Sports « Weekly Gravy

It’s no secret that athletic endurance and strength go hand-in-hand with a healthy heart. “Exercise strengthens the heart muscle, enabling it to pump a greater volume of blood with each heartbeat,” said Dr. Deepak Bhatt, editor of the Harvard Heart Letter, in a recent Q&A. The enlarged heart muscles that athletes may develop are also the hallmark of a condition known as athletic heart syndrome (AHS), often called “athlete’s heart,” according to the Cleveland Clinic. What is athletic heart syndrome? When a person does vigorous-intensity exercise for more than an hour a day on the majority of days, changes in the heart may occur, according to the Cleveland Clinic. One of the main changes is thickening of the left ventricle wall. Another marker of AHS is that the space in your left ventricle gets larger. A study of Olympic athletes published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging revealed that AHS shows up differently in the hearts of women and men, although electrical and muscular size changes occurred in the hearts of both. Compared to men, women in the study had relatively larger increases in the size of their right and left ventricle cavities. The absolute dimensions of these cavities in women were smaller than those of men. An electrical measurement called T-wave inversion (which can indicate the presence of heart trauma or disease) was also more common… read on > read on >

When it comes to picking the best exercise to lose weight, there is no one right answer. That’s because the right answer is variety, mixing and matching types of exercise to keep the body guessing and improving. “The body adapts to the demands we put on it,” said Dr. Russell Camhi, who works in primary care sports medicine for Northwell Health’s Orthopaedic Institute in East Meadow, N.Y. “If we do the same exercise regimen over and over, results are bound to plateau,” he explained. “Now this doesn’t mean you have to change exercises every day or every week, but a little variety will help the body change and grow.” The key to weight loss is a blend of exercise and nutrition, with the latter responsible for about 80% of the heavy lifting, according to Camhi. It’s important to reduce calories while increasing physical activity, according to the Mayo Clinic, which recommends cutting about 500 to 750 calories a day to lose 1.5 pounds per week.` Though diet plays a bigger role than exercise, physical activity can help with weight maintenance, as well as counter loss of bone density and muscle mass, the Mayo Clinic noted. A high amount of physical activity would be necessary to lose weight unless also adjusting diet, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It’s not clear exactly… read on > read on >

Some college athletes take longer to recover from a concussion, but a new study offers them some good news. They may still be able to return to play — after one extra month of recovery, researchers report Jan. 18 in the journal Neurology. “Although an athlete may experience a slow or delayed recovery, there is reason to believe recovery is achievable with additional time and injury management,” said study author Dr. Thomas McAllister, from Indiana University School of Medicine. “This is an encouraging message that may help to relieve some of the discouragement that athletes can feel when trying to return to their sport. While some athletes took longer than 24 days to return to play, we found that three-quarters of them were able to return to sports if given just one more month to recover,” McAllister said in a journal news release. The study included 1,751 college varsity athletes who had concussions diagnosed by their team physician. About 63% of the athletes were men who primarily played football, soccer or basketball. The women primarily played soccer, volleyball or basketball. Participants were evaluated multiple times: within six hours of their injury; one or two days later; after being free of symptoms; after being cleared to return to play, and at six months. The athletes reported their symptoms daily for up to 14 days to medical… read on > read on >

Winter may feel like a time for hibernation, but it’s important for seniors to safely keep up their hobbies and physical activity in the cold weather. “It’s important to get outside as much as possible, whether it’s temperate or even if it’s colder, as long as it’s safe to do so,” said Dr. Angela Catic, an associate professor in the Center on Aging at Baylor College of Medicine, in Houston. “If it’s cold, bundling up and getting outside is good for your spirit and good for you physically,” she said in a Baylor news release. Continue walking, biking or being in nature, Catic suggested, while being cautious of snow or icy conditions. But don’t pick up a new active sport like skiing or snowboarding, unless that was already a hobby, she cautioned. Here are some of her tips: If you typically garden outside, grow some indoor plants in the winter. Plan for the upcoming growing season by perusing gardening catalogs and making a springtime plan. Explore indoor activities, such as reading, doing puzzles, playing games, crafting or knitting. Go to concerts, visit museums and take road trips. If the thought of picking up a new hobby post-retirement seems daunting, reflect on activities you enjoyed in the past before you were focused on work. Check out adult education programs in your area. They may offer a… read on > read on >

Look at a bodybuilder who has bulked up with bulging muscles, and it might not seem that lifting weights can shed pounds. But first impressions can be deceiving. Instead, experts say, building muscle can indeed be one way to transform your body and lose weight. “Weightlifting activates your large muscle groups and, when done appropriately, can burn more calories than steady state cardio,” said Dr. Russell Camhi, who works in primary care sports medicine for Northwell Health’s Orthopaedic Institute in Smithtown, N.Y. Still, weightlifting on its own is not the key to weight loss. At least 80% of weight loss is through nutrition, Camhi said. “No matter what exercise program you choose you will not lose weight if you are not monitoring your intake and properly fueling your body,” Camhi said. A person lifting weights to gain muscle mass should eat a high-protein diet, Camhi said. The goal should be 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. People who are already fit and trying to gain muscle may not lose weight, but someone who is overweight or obese will, Camhi said. “Once you lose a good portion of fat and become more fit then, yes, the weight loss will plateau but will be replaced with muscle growth and increased fitness,” Camhi said. “At that point, be less concerned about the number on the… read on > read on >

