An abs workout should be a part of most individual's normal exercise routine, and professionals state that doing the abs exercise workout should be performed three times weekly. Some people prefer to use ab machines, but you can also simply use your own body and the following routine. Once you incorporate these work outs with regular cardio and a proper diet, you will notice an improvement as your ab muscles become more defined and lean. You may want to change up your program doing certain exercises one day and others the next in order to keep things fresh and you motivated.
1. Leg Lifts
This is definitely the traditional lower mid-section workout. Lay lying on your back with the hands at your sides, Raise your heels off the ground utilizing your lower abs. Lift up your heels an inch, then lower them, but do not let them contact the floor.
2. Combination Crunches and Leg Lifts
This motion is a bit more difficult, but extremely effective in working both lower and upper ab muscles. Lay on your back and raise your heels about three inches from the floor. Without lowering your heels towards floor, lift up your left knee and elevate your torso in a crunch style. Extend your left lower-leg and lower your upper body. Make sure you do not let your heels contact the ground. Now extend your right leg and lift your chest in crunch form, then straighten your right leg while bringing down your upper body.
3. Bent Leg Crunches
Lie on your back with the legs in a ninety degree angle, knees somewhat bent and ankles crossed. You need the feet aimed at the ceiling, and after that lower your legs until you notice the strain in your lower abdominal muscles. This can be an excellent lower abs workout. Position both hands behind the head to support your neck and lift your torso off the floor. Lower your upper body slightly, then raise again.
4. Pelvic Lifts
Lay face up placing your arms at the sides, hands down and your hip and legs in a ninety degree angle, and the feet directed at the roof. Flex your knees slightly and cross your ankles. Raise the hips just like you are pushing your toes in the direction of the ceiling. Use your lower ab muscles while you complete the move.
These exercise moves are certainly going to push you to work hard. If you don feel your lower abdominal muscles working as you do these exercises, then you will need to check your form because you most likely aren doing them correctly.
Some people consistently do their abs workout every day, plus they might have been performing these workouts for many years, and they still do not possess a toned stomach. Some professionals say that it is not in everyone family genes to have a flat tummy, and therefore no amount of physical exercise or abs exercise can help if that is the situation. They assert that considerably more essential than an abs workout is the total amount of calories that an individual consumes every day.
Aside from the abs exercises your daily eating routine will have an extremely significant role with your journey to obtain the hard six pack abs that you always dream of. Without the proper diet plan, it might be harder to burn all of the calories which you have consumed and that excess will make up the body fat which will cover your abs, hiding the muscle definition that you would like. In terms of getting rid of unwanted belly fat, eliminating as much salt, trans fat, and carbohydrates will be the first order of company. On the other hand, you will need to consume lots of lean meat, fish, and fresh produce. If you consistently eat a balanced diet and follow your abs workout plan, you should be able to meet your goals of achieving that washboard stomach.
2012年7月31日星期二
2012年7月30日星期一
What to Consume Before and After a Workout for Best Results
Unsure of what to consume pre and post workout? There have been many articles and some debate, however, science and experience indicate there are some common ingredients that should be included pre and post workout for the best results.
What are these magical ingredients and when should I consume them? In an effort of absolute simplicity I've broken it down into pre-workout consumption and post-workout consumption.
PRE-WORKOUT
Hydration is fundamental to maintaining good blood pressure, to increasing the effects of your workout, reducing the risk of dehydration, and reducing the strain on your kidneys and liver. There are a myriad of sports drinks, loaded with sugars, electrolytes, and other ingredients. Yet, despite all the advancements of the modern day, water remains your best source of hydration. Bored of water, add some lemon or cucumber to it. Studies show flavored water increases people's hydration levels (i.e. if it tastes better, you're more likely to drink more)
How much water should I drink and how long before my workout? If you know you're going to do intense exercise the following day, start hydrating the previous night and the morning of. A full glass of water within an hour of bed and two glasses of water when you awake is best. It's better to drink water closer to room temperature. Ice cold water is more likely to make you cramp. Two to three cups approximately three hours before a workout is ideal. Try to drink small mouthfuls of water throughout your workout routine. Drinking too much just before and while exercising can cause cramps, flush electrolytes, and cause it to slosh about in your stomach.
