Leg Power Equals Brain Power

by Nina

Bhavani Cooper, Age 56

“Leg power predicts both cognitive ageing and global brain structure, despite controlling for common genetics and early life environment shared by twins. Interventions targeted to improve leg power in the long term may help reach a universal goal of healthy cognitive ageing.” —Steves, CJ, et al.

I have to say that even I always repeat to myself what Ram wrote about the brain “what is good for the heart is good for the brain,” I am so used to thinking about the brain as somehow being separate from the rest of the body, I was flabbergasted to read about a recent study of aging twins that showed that powerful leg muscles resulting from physical exercise correlates with sharper minds. Yes, even though the brain is just another organ in your body, like your heart or your liver, we’re so used to being told that doing mental exercises, like, God forbid, crossword puzzles, is the best way to keep our brains healthy as we age, that is hard for a lot of us—me included—to take in that something like doing yoga standing poses could actually be much more effective.

In a recent study Kicking Back Cognitive Ageing: Leg Power Predicts Cognitive Ageing after Ten Years in Older Female Twins. scientists at Kings College London set out to test whether muscle fitness (measured by leg power, since the thigh muscles are the largest muscles in the body) could “predict cognitive change” in a healthy older population over a 10-year time interval. Twins were used in the study so genetic factors could be ruled out. And leg strength was measured as a more objective indicator of exercise patterns than self-reporting (since self-reporting is notoriously unreliable). 

The study was performed on 324 female twins (average age 55, range from 43-73) at two time points ten years apart. The scientists performed cognitive testing on all the study participants, and for 20 pairs of identical twins, they also conducted brain-imaging scans. According to the New York Times, the scientists found that those who had had the sturdiest legs a decade ago showed the least fall-off in thinking skills, even when scientists controlled for factors such as fatty diets, high blood pressure, and shaky blood-sugar control. The Times reported that the differences in thinking skills were particularly striking within twin pairs:

“If one twin had been more powerful than the other 10 years before, she tended to be a much better thinker now. In fact, on average, a muscularly powerful twin now performed about 18 percent better on memory and other cognitive tests than her weaker sister.

“Similarly, in the brain imaging of the identical twins, if one genetically identical twin had had sturdier legs than the other at the start of the study, she now displayed significantly more brain volume and fewer “empty spaces in the brain” than her weaker sister.”

So this is very dramatic evidence about how important exercise is for maintaining cognitive health! The funny thing is that even the main author, of the study, Dr. Steves, was surprised by the results. The New York Times quoted her:

“I was quite surprised by the strength of the findings,” Dr. Steves said, “because to be honest, I am someone who has always in the past prioritized work of the mind over work of the body. This study brings home to me that the brain needs exercise to keep fit.”

For more information about the study, see Brawn and Brains (only the abstract for the study is available to general public).

Now we’ve been recommending exercise in general for cognitive health for some time now (see 6 Ways to Foster Brain Health with Yoga and Featured Sequence: Brain Health Practice). But if you’re interested in working on leg strength in your yoga practice, my post The Importance of Yoga for Strength had some basic recommendations for lower body strength. In general, though, the following are strengthening for your legs:

• Standing poses where you stand one or two bent knees, such as Powerful pose (Utkatasana), Warrior 2 pose (Virabradrasana 1), Extended Side Angle pose (Utthita Parsvakonasana), and Lunge pose 
• Standing poses where you balance on one leg, such as Tree pose (Vrksasana), Half Moon pose (Arda Chandrasana), and Warrior 3 pose (Virabradrasana 3)
• Backbends where you lift your legs up away from the floor, such as Locus pose (Salabasana) and Hunting Dog pose
• Stretching poses for your legs, such as Reclined Leg Stretch (remember, stretching is also strengthening—see Just Stretching is Not Just Stretching)

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Enough

by Beth Gibbs

Beth Gibbs, Age 71

What does it mean to have enough? How much food, shelter, clothing, money, health and well-being is enough? And perhaps, more importantly, what does it mean to be enough? The answer will vary from person to person and depend on many factors. For me, fortunately, having enough was not an issue; but being enough was my sticking point and the factors were personal and cultural. In 1980, I was thirty-seven years old, divorced, a single parent with a full-time job in broadcasting and twenty-one credits toward a Master's degree in communications. Picture that scenario and read the subtitle: 

Middle-class, African-American woman/feminist tries to “do it all” and be a “credit to the race” to prove herself competent, capable, connected, and enough. 

