Alcohol And Exercise – Facts and Reality.

by Weight Loss - February 22, 2019

Alcohol And Exercise – Debunking Some Facts

As the weekend nears, you probably will think about going out and having a few drinks with friends or co-workers. The thought of relaxing and wind down has its social merits.

There are some things, however that you must keep in mind.

Do small amounts of Alcohol affect your muscular output?

Research has proven that small amounts of alcohol will increase muscular endurance and strength output. However, the benefits are very short lived. After 20 minutes or so, problems will surface. Alcohol will, over the next few minutes reduce your strength, endurance and aerobic capacity. Even with short term use, nerve muscle interaction will be reduced resulting in a loss of strength. Remember, alcohol is a poison that will really harm your body if you aren’t careful.

Long term effects on the body.

Over longer periods of time it will make your body loose the ability to metabolize fat, and diminish muscle growth. Additionally, alcohol will affect your nervous system and brain. Long term usage will cause severe deterioration of your central nervous system.

Once alcohol reaches the blood cells, it will damage them. Alcohol users, often suffer inflammation of the muscle cells. Over time, some of these damaged cells will die affecting muscle contractions. Drinking alcohol also causes muscle soreness after exercise. Hence, it will take you a lot longer to recuperate.

Alcohol will also interferes with your heart and circulatory system ability to function properly. Anytime you drink, your heat loss will increase, due to the alcohol simulating your blood vessels to dilate. The loss in heat will cause your muscles to become quite cold, therefore becoming slower and weaker during your muscle contractions.

It also leads to digestive and nutrition problems as well. Alcohol causes a release of insulin that will increase the metabolism of glycogen, which spares fat and makes the loss of fat very hard. Additionally, due to alcohol interfering with the absorption key nutrients, you will eventually become anemic and vitamin B deficient.

Excessive Drinking Effects.

Because your liver is the organ that detoxifies alcohol, the more you drink, the harder your liver has to work. The extra stress alcohol places on your liver will cause serious damage and even destroy some of your liver cells.

Since alcohol is a diuretic, drinking large amounts will put a lot of stress on your kidneys. During diuretic action, hormones are secreted. This will lead to heightened water retention, loss of Potassium and frequent cramps. No one who exercises wants this to happen.

If you must drink alcohol, you should do it in moderation and never drink before you exercise, as this will impair your balance, coordination, and judgement.

Finally, think about your health and you may begin to look at Alcohol and Exercise from a whole new prospective.

Strength Training for Women

by Weight Loss - February 16, 2019

Strength Training for Women – Why it is Important.

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When it comes to exercising, there is usually a dramatic difference in habits that can be seen between men and women. Men like to hit the gym and lift heavy weights to bulk up and build muscle. Women are more focused on burning any excess fat they have by going for a run in the morning or joining a yoga class. However, strength training is very important for both men and women. Here are just some of the reasons why all women should do strength training exercises as well as cardio in their quest for fitness.

1. You can build strength without getting bulky

This is one of the main reasons why strength training for women is seldom used. They believe that it will just make them bulky and unattractive. However, this isn’t the case. You’d have to lift very heavy weights for a long time in order to build as much muscle as men do. Women produce far less testosterone than men do. Hence, making it almost impossible for women to ‘bulk up’ from lifting weights for 10-15 minutes a day.

2. You’ll burn fat easier

While cardio certainly helps with weight loss and improving your health, strength training is important too. It helps you to build some muscle, usually by converting existing fat into muscle. It takes up less space and makes you appear thinner and leaner. With the extra muscle, your metabolism is able to work faster and burn calories long after your workout.

3. It will improve your posture

Not many of us have great posture when sitting down or standing up, but strength training can help you to improve this naturally, which in turn decreases the risk of back ache and other aches and pains around your body.

4. Strength training for women will decrease stress levels

By lifting weights and carrying out exercises which build strength in your body, you can reduce the amount of stress you are feeling. The stress hormone, known as cortisol, is one of the main reasons why many women find it so difficult to lose weight. By eliminating high stress levels and getting rid of the overproduction of cortisol, you’ll find that it’s much easier to change the shape of your body both inside and outside the gym.

Finally, Strength Training for Women increases their sense of wellness. Well worth trying!

Working Out with Arthritis – A Helpful Guide

by Weight Loss - September 10, 2018

Working Out with Arthritis can be a challenge.

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How to Properly Workout When You Have Arthritis

When you have arthritis, you need to exercise, but it can often be difficult to do when you are in pain or your joints feel stiff. Here are some tips for exercising and recommended types of workouts that can be helpful with this condition.

