Tips For Holiday Fitness

When the holidays are just in the corner, you should be ready with a plan in order to get away from weight gain. Expecting to comply to your usual diet might be too unrealistic. After all, holidays will never be holidays without all the delicacies. Your hectic holiday schedule can jeopardize your best intentions. You need to plan ahead in order to avoid this. You can burn additional calories by doing interval and strength trainings. You also need to consider some flexibility enhancing exercises. Making sure that your food consumption and physical activity are always in balance is the primary key to avoid holiday weight gain.

Exercises that burn a lot of calories in a short amount of time works well during the holiday season. Interval training is extremely efficient. You will be able to burn a significant amount of calories just by doing 25 to 30 minutes of interval training. You can do intervals on machines. You may also perform aerobics, running or jumping rope. You will have low intensity exercises after a series of high intensity exercises in interval exercises. You can get interval programs from a lot of workout machines like that of the treadmill. You should run for a couple of minutes in high intesity mode. Slow down for the next couple of minutes to recover. You should keep your intensity from hard to very hard. You will be able to burn more calories with interval trainings because of the rapid shifting between high and low exercises.

Compound trainings are time efficient when it comes to strength training. You will have short but effective workouts when you are working three or four muscle groups at a time. Lunges, push ups and squats give you more bang for your buck. In this exercises you can target a lot of muscles with just one exercise. Depending on your program, the exercises should last 20 to 30 minutes. When more muscles are worked, you'll tire out sooner. Give ample time for your muscles to recover. Do these twice a week. Well developed muscles boost your basal metabolic rate. Consequently, you burn more calories even at rest.

Flexibility enhancing exercises can help relieve stress brought about by the holidays. Doing stretches after warming up your muscles improves posture, coordination and balance. It helps you move more freely. Avoid stretching if your muscles are stiff. This will cause injury. If you have any extra time during the holidays, add more exercises to your routine. You can enroll in Yoga or Pilates classes. These exercises are known to elongate the muscles. This results to a sleek physique.

Maximizing weight loss during the holidays is a daunting task. Many factors connive to break your fitness goals. Having a clear exercise plan is necessary if we want to win against weight gain. Following up on the plan ensures success.

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: Ironman ATIS 4000 Inversion Table, Ironman Gravity 1000 Inversion Table, Ironman Gravity 2000 Inversion Table, Ironman ATIS 3500 Inversion Table. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.

Tips for Basic Strength Training

Over the past years, there has been a wide array of strength training strategies to choose from. It has already been confusing regarding which one to follow. A particular stength training plan revolves around the person who is going to utilize it. Your ideal plan is different from the next person. That is because there are other factors that play a role in muscle development. There are, however, principles that hold true to all who want to develop muscle mass and density. Listed here are the things you need to consider.

There are two things needed when building muscles. First is the intensity you are going to set for your workouts. The next one is to let your muscles recover from the stress it underwent. The used muscles in weight lifting to develop muscles undergo stress. This stress, however, is critical if you want that muscle to grow. It gives that muscle the stimulation it needs for a chance to grow new muscle fibers. After working out, the muscles need sufficient rest. According to studies, it would take a week after exercise until themuscles become stronger. That is, if the muscles were worked to failure. This is where intensity plays its role. You have to choose weights that you can barely lift on your last repetition.

High intensity exercises necessitate energy. Studies reveal that energy levels dip after 20 to 30 minutes of high intensity workouts. Choosing your exercises is critical if you want to make those minutes count. You should opt for exercises that target particular muscle groups. These are called compound exercises. Most people are capable of performing three or four high intensity compound exercises in 20 to 30 minutes. When you have successfully performed these exercises, you allow your muscles to rest and recuperate. It would require 48 to 72 hours of rest after a high intensity training.

You have to exercise your muscles to total failure. Your weights should be heavy if you are going for strength and muscle development. One set of exercise can be made up of one repetition. It could be six, eight or twelve. That depends on how far you are in your training program. Muscles are capable of adapting to a particular stimulus given. Over some time, our muscles may be immuned from the stress we put on it. If this happens, tweaking your training program is necessary. You can do this by lifting a heavier weight or increasing the number of repetitions. Heavy weights and low repetition stimulate the fast twitch muscle fibers. These muscle fibers are responsible for strength and size. Lighter weights and high repetition activate the slow twitch fibers which are responsible for endurance.

