Archive for category Fitness
Top 7 Time Wasters At The Gym
Posted by Patch Adams in Fitness on March 17, 2009
In case you hadn’t noticed, it’s nearly impossible to set aside the time you need at the gym each day. It seems there are always more “important” things to be doing. When you do get into the gym, avoid these 7 time wasters.
1) Believe it or not, one of the first things that wastes your time in the gym, is spending too much time at the gym. I realize that may not make sense, but it’s true. You don’t necessarily need to do cardio for 90 minutes everyday. Once you go beyond what your body needs, you’re wasting time.
2 – No more long rest periods between exercises. Usually this happens when you see a friend and you spend 10 minutes chatting about fitness. Talking about getting fit isn’t going to help you get fit. Don’t take as many breaks and instead schedule some time over coffee when you’re both of you are away from the gym.
3 – Plan your workouts. Make sure you know what exercises you’re going to do, how many reps you’ll do of each and how much weight you’re going to use. If you’re constantly trying to figure things out on the fly, you’ll double your time in the gym.
4. Not having a backup plan- There is nothing more frustrating then going to the gym with your plan in hand and someone is already using the machine! Having a backup plan ensures you spend more of your time in the gym exercising and less time feeling frustrated. If someone is using the chest machine, no big deal: Do push-ups instead.
5 – Get intense! Push yourself further than you thought you could go. Physical gains don’t happen when you’re barely pushing yourself. You need to be going to failure on almost every exercise. Even if you’re just building strength and have no interest in bulk, you should still work to failure, just at a higher level. Remember, bulk comes between 8 and 10 reps and strength comes when you’re doing between 12 and 15.
6) Form is vital. Doing too many “cheat” reps will kill your time in the gym. Focus on the right form and you’ll benefit greatly from every rep. Each time you do an exercise wrong, that’s one more wasted rep.
7. Not seeking the advice of a professional- If all the top athletes have coaches and professional trainers, don’t you think you could use their advice? Having a trainer will help you to get further along in your training then trying to do it by yourself. He or she will help you to use proper form, technique, rep ranges, tempo, rest intervals and exercise combinations to maximize your results and minimize your frustrations
I’m sure you didn’t relate to all seven items. You may only relate to one of them. If that’s the case, fix that one time and gain back some time for other areas in your life. If you could relate to them, focus on a few at a time and lean out your gym time while you lean out your body.
Landscape, Gardening Chores And Your Health
Posted by Sal Haneson in Fitness on February 27, 2009
When you think about gardening thoughts of tasty fruits and vegetables come to mind. Or maybe you imagine a garden full of beautiful flowers. Have you ever thought about all of the exercise that goes along with gardening?
You might be asking yourself, how much exercise can really be gained from gardening? When you begin to think about all of the work that goes into preparing a garden you come to the realization that gardening can be quite rigorous. From digging holes to pulling weeds, a lot of exercise can occur from daily gardening.
You may not be an exercise fanatic. In fact, you may dread the gym and hate the sight of a treadmill. The good news is that you don’t have to be at the gym to exercise. Take up gardening. The great thing about getting your exercise from gardening is that you will not only see physical results, but you will also reap the benefits of what you have planted.
Because gardening can be strenuous make sure you stretch before working that green thumb. Many gardeners make the mistake of spending too much time hunched over. This is very bad for your back. Many times in the garden you will be lifting potting soil and other heavy objects. That’s why it’s imperative that you stratch so as not to hurt yourself.
One of the best exercises in the garden is weeding and pruning. You will burn a ton of calories pulling those weeds. You should be careful to take breaks if you are bending over all day.
Exercise can also happen in the lawn. Mowing the grass is a great way to get some exercise. If out have a self-propelled mower try to just push the mower instead. Push mowing is wonderful exercise. If you are seeking a cardio workout, pushing a lawn mower for an hour or so will really get the heart pumping. You will also feel the burn in you arms, legs and chest.
You can’t go wrong using gardening as a way to get in shape or lose some weight. You will have a great time and end up being a healthier person because of it. And before you know it, you’ll have a healthy lush landscape to be proud of, along with your new waistline.
