STRETCH OR DIE

Considering skipping post-workout stretches? You're putting yourself at serious risk.

What happens when you don’t stretch? Nothing. For a while. You lift. You get stronger. You improve your diet a bit. You get leaner. You look good. Who needs to stretch? Stretching is for yoga girls and geriatrics. Then you wake up one day and you have a slight pain in your lower back. Nothing major. “Damn,” you say, as you roll out of bed. You instinctively try to stretch it out. Maybe you lean over and touch your toes, which, coincidentally are very far from the tips of your fingers. It helps a bit, so you forget about it. You keep training. In the weight room, you are an animal. Other people look at you and say your lifts are good. But you start to notice that after sitting all day at work, your lower back is aching. You try to stretch it out. Maybe you put your hands on your lower back and do the old man, hips forward stretch with a bustling sigh, but it lingers. Not the biggest deal though, because once you get warmed up at the gym, things feel A-okay. So you forget about it. You keep lifting. You keep getting stronger. You can now squat a small automobile, which feels good. But one day you’re doing a deep squat and you feel something tweak in your lower back. “Damn it,” you say as you rack the weight. That hurt. You don’t stretch it out this time because it’s hard to breathe. It feels like you need your spine popped back in place. Something’s wrong.

WHAT HAPPENED?

At this point, most guys credit this to an unlucky break. “Shit happens,” they might say. “Injury is a part of sport.” But, contrary to this brilliant guy wisdom, this could have been avoided. So what happened here? From a physiological point of view, the hamstrings gradually got stronger and tighter until they started to pull the pelvis down with them. This is called a posterior pelvic tilt and it changes the curvature of the spine. This was continuously reinforced by sitting all day, which also lead to retraction of the hamstring muscles. The lumbar curve got lost, posture went to hell in a hand basket and, under heavy load, this lead to a vertebral herniation. It is a story that is unfolding all too often in the weight room because guys refuse to work on their mobility. Everything seems good, damn good even, until they aren’t. And it’s understandable because mobility work is about as exciting as The Twilight Saga. But, the bottom line is, if you want to stay pain- and injury-free, having a strong body is only part of that battle. Having a mobile body is also essential.

GET MOBILE

If you’re convinced to add mobility work into your routine, here are two ways you can go about it. First, take a yoga class once a week. I know. I know. “Yoga is for the birds.” Trust me, it’s worth it. An hour per week of mobility work will make a difference. As an added bonus, yoga classes are full of cute, open-minded girls. Plus, your presence in any yoga studio will be a welcomed dose of testosterone to what would otherwise be a lot of estrogen. If adding another workout to your week is absolutely out of the question, I also like what I call Mobility/Intervals. Since interval training is already a part of your routine (it is, right?), use your recovery time to stretch your three tightest movements. This helps to break up your mobility work into manageable pieces and allows you to utilize what would otherwise be a simple active recovery. Your glutes, hamstrings, and hip flexors are likely culprits for your lower body. Your thoracic spine and your lats are a good place to start up top. Here’s an example:

THE ROUTINE

Five-minute warm-up jog Treadmill Sprint - 90 seconds Mobility Work - Pigeon (Glutes) – 60-second hold Repeat five times Incline Treadmill Sprint - 90 seconds Mobility Work - Hamstring – 60-second hold Repeat five times Force Treadmill Sprints - 50 yards Mobility Work - Thoracic Extensions on the Foam Roller - 60 seconds Repeat five times Note: Make sure you’re good to go after your stretches. Sometimes a muscle needs to “wake up” a bit after an intense stretch, so the first 30 seconds of the interval can be easier than the subsequent minute. This is by no means a perfect or exhaustive approach to mobility work; it is the absolute minimum. In fact, any less than this and you might as well get on your knees and pray to Gods of Weightlifting for an injury. But in order to stay pain-free and continue your progress towards weight room domination, you need to address your mobility. 

HOW TO CLEANSE THE KIDNEYS

The kidneys are our organs that filter out toxins and waste from the bloodstream. Because toxins can affect your entire body, there is no question that supporting your kidneys is crucial for keeping your overall health in check. Without a balanced diet, purified drinking water, and body cleansing, toxins can build up and affect the function of the kidneys, liver, and other organs… and may even lead to kidney stones and other problems.

