Home Gyms Have Progressed

The On-going Evolution of Home Gyms

Fitness and exercise is popular, however, the days of bulky workout machines jammed into spare rooms has long gone. People continue to visit the popular stores which stock sporting goods to build their own Home gyms. The majority of people who enjoy exercise want to design a gym, which encourages cardio workouts and other exercise activities.

Various types of gym equipment are not designed to offer the ultimate workout. Large and bulky machinery invariably ends up as a clothes hanger and a few carefully designed workout rooms ends up being used as laundry rooms.

Is Home Gym Worth It?

Home Gym
Home Gym

However, trends change. The latest workout machines used in homes are much like those used in typical gyms. Jim Kirwin is an experienced triathlon coach and a great promoter of home gyms. He recommends indoor Cardio machines and recommends this type of equipment to the athletes he trains. Kirwin feels the machines used for aerobic activity are of no use to disciplined individuals. Keen athletes soon tire of aerobic workouts.

Home gyms should be fitted with strength machines. People like weight training, resistance workouts and freestanding weights. Treadmills, elliptical machines and bikes remain popular, but growing numbers of fitness experts endorse road circuit training.

Diet Does Not Mean Hungry: Why You Shouldn’t Give up Your Snacks

When you mention the word diet, the first thing that comes to mind is usually sacrifice. You start to think about all the snacks and foods that you’ll have to do without so that you can stick to your diet. The truth is, healthy snacks are an important part of dieting success. Choosing the right foods for snacks will keep you from feeling hungry and help you avoid overdoing it at meal times.

Why Healthy Snacking Is Good for You

Snacking is not bad for you unless you choose snacks with empty calories and high sugar, fat, or sodium content. Eating regular snacks of healthier foods is a good way to avoid hunger and pack in some of the extra nutrients your body needs. If you just grit your teeth and try to push through the mid-afternoon hunger, you are far more likely to overeat when it’s finally time for that evening meal. Your body can only process a certain amount of food at one time. Eating smaller meals more frequently will keep your stomach full and you will take in fewer calories overall.

Continue reading “Diet Does Not Mean Hungry: Why You Shouldn’t Give up Your Snacks”

Four Fun Fitness Ideas to Escape the Drudgery of the Gym

Each year thousands of people start with the best of intentions and join a gym. Yet most of those people will only go to the gym a few times before they get bored, and their goal of loosing weight and becoming more fit fails as they have lost their motivation. A lot of people feel like they are putting so much effort into their exercise but not getting much in return. This causes them to loose the motivation they originally had as they feel it’s not fun any more and it feels like hard work. On top of the disappointment of not managing to stick to an exercise plan, there is the additional frustration at the money wasted on paying for the gym membership.

The most common reason for people loosing motivation is that they simply start to get bored. If you find exercise fun you are more likely to stick with it and reach your fitness goals. It’s for this reason that many people are seeking an alternative to the gym, but with so many options out there where do you start. I have put together my favorite ways to stay in shape to help you get started.

Skipping

You may not have skipped since you were at school but it is actually a fantastic way to burn calories and shed a few pounds, (you can burn up to 300 calories in 30 mins). It also provides a great workout for your shoulders, thighs, calves and bottom as well as being a good cardio workout. Even if you haven’t skipped for yours it shouldn’t take you too long to pick it up again and with a bit a practice you’ll be surprised at how good you get.

Skipping is a really versatile workout, all you need is a rope, some supportive shoes (tennis shoes are good) and somewhere to skip. You can skip pretty much anywhere insite our outside. It is best to avoid skipping on concreate or any surface where you could injure yourself if you were to fall. Grass, carpet and wood make good skipping surfaces.

Begin by practicing skipping on the spot. When you can manage 70 skips in a minute then you are ready to move on and try out some of the more fun and advanced moves. If you can’t remember them, here are a few to refresh you memory:

Bell Jumps

This is one fo the more basic advanced moves and a great one to move onto when you have got your skipping to to speed. Jump forwards then backwards as you skip. This move will do wonders for your thighs.

Running

This move it great for working you abs. As you skip simply pull up your legs.

Double Unders

When you have got the hang of the moves above then you will find it easier to master some of the more advanced moves. A good one to start with is double-unders. For this move you need to pass the rope around your body two times for each jump.

Crossovers

As the name suggests, in crossovers you have to cross over your arms while the rope passes over your head. As the rope does this you jump though the space that is left.

Pole Fitness

Pole fitness is becoming more and more popular as a way to work out and get in shape. The sleazy stripper image is long gone and pole fitness is now thought of as a type of gymnastics. It is a great method of building up your strength and giving your muscles a good workout. To get started you will need a pole. There are a wide range of pole dancing poles on the market today to suit every budget and level of ambition. The x-pole dance poles very easy to put up and are probably the most popular choice across Europe and the US. Once you have installed your pole you are ready to get started and there are lots of free lessons on YouTube. There are also lots of pole dancing DVDs that will take you from beginner level to advanced. Just remember to take it at your own place, some of the moves can be difficult to master. Make sure you put your safety first and stay inside your comfort zone.

Cycling

This is a fantastic zero impact workout and considered by many to be the best exercises you can do. It is much gentler on your body than jogging and running that can damage your joints and tendons. If you think about it why would you pay good money to sit on an exercise bike in a gym going nowhere, when you could be riding through the countryside taking in the scenery. If you are nervous about riding on roads in the city or countryside then get a mountain bike and enjoy cycling in parkland and countryside trails.