What foods should I eat within two hours of working out? I don't suggest eating a large meal within three hours of a heavier workout. Immediately before a workout eating a banana can help quench your hunger, without taxing your digestive system. Banana not enough? Try it with a little honey for the quick energy of the sugars. Dark honey is higher in antioxidants and can help purge some of the toxins released during cardiovascular exercise. As for the meal you eat within three hours of a workout, make it higher in protein and fibers (example: oatmeal breaks down slowly, high in fiber), drinking enough water several minutes before and after your meal to aids in digestion.
POST-WORKOUT
Just as it is important to drink water before and during a workout, it is equally important to drink some water after a workout. The water will help deliver nutrients to your muscles faster. Immediately after a workout a simple and small snack is advisable, especially if you are worried about "crashing" or are trying to gain muscle. Something as simple as an apple (or another banana) with peanut butter can give you the simple sugars and protein your body craves. This puts something in your stomach until your heart rate settles. Try not to eat a heavy meal immediately after exercising, the body needs time to recover and return to homeostasis. Wait an hour, then eat a meal. This meal should have plenty of vegetables and some protein. Don't eat until you're overly full!
PRE & POST WORKOUT SUMMARY
- Hydrate the night prior and morning of a workout day
- Eat a banana 15 min prior, 15 min after a workout, try with dark honey
- Eat an apple with peanut butter after a workout
- Eat fruit or juice fruits/vegetables, 2-3 hrs pre/post workout
There you have it, a few simple steps that have the potential to increase your performance, boost your health, and reduce your likelihood of getting sick from a strenuous workout. Good luck!
What are these magical ingredients and when should I consume them? In an effort of absolute simplicity I've broken it down into pre-workout consumption and post-workout consumption.
PRE-WORKOUT
Hydration is fundamental to maintaining good blood pressure, to increasing the effects of your workout, reducing the risk of dehydration, and reducing the strain on your kidneys and liver. There are a myriad of sports drinks, loaded with sugars, electrolytes, and other ingredients. Yet, despite all the advancements of the modern day, water remains your best source of hydration. Bored of water, add some lemon or cucumber to it. Studies show flavored water increases people's hydration levels (i.e. if it tastes better, you're more likely to drink more)
How much water should I drink and how long before my workout? If you know you're going to do intense exercise the following day, start hydrating the previous night and the morning of. A full glass of water within an hour of bed and two glasses of water when you awake is best. It's better to drink water closer to room temperature. Ice cold water is more likely to make you cramp. Two to three cups approximately three hours before a workout is ideal. Try to drink small mouthfuls of water throughout your workout routine. Drinking too much just before and while exercising can cause cramps, flush electrolytes, and cause it to slosh about in your stomach.
What foods should I eat within two hours of working out? I don't suggest eating a large meal within three hours of a heavier workout. Immediately before a workout eating a banana can help quench your hunger, without taxing your digestive system. Banana not enough? Try it with a little honey for the quick energy of the sugars. Dark honey is higher in antioxidants and can help purge some of the toxins released during cardiovascular exercise. As for the meal you eat within three hours of a workout, make it higher in protein and fibers (example: oatmeal breaks down slowly, high in fiber), drinking enough water several minutes before and after your meal to aids in digestion.
POST-WORKOUT
Just as it is important to drink water before and during a workout, it is equally important to drink some water after a workout. The water will help deliver nutrients to your muscles faster. Immediately after a workout a simple and small snack is advisable, especially if you are worried about "crashing" or are trying to gain muscle. Something as simple as an apple (or another banana) with peanut butter can give you the simple sugars and protein your body craves. This puts something in your stomach until your heart rate settles. Try not to eat a heavy meal immediately after exercising, the body needs time to recover and return to homeostasis. Wait an hour, then eat a meal. This meal should have plenty of vegetables and some protein. Don't eat until you're overly full!
PRE & POST WORKOUT SUMMARY
- Hydrate the night prior and morning of a workout day
- Eat a banana 15 min prior, 15 min after a workout, try with dark honey
- Eat an apple with peanut butter after a workout
- Eat fruit or juice fruits/vegetables, 2-3 hrs pre/post workout
There you have it, a few simple steps that have the potential to increase your performance, boost your health, and reduce your likelihood of getting sick from a strenuous workout. Good luck!
