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Archive for July, 2009

Winston Salem Gyms : Cardiovascular Activity for Health and Wellness .

July 31st, 2009 by Winston Salem, under Winston Salem Fitness. No Comments

Additionally, what’s cardiovascular activity, you ask? It’s a term we often hear, but not everyone knows just what it means. Cardiovascular exercise is any type of exercise that increases the workload of the heart and lungs. The most common forms of cardio are walking, running and jogging. Another term for cardiovascular activity is aerobic exercise.

Now, why is it so important? There are many physical benefits to cardiovascular activity. They include lowered risk of heart disease, improved heart function, improved cholesterol levels and lowered risk of osteoporosis. Those are some pretty impressive benefits if you ask me. to get the benefits previously mentioned from your cardio workout, it’s important for you to sustain your workout for at least 20 minutes with 30 being ideal and do 3 to 4 sessions a week.

Obviously, it is also important for you to challenge yourself. A good cardiovascular workout should definitely elevate your heart rate. One easy way to test if you are working hard enough is the talk test. Simply say a sentence in the middle of your workout; if you are too winded then you are overdoing it. Likewise, if it is easy to talk than kick it up a notch!

If your looking to loose some unwanted pounds, cardiovascular activity is the way to go as it burns calories and fat.

A very effective way to improve your cardiovascular system and burn fat and calories is to interval train. The theory behind interval training is to alter the level of intensity during the workout. A great example of cardiovascular interval training is the run/walk workout. Start by walking at a pace that challenges you, than go into a jog or run, then back to walking, than back to jogging or running and so on for 30 minutes (or more depending on your fitness level). Beginners should start out with walking segments being 5 minutes and jogging segments being 1 minute. As your fitness level improves, shorten the walking segments and increase the jogging segments. This way you are always working towards the goal of improving your cardiovascular fitness level. Interval training can also be taken into the gym and done on a treadmill, bike, elliptical or cross-trainer. Simply vary the resistance and or speed on your machine of choice to increase and then decrease the workload.

Walking and jogging are by far the most popular types of cardiovascular activity. A reason may be because it’s so accessible. It’s a simple as walking out your front door. Proper shoes is very important. Spend as much as you can afford on a good pair of shoes, as support and cushioning are very important to keep you from getting sidelined with an injury. Beginners, remember to start out slowly. Runners are not born overnight and doing too much too soon is another leading cause of injury. Provide your body time to adapt to the new demands of a walking or jogging routine.

Another great way to get your cardio in is to take a aerobics class. Group fitness is very well-liked at many fitness centers. I think there are several reasons for this. First of all, aerobics classes are very motivating! The music, the people, the energy, the fun! Secondly, because you are being led through your workout, there is no need for you to plan what you’re going to do that day. Thirdly, as long as you are taking a specialist aerobics class, you know you are exercising correctly and getting a safe, effective, and thorough workout. What could be better than that?

Also, think about where you are at with your cardiovascular fitness. What improvements need to be made? How will you go about it? Be sure to put a plan into place and get moving, You will be happy you did!

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Winston Salem Gyms:Secret of Losing Weight – Plain & Simple Truth