Dance Games

Dance games like the renowned Dance Dance Revolution provide a fun way for you to exercise and keep your motivation. They are especially good as you can compete against your friends and family so it won’t even feel like your working out. Most dance mat games let you select from a range of music. It can be a lot harder than it looks and will take a lot of practice to master. But most games will have beginner levels, so you can start off slow and work your wau up to learning the faster paced songs

This article was written by Caitlin, a fitness fanatic who hates the gym with a passion and writes for . When she is not blogging she can most often be found spinning upside down on her X-Pole Xpert

Losing Weight through Cleansing

Losing Weight through Cleansing

Build up of toxic wastes in the liver and Fatty tissue may impede weight loss. Toxin deposits can lead to weight gain by repressing traditional weight loss efforts. Purifying the body of these toxic wastes will not only make you slimmer, but fitter and healthier too.

For those that are not familiar with the concept of cleansing, it may seem confuting to traditional weight loss techniques. Cleansing is not about counting your calories or restricting your hunger, instead it affects the body in a diverse way. Cleansing involves eating the right foods and taking supplements to purify your body of the toxic wastes that get stored in different organs such as liver or in the fatty tissues.

The Pattern of Weight Gain and Loss:

The scheme of weight gain and loss is simple; the body stores excess calories in the form of fats and when there is a food deficit, this stored fat is mobilized to fulfill energy requirements. This means that the body weight depends upon

  • An individual’s particular metabolic rate
  • His/Her daily food consumption

According to the new holistic approach, weight gain does not occur due to the calories; instead, it is the result of toxic chemicals present in our environment and in our food. Things such as pesticides, preservatives, artificial colors, added sweeteners etc.

How our Body deals with Toxins:

Nature has gifted our body some intricate systems to wash out the metabolic waste products. These toxins are excreted through colon, liver, lungs, skin and kidneys. However, when exposed to large amounts of such chemicals on a regular basis (food additives, air and water pollution etc.), the body may not be able to detoxify them properly.

These undetoxified chemicals are deposited in different body organs, mainly the liver, or are quarantined in the adipose (fatty) tissue.

Why Dieting is not always effective:

According to the above-mentioned theory, the body isolates the uneliminated toxins in the form of fats; therefore, a quick weight loss diet that does not help the body get rid of these toxins would be of short-term benefit only.

Cleansing is essential for a stable weight loss, as with out it, any weight loss effort would result in mobilization of stored fat, releasing the isolated toxins into the blood circulation. This affects the body in a negative way causing headaches, dizzines, fatigue, lethargy and other undesired effects.

To maintain its physiology, the body tends to quarantine the uneliminated toxins in fats, re-acquiring the lost weight, once the dieting is over.

A slimmer forever body through cleansing:

To shed off the extra pound for good, one needs to cleanse the body of the harmful toxins. To achieve this, the following protocole would help.

Don’ts:

  • Avoid DIETS:

Not the good one’s though. However, common diet drinks and sugar free junk is loaded with artificial food additives that undermine your efforts for achieving a slimmer figure.

  • No WHITE:

Avoid white bread, white sugar, and white flour, as they are excessively refined and processed.

  • Avoid ARTIFICIAL:

The artificial sweeteners in low calorie diets are more harmful than refined sugars. Go for healthier sweeteners such as honey or maple syrup, which not only prevent weight gain but also aid the pancreas by maintaining blood sugar levels.

Dos:

  • Eat MORE:

Instead of slowing down your metabolism by eating less, speed it up with the help of natural, easily processed sugars, and the abundant supply of enzymes found in raw fruits and vegetables. A well-maintained metabolic rate helps in clearing up fats and stored toxins.

  • Eat NATURAL:

Go for organic fruits and vegetables. The non-organic variety contains pesticides that add up to the toxins in the body.

  • Add ANTIOXIDANTS:

Eat healthy. Use more antioxidants as they not only aid weight loss but also promote better health. Use lots of fresh lemons, berries, raw virgin olive oil, coconut oil and apple cider vinegar.

Dieting and Supplements: Acai Optimum

Dieting and Supplements: Acai Optimum

Are you unable to lose your weight despite a strict diet and loads of exercise? If the answer is yes then don’t worry because it’s not just you. There are millions of people who start on a mission and down a month or two, lose their enthusiasm due to lack of substantial result to keep them going. So why not take help from Mother Nature!

Dietary supplements that are made from natural ingredients aid in weight loss by boosting your metabolism while keeping your energy levels high. This means that you are able to lose … Read more at Cleanse Body

Dieting and Supplements: Acai Optimum

Are you unable to lose your weight despite a strict diet and loads of exercise? If the answer is yes then don’t worry because it’s not just you. There are millions of people who start on a mission and down a month or two, lose their enthusiasm due to lack of substantial result to keep them going. So why not take help from Mother Nature!

Dietary supplements that are made from natural ingredients aid in weight loss by boosting your metabolism while keeping your energy levels high. This means that you are able to lose your weight far quickly than you would by just sticking to exercise and diet.

For this, you first need to know what your targets are and how you want to achieve them. You will have to do your fair share of research work to end up buying the right supplement that will complement your diet and exercise regimen.

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Premium Acai Berry is an all natural Acai berry cleansing product that can help you purify and detoxify by breaking up waste and eliminating toxins.

Read more at Cleanse Body

DermAcai – The #1 Anti-aging Superfood Extract

Look years younger. This 2 in 1 anti-aging hybrid has amazing instant benefits. And better long term results.

Premium Acai Herbal

Premium Acai Berry is an all natural Acai berry cleansing product that can help you purify and detoxify by breaking up waste and eliminating toxins.

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