Fitness and Health Articles

Lynn Bode, CFT
marketing@workoutsforyou.com

Get A Beach Body In Just Six Weeks

Spring is here. Flowers are blooming, jackets are being put away and chances are that you're beginning to panic about putting on a swimsuit again. Hold on. Don't pack your bags for the North Pole just yet. You can get a body makeover in six weeks or less.

If you work hard and set your mind to it, you can make big transformations to your body in time for summer fun. Don't worry, while these changes will require dedication and work no crash dieting or excessive workouts are required.

Read on to learn more about both small and large changes you can start making TODAY to get your body in swimsuit shape.

1) Get on the ball. If you don't already have one, purchase an inexpensive fitness ball. Use it to perform abdominal and leg toning exercises 5 days per week. Do 5-10 minutes in the morning and 5-10 minutes in the evening. There are hundreds of exercises you can do on a ball from beginner to advanced levels so the variety will keep boredom at bay and ensure you keep your body challenged.

2) Add resistance training to your weekly workout. If you aren't currently doing a regular strength training workout then start today. Aim for a minimum of two sessions per week. Each session should work all of your major muscle groups with 2-3 sets per exercise of 8-12 reps using a resistance that fatigues your muscle by the final rep. Start with your larger muscles and then do exercises to target the smaller muscles as well.

In addition to the attractive physical appearance strength training provides, it also helps speed up weight loss. Even when muscles are not actively being used, they need fuel to function. So, the more muscle you have the more fuel that is needed and therefore the more calories you burn.

3) Change up your strength training. If you are currently including resistance training in your weekly routine then try to change it up considerably. It's important to alter your workouts every few weeks. The change helps ensure your body stays challenged, that you are regularly recruiting multiple muscle fibers and ultimately that you make progress and see improvements.

4) Add intervals to your cardio workouts. Strive for three 30-minute interval training sessions each week.  Interval training is short, high-intensity exercise periods alternated with periods of rest. It is one of the most effective ways to burn calories. These higher and lower intensity periods are repeated several times to form a complete workout. By exercising harder for short periods of time and then allowing yourself recovery time, you can push yourself harder.

5) Evaluate your eating habits. Even small changes can surprisingly reduce your calories significantly. For example, eliminate or at least limit your soft drink consumption. If you drink one can per day that's about 1050 calories per week you could eliminate. That's almost a whole days worth of calories abolished just by substituting no calorie drinks in place of pop.

6) Find ways to fit even more physical activity in to your daily routine in addition to your exercise routines. Don't underestimate the power of very small changes. Just get off your feet as much as you can. Put away your remotes and channel surf manually, march in place during your favorite show, stand instead of sit whenever possible during your normal daily activities, etc.

7) Maximize your efforts with cross training. Cross-training is a type of exercise regimen that combines strength work, aerobic work, and stretching. With this method you use different muscles each day, which means you'll be able to work out at an intense level without overstraining your body.  So try alternating the interval training days with strength training days for a cross training approach.

If you incorporate all of these recommendations, you can be ready for the beach and feeling confident in no time. But don't stop when you've reached your goal. These recommendations are appropriate for long term success and should be incorporated into your lifestyle permanently to maintain good health and fitness.

About the author: Lynn Bode is a certified personal trainer specializing in Internet-based fitness programs. She founded Workouts For You, which provides affordable online exercise programs that are custom designed for each individual. Visit: http://www.workoutsforyou.com for tips, sample workouts and more. Fitness professionals, learn how to support your clients online, visit: http://www.trainerforce.com


 Great Summer Workouts -- Just Add Water

With warm weather season now in full gear, exercisers want to take their workouts outside and breakout of their indoor fitness ruts. But, when temperatures reach record highs and humidity levels soar, traditional outdoor workouts become less appealing. So how can you stay cool while still enjoying outdoor physical activity? One word - water. Water exercises are the perfect way to workout under the sun without overheating. You can get a total body workout without even breaking a sweat!

And don't worry if you aren't a veteran swimmer. Aquatic workouts aren't limited to just swimming. There are many other forms of pool exercises. You don't even have to be a regular exerciser to try aquatic fitness. One of the great things about working out in the water is that even fitness novices can easily perform many of the moves.

It's also an excellent fitness choice for all ages, from the very young to seniors. Water exercise is a very good way to burn calories, improve your strength and flexibility, tone-up, improve your cardiovascular system, and just get more fit overall. And, the types of workouts are practically endless. Most land exercises can be modified and re-created in water. Other benefits include:
. lower injury risk
. less sweating
. works your entire body
. challenges your body in a very different way then it is accustom to
. refreshing way to workout
. water provides natural resistance so no equipment is needed
. can increase/decrease intensity (difficulty) simply by alternating between shallow and deep areas
. good low-impact exercise choice for pregnant women
. reduces joint compression and downward gravity pull (in other words - easier on the joints)
. even people who can't exercise on land can often exercise in the water
. excellent rehabilitation exercise for people recovering from an injury
. less stress on bones and muscles
. great option for people with arthritis

Plus, water workouts also provide a fun and more socially interactive exercise option. For example, parents can enjoy time at the pool with their children while also fitting in some of their weekly workout sessions. Aquatic aerobic classes also provide a social, group-setting alternative.