2012年7月29日星期日
2 Benefits of Fitness Workout in your own home
In this very day and age, individuals want to get and also stay fit, but all of us don't always have time for a fitness center membership. So an exercise exercise workout in your own home is the perfect response to people that are too busy regarding working out in the gym... however the dirty little key is this: There really is a method to exercise in your own home and get greater results than a fitness center workout, with no gear and in a portion from the time.
Benefit #1: Time
You certainly have a time benefit at home, therefore i won't get into too much fine detail here. You might have no journey time. No establishing kid care. But I could show you the right way to condense your exercise into a portion of "normal" workouts and obtain greater results! It will cost about a quarter-hour exercising your entire body and also achieving better results compared to routines that take often longer. Issue sounds good in order to you, then examine on....
Benefit #2: The particular System
Now, the system a person follow, your workout routine, is what can get you your outcomes or not, based on actually searching for, and if the machine is good or even not. The device I would like to speak with you about is good for toning and also sculpting your body (burning fat), in addition to building power and muscle tissue mass. It's known as isometric muscle tissue training. You are going to work out your whole body in only 10-15 minutes the day, depending on your own exercise goals. It can almost as well simple. However it works. Isometrics isolates fault the workout that is many effective, magnifies it, and also thoroughly exhausts the actual muscles. This provides you an amazing workout, amazing results, all in an immensely short quantity of time!
The science is actually solid. Isometric shrinkage is the principle which stretching (contracting) a muscle tissue ONCE willachieve exactly the same development results because exercising that muscle carefully for thirty minutes. It is very important in your body location (there is not any movement) plus the Regarding the muscle tissue contraction. The strength is vital here. And 1953, scientists called Hettinger and Mueller documented that isometric contraction workouts for 6 seconds everyday resulted in 5% power gain per week!
So, the actual benefits of any kind of fitness exercise training program at home rely on the system a person use. Time benefit is actually real. But if you act like you want the very best muscle gains and toning and sculpting, consider isometrics.
Benefit #1: Time
You certainly have a time benefit at home, therefore i won't get into too much fine detail here. You might have no journey time. No establishing kid care. But I could show you the right way to condense your exercise into a portion of "normal" workouts and obtain greater results! It will cost about a quarter-hour exercising your entire body and also achieving better results compared to routines that take often longer. Issue sounds good in order to you, then examine on....
Benefit #2: The particular System
Now, the system a person follow, your workout routine, is what can get you your outcomes or not, based on actually searching for, and if the machine is good or even not. The device I would like to speak with you about is good for toning and also sculpting your body (burning fat), in addition to building power and muscle tissue mass. It's known as isometric muscle tissue training. You are going to work out your whole body in only 10-15 minutes the day, depending on your own exercise goals. It can almost as well simple. However it works. Isometrics isolates fault the workout that is many effective, magnifies it, and also thoroughly exhausts the actual muscles. This provides you an amazing workout, amazing results, all in an immensely short quantity of time!
The science is actually solid. Isometric shrinkage is the principle which stretching (contracting) a muscle tissue ONCE willachieve exactly the same development results because exercising that muscle carefully for thirty minutes. It is very important in your body location (there is not any movement) plus the Regarding the muscle tissue contraction. The strength is vital here. And 1953, scientists called Hettinger and Mueller documented that isometric contraction workouts for 6 seconds everyday resulted in 5% power gain per week!
So, the actual benefits of any kind of fitness exercise training program at home rely on the system a person use. Time benefit is actually real. But if you act like you want the very best muscle gains and toning and sculpting, consider isometrics.
2012年7月27日星期五
Three Top rated Exercises for Bodyweight Workout
If you're seeking to make functional muscle mass, and have found it a little troublesome to come up using a bodyweight workout routine that will achieve optimal results for your body sort, then you have come towards the appropriate place.
These are several bodyweight workouts that you simply can do appropriate in your own house, saving you the time and income of having to visit a fitness center to view precisely the same results.
Also, these workouts are superb for when you're on the road and don't have any of one's workout equipment with you, but sill desire to get a little of body sculpting in. Remember that each and every of these bodyweight workout exercises must be carried out for up to two minutes, and need to adhere to 1 another in succession, in an effort to get one of the most benefit from every.
Ab Crunches. This exercise is wonderful for toning your abdominal muscles and may be accomplished promptly and easily. Just lay down flat on your back on the floor as well as your knees bent, then spot your fingers on either side of one's head. Bring your upper body up slightly, just till it is easy to feel a fair quantity of resistance, and hold for a couple of seconds, ahead of lowering yourself back down once again.
