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Big? A study that evaluated the required volume of weight lifting exercises necessary to effect muscle strength and size (hypertrophy) made all the news at the end of 2018. In what might be considered a large study of this type, 45 healthy, young males who were experienced with regular weight training were divided into three groups: low- (1-Set), moderate-(3-Set, and high-volume (5-Set). An analysis of the Women’s Health Study in the JAMA Network Open (12/18) evaluated the diets of 26,000 subjects over 12 years to see how closely aligned they were to the Mediterranean diet. A Bulgarian study of 140 pre-menopausal women who had had recurrent infections (at least 3 the year prior) and did not drink lots of fluids were divided into two groups: one was supplied with 0.5 liter water bottles to be consumed with each of three meals daily, the other to just drink as usual.

The research and data, inspired by two prominent writers and researchers in this area, Christopher McDougal and Daniel Lieberman, has been expanded only to find that, yes, biomechanics of running do change as people reduce the shock-absorbing thickness and design of most running shoes, but at the expense of a new set of oftentimes just as challenging and debilitating injuries. While we know that barefoot or minimalist-shoe running does change gait to a more mid- or fore-foot stance, we also know that this style of running is hard to re-adjust to, especially for serious distance runners, and often leads to ankle/foot and calf/Achilles strains. As for the first – re-adjusting running style – many studies have looked along that line to reduce impact forces – believed to be the primary source of running injuries – by both shortening stride length and altering braking forces the leg has to absorb. Thus it’s likely that the cumulative forces are similar, suggesting that maybe those acclimated well – the key word – to running in whatever shoes they run in will be less likely to incur running-related injuries.

In a previous blog, Core Exercise, Part 1: Fad, Fashion or Fundamental?, I proposed that core exercise is not just about training the abs since the core is a more integrated, comprehensive functional unit that simply includes the abs as one element. In Part 2, I want to stress how the abs actually function – not based on EMGs or ultrasounds – in doing movements we train with in the gym that correspond to real life

A multi-national study followed 1514 male and female Norwegians (avg. age 72) participating in a structured exercise program for 3 years