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Female Fitness and Strength Training?

April 10th, 2007    Subscribe To Our Feed

Since females are different than males it makes sense that a female fitness program should differ from a male fitness program. Although all fitness programs should include strength training, aerobic and stretching, a female fitness program should be designed to meet the special needs of a woman.

Many women tend to focus their exercise programs around aerobic exercise and minimize strength training, this is a huge mistake. Many women fear that strength training will make them develop large bulky muscles. This is not true if you follow a balanced female fitness routine that includes strength training and aerobic exercise. A woman’s body chemistry is different than a mans, and it is impossible for a woman to build bulky muscles. Strength training is critical for a woman for the following reasons:

Maintain Lean Body Mass

Starting at age 30 our bodies begin to convert muscle into fat. Strength training is needed to minimize the muscle loss that normally occurs. This muscle loss is more extreme in women which is why strength training is critical for female fitness.

Strengthen Bones

It’s common knowledge that women are more susceptible to osteoporosis. Including strength training in a female fitness program makes a woman’s bones stronger and she is less likely to lose bone mass. This minimizes the risk of osteoporosis later in life.

Maximize Fat Loss

Many women think that the best way to lose weight (and fat) is through aerobic exercise. However if your female fitness program includes only aerobic exercise, there is a good chance that you will also lose lean body mass. Strength training helps to prevent the loss of lean body mass. Muscles also burn more calories than fat, which is why strength training is needed to maximize fat loss. This is especially important in a female fitness program because women have higher body fat percentages and more difficulty losing fat.

Female Fitness Myths

Another misconception about female fitness is that a woman should use minimal weight and less repetitions than men. This is not true. In order to maximize the benefits above, a female fitness program should include 10-12 repetitions, 3 sets and as much weight as needed to make the last repetition challenging. Using weights that are too low, will make the exercises ineffective. You need higher weights to maintain muscle and increase bone strength. You need to take your female fitness routine seriously, if you expect to reap the benefits. Muscle is good for females as well as males. Muscles tone your body.

The exercises included in a female fitness program are designed to target the problem areas of the female body. Although a woman needs a total body workout like men do, it should also be customized to target the hips, thighs and buttocks. These are usually the areas that women need more help with. Since all women are different, your female fitness routine should be designed specifically for you to meet your goals. A personal fitness trainer that specializes in female fitness can help you design the ideal program for you. A custom female fitness program can help you sculpt the body that you always dreamed of.

 

To Your Health,

MyDietAndFitnessProgram.com

Fitness Walking: The Ultimate Exercise

April 9th, 2007    Subscribe To Our Feed

Fitness walking is one of the best exercises for weight loss, your heart and to strengthen your leg muscles. It is an exercise that can be done anywhere, is easy to do and is low impact. The intensity of your fitness walking program can be modified depending upon your goals. A high intensity program is great to build cardiovascular capacity and endurance. A low intensity program is geared towards weight loss.

Before beginning any fitness walking program you need the following:

1. consult your doctor and have a physical examination;
2. buy a good pair of walking shoes;
3. buy a heart rate monitor; and
4. buy a water bottle.

A heart rate monitor should be worn while fitness walking to track the intensity of your workout. If your goal is weight loss, you will be walking at a lower heart rate than if your goal is to optimize cardiovascular capacity. Most people design a fitness walking program that accomplishes both weight loss and enhances aerobic capacity.

If your fitness walking goals include both weight loss and aerobic fitness, consider the following:

1. alternate days between your lower fat burning heart rate and your higher aerobic heart rate; or
2. exercise the first 15 minutes at your lower fat burning heart rate and the last 15 minutes at your higher aerobic heart rate.

The beauty of fitness walking is that you can adjust the intensity to suit your fitness level and the best way to do this is with a heart rate monitor. When you first start your fitness walking program, you may reach your target heart rate with minimal exertion. However the more you exercise, the more you will need to exert yourself to reach the same target heart rate. The fact that you need to work harder to reach your target heart rate is proof that your heart is becoming healthier.

Fitness Walking on a Treadmill

Fitness walking can either be done outside or on a treadmill. The advantages of using a treadmill is that:

1. you can exercise regardless of the weather;
2. it is easier to maintain a steady heart rate with a treadmill; and
3. the treadmilll can increase the incline without you having to find a hill to exercise on.

Most newer treadmills will automatically adjust the incline to maintain your target heart rate. All you need to do is program basic information into the treadmill and it takes care of the rest. It makes your fitness walking program very easy.

Although using a treadmill in your fitness walking program makes it easier to stay on track, it can become a little boring at times. In order to add variety you may want to:

1. modify the intensity from work out to workout;
2. alternate between walking outside and using a treadmill; and
3. exercise 20 minutes on a treadmill and use a stationary bike or different exercise for the remaining 20 minutes; etc.

A fitness walking program should contain variety to keep you interested and challenged. When your fitness improves, it may be harder to get your heart rate high enough on a treadmill without running. If this happens, consider working your upper body while walking on the treadmill. Working your upper body as part of your fitness walking program will enable you to accomplish the following:

1. increase your heart rate;
2. obtain a total body work out; and
3. burn more calories with the same amount of exercise time.

Use your imagination, there are many upper body exercises that you can include in your fitness walking program. You can swing your arms in front as you walk, you can use small dumb bells and alternate raising your arms from shoulder level to over your head, etc.

In order to obtain a weight loss or aerobic benefit from your fitness walking program, you should walk a mimimum of 30 minutes 2-3 times per week. If you are not used to exercising, start slow and increase as your heart becomes stronger. Remember that your heart rate monitor is the best way to track your fitness level and determine the proper intensity. Your heart rate measures how hard your heart is exercising. Before beginning a fitness walking program or any exercise program, consult your physician. Your doctor will advise you about your target exercise heart rate. Do it, but don’t over do it.

