Beneficial Strength Training Exercises

Posted on November 20, 2011 by HealthyGirl

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There are numerous benefits of strength training besides the obvious. Consistant efforts with strength training can help with weight loss, blood pressure, bone density, and so many more great things for your health!

The Benefits:

Strength training is such a great way to give yourself a healthier you! Here are a few of the best benefits this type of exercise can give you.

Increases Bone Density: A study at Tufts University discovered that strength training not only increases muscle mass, but bone density as well. The research showed that women who lifted weights did not lose any bone density, but actually gained about 1% bone mass in their hips and spine. This was radically different than non-exercising women, who actually lost 2% to 2.5% of their bone mass during the same period of time. This is a great thing for us women who tend to slowly lose more and more bone mass over the years.

Helps With Weight Loss: While aerobics only increases your metabolism during the exercise, weight training not only raises your metabolism, but keeps it elevated by about 15% for up to two hours afterwards! To take advantage of this great new find, try weight training for 20-30 minutes, then move to something aerobic, such as running on a treadmill, or an aerobics class.

Counteracts Depression and Sleep Loss: Yep, you heard right! Strength training can also help you fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer, a study at Tufts University says. In this study 6 out of 10 people had less trouble sleeping at night. As for depression, after 12 weeks of strength training three times a week, 14 of the 16 people no longer met the criteria for clinical depression and felt better.

Strength training also helps people age more gracefully, feel better about themselves, and gain the confidence they deserve.

Strength Training Exercises:

Now that you know some of the amazing benefits, I hope you are eager to get started! There are many strength training routines out there, so be sure to find one that works for you, if this particular one does not. The important thing is to work out and tone the areas you want to fix the most. Are your arms a little flabby? Are your thighs a little cottage cheese looking? Although weight loss is a major part of making these body parts thinner, strength training will help you tone and firm the areas you are looking to improve.

With any strength training exercise, try to stick with 10 to 15 reps, and do this three cycles for a total of 30 to 45 reps. If you are looking to lose weight, strength training can help! Your metabolism is elevated for about two hours after strength training, so this would be a perfect time to go do some aerobic exercise and get more bang for your buck when it comes to calorie burning. Below are two different routines, one for at home or at a gym, whichever is your preference.

Routene 1 (Gym)

10 Bench Press- you can do the free-weight bench press, as this will also work your coordination and agility, or they have a machine that helps you to just focus on the weight aspect of bench pressing.
5-10 Pull ups-This can be tricky for me and my weak armed friends, but have no fear. There is a machine at the gym that helps you work on your pull up by lowing your weight that you have to pull up, so you can start low and work your way up. If that does not work, you can hold yourself in a pull up position for 30-45 seconds.
15 Squats- Our good friend the squat! Try doing 10 squats with a body bar. You do not have to put weights on it until you are ready.
15 Lunges- Be sure to not let your knee touch the ground, and do 15 on each leg!
10 Push Ups- There are machines to help you slowly increase the weight you can do a push up with, or you can try pushups against the wall. Either way, work on those arms!
10 Lat Pull Downs- This is an excellent machine at the gym that can really help condition and tone your arms.
10 leg curls- Find a machine that works your thighs and another that works on your calves. One you sit as if in a chair, and the second you lay down on belly down. These are excellent leg toners!

Once you have completed this circuit, start back at the beginning and do them 2 more times. If everything is located in the same room, this exercise should take 25-35 minutes.

Routene 2 (Home)

10 push ups- regular or wall push ups
10 dumbell curls per arm -use a weight size that feels comfortable or waterbottles filled with sand.
30 seconds of arm circles with dumbells in hand. Put your arms straight out like a scarecrow and make tiny circles for 30 seconds.
16 Reverse Crunches
30 crunches
30 seconds plank
20 squats
15 lunges on each leg
1 minute wall sit - lean against the wall as if in a chair with your bottom level to your knees.

Complete the routine and start it over again 2 more times. This work out should take 25-35 minutes.

Have a Happy Workout and be sure to drink plenty of water!

~Healthy Girl

10 Minute Workout Program for Beginners

Posted on July 7, 2011 by HealthyGirl

Many of you have jobs, school, kids, volunteer work, housework, or some combination of these put together. This leaves very little time for work outs. I want to tell you that if you are trying to lose weight, dieting alone can be a very tedious and slow process. But many of you say you don’t have time to work out. Understandable. Many people have been there, done that. Here is a 10 minute workout program for beginners. It is a video by Sparkpeople.com to help get some calorie burning going on in your body. This workout includes the warm up and cool down, so you’re all set. Try this workout before your daily shower routene, to save even more time.

sparkpeople.com is also a great place to go if you want support for your workouts and weightloss efforts. They are a great source to find workout programs for beginners. You can sign up and join a community near you. This site offers calorie counters to keep track of your eating, it has expert written articles about health and fitness, and many workout videos and routenes for you to try. You can track you weightloss, talk in the forum, and meet up with locals in your area with the same goals in mind.