For those who may not understand the “credit to the race” reference, it’s a term used by many minority groups whose difference in race or ethnicity is an implication that each of us needs to earn respect, not as an individual with distinct talents and skills but on behalf of the whole group, to help dispel or at least not add to stereotypes often held by the majority. That’s a heavy burden and it weighed heavily on my mind. 

The cues I was getting from society and my family fed my directives as a woman to “do it all” and as an African-American to be a “credit to the race,” but inside I felt crazy. Underneath my struggling and juggling, I was constipated and stressed. I developed TMJ (temporal mandibular joint dysfunction). There was not enough time, not enough energy, and not enough of me to go around and do all that was expected of me and all that I expected from myself. What to do? I started practicing yoga. First because the postures helped me release and manage stress, and then because I felt yoga doing something else that I could not put my finger on.

By the time 1995 rolled around, I got a glimpse of that “something else” when I began learning about Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras from I. K. Taimni's book The Science of Yoga. As I read through niyama, the second set of yoga disciplines that lay the foundation of yogic life, I was drawn to sutra 2.42 and immediately recognized that santosha (contentment) was a concept that resonated deeply to my feelings of “not being enough.”

“It is necessary for the aspirant for the Yogic life to cultivate contentment of the highest order because without it there is no possibility of keeping the mind in a condition of equilibrium."

I figured if I could cultivate a sense of contentment, maybe I could recognize or create an internal sense that who I was, was enough. Tall order but worth working on. Fast forward to 2002. By this time, I realized that I could not “do it all’”without risking my health and my sanity. I had given up the business suits and heels, along with several committee and board positions. And, yes, as a result, external validation from a number of people and organizations melted away like cold butter on a warm summer sidewalk. I was still struggling with the “credit to the race” directive but had begun questioning what that really meant. Did I truly need to fit someone else’s image of what that was or looked like? Could I be a “credit to the race” and still be me? I didn’t know but I felt myself inching closer to santosha and that was a huge payoff in my mind. 

It was a yoga weekend in New York’s Catskill Mountains when the concept of santosha shifted from an intellectual idea to a cellular understanding. I was in the middle of a sweat-popping Sun Salutation strength series, struggling to hold up my body's weight on one foot and one hand in Side Arm Balance. 

"Hang in there," said the teacher. "Breathe. Feel your power. Let me hear some deep sighs." I sighed and hung in. Next came alternate leg lifts and Locust pose. I followed along carefully, feeling how much my spine had loosened up over the years. Glued to the ground from chin to pelvis, I inhaled both my legs off the ground and felt them "float up." 

"This is a powerful strengthener for the back," said the teacher, "so squeeze that butt. A few groans and sighs would feel good about now." My legs ached with the effort but I groaned and sighed and squeezed and held just a bit longer than I thought I could before lowering them. At last Savasana!

"Just let yourself blob out on the ground and feel the energy circulate." Her voice was soft, soothing and very musical. "Welcome the benefits of the universe. Feel yourself melt into the ground. Breathe deeply. Inhale through the head; roll the breath down the body. Exhale it out through the toes. Relax."

Being away from home with all family and work responsibilities postponed, I found myself, in that moment, floating somewhere between here and there at the same time. Grace, surrender and santosha! In The Secret Power of Yoga, Nischala Joy Devi, comments on Sutra 2.42:

“When at peace and content with oneself and others (Santosha), supreme joy is celebrated. By this affirmation, we firmly identify with our inner essence rather than with external objects. Our identification then travels with gratitude, appreciating how much we have rather than how much we want.” 

It was a long process but when I look back, I realize that it took 37 years for the threads of external directives, striving, and “not enough” to tie themselves into knots big enough to feel. So, does it really matter that it took another 35 years to untie the knots and let the threads dissolve? Nope. In the end, the only thing that matters is that through yoga, I found the discipline to work the issue through moment-by-moment, bit-by-bit, and thread-by-thread. 