Fitness walking is easy and extremely beneficial. It is a great life long exercise for people of all ages. So get walking and stick with it.

 

To Your Health,

 

MyDietAndFitnessProgram.com

Fitness: Today’s Missing Ingredient

March 23rd, 2007    Subscribe To Our Feed

Unfortunately, modern conveniences tend to minimize the amount of activity that we get as a society. Many of us drive everywhere, we have food delivered and we spend alot of time watching television or playing on our computers. None of these activites require much physical movement. We don’t even have to get up and walk to the television anymore in order to change the channel.

If we are not careful, our fitness will decline and so will our health. With obesity constantly rising, it’s more important than ever to incorporate some kind of fitness program into our lifestyle. A complete fitness program includes nutrition, exercise and similar healthy habits.

The easiest way to start or improve our fitness program is to make small changes to our everyday lifestyle. Starting small will make fitness and exercise easier to include in our lives and will not require significant sacrifice and motivation. Small fitness improvements made today, that become a regular part of our lives, can have significant life long health benefits.

Motivation, Motivation, Motivation

Even if we start by taking baby steps towards improving our fitness, we still need motivation to accomplish our new goals. Motivation is needed to get started and to maintain our new habits and lifestyle. There are many ways to motivate yourself, so pick whichever method works best for you. Here are a few fitness and exercise motivation strategies:

1. focus on getting into shape for beach season, and wearing your old favorite bathing suit;
2. if you have a special occasion, (ie., wedding, birthday, reunion, etc) use that as a motivating deadline for getting into shape;
3. find a partner with similar goals and create a support system;
4. reward yourself with your dream vacation, give yourself something to look forward to;
5. think of activites that you really want to accomplish, that require increased fitness;
6. create fitness goals with deadlines, both short-term and long-term; and
7. focus on your goals at least 3 times a day and visualize yourself as the new you, etc. 

These are just a few suggestions, but really think about the benefits that you want to obtain from your fitness program and why they are important to you. The more emotionally attached you are to your fitness goals and benefits, the more likely you are to accomplish them. Unfortunately, few people are motivated by the mere fact that a fitness program will enable them to live a longer and healthly life. Everyone is motivated by different factors, only you can decide what will work for you.

Starting a fitness program can be as easy as walking 30 minutes, three times a week. If you do not walk now, this small change can really improve your overall fitness. You can accomlish this by walking every morning, walking after dinner, walking to and from the bus station instead of driving, taking the stairs if you are only going up or down 3-5 floors, going inside instead of using the drive through, etc. When you begin to focus on fitness and exercise, you will find small ways everyday to include exercise in your everyday activites.

Seek Advice

If you are ready to begin your fitness program but are not sure what types of activity will be most beneficial, get advice from a professional. You can consult with your doctor, a fitness trainer at your gym, or review fitness guides and information on the internet.

You should always speak with your doctor before starting any new fitness program. Have a complete physical examination and let your doctor know what you are trying to accomplish. Depending upon your current fitness level, he may offer some guidelines that you should follow.

Pick a fitness program that is right for you and get started as soon as possible. Remember, it only takes 21 days to begin a new habit. Once fitness becomes a priority and a habit in your life, exercising and eating right will start to become second nature.  Just do it!

The more often you exercise the easier it will be to get to the gym. The most important part is getting started.
To Your Health.

MyDietAndFitnessProgram.com

 

Fun Fitness for Life - Spicing it Up !

March 17th, 2007    Subscribe To Our Feed

Like many people, you may think of fitness as a strict exercise program and you don’t like doing it. Or maybe you’re bored with the normal gym equipment and treadmills. You have to look for other more interesting ways to include physical fitness into your life. There are plenty of activities that are both fun and include physical fitness. I like to refer to these activities as life fitness activities. They’re recreational activities that also provide a great workout. Incorporating these activites in your life is a great way to include variety and entertainment into your fitness program.

Here are a few traditional life fitness activities that are great for individuals and familes:

1. softball;
2. rollerblading and ice skating;
3. hiking, canoeing and kayaking;
4. cross country skiing and snowshoeing;
5. volley ball, tennis, golf and badmitton;
6. walking or running on the beach;
7. bicycling;
8. dancing, yoga, etc.

Starting to get the picture? These are all activites that you can enjoy with loved ones and friends while also getting a great work out. Life fitness adds variety and makes exercise fun. It’s a way to incorporate life into your fitness program.

Looking for something a little more unique?

Try bouncing on a trampoline for both fun and a workout! There are even serious exercise routines available to add some fun fitness into your life. You can find mini trampolines everywhere (they’re even on eBay!) including a “serious” mini trampoline like the Urban Rebounder. The Urban Rebounder promises a vigorous workout, and you can find one for about $120 plus shipping and handling at fitnessandkids,com.

The Urban Rebounder can be found in larger gyms in the USA. There are two packages available, one for adults and one for children. Each package includes a respective exercise DVD program for the user. A trampoline is the perfect low-impact exercise for everyone because it does not stress your joints.

Another item that puts some bounce and fun into your life fitness is a high-tech pogo stick called the Fly Bar. It’s been featured on news programs and tech shows. Unleash your inner child by jumping five feet in the air on your Fly Bar.

This high-tech pogo stick is adjustable for any height and supports weights of 120-250 pounds. You can find the Fly Bar at The Sharper Image for $199.95. Adding a little life fitness into your exercise routine doesn’t have to be boring or bland.

You have many fun options to choose from. Life fitness is the easiest way to add fun and fitness into your lifestyle. Exercise can mean anything that you want it to mean. The important part it to become active and balance your activity for overall total fitness.
To Your Health,
MyDietAndFitnessProgram.com

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