Skipping, not just for girls!

Introduction

A skipping rope or jump rope is probably something you played with as a kid but like most adults, (except for boxers) you've probably not picked one up in a while. This a shame, because jumping rope offers a combination of benefits to bone, balance and muscles that most types of exercise can’t match, and I'll explain why I think you should incorporate a regular jump rope workout into your routine.

A jump rope has got to be one of the cheapest pieces of sports equipment out there and a variety of workouts can be performed with a single rope. Slow-paced rope jumping is a great warm-up exercise whereas rapid jumping or double-unders will leave you panting after just a minute or two. Jumping higher results in slower skipping, but it is great for muscle toning. whereas low and fast skipping is great for high intensity and endurance training.

History

The exact origins of skipping are long lost but humans have certainly been jumping rope for a long time, probably as long as we have had access to rope! Rope was used for skipping in Phoenicia, and ancient Egypt. The Greeks jumped a pole in the early days of the Western civilization, and several painters in the Golden Ages painted children playing with a rope. Rope Skipping (or Jump Rope) as we know it originated in the Netherlands, and made its way across the Atlantic in the 1600s. Check out the International Rope Skipping Federation website for a good summary of the history of jumping rope.

The Benefits

Coordination - The whole-body synchronization required to successfully jump rope is another major selling point. Most of the runners and other athletes jump rope for training and Boxers do it because of the precise timing it requires between the feet and hands helps connect the upper and lower body with the brain. It improves footwork, balance, coordination, and agility. 

Muscle Tone -  Skipping is a body weight exercise, it engages and improves the hip-flexor muscles, improves the muscle tone in the legs and lower body and also in the upper body as your shoulders and arms work the rope. You also engage your abdominal muscles to stabilize your core when skipping. So a full body workout, recruiting all the major muscle groups.

Bone Density - The act of landing after jumping does put stress on your knees, ankles and hips, but like barefoot running, jumping rope is mostly done on your toes and the balls of your feet, so is less likely to cause  knee and hip injuries. Instead this weight-bearing action helps promote healthy bone density.

Lymphatic System - Lymphatic congestion is a major factor leading to inflammation and disease. If the lymph is not flowing well, the cells are poisoned from their own waste and the lymph fluid becomes toxic, resulting in fatigue, swelling, infection, inflammation and disease. The motion of skipping benefits the lymph system by stimulating the millions of one-way valves in the system and increasing flow of Lymph. Better flow means better cell health.

High Intensity - Skipping is one of the best cardio and HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) workouts. I'm not into counting calories but as a measure of effectiveness (compared to other excercise options) jumping rope is known to burn around 1300 calories/hour and skipping can be done at anywhere, inside or out. 

How to do it

In case it has been too many years since you last picked up a jump rope here's some instructions for the most common jump rope exercises. I would suggest going barefoot to maximize the training effect and encourage correct  posture & muscular function.

Double Jump

The most common style of skipping exercise is double jumps ("double" as in both feet, not "double-under" which is a bit more challenging!). This technique is often practiced in high speed and burns most calories. The intensity of double-jumps can be varied according to the speed and how high you jump; whether you take your feet completely off the ground or just enough to pass the rope. 

Steps

1. Hold the rope stretched upwards and taut, with one handle in each hand at your sides, with your elbows bent and forearms parallel to the ground.
2. Keep your shoulders rotated back, chest pushed out, elbows close at your sides, abdominal muscles tight and your weight on the balls of your feet.
3. Bring the rope forward by rotating your wrists.
4. Jump with both the feet 2-3 inches off the ground to let the rope pass under your feet.
5. Repeat the motion and vary the speed according to your fitness level.
6. The next skipping exercise is even more fun and relaxing. Take a look.

Cross Jump

Cross jumps are the least intensive of the skipping styles. The style is often incorporated in high-intensity workouts when one needs a break from high-aerobic exercise. It is better to continue less-taxing cross-jumps instead of stopping altogether.

Steps

1. The posture for the cross-jump would be the same as that for the double-jump.
2. The difference between the two styles of skipping is that double-jump involves jumping with both the feet simultaneously and the cross-jump involves skipping with one foot after another.
3. Bring the rope forward by rotating your wrists. The movement comes from your wrists and forearms, and not by rotating shoulders or whole arms.
4. First, skip the rope with one foot followed by the other.
5. Repeat the motion as fast as you can without tripping over the rope or spraining your foot.
6. Now, this next rope jumping exercise is a little tougher in the sense that you must have great balance and endurance. But, with our simple explanation and steps, you will perform this exercise with ease and fun.

Single leg jump

Single-leg jumps are an advanced level of skipping style, which require good balance and put more weight on one leg. It should be attempted after one can do double-jumps and cross-jumps fairly well. To prepare yourself for single-leg jumps, you can begin with balancing exercises like standing for an extended period on a single leg or doing yoga poses like Natarajasana and Garudasana that require balance.

