Shahry

Myth number 2 is crunches and sit up are how to get muscle abs. Not if you want a six pack! These exercises are in fact some of the least effective exercises to get a six pack. This is due to the fact that these exercises are so small and isolated. You see, we all have six packs. If you can't see yours, that means there is a layer of fat you need to burn in order to get visible abs. Crunches just aren't intense enough, you need to focus on exercises that involve lots of muscle groups and really force your body into fat burning overdrive!

The 3rd myth is starving yourself to lose weight quickly, thus revealing muscle abs. Yeah this a really good idea isn't it! Of course not! The reason why you can't see your abs is because you're eating foods that contain empty calories, such as crisps, biscuits, fizzy drink etc. If you want really great abs that you could see a mile off, you need to cut out these foods, as they only add to the layer of fat around your stomach. Instead of starving yourself, eat six small meals a day, that contain high protein. Having six small meals not only helps your body as there is a constant supply of nutrients, but will make you less likely to snack as you won't be as hungry!

Don't believe all the hype your read in the magazines if you want to get muscle abs. Stay away from so called magic pills and powders that supposedly burn fat. These are usually rubbish that will only burn a hole in your pocket!

Now is the time to get hold of a proven workout routine and effective diet plan, if you're serious about getting muscle abs. Visit http://www.getaquicksixpack.org where you can finally learn how to get a six pack the right way, and not waste time doing endless cardio or crunches!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=James_Statham

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