1. http://www.healthcanal.com/life-style-fitness/8354-Study-Strength-Training-Improves-Flexibility-Too.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+healthnewshc%2FOxfp+%28Health+News+from+HealthCanal.com%29
2. http://www.exrx.net/ExInfo/Stretching.html

OUR VIEW:

There seems to be quite a lot of controversy over the value of static stretching specifically its role in performance.  Based on the current research, static stretching does not seem to improve short term flexibility and can actually have a negative effect on power producing activities.  With these conclusions it would be more beneficial to implement a proper weight training program to allow increases in strength and to improve or at least maintain flexibility.

Static stretching has been shown to have a relaxing effect. Using static stretching post-exercise and/or post sport activity can help with the calming effect needed to return the working muscles to pre-exercise lengths.  It is important for all sport performers to understand the value of muscle tension and power production.  If your sport or activity requires high power production then static stretching may not be the best warm-up activity.

http://journals.lww.com/nsca-jscr/Abstract/2010/05000/The_Effect_of_Closed_Kinetic_Chain_Exercises_and.14.aspx

OUR VIEW:

Open-Kinetic Chain exercises mostly target individual muscle groups for strengthening, but they increase the forces transmitted to the involved joint. Closed-Kinetic Chain activities transmit less force to the joint and often are more functional movements. For example, if you raise one of your feet off the ground, you can move that leg in any direction or sequence of movements. A Closed-Kinetic Chain activity, on the other hand, fixes the distal end of the extremity either to the ground or to a device that has a predetermined motion. When you keep your feet on the ground while you bend or straighten one joint, the other joints move in a predictable, set manner.

Closed-Kinetic Chain exercises especially for the knee seem to have the greatest value for balanced strengthening. Utilizing appropriate functional body movements (mostly Closed-Kinetic Chain) with correct technique have been shown to result in greater total body strength gains and an overall faster recovery from injury.

http://www.healthcanal.com/life-style-fitness/8127-Brief-exercise-reduces-impact-stress-cell-aging-UCSF-study-shows.html

OUR VIEW:

As we age, there are considerable benefits to higher intensity, short bursts of exercise. More and more research has been identifying a link between genetics and environment, therefore it is important that every individual address all aspects of fitness. Setting goals, modifying nutrition, and finding a proper exercise program can help reduce the impact of stress on cell aging. “Telomere length is increasingly considered a biological marker of the accumulated wear and tear of living, integrating genetic influences, lifestyle behaviors, and stress,’’ said Elissa Epel, PhD, who is one of the lead investigators and an associate professor in the UCSF Department of Psychiatry. “Even a moderate amount of vigorous exercise appears to provide a critical amount of protection for the telomeres.”

A link between life stress and cell aging has been identified and replicated. Have we found the true fountain of youth? Can we really reduce cell aging? It seems that we have and we can as research is continuing to direct us to higher intensity, short bursts of exercise.

Come check out Team Eleet at the

Tejas Triathlon 2010

Sunday, June 6th, 2010

10th annual Tejas Triathlon will host up to 800 triathletes for an awesome sprint distance race with a 600 yard swim, 11 mile flat and fast bike, and a shaded 3 mile run.

The race will be at Pecan Park in the New Territory sub-division of Sugar Land, Texas, near the intersection of Hwy 99 and Hwy 90. The man-made lake in New Territory is an ideal setting for novice triathletes as well as experienced veterans. The water temperature will be very warm-well above the 78 degree cut-off for wetsuits. The bike course is flat but windy and leads into a 3 mile shaded loop that ends underneath 100 year-old pecan trees.

Team Eleet had another great event at the Beach to Bay Relay in Corpus Christi.  Our group of ladies were fantastic despite the torrential downpour during the 2nd and 3rd leg.

If you are interested in a sponsorship for an event become a member of our website and fill out the team member application.  We are looking for more athletes in 2010.

Our next event will be the Tejas Triathlon on Sunday, June 6th.

