http://chriskresser.com/

If you’ve been following my work for any length of time, you’ve probably heard me mention meditation as an excellent way to reduce stress and improve health (here, here, and here). Just last week I wrote about mindfulness (which can include mindfulness meditation) as a way to avoid a “near-life experience.”

We know that stress is a major contributor to almost every ailment imaginable, from thyroid disorders and diabetes to digestive issues. But it’s often difficult for people to commit to a stress-reduction practice like meditation, likely in part because stress-reduction can seem vague and hard to define compared with changing your diet, supplement, or exercise routine.

But when you look at the research, meditation as a form of stress-reduction has actually been studied in many randomized clinical trials that show concrete, measurable benefits. And the best part is that you can reap most of these benefits in just 10-20 minutes per day!

What is “meditation”?

There are several subcategories under the broad umbrella of ‘meditation’, but the two types most frequently studied are transcendental meditation and mindfulness meditation. The main difference between the two is that with transcendental meditation (TM), you focus on a mantra that you repeat in your head, whereas with mindfulness meditation, you typically focus on your breath or other physical sensations.

I was introduced to meditation through TM when I was 17 years old (thanks Dad!). After a few years I transitioned to mindfulness meditation, and eventually to Zen practice. Regardless of which form of meditation you practice, the goal is to develop greater awareness of your thoughts, feelings and sensations, and learn to observe them without reacting unconsciously. 

Here are my top five reasons you should start meditating today.

1. It will make you more focused and productive

I personally have had a pretty consistent meditation practice for more than 20 years now, and one of the areas I find it most helpful is for boosting productivity and improving focus. One study shows that meditating for just 10 minutes per day can improve focus and help the brain become more efficient at processing conflicting stimuli. (1)

Another study found improvements in attention and cognitive function after only four days of meditation training. (2) There’s even convincing evidence that meditation actually causes physical changes in the gray and white matter of the brain, particularly regions responsible for awareness, self and emotion regulation, and memory. (3) By meditating, you can actually ‘re-wire’ your brain to be more effective and efficient.

2. It’s good for your heart

Increased productivity and focus is great, but the benefits of meditation aren’t just mental. Several randomized controlled trials have shown significant decreases in blood pressure in participants assigned to meditation, compared with controls who were assigned to progressive muscle relaxation or health-education programs. (4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) This is important because high blood pressure is the single greatest risk factor for heart attack. Meditation is also associated with decreases in mortality in older patients with high blood pressure. (11)

Meditation improves other markers of heart health as well. (12) For example, in African American adolescents with borderline high blood pressure, four months of meditation resulted in significantly decreased left ventricular mass compared with controls receiving health education. (13) This is noteworthy because increased left ventricular mass is an early sign of left ventricular hypertrophy, which is a strong predictor of cardiovascular-related mortality. One small study even showed significant reductions in cholesterol levels in patients with high cholesterol who meditated for 11 months. (14)

3. You’ll be happier and less stressed

One of the more widely acknowledged benefits of meditation is improvement in mental disorders such as anxiety and depression. Several trials have found meditation to be effective at reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression, even when compared with active controls (such as relaxation techniques). (15, 16, 17)

One difficulty in meditation research is setting up an appropriate control group, so I found this next study’s use of “sham meditation” interesting. They compared the effects of brief mindfulness meditation (20 minutes per day for three days) with the effects of sham meditation, where participants believed they were meditating but were not instructed to focus on the breath and let go of passing thoughts. Even though the trial lasted only three days, participants in the mindfulness meditation group reported significantly lower levels of depression, fatigue, and confusion at the end of it when compared with the sham meditation group. (18) All of the participants believed they were meditating, but the mindfulness meditation group still showed significantly greater benefits.

4. It might reduce inflammation

It seems logical that meditation could improve anxiety and depression by reducing mental stress and improving cognitive function. But we also know that symptoms of depression and anxiety can be caused by inflammation, and a few studies have actually shown that meditation can reduce gene expression for inflammatory cytokines.

