14 October 2010
Coffee Lessens the Pain of Exercise
I found this story on the 53x11 Coffee website and though I should share with the masses.
That cup of coffee that many gym rats, bikers and runners swill before a workout does more than energize them. It kills some of the pain of athletic exertion, a new study suggests. And it works regardless of whether a person already had a coffee habit or not.
Caffeine works on a system in the brain and spinal cord (the adenosine neuromodulatory system) that is heavily involved in pain processing, says University of Illinois kinesiology and community health professor Robert Motl. And since caffeine blocks adenosine, the biochemical that plays an important role in energy transfer and thus exercise, he speculated that it could reduce pain.
So the researcher, a former competitive cyclist, divided 25 fit, college-aged males into two distinct groups: subjects whose everyday caffeine consumption was extremely low to non-existent, and those with an average caffeine intake of about 400 milligrams a day, the equivalent of three to four cups of coffee.
Unexpected results
After completing an initial exercise test in the lab on a stationary bike to determine maximal oxygen consumption or aerobic power, subjects returned for two monitored high-intensity, 30-minute exercise sessions.
An hour prior to each session, cyclists - who had been instructed not to consume caffeine during the prior 24-hour period - were given a pill. On one occasion, it contained a dose of caffeine measuring 5 milligrams per kilogram of body weight (equivalent to two to three cups of coffee); the other time, they received a placebo.
During both exercise periods, subjects' perceptions of quadriceps muscle pain was recorded at regular intervals, along with data on oxygen consumption, heart rate and work rate.
"What we saw is something we didn't expect," Motl said. "Caffeine-naïve individuals and habitual users have the same amount of reduction in pain during exercise after caffeine (consumption)."
The results are detailed in the April edition of the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. Co-authors included Steven P. Broglio of the University of Illinois and Sigurbjorn A. Arngrimsson of the Center for Sport and Health Sciences, Iceland University of Education.
"Clearly, if you regularly consume caffeine, you have to have more to have that bigger, mental-energy effect," Motl said. "But the tolerance effect is not ubiquitous across all stimuli. Even brain metabolism doesn't show this tolerance-type effect. That is, with individuals who are habitual users versus non-habitual users, if you give them caffeine and do brain imaging, the activation is identical. It's really interesting why some processes show tolerance and others don't."
Regarding the outcome of the current research, he said, it may be that tolerance to caffeine plays no role in the way it diminishes pain during exercise.
Motl said one of the next logical steps for his research team would be to conduct studies with rodents in order to better understand the biological mechanism for caffeine in reducing pain.
"If we can get at the biological mechanism, we can begin to understand why there may or may not be this kind of tolerance."
Will it help you win?
Motl previously has conducted other studies on the relationship between physical activity and caffeine, and considered such variables as exercise intensity, dose of caffeine, anxiety sensitivity and gender. A future research direction might be to determine caffeine's effect on sport performance.
"We've shown that caffeine reduces pain reliably, consistently during cycling, across different intensities, across different people, different characteristics. But does that reduction in pain translate into an improvement in sport performance?" he said.
Meanwhile, the current research could prove encouraging for a range of people, including the average person who wants to become more physically active to realize the health benefits.
"One of the things that may be a practical application, is if you go to the gym and you exercise and it hurts, you may be prone to stop doing that because pain is an aversive stimulus that tells you to withdraw," Motl said. "So if we could give people a little caffeine and reduce the amount of pain they're experiencing, maybe that would help them stick with that exercise."
08 October 2010
Jeremiah Study
As we near the end of our study in Jeremiah, there have been a few things to keep in mind. We started off in a pretty strange way by getting the understanding of how we are to live. Jeremiah 12: 5 really gives us a good idea of what God want from not only Jeremiah, but from us as believers in Christ as well: How can you compete with the horses if men have worn you out? Looking at the first twelve chapters, understanding God’s point of view here may be a little harsh. Jeremiah was being attacked physically, mentally and spiritually. Why would our heavenly father treat him in this fashion? For the simple fact that Jeremiah needed to be in God’s will for the long haul. Paul tells us that we need to run the race as if to win the prize and not all are willing to do that (2 Cor. 9:24).
