Extra virgin olive oil is the best oil, true or false?

THIS IS BOTH TRUE AND FALSE

• Monounsaturated and Polyunsaturated fats, such as olive oil, sunflower oil, nut oils, linseed oil etc., are healthier for you.
• Olive oil is one of the healthiest forms of oil available and it is considerably better for you than more traditional cooking oils. The main benefit of olive oil is that it contains the omega-6 essential fat which is vital for both cellular and cardiovascular health.
• Unfortunately all fats and oils are still a high energy food, and are significant contributors to weight gain.

Muscle Cramps - What are they?

A muscle cramp occurs when your muscle tightens and therefore shortens, causing sudden and severe pain. A common site for people to get cramps is in their calf muscles, however, you can just about get cramps in any muscle of the body. 

Although there are several theories about what causes cramps, they generally result from overexertion and dehydration. Low blood sugar levels and extreme cold and heat can also cause cramping.

When you are dehydrated, there can be an electrolyte imbalance in the muscle cells that causes your muscles to spasm. Electrolytes help the body's cells to function properly. The main electrolytes affecting muscle cramping are potassium, sodium and calcium. An imbalance occurs when we have too much or too little of one or more electrolytes in our system, often caused by fluid imbalances. 

Cramps may also occur after inactivity, such as sitting too long in one place without moving a muscle, or even when you're just lying in bed. These cramps are not related to activity, but can be treated the same way. 

Treatment

Cramps can be eased by a few simple methods. First, relax the tightened area. You should gently massage the area that's cramped. Second, stretch the muscle out slowly and gently. 

You should also drink plenty of fluids. If you get muscle cramps after exercise, drink water or a sports drink or juice to rehydrate and restore your electrolyte balance. Usually water will be adequate for rehydration, however, a better alternative is a sports drink containing electrolytes. If you commonly get cramps, you should make sure you are always well hydrated prior to exercise.

You may also treat a cramp with ice. Ice is both a pain reliever and an anti-inflammatory (reduces swelling). Try massaging the area with ice for up to ten minutes. Make sure to massage the muscle with your hands following icing.

Nutrition

For every physical activity, the body requires energy and the amount depends on the duration and type of activity. Energy is measured in Calories and is obtained from the body stores or the food we eat. Glycogen is the main source of fuel used by the muscles to enable you to undertake both aerobic and anaerobic exercise. If you train with low glycogen stores, you will feel constantly tired, training performance will be lower and you will be more prone to injury and illness.

A calorie (cal) is the amount of heat energy required to raise the temperature of 1g of water 1°C from 14° to 15°C. A kilocalorie (kcal) is the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1000g of water 1°C

Nutrient Balance

Carefully planned nutrition must provide an energy balance and a nutrient balance.

The nutrients are:

• Proteins - essential to growth and repair of muscle and other body tissues
• Fats - one source of energy and important in relation to fat soluble vitamins
• Carbohydrates - our main source of energy
• Minerals - those inorganic elements occurring in the body and which are critical to its normal functions
• Vitamins - water and fat soluble vitamins play important roles in many chemical processes in the body
• Water - essential to normal body function - as a vehicle for carrying other nutrients and because 60% of the human body is water
• Roughage - the fibrous indigestible portion of our diet essential to health of the digestive system

What are the daily energy requirements?

Personal energy requirement = basic energy requirements + extra energy requirements

Basic energy requirements (BER) includes your basal metabolic rate (BMR) and general daily activities

• For every Kg of body weight 1.3 Calories is required every hour. (An athlete weighing 50Kg would require 1.3 × 24hrs × 50Kg = 1560 Calories/day)
• For a calculation of your BMR, see the calculator on the Resting Daily Energy Expenditure (RDEE) page

Extra energy requirements (EER)

• For each hours training you require an additional 8.5 Calories for each Kg of body weight. (For a two hour training session our 50Kg athlete would require 8.5 × 2hrs × 50Kg = 850 Calories)

An athlete weighing 50Kg who trains for two hours would require an intake of approximately 2410 Calories (BER + EER = 1560 + 850)

Energy Fuel

Like fuel for a car, the energy we need has to be blended. The blend that we require is as follows:

• 57% Carbohydrates (sugar, sweets, bread, cakes)
• 30% Fats (dairy products, oil)
• 13% Protein (eggs, milk, meat, poultry, fish)

The energy yield per gram is as follows: Carbohydrate - 4 Calories, Fats - 9 Calories and Protein - 4 Calories.