One study assigned a group of premenopausal breast cancer survivors to a mindfulness meditation practice consisting of one 2-hour group class per week and 5-20 minutes of individual meditation per day. (19) After six weeks, the patients in the meditation group had reduced levels of pro-inflammatory gene expression and signaling compared with a control group who received no treatment.

A study on 45 dementia caregivers found that meditating for 12 minutes per day for eight weeks resulted in altered gene expression, with increased expression of immunoglobulins and decreased expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines. (20)

5. It can help you sleep

Lack of sleep is a major contributor to chronic disease in our modern society. Even when people have time to get adequate sleep, they often can’t fall asleep because their brains are still in high-gear. Good sleep hygiene (like reducing nighttime exposure to artificial light) certainly helps, but by training your brain to let go of passing thoughts instead of pursuing them through meditation, you’ll make it far easier to “turn off” your brain when it’s time to sleep.

Several studies have supported meditation as an effective treatment for insomnia. (21, 22) One randomized controlled trial of 30 adults with chronic insomnia even found that an 8-week mindfulness meditation program was as effective at improving sleep as medication with Lunesta. (23)

Bonus reason: you have nothing to lose!

There are many more conditions than I’ve listed here that stand to benefit from regular meditation practice. Meditation has been shown to increase longevity in elderly nursing-home residents (24); increase telomerase activity in immune cells (25, 26); and improve immune strength and resistance to the flu (27). Meditation has also been studied and found to be helpful in disordered eating (28), fibromyalgia (29, 30), chronic low back pain (31), insulin resistance (32), and psoriasis (33).

But the cool thing about meditation is that you really don’t need a huge list of tightly-controlled trials to assess its safety and prove that it works. It’s not a drug. There are no side-effects. It doesn’t cost money. So you have nothing to lose by just giving it a shot, and everything to gain.

There are tons of free resources online for getting started with meditation. Lifehacker has some helpful information, and the UCLA Mindfulness Awareness Research Center has a free meditation podcast with guided weekly meditations. I also like the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Program, and some people have found apps like Headspace to be helpful.

If you have any favorite resources or suggestions, share them in the comments below!

https://www.girlsgonestrong.com/

Note from GGS: We asked Erin to write on this subject in response to a disturbing trend we’ve noticed regarding reactions to the sexualization and/or objectification of women—particularly in fitness, but really, in the media overall. So often, people are quick to call the woman in a photo a whore and make assumptions about her character. Instead we could be putting our negative feelings toward action against the larger concept and practice of portraying women in a sexualized way in the media—and the effects this has on the treatment of women in our society, as well as on women’s self-perception.

The objectification or “over-sexualization” of women in fitness is a hot topic lately. I get it. You see the gyrating, and it makes you mad.

But I’d like to implore us as a community to think more critically about it than what generally makes it to the comment section on videos and posts some find offensive.

Specifically, the individual woman’s character is attacked and the kinds of names women are often called in every arena start being thrown around. It’s unsettling and counter-productive.

First, let’s get clear about what it is that upsets you.

Is it that you think this represents you?

For a woman in the fitness industry, I can understand this. You’re trying to provide good content and spread your knowledge and message and seeing an overly-sexual version of your own work might feel offensive. But it doesn’t represent you, any more than a particular politician’s actions representing other politicians. It doesn’t work that way.

If you are creating and supporting work that feels good to you, you are representing yourself well. Just because it appears to exist in the same “world” as you, does not mean it represents you.

Is it that it feels objectifying?

That’s subjective. I know this is tricky. I once had a sit-down with a librarian over the objectification of a woman in a non-fiction children’s book. I wholeheartedly believed in what I was saying and so did the librarian. But then she posed a difficult question. “What about the other books? Do we comb through all of them this way? Do we ban them?”

Shoot. I was veering on asking her to ban books.

What feels objectifying in terms of clothes, photos, and such for one woman might not feel that way for another. And it’s a slippery slope as we allow ourselves to fall into some of the same kind of “body policing” we all have experienced at one point or another.

Are we wanting to dictate what women in fitness wear?
 
Who’s guidelines do we choose?
 
Do we feel comfortable deciding our personal values around this should pertain to every woman and wherever she is at with her boundaries around her own body?