Lunge Jumps. Begin this workout by bringing one foot forward when the other goes backward. Using sudden but controlled movements, jump up and switch leg positions. This is an awesome workout for the leg muscles, too because the glutes. If you wish to make it even more tricky, then attempt following holding small weights as you do this physical exercise, in an effort to perform out your upper body simultaneously.
Shadow Box. Although there isn't any set approach for carrying out this bodyweight workout exercise, it is a good strategy to be creative and perform out a number of muscle groups although involving cardio coaching. Simply throw some jabs and and punches in to the air as you bounce about on the balls of one's feet.
Make sure to keep your motions controlled, and make your movements rapid. To produce it a little far more advantageous, contain some kicks within the mix or try holding bottles or cans as your workout. This workout gives you the potential to perform several muscles all through the body.
These top rated workouts for a bodyweight workout will assist to make functional muscle and boost your muscle tone, even though burning calories. It is vital to help keep in mind, on the other hand, that you listen for your body, and only push it so far, so as to steer clear of muscle strain or injury. Keep away from working out too intensely or too usually, as both of these aspects can result in workout burnout.
These are several bodyweight workouts that you simply can do appropriate in your own house, saving you the time and income of having to visit a fitness center to view precisely the same results.
Also, these workouts are superb for when you're on the road and don't have any of one's workout equipment with you, but sill desire to get a little of body sculpting in. Remember that each and every of these bodyweight workout exercises must be carried out for up to two minutes, and need to adhere to 1 another in succession, in an effort to get one of the most benefit from every.
Ab Crunches. This exercise is wonderful for toning your abdominal muscles and may be accomplished promptly and easily. Just lay down flat on your back on the floor as well as your knees bent, then spot your fingers on either side of one's head. Bring your upper body up slightly, just till it is easy to feel a fair quantity of resistance, and hold for a couple of seconds, ahead of lowering yourself back down once again.
Lunge Jumps. Begin this workout by bringing one foot forward when the other goes backward. Using sudden but controlled movements, jump up and switch leg positions. This is an awesome workout for the leg muscles, too because the glutes. If you wish to make it even more tricky, then attempt following holding small weights as you do this physical exercise, in an effort to perform out your upper body simultaneously.
Shadow Box. Although there isn't any set approach for carrying out this bodyweight workout exercise, it is a good strategy to be creative and perform out a number of muscle groups although involving cardio coaching. Simply throw some jabs and and punches in to the air as you bounce about on the balls of one's feet.
Make sure to keep your motions controlled, and make your movements rapid. To produce it a little far more advantageous, contain some kicks within the mix or try holding bottles or cans as your workout. This workout gives you the potential to perform several muscles all through the body.
These top rated workouts for a bodyweight workout will assist to make functional muscle and boost your muscle tone, even though burning calories. It is vital to help keep in mind, on the other hand, that you listen for your body, and only push it so far, so as to steer clear of muscle strain or injury. Keep away from working out too intensely or too usually, as both of these aspects can result in workout burnout.
2012年7月26日星期四
The Best Workout DVDs to Keep You Motivated
It's hard enough to juggle your busy lifestyle. With family, work, school, chores, meals, and finding time for sanity, there isn't much wiggle room. Throw exercise into the mix and it will most likely be set aside. The tasks you're juggling are usually necessities; working out seems to be a type of chore or luxury for the rich and famous. You just can't keep up with the Kardashians. However, exercise should be as imperative as any of your other responsibilities. Working out strengthens you to get through all of those other activities, and most importantly, to live a longer, fitter, healthier life. Clearly your home exercise needs to be fun and motivating. Selecting the best workout DVD's for your needs is imperative. Let's go over a few of the basics.
Select Exciting Trainers The best workout DVDs should always include a trainer that motivates you to be your best, not angers you until you throw a weight at the TV. A trainer's credentials are very important, as your results and safety are at stake. Trainers should have an impressive body of work that rivals their real body. Make sure you do your homework so that you're getting an accredited instructor, and not just a salesman. Beyond that, a trainer should be someone who doesn't intimidate or stress you out. They should be fun and encouraging. You should always feels like your trainer is working one-on-one with you, even if it's through a television screen. If they meet these criteria, then they have a better chance at getting you to tune in often.
