Chase The Kangaroo

~ Marc Pro  | Repost In nature, animals experience and deal with stress in a very different way than humans. The story of the lion hunting the antelope is a great example of this. When the lion attacks the antelope, both animals experience heightened senses and stress (sympathetic state). But, even if the antelope manages to get away, both animals return to a calm state shortly after (parasympathetic state). The main difference between animals and humans is that humans tend to hang on to stress and do not downregulate shortly after a stressful situation is over. This leaves them in a sympathetic state for longer than necessary. Parasympathetic vs. Sympathetic State The Parasympathetic Nervous System controls homeostasis and restores the body to a calm state. This nervous system activates the “rest and digest” response that decreases heart rate. During the parasympathetic state, the body is able to repair and relax. The Sympathetic Nervous System controls the body’s respons...

Laird Hamilton: Harness the Power of Breath By Laird Hamilton,  Men's Journal  | Repost What's the one fuel at your immediate disposal during a long or grueling workout? Oxygen. It's obvious; still, most of us think of breathing only when we're sucking wind. That's a mistake, because boosting your oxygen intake before, during, and after a workout gives your muscles the means to push harder and longer, and helps to make training actually feel a lot better. (Which is why I think people get a runner's high: The constant cardio forces them to breathe.) I recently began a breathing practice with one clear goal — to flood my lungs and blood with O² — and it's made sprints, strength training, and swimming seem more effortless. Here's how to work it into your training. Before: Prime Your Lungs During any physical activity, the demand for oxygen rises, leading you to breathe more heavily. But if you reverse that process — increasing your oxygen intak...

The Effects of Breathing on Recovery with Brian Mackenzie  ~Marc Pro  | Repost EPOC (Exercise Post Oxygen Consumption) refers to the oxygen you need to consume after a workout in order to bring your body back to homeostasis. It’s how exercise scientists measure the intensity of a workout. While working out, oxygen is used to fuel activity and once the activity is over, oxygen stores need to be replenished. The level of training intensity is a direct correlation of the amount of oxygen that will be required to bring the body back to normal. The higher the intensity, the more oxygen required for the body to fully recover. The concept of EPOC shows the importance of breathing for  recovery . Our breathing techniques directly affect how much oxygen we consume with each breath. For example, people who are shallow breathers dump a lot of carbon dioxide but don’t bring much oxygen in. We want to make sure that we get the most oxygen in with each breath to allow our body to ...

I've always been a fan of Flipboard.  They were the first app to take the information you follow from all of your channels and put it into once single space.  Not only that, they've taken the articles you read and collect, they've displayed it in the very familiar magazine layout. Anyway, I could on and on about the usefulness and functionality of Flipboard, but you can check it out on your own.  My reason for bringing it up is to add a new segment post on the articles I've recently shared on Flipboard and being shared by others, as a result. Fitness & Recovery Breathe Like A Superman | Surfer | The Wim Hof Method takes root in surfing by the likes of Kelly Slater, Laird Hamilton, and Koa Smith. There’s an almost crazed look on Wim Hof’s face. Aggressive and curious, the ice-blue eyes of the 57-year-old dart as he speaks to a crew from Vice about his self-proclaimed breathing method that can enable everyday Joes to do incredible things. According to Hof, who ...