July 31st, 2009 by Winston Salem, under winston salem gyms. No Comments

Have you ever wondered why most Weight Loss program or Diet failed to provide you the results you wanted? You have all the motivation in the world to lose weight, but still, it’s not working. You peek on that weighing scale every morning and there is very little difference…Why?
First, the reason is because these Diets are very hard to follow. Yes, that is the truth, the so-called diet formulas that are supposed to help you be slim are too difficult to follow. You are given a set of menu, but most of these menus are not suited for your taste or tradition. What if you’re Chinese and you’re given an American Diet?
Secondly, even the ingredients on those foods are not easily identifiable…I just could not find what are those ingredients that you are instructed to prepare… like an “amaranth” to eat a breakfast cereal? I just would need search on this ingredient or someone tell me what this is or where to buy this to follow on the diet-plan.
Thirdly, you will follow on a Low-fat, Low-calorie, and Low-carb diets…and the result is you’re very weak to even walk to turn-off that TV from your sofa bed! You have starved yourself and you have no energy. Your body metabolism became slow; you’re not burning the fat and not losing weight. I have been there and tried those Diets; I just don’t have the energy doing the things I needed for work and for my family.
So, what’s works now to finally lose those flabs?
It’s really no secret at all! It’s just the plain truth — in order to lose weight, you have to exercise! There’s no other shortcut to it! (If you’re thinking about other ways, I’m sure it is very unhealthy and very, very expensive to try those other ways, like diet pills that you’re unsure of any side effects, and liposuction, for example) You have to run, jog, do cardio or play sports to burn those fats!
I agree this simple truth is what most people already know, but fail to really believe into and put into action! My 7-year old daughter knows this! Everybody knows, but why most people would not exercise to keep fit or lose weight? Again, simple truth is most people’s excuse is, “I have no time!” or, “I will just follow on the low-carb, low-fat diet plan”. We like shortcuts. We already know we must exercise, but we don’t do it. We have to be a firm believer, I must say, not just knowledge of, on keeping regular exercise, to keep on losing weight. This is really no secret, huh?
I myself have been weighing 90kg before; I was 17kg overweight before, 3 months ago! I realized then I have been beginning to suffer from hypertension and heart-related illnesses because of my weight and decided that I need to lose weight. I had those really ugly and bulging love handles! I have tried several methods, including those Diet plans and pills! But none of those worked. There is minimal result initially, after 1 or 2 months my original weight would be going back again.
What really worked is doing some exercise or workout on a gym. The gym could be your home gym with minimal equipment, or a near-by fitness club gym with all sorts of exercise equipment. I worked-out on a local gym, exercised 2 or 3 days a week, followed a simple exercise or workout plan, and now, I am on my ideal weight of 73kg in 3 months! I am proud of my body now that I could go to the beach without trying to hide my abs! I really did not follow certain Diet plan; I just did cut down on the quantity of what I usually eat. Exercise really works!
http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=411544

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Winston Salem Gyms : Fitness Jump Rope Workout .

July 30th, 2009 by Winston Salem, under Winston Salem Fitness. No Comments

If you’re looking for an exercise option that only requires one affordable piece of equipment, a little bit of space, and a good pair of shoes, consider a fitness jump rope workout.

For a lot of people, jump roping is an ideal aerobic exercise option. It is fun, almost anyone can do it, and it doesn’t require a gym membership.

Ease Into It

When starting an exercise program, it’s important that you work your way into it. If you have been doing aerobic exercise for some time, You will be able to “jump” into a fitness jump rope workout easily. Once you’re comfortable with the motion, you can increase your speed and incorporate different jumps.

For those new to aerobic exercise or for those resuming an exercise program after some time off, it’s very important to take it slow as your body adjusts. In addition, because jump roping is a high impact exercise, meaning that both feet leave the ground simultaneously, there’s a greater risk of injury.

Even if you were a star jump roper as a child, chances are you may need to practice jumping as an adult. Go easy on yourself as you become accustomed to the movement. Even basic jumping requires a high level of coordination.

As you become accustomed to the movement, you are able to increase the length of time you exercise, the speed at which you jump, and the types of moves you incorporate into your routine.

Warm Up

For both experienced and new exercisers, it’s vital to warm up before beginning a fitness jump rope workout. Warming up slowly raises your heart rate slowly, allowing your muscles time to adjust to the increased workload placed on them.

A good warm up for jump roping could be walking briskly for a few minutes, stepping in place, light bouncing on one’s feet, and eventually slow jumping as you start your workout.

Once your muscles are warm and loose, consider stretching the main muscles involved. This includes your legs, calves, shoulders, wrists, and ankles. Ease into jumping slowly.

Add Variety

As you become used to the movement and to exercise, your fitness jump rope workout will become easier. This is a signal that it’s time to make some changes. Just as your mind needs variety to stay engaged, so too does your body. When an exercise program becomes too routine, your body adjusts and the workout is no longer as effective.

There are a number of ways that you can change a jump rope fitness workout to ensure that you continue to challenge yourself and improve your cardiovascular health.

