Healthy Living: Why Walking Is Good For You

Walking is widely recommended by health and fitness gurus for its numerous health benefits. Today, there are several physical activities you can engage yourself in but walking is one of the best of them all. This is because; walking is not complicated, requires minimal or no equipment to perform, it is low impact, can be done by anybody at any time and above all, typically has little or no injuries. Unlike other forms of exercises walking is ideal for people from all "walks" of life and requires no training whatsoever to perform. The following are some of the numerous benefits of walking and why medical Science emphasizes that it is good for your health:

Reduces the risk of heart diseases

Studies show that walking on a regular basis can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases which includes heart problems as well as stroke. Walking lowers bad cholesterol levels in the body while at the same time increasing the HDL cholesterol levels in the body. Increased HDL (good) cholesterol levels help in keeping blood pressure under control.

Helps in maintaining a healthy weight

Medical science points out that for you to lose weight, it is important that you burn more calories than you eat on a daily basis. Walking is one of the easiest ways of burning calories. This is attributed to the fact that when you walk, each and every movable part of your body is involved. This means that each muscle responsible for the movement of these parts is beneficially exercised in the process.

Helps in preventing dementia

From an orthopedic’s point of view, a huge percentage of the elderly population suffers from dementia simply because of reduced brain activity. Being active has a positive effect on the brain function and helps it to be alert. This reduces dementia. Therefore, in order to help reduce the risk of dementia, it is advisable to take a walk on a daily basis.

Enhances bone health

Walking stimulates and strengthens the bones. This, in turn, increases the bone density and boasts their development and reduces injuries associated with unhealthy bone formation or development especially in women. On top of that, walking also helps in maintaining healthy joints and prevents the risk of contracting arthritis as well as sports injuries.

Helps in toning your arms, bum, tummy, and legs

A simple walk can immensely improve and strengthen your legs, shape your calves, hamstrings, quads, and also helps lift your rear muscles (glutes). Additionally, when you maintain a good posture while walking, it can also help tone your abs and shape your waist as well. Therefore, it is important to take a walk on a regular basis.

Improves balance and coordination

Walking helps in improving general body balance and coordination of all parts of the body. When you walk, almost each and every part of your body is involved in the activity. This makes it easy to improve coordination and also allows you to help develop better balance for many parts of your body. It is little wonder that individuals recovering from any form of the ailment are often encouraged to take simple walks as a form of exercise.

If you thought walking is not important to your health, rethink again. For you to stay fit and maintain a healthy body, you are advised to walk on a regular basis (with your doctor permitting). However, to ensure that you turn your walk into an exercise activity, it is important to maintain a good posture and also include a few purposeful movements.

Remember to live life to its Fullest

Dr. Kevin Crawford

4110 22nd Place Lubbock, TX 79410

Benefits of Sports Medicine

Sports medicine is a segment of medicine that deals with physical fitness, treatment, and prevention of injuries that relate to sports and exercises. Sports medicine encompasses an essential position in medicine. Sports and activity-related injuries are fairly rampant among athletes and the general population. The following are some of the benefits of sports medicine:

Specialized Care. Sports doctors are mainly trained to care for athletes, fitness professionals, as well as active individuals. Notably, they understand the impacts of sports and exercise on their patients' bodies, such as repetitive motion injuries. Further, they work closely with an orthopedic surgeon (or can be one themselves) and physical therapists to develop treatment plans that suit each patient's specific needs.

Injury Prevention. Sports medicine physicians have an in-depth understanding of how athletes use their bodies during practice and as they engage in the actual play. As a result, they provide patients with quality expert advice and instructions on preventing injuries and avoiding the instance of re-injuring a previously damaged area. They help both professional and novice athletes to make fundamentally wise decisions and conduct pre-participation physical exams to prepare their patients to resume activities.

Cutting-Edge Treatment Options. From leading-edge reconstructive surgical techniques to regenerative medicine procedures like platelet-rich plasma therapy and stem cell therapy, sports medicine physicians and surgeons utilize the latest ways and methods to help restore function to injured areas.

Enhanced Athletic Performance. Sports medicine professionals also participate in training program development. For athletes, a training program has to be constructed around an individual’s medical needs, physical strengths, and weaknesses. Notably, a medical professional can establish an athlete's essential elements and craft an extensive program appropriately.

Sports medicines provide a pivotal assessment of athletes, their performance capabilities and areas for improvement. Sports medicine helps identify and treat any underlying conditions that may be impairing sports performance. Usually, athletes with medical issues are hopeful of competing again in sports after treating their conditions promptly and effectively.

A sports medicine professional can provide youth with nutritional and physical recommendations necessary to forgo degenerative diseases. Further, a sports medicine doctor provides an athlete with preventive measures to preserve their long-term health and extend their athletic career.

Conclusively, the significance of sports medicine in games and active lifestyles is vital. Humans have been participating in sports-related activities even before the dawn of civilization just as a way of life. Today, most people recognize the importance of exercise and physical activity for good health. The outstanding element of sports medicine is that it encapsulates the expertise of specialized doctors, surgeons, therapists and the individual to assess and effectively maintain the physical health of the sports athlete or active person.

Remember to live life to its Fullest

Dr. Kevin Crawford

4110 22nd Place Lubbock, TX 79410

Reasons Why Baseball is a Favorite Sport

Everyone has a choice on which sport to follow (if any) including basketball, football, volleyball and hockey among many others. Interestingly, baseball, with its rich history and deep US roots, is often thought of as America's Sport. Advocating for baseball does not preclude favoring other sports, but getting into baseball can be something truly special. Here are reasons why so many people feel baseball rules over other sports:

In baseball, any team can make a comeback anytime - even in the bottom of the 9th inning. Surprisingly, with other sports, that is not necessarily the case. For instance, in football you rarely find many teams score five-straight touchdowns to tie a game in the 4th quarter.  In basketball, if a team is up by 10 points with 10 seconds to go, that's a tough hill to climb. In baseball, there's no clock, but there is an implication that as long as a team is willing to fight; they are still in the game.

Baseball has awesome fans - worldwide. For example, through their ups and downs, loyal Cubs fans have been with the team the whole time from bad to great. And, they are not planning to leave any time soon.

The 162-game baseball schedule is great. There are about seven months of baseball for us to watch. Sure, basketball goes from November-April, but they play every other day, and the same goes for hockey.  Baseball is a daily thing, which means it always gives us games to watch. Football, on the other hand, goes from September-February, but the team that you support only plays once weekly. 

There is no season that a player fails to make history. Irrespective of the situation, you are guaranteed to see a player reach a milestone in his career every season. Players just seem to be getting better every year.

Conclusively, there are many reasons to fall in love with America's Favorite Sport. Just pick your team, and stick with them.

Remember to live life to its Fullest

Dr. Kevin Crawford

4110 22nd Place Lubbock, TX 79410