Aerobics Guide

Returning the Gift of Holiday Weight Gain

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Learn about how to warm up for an aerobic exercise with expert fitness tips in this free exercise video on high and low impact aerobics. Expert: Andrea Austin Bio: Andrea Austin has been a Fitness Trainer for 8 years, and an Instructor for 20. Filmmaker: stuart murphy

Returning the gift of holiday weight gain can be a true challenge for most of us. This is why it’s important to try to avoid getting a holiday weight package in the first place! There’s no benefit to approaching the New Year with a lot of extra weight that you have to lug around all year.

However, if you do gain a little weight, it’s a good idea to know and understand the measures that you can take to eliminate those extra pounds before they become a problem.

You can learn all about returning the gift of holiday weight gain in the tips below:

Get Moving

One of the best ways that you can maintain your current weight through the holidays, or shed those extra pounds from your holiday blessing, is to exercise! You should strive to get at least four hours of exercise weekly. This may sound like a lot, but there are many exciting physical activities that will enable you to lose those unwanted pounds.

* You can take a walk around the block to savor one last look at those Christmas decorations, go swimming in an indoor heated pool, or warm up in an aerobics or dance class.

* Go up and down the stairs a few times. When you’re done, your heart will surely be pumping!

* Learn some basic yoga moves and start or end your day with some deep stretching and relaxation.

Make Healthy Food Choices

During the holidays, fresh fruit assortments are a big hit and make eating healthy much easier. A good goal would be to eat five servings of fruits every day. When you snack on fruit, you’ll avoid the urge to sink your teeth into that hot apple pie and those other tempting desserts that tend to line tables and countertops when the holidays roll around.

In addition to fruits assortments, vegetable trays are a great, healthy choice as well.

* With fresh fruits and vegetables, not only will you be able to eat plenty of foods that taste great, but you’ll also get your daily dose of essential nutrients and vitamins that assist in the many functions of the body.

* It would be unreasonable to expect you to avoid all of the delightful foods that tempt you during the holidays. In fact, you shouldn’t deprive yourself at all! The key is to enjoy these sweet desserts in moderation.

* Fill up on the healthy fruits and vegetables first and then ask for a small serving of pie. You’ll get a sweet taste without the desire to devour the entire pie.

* Try to limit yourself to just one treat a day. Setting limits will allow you to enjoy all those seasonal foods that you love without causing holiday weight gain.

* Share your cookies and treats with those at your office, church, or homeless shelter. If the sweets tempt you too much at home, share them with others.

Party Etiquette

Prepare yourself for social gatherings, family dinners, and festive holiday parties. The foods and beverages that you find at these parties are generally loaded with fat and other unhealthy ingredients.

* Eat a healthy meal before going to holiday parties. If you’re not hungry, you’ll indulge in fewer unhealthy foods that can add pounds.

* Focus on enjoying the company rather than on the food. Engaging in conversation will allow you to forget (momentarily!) about the food buffet.

During the holidays we all want to indulge in traditional holiday treats. Being conscious of portion control will help you avoid gaining a significant amount of weight this holiday season.

Returning the gift of holiday weight gain is much easier when it does not involve too many pounds. Using these tips will keep the weight gain to a minimum and help you to shed those few extra pounds that do materialize.

Constantine George

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Water-friendly Workouts

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Did you know that a 150-pound woman weighs a mere 17-pounds in the water?

This is because of the water’s buoyant effect on the human body. This lack of gravity in water is why so many people with joint and muscle pain, and those who are extremely obese, turn to aqua fitness to get their health back. Water fitness is extremely gentle because it cushions the body, putting zero stress on weight-bearing joints and muscles. As a result, aquatic workouts are extremely low-impact and can greatly reduce the chances of further injury and strain – that the same exercises out of water can actu
Water Aerobics Exercises : Water Aerobics Front & Back Kicks

ally induce.

Those new to aqua fitness will find that exercising in water is gentle and allows for a wider range of movement, which means you are able to move in all directions. This is beneficial to many who are obese or injured – who wouldn’t be able to lift their legs and arms this way out of the water. The water lends its gentle resistance to help build muscle strength and tone safely. Just try to lift your leg up when it’s under water and you will feel the drag and resistance – see you are feeling the effects of gravity underwater.

