Fitness tips , exercises and workout artices

Most women would certainly agree that there’s really not much to love about ‘love handles’. Instead, most women try to do their best  to get rid of them as quickly as possible. Pilates and resistance exercises seem to be one of the best methods to accomplish this goal:

Resistance exercises that emphasize core strength are some of the best ways to tighten your abs and flatten the tummy. These exercises work the muscles in the stomach, sides and back. The following exercises are based on the Pilates principle of engaging the core muscle. To engage the core muscles you need pull your stomach in and imagine that you are pressing your belly button into your spine.

Hold this position throughout the exercise.
• Pilates 100
• Single Leg Stretch
• Pilates Roll Over
• Squat with Double Hammer Curl

For step-by-step instructions on doing any of the above exercises as well as others, simply click on the Exercise Section under Members Only. Don’t forget your towel, exercise mat and water bottle, handy tools that make your work out work for you.

If you are a Pilates enthusiast these are certainly great moves you can include in your routine. However traditional full body exercises such as lunges or squats are also great exercises to include.

Source:fitness4her.com

Exercising regularly is a habit many of us would like to form but find it rather difficult.  A well thoughout out plan along with a genuine desire to succed can truly make a difference when it to how well you manage to turn your goals into reality. Here are a few tips to make things easier:

Use a calendar: I like to use Google calendar because it’s web based and I can access it easily. Plus it can send out email reminders of upcoming appointments. Whichever calendar you choose, the goal is to fill it with as many fitness activities as you can for the entire month.

Make a list: Are there things you have always wanted to try but never get around to? Make a list of activities that will get you physically active. Indoor rock climbing, martial arts classes, dancing, boxing classes, zumba, etc.

Sign up: Decide which classes or activities you like most. Find out what you can afford and search for free and low-cost sources as well. When you find what you like, schedule some classes. Now you can start filling in your calendar with fun stuff.

Contests: Local gyms and fitness groups often hold competitions that you can train for. Stay on the lookout and find what you like. You never know, you could be winning trophies too!

Along with these practical tips, keeping an exercise diary in which you record your progress, include photos  or workout impressions can also help kick start your motivation when you need it.

Source: tryingfitness.com

Flat Abs

If you’re exhausted by crunches and sit ups find out the top flat abs secrets. Tone your muscles using only the most efficient and healthy exercises. Vamp up your workout routine with professionally-inspired solutions that grant you with a flat stomach and energy. The new generation of abdominal exercises are here to save you from losing your slimming motivation.

CRUNCHES ARE JUST ONE FORM OF AB EXERCISE: What you need to do is a series of exercises that work all the muscles in the abs (the rectus abdominis and obliques) from different angles. There are three so-called “Places of motion”. When you bend forward, you work the sagittal plane. Bend to the side and you target the frontal plane. Twist your torso and you hit the transverse plane. A basic crunch only work your muscles through one plane of motion – sagittal – which is why you can do them forever and only see a third of the results. Of course, don’t give upon crunches. Incorporate moves that hit the other two angles and your abs will be much leaner.

THERE IS SUCH A THING AS A BEER BELLY:Any alcoholic drink can add to the size of your stomach for one very simple reason: Alcohol is dense in calories. Every gram of alcohol contains the same amount of calories as a gram of butter – seven which almost twice as many as a gram of most other carbohydrates or protein. Like other calorie-packed foods. It promotes weight gain.But there’s also evidence that beer, more than other kinds of alcohol, may cause more fat to settle on your belly. Research at the University of North Carolina at Chap I Hill found that among those who had more than six drinks a week, beer drinkers had the highest waist-to-hip-ratio followed by those who who opted for liquor. Wine drinkers had the slimmest waistlines.

