Practicing yoga for at least three hours a week for three months reduced the fatigue and inflammation in breast cancer survivors, compared with survivors who did no yoga, researchers reported.

And the more yoga, the greater the change.

At six months three months after the formal yoga had ended fatigue was 57 percent lower in the women who had done yoga, compared with those who had not. Inflammation, measured by blood tests, was reduced by up to 20 percent, said the researchers, from the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center.

We also think the results could easily generalize to other groups of people who have issues with fatigue and inflammation, Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, the lead researcher and a psychiatry and psychology professor at Ohio State, said in a statement.

Two hundred breast cancer survivors were divided into two groups: one that took two 90-minute Hatha yoga classes a week, and one that did no yoga. The yoga practitioners also were encouraged to do additional yoga at home, and did so an average of almost 25 minutes a day. The women were yoga novices.

The researchers noted that yoga can be tailored to various abilities the women in the study were ages 27 to 76 and has been shown to help with mood and sleep among cancer survivors.

The study did not include aerobic exercise, and the participants did not lose weight.

And that, Kiecolt-Glaser said by telephone, led to a surprise. Other research had shown that inflammation a mechanism for loss of function and disability was unlikely to be reduced without weight loss. But she said there could be several reasons why her subjects had reduced inflammation without losing weight, including that yoga helps sleep and stress, which are associated with inflammation.

The women practiced Hatha yoga, a restorative form that was recommended by an expert in Columbus, Ohio, Kiecolt-Glaser said.

Breast cancer treatment can be exhausting, and that can lead to less activity, which in turn can lead to a decreased capacity for activity in what Kiecolt-Glaser called a downward spiral.

Excerpt from:
Study: Yoga helps cancer survivors lessen fatigue

Youre bundling up for a chilly morning run. Or about to climb on the elliptical for a high-energy workout. Or warming up before a weightlifting session.

Whats the first thing you reach for?

Your earbuds, naturally.

Studies have shown that listening to music that fits the cadence of what youre doing running, cycling, aerobics makes you work harder.

The metronome aspect, the synchronization of movement to music, is the most important, says Carl Foster, director of the Human Performance Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin at Lacrosse.

The idea of synchronizing movement to a beat is nothing new, he points out: In Roman galleys, the drumbeat drove the pace of the rowers. But there is also the distraction and arousal that music brings, Foster says. They both matter, but its unclear how much. Theres definitely more buried in music that affects us. But we dont know exactly how to tease it out.

Finding your pace

So, how to pick the right music?

If you want to make a workout mix based on tempo or BPM, for beats per minute various Web sites, including http://www.songbpm.com, can help you determine the tempo of your favorite music to see whether it fits your intended activity. Or you can go to sites such as http://www.motiontraxx.com that offer playlists at a certain BPM for running and cycling as well as other activities. Other sites include http://www.workoutmusic.com and http://www.powermusic.com.

Music is positive energy, says Deekron the Fitness DJ Krikorian, who produces fitness playlists for MotionTraxx. So when I put together playlists, I look for intensity, positive feeling and cohesiveness.

Read the rest here:
Music: Your best workout buddy

In one of my earlier articles I had mentioned that I had started the excercise of reading one Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)(BRK.B) shareholder letter each day. So while reading these letters there is one concept that I've been coming across often and that is the concept of "owner-oriented thinking."

I think Buffett puts tremendous importance to this concept.

In this article I'll be sharing my three learnings about owner-oriented thinking:

1. Where all does Buffett apply owner-oriented thinking. 2. How do we gain an owner-oriented mindset. 3. Why we need to have an owner-oriented mindset and what is its use.

1. Where does Buffett apply owner oriented thinking?

Shareholders

Buffett in his letters mentions that they want shareholders with an owner-oriented mentality that is they should think of the investment as a business and not a piece of paper. Even when they own a small portion of the outstanding business they should think and behave as the full owners of the business would.

This idea makes so much sense to me because when I had invested a portion of my portfolio in one of the retail companies, I used to feel very happy whenever they would open a new store. I used to go every weekend to see if the shop was full. When I saw the store crowded I used to feel happy, and whenever there were few people I used to wonder what was happening.

If it was not for Buffett and Peter Lynch I probably would not have thought about investments in this way.

See the original post here:
How to Gain an Owner-Oriented Mindset Like Buffett