Millions of adults spend too much time at a desk or in front of a screen, and experts have long advised them to sit less, move more. But if lower blood pressure, lower blood sugar and a mood boost are the goals, what’s the bare minimum of movement that will get the job done? Apparently just five minutes of walking every 30 minutes. That’s the finding of a small, new study that compared the benefits of five exercise “snacks” — small bursts of exercise spread out during the day. “We’ve found in our past research that, on average, adults in the U.S. spend over three-quarters of their day sedentary, or about 11 to 12 hours a day,” said study co-author Keith Diaz. He directs Columbia University’s Exercise Testing Laboratory at the Center for Behavioral Cardiovascular Health, in New York City. “Previous research has shown that people who sit for hours on end develop chronic diseases — including diabetes, heart disease, dementia and several types of cancer — at much higher rates than people who move throughout their day,” Diaz said. They also face a higher risk of early death. The bottom line: “If you have a job or lifestyle where you have to sit for prolonged periods, we suggest taking a five-minute walking break every half-hour. This one behavior change could reduce your health risks… read on > read on >

Six minutes of high-intensity exercise might prolong the lifespan of a healthy brain, perhaps delaying the start of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, a new, small study suggests. Researchers found that short but intense cycling increased the production of a protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which is essential for brain formation, learning and memory. It’s thought that BDNF might protect the brain from age-related mental decline. “BDNF has shown great promise in animal models, but pharmaceutical interventions have thus far failed to safely harness the protective power of BDNF in humans,” said lead study author Travis Gibbons, from the University of Otago in New Zealand. “We saw the need to explore non-pharmacological approaches that can preserve the brain’s capacity which humans can use to naturally increase BDNF to help with healthy aging,” Gibbons said. The report was published Jan. 11 in the Journal of Physiology. BDNF promotes the brain’s ability to form new connections and pathways, and also helps neurons survive. Animal studies have shown that increasing the availability of BDNF boosts cognitive performance, such as thinking, reasoning or remembering. For this study, the researchers wanted to look at the influence of fasting and exercise on BDNF production in humans. Working with a dozen men and women, the investigators compared fasting, low-intensity cycling for 90 minutes, six-minute high-intensity cycling, and a combination of fasting and… read on > read on >

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin has been released from a Buffalo hospital just nine days after he suffered cardiac arrest during a Monday night football game. “Damar Hamlin has been discharged from Buffalo General Medical Center/Gates Vascular Institute,” the Buffalo Bills team announced on Twitter Wednesday. “We have completed a series of tests and evaluations,” Dr. Jamie Nadler, the physician who led Hamlin’s care at Buffalo General Medical Center, added in the posting. “And in consultation with the team physicians, we are confident that Damar can be safely discharged to continue his rehabilitation at home and with the Bills.” There has been no announcement on what caused Hamlin to go into cardiac arrest, The New York Times reported. Hamlin, 24, collapsed after tackling Bengals receiver Tee Higgins during a Jan. 2 football game. When Hamlin suddenly collapsed and fell backward, on-field medical staff swiftly gave him CPR before he was taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. The game was postponed and later canceled. The Buffalo Bills played the New England Patriots last Sunday. They finished 13-3, which was a half-game behind Kansas City Chiefs for the AFC’s No. 1 seed, CBS News reported. The Bills would have been No. 1 seed had they won the unfinished game against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bills will now play a wild-card round against the Miami Dolphins… read on > read on >

Anyone who has ever gardened knows what a labor of love it can be as you dig deep in the dirt to plant seeds and then take pride in your first crop, but new research shows it also translates into better health. It turns out that community gardens in urban areas can have folks eating more fresh food and getting exercise, while it can also ease stress and anxiety. “These kind of interventions that have a strong social organization, that have access to nature and contact with nature, where there’s active participation, these are the ingredients that we need to think about to have successful interventions to address a whole variety of health outcomes,” said senior study author Jill Litt. She is a professor in the department of environmental studies at University of Colorado, Boulder, and a senior scientist at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health. For this study, researchers wanted to do a randomized, controlled trial on community gardens, to add to information from previous gardening studies. Litt said she was approached by Denver Urban Gardens to study the benefits when there were only 40 gardens in the city. Now, there are 180. “It hooked me. It was the most fascinating system where we could actually see how behavior change happens,” Litt said. “People were connecting to the landscape. They had social relationships, they… read on > read on >

TUESDAY, Jan. 10, 2023 (HealthDay News) – Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin is now back in New York. The football player who collapsed on the field after suffering cardiac arrest during a Monday night game in Cincinnati has been released from an Ohio hospital, and will continue his recovery in a Buffalo hospital, the Buffalo Bills football team posted on Twitter. “Mr. Hamlin has been released and returned to Buffalo. I traveled with him to the airport this morning with our UC Health air care and mobile care crew, including teammates who were with us on the field when Mr. Hamlin collapsed,” Dr. William Knight IV, a professor of emergency medicine at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and director of the Emergency Medicine MLP Program, told CBS News. Hamlin, 24, collapsed after tackling Bengals receiver Tee Higgins. When Hamlin suddenly collapsed and fell backward, on-field medical staff swiftly gave him CPR before he was taken to Cincinnati Medical Center. The game was postponed and later canceled. The Buffalo Bills played the New England Patriots last Sunday. They finished 13-3, which was a half-game behind Kansas City Chiefs for the AFC’s No. 1 seed, CBS News reported. The Bills would have been No. 1 seed had they won the unfinished game against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bills will now play a wild-card round against… read on > read on >