STRESS SHOWS UP ON YOUR BELLY: Being stressed can actually prompt your body to store fat in your stomach. A study conducted at Yale University found that of the 160 female participants, the ones who reported the highest levels of chronic stress had the biggest waistlines. Researchers suspect that excess amounts of the stress hormone cortisol promotes your body to pad your waistline, because the fat cells in this area have more receptors for cortisol than any other cells in the human body. To help keep stress levels (and your stomach) in check, cut back on known cortisol elevators, such as smoking, drinking and lack of sleep. Exercising, listening to classical music, deep breathing and having a good laugh have also been proven to instantly lower your body’s levels of this hormone.

MIXING IT UP IS A MUST: Even if you’ve got a fantastic workout, you still need to vary your moves every few weeks. The longer you stick with an exercise programme, the more efficient your body becomes at doing it You end up using less energy and burning fewer calories, and you won’t get optimal results. Research shows muscles can adapt in as few as four to five workouts.Keeping your muscles from getting bored doesn’t mean scrounging up an all-new routine, either Constantly making small tweaks to the same moves is enough. For example, instead of placing your hands by your ears when you do crunches, try extending your arms in front of you or do oblique twists on an incline bench rather than the floor.

Use your creativity and your knowledge about flat abs to have the figure you were dreaming off. Embrace a healthy lifestyle that includes a well-defined fitness schedule.

source: womenfitness

When looking for fitness motivation and instights,  people who get extraordinary results  are the ones that have the greatest power to inspire us. Chris Powell is certainly one of them as he has demonstrated that accomplishing amazing results can be definitely be done with the right tools and mindset.  ”Extreme Makeover” continues to surprise us with each new edition. Chris Powell has become a true inspiration among the fans of the show.  His principles may not be easy but they are extremely effective. Here’s a breakdown of his main principles:

Diet Tips:Cut sugar, flour and fried foodsAlways eat breakfastDrink a gallon of water a day

Exercise Tips:

Make a daily appointment with yourself to work outWalk as much as you can. Do some kind of resistance training 2 times a week

Mental Tips:

Be open, honest and vulnerable with yourself — approach weight loss from an authentic standpoint.Confess about where you feel short in the past while trying to lose weight and clear yourself of those excuses.Recommit to your goal.

Without a doubt, no single lifestyle change will produce dramatic results in the area of weight loss and fitness.  Gathering motivation on a daily basis, sticking to basic tried and tested rules and acting upon them has really proven to be a winning strategy time and time again.

source: thatsfit.com

Exercise Myhts

Find out the top exercise myths that can sabotage your muscle training project. Get rid of extra pounds and play up your dazzling silhouette with a few simple methods. Don’t let yourself be deceived by ideas and trends that can ruin your workout routine

Light Weights Are Best For Toning:Second, another common exercise myth is that if you want to firm up your body and add muscle tone, you should lift lighter weights in the higher rep range. Again, this is incorrect.In order to get your body to change, you have to challenge it to work harder than it ever has before. While higher rep training may test out your endurance abilities, using a heavier weight will cause the muscles to work harder.

If Some Is Good, More Is Better:The very first myth that you might be calling for is that if some exercise is good, more must be better. After all, it only seems to make sense. If you can burn off 300 calories during your workout session, if you double the time and can burn off 600 calories, won’t you see faster rates of weight loss?Not quite.
The thing to remember is that the body can only handle so much exercise before it just becomes too overworked and broken down to continue. Unless you’re giving your body enough rest time to recover from each workout session that you do, you’re just going to continue to break it down further and further

Interval Training:Generally speaking you might burn 10-15% of the calorie burn you got from the exercise session over and above it after it’s completed, but if you can only perform those intervals for 10 minutes and burn 100 calories, how many calories are you really burning? 110 or 115 total?If you do a moderate intensity cardio workout and can maintain the pace for a good 45 minutes and burn a total of 400 calories during that session, that will be the one that moves you closer to your weight loss goals.So make sure that you’re taking some time to consider all these points as you go about designing your workout program. Heavy weight lifting along with modest amounts of cardio training and enough rest will be your best bet to success.

source: slimmingresources