Try Conditioning Exercises

When working out with arthritis, you need to keep your body moving to avoid having severe pain, but you also need to be careful with the types of exercises you do. It is best not to do anything that requires over-using the joints that are causing you the most pain. Conditioning exercises get your body moving, blood pumping, and strengthen your muscles. They can also help to improve the health of your joints, but still remain gentle exercises. You may need to adjust some of the movements when doing Pilates or Yoga depending on the joints that hurt, for overall, they are an excellent option.

Walk, Don’t Run

Walking is a really good exercise if you have arthritis, but jogging and running usually isn’t. If you are already a runner, you may find that it doesn’t worsen your arthritis, but once it does, you need to stop immediately. Running can be really hard on your joints, particularly in your legs and hips, so if that is where most of your pain is, you should stick to slower walking. Only increase the speed and intensity as it feels most comfortable for you.

Go Swimming

You can also go swimming, which is extremely easy on all of your joints. In fact, many doctors will suggest swimming before other exercises if you have the ability to do so. If you don’t have a swimming pool at home, consider signing up for a local fitness center that has a swimming pool. Many of them do and will offer flexible hours for you to go swimming. Take a swimming class that is for seniors, since those are usually gentle enough for people with arthritis.

Stretch and Warm Up First

A very common mistake made by people working out with arthritis is going right into the exercise without stretching or warming up first. Your muscles need time to stretch and get working, so take your time warming up. Similar to warming up, you also need to remember to cool them down at the end of the workout.

Finally, make sure you always talk to your doctor before starting any new workout program.

Working Out with Arthritis can be difficult, using the right amount of exercise will improve your quality of life. Try it!

Weight Loss and Fitness – The unbreakable bond. Use it to your advantage.

by Weight Loss - June 25, 2018

Weight Loss and Fitness – How to benefit from both.

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If you’ve decided you want to lose some weight (whether it be just a few pounds or a large chunk of your body mass), chances are you’ve done the research on diets, plans, gyms, exercises, and anything that you can find on that subject. You’ve probably seen that most credible sources will tell you that weight loss and fitness are strongly related. If not, that’s what I’ll tell you now.

Something to think about.

If you want to lose weight, you first need to evaluate a few truths. The most obvious is that if you burn off more calories than you eat, you will lose weight. You can either chose to do no “extra” exercise and eat very, very little in order to lose weight, or you can stick to a plan that will burn off enough calories and allow you not to starve yourself. It’s also important to note that overly-decreasing your calorie intake can backfire on you because your body will slow your metabolism down in order to accommodate this adjustment in calorie intake. This will cause you to actually gain weight instead of lose it.

The next fact is that a combination of water and oxygen leads to fat burning. Make sure that you are getting at least a half gallon of water every day. Your body will use this water when you exercise, and cause you to lose weight in a healthy way. Again, you must combine your water intake with some form of aerobic exercise (increased oxygen) for this to work. Choose something that you like and can do on a regular basis like Walking, biking, swimming, yard work, etc. As long as you get your heart rate up a little bit, it’s a good fat burning exercise.

Be consistent.

Finally, consistency is the key when it comes to your weight loss and fitness plan. So many people jump into something quickly with the mindset that they will just keep up the pace for a couple of weeks or a couple of months and then they can go back to their usual life.

Commitment.

In reality, your plan should be a life-long commitment. Even after you lose the weight, in order to maintain your goal weight, you need to eat right and get some activity in. So, pick an activity that you enjoy (or that you don’t mind so much). Walking is one favorite. If you live in the city, you can actually walk part of the way to work, save on gym expenses, and not have to worry about finding time in your day to exercise. If not, no matter where you live, you can probably find the time to take a 20-minute brisk walk around your neighborhood. Bring a buddy along to keep you entertained and you’ll see that the time flies.

The connection between weight loss and fitness is too strong to ignore. So, pick your plan and stick with it for life.

Inner Thigh Exercises for Healthier, Strong Legs

by Weight Loss - March 20, 2012

Inner Thigh Exercises

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A lot of people, especially women, look for inner thigh exercises as it seems like that those inner thighs are an area that seems to take weight on easily. Here are some inner thigh exercises to add in to your exercise regimen.

1. Squeeze an exercise ball between your thighs. Remember the Suzanne Somers ThighMaster? It helped you with a contraption that you squeezed with thigh muscles. You can do this with a small stability ball. Do it sitting or lying down and you’ll exercise those thigh muscles. If you’re doing it lying down and do a back bridge / pelvic thrust and you’ll get even more benefits.

2. Cycling. Cycling can be great for leg exercises and can help you tone your legs from top to bottom. If you do cycling exercises regularly, you will see fast results.