Today at 71, I’m a lot better at managing stress. I haven't been constipated in years. My TMJ bite plate gathers mildew on the top shelf of the medicine cabinet. And my daily yoga practice is as important to me as breathing. Of, course, the physical practice does not look like it did in 2002. Pranayama and meditation make up a larger percentage. My physical practice varies depending upon my needs for the day. Sometimes it’s stronger—I love Plank poses! And sometimes it’s slow, flowing Sun Salutations or 10 minutes in Legs-up-the-Chair pose. I rejoice in the fact that underneath the “African,” underneath the “American,” and underneath the “woman,” is a being who can occasionally and surprisingly "be here now" and be content. In those moments, I can rest amid chaos and be present in the midst of my life with all its joys and problems. I can experience this and me at the same time. I am competent, capable, connected, and a credit to universal consciousness in all its forms. And that is enough.

Beth Gibbs, MA, E-RYT 500, is a certified yoga therapist through Integrative Yoga Therapy. She is a senior member of the IYT teaching faculty and directs the school’s Professional Yoga Therapist Internship Program. Beth has a Masters degree in Yoga Therapy and Mind/Body Health from Lesley University in Cambridge, MA, and has served on the Educational Standards Committee for the International Association of Yoga Therapists. Her website is: proyogatherapeutics.com.

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Arm Exercises for Women

he best arm exercises for women can help you tone and strengthen your arms without making them bulky or spending a fortune on gym memberships or equipment. Your arm exercises should target the two primary muscle groups of your upper arm- the biceps and triceps- but can also help you to tone and shape your shoulders and forearms. Please be assured that using weights for your arms workouts will not necessarily lead to building overly muscular arms.

An Exercise for the Biceps

Bar Bell Curls- The bar bell bicep curl should be the primary exercise in your bicep workout as it helps to tone and strengthen the bicep and is relatively easy to perform correctly.

How to do it- You should stand with your feet apart to shoulder-width and then raise the bar. Curl the bar up just above chest height, keeping your back straight and shoulders lower than your chest. Go slowly when both raising and lowering the bar and keep your elbows still and at your sides. Perform 3-4 sets of 8-10 repetitions per workout.

An Exercise for Triceps

Triceps Kickback- The triceps kickback is done with a dumbbell and can help provide great toning and shape to the triceps muscles.

How to do it- You begin the exercise by kneeling with one leg on a bench and holding the dumbbell in the hand on the same side as the kneeling leg. Look straight ahead and make sure your back stays straight. Hold the weight at a 90 degree angle and, with your elbow still, extend the weight back. Perform 3-4 sets of 8-10 repetitions per arm for each workout.
                          Final Thoughts Regarding Arm Exercises and Toning

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Featured Pose: Child's Pose (Balasana)

by Baxter

For many of us, Child’s Pose (Balasana) is the ultimate resting pose. I, myself, saw firsthand how even the uninitiated will take this position when rest is suggested. One summer day, when the whistle for adult swim sounded, my young nieces, 8 and 4, hunkered down side by side into classic Child’s pose, pulled beach towels over their turtle-like backs, and only re-emerged when they heard the “all-swim” 15 minutes later!

In addition to being a potential resting pose (not all people find this pose easy to assume or restful to sustain), Child’s pose takes your hips and knees into a deep folded position, and stretches the fronts of your ankles and feet. And many of you will find it a nice stretch for your lower back muscles.

I prescribe this pose for:

• Quieting your nervous system
• Resting your body
• Stretching your lower back, hips, knees and ankles
• Releasing the tightness between your shoulder blades and training yourself to move your shoulder blades away from your spine
• Counter-pose for backbends, forward bends, and twists 
• Calming pose for anxiety
• Calming pose for insomnia, especially the supported version
• Possible relief from back pain, especially the supported version

Cautions: Those of you with tight or painful knees, hips, ankles, or lower backs will likely need to do versions 3 and 4 in order avoid aggravating those areas. Although many people with lower back pain find this pose helpful, not all do; so, avoid the pose if it worsens your pain. Those with neck pain may also need to be careful with the placement of your neck and head to avoid worsening your symptoms.

