Dumbbell Exercises for the Upper & Lower Back

Although the back is often referred to as one whole muscle, it is actually made up of three distinctive muscles: the latissimus dorsi, rhomboids and erector spinae. The trapezius is considered a shoulder muscle, but it starts at the upper back and fans out to the sides. When targeting the upper and lower back, there are multiple exercises you can do with dumbbells.

One Arm Rows

One arm rows work your traps, rhomboids and lats. After placing a dumbbell on the floor to the right side of a weight bench, kneel on the bench with your left knee and place your right foot behind you. Place your left hand on the front of the bench for stability and bend forward until your back is slightly higher than parallel to the floor. With your back straight and abs tight, reach down and grab the dumbbell with your right hand. Keeping your arm close to your body, lift the weight up to hip height and hold for a second. Slowly lower the dumbbell, repeat for 10 to 12 reps and switch sides.

Pullovers

Pullovers work your lats and chest muscles simultaneously. Lie face-up on a bench while holding a dumbbell with both hands. Your hands should be overlapping on the handle. While keeping a slight bend in your elbows, raise the weight above your chest and lower it behind your head in an arcing motion. Once you have lowered the dumbbell as far as possible, raise it above your chest and repeat 10 to 12 times. Keep your core tight throughout.

Deadlifts

Deadlifts target your legs and erector spinae, which are your lower back muscles. Place two dumbbells on the floor slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Stand between the dumbbells with your feet shoulder-width apart and bend your knees, hips and back to grab the weights. In a steady movement, lift the dumbbells off the floor and come to a standing position. After pausing briefly, lower the weights down and repeat for 10 to 12 reps. Keep your core tight and back straight throughout.

Stiff Leg Deadlifts

Stiff leg deadlifts place emphasis on the lower back and hamstrings. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart while holding the dumbbells in front of your thighs with your palms facing you. While keeping your legs straight and core tight, bend forward and lower the weights toward the floor. Once you feel a strong contraction in your lower back, stand up and repeat.

Back Extension

Back extensions are lower back exercises that can be made more intense by using a dumbbell. Lie face-down on an exercise ball with your pelvis on the apex. With your feet braced against a wall, hold a dumbbell against your chest and lower your body forward. Rise up by contracting your lower back muscles. After holding for a second, lower down and repeat for 10 to 12 reps.

Exercise Equipment for the Lower Back

When doing back training, each section of the back should be worked with specific exercises to get the most from your workouts. The lower back contains a collection of muscles that start up by the neck and run vertically down the spine. In anatomical terms, these muscles are known as the erector spinae. Exercise equipment to work these muscles comes in the form of free weights and machines.

Roman Chair

A Roman chair has an adjustable padded support that you place your hips against, a foot stand to place your feet on and a lip on the edge of the stand to pin your heels against. Once your body is in this position, cross your arms over your chest and lower and lift your upper body by contracting your lower back muscles

Stability Ball

A stability, or exercise, ball is large, round and inflated with air. This tool can be used multiple ways to work the lower back muscles. The shoulder bridge, for example, is performed by lying on your back, placing your heels on the ball and lifting your hips off the ground. Your lower back muscles contract to create this movement.

The back extension is another ball exercise that is done from the opposite direction. To do this, lower and lift your upper body while lying across the ball on your stomach with your feet braced into a wall and hands on the sides of your head.

Barbells and Weight Plates

Deadlifts are compound exercises that target the quads, hamstrings, glutes and lower back. These are executed with a barbell and weight plates attached. To do deadlifts, lift the bar off the ground, let it rest against the front of your thighs for a full second, lower it back down and repeat.

Another exercise that can be done with a barbell is the good morning. Hold the bar across your shoulders as you bend forward and lift yourself up by contracting your lower back muscles.

Dumbbells

Dumbbells are free weights that can be easily moved in multiple directions and transported to different locations to do exercises. The stiff leg deadlift is a lower back exercise that can be done with dumbbells. Standing with your feet shoulder-width apart and the weights held in front of your thighs, bend forward as you lower the weights toward the ground. Once you feel a strong contraction in your lower back muscles, stand up and repeat.

Dumbbells can also be used for regular deadlifts, and you can hold them in your hands when doing a back extension exercise on the Roman chair.

Back Extension Machine

The back extension machine works your lower back from a seated position with your upper back pressed against a padded lever arm and your feet braced on a foot rest. Keeping your lower body still, push back on the padded lever as you arch your back and contract your lower back muscles.

BODY MASS INDEX (BMI)

What is Body Mass Index?

Body mass index (BMI) is a statistical measure of body weight based on a person's weight and height. Though it does not actually measure the percentage of body fat, it is used to estimate a healthy body weight based on a person's height.

What is it used for?

BMI is used to identify weight problems within a population, usually whether individuals are underweight, overweight or obese.  BMI is frequently used to assess how much an individual's body weight departs from what is normal or desirable for a person of his or her height. The excess weight or deficiency may, in part, be accounted for by body fat although other factors such as muscularity also affect BMI.

BMI Classification Chart

Classification Asians   Risk of co-morbidities Underweight < 18.5 Low Normal range 18.5 - 22.9 Average Overweight > 23 Increased* Obese I  > 25 Moderate** Obese II  > 30 Severe*** As per MOS-India Guidelines *, **, *** degree of risk of co-morbidities.

LACTOSE INTOLERANCE

What is lactose intolerance?

Lactose intolerance means the body cannot easily digest lactose, a type of natural sugar found in milk and dairy products. When lactose moves through the colon (large instestine) without being properly digested, it can cause uncomfortable symptoms such as gas, belly pain, and bloating. Some people with lactose intolerance cannot digest any milk products, while others can eat or drink small amounts of milk products or certain types of milk products without problems. Lactose intolerance is common in adults.