Steps

1. Hold the handles of the rope, one in each hand; shoulders rolled back, chest out, abs tight and the belly button sucked in.
2. Now, lift one leg bending it at the knee.
3. Start jumping the rope on the single leg that is on the floor while keeping the lifted leg in the air.
4. Do your set of repetitions and then do the other leg.
5. Single-leg jumps should be attempted slowly and with practice. Very fast jumps can result in leg injuries or falls.

In Conclusion

There you go then, one of the cheapest, most accessible forms of exercise I know of. Jumping rope is a fun, full body workout, great for muscle tone, coordination, and cardio vascular health so go get a rope!

Skipping is definitely not just for girls! If its good enough for Rocky its good enough for everyone and if you’re in decent shape and not carrying a lot of extra weight I would strongly recommend adding a short jump rope workout maybe five minutes to your usual workout routine. 

Health Warning

Be warned. Though it may look easy, it can be a tough workout, depending on how intensely you’re doing it. If you’re  overweight and haven’t been exercising don't start with skipping!

Salt

This may be a bit of a controversial topic but I've enjoyed researching and writing this one, Im pretty pleased with it, and think it's definitely worth sharing. Another case of years of misinformation/miseducation I'm afraid and something that is definitely worth understanding better.......

Introduction

For over 40yrs we have been taught that salt increases blood pressure and ideally we should all be eating a low salt diet, guess what, there was never any scientific evidence to support these guidelines! There was a basic hypothesis proposed that said when we eat salt we get thirsty, when we get thirsty we drink more water, and when we drink more water the excess salt causes our bodies to hold onto the water, increasing the total volume of blood and hence increasing blood pressure. There was some circumstantial evidence to support this initially but a lot of the data conflicted, and whilst scientists continued to debate governments had already taken their stance (sounds familiar right!). From this moment on salt has been demonised, but does this really make any sense, I (and many far knowledgeable people) would argue not.

The Evolutionary Case

The first living creatures on the planet evolved in seawater, when they first crawled onto land they brought salt from the ocean with them and millions of years later the human body still mimics the make-up of the ocean. Salt has always been needed to maintain optimum blood levels, to pump blood, for digestion, for cellular communication, bone formation & reproduction.

It is likely that early humans would have eaten aquatic plants, fish, and other seafood which would have contained a significant amount of salt. Even living away from the sea, by eating nuts, insects & animal skin/organs/blood its reasonable to assume that the early human diet would have been relatively high in salt.

And its not just humans, the need for salt can be seen across the animal kingdom. Farmers have long understood the importance of salt as Sodium deficiency reduces successful mating, milk production, birth weights & litter size. The same can be seen in humans where a low salt diet appears to act like a natural contraceptive, causing reduced sex drive, reduced fertility and reduced birth weight.

The Science

So 40 years on here's what medical evidence actually suggests...Demonisation of salt is not only unsupported by scientific evidence its counter productive. The majority of people do not experience the blood pressure raising effects of salt at all, and instead of focusing just on blood pressure we should also consider the numerous health risks caused by low salt intake, such as:

• Increased heart rate
• Compromised kidney function
• Adrenal insufficiency
• Hypothyroidism
• Elevated triglycerides
• Insulin resistance
• Obesity
• Type 2 diabeties

Restricting Sodium essentially causes the body to panic, the body responds by increasing insulin levels to help the kidneys retain sodium, these high insulin levels also help store energy in fat cells. With the majority of fat being stored the only macro-nutrient that can be utilised for energy is carbohydrate, leading to carbohydrate dependency and all its associated problems.

What is salt and what does it do?

Salt (NaCl) is a natural mineral made up of white cube-shaped crystals composed of two elements, sodium and chlorine. It is translucent, colourless, odourless and has a distinctive and characteristic taste. Salt occurs naturally in many parts of the world in mineral form, when ingested  it gets broken down into its two chemical components in the body, chloride becomes a part of the acids in your digestive tract. These absorb nutrients from your food. Sodium, the other component of salt, manages how hydrated we are by controlling the movement of water in and out of our cells. It also helps to manage shock (Burns, traumas, haemorages, etc) where we experience a loss of fluid and salt is required to control the fluid levels and the bodies ability to circulate blood.

Salt & Addiction

Here's another interesting little fact with far reaching implications. When low in salt, your body makes your brains reward system hypersensitive, essentially allowing it to receive more pleasure from eating salt, i.e. giving you salt cravings. This is a critical survival mechanism that has developed over 100 million years of evolution and has ensured the survival of almost every species since then. The downside to this mechanism is that the brains reward system is up-regulated for all substances that trigger the reward system. In a world where we are surrounded by such substances this can cause serious issues with addiction (think sugar, alcohol, nicotine, heroin, etc).