Deidre Doggett, Kristi Kaiser, Kristalyn Pressley, Jami Kimbrell, (not pictured: Misty Cervenka and Desiree Thombs)

Overall Time: 4:35:40.4
Finished: 81 of 306 (Women’s Open)

http://www.beachtobayrelay.com/16-womens-05_15_2010.htm

Come check out our Eleet Ladies at the 2010 Beach to Bay Marathon Relay on Saturday, May 15th. We will also be part of the Beach to Bay Sports Expo on Friday, March, 14th from 10am-8pm.

2010 Beach to Bay Marathon Relay

7:00 a.m.

Corpus Christi, TX

The third Saturday in May is Armed Forces Day. Back in 1976, the very first Beach to Bay Relay Marathon was held on Armed Forces Day to honor our nation’s men and women serving in the United States of America’s Military. This tradition was founded by Captain John Butterfield, who today currently resides in the State of Florida.

This year’s 35th running of the Beach to Bay Relay Marathon will be held on Armed Forces Day, Saturday, May 15th, 2010.

The race always begins promptly at 7:00 a.m. at Nueces County Park on the beach just south of Bob Hall Pier, adjacent to Gulf Beach Access Road 6.

The Beach to Bay Relay Marathon is a complete 26.2 point-to-point relay route, beginning on North Padre Island, winding through Naval Air Station Corpus Christi and ending at Cole Park along Corpus Christi’s scenic downtown.

The course is divided into six-legs approximating 4.4 miles. The first leg is run on the beach and the remaining legs are run of pavement.

The race has grown in immense proportions since 1976. Today, touting 1,980 teams in 2009, totaling over 12,000 runners. The Beach to Bay Relay Marathon is a relay-running event and six (6) participants are required for each individual leg of the course.

The race has attracted runners from Kenya, England, Mexico and Canada and is the United States most premier and largest relay running event.

http://www.beachtobayrelay.com/

Team Eleet had a fantastic showing at the 2010 Lonestar Sprint Triathlon (500 m/12.5 miles/3.1 miles).  Unfortunately due to extremely high winds the sprint and olympic swim was canceled.  That was a little disappointing as both of our team members are strong swimmers.  Our next event will be the Tejas Triathlon on Sunday, June 6th.

Dustin and Brad Perry

Dustin Perry
Finished: 41 of 88
38:05 bike
1:42 transition
27:44 run
1:07:31
2:00 minute penalty
1:09:31

Brad Perry
Finished: 11 of 88
36:35 bike
1:49 transition
24:06 run
1:02:29

http://www.ironmanusa.com/results/lss2010res.html

Come check out Team Eleet at the 2010 Lonestar Sprint Triathlon on Saturday, April 24.

2010 Lonestar Sprint Triathlon

7:00 a.m.
Moody Gardens
Galveston, TX

Located on Historic Galveston Island and nestled among 242 acres of lush tropical gardens, the Moody Gardens Hotel, Spa and Convention Center’s contemporary architectural design and natural beauty.The .3 mile saltwater swim is located in the protected Offats Bayou and the 12.5 mile bike scenic one and a half loop course along the Gulf Coast of Texas. The 3.1 mile run is a FLAT course meandering through Moody Gardens along Offats Bayou and Palm Beach.

http://www.active.com/triathlon/galveston-tx/lonestar-sprint-triathlon-2010

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091111122026.htm

OUR VIEW:

As we move forward into the 21st Century, the exercise community is acknowledging that anaerobic conditioning actually will improve aerobic conditioning. How does it work? There are several adaptations that occur with interval training. As we complete short, high intensity bursts of exercise we actually improve our anaerobic, lactate, and ventilatory thresholds.

What is the Anaerobic Threshold (AT)?
The term Anaerobic Threshold was introduced over 40 years ago and is based on the concept that at high-intensity levels of exercise, energy demands are higher than oxygen utilization. At this point, for exercise to continue, energy supply needed to shift from the aerobic energy system as the primary energy source to the anaerobic energy systems.

