Personal Trainer Secrets Issue Mar 26 2007

Fitness Article of the Week
The Health Benefits of Sex

The health benefits of sex The word “sex” usually brings to mind the physical intimacy experienced between a man and a woman. Certainly, sexual acts satisfy a person's erotic cravings and are a means of expressing the sexual feelings one may have for another. However, sex has many more benefits than simply satisfying lust, expressing romantic feelings, and creating ejaculations and orgasms. Sex has been proven to help people reduce weight, lower their cholesterol levels, improve blood circulation, and live longer, more vibrant lives.

So how does sexual activity help reduce weight? Well, one pound of fat carries 3,500 calories with it. Half an hour of sexual intercourse will generally burn 150 calories. This is a considerable number of calories, when compared to other activities like yoga, which burns 114 calories in half an hour; walking at the speed of 3 mph for half an hour, which burns 153 calories; or the 130 calories you’ll burn during a half hour of hip hop dancing or weight training. So with regular sex – for half an hour, 10 times per month – you stand to lose about six pounds a year. Not bad.

During sex, your brain and the other organs in your body beyond the genitalia experience increased blood flow. Your heart rate also is increased, and your breathing usually deepens. These actions cause all your cells, organs, and muscles to fill with fresh oxygen and hormones. Simultaneously, used blood gets pumped to your heart for replenishment of oxygen and waste products, which otherwise would have made you feel tired and perhaps even fall sick, are removed.

With regular sexual activity, you will find your cholesterol levels naturally reduced. In fact, sex tips your HDL/LDL cholesterol balance toward the healthier HDL side. It has been reported that frequent orgasms for women and ejaculations for men are great stress relievers, the reason being that these are the moments when you let yourself go, completely surrendering, and thus feel much more relaxed as a result. This also explains why many people sleep better after a round of lovemaking.

It may be surprising to learn that sex also works as a pain reliever. People often abstain from sex because of a headache; however, sex has actually been show to relieve headache pain. During sexual activity, natural opiates called oxytoxins are secreted, which in turn releases endorphins. With these natural opiates, you’ll find a powerful analgesic in sex. Sex also increases your pain threshold, which can serve to provide relief from pain due to arthritis, headaches, and whiplash.

With sexual arousal, the oxytoxin levels in your body increase more than 3 to 5 times, thus triggering orgasm. In women, oxytoxin-triggered orgasms create uterine contractions that are as powerful as childbirth contractions, meaning they can actually help reduce relieve PMS and menstruation cramps.

With regular sex, you live longer and feel younger, one reason being that sexual excitement promotes the release of DHEA hormones. This hormone is a strong chemical in the body that balances your immune system, helps keep your skin healthy, promotes the bone growth, and helps maintain and repair bodily tissues. Sex also is known to contribute to your cardiovascular health and act as an antidepressant.

Most men older than 50 have an enlarged prostate, which is normal and safe. However, the naturally occurring risk of developing prostate cancer can be reduced or eliminated with regular sexual intercourse and frequent ejaculations. In fact, men who have developed the ability to delay ejaculation are unwittingly toning their prostate muscle and keeping it healthy. Kegel exercises, which enable men to delay ejaculation, also are beneficial to women. In women, Kegel exercises strengthen the urogenital tract, diminish incontinence, sensitize genital tissues, and increases orgasm intensity.

So beyond the obvious erotic and romantic desires sated by sexual activity, sex is also a great health tool that everyone should enjoy regularly.

For more information on this or other health related subjects contact Scott White at swhite@personalpowertraining.net for other supplement and multivitamin resources.

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Featured Exercise
Healthy Traps for a Powerful Build

When exercising to develop a great physique, reduce weight, or maintain a well-defined body, one tends to incorporate various exercises into their workout regimen. Different exercises will help develop different muscles. Most people focused on getting a great body concentrate on the abs, triceps, and biceps. However, it is necessary to work out all the muscles when exercising to experience complete development of the body.

One muscle that is often neglected is the trapezius (trap) muscle. Well developed trapezius muscles give you the broad-shouldered look, and shoulders are largely responsible for the much-desired tapered “V look."

The trap consists of three separate regions. The upper portion of the trapezius is mainly responsible for shrugging your shoulders. The middle and lower regions are used during rowing-type movements. Well developed traps help counterbalance your chest and anterior deltoids, improving your posture and reducing general risk of injury.

It is possible to improve and strengthen your "trap" muscles with specific trap exercises. Well-developed trap muscles and shoulders will give you the appearance of a strong, powerful body, but this is possible only with the right exercises to develop your trapezius muscles. However, you must use the correct trap exercises in order to develop your trapezius muscles and achieve the great physique you are working hard for.

To develop strong trap muscles, you need to perform exercises using the proper weights. Using heavy weights in your trap exercises could cause you to injure your traps, shoulders, and neck. To avoid injury, make sure you are handling your heavy weights with care. Done properly, weight-bearing trap exercises can be rather effective in preventing injury to your shoulder and neck. When doing any type of trap exercise, make sure that neither your shoulders nor head lean forward.

Incorporate the following exercises into your back-and-shoulder workouts. Perform one or two warm-up sets for each exercise, and then do two to three heavy sets, of eight to 12 reps per set. Focus on feeling the muscles stretch and contract with each rep.

