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Mistreating cardio disciplines

September 16, 2008 by Dheny  
Filed under Fitness, Weight Loss

Cardio workouts - More often than not, we are in dark about how to follow the regimen of cardio workouts. Cardio workouts are there to help us lose weight and give a quality of tone to the muscles. If it’s followed in a wrong way they do not help us amass the benefits that they could otherwise.

Cardio is meant to enhance the heart rate, pump blood faster through the body and subsequently improve circulation; provide more oxygen to the nerves and thus achieve in effect, a real build-up of metabolism. Thus it is wise to cater to the cardio-specifics. Heart rate should only be enhanced till a point, it should not be a no-holds- barred approach leading to heart-frights. This is generally the mistake people make and hence end up tiring themselves badly. The heart beats faster than what arteries can cope up with, in terms of delivering oxygen and hence all the oxygen is siphoned off to the brain leaving us with no choice but to recoup via a sound sleep. This simply ruins our cause.

Sometimes we overdo the cardio to such degrees that the body begins to sweat profusely. In such cases as these, water loss occurs in huge amounts. This is an apparent weight loss but means nothing in totality. All it does is make us eligible for water intake, failing which we tend to get dehydrated. People suffer diverse strokes during cardio ignoring these basics; something so fruitful is maligned owing to the irreverence people seldom tend to pay towards its discipline.

Cardio and workouts should be adequately distanced. This way they give the body enough time to recoup or else the body becomes a spent force, falling prey to later reverses. A proper sleep is paramount. Body can take up healthy stresses but the brain needs rest. With proper exercises in place, the brain can still pump up the metabolic activities to help us shed calories while being asleep.

With all these wrong techniques, we can hardly get right with the weight loss programs. Contrarily during the recuperation phase we are bound to gear ourselves for high-calorie food only making the situation tighter. If only we pay enough heed to what the cardio wants to tell us, it can help us achieve our end. Be it running or cycling or rowing or even swimming and myriad other dimensions of cardio; weight loss becomes more or less a paramount feature. It is for us to use the techniques positively. All these techniques give us great physical reserve bordering on prowess. They shape and tone our muscles, taking good care of muscle density and also help us shed unwanted flab.

A complete body fitness regime complimented with higher metabolism grades is on the cards for us. It is for us to accept or decline it. One thing to be kept in mind is to have nutrients after a workout, may be it won’t reduce any fat but allow the intactness of muscle which will otherwise tend towards burning out.

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Cardio- A “Freedom Card” From Worries

September 15, 2008 by Dheny  
Filed under Fitness, Weight Loss

Cardio tips - The world has just woken up to the dreads of obesity, Flab is scripting its own epic on our flesh, and we have more or less yielded to it. There are still many good reasons why we can take up the fight and the best reason perhaps is that why not go for it while it is still very possible. Great many weight loss programs help us create a balanced body for ourselves. All such program tends to heighten the need of another exercise which is fondly called Cardio- or the cardiovascular exercises by the benefiting millions.

A weight loss program deals with ways to shed the flab that has come to make its resting place in our thighs, hips, and belly. It is very important to take care of such flab to heighten the positive impact of our metabolism. At the same time it is equally important to have the muscle toned and the muscle density evenly built-up.

Firstly, it is advisable to get going with the cardio only after one fills his day’s quota of weight training. This is simple to understand. Weight training has a rigorous pattern and it needs a lot of fuel. We cannot afford to cancel the fund of this energy going through the cardiovascular exercises first. That way we are bound to be spent forces on hitting the weight-training program.

Various cardio exercises can be included in our weight loss programs, and they can really complement each other in lessening and shaping the dimensions of our body. Most cardio are great weight loss routines in themselves. Let’s take the example of running. Running relates to the usage of all the body parts, unless one runs in a poor undefined fashion moving only the legs and the arms, it really does create an opportunity for all the body parts to get on the move. Even while on a treadmill, we can use our hands in movement of abandon rather than just sticking to the side rail. So, you see- It’s a great cardio and a great weight loss program in itself.