Make Sure it's Easy to Do in Your Home Your motivation to workout will dramatically decrease if you find that you're constantly bumping into your own wall, or having to place acrobatic bands on the ceiling; not mention equipment that is complicated and difficult to store. No thank you. Your workout routine should be easily adaptable to your home environment. Having to bring in bulky equipment or needing a ton of space to do a workout is something more suited to a gym. Your routine and equipment should try to fit you, not the other way around.
Choose DVDs that Mix It Up Doesn't the thought of trying a Salsa dance routine one day and a yoga session the next sound more appealing than staring at the wall on your stationary bike to nowhere every day? The best workout DVDs implement frequent routine changeups. Changes keep you motivated to continue. Research has shown that people who stick with the same routine everyday typically burnout and quit. You know the story, you were excited about your new yoga DVD last week, but this week, you can't seem to choose it over just about anything else, including that cabinet you were meaning to clean out two years ago. Do something fun, motivating and healthy for yourself: mix it up. New routines will have you putting exercise high on your priority list.
The bottom line: if you're excited about your program, then your brain will start to send signals to the rest of your body. What will it say? We like this, let's do more. If your workout DVD can do that for you and provide the motivation to change, then you've chosen wisely.
Select Exciting Trainers The best workout DVDs should always include a trainer that motivates you to be your best, not angers you until you throw a weight at the TV. A trainer's credentials are very important, as your results and safety are at stake. Trainers should have an impressive body of work that rivals their real body. Make sure you do your homework so that you're getting an accredited instructor, and not just a salesman. Beyond that, a trainer should be someone who doesn't intimidate or stress you out. They should be fun and encouraging. You should always feels like your trainer is working one-on-one with you, even if it's through a television screen. If they meet these criteria, then they have a better chance at getting you to tune in often.
Make Sure it's Easy to Do in Your Home Your motivation to workout will dramatically decrease if you find that you're constantly bumping into your own wall, or having to place acrobatic bands on the ceiling; not mention equipment that is complicated and difficult to store. No thank you. Your workout routine should be easily adaptable to your home environment. Having to bring in bulky equipment or needing a ton of space to do a workout is something more suited to a gym. Your routine and equipment should try to fit you, not the other way around.
Choose DVDs that Mix It Up Doesn't the thought of trying a Salsa dance routine one day and a yoga session the next sound more appealing than staring at the wall on your stationary bike to nowhere every day? The best workout DVDs implement frequent routine changeups. Changes keep you motivated to continue. Research has shown that people who stick with the same routine everyday typically burnout and quit. You know the story, you were excited about your new yoga DVD last week, but this week, you can't seem to choose it over just about anything else, including that cabinet you were meaning to clean out two years ago. Do something fun, motivating and healthy for yourself: mix it up. New routines will have you putting exercise high on your priority list.
The bottom line: if you're excited about your program, then your brain will start to send signals to the rest of your body. What will it say? We like this, let's do more. If your workout DVD can do that for you and provide the motivation to change, then you've chosen wisely.
2012年7月25日星期三
Fitness and Fun: Bicycling's Best Kept Secret
Have you ever noticed that you don’t see bicycles advertised on television?
You’ll see ads for health clubs, home fitness equipment, and workout programs, but you won’t see a single commercial touting bicycling as a form of fitness. Late night and early weekend hours are filled with infomercials making dubious claims about every 10-minute workout and slider/strider/glider/rider you’ve never heard of, but you won’t hear a single word about bikes.
Why is this?
Personally, I think it’s a conspiracy. While I have no proof (which makes me no less credible than any other conspiracy theorist), I have a strong suspicion the bike industry wants you to try the latest fitness fad. They’re just waiting for you to discover firsthand that it's next to impossible to attain a professional fitness model’s physique with machine-assisted sit-ups or jumping up and down in front of your TV for ten minutes a day…
It’s a calculated risk on the industry’s part, to be sure.
You may become so disheartened by the spent-the-money-tried-it-and-it-didn’t-work cycle that you may give up on exercise completely. Or you may not have any money left in your budget to buy a bike (which is a little more expensive than three easy payments of $39.99). You may come to the realization that following a rigid nutrition plan and mustering the daily motivation and self-discipline to achieve the implied results are just too stressful to warrant the effort. You may even begin to believe that exercise is ineffective and fitness products are just a gimmick.