What does a 50 kg athlete require in terms of carbohydrates, fats and protein?

• Carbohydrates - 57% of 2410 = 1374 Calories - at 4 Calories/gram = 1374 ÷ 4 = 343 grams
• Fats - 30% of 2410 = 723 Calories - at 9 Calories/gram = 723 ÷ 9 = 80 grams
• Protein - 13% of 2410 = 313 Calories - at 4 Calories/gram = 313 ÷ 4 = 78 grams

Our 50kg athlete requires 343 grams of Carbohydrates, 80 grams of Fat and 78 grams of Protein

What types of fat are there?

The nature of the fat depends on the type of fatty acids that make up the triglycerides. All fats contain both saturated and unsaturated fatty acids but are usually described as 'saturated' or 'unsaturated' according to the proportion of fatty acids present. Saturated fats are generally solid at room temperature and tend to be animal fats. Unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature and are usually vegetable fats - there are exceptions e.g. palm oil, a vegetable oil that contains a high percentage of saturated fatty acids.

What types of carbohydrates are there?

There are two types of carbohydrates - starchy (complex) carbohydrates and simple sugars. The simple sugar's are found in confectionery, muesli bars, cakes and biscuits, cereals, puddings, soft drinks and juices and jam and honey but they also contain fat. Starchy carbohydrates are found in potatoes, rice, bread, wholegrain cereals, semi skimmed milk, yoghurt, fruit, vegetables, beans and pulses. Both types effectively replace muscle glycogen. The starchy carbohydrates are the ones that have all the vitamins and minerals in them as well as protein. They are also low in fat as long as you do not slap on loads of butter and fatty sauces. The starchy foods are much more bulky so there can be a problem in actually eating that amount of food so supplementing with simple sugar alternatives is necessary.

Your digestive system converts the carbohydrates in food into glucose, a form of sugar carried in the blood and transported to cells for energy. The glucose, in turn, is broken down into carbon dioxide and water. Any glucose not used by the cells is converted into glycogen - another form of carbohydrate that is stored in the muscles and liver. However, the body's glycogen capacity is limited to about 350 grams; once this maximum has been reached, any excess glucose is quickly converted into fat. Base your main meal with the bulk on your plate filled with carbohydrates and small amounts of protein such as meat, poultry and fish. The extra protein & vitamins you may require will be in the starchy carbohydrates.

Lactose Intolerance

Lactose intolerance results when the mucosal cells of the small intestine fail to produce lactase that is essential for the digestion of lactose. Symptoms include diarrhoea, bloating, and abdominal cramps following consumption of milk or dairy products.

Carbohydrates for Performance

To support a training session or competition athletes need to eat at an appropriate time so that all the food has been absorbed and their glycogen stores are fully replenished.

Following training & competition, an athlete's glycogen stores are depleted. In order to replenish them the athlete needs to consider the speed at which carbohydrate is converted into blood glucose and transported to the muscles. The rapid replenishment of glycogen stores is important for the track athlete who has a number of races in a meeting.

The rise in blood glucose levels is indicated by a food's Glycaemic Index (GI) - the faster and higher the blood glucose rises the higher the GI.

High GI foods take 1 to 2 hours to be absorbed and low GI foods can take 3 to 4 hours to be absorbed.

Studies have shown that consuming high GI carbohydrates (approximately 1gm per kg body) within 2 hours after exercise speeds up the replenishment of glycogen stores and therefore speeds up recovery time.

Glycogen stores will last for approximately 10 to 12 hours when at rest (sleeping) so this is why breakfast is essential.

Eating 5-6 meals or snacks a day, will help maximise glycogen stores and energy levels, minimise fat storage and stabilise blood glucose and insulin levels.

Eating and Competition

What you eat on a day-to-day basis is extremely important for training. Your diet will affect how fast and how well you progress, and how soon you reach competitive standard. The page on Nutritional Tips provides some general nutritional advice to help you manage your weight and body fat.

Once you are ready to compete, you will have a new concern: your competition diet. Is it important? What should you eat before your competition? When is the best time to eat? How much should you eat? Should you be eating during the event? In addition, what can you eat between heats or matches? A lot of research has been done in this area, and it is clear that certain dietary approaches can enhance competition performance.

