Tag: supply energy

Organs in Western and Eastern Medicine

When you visit an acupuncture clinic, you may get treatment and feel much better without ever knowing anything about the philosophy behind acupuncture, and that is fine. However, your acupuncture practitioner knows a vast amount of information that is not only interesting, but will help you maintain your health. One area that is particularly interesting is the Eastern medical idea of organs. We all know what organs are, or at least examples of them: heart, liver, lungs, etc. Chinese medicine has a similar concept in several ways, but it looks at them a bit differently. In both views, an organ is a structure that performs certain clearly stated functions. However, in Chinese medicine, each organ also has a particular kind of energy (called Qi) associated with it. This energy flows in certain pathways around the body (called meridians), and so a lot of attention is given to the relation between different organs based on this circulation of Qi. Also, each organ has certain times during the day when it generates a lot of energy, and other times when it is less active. So, an organ is not just a structure, it is a combination structure-energy package that supports and controls the behavior and energy generation of the organs along the energy meridian.

There are twelve organs important to Chinese medicine. The ones that correspond to organs that we are used to include the lung, liver, stomach, heart, and kidney. Western medicine acknowledges the importance of these. Chinese medicine separates out several for individual study: the small and large intestine are two separate organs, and the pericardium (the sac around the heart) is considered a separate organ. Also, the gall bladder and urinary bladder are important in Chinese medicine, less so in western medicine. And finally, there is the “triple warmer” organ, which is a set of three places in the torso that has a particular Qi energy.

The reasons these organs are important to acupuncture is that a healthy body and mind is supported by a normal flow of Qi, and so knowing the locations of the organs and the behavior of the Qi energy is crucial to knowing and re-establishing the normal flow through acupuncture. Centuries of study have associated certain sets of symptoms with dysfunction of a particular organ: for example, dizziness, rib pain, and blurred vision suggest a liver organ malfunction. By listening to physical, mental, and emotional symptoms, and by physical observation of the patient, the acupuncture practitioner can determine the organs that are affected.

An organ may have an excess of Qi energy, or a deficiency. The acupuncture treatment will consist of stimulating the Qi energy flow using needles to rebalance the energy. For example, if an organ has a deficiency, another organ will be designated as a donor organ to supply energy, and so knowing the energy flow between organs is very important. Just like a clogged fuel line, a small change in the delivery system may see a significant improvement in several different places. In this way, a few acupuncture treatments to replenish energy in a particular organ may see improvement in a number of symptoms.

Enjoy your visits to your acupuncture clinic, and the benefits they provide. But remember, there is a world of information that supports these treatments, and knowing more about this is not only interesting, but also helpful in maintaining optimal health.

Combating Muscle Fatigue

Athletes from amateur to professional level all experience muscle fatigue at some point. The people who tend to suffer the most however are surprisingly those who are less active. Many regard professional athletes as much more likely to have complications with muscle fatigue, however in terms of how the muscles use energy those who are less active than professionals are at a distinct disadvantage.

It is very important to understand that when you are working out, you are slowly wearing down the muscles and burning all of the energy that is provided to the muscles as well. Because of the energy that the muscles burn not being able to be replaced into the muscle quite as quickly as it is burned this causes muscle fatigue to become a problem. Sports medicine professionals are all well knowledgeable in exactly how to help professional athletes reduce the problems they experience from muscle fatigue.

In order to really combat the problems of muscle fatigue and keep it from happening, it is important to train the body to supply energy faster. Muscles receive energy in two different forms. The first is from oxygen, which creates aerobic metabolism; this is simply the process of creating adenosine triphosphate from oxygen. The other method is anaerobic metabolism, which is generated from stores of energy that are stored in the muscles themselves.

The problem that occurs most often in muscle fatigue is that anaerobic metabolism does not store huge amounts of energy and aerobic metabolism is a slower method to deliver energy to the muscles. This creates a problem for many people and results in them suddenly experiencing muscle fatigue. Professional athletes and those who are highly active are trained to help their bodies deliver energy from oxygen, which is the aerobic metabolism.

By training the body to efficiently and effectively deliver larger amounts of oxygen to the body it is possible to increase quickly the amount of energy that the muscles have available to use. This reduces the risk of muscle fatigue and allows a workout to continue for much longer. However, it takes several weeks or even months to train the body to effectively speed the flow of oxygen enough to keep from experiencing muscle fatigue based solely from a supply of aerobic metabolism.

In addition to learning ways to improve the flow of energy, it is also important for athletes to learn ways to reduce the use of muscles as much as possible to conserve energy. It is vital that energy management be controlled for athletes because without the control management many athletes would find themselves unable to workout or even complete their workout. This is never an advisable situation for any athlete; however, it can occur quite often.

In order to combat the symptoms and maximize the benefits of muscle energy it is important to work with your sports medicine physician as well as your trainer to ensure you are training your body to be as effective as possible. If you are careful and work closely with your trainer, coach and sports medicine doctor you can gather the best ways to encourage your body to conserve energy, while still increasing the flow of aerobic metabolism to your muscles.

Working towards an appropriate training method will help ensure that your muscles are as strong as possible and greatly reduce the risk of having a problem with muscle fatigue. There is plenty of professional help who can assist you in creating the best training plan possible to strengthen the muscles. Providing the maximum amount of energy to your muscles possible is the best thing you can do in order to ensure you stay as healthy as possible, with as little risk of injury as possible.

It is very important that you always discuss any concerns that you have with your doctor or coach. They can assist you in assuring that you take the proper precautions to ensure your body is carefully trained. If you have any doubts about your overall health, it is essential to talk to your doctor immediately.

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