3. Strength training. Strength training can help you burn fat all over. Consider getting a consultation from a trainer for any weight lifting regimen so you can ensure that you learn to do the exercises correctly, minimising risk of injury.

4. Aerobics. Aerobics exercises and other cardio work does great for helping you burn calories and burn fat.

5. Pilates and Yoga. Both of these exercises help you build long and lean muscles. They don’t provide the same fat burning power as more robust cardio exercises but they definitely help. Leg lifts are a great Pilates exercise for your core and your legs.

6. Side lunges can help you focus on thighs. Slide one leg out while bending the knee for the other leg. Slowly return to a standing position. Do this a few times and then alternate.

Can You Spot Reduce?

Inner Thigh Exercises Some women say they’d like to simply remove some of the fat from their upper inner thighs. Exercises help with your overall body and despite the fact that these exercises are good for you, spot reduction isn’t something you should focus too much effort on. Consequently, an overall approach to cardio and strength training will give you better results.

Furthermore, as you lose weight, your muscles can be more well-defined with inner thigh exercises, resulting in toned legs rather than just thinner legs. Cardio and weight loss will help, too. Additionally, cutting calories and cardio will help you lose weight and burn fat all over. Therefore, don’t spend too much time focusing on just one area of your body because you think you need to target it alone. Your overall exercise efforts will pay off by helping you lose inches wherever there is excess fat.

In conclusion, follow these Inner Thigh Exercises regularly and you will look young, fit and trim.

Ab Workouts For Women – No Equipment Needed!

by Weight Loss - December 7, 2011

Ab Workouts For Women – Simple and Effective Routines

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Effective ab workouts for women are an important focus when creating a fitness routine. A strong core or abdominal area is important for overall body stability, particularly spine protection. If you cannot maintain balance during exercise, you risk potential injury. Luckily, there are a number of ab exercises to try that require no special equipment beyond an exercise mat.

The Bicycle Crunch

The most effective ab workouts for women should always include the bicycle crunch. This exercise engages all of the muscles in the abdominal area, particularly the rectus abdominis and the obliques, otherwise known as the “six-pack” muscles and “waist” muscles.

To execute this exercise, lie down on the floor and place your hands behind your head for support. Press your lower back area into the floor and raise your knees to a 45 degree angle. Pump your legs slowly in a bicycling motion while twisting your torso up. Touch your left elbow to your right knee and then your right elbow to your left knee. Take care not to pull on your neck and breathe in and out evenly. Your goal is to do 10-15 crunches and repeat the set three times.

The Superman Exercise

For overall abdominal strength, the Superman exercise is quite effective. Lie down on the floor, face down and stretch your arms out over your head. (Picture Superman when he is flying!). Raise your left arm a few inches above the ground at the same time as your right leg. Hold this pose for up to five seconds and then repeat the process with the opposite leg and arm. You should work up to 10-15 poses per set and repeat the set three times.

The Long Arm Crunch

Traditional abdominal crunches can strengthen and tone your stomach area but a variation called the long armed crunch is actually more effective at toning your six-pack muscles.

Ab Workouts for Women To perform this exercise, you lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor, just like the traditional version. However, with this type of crunch, you will extend your arms over your head and clasp your hands together, keeping the arms tucked in by your ears. Engage your abs, pulling your navel in and elevate your shoulder blades off the floor. Lower this pose and repeat 10-15 times per set and repeat the set three times. Keep your neck steady during this exercise to avoid straining it.

If you have not engaged in a regular fitness program for a while, it may take some time to work up to multiple sets of these exercises. Also, keep in mind that ab workouts for women should not be the your only exercise to lose weight and define your stomach area. A healthy, balanced diet and an effective cardio workout are necessary to help melt away the fat in your stomach area so that your ab muscles can be seen to their best advantage.

Follow these Ab Workouts For Women Exercises. They work!

Strength Training Exercises for Beginners

by Weight Loss - October 31, 2011

Strength Training Exercises for Beginners

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If you want to get fit and lose weight, strength training exercises are a great way to burn fat fast and to help you sculpt your body as you shed inches. The end result will be weight loss that has the pleasant side effect of you looking and feeling both good and strong.

Whether you’re male or female, you should be doing strength training exercises as a part of your weight loss and fitness regimen. There are a variety of strength training exercises you can do. Here are some suggestions for strength training exercises for beginners:

Bicep Curls
Lunges
Resistance Bands
Pilates

Let’s look at some of these popular strength training exercises a bit closer:

Bicep Curls

Do bicep curls with large or small weights, it is a great progressive exercise for beginners. Start small and increase the reps and when you’re comfortable, increase the weight.

