Erin SimmonsProtein is often thought to be a workout necessity, the essential complement to every gym bag. Missing protein during the post-workout anabolic window is viewed as unfortunate, if not detrimental to one’s training goals. However, the scientific literature on this subject isn’t quite so black and white. Reviews of protein requirements have touted 1.8 g-1kg-1day-1 as the optimal protein intake for individuals undergoing training, when in fact the literature has propose...

Corrine Metzger, M.S.An uncontained fire can quickly spread and wreak havoc on areas both near and far to the instigating source. Under the right conditions, one flame can set a whole forest on fire and soon spread beyond its confines. In a similar way, inflammation can start at a local region in the body, but the damaging effects can spread to distant sites. One example of far spread damage of inflammation is the bone loss concurrent with inflammatory bowel disease. Inflammatory bowel disease (...

Kelsey McLaughlin, M.S.L-citrulline (CIT), a nonessential amino acid that can be found in abundance in watermelon and watermelon rind, has garnered an increasing amount of attention among sport nutrition researchers for its potential benefit to sport performance, particularly in endurance events. The effects of CIT on an exercising individual are thought to be two-fold, both increasing blood flow to working muscle through the enhancement of nitric oxide (NO) production and enhancing clearance of...

Jiling Liu, M. EdRegular physical activity (PA) is important for children’s health and development. Exercising daily can reduce heart disease, obesity, and bone problems. Regular PA burns out stress and makes people feel good. Children’s academic learning can also improve through habitual exercises.Recently, PA opportunities for children are becoming fewer. One reason is that schools have focused more on students’ academic performances. At the same time, schools have cut down t...

Adam Kieffer, MSIf you’ve visited your doctor for a check-up and had your blood cholesterol checked, chances are you were told about “good” and “bad” cholesterol. If your numbers weren’t the best, or you have a family history of heart disease, your doctor may have recommended that you decrease your “bad” cholesterol and increase your “good” cholesterol. Your “bad” cholesterol, or low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol del...

Jessica Cardin, MSThe regulation of protein assembly and disassembly (protein flux) within the body has been a topic that has been studied extensively for the last 60 years. However, the majority of the research has been mostly focused on the rates of assembly (synthesis) and the related methodologies. Protein disassembly (degradation) is an equally viable research endeavor, as it is the other half of protein flux within tissues and whole body systems.The body has many protein pools that ar...

Anita Mantri, B.S.Since the introduction of “the pill,” its use as a form of birth control and contraception has steadily increased in women of child-bearing age as seen in reports from the CDC. When the pill first came out in the 1970s, its use was very limited out of caution about the unknown effects of adding extra hormones to the body. Usually, the hormones estrogen and progesterone have distinct cycling patterns that prepare a woman’s body for pregnancy and lead to her per...

Majid Koozehchian, M.S.In recent years, strength training with unconventional objects has become popular (1). One unconventional method that has gained recognition by elite athletes is adding chains to the end of conventional barbells. There are many claims that this type of training can improve strength and power above those achieved by traditional free weights (2). In addition, chain-loaded resistance training is also believed to reduce joint stress resistance training during exercises such as...

Seung Kim, M.S.Do you exercise regularly? If so, what benefits do you expect from exercise? Ever wonder whether you’re exercising in appropriate ways? Except for few people who are addicted to exercise, the main reason most people spend time and money for exercise is to maintain/improve their health. In general, the benefits of exercise include health-related risk factor reduction, anti-aging effects, prevention/improvement of disease, etc.However, there are things to carefully consider re...

Josh Avila, M.S.People like to place the blame on their genes for their lack of Herculean strength or Olympic endurance. But is this really fair? Do our genes actually have an effect on our ability to exercise?Improvements in cardio-respiratory fitness made by increasing levels of physical activity have been shown to reduce the level of all-cause mortality regardless of baseline fitness levels. Research has shown that both initial exercise capacity and the response to exercise training are highl...