Cycling gets the heart on the front foot even as it caters sufficiently to the weight shedding program. It is another great cardio with weight loss features. Rowing the canoe is a super cardio, but even the simple rowing suffices far more than necessary. It helps us tone our biceps and back, to the tee even as it gives us great reserves of physical prowess. All the while, as can be imagined; it’s a great exercise to lose weight.

Swimming helps us to shed belly flab. With a little rigor brought into the exercise, it can really help us cope with the obesity that we may exhibit. For ages now, it is believed to be one great cardiovascular exercise as it strengthens and tones the entire body.

Thus we see that cardio are an essential fabric of so many weight loss programs, and together they can really help us get to a fitness level we can be boastful of.

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Washboard Abs in Cardio Labs

September 13, 2008 by Dheny  
Filed under Fitness, Weight Loss

Cardio Tips - We have come to an impasse about our health. This is only an apparent impasse though and can be easily resolved. Obesity is slowly but steadily creeping on us and we find ourselves at the epicenter of this metabolic epidemic. It is still reasonable to expect that following the correct parameters we can usher into the domain of sexiness and look arresting enough to charm our way through gaping males. Cardiovascular exercises or as we have come to know them-Cardio, is a great and very effective way to counter such abrupt flab portions on our belly, hip, thighs and so on.

Cardio helps us stimulate even those body parts which have become accustomed to sedentary vision of life. While going through a cardio regimen, it is extremely important to move all the parts of the body. Thus while running, let us remember as an absolute imperative that one must look for bringing in action as many body parts as possible. It may become a little embarrassing at times and make one vulnerable to cute comments on the streets, but it is our onus to get slimmed down over a defined time period and that goal is primary. Any other issue should not hold any importance in our minds.

What we are looking to achieve is may be not the hourglass figure right at its outset, but slowly we can work towards a mark where we arrive to the point of exuding sexiness. This shall then remain our chief prerogative. Running helps with some movement of organs, we can try swimming in its various forms to be able to tone all the body parts. A breast stroke and a backstroke help in toning diverse parts. This really lets us gain a lot of confidence. Even while on a treadmill, let’s not be satiated with a run, let’s maneuver our arms on the side rails. That way even they get properly toned.

It is important to keep a healthy time distance between the cardio and the weight training, leaving enough time for nutritious helpings after a heavy workout session. Eating heavy may not burn a lot of fat but then again it is paramount in keeping the muscle density floating. Muscle needs nutrition to stand up to its functional relevance. Here it is thus important to see to both the fat and the muscle density.

When few results begin to show, our efforts tend to slacken. We become lackadaisical in our approach. It is extremely important to extend the tether each time we come near the completion of a goal. It can’t ever be that easy to come to a point of complete redemption. It needs striving harder, when yielding is much more easy. It is also important not to leave our goals for the next day; that way we never come close to realizing our goals.

Cardiovascular exercises are nothing but a regimen to hit back to most desired shapes. Efficient and smart way of doing it can help us achieve just that.

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How to Get Abs Fast - Is the Exercise Pill the Answer?

September 11, 2008 by Dheny  
Filed under Fitness

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How to get abs fast ? We live in times of great stresses. In each aspect of our lives, the brush with stress has become inevitable. Not only does it take away from us our vitality, it also makes us maniac eaters; to tear into our pressure and find solace through food. Let’s not forget though that all this merely compounds our misery. We become ghosts of our previous selves. We long to gain back our washboard abs but it is like hankering for an absolution which doesn’t arrive.

An exercise pill proclaiming a virtue of a wonder drug has just undergone the research hammer; one which gives us the vision of a new dawn. A dawn of all washboard abs. Let’s first see what an exercise pill is: It is a synthetic that imitates fat and brings the body to a simulated exercise environment. The body feels as if it has undergone an exercise regimen simply by taking this pill. The whole body seems just as tired. By switching on the chief chemical regulator in the brain, the pill helps the cells to burn calorie and fat. All this and much more, but hang on; the pill is under research and has been only subjected to mice. Even if it passes the research hammer, it will take some healthy time to hit the market. So the panacea is so near yet so far.

