Archive for the ‘Exercise’ Category

Fat Loss Tips

Posted: August 26, 2011 by williampower in Exercise, Nutrition
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Fat Loss Tips

• Never skip meals
• Exercise daily
• Maximize the thermogenic effect of food (calorie converting process) by keeping protein levels up, increasing activity, and taking advised supplemental factors.
• Vigorous resistance training will maintain or increase your lean body mass (muscle). Muscle burns calories, which means that, for every pound of muscle gained, you will be burning more calories and increasing the rate of fat loss.
• DO NOT DRASTICALLY REDUCE YOUR TOTAL DAILY CALORIC INAKE.
• Reduce fat intake to fewer than 25% of total daily calories.
• Increase foods high in fiber and complex carbohydrates to help satisfy hunger.
• Avoid foods high in salt and fat, like all processed foods or snack foods.
• Eat fresh foods.
• Do not fry foods or use oil or fat in the cooking process. Instead bake, broil, or microwave foods.
• Avoid using heavy sauces on foods.
• Learn to read food nutrition labels. Look for foods that have less than 2 grams of fat per 100 calories.
• Aim for fat free foods.
• Eat low fat protein foods.
• Ask about low calorie protein supplements to help meet daily protein requirements.
• Eat egg whites as a snack to help reduce hunger pangs at night.
• Do not eat out daily and avoid eating fast foods. These foods are usually high in fat, salt, and calories.
• Eat plenty of vegetables.

Why Most Fat Loss Diets Fail
Most people are interested in quick weight loss gimmicks that are easy to use. They want a magic pill or food that melts away fat. While many of these diet programs can reduce weight, recent evaluations report that they have less than a 10% success rate in keeping the weight off. This is because these plans do not use real food and do not advocate sensible exercise. They also result in loss of lean body mass, which means lowering your metabolic rate. When you lose lean body mass, even if you are losing fat, your percentage of body fat may not change or even increase if the amount of lean body mass lost is greater than the body fat lost. Avoid weight loss gimmicks and drugs. Use an integrated approach of good diet and appropriate exercise as an approach to reach your goals.

10 Common Misconceptions When Losing Weight (ACSM)

Posted: August 26, 2011 by williampower in Exercise, Nutrition
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Severely restrict their caloric intake. A starvation diet ( i.e., reducing your caloric intake to less than 50% of what your body requires) presents a number of problems to people who are trying to lose weight. First and foremost, it doesn’t work. Any weight that may have been lost is subsequently regained because most individuals cannot maintain such a restrictive eating plan over the long haul.

Have an unduly narrow perspective of the problem at hand. Too many people view losing weight as simply a matter of cutting back on what they eat. In reality, it’s an issue of basic physics – balancing energy in with energy out. As such, if you really want to lose weight and keep it off you need to increase your level of physical activity and eat in moderation.

Ignore the need to maintain their level of lean body mass. A common tendency among individuals who exercise is to focus their activity efforts only on aerobic exercise. In this process, they lose muscle mass, which is replaced by fat when they inevitably regain whatever weight they lost. In turn, their metabolic rate as well as the number of calories that they need to maintain their current weight, is diminished. This adjustment creates a cycle that is counterproductive to sustained weight loss.

Misinterpret food labels. It is extremely important for individuals who want to control their weight to be aware of the fact that labels that state that a particular foodstuff is either “no fat” or “no sugar” does not mean “no calories“.

Try to lose too much weight too rapidly. Research shows that a weight-reduction program that involves a slow and steady loss (i.e., approximately 1lb or less per week for women and 2lbs or less for men) has the best chance for success, particularly when it is combined with an effort to change any inappropriate lifestyle habits.

Believe that spot reduction is possible. The concept of spot reducing is a complete myth. No exercise will eliminate fat from a specific area of the body, just as no change in your caloric intake will guarantee that the fat will melt away in the area of the body you most want to address. As a rule, the pattern in which you lose body fat is genetically predetermined.

Mistake water lost through sweating for actual fat and weight loss. Your body has millions of sweat glands that cover your skin, excreting water and electrolytes. When you exercise, the amount of water (sweat) that is perspired increases in an effort by your body to keep you cool and regulate your body temperature. The water you lose from perspiring can mislead you into believing that you’ve lost more fat and body weight than you may have actually lost. Such water weight is replaced when you subsequently consume fluids.

Buy into the “magic beans” theory. Selling supplements and related pills and powders and potions that will purportedly somehow facilitate a person’s efforts to lose weight is a multi-billion dollar a year industry. Other than being a waste of money and a purveyor of false hope for individuals who are looking for an easy and quick-fix approach to losing weight, such items also can have negative health consequences.