1. Classic Child’s Pose

If your knees are sensitive, place a thin blanket on top of your mat to cushion your knees and shins. Then, start by coming into a basic hands and knees position.

Keeping your knees about hips distance apart, with the tops of your feet resting on the floor, slide your feet closer together so your big toes touch. Then slowly lower your hips back and down towards your heels. Allow them to drop slowly and don’t force your buttocks down, especially if your hips, knees or ankles are tight. As you gently round your back to come forward, lower your chest towards or onto your thighs and release your head towards the floor, resting your forehead on the floor in front of the knees. Sweep your arms back alongside your body, resting your hands on the floor near the feet. Release your shoulder blades away from your spine and toward the floor. You can close your eyes or keep them softly open.

If you’re comfortable in the pose, stay for 2-5 minutes. However, if you feel intense stretching, start with 30-60 seconds and work you way up to longer holds. To come out of the pose, place your palms on the floor next to your knees and use your arms to help you roll up and sit back on your heels (if you knees allow) or come back into a hands and knees position.

You can vary the effects of the pose by changing your leg position. If you want to feel more stretch in your lower back, try keeping your thighs closer together. If you want less stretch your lower back, try widening your knees further apart, up to 2 feet or so,

Arms Forward Version

This version is excellent for helping to open your chest and upper back in preparation for poses like Downward-Facing Dog pose or even backbends. 

Come into the pose as in the classic version, but instead of taking your arms back, stretch your arms forward, as far forward as you can. With your arms parallel and elbows straight, press your hands into the floor. This initial arm position is much more active than the classic version and may not feel very restful to many of you. 

After 6-8 breaths in the active position, relax your elbows to the floor, decreasing the stretch of your arms. For some of you, this relaxed arm version may even feel more restorative than having your hands by the feet. 

You can stay in the relaxed version for 2-5 minutes. Exit the pose as in the classic version.

Ankle and/or Knee Support

This version of Child’s Pose is helpful for those with tight ankles or knee joints. If only your ankles are tight, roll a blanket or towel into a 2-3 inch thick roll and place the roll under your ankle joints before you fold into Child’s pose. This support should allow you to come into the pose without triggering pain or muscle cramps in your feet. (Sorry we don't have a photo of this.)

For those with tight knees, arthritis pain, or general knee pain when deeply folding your knees, use the roll behind your knees. While you are in the hands and knees position, place the roll behind both knees (even if only one side is painful) while you are in the hands and knees position. Then slowly lower your hips back and down as in the classic version. When your thighs reach the support check to make sure your knees feel good. If so, proceed as with the classic version. 

If you have problems in both your ankles and knees, use both supports.

Restorative Child's Pose

For most of us, the restorative version of Child’s pose is deeply restful, and comfortable enough to stay in for several minutes. And because the restorative version requires less bending of your hips, knees, and ankles, it is a good alternative for those with tightness or pain in those areas.

Start by positioning your bolster lengthwise on the mat in front of you. Then come into Child’s pose from your hands and knees as with the classic version, but as you lower your hips towards your heels, sit upright for a moment and widen your knees about two feet apart. Then, slide the end of your bolster lengthwise towards your hips, right up against your lower belly—do not slide it under your hips, just up to the front of you. 

Then lower your belly, chest, and head onto the bolster, turning your head to one side and resting your cheek on the bolster, as you release your buttocks gently toward the floor (do not force them). Rest your forearms on the floor along the sides of the bolster. Make sure that your entire front belly and chest rest on the bolster. If any part of you is lifted off the support, try adding a blanket folded into a thin rectangle on top of the bolster or placing a block under the far end of the bolster to raise the bolster, or ask your teacher to help you modify your props. Always turn your head in the opposite direction mid-way through the pose.

Stay in the pose for 2-3 minutes on each side at first, though you should, of course, come out of the pose if you experience any discomfort. With experience, you can work your way up to even longer holds. As you relax onto the support of the bolster, focus your attention on the sound of your breath. When you are ready to come up, use your hands and arms to slowly roll up to sitting.