What is the Lactate Threshold (LT)?
At rest and under steady-state exercise conditions, blood lactate production is equal to blood lactate removal. The lactate threshold refers to the intensity of exercise at which blood lactate production is higher than blood lactate removal.

What is the Ventilatory Threshold (VT)?
As exercise intensity progressively increases, the air into and out of your respiratory tract increases linearly or similarly. As the intensity of exercise continues to increase, there becomes a point at which ventilation starts to increase in a non-linear fashion. This point where ventilation deviates from the progressive linear increase is called VT. The VT corresponds (but is not identical) with LT.

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For healthy individuals, cleared by a physician for regular physical activity, are there any health risks for creatine use?

There have been many allegations about the safety of supplementing with creatine. These allegations initially surfaced in 1998 when a British newspaper, The Lancet, alleged that creatine supplementation causes renal dysfunctions (4).

There were reports of gastrointestinal distress after use of creatine such as: diarrhea, upset stomach, and belching (2). Muscle cramps were also mentioned, but after investigating the report and conducting experiments to determine if creatine was the culprit of muscle cramps, no evidence was found. It is recommended for all athletes to maintain proper hydration to reduce the risk of cramping (4).

According to Schroder et al. creatine did not seem to have any adverse effects when a low dose was used over a period of three years (1). Creatine is a substance that already exists in the human body and is mostly found in the skeletal muscle. It is also found in smooth and cardiac muscle and is synthesized in the liver, pancreas, and kidneys. Individuals with kidney or renal problems are recommended not to supplement with creatine due to the increased workload it may place on the kidneys and liver (3).

Based on the literature, what type of physical activities might benefit from creatine supplementation/what type of activities might creatine have no effect OR worsen performance?

Individuals that supplement creatine may experience gains in fat-free mass by up to 6% and an increase in total body mass of 1 - 2.3%; however one third of the individuals studied had no increase in body mass (3,4). Creatine has been reported to help in short durations of cycle sprints due to higher ATP and CrP levels found pre-exercise and reduced levels found post-exercise.

This improved level of performance is due to the re-synthesis of CrP and ATP during rest (5). Some physical activities that may see gains with the use of creatine are sprints, weight lifting, baseball, or any other actions lasting 30 seconds to two minutes in length (6). There is also a chance that aerobic recovery is enhanced by creatine supplementation due to creatine being used in both the aerobic and anaerobic systems (5). It was also concluded that creatine supplementation could not increase performance if there was not proper recovery between bouts of high intensity activity (7).

References:

1. Schroder, H., Terrados, N., & Tramullas, A. (2005). Risk assessment of the potential side effects of long-term creatine supplementation in team sport athletes. European Journal Of Nutrition, 44(4), 255-261.
2. Ostojic, S., & Ahmetovic, Z. (2008). Gastrointestinal Distress After Creatine Supplementation in Athletes: Are Side Effects Dose Dependent?. Research in Sports Medicine, 16(1), 15-22.
3. Poortmans, J., & Francaux, M. (2000). Adverse effects of creatine supplementation: fact or fiction? / Effets secondaires nocifs de la supplementation en creatine: realite ou fiction ?. Sports Medicine, 30(3), 155-170.
4. Francaux, M., & Poortmans, J. (2006). Side Effects of Creatine Supplementation in Athletes. International Journal of Sports Physiology & Performance, 1(4), 311-323.
5. Havenetidis, K., (2005). Assessment of the Ergogenic Properties of Creatine Using an Intermittent Exercise Protocol, JEPonline, 8(1), 26-33.
6. Bemben, M., & Lamont, H. (2005). Creatine Supplementation and Exercise Performance: Recent Findings. Sports Medicine, 35(2), 107-125.
7. Levesque, DG., Kenefick, RW., Quinn, TJ. (2007). Creatine Supplementation: Impact on Cycling Sprint Performance, JEPonline, 10(4), 17-28.

Article Provided by Rene’ Moreno- B.S., NASM- CPT, PES