Jeremiah learned much about doing things God’s way not by depending on his own strength. Not only did he follow God’s will, but we also found out there were “friends” who would look after him. Jeremiah knew when to accept help from others. The Egyptian, Ebed-Melek, came to Jeremiah’s aid at just the right time and was eventually rewarded for his efforts in saving Jeremiah (Jeremiah 39:16-18).
Jeremiah was not just a preacher, because he actually believed what he was preaching (Jer. 32). We wonder all the time what it would be like to hear the voice of God. Would we know it was really Him? Jeremiah had the type of relationship with God that at times was frustrating. We can see at time he does indeed get anger with God, but he never stays there. He was always willing to trust. Think back to when God told him to buy his uncle’s field in Anathoth. It seems like the perfect time to not buy real estate, but here is Jeremiah doing just what God told him to do. No matter what the circumstance (prison) or what was sitting on the land (Babylonians), he was willing to go with God’s plan and not his own.
We also had Jeremiah’s big show in the Temple (Jer. 35). The time God told him to go out and invite the Rekabites over for dinner and offer them wine to drink. Now the Israelites knew all about the Rekabites and wondered what Jeremiah was up to bringing them into the Temple to eat. But it was very much Jeremiah’s style to go big or not at all. One of the Rekabite ancestors told them not to drink wine, so they didn’t. When it comes to the Israelites, God’s word told them exactly how to live, yet they decided it wasn’t good for them and went their own way. The Rekabites were a great example of doing the right thing because they were told to do the right thing.
My favorite image from Jeremiah is when he was told to go to the Potter’s house and see what was going on there (Jer. 18). Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in My hands, house of Israel (Jer18: 6). Just because we make a mistake and don’t do what God best is for our lives doesn’t mean that it is over. Just as the potter did not throw away the malformed clay, God will not give up on us. Romans 8:38-39 tells us: For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. We can rest on this understanding.
08 September 2010
As we finish the final preparations on our 150th Anniversary celebration a few things have come to my mind. Reading the history of how the church was carved out of stone, loaded on horse drawn wagons, and prayerfully placed together gives me a real life image of Jesus telling Peter, “On this rock I will build my church.” (Mt 16:18) Jesus was not telling Peter he would be the human leader of the Church, but it was the faith of Peter Jesus was talking about; much like the faith of our forefathers who struggled and toiled to build this church.
In a world of fast food, digital cameras, and 900 channels on the television, it is great to see how the faith of our fathers has truly stood the test of time. North Grove Church has seen many changes in the world. From the first mission project sending clothing, supplies and Bibles to the troops and their widows in the Civil War, two World Wars, the Great Depression, both the Korean and Vietnam wars, the fall of Communism, the New Millennium, and now in the uncertainty of our own nation’s financial well-being this church has been a house of worship.
How many lives touched by countless blessings given in the name of Christ we will never know. There have indeed been lean years in this church, but the faithful maintained their focus on God and God did not disappoint. What a blessing God has been to this church. As we look back at this heritage, it may be easy to say it doesn’t get any better than this. The good old days were great and it is hard to top them, but we are not yet finished. We still live in a broken world. A world in desperate need of God’s love and grace. We are the agents of His love and grace. Hebrews 10:23- 25 gives us this call: Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-- and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
We need to maintain our course into the next 150 years. I have talked to many of you who remember the good old days like they were yesterday. (I only wish I had your memory.) We need to realize we are setting a foundation for the next 150 years. Of course none of us will be around to see it, but think of all those picture and memories we pass on to the next generations. We want all who come behind us to find us faithful as well (1 Cor 4: 2). This is a great milestone to be celebrated, but pressing on toward the goal, with memories in mind, to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus should be our prayer and goal for those who don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior.
02 July 2010
A Million Miles in a Thousand Years
I recently finished this book by Donald Miller and it was all about what he learned while editing his life for a screenplay and movie. I have yet to see this movie, but the idea of this book struck me as very interesting. What drew me to the book originally was the cover, and it became so much more as I began to read it.
As the author was going through his life he realized he could not remember much of his life and all that he did was gone from his memory. Not only that, but he found out he was not living the epic story that makes a great movie. As I was reading Donald's story I have also been studying Jeremiah's struggles with doing what God called him to, a prophet for God's word among the Israelites. Jeremiah 12:5 states, "if you are getting tired of running with men, how are you ever going to run with the horses." At this point in Jeremiah's life he was being pursued by men who really wanted him dead. He went to God and expressed his complaint and got God's reply.
