Exercising for Weight Loss

Exercising Correctly to Reach Your Ideal Weight.

Do you have to exercise for weight loss? There seem to be conflicting opinions on this. But most would agree that a combination of eating right and exercise is the best approach to losing weight.

You can compare our bodies to very fine tuned machines that use whatever we put into them to operate. If we put junk into our bodies, we can still go on, but not in the most optimized fashion. In a nutshell, our bodies run on blood sugar (glucose).

Exercise plays an important role because it leads to a depletion of blood sugar in our blood stream which then causes fat cells to release fat to replace it. Our body then uses this fat for energy instead of just storing it. And that’s how exercise for weight loss fits in.

There are a couple of myths that need to be dispelled right away:

1. Exercise means going to the gym every day for at least an hour (or something similar)

2. You can eat whatever you want, whenever you want and then exercise to make it go away.

Let’s start with the first one. In order to be effective, exercise must be performed regularly. If you honestly believe that you can go to the gym every single day to work out for an hour, then that’s fine. Most people find this a stretch. But they feel that it must be done.

Exercising Routines

So, they will dive into their exercise routine for a week or two and then get completely burned out and quit. Wrong. Your exercise routine should consist of doing something that you enjoy in a consistent fashion. Does it have to be every day? No. But it must be something that you can stick to regularly (three to five times a week is something to shoot for).

You should try to get a combination of aerobic (cardiovascular) exercise which gets your heart rate up and muscle building workouts such as weight lifting. Exercise burns calories and speeds up your metabolism.

While exercise will make you hungrier, it shouldn’t be an excuse to eat the wrong kinds of foods all the time. How often do you hear people say “Well, I’ll eat this piece of pie and work it off later”? That’s fine occasionally and you can afford to splurge every once in a while when you maintain a consistent activity routine.

Eat Healthy Foods

But what you put into your body is even more important if you are exercising. The right foods (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, protein, fatty fish, etc.) will give you more energy and keep you feeling good. The wrong types of foods (excess fats, processed foods, too much sugar, etc.) will only inhibit the effectiveness of your exercise and weight loss plan.

Exercising for weight loss will get you the results you are looking for: a slimmer you for life.

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Burning Calories – Your Pathway to Wellness

We all know that the best way to burn calories is by eating less and by exercising more. However, when you are trying to diet, every calorie burned counts. Because of this, it is useful to try and find extra ways to burn a few calories here and there. Here is a list of a few everyday activities that can help you burn some extra calories.

You should note that these activities won’t burn a ton of calories, but as was already stated, every little bit helps when you are dieting.

Drink Cold Water

Cold water is one of the most underrated dieting aids out there. Not only does it help suppress appetite, but it can actually allow you to burn more calories. Drinking the water doesn’t burn more calories, but cold water  speeds up your metabolism. The sped-up metabolism leads to more calories burned.

Make Yourself a Bit Colder

Studies have also consistently shown that exposing yourself to colder temperatures does result in more burned calories. Why exactly? Well, it seems that your body is forced to use more energy to keep itself warm, which requires your body to burn more calories as fuel. We aren’t saying to go jump head first into the snow naked, but it may be something to consider next time you to go to jack up the heat during the winter.

Go Shopping

Shopping is a surprisingly good activity for burning calories. If you walk around a very big store or a mall for a long time, you burn a shocking number of calories, even if you are just walking a leisurely pace. So, next time you sit down to binge watch a show or go to do some other hobby, why not take a shopping trip instead? Even if you don’t buy anything, your body will thank you.

Cleaning

Cleaning your house is never fun. In fact, it’s such the opposite of fun, that people actually pay to get their house cleaned. However, cleaning your house can actually be a pretty good way to burn some calories. How many calories exactly? Well, for light cleaning jobs like dusting putting things away, etc., you can burn over 150 calories per hour of cleaning. For tougher cleaning jobs, like scrubbing floors and walls, you can end up burning close to 200 calories per hour.

In conclusion, Burning Calories will keep you healthy and on the way to Wellness. Try It!

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Does Weight Training Burn Fat? – If So, How Does it Work.

People looking to lose weight think they need to eat much less and move much more. In order to do this, many people start crash diets and cut out vital nutrients from their diets. They also start doing tons of cardio. They soon discover that they’re not losing pounds as quickly as they had hoped.

Is cardio good for burning fat?