One way is to learn new jumping styles. Crossing your arms in front, or spinning the rope to alternating sides of your body are just two ways you can mix up the style. Consult a jump-rope book for new techniques.

Alternately, see if there’s a jump rope club in your area. You can learn new techniques and meet people with similar interests, which is also a great motivator.

Make certain to vary your speed. As your cardiovascular health improves, You will be able to jump faster for longer periods. Remember that this can also increase your chances of injury. One method to help offset this risk is to incorporate interval training.

With interval training, you alternate between easy, moderate, or difficult levels of jumping. You can do this by changing your speed from slower to faster. Interval training has shown to be very effective, and because you’re not going full-steam throughout the entire workout, your chances of injury are less.

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Winston Salem Gyms:Exercise – Getting Started

July 30th, 2009 by Winston Salem, under winston salem gyms. No Comments

Many people want to try and find an amazing weight loss fitness program that will change their body for the better. A lot of the time things like this tend to cost money. Now, programs do help the weight loss process, but not everyone is will to pay money. Usually, if a person is just getting interested in fitness, they will want to learn a little first before spending.
For some people, cardio might consist of walking outside for a couple of blocks everyday. Another person might feel that jogging 2 miles, 3 times a week works better for them. The point is, that even a little amount of exercise is better then doing absolutely nothing. Don’t feel that you will only loss weight if you run 5 miles a day. Each person is different and will take to certain exercises differently.
Something to keep in mind when turning to a weight loss fitness program too burn fat, is that you should start out slow. There is no need to go from doing nothing, to running 10 miles a day and a high speed. Adding some sort of cardio exercise works well for some people. With the many different styles of cardio machines and exercises, it can be tough to decide what may work best for you. Before trying anything out though, you should consult your doctor. What I did when starting out is I tried all the different machines. One day, at a really low speed, I would walk on the treadmill. The next, I would do the same on the bike. After doing this you will realize which particular machines or exercises you like, while also learning what pace your body can handle.
The best thing about exercise is that it can be done anywhere you want, you don’t have to get a gym membership in order to get exercise. If the weather is favorable, go for a nice walk or jog outside. Now depending on where you live, you may find outside conditions get too cold through the winter, well this means taking your exercise indoors. When I want to walk or jog in the winter I use the local hockey arena. There I can either jog around the bleachers or walk up and down the many stairs. If there are no arenas, then use your home, I have marched up the stairs in my house on many different occasions as well.
Fitness and exercise can be done whenever you want, so take advantage of it. Ease yourself in to it and remember anything is better then nothing. If you don’t have the luxury of a weight loss fitness program, don’t worry you can improvise a little.
http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=411425

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Winston Salem Gyms : Creative Thinking Activity – Aerobics For The Brain .

July 29th, 2009 by Winston Salem, under Winston Salem Fitness. No Comments

Creative thinking activity depends on a brain that is energized. This article will show you how to enliven the brain using the five senses.

Aerobic Activities get life-sustaining oxygen into parts of the body often starved. Aerobics for your senses have the same effect, enlivening them, waking them up, which in turn leads to a higher level of creative thinking activity.

Our five senses of taste, touch, smell, sight and hearing bombard the brain every second with millions of pieces of information. A mother is barely aware of the noise her children are making until a neighbor says: “How do you put up with it!” The lesson? We rapidly get accustomed to our environment so it becomes the norm, which means we fail to take notice of detail and the seeds of creative ideas.

The Challenge

So here is our challenge – to get the senses to break out of the box so we begin noticing things again.

Here is an “aerobic brain exercise” to get creative “oxygen” to those senses:

Choose in your mind something familiar. For this example we will choose A BOOK. Think of a familiar book you enjoy reading. Now close your eyes and wrap your 5 senses around this object in your imagination and really live the experience.

Touch

What does it feel like to pick it up? Is it heavy, light? What’s the texture of the cover? Glossy or grainy? As you turn the pages do they feel rough or smooth?

Hearing

What kind of sounds do you the pages make as you turn them? Is it a rustling sound due to fine paper, or a stiff sound caused by thick paper?

Smell

Does the book have a distinctive smell? When you hold it close to your nose what unique smells come from the mixture of ink and paper?