Agreed that the pill can be the real freedom-card to all humanity yet it really feels too good to be true. Imagine entire country waking up to a slim morning by just consuming few pills; great vision. Till such time that it might come and here is hoping that it really does; let’s ponder over the age-old precepts of acquiring abs. Hitting the treadmill and indulging in rigorous push-ups can be really virtuous formulae to procuring such abs. Yes, it does take a little while but when it comes, it stays for sure. Weightlifting is another grand way to get rid of all our flab. This takes a lot of doing and generally makes us extend our tether. Good point is that it needs a lot of protein supplement to deal with a weightlifting regimen. This again helps the body to raise its metabolism and subsequently burn calories.

A structured diet formulated by dieticians, keeping in mind one’s body metabolism helps a great deal in shedding those extra kilos from the belly and acquiring fabulous abs. The alacrity with which one can attain a model belly is largely determined by the discipline he can show. This apart, the genetics come into the picture in a big way. It is very essential to comprehend the genetic clue; if someone has obesity running in the family; it becomes increasingly difficult to cut back to shape soon.

Cardio helps a great deal to enable the toning of stomach muscles. It also provides them enough reserves of strength but everyone is well advised to complement it with a structured diet and strength training to come to the pinnacle point of washboard abs.

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Why walking will always be better then running

September 2, 2008 by Dheny  
Filed under Fitness

Think about it, there are hundreds of thousands of people who do a daily run or a daily jog and think that doing this is actually better then just walking, well actually their wrong and new scientific evidence shows that walking for one hour to two hours a day is actually better then running or jogging for the same amount of time. I know it seems unlikely but there are some finer points in exercise that means that this is actually true, now for the science lesson.
You probably already know that when you run or jog for a prolonged period of time you eventually get breathless and your body starts to generate lactic acid in order to carry on because the muscles are not being supplied with enough oxygen anymore. This build us is toxic to the muscles and eventually means that you have to stop and wait for the pain to subside. With jogging it tends to take longer then running but it happens non the less, this build up is actually a good thing in cases or building up resilience to lactic acid but you want to lose weight not build up resilience.
Walking beats both running and jogging because you burn calories slowly and over time without causing pain to the body. This slow burning of muscles is also beneficial in the way that it actually means that the fat in all parts of the body are slowly burn. Which is a lot more useful then burning calories and fat at a quicker rate that causes actually a lower amount of calorie burning? It seems unlikely but it is true and proven, walking burns more calories because of the slow burning process.
There are also the non fitness/exercised based reasons why walking is better;
It is easier on the body; this causes less muscle stain and therefore reduces the risk of injury from working out.
You get to take your time and take in what is around you, which is opposite to jogging where you only notice where you are going.
You can easily talk on the phone whilst walking, you can’t do that when your jogging, well you can but they hear you continuously panting and it just doesn’t sound right.
You walk everyday already and therefore it comes naturally to you so you don’t need to learn the correct breathing or the right speed of which to run in order to maintain a good step that doesn’t make you breathless.
And finally if you’re a women or just a man who likes to shop, it gives you a perfect excuse for doing it more, because you walk around the shops, try stuff on walk to other shops and so on and so forth.
So as you can see there are many benefits to walking that actually make it a safer and in fact better way to lose weight, maintain your body shape and tone your body.

