Meredith Luttrell, Ph.DWe seldom think about physical effects of aging until that first wrinkle appears. While it’s easy to associate aging with changes in appearance, changes that occur within the body, such as impaired blood vessel function, are more likely to affect the quality of life even more. Cardiovascular disease affects 1 in 3 Americans, according to the Centers for Disease Control, and the risk of developing it increases with age. The term cardiovascular disease (CVD) encompasse...

Brad Lambert, Ph.D, CSCCA-SCCCFor optimal health and fitness, the American College of Sports Medicine recommends both resistance and endurance exercise regularly. Both forms of exercise provide specific benefits for one’s health. Endurance exercise such as jogging or biking has been found to increase aerobic fitness, reduce body fat, and aid in the prevention of a number of metabolic diseases. Resistance exercise is typically found to increase muscle mass, muscular strength, bone density, ...

Kaleigh Camp, M.S.Standing at the starting line of the 2011 San Antonio Rock ‘n’ Roll half marathon with over 30,000 other runners, it was clear how popular these races have become for athletes as well as non-athletes. Running USA, the track and field running information center, acknowledges the surge over the past quarter of a century. At the beginning of the race, salt packets were provided and passed around the population of runners. I wondered whether all runners understand the p...

David Castille, M.S., CSCSWhen it comes to competitive athletics, or just reaching goals in the gym, people are always looking for some form of aid or advantage. Beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate (the only form of HMB), or HMB, may prove to be a potent ergogenic aid for many different kinds of athletes.  HMB, discovered by Dr. Steven Nissen, has been around since the early- to mid-90s where it has been used primarily by athletes and bodybuilders. During the past two decades, research has bee...

Caitlin Hendler, M.S.Most commonly known as the “Sunshine Vitamin,” the main source of this fat-soluble vitamin is exposure to sunlight because of few food sources. The benefits of vitamin D go much further than merely a bronze tan – studies show that it assists in growth, remodeling, regulation of calcium and phosphate concentrations for ideal bone health and physical performance. Vitamin D is a vital nutrient for optimal health in the general population but even more signific...

Steve Bui, M.S.If you look at any advertising in the media, you will notice constant bombardment by ads for performance enhancing supplements. The supplement industry is one of the most lucrative marketing fields. The promise of being able to perform bigger, faster, and stronger by drinking some special water, swallowing a small pill, or anything in between just sounds so appealing. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to the majority of consumers, most supplements do not work at all. Supplements are desi...

Vincent C.W. Chen, B.S.Metabolic syndrome, a condition including insulin resistance (causing diabetes), obesity, hyperlipidemia (high blood lipids), hypertension, and heart disease, is mainly due to high fat diets and lack of physical activity. It has become a major health concern in modern society. Recently, a substance called PPAR-delta has been identified as a potential therapeutic remedy for the treatment of metabolic syndrome. PPAR-delta is the most abundant isoform among the three PPARs (p...