Applying these principles to your workout routine can make a difference in muscle growth. Intensity and recuperation are crucial if you want to increase muscle mass and density. It also requires hard work and consistency to realize its maximum potential.

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: Ironman ATIS 3500 Inversion Table, Ironman ATIS 4000 Inversion Table, Ironman Gravity 1000 Inversion Table, Ironman Gravity 2000 Inversion Table. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.

Three Best Tips to Lose Fat Easily

Fighting against fat is a concern for everybody. It is alarming to hear that more than half of the entire population is obese or overweight. Numerous health problems are associated as consequences of being obese or overweight. We can take steps in order to solve this problem and prevent health drawbacks in the future. You don't involve just your physical self in the battle against fat. It also involves your attitude towards it. Devising a good plan against fats is a good idea. Executing your plan, nonetheless, depends on you alone. Therefore, having a realistic plan is one of the elements of a winning combination in fighting fats. Your commitment in following through you plans is the other one.

You will lose 25% of your total muscle mass when you reach the age between 20 to 70. In order to stay alive, a pound of your muscles utilize 100 calories each day. You have to build your muscles since it is vital for fat and weight loss. You will be able to increase muscle mass and density with strength training. The more muscles you have, the more calories you burn. You have to be in the gym when you are developing your muscles. You can perform strength training exercises using your body weight, exercise bands dumbbells, kettle bells or machines. You can purchase exercise bands and a few pairs of dumbbell for a mini home gym. Commit to at least 2 strength training sessions per week. This is enough to keep your muscles toned. If you want to build more muscles, you may need at 3 to 4 strength training sessions per week.

Dieting is the accepted solution to weight gain. Going on a diet may work at first. You body shifts to starvation mode when your body percieves that there not enough food. This would mean that your body is conserving energy sources. It slows down metabolism. When it does, caloric expenditure is also decreased. Instead of going on a diet, try decreasing daily food intake by a small amount. This will keep the body from shifting into starvation mode. A 100 too 200 calorie cut may seem small but it all adds up.

You will be able to round up your simple fat loss plan by getting a lot of incidental activities. Modern living does not require much activity. Driving, working on your computer and watching TV are all sedentary activities. Most of our time however, is spent exactly doing these things. Incidental activities are things we do that require us to expend energy. Climb stairs instead of using the elevator. Use your bike to go to work if you can. Try for 100 minutes of incidental activities per week.

Fighting fat may be simple but not easy. If you want better health and a smaller girth, you have to work on it. Consider doing strength training. Subtract a small amount of calories from your daily food intake. Take every opportunity to move. Try doing these 3 things. Once you see improvements, it won't be long before you realize it's all worth it.

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: Ironman ATIS 1000 Inversion Table, Elite Fitness Inversion Table, Elite Fitness IT9300 Inversion Table, FitPro 2010 Deluxe Inversion Table. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.

What Things Your Treadmill Should Have

The most purchased fitness equipment would be the treadmill. It aids in giving you a full body workout and can make your workout more difficult right inside your home. Having one at home would be a great way for you to workout especially if you have no time to go to the gym. Choosing a treadmill can be a challenge because, like any other product in the market, treadmills come in a variety of sizes and options. You can get a clearer vision of what treadmill to purchase if you know the things that a treadmill has to have.

Checking the motor is the number one thing you have to do. This is like the heart of the machine. The treadmill's motor will let you know how much pounding the treadmill can take and how fast it can go. If you will just be walking or jogging, a motor that has a motor with 2 horsepower is enough but if you will be running, then choose a motor with 2.5 horsepower. The size of the belt is the next thing you need to check. This gives you a general idea of how much movement you can do on the treadmill. Average belt sizes range from 17 to 22 inches but there are longer ones too. Do not get anything shorter than 17 inchessince that will restrict your movement and the variety you can do and it makes your workout harder.