Yes, cardio can burn fat and help you to lose weight, but running endlessly on a treadmill at the same speed isn’t the most efficient way to make the most of your time and energy. With regular cardio, you will start seeing changes, but weight training can help to maximise the efficiency of your workouts.

How does weight training help burn fat?

The great thing about weight training is that you can burn calories long after you’ve finished your workout. With cardio, once you step out of the gym or return from your run, you won’t be burning calories any longer. With weight training, you can burn more calories for up to 48 hours after you’ve finished exercising. This is great news for people who don’t enjoy going to the gym.

Another way weight training helps you to burn fat is by helping to build muscle. When your body builds muscle, it turns the excess fat you have into muscle instead. Even if you don’t see a change on the scale, you’ll definitely see a change in your shape and size. Fat takes up a lot more space than muscle does, so you’ll weigh the same but you will look and feel smaller.

Doesn’t weight training make you really big?

People who want to lose weight, particularly women, shy away from any type of weight training. They believe it will make them bigger. Even though they will build muscle rather than fat, the idea of getting bigger really puts them off. It’s important to note that you would have to lift very heavy weights for long periods of time in order to build any real amount of muscle mass. Hence, the danger of getting ‘too large’ building muscle is very unlikely.

What’s the best way to burn fat?

The best way to burn fat when in the gym is to combined HIIT (high intensity interval training) cardio with weight training. This will ensure that you get the most out of your time in the gym and burn the maximum amount of excess fat possible.

Finally, Does Weight Training Help Burn Fat is best answered by the type of workout you do. All types do, but HIIT doesit  best.

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Cardio and Strength Training – Combine them for Best Results

 

Combining two of the best forms of exercise gives you amazing results. It increases your efficiency by working out both your muscles and your cardiovascular system.

Regardless of what your goals may be. Losing weight, toning up or increasing muscle mass.

Therefore, the combining of strength training and cardio routines is arguably the best way to do it.

What is cardio?

Cardio is  a form of exercise which raises your heart rate. Examples are running, swimming and cycling.

Cardiovascular exercises do not require weights and relies on increasing muscle motion to get blood flowing at a faster rate through your body.

For this reason, better heart function and lung efficiency are the end results.

What is strength training?

Strength training routines rely on weights and resistance machines in order to encourage muscle movement. With multiple repetitions the body builds muscle mass and strength.

How can cardiovascular and strength training routines be combined?

Combining cardio routines and strength training is simple. For that reason, include both disciplines into your workout routines.

Ideally you can alternate both forms in the same session. Just as effective is to work one form on  day one, and the other on day two.

As long as both systems are exercised, the benefits will become obvious in a short time.

What are the benefits of using both forms of exercise?

Finally, the benefits are multiple, an improved pulmonary and heart system promoted by cardio will help stamina.

It in turn will lead to easier muscle building.

Hence, think of it as a better tuned engine taking advantage of every component to produce the best possible results.

Finally, a body that is has both inner and outer fitness is always going to outperform those that lack fitness in one or the other system.

Cardio and Strength Training – The Winning Combination. Try it now!

 

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Swimming For Fitness

Swimming is one of those fun workouts it’s gentle and yet develops strong muscles at the same time. There are many fitness benefits that swimming offers.

Do a Great Cardio Workout While Swimming.

Swimming requires a lot of energy and burns a lot of calories. When you swim, you need to move your whole body instead of just your legs or your arms. Swimming works your body and heart the same way any other cardio workout, such as dancing or running, would. So if you take up swimming for fitness, you will work your heart and boost your metabolism at the same time. To get the most out of swimming, it’s best to carry out interval training where you do high intensity sprint swimming alternated with easier workouts. This way you’ll push your body hard but will be able to do so for a longer period.

Swimming Is a Strength Training Workout.

Not only is swimming good for a cardio workout, swimming challenges the muscles all over your body and is great for increasing overall body strength. The water resistance you face while swimming forces your muscles to work harder – just like traditional forms of strength training. You’ll be able to gain some muscle and tone up your body at the same time. Swimming is also widely used as therapy. o strengthen injured muscles in athSletes. since the water resistance provides a good workout without giving stress to the injured body parts.

SwTimming for Fitness Is For Everybody!

The great thing about swimming is that everybody can do it and enjoy it. It’s suitable for every age group and fitness level. Yu can decide how hard to push yourself when you swim. Elderly people can benefit from swimming too. Since water gives good support to the body, they can stay fit without worrying about injuring their back or joints. It’s also a great activity for you to do with your family: you can have fun together and stay healthy at the same time. If you bring little kids along to the pool, though, be sure to always keep an eye on them to prevent any accidents.

