Yes, Fruit Is Healthy For You
Sugar has a bad reputation for being something that is inherently bad for you or worse than other forms of carbs, but this isn’t what the science says. Along side the natural, unprocessed sugar, fruits have micronutrients that help maintain our health. Fruits are also a good source of fiber, which isn’t digested well by our bodies and helps us feel full and satiated.
Paused Reps In Your Training
Pauses in reps can be very useful for building muscle mass and practicing strict form, especially when doing higher reps or exercises where you tend to zone out or speed through. Pauses at the bottom of each rep helps keep you aware of your form as well as letting your muscles re-engage for the second part of the lift. Pause reps can be a great way to add more difficulty to your workouts, but it’s best to assess each lift to see if it will be beneficial.
How Important Is A Daily Step Count?
The 10,000 step goal is an arbitrary number created to sell more pedometers. It’s difficult for average people to hit 10,000 steps in a day, every day, even if they are active. Studies have shown that a range of 5,000 - 7,500 steps in a day is enough to reap the metabolic and cardiac benefits of walking during the day. The best bet is to not stay in any one position too long and take frequent breaks to move around and stretch. The focus should be on moving more in general, not worrying about a number to reach.
A Humble Proposal: Factoring Percentage of Reps Into Reps In Reserve Calculations
RPE (ratings of perceived exertion) and RIR (reps in reserve) can be useful training tools for some sports where the goal is to train to failure or near failure, but there is no catch-all number that works for all exercises. Generally, RPE is used for managing heavy efforts of weight or reps, and not for exercises where training to failure or near failure would inhibit the continuation of training like working on endurance for running a marathon. Instead of static numbers, RPE/RIR can function as a percentage of total effort to be applied to a wider range of workouts.
It Feels Silly to Write About Fitness
It’s difficult to write about things like fitness when there are more serious and urgent issues that need to be addressed, like the state of the environment and climate change. Many systems in our society directly contribute to a feedback loop that adds carbon to Earth’s atmosphere. The changes caused by this have been growing more extreme. As part of these systems, individuals do have responsibility to do their best to live environmentally cleaner lives. There are actions we can all take to minimize our impact while acknowledging that as a society we do rely on things like cars, cheap power, and package delivery. No matter how much individuals reduce their carbon footprint, what matters the most is legislation which disincentivizes wasteful emissions.