What do I need to do?

Calculate your daily basic and extra requirements, monitor your daily intake (especially your carbohydrates) and then adjust your diet to meet your daily requirements. A good balanced diet should provide you with the required nutrients but does needs to be monitored. The simplest way to monitor the 'energy balance' is to keep a regular check of your weight.

Key factors in your training diet

Each day have three main meals and two to three snacks. All meals should contain both carbohydrate and protein - 20 to 30 grams worth of protein with each main meal and 10 to 20 grams with each snack.

The amount of carbohydrate will vary greatly, mainly depending on your workload. It may be in the region of 40 to 60 grams for main meals and 20 to 30 grams for snacks. If you are training hard and possibly doing multiple daily sessions, the recovery meal is critical. Have 1grm of carbohydrate per kg of body weight and about 30 grams of protein. Have a drink (e.g. a recovery drink or a pint of skimmed milk) and a banana immediately post-training (this provides about 10 grams of protein and 30 grams of carbohydrate) followed within about 45 minutes with more substantial food such as beans on toast and tuna.

Always try to eat at least five pieces of fruit per day. Skimmed milk is a great protein food and provides critical minerals, such as calcium and phosphorous.

Exercises for Seniors

People over 60 who exercise for at least 30 minutes three times per week have the heart, lungs, and muscles of a person ten years younger. Can you think of any better reason to exercise? In fact, there are other reasons, as well. People tend to  reach a peak bone density at age 35, at which point bone density slowly decreases. At menopause, bone density begins to drop sharply if hormone replacement therapy is not administered. Lack of exercise, in addition to not eating enough dietary calcium, may be an important promoter of bone loss.

Women who are well past the age of menopause may be able to increase their bone mass through weight-bearing exercise. One study showed that sedentary nursing home residents in their eighties experienced more than a 4% increase in bone mass of the forearm when they took part in mild exercises three times a week for three years. A group who did not exercise experienced a decrease of bone density of 2.5% during the same period.

Exercise will help you maintain your weight as your metabolism slows. This can help you avoid developing diabetes and heart disease. Increased circulation can help your digestive system stay healthy and keep your immune system strong.

What to Do
The kind of exercise that you do depends on what effect you want to see. Stretching promotes flexibility, makes movement easier, and decreases the risk of muscle injury; strength training promotes muscle strength and builds up bones; endurance exercises strengthen the heart and improve overall fitness. The best workouts will combine all three types of exercise.

Stretching
Older joints may become stiff and inflexible. In order to avoid injury during strength training and aerobic exercises, you need to warm up and cool down with stretching exercises for 5-15 minutes. There are stretching exercises for the calves, thighs, stomach, chest, back, shoulders, and arms. 

Strength Training
Muscles in the upper and lower body can be strengthened through the use of machines, free weights, or even by using household items such as soup cans as weights. When lifting weights, you should start with a weight you can lift without very much effort 5 times. When this becomes too easy, increase to doing 2 sets of 5, and then 3 sets of 5. When this is too easy, move up to 10 repetitions in each set, then increase to 15 times in each set. Once this becomes too easy, increase the amount of weight you are lifting. Strength training should be done for 30-40 minutes 2-3 times a week.

Endurance Exercises
These are any activities that increase your heart rate and breathing for a long time-span. You may need to avoid "high-impact" exercises such as jogging and jumping rope because they put a large amount of strain on your muscles and joints. Good exercises to engage in are low-impact exercises including swimming, walking, and dancing. Endurance exercises should be done for 20-40 minutes at least 3 times per week. Make sure that you pay attention to warning signs such as lightheadedness, chest pain, or shortness of breath.

When exercising, you should work toward your target heart rate. Your maximum heart rate can be calculated by subtracting your age from 220. For instance, if you're 60 years old, 220-60=160. This means that 160 beats per minute is your maximum heart rate. Your target heart rate is 60% to 80% of your maximum heart rate. 60% of 160 is 96 and 80% of 160 is 128. This means that someone who is 60 years old should work up to a heart rate when exercising of somewhere around 96-128 beats per minute.

Before you begin any type of exercise program, make sure you consult your doctor, especially if you are over the age of 60.