2. Now pretend there is an invisible string from your belly button to each of your shoulders.

3. Now use your abdominals to “tighten” this invisible string (this should feel much different that “sucking it in”) – why? because you are activating your transverse abdominals, the deep abdominal muscle tissue vs. the rectus abdominals, which is what you are using to “suck it in” and are the superficial abdominal tissue. You will not create added force, power, or strength by using your superficial abs.

This is a great first step in understanding proper use of your core…BUT, your core muscles are not just your abdominal muscles! The core consists of all the muscles that keep you stable. With that in mind, here’s a quick anatomy lesson:

As we can see from this picture, a strong core = a strong back (Latissimus Dorsi), strong glutes (maximus, minimus & medius), and hip adductors & abductors, as well as of course your TVA, Rectus abdominus, & Oblique abdominals.

Now, you need to stop thinking about your core as simply something that “looks good” when you’re in shape. The core is arguably the most important part in any training regimen, responsible for coupling every action and creating a stronger output of strength, power & force. It is also responsible for trunk rotation, imperative for any athlete.

This is just a quick guideline/lesson on the importance of the core – now start training it!

Prepare for your workouts by getting seven to eight hours of sleep the night before and properly fueling your body with lots of water (throughout the day, as well as during and after your training session) and clean eating.

Make it easier on yourself by following your internal body clock. Do you get a burst of energy first thing in the morning? Schedule your workouts soon after waking up. Can’t drag yourself out from under those covers? Plan for an evening session instead.

2. “I don’t have enough time.”

Schedule your workouts at the beginning of the week and follow through as if you were making a doctor’s appointment.

Even if you can’t fit a full-body workout between grocery shopping and work, penciling in a couple of short, intense exercise sessions is better than nothing at all. Got 10 minutes before that meeting? That’s ample time to work on your new body.

3. “I’m too embarrassed to work out in front of others.”

Build your confidence (and your muscles!) at home by incorporating DVD and online workouts like the ones here. Do your research in fitness magazines like Oxygen, and consider a couple of at-home personal training sessions to get you started with strength training. If that isn’t an option, try moves that use your own body weight for resistance. Once you’re ready to ramp up your program, sign up for a gym membership and feed off the company and support of other women who can relate.

4. “I get bored.”

Keep things interesting by switching up your workout every few weeks. Change the order of the exercises, drop in a new move or try a new location or different time of day. If you still find yourself zoning out on the treadmill, pack your iPod with new, upbeat tunes or enlist a fitness buddy for a new approach. Keep yourself – and your body – guessing.

5. “I’m not seeing any changes in my body.”

It might take several months for clearly visible results, so stick with your workouts. And remember that the number on the scale is not the only measure of progress. Has your waist measurement changed? Can you run longer without losing your breath? Has your blood pressure improved? Track your health, not just the scale, for a better indication of how you’re stacking up.

For athletes or recreational physical enthusiasts, physical conditioning refers to manipulating the variables of exercise (sets, repetitions, resistence, volume, frequency, type of exercise, etc) to achieve better performance.

There is also psychological or mental conditioning for athletes specific to their sport (ie visualization of wining a race, gaining more mental toughness and the ability to perform in front of thousands of fans, etc).

For human beings in general, we must be aware of the process of conditioning and how it works. First, a process is defined as either a) a series of events to produce a result, or b) a set of procedures to produce a product or outcome.

If we really consider these definitions, there are really two extremes or poles we could use to describe conditioning for people and what that might look like.

First, a process of modifying one’s behaviour as it is dictated by a series of events. This definition connotates a lot of things happening over time that lead to a conclusion. It takes choice, action, and responsibility out of the hands of the person. This is a victim.

A victim, over time, encounters more and more adversity and they get better and better at singing their sad song and generating sympathy over situations they feel the world wronged them.

Psychologically speaking, the victim (unchallenged) learns to harden their beliefs and even validate themselves as a victim of circumstance who others should pity or even help out.

Physiologically speaking, being in a constant state of stress raises cortisol (human stress hormone) levels which leads to a decreased ability to burn body fat, and changes the body’s sensativity to insulin making them a more likely candidate for diabetes. Furthermore, our nervous system, energetic system, and musculoskeletal systems all respond to the demands placed on them. The less active you are, the more muscle and bone atrophy that occurs as well as biochemical and energetic changes in the cells leading to less physical capacity and greater chance of metabolic syndrome, bone breaks, obesity, and a laundry list of other health risks. Stress, in fact, is the only common factor doctors have found among the top 5 causes of preventable disease in Canada.

The physiological stress outcomes add more fuel to the fire (“why me, all the hardships in my life and now diabetes?”). This is not to say all diabetics are victims; farm from – it is just to demonstrate how people can make life harder for themselves by not taking personal responsibility for their choices and direction in life.

The other end of the spectrum would be defined by the user. Instead of ‘a process of modifying one’s behaviour as it is dictated by a series of events’, a victorious person or champion would have a different definition. Maybe – “I am the sum of my choices” or “my life and my choices have led me here and now the rest is up to me”.