Meanwhile, that one truly effective, easy-to-operate, and fun-to-use piece of exercise equipment hangs in your garage, is covered with dust in your parents' basement, or is just waiting for a test ride at your local bike shop.
If you take a minute to think about it, there probably was a time in your life when you were more physically fit and you didn't have to schedule time for dedicated exercise. Maybe you played organized sports. Maybe you played outside with your friends and siblings. Or maybe you just rode your bike everywhere you needed to go.
That's the beauty of a bike, every time you ride it you're exercising!
Whether you're riding at a leisurely pace with your kids, taking a 10-minute trip to the library, heading out for an afternoon on a regional rail trail, or competing in a triathlon - each time you hop on the saddle you're starting a workout. Easy workouts burn body fat for fuel. Intense workouts strengthen your heart, lungs, and legs while still burning body fat. How many calories you expend, how much fat you burn, and how much stronger you get is a function of how hard you ride and how long you go.
And you get to do all of this outside in the fresh air!
You can't smell blooming wildflowers running on a treadmill at the Y. You can't see a family of deer grazing in a meadow dancing in your basement. You can't squeak in your daily cardio workout as you drive your car home from work.
There is a reason that the basic form of the bicycle hasn't changed since the safety bicycle emerged in 1885; it works. The saddle and handlebar suspend your upper body weight while each pedal prevents your toe, heel, ankle, shin, and knee from absorbing any impact with the ground. Effectively, you are running on the pedals. With gears to increase or decrease resistance from the wind, hills, and uneven surfaces, you can go farther and faster on a bike than you can on your own two feet.
A bicycle gives you complete control over your workout.
As far as achieving the ripped physique of a professional fitness model, that won't happen by bicycling, either. But that "look" isn't the definition of fitness - just the perception of fitness we've been sold by the fitness industry. You don't have to look buff to be fit and you shouldn't have to work out in an intensive manner to reclaim your personal health.
You just need to get out there and move. What better way to move than on a bicycle?
As National Bike Month moves forward, use this opportunity to start riding your bike for fitness. Ride with your kids on Bike to School Day this Wednesday. Ride to honor those who can no longer ride next Wednesday during the Ride of Silence. Ride to work on Bike To Work Day, Friday the 18th, if you can't ride the entire Bike to Work Week that begins next Monday.
And if you already ride, use this month to introduce or re-introduce family and friends to bicycling (after you sign up for the National Bike Challenge, of course).
With no TV commercials, the bike industry is counting on our word of mouth. Let's share cycling before someone gets the crazy idea to put Chuck Norris and Christie Brinkley in a bicycling infomercial...
You’ll see ads for health clubs, home fitness equipment, and workout programs, but you won’t see a single commercial touting bicycling as a form of fitness. Late night and early weekend hours are filled with infomercials making dubious claims about every 10-minute workout and slider/strider/glider/rider you’ve never heard of, but you won’t hear a single word about bikes.
Why is this?
Personally, I think it’s a conspiracy. While I have no proof (which makes me no less credible than any other conspiracy theorist), I have a strong suspicion the bike industry wants you to try the latest fitness fad. They’re just waiting for you to discover firsthand that it's next to impossible to attain a professional fitness model’s physique with machine-assisted sit-ups or jumping up and down in front of your TV for ten minutes a day…
It’s a calculated risk on the industry’s part, to be sure.
You may become so disheartened by the spent-the-money-tried-it-and-it-didn’t-work cycle that you may give up on exercise completely. Or you may not have any money left in your budget to buy a bike (which is a little more expensive than three easy payments of $39.99). You may come to the realization that following a rigid nutrition plan and mustering the daily motivation and self-discipline to achieve the implied results are just too stressful to warrant the effort. You may even begin to believe that exercise is ineffective and fitness products are just a gimmick.
Meanwhile, that one truly effective, easy-to-operate, and fun-to-use piece of exercise equipment hangs in your garage, is covered with dust in your parents' basement, or is just waiting for a test ride at your local bike shop.
If you take a minute to think about it, there probably was a time in your life when you were more physically fit and you didn't have to schedule time for dedicated exercise. Maybe you played organized sports. Maybe you played outside with your friends and siblings. Or maybe you just rode your bike everywhere you needed to go.