Taste

While not suggesting we take a bite, does your imagination suggest a certain taste? Our brains are amazing association factories. Often we associate a certain flavor with an object. What flavor is your book?

Sight

What catches your eye as you view the book on the table from the other side of the room? Is it the size? The color? The title? The artwork?

Now after you have run through your 5 senses in this manner, that familiar object, your favorite book, will take on a completely new representation in your mind!

Just Try It

Skeptical? Just try it! It’ll only take between one and two minutes. The images your brain is left with will stay with you indefinitely. That is the power of concentration.

Where’s all this leading us?

When you need to engage in creative thinking activity you depend on a massive input of sensations and thoughts. Linking the most unlikely sometimes produces brilliant ideas! Applying these associations from your imagination to your task in hand can produce great results.

In conclusion, try this aerobic brain exercise for your senses just before your next project or problem which requires serious thinking or creative thinking activity! You will never view familiar things the same way again and you might just give birth to a brilliant solution or idea.

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Winston Salem Gyms:How I Discovered Tai Chi

July 29th, 2009 by Winston Salem, under winston salem gyms. No Comments

Once in a while, I get really bored with my workouts. You know, after a while it gets to be the same old, same old stuff. It is always weights or cardio machines or the same stuff over and over again. I have worked out for years and sometimes it is nice to have something different to sink your teeth into when you go to the gym. Or it is also nice to have something fun and invigorating to do at home. Something that gets you started off on the right foot in the morning.
I recently found something that fits that criteria and it is called Tai Chi. You may have heard of it. It has been around for centuries. Tai Chi is a Chinese martial art but different from regular sparring types of kung fu. Some people may call it a soft style of martial arts and I think they have a point because you can’t really whack a guy with Tai Chi. But that doesn’t matter because the point of this exercise is to help a person relax and to inner reflect, if you will. How to do Tai Chi correctly and effectively is a simple matter of finding the right instructor.
You see, Tai Chi is all about finding the right balance within yourself, your “Chi” or spiritual center. Most people do not do Tai Chi for any martial arts benefit. I know I did not start it for that reason. I did it to have another form of exercise in place of regular boring stuff I was sick of. The thing is, I discovered that it really does help you find peace and improve your balance.
Tai Chi is based on using the whole body, even the inner strength of the mind and breath, all together as one unit. Think of it as standing yoga or a combination of that and ballet. Maybe it seems silly for a tough guy like me to say I do something similar to ballet, but I tell you, it is not only relaxing but challenging as well. Some people call it moving meditation. Because that is what you are doing. You are moving your hands and arms and legs together, but you are relaxing your mind at the same time to allow deep meditation.
Tai Chi patterns are easy to learn and hard to master. They are very flowing and smooth and develop the internal flow or Chi or your body and soul. It was tough for me at first, doing all those weird poses and repetitive moves, but it got easier and much more fun once I got the hang of it. I knew I had to be bad before I good be good.
There are a wide range of videos out there to help you get started and I tried quite a few before I got hooked on one instructor that really blew me away. You have to find someone that knows what they are doing and can really relate to you what Tai Chi is all about.
Here is what really struck me…it’s something I can do for my health for the rest of my life.
http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=411702

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Winston Salem Gyms : Core Advantages of Performing the Cardio Exercises .

July 28th, 2009 by Winston Salem, under Winston Salem Fitness. No Comments

Cardio Exercise is actually meant to be a part of the aerobic activities. The good thing about the cardio exercise is that when your perform the exercise you get involved into it, you enjoy doing it and you stick to it and pull the best results out of it. Cardio exercise basically becomes your habit very soon and you enjoy it while performing.