Follow unproven and spurious dieting advice. The number of unsound diets that target unsuspecting individuals with undocumented claims and unhealthy practices seems to grow exponentially every year. Truth be known, these diets share at least two traits – they don’t work, and they may actually be harmful (physically and financially) to a person who tries them.

Consider a surgical solution to their “weight” problem. Some individuals consider a surgical option for losing weight. In this regard, two procedures tend to receive the most attention – liposuction and gastric bypass surgery. Liposuction involves the removal of fat from specific regions in the body. Gastric bypass surgery, on the other hand, is a procedure that makes the stomach smaller and allows food to bypass part of the small intestine, resulting in fewer calories being absorbed. Although guidelines vary, gastric bypass surgery is generally reserved for severely obese individuals.

30-Second Sprints Build Endurance and Quickly Boost Performance

Posted: August 25, 2011 by williampower in Exercise
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Get More Fit in Less Time
Pro athletes and weekend warriors know that you must train your cardiovascular system to improve your endurance and sports performance. Getting at least 20 or 30 minutes of exercise at least three times per week has become the foundation of cardiovascular fitness. However, there are other ways to get cardiovascular benefits. In fact, evidence supports the benefit of short, high intensity efforts as a means of improving aerobic capacity and endurance.
Sprint training is becoming a new way to train. Recent studies involving bicyclists showed great results in very little time. In fact, one study found that just six sessions of 4-7 all-out 30 second sprints (with four minutes of recovery) could be as effective in improving cardiovascular fitness as an hour of daily moderate activity.
The subjects in one study showed a full 100 percent increase in endurance capacity (from 26 minutes to 51 minutes) versus the control group who showed no change. In another study by the same researchers, subjects improved their time trial performance by nearly 10 percent in the two weeks.
These short bouts of intense exercise (similar to interval training) improved muscle health and performance comparable to several weeks of traditional endurance training. The muscles of the trained group also showed a significant increase in citrate synthase — an enzyme that is a marker of the tissue’s ability to utilize oxygen. Other findings have shown that short, high intensity exercise burns more calories.
Click Here To Learn The Workout!

6 ACSM Approved Tips for Working Out

Posted: August 25, 2011 by williampower in Exercise
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  1. Get you body ready to exercise. Always warm up before you work out. Warming up properly ( i.e., doing enough to raise your body temperature) helps to ensure that your body is prepared to safely handle the stress of exercise.
  2. Don’t put yourself at risk. Don’t exercise if you’re ill or feeling unduly fatigued. Physical activity can exacerbate your illness if you are sick, and possibly expose you to increased risk of being injured if you’re extremely tired.
  3. Organize you workout environment. Keep your exercise area free of clutter. Rerack weights. Don’t allow your exercise area to become an obstacle course which can elevate odds of injury (tripping, falling).
  4. Proceed sensibly. Never try to do too much too soon. When you first begin to workout, start at a sensible level, and then progressively adjust how much you do as your body adapts to demands imposed on it.
  5. Use your lungs. Never hold your breath while exercising, particularly when you’re lifting weights. Holding your breath while exercising can cause a buildup of inner thoracic (inner rib cage) pressure, which can inhibit the return of blood to your heart. This action also can compromise the amount of blood flow (and subsequent oxygen) to your entire body.
  6. Listen up. Don’t argue what your body may be trying to tell you if you’re doing too much when you’re exercising. Always respond to such signals (e.g., sharp pain, dizziness, nausea, etc.) Having a “warrior” mindset will not protect you if you exceed your body’s capability to adapt to the amount of physical stress imposed on it.

Tips For Increasing Physical Activity

Posted: August 24, 2011 by Bizzy Amor in Exercise
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What is physical activity? 

Physical activity simply means movement of the body that uses energy. Walking, gardening, briskly pushing a baby stroller, climbing the stairs, playing soccer, or dancing the night away are all good examples of being active. For health benefits, physical activity should be moderate or vigorous and add up to at least 30 minutes a day.

Moderate physical activities include:

  • Walking briskly (about 3 ½ miles per hour)
  • Hiking
  • Gardening/yard work
  • Dancing
  • Golf (walking and carrying clubs)
  • Bicycling (less than 10 miles per hour)
  • Weight training (general light workout)

Vigorous physical activities include:

  • Running/jogging (5 miles per hour)
  • Bicycling (more than 10 miles per hour)
  • Swimming (freestyle laps)
  • Aerobics
  • Walking very fast (4 ½ miles per hour)
  • Heavy yard work, such as chopping wood
  • Weight lifting (vigorous effort)
  • Basketball (competitive)

Some physical activities are not intense enough to help you meet the recommendations. Although you are moving, these activities do not increase your heart rate, so you should not count these towards the 30 or more minutes a day that you should strive for. These include walking at a casual pace, such as while grocery shopping, and doing light household chores.