I know that’s hard to digest. But again I would suggest deciding what exactly your issue is, and go about creating and/or supporting what feels good to you.

Is it that it isn’t educational?

Fair enough. I have seen video tutorials that were a wealth of information where the woman doing the educating was also being presented in a “sexy” manner. I have certainly also seen videos where there is arguably very little educational value and it’s about watching her move and sweat. My response is to click away to something else, as there is nothing for me there.

I think the point is that an individual woman’s (or her camera crew/producer’s) actions do not represent all of our values or needs. There has long been a trend of using women as sexual objects to “sell” things, in this case, fitness.

While I completely understand the values issue that may come up for you in so many ways around this, it’s important to see that attacking one woman does not change any of those things.

If anything, it devalues all of us, pits us against one another, and holds that regardless of our actions our bodies “should” live by rules set forth by others. Which is not what I stand for as an individual—and hopefully not what we stand for as a community.

So my best advice? “Do you.”

If you don’t like these examples, become or support what you’d like to see.

Women in small clothes doing workouts that seem “sexified” may not go away. But we don’t have to stand against them to support what we love in a way that is in line with our own values. And in doing so, we don’t have to pass judgment or blame on anyone else.

It is always okay to stand up for what you believe in. It is always okay to write to companies, to not buy their products, to let them know that what they are selling doesn’t jive with you as a customer. Doing so can even be empowering. I just strongly recommend doing so with clear intentions about what is actually bothering you, and keeping it about the concept and not the woman.

Being an activist requires more thoughtful work than name-calling. It isn’t as easy, but if you are standing up for your values it is both more effective and less costly to all of us to do so respectfully.

Below are just a few of the many organizations working to address the representation of women in the media.

• Miss Representation
• Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media
• Endangered Bodies
• Beauty Redefined
• Reel Girls
• About Face

http://chriskresser.com/

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Originally posted at: http://www.nerdfitness.com/

I want to introduce you to some of my favorite resources on all things health and fitness. 

I’ve been running Nerd Fitness for over six years now (holy crap!), and along the way I’ve had a chance to meet and connect with some pretty cool folks: nerds who have inspired, educated, or motivated me to better myself and pass along that knowledge to the Nerd Fitness Rebellion.

Because the fitness universe is so massive, and there are so many different ways to get fit, it can be quite difficult to know where to get your information. Although we cover a wide variety of stuff here on Nerd Fitness, I can’t do it all.

So, I’ve put together a list today of my favorite resources – people who are incredibly knowledgeable in their respective fields. These people are online fitness coaches, gym owners, travelers, adventurers, and gurus in subjects that often go far deeper than I can cover with Nerd Fitness.

NOT COINCIDENTALLY, these coaches are all going to be coaching at Camp Nerd Fitness, starting September 29th! Even though the event is over five months away, we’ve already sold 260+ of our 300 spots and expect to sell out pretty soon. Hope you can join us!

Regardless of whether or not you can join us at Camp NF, make sure you check out our coaches below and their sites.

Jim Bathurst – Gymnastics and strength training

I first stumbled across Jim Bathurst as I read Convict Conditioning (mostly for the conditioning part, I swear Mom!). Although Jim wasn’t the convict who wrote the book, he was the fitness instructor who did each of the exercises in the photos, including one-handed push ups, pull ups, one-handed handstands, and more. I became an instant Jim Bathurst fanboy.

Jim runs both BeastSkills.com (home to some fantastic tutorials on advanced bodyweight movements) and Crossfit Foggy Bottom in Washington, D.C. Jim is also the guy who taught me how to do my first muscle up!

I’m proud to call Jim a friend, and always look to him for what is possible when it comes to pushing the limits on performance – Jim won Men’s Health Magazine’s “How Fit Are You?” contest…twice.

Last year at Camp NF, Jim taught everything from slacklining to handstands to grip strength to olympic lifting. I’m so excited he’s going to be joining us again.

You should follow (or train with) Jim if: you are interested in learning things like handstands, Olympic lifting, muscle ups, and other bodyweight movements.

Anthony Mychal – Powerlifting, Tricking, Gymnastics

Meet Anthony, the guy who trains me.

