Paradigm Shift - A Healthy Lifestyle

It's almost New Year's eve. Right about now, everyone's new year's resolution is probably filled up. There are probably resolutions present last year that are still present this year. In your lists, getting a healthy lifestyle is probably present every new year's. I recall a story I read some time ago. During the early part of January, an irate gym member went to complain to its manager. He asked why there could not provide enough parking space when they ask gym members to pay a lot. Even the 16 treadmills were not adequate because each had a long queue. The manager remained calm and even laughed while telling him that he should give it a month. In less than a month, the number of people attending the gym will gradually disappear. In a month's time, the people attending the gym gradually decreased. The ones who disappeared are people who probably made a resolution to exercise and began to do it. But soon, they quit.

Honestly, I am only guessing their reason for abandoning the gym. They probably chose another way to realize their goal but that's doubtful. They probably have an excuse or two for their actions, if I asked them why. The most common excuse would probably be I was too busy, I had no time. I think that's not true though. I think it's probably because they were not truly committed. Those who are committed make sure they have time for their commitment. They give and pour themselves in it. These people probably needed a shift of paradigm.

This is not an easy task. Why? Because it can get messy. You must find a way to defeat your old way of thinking. Then, you replace it with a new one, a more enlightened one. You must have a strong and firm reason for what you're doing. There must be an enduring reason for your commitment. It must move you to action and motivate you to continue. It must jolt you to action. It is impotent if it cannot make you act on it because in the end you will only fail.

Fighting your own paradigm is like fighting with yourself. You must be vigilant because sometimes we fail to notice the little seemingly innocent acts that lead us back to our old way of thinking or habits. For example, going to the gym. Choosing to participate or not in the gym after work is a daily battle. It is so easy to excuse yourself from it but once you start, you will soon end up skipping it altogether. If you decide to exercise, eat the right food, get enough sleep and refrain from bad habits like smoking and drinking. Then, you must keep on renewing your commitment to it and choose it everyday.

null Acquiring a healthy lifestyle is a broad and challenging task but it is not an impossible one. Shifting from your unhealthy lifestyle to a healthy one will allow you to have a more fulfilling and longer life.

Over at the FitnessArmory.com, you can let our expert advice on fitness and equipment reviews help you create the perfect home gym but without all the huge costs. We have the exclusive reviews on all your favorite brands and models to help you get in shape, get healthy and look great. Recent product reviews include: Stamina 15-0200 InTone Folding Recumbent Bike, ProRower H2O RX-750 Rowing Machine, ProRower H2O RX-850 Rowing Machine, Stamina 15-0120 InStride Cycle XL. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.

How To Tone Muscles Properly

When people do strength training, they are doing either one of two things. They can be concentrating on bulking up their muscles, or they can wind up with well-toned, leaner muscles. What is the difference? Don't they operate on the same principle of using weights to give pressure to different muscle groups? Once you understand the specific way that muscle toning is achieved, you can do it even by yourself at home. All you need will be to acquire the weights needed and follow simple guidelines.

First, understand that muscle toning happens when the muscles are given light weights done over several reps. Five pounds is usually the dividing line between light and heavy weights. Weights heavier than five pounds will tend to bulk up muscle for first time users. Therefore the important thing to remember for toning muscles is to lift light weights many times, usually at three sets minimum. You can lift a three-pound dumbbell twenty times on one arm, then give it a quick rest, and do the cycle again for two more times.

Then, understand why muscles need time to rest in between workouts. If you do strength training to tone your muscles, be sure to have a one-day interval between workout sessions. Toning will only happen once the muscles have the chance to recuperate and rebuild themselves. If skip the 24-hour interval, you risk damaging your muscles by straining them too much. This is the main reason why health clubs usually schedule strength training days alternated with cardiovascular exercise days, because it gives muscles time to rest and mend themselves. This is an important principle to remember so that you get the results you want.

Finally, there is such a thing as a right and wrong way to train your muscles. If you are working out at home and have had no experience with a personal trainer, by all means, do some research. Illustrations of how to hold a dumbbell correctly are found in fitness magazines, and you should have no trouble imitating them. To be even more sure, the Internet is full of video clips showing how to do them properly. Not doing things properly can pose injury risk to muscles and joints. As such the importance of proper form in exercise cannot be underemphasized.

Once you understand these simple tips to tone your muscles effectively, you will be able to enjoy many months and years developing a firm and lean muscular system. On a side note, when you have toned muscles, you can also be assured of added calorie-burning even when you are not moving! Now, isn't that a good enough perk to encourage you to get on with lightweight strengths training?