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How to Get Big Biceps Fast – 3 Exercises to Get Big Arms

How to get big biceps is one of the first questions many beginner and amateur bodybuilder ask. In fact, just under 35 million people ask Google this question every month! Why would so many people want to know how to get big biceps? Well put simply, owning a pair of fully defined rock hard biceps will work wonders for anyones physical appearance, not to mention self confidence. Whether it be for picking up girls or entering into a bodybuilding competition, having big biceps is pure gold.

However, knowing how to get big biceps and solely focusing on them is one of the biggest mistakes newbies fall victim to.

Before I get down to the nuts and bolts of building big biceps, first let me give you a quick down and dirty lesson on anatomy…

To build impressive arms like the pro’s, you will want to be working the three major muscles that make up the arms. These being the biceps, triceps and the forearms. Work all three of these muscle groups combined with a balanced training program and nutrition plan and you’ll be well on your way to building big guns fast. It’s important to note that the bicep itself makes up only 1/3 of the upper arm, therefore the triceps obviously make up the other 2/3 of the upper arm.

OK, lets get into the serious stuff. I’m going to give away 3 of my favorite exercises that I have used to build big biceps and triceps fast

Biceps – Standing Barbell Curl

This exercise without a doubt is the best mass building exercise you can possibly perform to get big biceps. The purpose of the standing barbell curl is to develop overall size of the biceps. It has been a highly regarded exercise throughout bodybuilding history for many pro bodybuilders such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Frank Zane, Lou Ferrigno and Ronnie Coleman, just to mention a few. You should make this exercise one of your best friends.


Execution: (1) Stand with feet shoulder width apart and grasp the bar with an underhand grip, hands about shoulder width apart. Let the bar hang down at arms length in front of you. (2) Curl the bar out an up in a wide arc and bring it up as high as you can, with your elbows close to the body and stationary. Fully flex at the top. Lower the weight again, following the same arc and resisting the weight all the way back down to the starting position.

Perform: 3 sets of 6-10 reps (perform 2 light warm-up sets followed by 3 working sets)

Triceps – Lying Triceps Extensions

The purpose of this exercise is to fully work the triceps all the way from the elbow down to the lats, in particular, the large inner head of the triceps. The triceps brachii muscle (Latin for “three-headed” muscle of the arm, it is called a three headed muscle because there are three bundles of muscle, each of different origin, joining together at the elbow) is the large muscle on the back of the upper arm which makes up 2/3 the mass of the arm.

Execution: (1) Lie along a bench, your head just off the end with knees bent and feet flat on the bench. Take hold of a barbell (preferably an E-Z curl bar) with an overhand grip, hands about 10 inches apart. (2) Press the weight up until your arms are locked out, but not straight up over your face. Keeping your elbows stationary, lower the weight down past your forehead, then press it back up to the starting position, stopping short of the vertical to keep the triceps under constant tension.
Perform: 3 sets of 6-10 reps (perform 2 light warm-up sets followed by 3 working sets)

Forearms – Barbell Wrist Curls

For those that have tried this exercise, you’ll understand how incredibly effective it is for building strong flexor muscles and a lock-jaw grip. Having skinny forearms and big biceps/triceps isn’t cool so don’t neglect this exercise.

Execution: Take hold of a barbell with an underhand grip, hands close together. Straddle a bench with your forearms resting on the bench but with your wrists and hands hanging over the end of the bench. Lock your knees in against your elbows to help stabilize them. (2) Bend your wrists and lower the weight toward the floor. When you can’t lower the bar any further, carefully open your fingers a little bit and let the weight roll down out of the palms of your hand. Roll the weight back up into your hands, contract the forearms, and lift the weight as high as you can without letting your forearms come off the bench.

                                     Perform: 3 sets of 6-10 reps (feel the burn!)

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7 Great Build Muscle Exercises

To get the body of your dreams, you should know some build muscle exercises that can make the difference you are ultimately looking for. But every build muscle exercises have their purpose and you need to know the right ones to build muscles the way you want.