Dumbbell Shrugs

The dumbbell shrug is a great exercise that promotes trap muscle development. Grab a set of dumbbells and stand upright, with your feet shoulder-width apart. Hold the dumbbells at arm’s length in front of you. Keep your arms straight during the entire movement. Push your shoulders down as far as they will go. If you are doing it correctly, you will feel your traps stretch. Hold this position for a count of 3. Shrug your shoulders upward and squeeze your traps at the top. Hold this position for a count of 3. Repeat.

Upright Rows

This is a good exercise for working your traps and deltoids. Secondary muscles that benefit are the biceps, brachialis, and forearms. Grip a set of dumbbells, and stand upright, with your feet shoulder-width apart. Hold the dumbbells at arm’s length in front of you. Keep your elbows above your hands at all times. Pull the dumbbells directly up from the starting position, until they are just below chin-height. Hold this position for a count of 3 to maximize the peak contraction, then slowly lower to the starting position. Repeat.

Reverse Dumbbell Flyes

This exercise works the posterior deltoids and middle traps. Secondary stress is applied to the forearms. Grab a lighter pair of dumbbells. Bend at the waist, with your feet shoulder-width apart. Keep a slight bend in your knees to prevent lower back stain. Hold the dumbbells at arm’s length in front of you, with the palms of your hands facing each other. Keep a slight bend in your elbows. Using your upper back strength, slowly raise the dumbbells upward and toward your ears in a semicircular arc, pushing far as you can reach. Hold this position for a count of 3 to maximize peak contraction. Slowly lower the dumbbells back to the starting position. Repeat.

Try Russian kettlebells for a great change in your weightlifting routine.

Ask Scott White | Personal Trainer

Question
I don't know if you can help me – I'm feel like I'm at the end of my rope. I've tried everything to lose weight and nothing has worked. I've heard that liposuction can be dangerous, but I don't think I can go another day looking at myself in the mirror. Isn't getting liposuction to feel better about myself better than staying fat and depressed?

Scott Responds

Of course you want to lose weight. No one can blame you, especially since you fell you have tried everything. Many people believe that having liposuction is far easier than working out with a personal trainer – but that couldn't be further from the truth.

Liposuction removes excess fat from certain areas of the body. Risks associated with liposuction The procedure is typically performed under local anesthesia, and can take place at either a private office or in a hospital. A dermatologist is generally the type of surgeon to perform this type of surgery. Although liposuction is a commonly performed cosmetic surgery, many people are unaware of the serious complications that can occur because of this surgery, the most serious risk of all being death.

Regardless of how long the surgery takes and whether done in combination with another procedure or not, liposuction is among the most dangerous of plastic surgeries. According to www.yourlawyer.com, a study done several years ago by two California plastic surgeons estimated that the death rate from liposuction was 1 in 5,000, a rate nearly 20 times higher than that of other forms of elective cosmetic surgery. Studies on liposuction-related deaths disagree on the numbers, but the fatality risk because of liposuction is very real.

Another serious complication that can result from liposuction is fluid imbalance. Fat tissue contains a large amount of liquids, which, when combined with the liquid nature of the most commonly used anesthetic, can cause your body to have a difficult time properly balancing the liquids. This normally only occurs immediately after surgery, but it can cause problems with your heart, lungs, and liver.

Like all surgeries, the anesthetic itself presents a potential risk during liposuction. The type used in liposuction surgery is called Lidocaine. Because a potentially large amount of this anesthetic may be used during the liposuction procedure, toxicity can result. Symptoms of this condition include slurred speech, light-headedness, heart failure, and convulsions.

Another risk typical of all invasive surgeries is that of infection. Infections can lead to life-threatening conditions, or even death.

Embolism is another serious side-effect that can occur. Pieces of fat can enter the bloodstream during the procedure through broken blood vessels. These fat pieces can get lodged inside the blood vessel, or make their way to your heart and lungs. Difficulty breathing after a liposuction procedure is a strong indication that fatty tissue ended up in the lungs. This can have disastrous consequences, including death and lifetime disability.

Because of the nature of liposuction surgery, the surgeon is unable to directly see where the probe is positioned. If he or she is not careful, visceral perforation can occur, whereby the probe damages nearby organs. This can lead to additional surgeries to fix the problems, or death in extreme cases.

A number of less serious side-effects also are related to liposuction. For one thing, skin necrosis can cause the skin above the liposuction site to effectively die. When this happens, the skin changes color and flakes off, similar to what occurs when you get sunburned. There is also a risk that this area will become infected, requiring further treatment. Paresthesias refers to an altered state of feeling at the liposuction site. It can become super sensitive, or completely desensitized.

Lastly, there is one more big reason why liposuction is not the best idea to achieve long-lasting weight loss – it doesn't promote keeping the fat off. This is a one-off surgery – it will remove the fat from specific areas of your body, but unless you change your diet, lifestyle, and outlook about your health, you are more than likely going to end up gaining back all that fat.

You say you’ve tried everything, but chances are that you have not tried working with a qualified personal trainer who is also well-educated about nutrition and healthy eating. You didn’t gain the weight in a day, so does it make sense that you can realistically lose it in a day? I urge you to find a trainer who will understand your concerns, address the emotional issues related to your weight, and support you in creating a realistic program that will enable you to finally discover the real you that is under the layers of fat and shame. She’s in there – I promise. Losing the weight won’t be easy – but it is doable. I sincerely advise you to reconsider the liposuction and find a weight-training program that will work for you. You can do it – I know you can.

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