Is It Cheaper To Get Liposuction In Los Angeles?
Posted by Mark Tuttle in Fitness on February 23, 2009
The price you pay for liposuction in Los Angeles depends on a lot of things. If you are looking at getting a liposuction procedure, there are some things you need to think about. Usually, liposuction is not considered life threatening and because of the cosmetic nature of the procedure your insurance may not cover it.
Because most elective medical procedures do not get covered by your health insurance, you must be in a position to be able to afford the entire cost. However, the procedure can be one that works well for someone who just needs to remove stubborn fat in a few areas. The program should not be considered a fat loss program, and should be paired with a lifestyle change and sensible diet.
One thing to keep in mind is that price is not the only thing to consider. While it is important and you want to pay something that is fair, just looking for the cheapest price can be a recipe for disaster.
When you are talking to different doctors, it is not uncommon to get pricing that is slightly different. However you should see that the quotes are all generally in the same price range. If you come across someone who offers you a price significantly lower than the entire marketplace it is an indication that you may end up with a poor procedure.
Even though the cost of liposuction is not cheap, and now a days there are pricing and plans that make a lot of sense. While it is difficult to say exactly how much it will cost because there are so many different factors and everyone is different at stake a look at some ballpark figures.
In the US it is not uncommon for prices to range from $2-$3000. There are cases that the cost has gone higher than $8,000. And, in some areas are no to charge more than $20,000. The really high prices typically are associated with services and amenities paired with a liposuction procedure.
The following are a few very quick things that will affect the price of a liposuction procedure in Los Angeles. The kind of doctor you pick makes a difference in how much you’re going to pay. Secondly depending on the location of the liposuction clinic will also depend on how much you pay. The higher rent districts will charge more for the procedure.
The part of body that you’re going to have liposuction on will affect the cost is also has to do with how easy difficult it is to get at the part of the body. The procedure the doctor uses in the liposuction will have an effect on the cost there are more expensive and less expensive ways to do with liposuction.
How much fat is remove affects the price. This is because more fat takes more time to remove, and you are paying for the time in the hospital. Lab testing and hospital resources all go up if there’s more fat to be removed.
Believe it or not your gender also will affect the price. It has a lot to the different kinds of tissues that are in males and females and the types and access it takes to get to the fat. Lastly, anesthesia has a big effect on the cost of liposuction.
The bottom line is before you look at price make sure you’re getting a qualified doctor in a qualified hospital for the procedure. Once you’ve made sure that all of the options a look at are on the same playing field then look at how much it’s going to cost to get your Los Angeles liposuction procedure done. Going on price alone may have disastrous results.
Achieving Your Fitness Resolutions This Year
Posted by Nate Rifkin in Fitness on February 20, 2009
Here’s 5 things successful goal-setters do that can help you finally get in shape this year:
1. Keep your goals to yourself.
You don’t want other people who aren’t as committed to their health to bring you down with their negative energy. If the wrong person finds out you want to lose a few inches from your waist or exercise every day, this could happen. Don’t let it.
2.Figure out WHY you want to accomplish your goal.
If you want to drop 20 extra pounds, think about why. And dont think this is obvious stuff either. What you need to know is what personally motivates you and gets you emotionally involved. Is it because you want to look better? Have more energy? Attract a new mate? Re-attract and old one? Figure it out.
3. Remind yourself of this reason when you lose motivation.
Whenever you start slacking off after a few weeks or you just don’t feel like putting the effort in anymore, recall your reason for making this goal. Set your sights on that and you can find the power to keep moving forward.
4. Don’t do this alone.
Your habits reflect the habits of those around you. Getting around healthy people will make achieving your goals easier. Being around unhealthy people gets you up for failure.
5. If you screw up, don’t worry about it.
If you don’t exercise as consistently for a few days, relax. If you eat a few too many cheat meals, don’t worry. Feeling bad won’t do any good. Just keep moving forward and you’ll be all the better for it.
If you take advantage of these five secrets, 2009 WILL be the year you achieve the body of your dreams.