Well, on a psychological level, achievement, empowering events, and giving back to the community or helping others all lead to a positive impact on self- worth, self-efficacy, and whether or not someone actually likes themselves.

Physiologically speaking, healthy endorphins released by philanthrpic or empowering activities have a reversal affect on aging, positive correlation with immunity, and even as close as we can gauge through research, a longer life span. Also, increased physical activity forces the body to become more conditioned for activity – increased lean mass and bonme density, more muscle helps burn more calories at rest, and decreased body fat.

Conditioning, for a human, can literally be the difference between a healthy, fit, attractive, optimistic, wealthy success story, and an overweight cautionary tale who people only remember with sadness for them.

Because the more we make a choice, positive or negative, the more our psyche is conditioned to mkake ssimilar choices in the future.

As such, you will either be rewarded, or punished, by your choices (consistently) over time. Make them count.

Aristotle wrote, “All causes are beginnings…”, “… we have scientific knowledge when we know the cause…”, and “… to know a thing’s nature is to know the reason why it is…”. This formulation set the guidelines for subsequent causal theories by specifying the number, nature, principles, elements, varieties, order of causes as well as the modes of causation. Additionally, things can be causes of one another, reciprocally causing each other, as hard work causes fitness, and vice versa – although not in the same way or by means of the same function: the one is as the beginning of change, the other is as its goal.

What this means to us as humans living in a natural world, is that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. It teaches us that we can make a choice to live a certain way, and by doing so, set off a chain of events that will determine an outcome. Lifestyle, health, wealth, wellness, and dare I say it, happiness, are all a product of choice. I’m not saying that if you are genetically predisposed to diabetes, that living a healthy and positive lifestyle will guarantee you are never inflicted with the disease, but it will decrease your chances of becoming sick, and should you get sick, your body and mind will be in a state to be able to fight. (See my previous blogs on Chaos and The Reward (and punishment) of conditioning).

In the field of Biology and Medicine, Austin Bradford Hill built upon the work of Hume and Popper and suggested in his paper “The Environment and Disease: Association or Causation?” that the following aspects of an association be considered in attempting to distinguish causal from non-causal associations in the epidemiological situation:

1) strength, 2) consistency, 3) specificity, 4) temporality, 5) biological gradient, 6) plausibility, 7) coherence, experimental evidence, and 9) analogy.

Strength refers to the numerical strength of the correlation, expressed as relative risk or odds ratios. Strong correlation is much more convincing that a causal effect is at work.

Consistency refers to phenomena that have been observed in many places at many times by many different observers in different circumstances.

Specificity is where the effect is limited to certain workers in certain specific situations and where there is no other association between the work and other modes of dying.

Temporality is to do with the direction of causality. Which is the cart and which is the horse? This is particularly relevant where slowly progressing disease is concerned. Does the patient’s diet cause the disease or does the disease alter the patient’s diet?

Biological gradient, otherwise known as a dose-response relationship, when more of the alleged cause is associated with more of the response (or disease). For example, not only do smokers have a higher prevalence of lung cancer than non-smokers, but also heavy smokers have a higher prevalence than light smokers.

Plausibility refers to the scientific credibility of the relationship. In the case of smoking, cigarette smoke is known to contain many established toxins, which makes it a plausible cause of cancer.

Coherence is the idea that the possibility of the causal relationship should not conflict with what is known about the natural history and biology of the disease.

Experimental evidence may be relevant. For example, if it is suspected that dust is causing the disease then an experiment in which dust filters are fitted would be appropriate and, if successful, would bolster the theory that dust was a causal factor in the incidence of the disease.

Analogy is where we reason from similar phenomena, causes and diseases to the disease at hand.

At the end of the day, we are all a product of our choices, and thus, our current situations are a product of choice.  We have the ability to enhance or diminish our circumstance by changing the ways we think, act, and perceive things to be. When we open communication lines with those around us without prejudice and are able to see clearly and create people in our lives clearly, our lives will change, the people in our lives will change, and we will change, as we will finally be able to see ourselves without prejudice.

Developing discipline is essential to achieving your goals, no matter what they may be. You will need self-control. The more you do it the better you will get at it.

1. First start with what it is you want to do or stop doing. Some examples would be: eating better, exercising, and stop smoking.

2. Find out what the benefits are of eating better, exercising, and stop smoking. Than list the consequences there will be if you don’t. You can do this by reading books about getting healthier.

3.Find people who are also trying to achieve the same goals that you are. You can do this by participating in forums and groups about particular subjects.

4.Start implenting the things you have learned.

5. Do 2 and 4 every single day.

When you are aware of the benefits or problems of something you will naturally want to get those benefits and avoid those problems. Set a date, to achieve one of your goals. Don’t let anything or anyone stop you from achieving it.

Getting started is key. Stop talking and start moving!