That's the beauty of a bike, every time you ride it you're exercising!
Whether you're riding at a leisurely pace with your kids, taking a 10-minute trip to the library, heading out for an afternoon on a regional rail trail, or competing in a triathlon - each time you hop on the saddle you're starting a workout. Easy workouts burn body fat for fuel. Intense workouts strengthen your heart, lungs, and legs while still burning body fat. How many calories you expend, how much fat you burn, and how much stronger you get is a function of how hard you ride and how long you go.
And you get to do all of this outside in the fresh air!
You can't smell blooming wildflowers running on a treadmill at the Y. You can't see a family of deer grazing in a meadow dancing in your basement. You can't squeak in your daily cardio workout as you drive your car home from work.
There is a reason that the basic form of the bicycle hasn't changed since the safety bicycle emerged in 1885; it works. The saddle and handlebar suspend your upper body weight while each pedal prevents your toe, heel, ankle, shin, and knee from absorbing any impact with the ground. Effectively, you are running on the pedals. With gears to increase or decrease resistance from the wind, hills, and uneven surfaces, you can go farther and faster on a bike than you can on your own two feet.
A bicycle gives you complete control over your workout.
As far as achieving the ripped physique of a professional fitness model, that won't happen by bicycling, either. But that "look" isn't the definition of fitness - just the perception of fitness we've been sold by the fitness industry. You don't have to look buff to be fit and you shouldn't have to work out in an intensive manner to reclaim your personal health.
You just need to get out there and move. What better way to move than on a bicycle?
As National Bike Month moves forward, use this opportunity to start riding your bike for fitness. Ride with your kids on Bike to School Day this Wednesday. Ride to honor those who can no longer ride next Wednesday during the Ride of Silence. Ride to work on Bike To Work Day, Friday the 18th, if you can't ride the entire Bike to Work Week that begins next Monday.
And if you already ride, use this month to introduce or re-introduce family and friends to bicycling (after you sign up for the National Bike Challenge, of course).
With no TV commercials, the bike industry is counting on our word of mouth. Let's share cycling before someone gets the crazy idea to put Chuck Norris and Christie Brinkley in a bicycling infomercial...
2012年7月24日星期二
The F Word (Fitness): Fitting in Fitness
What is your favorite excuse for not getting in a workout? For a lot of people, it’s time. Lack of time. We’re so busy — how could we possibly find time to squeeze in a run or make time to hit the gym?! We forget how important exercise is, especially when we are busy. Being short on time often leads to stress. Being busy or stressed can lead to making poor choices in other areas- grabbing a quick dinner from a drive-thru, not sleeping enough, drinking too much- all this plus no exercise equals disaster for your physical and mental health. Not only is exercise an excellent stress reliever, overall you’ll feel better and sleep better. So just do it. No excuses.
‘But how do I fit it in?’ you ask. I have a few suggestions to sneak in exercise even when you are short on time.
Get up earlier. Sounds simple, right? It is. As little as 30-60 minutes is enough. Go for a walk, do an exercise DVD at home, buy some dumbbells, etc. Possibilities are endless here.
Walk or bike to work. Not an option for everyone, but if it works for you, do it.
Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
Instead of grabbing that candy bar and soda for your afternoon pick-me-up, take a 10 or 15 minute walk. You will feel better and won’t crash after the temporary sugar high.
Make your chores count. Vigorous cleaning or yard work- work hard enough to get your heart rate up for at least 30-60 minutes.
Go outside and play!!! Seriously- chase the kids around the yard, play basketball, walk the dog.
You get the idea. Just get moving!
‘But how do I fit it in?’ you ask. I have a few suggestions to sneak in exercise even when you are short on time.
Get up earlier. Sounds simple, right? It is. As little as 30-60 minutes is enough. Go for a walk, do an exercise DVD at home, buy some dumbbells, etc. Possibilities are endless here.
Walk or bike to work. Not an option for everyone, but if it works for you, do it.
Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
Instead of grabbing that candy bar and soda for your afternoon pick-me-up, take a 10 or 15 minute walk. You will feel better and won’t crash after the temporary sugar high.
Make your chores count. Vigorous cleaning or yard work- work hard enough to get your heart rate up for at least 30-60 minutes.
Go outside and play!!! Seriously- chase the kids around the yard, play basketball, walk the dog.
You get the idea. Just get moving!
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