Still not convinced that an aquatic workout will challenge your body as well as some of the more common workouts like walking or jogging. Well, try some of the sample exercise below and you'll probably quickly change your mind. But, don't judge the workout solely on how high your heart rate gets. Keep in mind that swimmers generate a slightly lower heart rate when compared to cyclists and runners. This does not imply that they aren't working as hard. Experts equate the lower heart rate partially to the effect of immersion in a relatively cool environment. So, keep this in mind when determining your target heart rate, which may be 10 beats per minute lower when in the water. Also, don't make the mistake of assuming you are well hydrated just because your body is submerged in water. You still need to drink about ½ a cup of water about every 20 minutes of exercise.

Swim/Walk interval laps: Swim 1-2 laps (use any swim form you prefer: crawl, backstroke, etc). Walk 1-2 laps in the pool. Repeat sequence 4-6 times.

Water Squats: Stand in the water with feet about hip-width apart. Bend your knees slightly as you push your hips back as if you are sitting on a chair. Keep your knees behind your toes. Return to start position and repeat. The water provides extra resistance and makes this move more challenging.

Wave Jumps (for those with access to the ocean or a wave-simulator): Stand in knee-deep or less water. Each time a wave comes attempt to jump over it. Note: this is a more advanced move that requires good balance and strong swimming skills. Do not attempt this move unless you have experience swimming in waves.

Water Jogging: Can be done with the use of flotation devices where your feet don't touch the ground or the traditional way of actually jogging in the water.

For a more comprehensive list of water workouts and more detailed instructions for the above exercises, visit: http://www.workoutsforyou.com/water.htm

Remember, you should always consult your physician before trying any new exercise programs.

About the author: Lynn Bode is a certified personal trainer specializing in Internet-based fitness programs. She founded Workouts For You, which provides affordable online exercise programs that are custom designed for each individual. Visit: http://www.workoutsforyou.com  for a free sample workout. Fitness professionals take your business online, visit: http://www.trainerforce.com

Workout Wisdom

Gaining insight from sore muscles.

Q: I stay sore from working out hard. What can I do to help with the muscle soreness and fatigue?

A: I don't know what kind of workout--aerobics, running, power yoga, bicycling, or weightlifting--is leaving you sore and tired. I also don't know how recently you began to work out so hard. Soreness and fatigue can mean several things. When we begin to use certain muscles that we haven't exercised for a long while, they usually ache. If you've never done handstands in yoga or played tennis, the first time you do either, your arm muscles will let you know loud and clear. Generally, soreness comes from not flushing out the metabolic byproducts that accumulate when muscles repeatedly contract to carry out a particular asana or athletic movement. Stretching afterward helps, as does a hot bath or sauna, and, of course, rest. Exercising regularly is great for mood, health, sleep, weight control, muscle tone, and bone strength. But taking a break regularly is important, too. When we don't give our body the opportunity to renew itself, we wind up feeling depleted rather than energized by exercise. Aside from taking a day off, we can also replenish our energy by offsetting or counterbalancing intense workouts with gentler movements, such as T'ai chi, Chi-kung, or Self-Breema, a group of exercises developed in a mountain village in the Near East and later brought to California.

Soreness and fatigue may also represent mental obstacles we need to break through in order to maintain our discipline or reach the next level of practice. We all experience doubts that show up in different ways. Some days, we just don't feel like going to yoga class or going out for a run. Maybe we're aching from our last exercise session. Maybe we're tired from work. Maybe we have a list of things to do. Maybe...a hundred excuses. As long as we don't have the flu, haven't fractured a bone or torn a muscle, and the doctor hasn't said to cut back or quit for other medical reasons, we can push through the excuse barrier and move forward. When we make a commitment to our well-being, we get up and do a salutation to the sun in the morning even if we are sleepy and would rather stay in bed.

As with any practice, we need to learn how to distinguish between pain that is potentially damaging and a warning to protect ourselves and an ache we could turn into a reason for not persevering. We need to ask ourselves whether our fatigue is from working out or from overworking. Do we have a habit of overdoing everything in life? Are we sore and tired because we are not living in balance?

Check in with yourself at these different levels to determine where the soreness and fatigue are coming from. In the process, you might gain some valuable insights that will help you not only in workouts but also in working out other areas of your life.