Lunges

Lunges are a great way to build strength in your lower body and they can be done just about anywhere.

Resistance Bands

Use resistance bands, they are inexpensive pieces of exercise gear that work well in a variety of strength training exercises. Buy them with varying degrees of resistance, and they take up about the same amount of storage space as a jump rope.

Pilates

Strength Training Exercises for Beginners

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Pilates is an excellent strength training exercise that can focus on your core, on your arms, your legs, and can produce great results for your glutes as well.

Pilates offers a lot of results without extreme intensity. You can also do Pilates strength training exercises with just a short period of time.

Core Strength Secret:

Strength, in your mid-section, will serve you well in just about any exercise you do. Hold and release your abs repeatedly, even when doing nothing at all and you’ll build strength in this area. When doing any strength training exercises be aware of holding your core tight and you’ll increase results.

If you’re not sure where to start in terms of strength training exercises, it’s worthwhile to read books to get some starting ideas, purchase videos, or meet with a personal trainer.

In conclusion strength training, along with cardio workouts and a good diet will help you reach your health, fitness, and overall wellness goals.

Start off by warming up and by taking rests between sets. Over time you can increase your rep numbers as well as weights, if using weights as part of your strength training routine. Always be well hydrated and be careful about strength training exercises you’re unfamiliar with to avoid injury.

Strength Training Exercises are a great option for beginners, try them for quick results.

Exercises To Lose Belly Fat – Helpful Ideas

by Weight Loss - October 14, 2011

Exercises to lose belly fat work, being obstinate however, will yield results faster.

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Belly fat can be stubborn and difficult to get rid of. Many people who want to lose weight focus on their belly more than anything. Below you will find some effective exercises to lose belly fat.

Note: You need cardio. A lot of sit-ups, crunches, and other exercises to lose belly fat are good but they’ll often build up the muscle underneath the fat. Cardio, such as walking, running, cycling, swimming, and dancing in addition to the following exercises to lose belly fat can maximise the results.

Exercises to Lose Belly Fat You also need to eat well. If your eating undermines your exercises, you’ll find losing belly fat even more frustrating. Monounsaturated fats are a great addition to your diet (avocados, dark chocolate, olive oil, and some others) for helping you lose belly fat and you’ll want to eat fewer carbs and sugars and more proteins and vegetables. Limiting beer, wine, soda, and other calorie laden beverages will help, as well.

Squats – Squats can help you sculpt your lower body and can be done anywhere and without exercise equipment.

Cycling – Riding a bike is great for your lower body. You can also do air cycling to help you benefit from cycling while at home. It’s great for the lower belly.

Hula Hooping – Hula hooping is a great exercise to lose belly fat, especially in the obliques. Don’t worry if you keep dropping it, just keep practicing. You can find great hula hooping exercises on the Wii Fit gaming device, as well, that counts your revolutions without you having to have a hula hoop.

Resistance and Strength Training – Will help you burn fat all over. Resistance bands are inexpensive and you can start this with hand weights as well as using your own weight as resistance with push ups or chin ups.

Twists – Twisting exercises are great exercises to help you get rid of belly fat. They can be part of aerobics or Pilates or dancing.

Dancing – Dancing is a fun cardio workout that can burn fat all over, including in the mid section. And dancing doesn’t feel like exercise as much as it feels like fun so it’s great for people who don’t find it easy to become a gym bunny.

Yoga – There are a number of types of yoga to choose from and yoga exercises can help you strengthen your body and improve your flexibility all over. Yoga, in conjunction with cardio could do good things for sculpting your mid section.

Crunches – Good old fashion crunches can help build muscle so that as you lose belly fat you’ll have a better looking mid-section. There are various types of crunches that can target upper, lower, and oblique areas.

Sit Ups – Sit ups can also contribute to building muscles and strength in your mid-section.

Pilates – There are a variety of great Pilates exercises that can help you with losing belly fat. The one hundred, the warm-up Pilates exercise helps you build strength in your core. There are a number of other Pilates exercises that help you build long and lean muscles throughout your body. Pilates will help you increase your ability for endurance with exercises to lose belly fat. After just a handful of Pilates workouts, you’ll feel a difference.

Another Tip – Try to reduce stress in your life. Stress can cause a belly fat increase!

Exercises to Lose Belly Fat will work, but the secret is to maintain discipline.

Belly fat can be stubborn but don’t give up. The above list is not exhaustive but can give you some ideas of how you can get the body you dream of.

With hard work and persistence, stubborn belly fat will go away.