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For a lot of people the swim is by far the most difficult skill, because it is very technical. Let’s face it the other two disciplines in Triathlon tend to be more natural. As children, we typically do lots of running and cycling making them easier to remember. Swimming is slightly different. I used to do lots of swimming when I was young. In fact my claim to fame is that I used to have the same swimming coach as Danyon Loader who won two gold medals at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. His coach (and mine) was Duncan Laing. Duncan was a legend in my home town in Dunedin, New Zealand. He was responsible for just about every child in Dunedin learning how to swim and even when Michael Phelps (8 Olympic gold medals in Beijing 2008… need I say more!) visited New Zealand in 2003, he trained under Laing.

To be fair, I only spent five years at swimming school between the ages of 5 to 10 years old. With that type of background you would expect someone like me to be able to get in the water years later and be able to swim quite competently. Not so easy, I’m afraid. You see, during my teenage years and in my twenties I spent a lot of time in the water, but that was surfing, windsurfing or just generally playing about diving into pools, lakes, rivers or the sea. Unfortunately, it was many years later before I decided to do proper front crawl, swimming lengths and start training again.

I had always assumed it would be easy to pick up and even though it was a long time, I still thought I would be a well accomplished swimmer. After all it’s just like riding a bike right. You don’t forget how to do that do you? Well, I can tell you from first hand experience you do! Don’t get me wrong, I could still swim, but my technique was appalling and after completing a couple of lengths I was out of breath. My body felt tense going through the water, my arms got tired very quickly and the thought of swimming nonstop for 750metres, let alone 1,500metres seemed like a million miles away.

That’s when I decided I needed a swimming coach and it was money well worth spending as straight away he identified the areas that I need to focus on and from there it was just putting my technique into practice.

The moral of the story here is to get yourself a swim coach, mentor, or training partner and enter your first triathlon today!

This article is written by Mike Kirkman http://www.triathlon2win.com

1. Which food has the most selenium?

• whole wheat flour (1 cup)
• Couscous (1 cup)
• Halibut (1/2 filet)
• Brazil nuts (1 ounce)

2. Which food has the most magnesium?

• Spinach (1 cup)
• Halibut (1/2 filet)
• Black Beans (1 cup)
• Buckwheat flour (1 cup)

3. Which has the most vitamin C?

• Sweet red pepper ( 1 cup)
• Papaya (1 whole)
• Strawberries (1 cup)
• Orange (1 whole)

4. Which food has the most calcium?

• Nonfat yogurt, plain ( 8 oz)
• Skim milk (1 cup)
• Ricotta Cheese (1 cup)
• Spinach (1 cup)

5. Which food has the most sodium?

• Miso soup (1 cup)
• Salt (1 tsp)
• Sauerkraut (1 cup)
• McDonald’s Quarter Pounder

6. Which food has the most fiber?

• Barley (1 cup)
• Whole Wheat Flour (1 cup)
• Broccoli (1 cup)
• Blueberries (1 cup)

7. Which food has the most potassium?

• Potato (medium)
• Banana (1 large)
• Raisin (1 cup)
• Cucumber (1 large)

8. Which food has the most iron?

• Black Beans (cup)
• White mushrooms (1 cup)
• Clams (3 oz)
• Prune Juice (1 cup)

Answers:

1. Brazil nuts (543.5 micrograms),  whole wheat flour (84.8 micrograms), halibut (74.4), couscous (343.2): Selenium assists the activity of enzymes in the body.

2. Buckwheat flour (301 mg),  halibut (170 mg), spinach (157 mg), black beans (120 mg): Magnesium assists with muscle and nerve function.

3. Red peppers (190.3 mg), papaya (187.9 mg), strawberries (97.6 mg), orange (69.7 mg) : Vitamin C is an antioxidant that fights free radicals and damage to cells. It also helps the body absorb iron.

4.  Ricotta (669 mg), yogurt (448 mg), skim milk (299 mg), spinach (245 mg): Besides being necessary for building bones, calcium is also required for nerve and muscle function, blood clotting and regulation of blood pressure.

5. Miso soup (2, 563 mg), table salt (2, 325 mg), sauerkraut (1, 560 mg), Quarter pounder (730 mg): Salt is related to high blood pressure, heart attack, aneurysm and stroke. It is also an important electrolyte that must be replenished after prolonged exercise.

6. Barley (31.2 g), whole-wheat flour (14.6 g), broccoli (5.1 g), blueberries (3.5 g): Fiber reduces the risk of heart disease, lowers cholesterol and is necessary for regular bowel movement.

7. Raisins (1, 086 mg), potato (1, 081 mg), banana (537 mg), cucumber (442 mg): Potassium is essential for cardiac muscle contraction, an electrolyte that assists in preventing muscle cramps, and can counteract the adverse affects of salt on blood pressure.

8. Clams (23.77g), black beans (3.61mg), prune juice (3.02 mg), mushrooms (2.71 mg): Iron is part of hemoglobin which carries oxygen in the blood. Myoglobin also uses iron to carry oxygen to muscle tissue. If not enough iron is consumed and absorbed, an athlete will feel fatigue during exercise, and will need more time to recover from each workout.

(content borrowed from The Poughkeepsie Journal newspaper, March 14, 2010).

by Rehab Dynamics

The number of people suffering from computer related injuries is increasing. We are spending more time sitting, resulting in more hand, arm and neck disorders caused by nerve and muscle fatigue and damage.

There are four simple steps that you can take to improve your posture at work:

1. Position your computer screen at arm’s length, directly in front of you. Place your keyboard so that your forearms are approximately horizontal, with your elbows at 90 degrees.
2. Ensure that your seat has a backrest to support the curve of your lower back.
3. Keep your feet flat on the floor with your hips and knees at a comfortable angle, as close to 90 degrees as possible.
4. Take regular breaks to reverse your posture (i.e. find a position that doesn’t involve sitting!). At lunchtime try going for a walk, stretching, standing or participating in an exercise class.

Remember that good posture shouldn’t hurt: overcorrection or incorrect postural adjustment can lead to further pain.

Here are some additional tips to avoid overuse injuries:

• Keep any items that you frequently reach for within 30cms of your body
• Alternate your hand use
• Vary your tasks
• Use a telephone headset if you are talking and typing at the same time
• Ensure that your computer screen contains a readable font and is set to medium contrast and low glare
• Maintain a good level of general fitness: fit people are generally less sensitive to pain.

If you would like your workplace assessed – contact chem now on chem@chem.net.au