If we just walk through life without a purpose or plan we have no motivation to do anything. This kind of life can get rather monotonous. God has called us to a specific plan and purpose, Psalm 139 talks about how God knit me together in my mother's womb and He knew me before creation and purposed us for His glory.
I guess the question at the end of all of this is, "Are we living up to the potential God has planned for us?" Everyday brings its own set of problems, but how we react to them is most important in life.
04 June 2010
Response to The Shack
I have just finished reading a book, The Shack, which has some controversy attached to it. Without giving away the story a man, Mack, has a devastating event in his life which forces him to battle what he believes about God. The event caused Mack to succumb to what he called the Great Sadness. It is a depression that encompasses his entire life and affects his relationships with his wife, children and friends. The question the book is trying to answer: Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain? It seems like a fair question. When something bad happens we all want to scream out to God and ask why. It seems only normal to blame the Creator for the mess of the world.
The book does a good job at answering this question and one of the more interesting parts was about what God expects of us. We all live in a world of expectations; whether we are failing, meeting or exceeding them is another story. Someone in your life has failed your expectations. Sometimes we pray to God and He fails our expectations. When we sin we feel as if we have failed God’s expectations. But what does God really expect of us? This is the part where we list all of our great spiritual disciplines like prayer, fasting, Scripture, worship and any number of things we try to do. We might even get on the 10 Commandments wagon and say, “God expects me to keep those in my life.” I find it interesting that when it comes to God and what he expects of us, the Bible is pretty quiet. I think we see a lot of rules in the Bible that tend to confuse us into thinking God is conditional and wants us to serve him and do all kinds of acts of service in His name. This would be the time to say not by works shall you be saved so that no one may boast…it is only by (God’s) grace (Ephesians 2:8-9). Even though we know this, there are times when we feel as if we have not been living the life God has planned for us and something bad happens to us and we feel judged by God. What did I do (or not do) to deserve this?
What God wants from us is relationship with Him. This is not a thing, but a verb an action. We set rules because rules are a lot easier to deal with than relationships. Rules tell us where the boundaries are, but in relationships it may be hard to define boundaries. Rules give power those who set them to enforce and judge those who fail to carry them out. God is all-powerful please don’t miss that, but He is not about lording guilt and shame over us when we don’t follow the rules. The Scripture says that anyone who calls on the name of Christ will be saved Acts 2:21). We are set free and because Jesus came down from his throne to dwell and have relationship with us that through His death and resurrection we are forgiven. The only thing we need to do is accept the free offering of God’s grace. We enter into a relationship with God through the acceptance of Jesus in our lives.
I stated above that relationships take work, but not works. To have relationship with God we need to spend time with Him. Not just some time, but all of our time. Our lives need to be about building relationship with God. Everything we do should revolve around this relationship with God. The Bible doesn’t teach us to follow rules; it is a picture of Jesus. While reading God’s word gives us a picture of God’s character and what He may want from you, we have to remember that none of it is possible all on our own. Life and living are in Him and in no other. We cannot live the righteousness of God all on our own. Rules may seem a lot cleaner than relationships, but rules will never be able to love you and rules will never answer the deep questions of the heart. Relationships were instituted by the very presence of God. Before there was any creation, there was a relationship in God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Before we get all down on ourselves for not having enough relationship with God, remember that God is not into guilt. And finally the only one to get this right was Jesus when he came down to earth, yet this is the potential we all have, because Jesus was one of us, but had perfect relationship with God in the same chaotic world in which we live.
25 February 2010
Missions Trip to FL
Yes I know it is hard to go from the deep freeze of the mid-west to Florida in the middle of February, but sometimes you just have to suffer for Jesus. It started out pretty cold, but by the time we got back on the plane it was 74 degrees. Very nice. Of course, we had to come home to a snow storm...Oh well it is still winter.
