Warren Birmingham, director of Unlimited Potential

Why is training / workshopping On this topic needed?

High stress levels and burnout are very common among high achieving workers. High stress levels are, obviously, bad for individuals, for those close to them, and for the organisations in which they work. Turnover can become high, with loss of skilled and experienced people.

Stressed people are not effective and can often create conflict and contribute to low morale. They also often act in ways which make it unattractive for new members to join the organisation. Cynicism, negativity and rigid thinking are side effects of chronic stress. Serious anguish and long term physical, emotional and motivational effects that are suffered privately are not unusual amongst people who have achieved for several years..

Taking care of the part of the environment over which we have the most control – that is, ourselves, is a vital part of effective individual performance. Putting some attention into managing pressure, personal expectations and physical, emotional and life balance renewal is absolutely essential to your future productivity and wellness.

Prescription for Burnout Definition: According to New York psychologist Herbert J. Freudenberger, PhD., who coined the term, burnout is a state of fatigue or frustration brought about by a devotion to a cause, a way of life, or a relationship that failed to produce the expected reward or continued reward for the individual.

Etiology: Burnout is a problem born of good intentions, because it happens when people try to reach goals that may have become unrealistic, and end up depleting their energy and losing touch with themselves and others. Symptoms: The onset is slow. The early symptoms include a feeling of emotional and physical exhaustion; a sense of alienation, cynicism, impatience, negativism and feelings of detachment to the point that the individual begins to resent work involved and the people who are a part of that work.

In extreme cases, the individual who once cared very deeply about a project or a group will insulate himself to the point that he no longer cares at all. The irony of burnout is that it happens to the same person who previously was enthusiastic and brimming with energy and new ideas when first involved in a job or a new situation.

This type of person generally has a very high expectation of what can be accomplished. As time goes by and if all of the goals aren’t achieved, the enthusiasm dies and a sort of listlessness sets in. Instead of sensibly lowering objectives or accepting reality, frustration is bottled up and the individual tries even harder. The result is burnout.

SYMPTOMS OF LONG TERM STRESS AND BURNOUT

Physical

• Chronic tiredness – sleep does not refresh

• Decreased immunity – susceptible to colds, flu, allergies

• Aches and pains in joints, muscles, stomach or back

• Sleep affected – hard to get to sleep or wake early

• Weight loss / weight gain

• Decreased interest in sex Behavioural

• Withdrawal and isolating oneself from friends and colleagues

• Rejecting help • Lack of effectiveness

• Paranoid reaction, overly suspicious of others

• Not turning up to work / keeping commitments/decreased responsibility / professionalism

Mental / Emotional

• Depression

• Rigid thinking, lack of problem solving ability

• Resentfulness

• Negative mind set and irritability

• Crying or getting angry easily and inappropriately

• Forgetfulness

• Anxiety

Spiritual

• Cynicism about previously valued things

• Devoid of joy and unable to laugh

• Sense of futility and loss of meaning

• Inner sense of emptiness – nothing left to ‘give’

Which of these symptoms if they occurred in your life would you certainly pay attention to and motivate you to change the stressful pattern that caused it?

For more information contact UP and I will forward it to you

• A Question of Intensity

A question of intensity: Aerobic Training Vs Anaerobic Training

There is often debate over the topic of aerobic training Vs anaerobic training. Which method is best and when do you use each intensity within a training plan, for me the important aspect is the philosophy of quality over quantity.

Very few athletes (at various levels of competition) are undertrained, many are over trained and more often than not it is due to the excessive amount of time training at a level of low/moderate aerobic type training in the pursuit of increase levels of fitness. This happens not only in the field of athletic performance but also in the fitness industry. You can walk into any commercial gym around the world and you will notice many individual, running, riding and rowing at low level intensities just accumulating time on their chosen machine in their quest for fitness or fat loss and many wonder why they don’t get the results they are after or why their body shape never changes.

Basic exercise physiology tells us this:

Anaerobic training improved the muscles capacity to tolerate the acid that accumulates within them during the process anaerobic glycolysis, which occurs when exercising at high intensities (simply stated is the breakdown of glucose or glycogen to generate energy which produces pyruvic acid which is converted to lactic acid).

Lactic acid accumulation is considered a major cause of fatigue during sprint type activities because the H⁺ that dissociates from it is thought to interfere with both metabolism and the contractile process. Buffers (bicarbonate and muscle phosphates) combine with hydrogen to reduce the fibre’s acidity: thus they can delay the onset of fatigue during anaerobic exercise.

Some studies have shown that after an eight week anaerobic training program buffering capacity can increase by 12 to 50%. Aerobic training had no effect on buffering potential.

Anaerobic training improves the ability to perform the task at a high intensity for longer (the muscle-buffering capacity), aerobic training does little to enhance the muscles capacity to tolerate sprint type-high intensity activities. Put simply if we can train at higher intensities for longer this will produce greater results. There are also many positive hormonal responses that contribute to increase results; these hormonal responses are stimulated through anaerobic exercise.

Anaerobic training does not only stress the anaerobic energy system, part of the energy needed for anaerobic efforts is derived from oxidative metabolism consequently improving aerobic capacity thus improving both our anaerobic threshold and aerobic capacity.

Lower intensity exercise does have certain benefits and should not be totally excluded, benefits include; increased capillary density, increased circulation aiding in recovery (active recovery), increase in both size and number of mitochondria (providing a more efficient oxidative metabolism).

The take home message is this:

Successful programming requires prescribing the optimal levels of intensity for the individual’s needs and goals; this is the challenge for us as trainers and coaches as every individual responds differently to the same training stress and training to your gene requirements is essential. 

Vitamins are organic substances necessary for life. Vitamins are essential to the normal functioning of our bodies, and except for a few exceptions, cannot be made by our bodies.

Vitamins are necessary for growth and vitality. They are found in all natural foods. We must obtain vitamins from foods or dietary supplements. It is impossible to sustain life without all the essential vitamins.

What Vitamins are Not

Vitamins are not replacements for food. By themselves, they have no calories. Vitamins are not substitutes for protein, fats, minerals, carbohydrates or other nutrients. You cannot stop eating, take vitamins and expect to be healthy.

What do Vitamins do?

Vitamins have hundreds of different functions.

Some examples of what vitamins do:

• energize our metabolism
• regulate our metabolism
• help form blood clots when we bleed
• enable cell growth
• help us see in colour instead of black and white

What is a Vitamin Deficiency?

Vitamin Deficiency occurs when your body doesn’t have enough of the vitamin that it needs. Some deficiencies can be cured simply by eating foods that contains the vitamin that you need. Other deficiencies lead to diseases and conditions that are more difficult to treat.

What is a Water-soluble Vitamin?

A water-soluble vitamin is a vitamin that dissolves in water. Vitamin C and Vitamin B are water soluble vitamins. Water-soluble vitamins cannot be stored in the body for long periods of time. Water-soluble vitamins travel through your body and whatever your body doesn’t need comes out in your urine. These kinds of vitamins need to be replaced daily.

What is a Fat-soluble Vitamin?

A fat-soluble vitamin is a vitamin that can be stored in the liver and fat tissues of your body until your body needs them. Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble vitamins. Fat-soluble vitamins can be stored in your body for up to six months.

Should you take Vitamin Supplements?

It is best to get your vitamins through the food you eat. However, if you believe you are not getting the vitamins you need, consider taking a vitamin. Before you start taking vitamins, consult with your doctor. Sometimes you are consuming the vitamins that you need but your body is unable to absorb them. If this is the case, your doctor will help you determine why you are not absorbing your vitamins.