What is Wonderful about Whey Protein?
Posted by Stephen Fasenfeld in Fitness on February 19, 2009
There are countless advantages to adding whey protein to your diet, the most obvious being to promote the growth of lean muscles. Using this supplement is going to give you a lot of other benefits that you might not know about. Here are some of the lesser known benefits of whey protein.
One benefit of whey protein that everyone is going to like, both bodybuilders and non-bodybuilders, is the fact that whey protein helps aid in weight loss. If you are looking to get rid of that extra flab around your stomach or you have a lot of weight to lose, whey protein is going to help you get if off.
Whey protein is going to also give your body (and your bones) extra calcium. Because whey protein is made out of dairy products, it is going to not only keep your body healthier, but the calcium is going to aid in weight loss, as well. If you dont need to lose any weight, you can still add whey protein to your diet, because it is going to only help you lose weight, not lose the weight for you.
Whey protein is wonderful because it is going to help keep the blood sugar levels in your body stable. Bodybuilders need to have energy available when they are lifting, so having their blood sugar levels stay consistent is going to be important. It can be really dangerous if your sugar levels drop while you are power lifting. Whey protein is going to make sure that your body gets the extra energy that you need, when you need it. Non-weightlifters are going to be helped by whey protein helping their bodies to know whether or not they really are hungry. If you have low blood sugar, you will often eat something sweet and unhealthy to get your levels back to normal. Whey protein is going to help out by keeping your blood sugar levels stable, eliminating sugar highs and lows.
Of course, the biggest advantage of using whey protein is going to be because it helps to grow lean muscle mass. Bodybuilders primarily use whey protein to get stronger and stronger. Those people who arent bodybuilders can expect whey to help get them toned up.
For intense bodybuilders, you are probably going to need about one gram of protein for each pound on your body. That means if you weigh 100 pounds, you are going to want between 90 and 100 grams of protein everyday. This is going to be difficult to do without supplementing protein. Whey protein is one of the best ways to get the protein that you need to keep your progress going. Non-bodybuilders are going to need less protein everyday, but they are probably still going to have to supplement their protein unless their diet is really good. Most people dont get enough protein – both bodybuilders and non-bodybuilders. Because you arent getting enough protein, you are going to find that you are tired and dont have enough energy to get through your workout.
Getting whey protein in your diet is going to make all of the benefits easy to see and make the side effects seem like nothing. If you need a protein supplement, whey protein is going to be a good supplement.
Apnea and Dieting: How to Make Weight Loss Easier
Posted by Parker Millstone in Fitness on February 17, 2009
Struggling with weight loss can be frustrating, but it is miserable when youre also tired all the time. For people with apnea, there is a scientific connection between weight gain and sleep loss.
Yes, sleep is necessary for not only mental focus and physical stamina but is essential to regulate your weight!
If you find it practically impossible to stop gaining weight then you might have a hidden sleep problem, such as apnea that is harming your body’s hormone levels and causing your weight gain.
Sleep apnea related weight gain is all too common. It is estimated that 80 million Americans live with undiagnosed sleep apnea today.
Trying to lose weight without treating your apnea is a losing battle. Your body needs deep sleep night after night to regulate healthy functions, maintain your metabolism and to lose weight.
If you have apnea and are not regularly using CPAP, then you are almost certainly going to gain weight.
Here’s some things to understand about the connection between apnea and weight gain:
1. When your body feels tired it automatically craves fuel in the form of sugar, carbohydrates and other foods with a high glycemic index. In a study published by the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, people with the most severe cases of sleep disorders also had the highest intake of calories, protein, cholesterol and saturated fat.
2. In a report from the Quebec Family Study, people who regularly only get five to six hours of sleep per night are 35% more likely to gain up to 11-pounds of fat over six years compared to a person who sleeps between seven to eight hours per night.
3. It turns out that the best appetite suppressant is a good night’s sleep. Poor quality sleep causes levels of the hormone ghrelin to severely increase in your gastrointestinal tract. This hormone is in charge of making you feel hungry. You increase your levels of ghrelin every time you get a bad night’s sleep.