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5 Healthy Breakfast Tips That Will Help You Lose Weight.

 

If you want to lose weight, or you just want to get healthy, then breakfast should be number one on your list. Even if you’re exercising every day, you could be sabotaging your plans by skipping breakfast! And, if you do eat breakfast every day, you may be choosing the wrong foods. Here are 5 healthy breakfast tips to make that first meal of the day a healthy one.

1) Never Skip Breakfast:

This is number one on the list of healthy breakfast tips for a very good reason! You may think you’re shaving calories off your day by missing breakfast, but it just leaves you more likely to snack on unhealthy foods throughout the morning. Above this, breakfast kickstarts your metabolism, making your body work harder to burn off calories from the meals you eat through the rest of the day.

2) Avoid Sugar:

Many of us wrongly assume that all breakfast cereals are healthy. This is far from the truth: many of them are overloaded with sugar. This can lead to weight gain and energy spikes that will leave you feeling sleepy by lunch time.

3) Don’t Drink Too Much Juice:

Although fruit juice is good for you, this doesn’t mean that it’s free from calories. The sugar in fruit juice can cause an energy spike, so stick to a small glass and drink water to hydrate you for the day. Drinking more water has the added benefit of helping you to feel fuller and avoid snacking.

4) Start As You Mean To Go On:

Think of breakfast as a kick-start for your day, and start with healthy foods that’ll give your body the energy you need. This means avoiding fast food and fried breakfasts that’ll leave you feeling sluggish at work.

5) Include A Few Superfoods:

Superfoods are ingredients known to greatly decrease your risk of developing a range of diseases. Thankfully, many of these are perfect for breakfast. Here are a few top ingredients to get you going: oats, tea, yoghurt (low fat), berries, nuts and seeds. Even if you only have a handful of these ingredients, it’s a good way to make sure you get something healthy into every day.

If all of these 5 healthy breakfast tips seem a little complicated for you when you frequently find yourself rushing around in the mornings, remember to plan ahead. If necessary, prepare your breakfast the night before to make it as easy as possible for you to stick to a healthy diet.

Finally, these 5 Healthy Breakfast Tips will Help You Lose Weight if you follow them.

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Fitness Motivation your road to Wellness

Finding Fitness Motivation

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You might know that exercising on a regular basis is good for you, and have even chosen some great workouts to do, but motivating yourself to continue is another thing entirely.

Fitness, like diets and new hobbies, are often easy in the beginning. You are excited to try something new, you add them to your schedule, and feel ready to finally make it
work.

You are determined to make it, even if in the past you gave up after a few days or weeks.

The problem is motivation. You need to keep pushing yourself and finding the motivation to continue.  Even on days when you don’t feel like you have the energy, or desire to work out.

That is what you are going to learn in the following sections. How to find your fitness motivation and keep motivating yourself with your fitness journey.

1. Skip Your Workout Rules

The very first step to finding the right fitness motivation, is skipping all the working out “rules”. Don’t worry about what you are supposed to do, but instead thinking a lot about a long-term lifestyle change.

Think about the workout rules you had in the past.

That obviously did not work to hold your fitness motivation, so it is time to take a different approach for lasting results.

2. Experiment with When You Like Working Out

Another part of shaking things up in your workout routine in order to get the fitness motivation you need is to experiment a little with the timing of your workouts.
Maybe you find that you have been trying to force yourself to exercise in the morning, but it makes it completely unenjoyable. Or trying to get in a run in the evening is almost impossible, so you skip most of them. This is when you know it is time to change things.

Your fitness journey might not be something you love every day, but it shouldn’t feel extremely forced. You should at least have some enjoyment in it in order to stay motivated. This means making tweaks when they are necessary.

Finding the Right Time

Finding Motivation for FitnessConsider your current schedule and the types of workouts you are trying to do, and think about if you can switch up the time of the day. If the summer is approaching, and you have been struggling with afternoon hikes because of how hot it is, maybe you should switch to a gym workout in the afternoon, or try to fit in a hike in the morning.
Don’t be afraid to make changes throughout the year, as other people join you, or just when you feel that motivation slipping and need to try something new.

3. Wear Your Active wear Everywhere

This is a little trick that can make a drastic difference in how often you workout. Not only does it help with motivation, but you run out of excuses when you have tried as hard as you can to get out heading to the gym, going on your walk, or meeting friends for a workout class.