Checking the cushion on the treadmill is also important. Even if a lot of treadmills have a cushion, they still have differences. You can actually check it by getting on the treadmill and feeling it. Cushions keeps you from getting injured while you are working out and it keeps the workout comfortable especially for older people. An inclining treadmill is also a good choice. There are treadmills that can be inclined manually and electronically. What this allows you is to give your workout more intensity and variety so either of the 2 will be okay. An incline between 10 to 15 degrees should be okay.

Before getting a treadmill, you should also consider product reviews. Don't jump on the cheapest one you see even if it offers everything you need. Just because it offers a lot of things, it does not mean it is sturdy. You can consider getting a branded treadmill since this will give you what you are paying for but those can be a bit more pricy. You should also look for a product warranty. That way if anything goes wrong, you can get the treadmill fixed or replaced at no extra charge. The warranty should be more than just a few months and covers repairs or replacement of all treadmill parts including the motor.

Everyone wants what they paid for in anything that they purchase. You can use this guide to make a checklist for yourself so you can get the treadmill you need to get the exercise you want.

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: FitPro 2010 Deluxe Inversion Table, Ironman ATIS 1000 Inversion Table, Elite Fitness Inversion Table, Elite Fitness IT9300 Inversion Table. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.

Precautions Before Weightlifting

A lot of women find a buff body on a man to be very attractive. That's why most men do wieghtlifting as a part of their workout. It's a great way to improve your muscles and give you that adonis like physique. For your safety and for you to get grea results, there are some things you have to consider before you begin lifting weights.

The first thing you have to think about is your strength level. Your strength level will determine how heavy you should start lifting. Who wants to start immediately at 40 pounds when all you can do is 1 lift? The reason behind it is for you to avoid injuring yourself. A great thing to do to find out what weight you should start with is to do the 10 rep rule. You basically have to do 10 repetitions of lifting of the weight you want to start with. If you are still okay after that, the weight is too light for you. If before the tenth rep you are tired already, then the weight is too heavy. If you feel the strain after the tenth rep, then the weight is just right. This helps with preventing any future injutries to your muscles as well as help your muscles develop through a weight it can carry.

Make sure that your equipment are prepared and secure. Make sure to check as well if the weightlifting equipment you may have at home that you are using is still in the rght condition. Avoid storing weights in high places for the obvious reason that it can hurt someone. Another suggestion is to have someone with you to act as your spotter. A spotter can ensure your safety when you are doing lifting on a bench. Make sure that you also find a space that has a lot of room for you to move. It's harder to workout in a tight space and that can keep you from doing the workout right and may lead to an accident.

Remember that even if you push yourself over your limit, you would not get bigger muscles. You get hurt. When you're lifting, always listen to your body. Don't rush when you lift. It helps with improving your strength but it makes you more prone to getting hurt. Controlling your overall movement lets you keep the exercise focused on your target muscle. If you rush movements while working out, it can lead to unwanted muscle and joint stress and eventually develop other muscles you are not working on. Working out slowly does not mean that your muscle will develop in the same pace. You will eventually develop your strength and increase the weight you lift gradually when you do weight training.

Weight lifting is a great exercise to develop your body and boost your self esteem. Just be sure that you follow the necessary precautions before you start since this is also a potentially dangerous exercise.

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: Elite Fitness IT9300 Inversion Table, FitPro 2010 Deluxe Inversion Table, Ironman ATIS 1000 Inversion Table, Elite Fitness Inversion Table. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.

The Proper Exercise For Your Body Type

It usually takes a long time for people to see any results when you exercise that's why many find it frustrating. Others give up when they notice results showing up at a much later time. What we don't realize is that we can't just jump in to any exercise that we want. There are some things that we have to consider and the top of that list is identifying your body type. If you know what body type you have, it's easier to choose the right workout for you. That way, you get the best results. Here are some tips to know your body type and the exercise that best suits it.