This article will be about some build muscle exercises that focus on isolation workouts, as they are excellent for specific areas on your body. However, full body workout exercises like the squat, bench press, dead lift etc. should also be in your workout schedule.

-Build Muscle Exercises #1:

The first exercise is the close grip bench press. This is one of the build muscle exercises that works on your triceps in a way that a lot of exercises don’t and should definitely be in your triceps workouts. It can be performed on a smith machine or with a barbell on a bench.

-Build Muscle Exercises #2:

The second workout in the build muscle exercises is the cable incline extensions that work on your triceps. You need an incline bench and a pulley machine. Sit away from the pulley machine and grasp the straight bar. Keep your arms in a 90 degree angles from your elbows and push it forward so that you extend your arms and feel the flex in the triceps. Return and repeat.


-Build Muscle Exercises #3:

You need a pulley stand with a straight bar for this workout on the build muscle exercises, which targets your biceps. Grasp the bar and stand a couple of inches away from the stand and stand straight up. Keep your elbows firm and only move your forearms upwards and make them touch your biceps. Return to the start position and repeat.

-Build Muscle Exercises #4:

This is almost the same workout as the above build muscle exercises, but you need to attach a rope to the pulley stand instead. Grasp the rope from each hand and perform the same motion as the build muscle exercises #4.

-Build Muscle Exercises #5:

This workout on the build muscle exercises targets your shoulders. Grab two dumbbells and stand straight. With your elbows slowly bend, lift your elbows and lift your arms left and right with each arms, all the way up to your shoulders level and return to the starting position.

-Build Muscle Exercises #6:

This exercise is done on the butterfly machine and works on your chest. Sit on the seat and hold each handles. Squeeze the handles forward and make them touch each other in front of your chest and return to the start position.

-Build Muscle Exercises #7:

This workout on the build muscle exercises works on your back. Place one knee on a bench and rest your below knee area on the bench, while you place your other foot on the ground. Grab a dumbbell and pull it upwards all the way up so that you elbows are bending. Return and repeat.
Follow the above build muscle exercises and wait for the results to fly in.

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7 Days Bodybuilding Workout Programs

A bodybuilding workout should be a well-rounded program that provides an adequate amount of resistance to all areas of the body and all muscle groups. It should contain a variety of exercises including weight training and a cardiovascular rotation as well. If you are wondering about different types of bodybuilding workouts, there is no one magic formula for everyone.

When you are trying to devise a good bodybuilding workout, you need to consider the current state of your health. Your health can factor in your recoverability, susceptibility to injury, and your physical limitations. If you are beginning a bodybuilding workout to get fit, you will probably have to start slow and work your way up.

Another factor in a bodybuilding workout is to consider what your personal goals are in this endeavor. Do you want to increase body mass, lose weight, or just become stronger? Whatever goal you have will dictate what type of workout will work best to succeed.
You must have a basic knowledge of human anatomy and what muscles are located where on your body. When you know where your muscles are, you’ll be better equipped to work them to their maximum capacity. You can concentrate on the specific muscle groups and use the weights to tone and sculpt those muscles.

An effective bodybuilding workout will be four days long to begin with. A good idea is to workout on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday with your rest day on Wednesday and the weekend. Here is a good, basic bodybuilding workout that will focus on each part of the body, but not all at the same time:

* Day 1: Deltoids, Triceps
* Day 2: Back, Traps
* Day 3: OFF
* Day 4: Legs, Forearms
* Day 5: Chest, Biceps
* Day 6: OFF
* Day 7: OFF

Working out in this way will work each body group on one day only which will allow for maximum recovery time as well as maximum growth potential. You need recovery time due to the intensity of a strong bodybuilding workout to allow your muscles to heal in between workout sessions. This is very important in any bodybuilding program.

Keep a log of the exercises you are performing and note your progress regularly. By doing this, you’ll know where you stand as far as your strength potential, and you can make changes as needed to realize your personal goal.

Bodybuilding workouts vary from person to person, but they all contain basic components that can help all body builders grow their muscles and tone their bodies. When putting together your bodybuilding workout, keep your personal goals in mind and then go for it!

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