How Much is Right

Based on current studies a daily intake of between 3 to 6g of Sodium (1.33 - 2.66 tspn of Salt) is the optimum range. Daily salt intakes of less than 2.3g or more than 6g are associated with an increased risk of cardio vascular events. It is important to note that these risks are far higher with a low salt intake than a high salt intake.When there is an increase of Sodium in the blood the kidneys reabsorb less and the excess Sodium is excreted in urine. Our kidneys filter between 1.4 and 1.6 Kg of salt per day, this is about 150 times the amount that we ingest!

If you let it, your body naturally drives you to eat 8-10g of salt (3-4g of sodium) per day, an intake that places the least stress on our bodies.

Additional Sodium (over and above the 3-6g recommendation) may be required if any of the following apply to you as they all can cause Sodium depletion:

• You over consume sugar
• You take certain medications such as diuretics, anti-depressants, anti-psychotics & some diabetes drugs.
• You drink caffeinated drinks (Butter coffee anyone?)
• You engage in intense exercise
• You (like me) follow a low-carb diet
• You (like me) practise intermitant fasting
• You suffer from certain chronic diseases

Salt and Excercise

On average you can expect to lose 1.4g of Sodium per hour of excercise in moderate climates, and this can increase to 2.9g per hour in hot climates. Your sweat contains between 7-80 times the amount of Sodium than tap water so it is important to re-hydrate accordingly.

Salt dosing before, during and after excercise is an effective way to combat dehydration. The following doses can be used as a guide:

Temperature (deg C)		Salt dosage
Less than 26		1/2 tspn prior to exercise and every hour after
Between 26 and 31		1 tspn prior to exercise and every hour after
32 and above		2 tspn prior to exercise and every hour after

Hydration
Correctly dosing sodium is important for hydration, both in general and especially during exercise. You may well have experienced making the common mistake whilst exercising of continually drinking, requiring multiple bathroom breaks, and yet still feeling thirsty?! Guess what, even if you're pee is clear you can still suffer from hypo-hydration. The solution is to put a pinch of salt in your water bottle, this will help your body absorb the water into your tissues. Drinking pure water is fine with food (when you can salt your food) but when you're just guzzling water add a pinch of salt. But wait, isn't saltwater poisonous, we've all been told never to drink seawater right? Well it's all a matter of dosage, a pinch of salt in your drinking water will help your body hydrate, seawater on the other hand is very salty (approximately 3%), and due to the osmosis process, the kidneys can only generate urine which is less salty than the water we drink. Consequently, if you drank seawater your body would tend to urinate more to be able to eliminate the excess of salt, but instead of elimination, the result is the formation of more salt as the urine obtained is always less salty than the original. The body would have to ex-pulse more liquid than the amount drunk, which is impossible, and that’s why the effect of drinking water from the sea is dehydration.

So DO add a pinch of salt to your drinking water to aid hydration, but DON'T dink seawater!


Babies & Children
Now an internet search for recommended salt intake for babies and children will deliver a massive amount of low salt propaganda with most sources saying that our children are eating too much salt, there's no need to to add salt to a child's diet, etc, etc. The reality is though babies and children are no different to adults when it comes to basic physiology, and just like adults their kidneys help regulate sodium in and out of the blood and urine, so if your baby/child has healthy kidneys and is eating real food (no processed junk please) then there’s no need to worry about sodium content in homemade foods. Breast milk (and formula) contains sufficient Sodium for a babies needs, a breast feeding baby will receive approximately 164mg a day from breast milk alone, and that's as nature intended. When they start eating solids they, just like adults, should start  including a proportionate amount of salt in their diet.

What sort of Salt
There's a number of different types of salt available, a few are detailed below:

• Table salt. This is harvested from salt deposits found underground. It’s highly refined and finely ground, with impurities and trace minerals removed in the process. It’s also treated with an anti-caking agent to keep from clumping. Most table salt is iodized, meaning iodine has been added to prevent iodine deficiency.
• Sea Salt. Harvested from evaporated sea water, sea salt is usually unrefined and coarser-grained than table salt. It also contains some of the minerals from where it was harvested such as zinc, potassium and iron among them.
• Himalayan salt is the purest form of salt in the world and is harvested by hand from Khewra Salt Mine in the Himalayan Mountains of Pakistan. Its color ranges from off-white to deep pink. Rich in minerals it contains the 84 natural minerals and elements found in the human body. Himalayan salt is used in spa treatments, as well as the kitchen.
• Celtic sea salt is harvested from the bottom of tidal ponds off the coast of France. The salt crystals are raked out after sinking; this, plus the mineral-rich seawater its extracted from, gives Celtic salt its moist, chunky grains, grey hue and briny taste.
• Fluer de Sel is a sea salt hand-harvested from tidal pools off the coast of Brittany, France. Paper-thin salt crystals are delicately drawn from the water’s surface, much like cream is taken from milk. This can only be done on sunny, dry days with a slight breeze, and only with traditional wooden rakes. Because of its scarcity and labor-intensive harvesting, fleur de sel is the most expensive salt.
• Kala namak (“black salt” in Nepalese) is Himalayan salt that’s been packed in a jar with charcoal, herbs, seeds and bark, then fired in a furnace for a full 24 hours before it’s cooled, stored and aged.
• Flake Salt. Harvested from salt water through evaporation, boiling or other means, flake salt is thin and irregularly shaped with a bright, salty taste and very low mineral content.
• Black Hawaiian Salt is a sea salt harvested from the volcanic islands of Hawaii. It gets its deep, black colour from the addition of activated charcoal.
• Red Hawaiian salt gets its name and colour from the reddish, iron-rich volcanic clay alaea. Used for centuries in ceremonial ways for cleansing, purification and the blessing of tools, red Hawaiian salt is also great in the kitchen.
• Smoked Salt. Slow-smoked up to two weeks over a wood fire (usually hickory, mesquite, apple, oak or alder wood), smoked salt adds an intense and, yes, smoky flavor. 

When it comes to what you eat I will always be the first to recommend unrefined, unprocessed natural food and in general I would suggest the same when it comes to salt. Certainly I would recommend avoiding table salt (which is heavily refined and devoid of any additional minerals) and going for one of the other varieties with a higher mineral content, but I would recommend including some iodised salt in your diet....

Unless (like early humans) you're regularly dining on sea vegetables and other Iodine rich foods its likely that you could be at risk of iodine deficiency, iodised salt is a great way to maintain your iodine levels.

Personally when it comes to salt I tend to favour Himalayan salt and iodised sea salt and will generally fill a grinder with a 50/50 mix of the two. This should include a good range of minerals, from relatively natural salts, along with the essential iodine.

Warning

It would be remis of me not to mention the following. A small proportion of the population should be concerned about consuming/retaining too much Sodium, specifically people who suffer from any of the following:

• Hyperaldosteronism
• Cushings disease
• Liddle syndrome

These people should monitor and possible limit salt intake. the rest of have a number of strong defense mechanisms to maintain the required Sodium levels.

Main References
The Salt Fix by Dr James DiNicolantonio
Ready to Run by Kelly Starret

Fat rice

I tend to eat a relatively low carbohydrate diet these days and probably cycle in and out of ketosis (although I don't measure this), however I do include a certain amount of starch. For this reason, and as low carbohydrate eating strategy does not suit everyone in the family, I tend to cook a fair amount of rice. Rice is a good clean starch and is great with a wide range of meals but it’s easy to overindulge on, and too much rice too often is no good. Your body converts white rice to glucose quickly, which is why too much of it, like too much of any carbohydrate, can trigger insulin resistance, fatigue, weight gain, and a host of other issues. In this post I'm going to tell you about a strategy I've adopted to maximise the health benefits of this versatile food by creating "Fat rice".

By changing how the rice is cooked it's possible to increase the amount of resistant starch (and reduce the amount of digestible starch), decrease the glycemic index of the rice, and increase its health benefits by providing a potent energy source to the "good bacteria" in your gut.

Method

Firstly I would always recommend white rice over brown rice as turning brown rice into white rice removes phytate, an anti-nutrient that stops us from absorbing minerals, and leaves a clean source of starch.  It also reduces arsenic (brown rice  can have up to 80 times more arsenic than white rice).

Secondly, I would always suggest that you soak your rice for a few hours and rinse it thoroughly. Although white rice contains lower levels of arsenic than brown rice you can reduce these levels further by soaking & rinsing.

Next add a teaspoon of coconut oil to boiling water, then add half a cup of rice. Simmer for 40 minutes or boil for 20 to 25 minutes. The cooked rice should then go into the refrigerator for 12 hours, so plan ahead!

You don’t need to eat your rice cold to maintain its positive benefits as reheating the rice at a later time doesn't alter the rice's chemical composition.

The Science

Cooked rice is made up of both digestible and resistant types of starch. Humans do not have the enzyme to digest resistant starch, which means the body is unable to convert some of that starch to sugar and absorb it into the bloodstream however resistant starch does feed the “good” bacteria in your gut.

Research suggests that this method causes the oil to enter in starch granules while it cooks and adds a protective layer, which changes the structure of the rice granules so they become resistant to the digestive enzyme.

The cooking process is only part of the chemistry. During the extended cooling process, as the rice starts to "gel," the amylose (starchy part of the rice) leaves the granules. The 12-hour cooling period also leads to the formation of hydrogen bonds between the amylose and molecules outside the rice grains. This converts it into the starch the body is unable to digest.

So there you have it, help yourself and your gut bugs by getting some Fat Rice in your diet.