You are an endomorph if you have a stocky body. An endomorph has a hard time losing weight but gains it fast. Even an endomorph on a healthy diet has this problem. But it's still a priority to eat healthy even if that's the case. It's important to stay on a healthy diet that you can strictly follow if you want your workout to work out. The advantage that this body type has from the others is that you reap more muscular rewards. It takes a longer time though for the results of your workout to appear. The important thing is you have to have an attainable goal that you can gradually pass so you can set a new one. Cardio exercises and weight training best work for this body type.

If you have a hard time gaining weight but find it easy to lose it and have a lean frame, then you are an ectomorph. An ectomorph may be an advantage since they have leaner figures but it is harder for you to gain muscle mass. The best thing to do for an ectomorph to gain weight is to pack on carbohydrates and have at least 3 to 4 meals a day, making sure that you eat closer to afternoon and night time. These are the times that are harder to burn calories. Cardio exercises are a good choice as well but if you want to keep any weight that you gain, try not to over train yourself. If you're going for putting on some muscle mass, weightlifting would be the best exercise for you.

The most ideal body type would probably be the one that gains the same weight it loses. This body type is known as a mesomorph. A mesomorph is the most ideal body type since it is an athletic figure, so to speak. It's not hard for mesomorphs to stay in shape and all they really need is commitment to workout. You can generally eat freely with this body type but keeping it healthy should always be a priority. The workout for mesomorphs are usually cardio exercises and light weight training.

No matter what your body type is, it is important that you maintain a healthy diet and getting enough exercise. Staying in shape is not the only thing working out is good for, it also ensures good health.

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: Elite Fitness Inversion Table, Elite Fitness IT9300 Inversion Table, FitPro 2010 Deluxe Inversion Table, Ironman ATIS 1000 Inversion Table. We invite you to stop by or drop us a line if you have any questions or need help with your fitness equipment selections.

The Benefits of Pilates

The Pilates system is composed of five hundred controlled exercises that intend to stretch, strengthen and balance the body. Pilates utilizes controlled movements in order to tone and strengthen the body. It is performed while using a special Pilates equipment or a mat. Pilates can provide numeorus benefits. This helps you increase your flexibility, strength and lung capacity. This also enhances posture, balance and strength of core. You will be able to elongate the muscles in your body with Pilates. Pilates was originally developed for the rehabilitation of patients during the World War I. These days, it is already known as a very popular form of exercise.

There are two ways in performing Pilates wrokouts. One is with the use of an exercise mat. The other is with the use of machines that tone and strengthen the body. The principle of resistance is being applied in both methods. The Pilates was patterned after a number of exercise methods from all over the world. He particularly based it on the formats of Yoga and the Chinese Martial Arts. Joseph Pilates believed that the mind and body are intertwined. It was on this principle where Pilates was founded. This exercise system requires concentration, precision, control, breathing and flowing movements.

The core strength, and the abdominal and pelvic muscles are enhanced with Pilates. They also improve flexibility of the spine by working the butt and back muscles. Most people compare Pilates with Yoga. In Yoga, you hold a pose. A continuous movement is required in Pilates. Pilates is composed of 500 or more exercises. The whole body is engaged in all these exercises. Pilates relies on proper body alignment, thus using all parts of the body to achieve this. Most of the exercises are only repeated ten times. You will have smooth and controlled movements. Your focus is on body alignment, breathing and precision of movement.

To make the most of a Pilates workout, there are some things to remember. You have to keep your focus. Pilates endeavors to unite your body and mind. That's why Pilates exercises are designed to synchronize with one's breathing. This relieves stress and anxiety. Wear comfortable exercise clothes. Any pain or discomfort during exercise is a signal to stop the activity. Do your exercises smoothly. It should flow like a dance. You have the option to perform the exercises faster. Just keep the fluidity of your movements.

Pilates exercises depend on the precision of your execution. Movements should flow smoothly from one pose to the next. Its benefits to health are considerable. Incorporating Pilates into your fitness regimen can help improve posture, balance and over all health.

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: Concept2 Model E Rowing Machine, Body Champ IT8070 Inversion Table, Body Max IT6000 Inversion Table, Concept2 Model D 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.