Cardiovascular exercises are most beneficial for your heart and help you to attain the ideal heart rate. to calculate the ideal heart rate you need to count your heartbeat for 15 seconds and multiply the result by 4. This gives you your heart rate and to calculate your ideal heart rate you need to subtract your present age from 220. Once you are done with locating your ideal heart rate Cardio exercises than assists you to attain and maintain your ideal heart rate. Here are a few of the core benefits of performing the cardio exercises:

1.  It principally helps you to loose your weight and burn your excessive fats.

2.  It assists to strengthen your heart and your muscles.

3.  It increases your bone density by a remarkable rate.

4.  It assists you to release your stress and your fatigue.

5.  It lowers the chance of heart attack and minimizes its probability.

6.  It assists to safeguard the individuals against many of the cancer and lung illnesses.

7.  It helps you to get rid off anxiety and depression temporarily.

8.  It assists to build up self-confidence about ones own habits and things.

9.  It assists the individuals to be more confident about the looks and the way he performs his work.

10.  It assists to improve the sleep and it increases your sleeping hours. It assists to give the individual a more comfortable sleep along with prolonged timings.

11.  It assists the body to gain extra energy. It improves the energy level of the body and also assists to maintain the acquired energy level.

12.  It helps the children and younger ones at your homes to develop a habit of this workout. It helps you to set up an example for your children encouraging them to stay active and more alert.

These 12 points clearly reflects the importance and the need of the cardio exercises. They clearly highlight the benefits and tell how these exercises helps to improve the overall quality of the life.

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Winston Salem Gyms:Create an Exercise Plan That Is Right for You

July 28th, 2009 by Winston Salem, under winston salem gyms. No Comments

Planning an exercise program to optimize women’s health and wellness can be both confusing and difficult to do. These are a few tips and a guideline to plan your exercise program. To see the greatest results you need to eat properly, cut down your calories and fat intake in conjunction with adding an exercise program. When you are planning your exercise program each workout should include: Warm-up: A warm-up is five to ten minutes of stretching and light exercise to increase your body’s temperature, circulation and heart rate to prepare your body for exercise. Exercise: Your exercise plan should include: walking, jogging, running, cycling, inline skating, or an exercise of your choice to get your heart pumping. You need to exercise at least twenty to thirty minutes. Cool Down: To help prevent post-exercise problems your cool down should consist of five to ten minutes of stretching. Burning Fat: Burning fat during exercise is relatively easy. To burn fat you must exercise at a lower intensity than you would exercise for cardiovascular fitness and you need to exercise for a longer period of time. During the first few minutes of exercise your body uses easily accessible carbohydrates as its energy source. After a few minutes of exercise the body’s readily available energy source is used up and your body will begin to use stored fat calories as its source. Cardiovascular Fitness: To achieve cardiovascular fitness you need to approach your exercise routine a little differently. If your goal is to strengthen the cardiovascular system you need to do aerobic exercise. Aerobic exercise is not just an aerobic class at the gym but it is an activity that requires large amounts of oxygen for a prolonged period of time. This will increase the demand on the heart to pump blood to the muscles, and the lunges to oxygenate the blood. Therefore creating a stronger heart, lungs and muscles. So whether your goal is to burn fat, become fit, and work towards good health and wellness, you need to tailor your exercise to you goal. Kimberly Jamieson www.healthypainfreeliving.com has achieved success in living and maintaining a healthy fit lifestyle and has helped thousands achieve this success by using her fitness, diet, lifestyle and motivation tips. She is committed to helping women’s fitness, and women’s health and wellness and helping others achieve ultimate health and wellness.
http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=411736

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Winston Salem Gyms : 3 Common Myths about Cardio Exercise .

July 27th, 2009 by Winston Salem, under Winston Salem Fitness. No Comments

Cardio exercise, or aerobic exercise, is one of the most beneficial things you can do for your body. It is known to strengthen the heart muscles, improve respiration, provide muscle tone, reduce the risk of heart illness, and increase bodily energy and endurance. And there are many different ways to get cardio exercise, such as through aerobics, running, basketball, tennis, boxing, rope skipping, and dancing. So it’s not surprising that a lot of people are into cardio exercise. What’s surprising is how even fitness buffs still believe in certain myths about cardiovascular activity. In this article, I will examine some common myths about cardio exercise.

Cardio Myth #1: “You can burn off more fat if you don’t eat breakfast before doing your morning cardio exercise.” In truth, it’s a bad idea to forego eating before doing cardio exercise, specifically in the morning. That is because your body temperature is at its lowest during the morning hours, and so it will take you longer than usual to warm up and get your muscles working. And your body will not burn off more fat if you do your cardio exercise before eating breakfast. Your body actually works at burning off fat when you are sleeping. There are no significant benefits to going without your breakfast before doing your cardio exercise in the morning.

