Posts Tagged ‘workout’
Get More Out of Your Workout
Thursday, December 15th, 2011
Probably the busiest place in the gym is the cardio room where you can see people sweating it out all hours of the day on treadmills, elliptical machines and stationary bikes sometimes for 30 minutes or more at a time. For many, this IS their workout with maybe a few stretches thrown in somewhere in the session. While it’s definitely better than doing nothing at all, a gym membership can offer much, much more. (more…)
Fast Track Your Fitness
Thursday, September 22nd, 2011
What are most people are interested in when they join a gym? Mostly they join a gym in an effort to look better and if that comes with the added bonus of feeling better and living a healthier life, all the better.
Unfortunately, however, a lot of people give up on going to the gym regularly after about a month. At the start, they’re very diligent and work out at least an hour every second day (some work out for two or more hours every day), they sweat, eat better (sometimes) but… no supermodel body appears in the mirror and this can be disheartening – the change from frumpy to fabulous is often way too slow.
Could there be a reason many people don’t lose much fat, change shape or get ripped and buff despite religiously going to the gym and working out? Yes, there is. It comes down to WHAT is being done at the gym. WHAT is being done is actually more important than how long it’s done for. In other words, QUALITY is more important than QUANTITY (although quantity certainly does come into it – having a great workout once a month isn’t going to do much). There are people spending maybe 15 to 30 minutes a day working out and getting better results (burning more fat, losing weight, sculpting and toning) than other people who work out for a couple of hours at a time every day of the week.
It’s possible that the people spending less time but getting great results might be doing what’s known as high intensity interval training. It’s been around since 1937 but up until now, has been used primarily by athletes and not regular people. There are lots of ways to do it and a good personal trainer is probably your best bet at getting the most out of it but the idea is that you exercise at a very high intensity (if you’re running, you’d sprint as fast as you can) for between 30 seconds to a minute then you’d slow it down (jog) until you recover a bit, but not all the way, then you’d up the intensity again.
You could try it next time you’re on the stationary bike, stepper or treadmill – instead of sitting on a set speed, try playing with the effort and speed levels – increasing then decreasing, increasing then decreasing and so on. If you do it right you can fast-track your fitness. Remember, it IS intense, so make sure you have a doctor’s OK before adding it to your routine.
Tracey Thatcher
8 Good Reasons Being Fit is Worth the Effort
Sunday, August 28th, 2011
People who are fit have higher energy levels. Fitness offers you increased and sustained energy levels in order to perform best at your work during the day and even into the night.
People who exercise regularly are 43% less likely to suffer from colds and sore throats according to a study at the Appalachian State University in 2010.
Being fit can increase self confidence. This self-confidence allows you to challenge yourself and aim for higher levels of achievement in your career.
Fitness helps you to take on more leadership roles. Due to the various positive benefits of a fit lifestyle, a fit person tends to become a good leader.
People who are fit are better able to set their goals and achieve them.
Generally, fit individuals feel good. They can balance their physical and emotional feelings, which can lead to a more positive attitude in general.
Fitness helps you to experience less stress. Regular physical activity diminishes the physical and emotional tensions that life and work can bring, allowing you to focus on what’s important.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the estimated annual medical cost of cardiovascular disease or stroke, cancer, diabetes and obesity is $423.2 billion! Most of these diseases can be prevented by being fit—exercising and eating correctly.
Tracey Thatcher
No Time to Work Out?
Sunday, July 31st, 2011
The main reason most people give for not exercising is, “I just don’t have the time.” It seems like a fair reason for being unable to get into shape and it usually stops others from insisting further but let’s look at just how much time someone really has to invest to start getting fit and into shape.
With a small amount of quality effort invested, you can get huge dividends! Let’s look at some facts.
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Exercise Myths Exposed!
Tuesday, May 31st, 2011
When it comes to exercise, there is a lot of contradictory information. It’s confusing for many people who’d like to know what to do to really get into shape. This article addresses some of the more frequent questions people have asked us as trainers. Hopefully you will find the answers and additional information helpful in your own quest for fitness success.
QUESTION 1: Are sit-ups and crunches the best way to reduce belly fat?
One pound of human fat has about 3,500 calories. Sit-ups burn only 3 to 5 calories per minute. That means (if we use 5 calories per minute) it takes 700 minutes of sit-ups to burn one pound of belly fat. A regular program of abdominal exercises will tighten the muscles and make your waist look smaller but the layer of fat over those muscles won’t change unless you start putting fewer calories into your body than you burn exercising.
ANSWER 1: No, the best way to reduce belly fat is to reduce the amount of food you eat so that your body has to burn some of its stored fat while maintaining a regular exercise program.
QUESTION 2: Is the morning the best time of the day to exercise?
A study was done in 1990 with one half of the subjects exercising in the morning and the other half exercising in the afternoon. Improvements in physical fitness, disease risk factors and psychological health were the same for both groups.
ANSWER 2: Good news, it doesn’t matter what time of the day you exercise.
QUESTION 3: Is aerobic fitness more important than muscular fitness for health?
This is a myth dating back to the 1960s that said brisk walking, jogging or cycling was enough to maintain good fitness and health. What we know now is that these aerobic exercises need to be supplemented with exercises directed at muscle strengthening (for instance, weights and strength training). Muscular fitness is critical for prevention of osteoporosis. The American Heart Association (a long-time advocate of aerobic exercises) has been recommending strength training for people with and without cardiovascular disease since 2000, “The potential benefits, not only to cardiovascular health but also to weight management and the prevention of disability and falls, are becoming more widely appreciated.”
The 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans state that, “adults also should do muscle-strengthening activities that are moderate or high-intensity and involve all major muscle groups on two or more days a week, as these activities provide additional health benefits.”
ANSWER 3: No, aerobic fitness is not more important than muscular fitness for health. You need to also do strength training for good health.
Having muscle mass becomes more critical the older you get. Strength training helps improve balance (reducing the incidence of falls), it naturally strengthens bones to overcome osteoporosis and it fights the natural muscle wasting that occurs as the body ages so you can continue to stand up straight and get yourself up from a sitting position quickly and easily.
These are but a few of countless questions people have about health, fitness and exercise. Joining the gym is a great first step towards getting into shape and living a healthy life so make the most of the facilities on offer as part of your membership and don’t be too shy about asking questions.
Tracey Marashlian
writer for www.gofitnow.com