~Healthy Girl

Organic Workouts: Back To The Basics

Posted on January 26, 2010 by HealthyGirl

Many people like working out without machinery. They like getting back to the basics. I like to call this type of workout Organic. The benefits of organic workouts is they are always reliable, and portable. You don't have to have any machinery to pack around, because working out organically needs no tools. Just you, your breathing, your muscles.

Running in the sand

Jogging in the Sand- Of course any type of jogging, walking, or running can be beneficial to your heart, and muscle health. But if you can find a way to do this in the sand, nature will work you harder than regular pavement would if you were to go the same distance. If you don't have sand available, jogging uphill is a great alternative!

Sit ups, crunches & reverse crunches- Yea, the ab lounge is pretty awesome. But I'm sure we all remember how to do our sit ups and crunches too. Many people (especially us women) try to avoid them at all cost. In actuality, these are the fitness exercises we can use when away from the gym, or only have a few minutes a day to work on them!

Reverse crunches and jack knives are great too. In these exercises you lay flat on the floor and lift your legs together straight up in the air then straight back down (but not all the way down! let your ankles hover a few inches above the floor!). In a jackknife, the legs do the same thing, but when they go straight up, you pull front up as well, in a crunch + reverse crunch manor.

Lunges & Squats- These are great exercises that also barely get utilized. The best part is whenever you are alone you can drop a few squats, or lunge across the room and back. Do them while doing laundry, or cleaning the house, or hover over your chair for a few seconds before you sit down at work! Take advantage of your body's natural weight resistance. A great benefit to practicing these daily will come out on the dance floor. Sometimes tall girls (like me) have a hard time "pop lock and dropping it" or "getting low." But doing squats more often will help you get low and feel more confident about it!

Pull ups and Push ups- Now time for the arms! Don't forget do do a few simple push ups daily for arm workouts. Try and do push ups until you fail. ( a fail is a pause of three seconds or more between repetitions). As for pull ups, if you can't even do one, go back to what you did in high school. Jump up there and hold the pull up pose for as long as you want. Try these on a thick tree branch or other overhead bars you come across!

Have a happy workout!

~HealthyGirl

8 Ways To Get Your 30 Minutes Of Exercise Daily

Posted on January 23, 2010 by HealthyGirl

Always take the stairs- They can be quite an epic addition to your daily routiene. Even if you work in a giant buliding with more than 3 floors. Try Stopping the elevator a few floors below where you need to go. Try 1-2 floors at first, then work your way from there.

Park in the back of the parking lot- This is another no-brainer that most people don't utilize. Many people spend precious time waiting or searching for that perfect spot. You know what? WHO CARES? park in the back, and get some extra steps in, while improving the chance that your car won't get hit by random shoppoing carts and car doors.

Reebok and Sketcher Workout Shoes- Reebok sells a brand of shoes called Easy Tones and the sketchers are known as Shape Ups. Both these brands retail for around $100, but they are selling out in stores all over the country with pretty positive ratings from their customers.

Reebok claims that wearing EasyTone walking shoes will exercise your legs with every step. They are becoming one of Reebok's best selling products because they offers quick results.Reebok officials say, "The EasyTone is the company’s most successful new product in at least five years."

Sketchers claim that their shoes make it feel like you are walking on sand. They come with a DVD on how to use them. They also claim that on average women who wear Shape-ups for 6 weeks lose an average of 3.25 pounds while their body composition is reduced by about 1.125%. As well as their, back strength increases by 37%.\

Wear a pedometer- Research has shown that wearing a pedometer makes you walk more. Being aware of the steps you make, will help you keep on track with walking, and hopefully encourage you to walk more to reach those nice even numbers. From there start setting goals by 50 more steps a week, and see how far you can take yourself!

Use your break time wisely- This is a great time to get a group of co-workers to get together and go on walks while your on a short break. Even walking by yourself can give you some well deserved alone time to maybe focus on your goals for the next day. After all, what is a break for, but to get some fresh air?

Get a partner or two- Having a small group of friends or co-workers together greatly increases the chance that you will continue what you are doing. Be sure to make a deal to help each other out with achieving your goals and stay on top of each other.

Talk- Telling someone aboout what you ate and how much you worked out every day will help you keep on top of things. This simple task takes 5 minues, but is really effective in helping you stay on top of your goals, because you are forced to face it every day, and the facts are right there in front of you, whether you reached your goal or not.

Break your workout into 30 minute segments - For some people this can be really effective. Start with some yoga before you shower in the morning, go for a brisk walk at lunch, and do some cardio after work. This way you have time for you family and daily needs, but can still get in what you need. This strategy may not work for everyone, but for some, it's the way to fit in everything into that tight schedule!

Feel free to tell me about your workout regime, and how it works into your schedule! ~Healthygirl

Stretching

Posted on January 7, 2010 by HealthyGirl

Stretching is something you should get in the habit of doing before and after working out. It is important for several reasons:

-Improves circulation
-Improves range of motion
-Improves posture
-Improves your ability to relax
-Decreases muscle tension
-Decreases pain and soreness

Most importantly, it reduces your risk for injury so you can keep up with your routine!