Cardio Myth #2: “You should do cardio exercise before doing weight training.” This is a very common myth, and even some of my past gym instructors tended to structure my fitness program so that cardio exercise would come before resistance training. However, it’s actually better to do the cardio exercise after a session of lifting weights! This is because doing your cardio exercise can draw on the glycogen stored in your muscles. And so your cardio session will leave your muscles with less glycogen to use during resistance training, which could make muscle building a lot less effective. However, it’s all right to do a short amount–about 5 to 10 minutes–of moderately intense cardio exercise before doing your weight training.

Cardio Myth #3: “You’ve to sweat to get the most out of cardio exercise.” Sweating is nothing more than the mechanism by which your body cools itself. By itself, sweating is not an indicator of how effective your workout is, and even light exercise such as walking that does not make you sweat can help you get rid of a substantial number of calories.

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Winston Salem Gyms:Easy Workout to Travel with

July 27th, 2009 by Winston Salem, under winston salem gyms. No Comments

Just because you are traveling or you do not have a home gym, doesn’t mean you can’t get in a good workout. This is a simple and easy to travel with Thera-band work out. All you need is a Thera-band, and you can take your workout with you, therefore there are no more excuses for not working out. So start this simple exercise routine and improve your health and wellness. Warm-up Abdominals -Floor Crunches -Lower Abdominals -Oblique Crunches Leg Curl 2 x 15 repetitions Secure band to a stable object. Sit in a chair with one leg almost straight. Loop band around ankle, contract leg, bending at the knee. Return to the starting position under control. Leg Press 2x 15 repetitions Lying flat on your back, loop one end around your foot and grasp the other end of the band. Extend your leg out to near complete extension. Return to starting position under control. Chest Press 2×15 repetitions Seated in a high back chair with the theraband wrapped around back of chair at chest level. Grasp the ends of band in each hand. Press your arms away from your chest. Return to the starting position under control. Seated Rowing 2×15 repetitions Sit in a chair with feet extended in front of you. Wrap the band around the middle of your feet and grasp each end of the band. Straighten your back into an upright position. Pull your hands to your side, trying to squeeze your shoulder blades together. Return under control to the starting position. Lat Pull Down 2×15 repetitions Tie a knot in the middle of the band and place it over the center of a door. Close the door so that the knot is on the other side of the door and the band is locked into the door. Sit on the floor with your back against the door. Grasp each end of the band and from an arms overhead position, pull your elbows to your side. Return under control to the starting position. Shoulder Press 2×15 repetitions Sit in a chair and have the band wrapped under the seat of the chair. Grasp on to each end of the band. With your elbows by your side and hands at your shoulders, press your hands above your head. Return them to the starting position under control. Remember to keep your shoulders and back erect and stable when lifting to the side. Side Lateral Raise 2×15 repetitions Stand up with one end of the band under your foot. Hold on to the other end. With your arms by your side and elbows slightly bent, raise the band to the side to shoulder level. Return to the starting position under control. Remember to keep your shoulders and back erect and stable when lifting to the side. French Triceps Extension 2×15 repetitions Seated in a chair, sit erect. With one hand behind your back hold one end of the theraband. The other hand is bent behind your head with elbow facing up, grasping the other end of the band. Extend your hand above your head. Return to the starting position under control. Keep your back straight and stable during the lift. Biceps Curl 2×15 repetitions While standing, place the center of the band under your foot and the other ends in your hands. Your arms are beside you at waist level. Keeping your elbows locked to your side, bend at your elbows and lift your hands to your shoulders. Return to the starting position. Kimberly Jamieson www.healthypainfreeliving.com has achieved success in living and maintaining a healthy fit lifestyle and has helped thousands achieve this success by using her fitness, diet, lifestyle and motivation tips. She is committed to helping women’s fitness, and women’s health and wellness and helping others achieve ultimate health and wellness.
http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=411738

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