Tips For Increasing Physical Activity

Make physical activity a regular part of the day.
Choose activities that you enjoy and can do regularly. Fitting activity into a daily routine can be easy—such as taking a brisk 10 minute walk to and from the parking lot, bus stop, or subway station. Or, join an exercise class. Keep it interesting by trying something different on alternate days. What’s important is to be active most days of the week and make it part of daily routine. For example, to reach a 30-minute goal for the day, walk the dog for 10 minutes before and after work, and add a 10 minute walk at lunchtime. Or, swim 3 times a week and take a yoga class on the other days. Make sure to do at least 10 minutes of the activity at a time, shorter bursts of activity will not have the same health benefits. To be ready anytime, keep some comfortable clothes and a pair of walking or running shoes in the car and at the office.

More ways to increase physical activity
at home:

  • Join a walking group in the neighborhood or at the local shopping mall. Recruit a partner for support and encouragement.
  • Push the baby in a stroller.
  • Get the whole family involved—enjoy an afternoon bike ride with your kids.
  • Walk up and down the soccer or softball field sidelines while watching the kids play.
  • Walk the dog—don’t just watch the dog walk.
  • Clean the house or wash the car.
  • Walk, skate, or cycle more, and drive less.
  • Do stretches, exercises, or pedal a stationary bike while watching television.
  • Mow the lawn with a push mower.
  • Plant and care for a vegetable or flower garden
  • Play with the kids—tumble in the leaves, build a snowman, splash in a puddle, or dance to favorite music.

At work:

  • Get off the bus or subway one stop early and walk or skate the rest of the way.
  • Replace a coffee break with a brisk 10-minute walk. Ask a friend to go with you.
  • Take part in an exercise program at work or a nearby gym.
  • Join the office softball or bowling team.

At play:

  • Walk, jog, skate, or cycle.
  • Swim or do water aerobics.
  • Take a class in martial arts, dance, or yoga.
  • Golf (pull cart or carry clubs).
  • Canoe, row, or kayak.
  • Play racket ball, tennis, or squash.
  • Ski cross-country or downhill.
  • Play basketball, softball, or soccer.
  • Hand cycle or play wheelchair sports.
  • Take a nature walk.
  • Most important – have fun while being active!

Source: Mypyramid

Download: Tips For Increasing Physical Activity

Tips on Behavior Modification and Exercise

Posted: August 23, 2011 by Bizzy Amor in Behavior Modification, Exercise
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3 Behavior Modification Tips:

  • Describe the behavior to be modified
  • Replace the undesirable behavior with a desirable behavior
  • Develop a technique to control the newly acquired behavior

Eating behavior:
Describe the behavior:

  • Where are the meals eaten?
  • What was the mood, feeling and psychological state during the meal?
  • How much time was spent on the meal?
  • What activity occurred during the meal (watch TV, driving, laying down)?
  • Who was present while eating the meal?
  • What and how much food was eaten and at what time?

Replace undesirable behavior with desirable behavior:
Create new associated behaviors to replace old established patterns of behavior, e.g.:

  • Eat candy while driving –> Chew sugarless gum while driving
  • Snacking while watching TV –> sewing, writing, exercising while watching TV
  • Eating ice cream after an argument–> Doing 10 reps of an exercise after an argument

Develop technique to control behavior:
Use techniques for gaining control over eating behaviors:

  • Make eating a certain food or at a certain time a ritual
  • Eat slower
  • Measure quantities of food
  • Put off unplanned eating for as long as possible
  • Purchase individual sized packages of snacks
  • Instead of emotional eating substitute the behavior with activities incompatible with
  • eating : reading, walking, exercising, dancing, cleaning, etc.
  • Keep yourself out of situations where your food options are limited to only bad choices; keep yourself out of situations where foods that are overly tempting are visible or accessible

Exercise Behavior:
Describe the behavior:

  • Observe and either evaluate or survey your own activity over 3 days and get an overall description of your patterned behavior. Substitute more strenuous activity for those with low calorie expenditure

Examples:

  • Park a few blocks from work and walk the rest of the way.
  • When taking the bus get off a few stops early.
  • When traveling short distances walk instead of drive.
  • Exercise for lunch instead of going to a different restaurants.
  • Wake up early and workout before work.
  • Replace coffee breaks with exercise breaks.
  • Walk up and down flights of stairs every hour at work.
  • Do your own chores instead of hiring people (mow lawn, etc).

Develop Techniques to maximize exercise success:

  • Progress slowly – sedentary people shouldn’t do too much too soon
  • Include variety – switch up your activities to keep yourself motivated
  • Be systematic – set aside times of day or night to exercise and don’t get distracted
  • Be comfortable – wear clothing that is comfortable and conducive to exercise
  • Exercise with a buddy or in small groups
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