Over at the FitnessArmory.com, you can let our expert advice on fitness and equipment reviews help you create the perfect home gym but without all the huge costs. We have the exclusive reviews on all your favorite brands and models to help you get in shape, get healthy and look great. Recent product reviews include: Stamina 15-0120 InStride Cycle XL, Stamina 15-0200 InTone Folding Recumbent Bike, ProRower H2O RX-750 Rowing Machine, ProRower H2O RX-850 Rowing Machine. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.

Involve Your Children In Exercise At An Early Age

Childhood obesity is a prevailing issue in American families today. Others think that having fat and cuddly children are so nice to look at. The truth is, the effect of excess fat on the body does not really depend on age. What fat does to mature persons has also the same effect on children. With regards to this matter, it may be wiser to start exercise at an early age. However, you may have several considerations in planning the exercises for your children. Here are some advices to help you out with that.

So when is it safe to let your preschoolers exercise? Once children start crawling around the house, that is a perfect time to let them exercise. However, the kind of exercise they will do should also be modified according to age. What you are planning to do with them should be based upon their capacity. It is advisable that toddlers get at least 30 minutes of daily exercise. You can let them dance or run around but be sure to monitor what they are doing or where they are doing these things.

It is also advisable if you do the exercise along with them. When they are with an adult, they have the instinct to imitate the action of that adult. Talking about exercise, the fat that you are involved will increase your child's interest to what you are doing. This will make them participate in the exercise easily. Aside from that, you can also be directly supervising the things that they are doing. It will even improve your bonding with your child when you are exercising with them. Apart from that, you may also have a load of exercise for yourself.

Finally, you need to keep your activities interesting. One good way to do that is to use props or music that they like. Another thing you can do is to have a different exercise activity every day. If your child has a very short attention span, these tips will help you keep him/her interested in exercise. However, you need to consider the safety of the things that you want your child to do, or use, so that no harm will come to them in the process. You would also have to provide an environment that is child-friendly.

After you do simple 2 - 6 year old exercises with your kids, you can continue supporting their interest by letting them join you in adult exercises. However, you may need home fitness equipment such as a treadmill or a stationary bicycle in doing that since going to the gym is not really appropriate for their age. Remember, it is important to let your children start exercising at an early age and continue to support them as they grow older.

Over at the FitnessArmory.com, you can let our expert advice on fitness and equipment reviews help you create the perfect home gym but without all the huge costs. We have the exclusive reviews on all your favorite brands and models to help you get in shape, get healthy and look great. Recent product reviews include: ProRower H2O RX-850 Rowing Machine, Stamina 15-0120 InStride Cycle XL, Stamina 15-0200 InTone Folding Recumbent Bike, ProRower H2O RX-750 Rowing Machine. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.

How To Take Good Care Of Fitness Equipment

Whereas many people are interested in buying exercise equipment for home use, a very small percentage of them know how to take good care of them. This results in many users having no choice but to push them away into the garage even after only a short time of usage. Some users would simply forget all about them, or others may look for repair or replacement choices. But generally, when you know how to maintain them, it will save you a lot of headaches, not to mention a lot of money.

First, understand how important it is to keep your equipment indoors. Most will be rusted when used outdoors where they can get rained on. If bolts or other vital parts succumb to rust, they will tend to work lower than its full potential. If you really cannot avoid exercising outdoors, a wise idea would be to use items like a jump rope or an actual bicycle.

Next, even if you do keep your equipment indoors, it would not hurt to run a cloth over them once in a while to keep dust at bay. You would not want any malfunction due to dust and dirt. If you clean them properly and regularly, you will get to extend their useful life and make your investment even more worthwhile. If you can grease sticky gears or similar components, feel free.

Get on them based on what the manual says. This is very critical. Those directions given by the manufacturer work for a purpose. Following directions will mean you will get longer years of enjoyment compared to when you ignore them. Of course, most exercise paraphernalia are pretty straightforward, such as treadmills, steppers, and stationary bikes, but other more complicated machines such as the elliptical may come with special instructions. Consider reading through the entire instruction manual before you begin using the equipment.

When you realize these basic foundational truths, you will be able to enjoy them more from having them maximized. This will translate into your getting to use them more often. Perhaps it's a psychological effect, although it may also be because the machine will indeed work much smoother as you maintain it properly. You can rest easy knowing that your machines will not end up in the garage as soon as the neighbor's, and you can still enjoy many workout days with them for the years to come.

Over at the FitnessArmory.com, you can let our expert advice on fitness and equipment reviews help you create the perfect home gym but without all the huge costs. We have the exclusive reviews on all your favorite brands and models to help you get in shape, get healthy and look great. Recent product reviews include: ProRower H2O RX-750 Rowing Machine, ProRower H2O RX-850 Rowing Machine, Stamina 15-0120 InStride Cycle XL, Stamina 15-0200 InTone Folding Recumbent Bike. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.