When you wear your activewear while running errands or to work if that is an option, you don’t have the excuse of having to go home first to change, or bring your clothes with you, which can also be a little bit inconvenient.

It also really helps with your motivation. If you are already dressed and ready to hit the gym at any time, it gets you into the right frame of mind for working out. This has a much larger impact on motivation for fitness than you might think.

Bonus Tips

Modern synthesisIf you find it strange that you would wear workout gear everywhere, just take a look at what other people are wearing on a daily basis. It has become completely normal to wear sports bras with tank tops or shirts, yoga pants, and athletic shoes just about anywhere.

Why? Because they’re comfortable! Go out and get yourself some activewear that would be good for your preferred style of workouts, but that are also in your same casual dress style. This might mean some cute tops, black leggings or yoga pants, or some solid-colored shoes that are good for the gym, but don’t look like it.

4. Take the Gradual Approach

It is important that you not try to rush or force your fitness journey. If it is something you want to do long-term, you need to turn it into a lifestyle. As cliché as this might sound, it’s true, and it is the only way you will really benefit from it.

That is why going slow in the beginning, and working up gradually is the way to go. This means you are slowly adding in more workouts, gradually increasing the intensity, and only switching things up when it is needed. This need might come from hitting a plateau, your body adjusting to the previous workouts, or maybe just because you’re getting bored and losing your motivation.

Keep in mind that a journey is never linear. There are a lot of ups and downs, and plenty of curves. Take each thing as it comes, and don’t be afraid to go slow and steady throughout the entire process.

5. Buy New Fitness Gear or Equipment

You know how you feel when you get a new outfit, and can’t wait to wear it somewhere? Maybe you even look for opportunities to wear it more often because of how exciting it is? That is exactly why you should consider buying some new fitness gear or equipment on a routine basis.

You don’t need to spend a lot of money and buy new stuff every week, but just when you feel yourself getting bored with what you have, or kind of losing your steam. This might happen every few months or just once a year or so.

Ideas of What to Buy

There are many different things you can purchase that will give you that fitness spark back, including workout clothing and shoes, accessories, and home gym equipment.

Here are some ideas:

Activewear
Signing up for a monthly fitness subscription box
Athletic shoes
New fitness tracker
New apps when they come out
Accessories, like ropes, yoga mats, or TRX
Big equipment like a treadmill or elliptical

Keep your budget in mind so that all your money isn’t going to your workouts. This can also be a great way to reward yourself, by buying something new every time you hit another goal in your fitness or weight loss journey.

6. Buddy Up

This is probably not the first time you have gotten this advice, and the reason is because it works. Working out with someone else is almost always better than alone. Not only does it make it more enjoyable, but you have someone to keep you motivated and accountable.

Tips for Choosing a Workout Buddy to keep your Fitness Motivation

The trick here is to choose the right person who you want to go on your fitness journey with. If you choose someone that doesn’t’ show up or just doesn’t have the same goals as you, then you might be in for failure and will end up working out alone and might loose your fitness motivation.

Here are some tips for choosing a good workout buddy:

Find Someone You Know You Can Count On – First of all, it is absolutely essential that you can count on your fitness buddy. They are there to help motivate you and become someone who pushes you to workout even when you don’t want to, and you will do the same for them. Try not to pick someone who isn’t reliable just because they are friends. Take your fitness journey seriously and find someone who takes theirs seriously as well.

Choose a Workout Buddy with Similar Goals – You also want to think about their goals and your goals, getting down to specifics. Come up with a plan where you will go to the gym or meet at the same outdoor hiking spot at the same time. Make sure your
goals, from the frequency of workouts, to the longevity of your buddying up are all the same on both ends, that way you benefit mutually.

Select a Workout Buddy Who Likes the Same Types of Workouts – And lastly, consider what types of workouts you will be doing, now, and in the near future.

7. Use the 5-Minute Rule

This is a super easy trick you can do that will help on the days when you have absolutely no motivation. This is often due to being tired, or when you have been exercising a ton, and you just feel really tired and worn out. While you should still give your body a break when you need it. It wil keep your fitness motivation going.

That is when the 5-minute rules comes in. Here is how it works:

Pick a workout you want to do, usually something that doesn’t require a lot of effort. Something like a treadmill or going for a short walk. After 5 minutes, if you’re still exhausted and just don’t feel like continuing, feel free to stop.