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Keep Up Your Energy Levels

September 2, 2008 by Dheny  
Filed under Fitness

When you want to get fit then it can be hard, especially with the drains of modern life. A lot of people now find it hard to keep their energy levels up enough to actually try and exercise and make healthy meals for themselves.
It could be the fact that you are not eating right that is the underlying cause. If you are on a diet this is a particularly important issue to look at as it is not worth feeling drained just to feel thin as you will not be able to take advantage of it. Diets that reduce carbs, such as the famous Atkins, are a big no-no for maintaining good energy levels. If you insist on dieting then use one that lets you eat carbs, such as The Zone Diet.
Eating slow releasing energy food such as nuts or trail mix will make sure that you keep your energy levels going throughout the day rather that getting worn out quickly. Try a handful of these at your desk or as a mid morning snack and have another with your lunch.
Ways to boost your energy that do not involve food are very varied. If you are keen o try alternative therapies then aromatherapy could be good for you. Try using peppermint, eucalyptus or rosemary essential oils to boost your energy levels and keep you focussed. This could be on a tissue or placed on a radiator so it fills the room; however you decide these are the 3 best energy boosting fragrances.
Power naps are an obvious but effective solution. If you have an afternoon break of 20 minutes, do not work in a strict environment or have your days free then take a 20 minute nap in the afternoon. If you cannot drift off then just try and clear your mind and relax. 20 minutes is the perfect amount of time to refresh you without making you unable to sleep at night.
A possible cause of having no energy is dehydration. Have a drink at least every 2 hours, especially on hot day or if you are exercising. Aim to drink about 8 glasses of water a day in total and try not to exceed this by too much as it could affect the essential salts in your body and water them down.
One of the oldest but easiest ways to boost energy is to go outside. A walk in the sunshine or simple exposure to it, even if only for a few minutes, can make you more alert and happier so you can go about your day with a smile. If it is overcast then still go out as rays can get through the clouds. If necessary though, a light box may help you stay alert.
Energy levels are vital to stay fit as having energy means you can live life to the full as well as doing things like exercising. Eat small regular meals, go out for walks and nap to make sure you are alert all day, or try any of the other tips here.

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How to make and use a training routine

September 2, 2008 by Dheny  
Filed under Fitness

Firstly if you don’t know already a training routine is much like the revision time tables you use to do back in school, generally its set out in the same way. You first make a time table of a 7 day week and break it into 2 hour or one hour blocks, then fill in all of your scheduled activities, such as work. Then take away a good 6 hours minimum for sleep at night and you should end up with white spaces all around on your table, these are the times which you should use to do fitness. If you have more then one white space in a day then you can, if you want to, do two lots of exercise in the same day. You don’t have to fill in every white space with exercise; you should try and make a timed commitment to at least 3 one hour exercise sessions a week.
Now that you have the basis of your fitness routine you now need to think about what you are going to do in that time, this can range from a while list of things, such as; Bike riding, walking, jogging, weight lifting, yoga, tennis, football, hockey, ice skating and so on and so forth.
Pick just one thing you like to do or think you could enjoy doing and then break it down into its sub sections, for example, if you want to do weight training maybe you could spend 20 minutes working on your biceps and 20 minutes working on our legs then work on your triceps for the final 20 minutes, if you have chosen to work out for one hour periods.
Using this method to workout which ways are best for you to remain healthy and fit can be very self rewarding in other aspects. It gives you an overview of your weekly or bi weekly (if you chose to do a two week in advance table) of your life and what you actually do in that time, this enables you to better work out your time each day and find out ways in which you can increase free time for your self or the generate more time to devote to training and exercising to remain fit and healthy.
Obviously if you have children or other commitments that cannot be mapped out then this can cause issues with your plans but you can still try and factor in time with your children, grand kids or meeting of which you have little notice in.
A major benefit of planning out your days like this is that it gives you control which is scientifically proven by many studies thought the years to reduce stress which in turn protects you from a high number of stress related illnesses that can cause you serious injury or even death (in such cases as heart attacks and strokes which can leave you partly paralysed).
It takes 5 minutes to draw up a week plan and it can save you hours in lost time every day.