Over the past 15 months I have been working virtually with Anthony Mychal, a friend who I convinced to help me with my programming and nutrition to find out what I’m capable of (turns out WAY more than I had ever thought).

Anthony is the creator of AnthonyMychal.com – don’t let his serious photos fool you; Anthony is Yoda and Socrates trapped in the body of a Greek God. Oh, and he’s a massive nerd and goofball, as evidenced in the photo above from a theme night at Camp last year. Anthony trains in a way that lines up perfectly with Nerd Fitness: strength and fun are paramount. Gymnastic movements, powerlifting, and fun, totally functional movements like tricking are his specialty.

As for his credentials, along with a background in performance and training, here he is at camp deadlifting 550 pounds (at a bodyweight of 205 lbs) and making it look easy.

Anthony digs into some deeply philosophical content on his blog (it was his love of antifragility that got me hooked), in addition to advanced body composition topics. He also loves Dragon Ball Z.

You should read Anthony‘s site if: you are interested in no longer being “skinny-fat,” you enjoy getting deep into topics on human performance, or you are interested in learning about tricking. Here’s Anthony landing a crazy move:

Kate Marolt – Yoga

Kate is one of the happiest people on the planet. She’s also one helluva yoga instructor, and has been a member of the Nerd Fitness Rebellion for years and years – serving as a Druid moderator on our Nerd Fitness message boards. How’s that for “Nerd Fitness” credentials?

Kate runs KateMarolt.com – Soul Wild Free, a site dedicated to helping women level up their bodies and minds. She does online personal development coaching, leads retreats, and has even partnered with us here at Nerd Fitness for an upcoming project we’re going to be revealing in a few short weeks – spoiler alert: it involves Yoga and nerds

Last year at Camp NF, Kate led some fantastic yoga and mobility sessions, including Rock and Roll Yoga at a lakeside pavilion. How epic is that?

You should read or work with Kate if: you enjoy yoga and mobility work, you are interested in learning more about handling depression/anxiety, or just interested in learning more about yourself and where you fit in on this planet.

Amy Clover – Bootcamps and Personal Development

If Kate is one of the happiest people on the planet, then I think Amy Clover is probably the happiest person on the planet.

I met Amy years ago at a conference when she was just getting started with her own fitness site. I remember encouraging Amy to share her full story of how she overcame depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts through exercise. She even shared her story on Nerd Fitness, which is a must read. 

Amy Clover runs StrongInsideOut.com, a fantastic resource and blog built around fun, functional fitness, overcoming depression and anxiety, and building a better life. She runs events all over the country, and even teaches a weekly class in San Diego where she lives.

Amy taught bootcamps last year at Camp Nerd Fitness, and had the entire camp screaming “I’m a HERO!” by the end of it. She also led some fantastic discussions on depression and exercise that helped quite a few people start to feel better about where they are.

You should read Amy’s site or attend her live events if: you are somebody who enjoys being around positive people, you aren’t afraid to sweat and have fun, and you want to learn more about how exercise impacts your body’s physiology and psychology.

Dakao Do – Parkour, Medieval WeaPons, Kung Fu

Meet Dakao Do, the guy who’s more “Nerd Fitness” than anybody you’ve ever met.

Dakao first entered the NF world when he offered to write a Beginner’s Guide to Parkour for Nerd Fitness, which to this day remains one of our most popular articles of all time.

At Camp last year, Dakao taught Parkour, Medieval Weapons training (with an Assassin’s Creed angle), and even freaking Kung Fu! What’s more Nerd Fitness than that?

When he’s not training nerds at Camp, Dakao is a member of Sword to Sword, a group dedicated to the study of Historical European Martial Arts. Based in Houston, Dakao shares his 14 years of experience in medieval and Renaissance swordsmanship, and teaches people in the disciplines listed above. He’s an absolute delight to work with as a coach.

You should work with Dakao if: any of the subjects above interest you. And come on, who isn’t interested in parkour, sword fighting, or Kung Fu!? He is funny, nerdy, and his range of knowledge is eclectic. Hell, he can even show you how Argentine tango combines with good kung fu to make effective movements for fitness and fighting.

