The Best Foods for When You're Sick

One of the worst things about being sick to the point of throwing up or having diarrhea (or, heaven forbid: both) – aside from vomiting and having diarrhea, of course – is that the cycle can be very difficult to break. If you can’t keep food inside your body long enough to benefit from the nourishment it can provide, your body won’t have the fuel it needs to help fight off what’s ailing you. Saltines and Sprite may help you feel like you’re “settling your stomach,” but they won’t give your body the nutrition it needs to restore your health.

It sounds really gross, but a general rule to follow when you’re having bowel problems like diarrhea and a good way to help your body get back to normal is to eat food that has about the same consistency as what’s coming out of you. This allows your gastrointestinal (GI) system to take baby steps toward getting healthy instead of being overtaxed by trying to breakdown the regular food you eat. One of the best ways to follow this advice and get some nutrients in the process is to follow the BRAT diet. And, no, we’re not talking about going to Octoberfest to have as many wursts as you can.

How Fatigue Leads to Injury

A number of studies have found a link between fatigue and a higher incidence of injury. Injuries are more likely to happen at the end of the activity session (rehearsal, performance), at the end of the week, and at the end of the season. An important thing to keep in mind is that “fatigue” can refer to physical or mental/emotional fatigue – and both types can have a negative impact on your body and your performance.

Anaerobic and Aerobic Metabolism and Exercise

There are two types of metabolic systems used within the body to create energy for muscle contractions: anaerobic metabolism and aerobic metabolism. These metabolic systems are used to identify types of conditioning exercises, basing the classification of the exercise on the metabolic pathway supplying the majority amount of energy.

The most important difference between these two systems is the need for and use of oxygen to create energy. Anaerobic metabolism creates and uses energy without oxygen while aerobic metabolism, which converts glucose and fats into energy, must use oxygen.

New Year's Resolutions: Some Things to Remember for All Goals

With the New Year, it’s tradition to set some resolutions. And while many people know that “eat better” or “sleep more” aren’t complete goals, it can be difficult to set good, solid goals, especially when you have the entire year to attempt them.

While “quit smoking” is certainly a laudable desire, it isn’t necessarily a good goal to set. The appropriate way to go about quitting smoking (or other similarly ambiguous plans) is to create in-depth goals that focus on the steps necessary to achieve the desired result.