Basic Pursuits

The key to exercise progress is effective recuperation. Your exercise is only as good to the extent that the benefits outweigh the stress you put on your body.

The best recuperation is rest. Period.

We earlier reported on a little hack that improved muscle growth. Older exercisers who took a bottle label recommended dose of Ibuprofen accumulated greater muscle mass than controls who didn't. The Ibuprofen's anti-inflammatory properties perhaps speed recovery.

Do something nice for yourself.

Evidence grows daily that we moderns (or are we post-moderns) are suffering from a deficiency of Vitamin D.

Ordinarily, humans manufacture their own supply of Vitamin D with help from sunshine. It's been that way for hundreds of thousands, if not millions of year.

But we post moderns spend most of our time indoors. You can't get Vitamin D from florescent lights.

Evidence mounts that exercise has a lot to do with how your brain functions.

The latest theory is that it mildly stresses the brain and forces adaptive responses that ensure that the brain gets the energy that it needs. One of the responses is the release of growth factors.

Our friend Parth Shah posted this piece on how simple getting into shape really is. He argues that all you need is a run, push-ups, pull-ups and sit-ups. He offers up a very simple workout for you to get going with.

A routine incorporating these exercises will put you in better shape than 99 percent of the population in America.

Simple. But not necessarily easy.

Yet starting at a feel-good pace and building gradually, you might even find it easy.

Here is some decent coverage about calorie restriction. The report covers the fact that calorie restriction has a favorable effect on crucial bio-makers like cholesterol whether it helps you life longer or not.