Your Other Heart

 

 As a devoted Jump Roper, I knew and experienced the benefits of jumping rope from improving cardiovascular and pulmonary health to helping with circulation.  The combination of the jump rope and running helped me overcome asthma. The body has a miraculous ability to heal itself given a chance. 

One of the benefits of jumping rope is that it helps tone and you arms and legs, especially your calves.  I learned recently that the Calves are known as the second heart due due to the ability to pump blood from the lower part of the legs back to the heart. The stronger the calves the better your blood flow and the more efficient your heart  Anything you can do to help your heart will naturally improve your health. 

Be sure to stretch you calve muscles along with your achilles tendons. A little jump rope can go a long way to improving your overall health, and not only does it benefit you primary heart but your secondary heart also. 

 To Your Health,

 Coach K

 

Jack Nicklaus And The Masters

 I love a good golf story.  Jack Nicklaus has won the Masters Tournament a record breaking six times. The first time being in 1963. The Masters winner is awarded the iconic Green Jacket but in Jack's case they did not have a 43R on hand for the ceremony so they used a 46L coat. 

The following year member Tom Dewey's jacket, former governor of New York, was in in Jack's locker and fit perfectly. 35 years later in 1998 while Jack was having lunch with Augusta National chairman Jack Stephens and told him he did not have his own Green Jacket the chairman was stunned.  He directed Nicklaus to go to the Pro Shop and be measured for his own Green Jacket. 

After Jack won the last of his six Green Jackets in 1986, he was finally actually able to receive his own proper Green Jacket. 

 

With Love,

Coach K

Allergies and Cocunut Oil

Spring has sprung!  Trees are in bloom and grass is growing.  This beautiful time of the year is dreaded by million due to allergies.  And after being a long time sufferer of allergies and mouth breathing, I stumbled on an incredible discovery. To state it simply Coconut oil. 

For years I wore contact lenses and during allergy season would literally rub my itchy eyes until my contacts came out.  Side note if I didn't have my contact case, I would just put my contacts in my mouth. 

Coconut oil is an antifungal and antibacterial substance due to its high concentration of lauric acid. After learning that coconut oil is a good natural moisturizer and can help heal cuts and scrapes while again providing bacterial infection protection...poetic eh, I decided to try just using the oil in my nostrils. I simply swipe a dab in each nostril of my nose. 

I have been doing this for years now and my experience has been incredible. One litmus test is that during the Covid years I worked in a manufacturing facility and had to work  onsite daily in a closed environment. And while various coworkers went out with illness including most employees at the plant, I was able to work throughout without any sickness or missed time.  

My thinking is that most pathogens come in through the sinuses and the coconut oil acts as a barrier keeping out the bad guys. I've also had a similar experience with my allergies and breathing.  I would regularly wake up after a night under the ceiling fan and sneeze four or five times and have a scratchy throat and itchy eyes, and of course this was exaggerated during allergy season in the spring and fall. 

Coconut oil has helped clear all these issues.  I'm able to breathe through my mouth while sleeping, I wake up without the sneezing or itchy eyes. And the ironic thing is our son wakes up sneezing every morning.  I just yell coconut oil! 

The great thing about coconut oil is that it is natural and inexpensive.  Give it a try and be patient it could be just what the doctor ordered. 

To Your Health,

Coach K