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Bike riding V taking the car

August 26, 2008 by Dheny  
Filed under Fitness

Let us face it normally when you think of alternative travel you think of the bus instead of the car and maybe ever once in a while the idea of walking to work creeps into your mind but just as quickly seeps out.
Bike riding is slowly becoming the new car with the rising price in petrol and higher amounts of congestion on the road its high time that you actually start to seriously consider if the car is really worth the, money, stress and the loss of valuable fitness time.
Biking brings around many beneficial factors as well as the obvious financial ones. Biking is fast and therefore you do not have to worry about taking 8 times as long because you have decided to use your bike. You also get a free ride whenever you go down a hill so at that point you don’t even have to use your legs. Then there is the fitness side, even if you are on your average weight for your height and age it does not mean that you are actually fit. Fitness is defined in various ways but you can easily be thin and have fat develop around your internal organs which is life threatening.
Keeping fit should be your number one thought when you are deciding, what things to eat, what to do and when making plans. We all have dreams of what we want to do or where we want to go but at the end of the day if you don’t maintain a healthy and fit life it is highly unlikely you’ll actually live to do the things you want in the distant future.
Biking works on your leg muscles which are probably the most important muscles to work, this is because your leg muscles use up a high amount of energy when there being used, this in turn burns calories which then means that you weigh less and gain more muscle. Gaining more muscle is also beneficial as the process then becomes stronger reducing more fat and generating more muscle the next time. Obviously there are also downsides such as the tiredness feeling you get once your done and that’s because of the lactic acid build up in your muscles so you will quickly recover. If your nto a fan or hard biking then taking just a slow ride around your local area once a day or even 3 times a week can improve your general fitness and reduce fat and burn calories, helping you to maintain your ideal body shape.
So what are you waiting for, go buy a bike or get that one you have hidden at the back of your garden shed out and start biking! You can even start doing biking with friends make it into a little endurance test whoever can ride the longest or a race if you like for hard fast burst of workout that will develop your fast twitch muscles within your legs.

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Why stretching is more import than the exercise itself

August 20, 2008 by Dheny  
Filed under Fitness

Normally when you think of exercise the ideas for running, jogging, biking, rock climbing, tennis, even golf in some cases may pop into your head. However any and all types of workouts you can think of fall in comparison to the warm up you do before engaging in such activities.
Warm ups are by far the most important part of training in every single sport and exercising/workout activity known. Why is it so important?
Warming up is important for a multitude of reasons;
Your start getting your muscles use to being worked, this reduces the chances of you getting hurt when you actually start to do the planned exercise. This is especially important in exercises that work your muscles hard right form the start, such as weight lifting.
You stretch your muscles which lowers the chance of you straining a muscle whilst training. As you know straining a muscle can be a very painful experience and in turn can restrict not only your exercising activities but also your work and social life all the way down to your love life and more.
Doing a warm up actually burns calories and fat its self, this of course helps you lose weight, stay in shape or tone your body depending what your fitness goals are. Since these before mentioned reasons are why you are actually exercising in the first place you can easily see why a simple 5 minute warm up will help you achieve your goals.
These are just three reasons why you should do warm ups and you can already see the highly beneficial qualities associated with doing warm ups, they don’t take particularly long, nor are they made to be difficult and straining within themselves. They do however enable your body to get slowly use to being worked which in turn makes you body more flexible for which ever chosen fitness exercise you have chosen.
A few things to remember are;

  • Give yourself at least 5 to 10 minutes to warm up before beginning a work out
  • Practice full range of motion for your joints during warm up
  • Start out slow and easy, remember it is called warming up for a reason
  • Be sure to give yourself 3 to 6 minutes to cool down after a work out
  • Practice your breathing during your warm up and cool down
  • Pay attention to feelings of pain, if you experience them it’s time to take it easy or back off

And don’t;

  • Hold your breath in an effort to reach to strain further
  • Skip the warm up or cool down because you are pressed for time
  • Just cut the main workout by five minutes instead
  • Just quit after a workout and sit down for a break
  • Just dive into a workout without warming your muscles up
  • Go straight into a run without walking ahead of time
  • Overextend your stretches just to prove how far you can go
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