What causes lactose intolerance?

Lactose intolerance occurs when the small intestine does not make enough of an enzyme called lactase. The body needs lactase to break down, or digest, lactose. Lactose intolerance most commonly runs in families, and symptoms usually develop during the teen or adult years. Most people with this type of lactose intolerance can eat some milk or dairy products without problems. Sometimes the small intestine stops making lactase after a short-term illness such as the stomach flu, or as part of a lifelong disease such as cystic fibrosis. In these cases, the problem can be either permanent or temporary. In rare cases, newborns are lactose-intolerant. A person born with lactose intolerance cannot eat or drink anything with lactose. Some premature babies have temporary lactose intolerance because they are not yet able to make lactase. After a baby begins to make lactase, the condition generally goes away.

What are the symptoms?

Symptoms of lactose intolerance can be mild to severe, depending on how much lactase the body makes. Symptoms usually begin 30 minutes to 2 hours after consuming milk products. The symptoms may include: Bloating.  Pain or cramps.  Gurgling or rumbling sounds in your belly.  Gas.  Loose stools or diarrhoea.  Throwing up.

What is the treatment?

There is no cure for lactose intolerance, but the symptoms can be treated by limiting or avoiding milk products. Some people use milk with reduced lactose, or they substitute soy milk and soy cheese for milk and milk products. Some people who are lactose-intolerant can eat yoghurt without problems. One can take dietary supplements called lactase products that help digest lactose. In time, most people with lactose intolerance get to know their bodies well enough to avoid symptoms. One of the biggest concerns for people who are lactose-intolerant is making sure they get enough of the nutrients found in milk products, especially calcium. Calcium is most important for children, teens, pregnant women, and women after menopause. There are many non-dairy foods that contain calcium like broccoli, sardines, tuna, and salmon, calcium-fortified juices, cereals and almonds.

TRAVEL TIPS FOR DIABETICS

Diabetes is a chronic illness and needs to be continuously managed. However, it does not mean that diabetics cannot travel or will have any problems while on a trip. There are only some tips that the patient needs to keep in mind to have a tension-free and safe holiday. Get the location and duration of the trip approved by the treating physician. If possible, get the doctor to prescribe medication that may be required during the travel period. The medications may include not only those used to treat diabetes, but also ones for preventing nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea etc. Make preparations for getting your blood sugar checked at the destination. You should also try to identify medical services in the vicinity of your area for any emergency.

Travel tips:

Apart from the medical services available at the place of your stay, it is also necessary to be alert and make preparations thereof, during the duration of your journey. Some tips for the journey are: Keep the insulin or the oral anti-diabetic drugs handy; carry it in hand baggage in the plane or train. Protect the insulin from extreme heat or cold. Maintain your food habits even when your routine is different. Eat at regular intervals and do not overeat. Keep candies or toffees handy in case of a sudden drop in blood sugar.

Tips to reduce double chin

A double chin occurs when the musculus mylohyoideus - the muscle directly underneath the chin, slackens with age. This results in the impression of a second chin, which many people find unattractive and seek to eliminate. Certain vitamins, double chin exercises and neck massage can help treat a double chin.

Double chins tend to come with age but they are not inevitable and one can get rid of them without surgery. There are several reasons behind them - genetic tendency; lack of exercise and fat and fluid build-up.

Though aging and obesity are the two most common causes, double chin can also be genetic and that's the reason some people have double chin right from infancy.

To get rid of a double chin, boost your daily intake of vitamin E. Vitamin E isfound naturally in many food sources such as dairy products, brown rice, legumes, nuts, beans, apples, soy beans, peanuts, and liver.

Chew a sugar free gum as it moves the jaw constantly and helps you get rid of a double chin.

Massage your neck and double chin area, beginning at the throat and moving slowly upwards. Massage for several minutes every night before bed to reduce your double chin.

If you are overweight, try losing weight by following a low-fat, low-carbohydrate diet and also exercise regularly. The more calories you burn, the less double chin you'll have

Perform double chin exercises like neck rolls. Roll your neck in a clockwise, and then counter clockwise circular motion.

Move your neck forward and then rest your chin against your chest. Hold your neck in this position for at least five seconds. Move the neck as far back as possible, and hold for five seconds. Inhale when your head is upright and exhale when it is in the forward and back position.

Move your neck to the side and try to touch your shoulder with your chin. Hold your chin in this position for at least five seconds and repeat on the other side. Repeat the entire exercise three times.

Tips on oral hygiene

Oral hygiene is a process of keeping the mouth clean and healthy. A good oral hygiene means no dental problems like plaque, bad breath, cavities, tooth decay, gum disease etc.

Avoid foods with high concentration of sugar such as ice cream, halwa, gulab jamun, barfi and other sweets.

Eat more nutritious foods with less sugar such as milk, rice, meat, fruits and fish etc. These are good for your dental health.

Most of the refreshing drinks and aerated drinks have a high concentration of sugar, and hence should be avoided

Soft and sticky foods should be avoided because they stick and get between the teeth making for a favourable place for bacteria to grow and breed.

Brush your teeth at least twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste. It is important to brush your teeth after meals, especially before going to bed.

Always check out the concentration of sugar on the product labels. This will help to know the quantity of sugar the product contains.

Eating vegetables is be a healthy choice as they help remove some deposits on the teeth.

Eat fruits and vegetables that contain a high volume of water such as melons, watermelons and cucumbers.

It is advisable to eat sweet dishes along with the rest of the meal instead of taking them in between meals. This is so because during meals saliva production is increased, and this helps in neutralising the acid that may damage the teeth.

See your dentist regularly. Regular oral check ups help you avoid tooth loss, painful gums and other dental problems.