Lengthen Healthspan Through Exercise

Julia Basso – PhD Youth is a sought after thing.  Doctors, scientists, and many others among us are actively seeking the elusive fountain of youth.  The ultimate question is:  how do we keep our bodies and minds young?  One of my favorite movies, Death Becomes Her, stars Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn.  In it, these

Improve Pace By Running With Others

Catherine O’Brien I enjoy running alone and am intimidated at the idea of running with others. Am I slowing them down? Am I going to fast? What if I want to stop for a water break? Because of this, I have adopted a pretty solo running regimen which has proven to be a great time

balance training

25 Minutes Of Exercise Can Improve Knowledge

Sara Thompson – M.Sc. in Exercise Science In my previous article, I discussed the use of exercise to improve physical and cognitive function in individuals with hypertension. In this study, Junior and colleagues (Junior et al., 2017) measured improvements in physical function in older individuals with normotension (normal blood pressure) and hypertension (high blood pressure)

group balancing

Exercise Program For High Blood Pressure

Sara Thompson – M.Sc. in Exercise Science The Workout 4 Essential Activities for High Blood Pressure: Aerobic High-intensity Strength Balance 4 Specific Exercises for High Blood Pressure: Daily living (such as moving a weight from one place to another) Balance  Proprioceptive exercises Upper body resistance exercises *Each exercise was performed for one minute, followed by

A Midday Cardio Session May Make You A Better Worker

Catherine O’Brien Author Catherine O’Brien and co-workers at lunchtime boxing class! The lunchtime workout is becoming more and more popular. Many people are foregoing the trip to the salad bar or sandwich shop and instead opting to eat on the run or at their desk so they can squeeze in a midday sweat session. Most

A Poor Diet Impairs Memory, But Exercise May Help

Julia C. Basso, PhD Obesity is a worldwide epidemic.  Since 1980, obesity rates have nearly doubled, with 35% of adults over the age of 20 classified as overweight and 11% classified as obese.  It is theorized that the increase in obesity is due to the modern lifestyle, which is characterized by highly available, energy dense

woman waking up in the morning

A Better Night’s Sleep: Falling Asleep

Gillian White – MSc, PhD (C), University of Toronto, Department of Exercise Sciences What makes us fall asleep? This is an important question because if we know what factors contribute to our drive to sleep the we can know how to get better sleep. Our inclination to sleep is not as simple as it seems

Meet Master Marathoner Kenneth Mungara

Kenneth Mungara, 43, is the Master’s Marathon World Record holder.  He is also the winner of the 2015 Gold Coast Airport Marathon in Australia and a 4 time winner of the Toronto Waterfront Marathon.  Mungara tells his inspiring story of taking up running at age 33 and proving he was faster than the competition.  Mungara now

HIIT- Does Non-Weight Bearing Rowing Do The trick?

Sarah West – PhD, Assistant Professor, Trent University Recently, I contributed a series to the FTG research blog about the importance of maintaining bone health with aging.  Bone loss can lead to Osteoporosis (i.e., thinning of the bones, and an increased risk of having a fracture), which is a very common disease that is associated

lat pulldown

Resistance Training For Parkinson’s Disease

Sara Thompson – M.Sc. in Exercise Science Parkinson’s disease (PD) is second only to Alzheimer’s in being the most common neurodegenerative disease (L. A. B. MS & MS, 2013). While Parkinson’s Disease is most commonly associated with motor impairments, research suggests that cognitive abilities are also impaired among individuals with the disease. As such, Parkinson’s Disease

Mom putting son to sleep

A Better Night’s Sleep: The Statistics

Gillian White – MSc, PhD (C), University of Toronto, Department of Exercise Sciences Sleep is not just a rest for our brain and body but is absolutely essential to our health and function. Sleep deprivation has similar effects of alcohol on how our brain and body functions and, if prolonged enough, can actually result in

woman running

The Process Of Movement Between The Brain And Body

Julia C. Basso, PhD Did you ever wonder how we move?  The ability to move is an interconnected process between the body and brain.  As I have discussed before, the motivation to move is regulated by the reward circuitry of our brain.  But what actually happens when the brain gets the signal, “ok, let’s get