The kidneys are located near the middle of your back, and are bean-shaped organs responsible for clearing waste from your body. Each day, the kidneys process about 200 quarts of blood to help remove about two quarts of excess water and waste products from food and the normal breakdown of active tissues. The Kidneys also release three important hormones called erythropoietin, that stimulates the bone marrow to make red blood cells, renin that regulates blood pressure, and calcitriol, the active form of vitamin D, which helps maintain calcium for bones and for normal chemical balance in the body.

What Is a Kidney Cleanse?

The first thing you should know is that the Kidneys are actually self cleansing if you consume adequate fluids, but you can can also cleanse with certain foods like fruits and vegetables, as well as water and other liquids. In many cases, a kidney cleanse will integrate herbs, vitamins, and minerals into a whole-foods-based diet designed to flush out the kidneys. Kidney cleanses are also performed to keep blood pressure in check, improve functioning of the urinary tract & bladder, boost immunity, and clear toxins from the entire body.

Reasons To Do a Kidney Cleanse

Almost anyone can benefit from a kidney cleanse. Humans have always used fasting or cleansing as a way to detox the physical body, as well as the emotional body. If you’re already in good health, then doing a yearly kidney cleanse can be a gentle form of prevention for you.

1. Feeling Fatigued
2. Pain in Your Kidneys After Eating Certain Foods (or processed foods)
3. Skin Issues Like Eczema, Acne or Rashes
4. Hormonal Imbalance (Moody)
5. Kidney Stones
6. Weight gain & Bloating
7. Frequent or Infrequent Bladder Problems or UTI’s.

Here Are Some Common Foods To Cleanse The Kidneys

You can substantially reduce your risk by drinking lots of water and cutting back on sodium. People with a history of kidney stones may also want to avoid foods rich in oxalate, such as chocolate, okra, sweet potatoes, sesame seeds, greens, nuts, and spinach.

Other Foods

• Parsley
• Baking Soda
• Watermelon
• Lemon, Lime & Other Citrus Juice
• Cranberry Juice
• Pumpkin Seeds
• Kale
• Cabbage
• Garlic
• Grapes
• Blueberries
• Millet & Barley
• Asparagus

Cranberry Juice

Cranberry juice has long been associated with kidney health, and consumption can help reduce the risk of kidney stone formation. Scientists have found that cranberry juice consumption reduced calcium oxalate and phosphate levels, which lowered the risk of kidney stone formation.

Citrus Fruits

Eating citrus fruits or drinking juices can stop small kidney stones from developing into larger, more painful stones. The citric acid found in citrus fruits, like grapefruits, oranges, lemons and limes, helps break down small kidney stones, as the acid eats stones away. The University of Wisconsin found lemon and lime juice have more citric acid than other juices, including orange and grapefruit. Citrate, found in these juices, is similar to citric acid and good for breaking down and preventing kidney stones.

Kale

The leafy, dark green leaves of kale can be eaten raw or cooked, it can also be made into a juice, using either a blender or a juicer. It is packed with nutrients, one being calcium to help reduce your chances for developing kidney stones by keeping the body’s oxalate levels low. Just a 2-cup serving has between 15 and 20% of the recommended intake.

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Herbs & Spices

Some kidney cleanses are based on herbal remedies, such as:

• Dandelion
• Marshmallow Root
• Juniper
• Nettles
• Parsley
• Red Clover
• Ginger
• Goldenrod

Vitamins

Some proponents recommend incorporating the following vitamins and minerals into a kidney cleanse:

• Vitamin B2
• Vitamin B6
• Magnesium

Caring for Kidneys

Here are several science-supported methods of caring for your kidneys and reducing your risk of kidney disease:

• Drink Plenty of Water
• Maintain a Healthy Weight
• Maintain Normal Blood Pressure & Blood Sugar Levels
• Keep Cholesterol in Check
• Avoid Smoking
• Avoid Excessive Consumption of Alcohol & Caffeine

Simple Kidney Flush

Watermelon Flush:

• 2 cups Watermelon
• 1 Lime, peeled
• Stevia or Pure Raw Honey, to taste
• Ice

Directions: Blend together and enjoy.