Myself along with 10 others from both North Grove and Crossroads Church in Polo went to New Tribes Missions Homes in Sanford, FL. This is a retirement facility for missionaries that served with NTM. Pretty cool place. We were "hired" for a roof and some siding work, both of which we did not finish, but we did get close. We ran out of shingles for the roof, and more where 2 weeks out. It did not seem fair, but it happened. It was a good week. We did get to visit R.C. Sproul's church. Kind of cool since I have read a few of his books. Our contact with NTM is Wallace and Barb Pouncy who have been supported by North Grove for somewhere near 30 years. They are a great couple with some wonderful stories of meeting tribes in the jungles of South America. Including Wally getting speared. Not fun, but very much a Christ centered couple.
For those of you interested, my wife has a blog as well chronicling her difficulties with this strange mysterious health conditions she has. Check it out: href="http://it-all-can-change-in-a-day.blogspot.com/">
29 January 2010
End of my time with GT
It is a sad state. I just received an e-mail from the GT Dirt Coalition that the team has ended. I was really looking forward to racing for them again this year, but looks like I won't. I really enjoyed racing my GT and showing it off at the races, but I will continue on, probably still racing my GT cause I don't have anything else to ride. Thanks GT for the great ride!
26 January 2010
Couldn't the sun just shine?
It seems like forever since the sun made its presence known to those of us in the midwest. We had a brief spot of sun today, but so far it is filtered through some grey dismal clouds. It is hard to get used to the weather here in the north again. For 5 years we lived in southwest Missouri and this time of year we had pretty good weather, but this snow from Thanksgiving to Memorial Day is too much. Yes I know I exagerate, but it feels true.
We finally got around to buying a new car. This has been a 3 1/2 year process(since our son Corban was born). We did only have a VW Beetle and with the way we have kids we did not have any notice so buying a car was not really possible. For the first six months, we had both kids in the Beetle alone. We finally found a Ford Focus and we had that for almost 3 years, but it never really fit us well. So we decided it was time. It is so nice to have room to move in the car. Traded in the Focus and got ourselves a minivan. Yeah, we are one of those people now. I swore I would never own a minivan, but having two kids has changed my mind on the whole subject. It is a nice Pontiac Montana with the DVD built-in. Can you say road trip?
07 January 2010
Great Expectations
At Church, we started a new small group last night with the younger couples. I call them the younger mainly because of our kids age, but also in their marriages they are fairly young. Joy and I are the oldest with 14 years in, but our kids are 3 and 4, so we fit right in. It was a good start and part of our lesson was talking about the desires we bring into our marriages. Whether it is all of a sudden or over time, when we get announced as man and wife, these desires become our expectations for the marriage.
Expectations can come from anywhere: TV, media, books, parents or others marriages. These sign of an expectation can be, "Well that's not how my parents did things!" Of course it can be any number of ways, but expectations can be detrimental to a relationship. If our spouse does not live up to the expectations we can get conflict. Conflict is just a nice way of saying having a fight. This is an option for expectation not being fulfilled, but it does not always end good unless we know that the conflict is not going to end in someone taking off and saying, "Enough!"
We talked through some of the different solutions for expectation, but we ended on the perspective shift of fighting for our marriages. It is not enough to fight for our marriage. We are in a relationship with another person. We need to fight for the other person, just as the other person should be fighting for us.
It is never easy to have a one-sided relationship, because it is not possible. It's in the definition: one-sided is not a relationship. Our prayer is for our group to become more we centered and fight the temptation to be I. Working together to strengthen our marriages with the strand of 3 cords making sure Christ is the third strand.
06 January 2010
Lost at Sea
I realize this may sound like I really am lost at sea, but really it is just a sea of busyness. I have not written anything in 2 months and right at the moment I do not have the time either to sit and be very creative, but Christmas and new years are over for another year and we have jumped both feet into the January blahs. It seem that this time of year is the hardest for me to get out of bed and do anything simply because of the lack of sun light pouring in my face. It is always nice to have a sunny day to sit; letting the sun energize me. More of these times are needed for me.
For those interested, I was ordained as a minister in the Evangelical Church Alliance this past Sunday. It was a great service and I thank everyone that came out and supported me. Most important was my family. I really need them there for this stepping stone occasion. I also need to thank Pastor Pat for coming out and making it a great Spirit-filled event.
For now, we must all go forth and combat evil doing our best to see God's will and follow His ways.
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