Jason Fitzgerald – Running

Jason is a USA Track & Field certified coach and founder of Strength Running, one of the largest coaching sites for runners.

His running advice has been featured in Runner’s World, Competitor, Lifehacker, and even Nerd Fitness! We partnered together on the Rebel Running Guide (which is no longer available but might – spoiler alert – make a comeback in different form!)

His real passion, however, is helping runners set monster personal bests and avoid injuries.

Jason escaped from the Dark Side of injuries in 2009 and has only had one minor injury since then. This consistency (which he loves calling the “secret sauce” of successful running) has allowed him to improve his marathon time to 2:39, and place first in the 2012 Maryland Warrior Dash. When he’s not running up mountains in the Colorado Front Range, you can bet he’s getting jacked up on coffee or enjoying a good IPA.

You should read or work with Jason if: you have any interest in becoming a better runner, or simply learning to run in a way so you never get injured again.

Dave Ursillo – Yoga and Writing

Dave Ursillo is a writer, poet, professional communicator, vinyasa flow yoga teacher and aspiring superhero. He can also do a crazy good Boston accent when required.

As a kid, Dave dreamed of saving the world and could often be seen in costume as his favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle (Raphael). He carried the passion for helping others into a short career in public service. Dave quit his job in 2009 and began to use his words to serve others without anyone else’s permission.

Dave is now a multi-published author, workshop leader and yoga teacher, who believes in using self-expression and body movement to discover the superhero in each of us. He teaches regularly in Rhode Island. He has published over 400 essays on DaveUrsillo.com, and has been seen on CBS News Sunday Morning, Psychology Today and Inc.com.

I’ve known Dave’s for close to four years, and I’ve never had a bad time hanging out with him. Well, there was that one time we watched the Boston Bruins lose a hockey game together, but I still had fun despite the outcome. Dave was even at our first NerdFitness meet up ever.

You should read Dave’s site or attend one of his retreats if: You are interested in yoga, movements, and learning about what your particular super power is. If you have any interest in becoming a better writer or learning about what life is like as a writer, Dave is your guy

Roger Lawson – fitness fundamentals and Personal Development

Just saying the name “Roger Lawson” (AKA “Rog Law”) puts a smile on my face. I bet the picture above did the same for you.

The only things Rog Law loves more than fitness are Cinnabon, Dragon Ball Z, and laughing like a 5-year-old on the playground. Using his unique style of hilarity, gaming references, and an unyielding sense of positivity, his goal is to show people how to use fitness as a tool to not only get in shape and feel amazing, but to enhance ALL areas of their life.

I guarantee if you meet Rog in person, you will want to give him a hug. Unless he hasn’t already given you one. Which he probably has.

He writes about all of this stuff at RogLawFitness.com, aka “the Art of Sexification.” Come on, how can you not love that subtitle!? Legend has it if you turn off the lights and say “Rog Law” in the mirror three times, he will show up and eat all the food in your refrigerator.

You should read Rog’s Website if: you love strength training, building social skills, getting sexificationed (that’s a real word), and are interested in using gaming skills to level up in real life.

[editor’s note: I haven’t told Rog yet that there won’t be any Cinnabon at Camp NF, so shhhhhh]

More to Come!

This is our first round of speakers who will be coaching at Camp Nerd Fitness, which I am so freaking excited about. Last year’s event was truly a game-changing moment for the Nerd Fitness Rebellion, and for me personally.

If you can make it, we’d love to have ya! Here’s a quick video that shows what happened last year:

Camp Nerd Fitness Video

If you can’t make it to Camp, bummer, but that’s okay! We’re going to start coordinating more meetups and smaller events to bring the Nerd Fitness community together throughout the country (and the world?). In the meantime, please check out the sites from the awesome people above and level up your life!

And hopefully see you at Camp

-Steve

PS: I have no clue how quickly these final 40ish spots for Camp Nerd Fitness are going to sell, so if you’re on the fence about joining us, now might be a good time to put down a deposit! If we happen to sell out, we’ll open up a waiting list in case we have any cancellations.

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photo pin: michael kmak: mario powerups