More often than not, it is getting started that is the problem, not actually working out. If you are at a place in your fitness journey where you keep making excuses, just try for 5 minutes and see how you feel. If you do not you may loose your fitness motivation.

8. Think Outside the Gym

This tip for battling lack of fitness motivation has to do with the type of workouts you do. Everyone comes to a point where their routine isn’t as effective as it used to be.

Of course, you may start changing the reps and intensity, but even still, you might need something new.

If you have been going to the gym every day, and just can’t seem to get there anymore, don’t go! Give yourself a break where you do something else for physical fitness instead. This might mean going for walks by the beach, going on a hike, going swimming, or picking up a new activity you have never done before.

Try a dance class or do a home workout for a while. It doesn’t matter what you do, keep moving your body and working on your goals.

Finally, while the gym works great for a lot of people, it is not for everyone. Don’t force yourself if that only depletes your fitness motivation.

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Eating Once a Day to Lose Weight.

Eating Once a Day

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If you are asking,”How much weight can I lose eating one meal every day?”, you aren’t going to like the response.

The fact is, you might end up losing no fat and you might even end up gaining somewhat.

“But don’t I have to eat less if I want to lose weight?”

The solution is yes. . .and no. Eating once a day may end up slowing down your metabolism. Your body feels as though it should store food since it appears that you will starve it. It decides that it must save a small reserve of energy to use it later. The more frequently you eat, the less food it feels it needs to store for itself.

To increase your metabolism, you then want to be getting more intake. When your body is stressing that it might go into starvation mode, it will need to store food to build reserves (fat).

When you finish your weight loss attempts this way, you very well could end up with less weight, unfortunately it will be caused by you losing more muscle mass than actual fat loss.

If you want to increase your metabolism and burn off more fat, then you need to be eating more frequently than normal. The notion of just eating once a day isn’t going to cut it. You will need several meals. They don’t have to be major meals. It merely needs to be enough to let your body know you’re not going to starve it.

It isn’t that you are very likely to be eating more food than normal, it’s that you are likely to be spreading out it through out the day. If you will be stressing your body through exercise, then you have to  supply it continuously with the fuel it requires. The trick is to find the ideal equilibrium.

The answer to the question,”How much weight will I lose eating once a day?”  Is none.

Your body should be ensured that it is going to have the food it must have to make it through the daily routines.

Finally, eating once a day will bring more harm than good, avoid it.

 

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Eat More Often Loose More Weight – Sounds a Bit Hard to Believe.

Eat More Often Loose More Weight

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It’s amazing how much weight can be dropped by ingesting more. Many people will have you believe that to get rid of weight you must eat less. By significantly less, they generally mean less frequently. This is not necessarily the situation, though.

Eat more often loose more weight starts with breakfast.

Growing up you probably heard your Grandmother saying “Finish your breakfast, you need to grow strong” It is true in fact that the most important meal is the one most people miss most often. It is a shame that most of the time we run out of time for it. Instead, we get our morning fix by drinking a large coffee and bread. It might curb our hunger for some time, but our bodies will still be craving for the good stuff in a little while.

Why we need to have breakfast?

1) It’s like filling up your gas tank first thing in the morning. Obtaining a good healthy breakfast can help you to get more done till the afternoon without interruption. It will keep your blood sugar levels and give you energy throughout the work day.

2) It improves your mind and nervous system perform properly. Your mind will work better, and your memory remain sharp.

3) Without breakfast your attention after a few hours will wander and food craving will set in. This means that you will try to find anything to eat. Not only will you eat a lot, you will eat it quickly. Eating quickly probably means you’re eating more than you need. Gulping food down so fast your body does not have the time to figure out that it’s full till it’s too late.

Why eat more often to loose weight?

If you eat breakfast and several smaller meals through the day, you will really be amazed with how much weight can be lost if you choose to eat more.

When trying to loose weight, eating breakfast can lead to better weight management. It is not just breakfast alone, however. It’s eating several times a day. Eat early and frequently to help you eliminate the most weight.

Should you skip meals, your body starts to believe that it’s starving and will go into storage mode believing it must conserve as much as possible. Additionally, it may slow down your metabolism and your ability to burn off fat.

If you eat that wholesome breakfast, then follow it by several small meals every few hours,  you’re letting your body understand you aren’t going to be starving it now so that it does not have to worry about storing it. Additionally, it gets your metabolism going and prepared to burn fat daily.

Eat More Often Loose More Weight makes sense when you understand how your metabolism works.

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