Before ou workout, stretch until your muscles are warm and flexible. After you workout, make sure to stretch out any tightness you feel, to reduce muscle aches later. There are several types of stretching you can try…

Dynamic stretching moves most of your body parts and slowly increases reach and/or speed of movement. These are controlled, slow stretches within your normal range of motion, and are best performed in reps of 10.
Ex: Doing 10 reps of toe touches while standing.

Active stretching is holding a stretch position without any assistance, and only the use of the muscle by itself.
Ex: Rolling your neck in a circular motion for a few reps.

Passive stretching is holding a stretch position with the assistance of another body part. Doing this to the farthest point you can and holding is known as Static Stretching.
Ex: The classic quadriceps stretch of holding your ankle behind you with your hand.

Isometric stretchingis the fastest way to develop flexibility. It is a type of static stretch using tensing of the muscles. It is usually preceded by a dynamic stretch.
Ex: Holding the ball of your foot while using your cal muscles to point your toes.

Good stretches for running or jogging:

Calf raises
Standing and touching your toes
Heel drops (best done by standing with front half of feet on a curb and dropping heels)
Sitting a reaching for your toes with legs spread
Standing and holding your ankle behind you
A good warm up/cool down slow jog

Good stretches for Aerobics type workouts:

Calf raises
Standing and touching your toes
sitting and reaching for your toes with your legs spread
Arm circles
Bicep and triceps stretches
Twisting your upper body with your feet planted
Rolling your head in circular motions
A light aerobic warm up such as a jog or jumping rope

Having the Right Heart Rate

Posted on December 31, 2009 by HealthyGirl

Want some facts about your heart rate to help you reach your fitness goals for real this new years? Did you know that heart rate actually plays a key role in weight loss during exercise? It's actually very important to find your target heart rate during your work out so you can measure your initial fitness and monitor your progress in a fitness program.

When working out, you should never exceed your maximum heart rate. This will help avoid to avoid injury and help you to have a healthier and more productive work out. A good way to estimate your MAXIMUM heart rate is to subtract your age from 220.

Ex: 40 years old would be 220- 40, so your maximum heart rate is 180 beats per minute or bpm.

Your TARGET HEART RATE should be 50-85% of your Maximum heart rate.

EX: A 40 Year old would have a max heart rate of 180 bpm, that number multiplied by .5 and .85 gives you 90-153 bpm.

When you begin a fitness regime, you should aim for the lower end of your target heart rate (50%). Then gradually work yourself up to the higher part of your target heart range. (75-85%). Just be sure to pace yourself. It is important to ensure that your receive a proper workout without overexerting your body.

Below is a website that will help you calculate your Exact target heart rate. It will also show you where you need to be for optimum fat burning, or cardio fitness.

First, you must find your resting heart rate. The best way to do this is to check it first thing in the morning. You can count how many beats you have in a minute, or count for 6 seconds and multiply it by ten. Then simply click and fill out the information.

http://www.changingshape.com/resources/calculators/targetheartratecalculator.asp

Have a Happy Workout and Happy New Year! ~Healthy Girl

Swimming for Fitness

Posted on July 29, 2009 by HealthyGirl

Swimming for fitness…. have you ever tried it? There is always lap swimming, which is a great way to get in shape and beat the summer heat! Most pools set aside lanes for swimmers to do laps in during certain hours of the day. The pools are usually in the “down time” of the day, so you don’t have to worry about children getting into your lane, or being self conscious about your bathing suit. It’s just you, the pool, and the lifeguard, and trust me, the lifeguard is the last person you should be self conscious in front of. (Coming from a person who used to be one!) The pool is their job, and all they are concerned about is if you are still breathing.

Ok so you have a suit, the goggles, and you know about lap swimming. What’s still keeping you away? Maybe lap swim isn’t for you. After all, it is a very repetitive exercise. Some of you dear readers may even have a hard time swimming. Well I have the perfect water cure for you!

Aquasize: A new workout system that is becoming more popular is called Aquasize. It is a different form of swiming exorcises that runs more like a fitness class. This is a class that is taught with an instructor, like yoga or Zumba, but in the water. There is shallow and deep water aquasize, depending on how fit you are and how well you swim. Shallow water aquasize is a lighter workout for those starting out. They have small weights you strap on your ankles, and many tools for new and exciting ways to work out! If that doesn’t seem like a hard enough workout, you and upgrade to deep water aquasize. Call your local pool today and see what they have to offer!

Take away the Aches: For those with achy joints, arthritis, and stiff muscles, a “take away the aches” class might be right for you. This class is still gaining popularity, so not all pools will have it, but if you are having these kinds of problems and your pool offers it, it is worth it to try it. This class is one that I have taught personally, so I know the benefits! It is not much in the realms of a workout, but more of a body loosener. This will help ease pains that come with age and medical conditions. I highly recommend this class if it is available to you.

Of course every pool is going to be different, and will offer different services. Go ahead, give your pool a call, see what they have to offer. What have you got to lose?