6 Tips for Water-Friendly Workouts:

1. Although aqua workouts are considered one of the gentlest, please consult your doctor before starting any exercise routine.

2. Make sure the body part you want to exercise is fully submerged.

3. Any exercises should be slow and gentle under the water.

4. Complete each exercise to its full range of motion.

5. Stop immediately if you experience any pain.

6. Start with 5 repetitions and gradually move up to 8 and then 10 – once you feel comfortable.

If you are a water workout novice, and are looking to add a new challenge to your aqua workout routines, try incorporating some free-standing cardio equipment – such as:

Aqua floats – These easily strap onto various parts of the body – the upper arms, ankles, waist and wrist – and keep the body buoyant in the water. The most popular float used in water aerobics classes is the flotation belt. These are used for exercising in deep water because they keep your body afloat and in proper alignment during your workout.

Kick boards – These also support your weight so you can perform lower body exercises in the water.

Swim fins – Although these are typically used for scuba diving and snorkeling, shorter swim fins are used for adding resistance (or webbed feet) to your water workout.

Anna Fleet

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How to Lose Love Handles Tips

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Kicking in water aerobics is a great exercise for the legs. Learn how to do side kicks in water with expert fitness tips in this free exercise video. Expert: Shawna Zorka Bio: Shawna Zorka has been teaching water aerobics for 10 years. Filmmaker: Jason Van Vleet

By now we all know what are love handles and nobody love those love handles. But it is also true that it is not too easy to get rid of love handles. I admit that I have been love handles and had been trying to lose love handles for some time.

I search more and more to get expert comments and views about “How to lose love handles” fast. But I was really disappointed to know that there is no fast, magic or shortcut to lose love handles. But there are some exercise, diet plans and lifestyle change we have to make to be really able to burn the fat in this area (Love handles).

I get some really useful love handle tips and exercise that will help to lose love handles. So I am not going to waste more time and just going to implement the tips:

  • Needs to burn more calories than we consume. There is no exercise or diet plan useful by the time we do not limit out calorie intake.
  • Eat healthy food with lesser amount of calories and no sweet at all
  • Drink more water during the day. Try to drink water in excess of three liters per day to have maximum impact.
  • Take fruits and vegetables more often during the whole day. And avoid fast foods and especially cheese.
  • Limit your sugar intake and do not eat red meat.
  • Limit your habit of consuming high amount of alcohol in the form of beer and wine.
  • The most important thing to do is reducing the amount of salt intake. Decrease your salt intake as much you can from various foods you eat.
  • Going for a walk in the morning will be helpful. With this doing swimming, running and biking will also be great.
  • Doing aerobics will help to reduce the stored fat around love handles
  • Doing side bends exercise will be a useful exercise for targeting the muscle under your love handles.
  • Doing leg raise exercise will also be useful. Try to repeat leg raise exercise ten to fifteen times.
  • Try to involve more in sports kind of activities. Use stairs instead of elevator and join a gym if you are suffering too much of love handles.

These are some of the steps that will help in losing the love handles. We need to use a healthy combination of diet and exercise to be really successful with love handles. We need to be keeping patient and keep on making the right efforts with lot of enthusiasm.

Anil Garg
http://www.articlesbase.com/weight-loss-articles/how-to-lose-love-handles-tips-699846.html

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Tips to Manage your Diabetes

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Diabetes is an epidemic disease that affects more and more people nowadays. No need to panic when diagnosed with diabetes. It’s bad news. It could be devastating at first. Fortunately, diabetes is a manageable condition. By following some simple steps you can keep your diabetes under control and still live a healthy life you deserve. Here are some tips on how to manage your diabetes successfully:

* Learning more about your diabetes – Knowledge about this disease will help you do what’s good and avoid what’s bad for this disorder.
* Planning a healthy diet – A healthy and balanced meal plan plays an important role in controlling your diabetes. It makes you feel better and help to reduce the chances of developing serious complications. A balanced healthy diet including a variety of foods from each group of grain products, vegetables and fruit, milk products and meat and alternatives will keep your blood glucose at the normal level. Choose low fat foods and foods with a lower glycemic index. Avoid high fat foods and foods with a high glycemic index.
* Keeping your weight in a healthy range, shed off extra pounds if you’re overweight, especially if you have type 2 diabetes – Keeping normal and Healthy Weight will help your body’s ability use its insulin properly and maintain your blood glucose at normal level. Try to keep your Body Mass Index (BMI) at 18.5 – 24.9 You can calculate your BMI using the following formula:
English Formula
BMI= weight in pounds/ (height in inches x height in inches) x 703

Water Aerobics Exercises : Water Aerobics Hamstring Curls

Metric Formula
BMI= weight in kilograms/ (height in meters x height in meters)
* Trying to be physically active – 20-30 minutes of exercise on a daily basis will be very helpful. Exercise can improve insulin sensitivity, lower the risk of heart disease, and lose some extra pounds to keep you weight at a normal level. However, some diabetic complications will probably make some types of exercise program not suitable for you. Activities like weightlifting, jogging, or high-impact aerobics may be a little risky for people with diabetic retinopathy due to the risk for further blood vessel damage and possible retinal detachment. Consult your doctor before you get started. Make an action plan. Start slow and gentle. Gradually work your way up.
* Taking medications and/or insulin (in applicable) as prescribed by your doctor – Depending on types of diabetes you may need medications and/or insulin to assist the body in making or using insulin more effectively.

* Monitoring how your diet and/or treatment (if applicable) affect your blood glucose levels – Using a glucose meter to monitor your blood levels to see if they are affected by your meal plan and/or treatment .Keeping diary of your blood glucose readings and reviewing them to see if there are any noticeable patterns

Start to follow these simple tips and manage your diabetes today. You can too live a healthy life you deserve.

Forest Sun
http://www.articlesbase.com/diseases-and-conditions-articles/tips-to-manage-your-diabetes-74347.html

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Fat Loss For Idiots – 6 Tips For Healthy Eating

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Learn about how to jog for aerobic exercise with expert fitness tips in this free exercise video on high and low impact aerobics. Expert: Andrea Austin Bio: Andrea Austin has been a Fitness Trainer for 8 years, and an Instructor for 20. Filmmaker: stuart murphy

You are more than likely sick of hearing about what will not work. You have heard all the reports on how fad diets will never help you lose weight. The problem then is what can you do to lose weight? Here are a few tips that will make it easier for you to lose weight and then keep off the fat.

Television

Unless you are following an aerobics instructor on the set, it is time to turn it off! Americans spend vast amounts of time sitting in front of their television sets. Research suggests that this act actually burns fewer calories than sleeping if you can imagine that! Turn off the TV and go for a short walk after dinner you will feel much better about the use of your time and burn some extra calories in the process.

Sleep

Sleeping is a key ingredient in weight loss. People who do not get a proper amount of rest are at a much higher risk for obesity. Several things contribute to this fact. Exhaustion makes you think you are hungry more often, plus you can become irritable and depressed which further aggravates the situation. The recommended amount of sleep you should get is at least eight hours.

Set a nightly routine to help you get in the swing of things. A scheduled time to go to bed results in your body naturally becoming sleepy around the same time each night.

Never Go Shopping Hungry

Have you ever gone to the grocery store when you were starving? Chances are you went home with everything you can imagine and a few things you can’t. You probably snacked on the way home as well. This is why you should never go shopping hungry, the tendency is to buy everything that looks good, and it all looks good when you are hungry. Instead make a shopping list and then fill it right after you have had a solid meal.

Make a Menu

When you eat on the spur of the moment, you are not truly focused on weight loss so much as fixing your hunger. Set aside time to plan your menu including snacks, this way you are prepared and have already considered the health impact of your food.

Take it Slow

It is not healthy or advisable to lose massive amounts of weight very quickly. If you drop more than a few pounds per week, you are putting your health at risk. A healthy goal is two to three pounds of weight loss per week. This is not only healthy it is sustainable for the long haul.

Forgive Yourself

For someone who has tried many fat loss diets and failed it can be hard to look at yourself in the mirror. The first thing you must do is forgive yourself for what you see as failures and realize that most of what you were being sold was doomed to fail in from the start. Liking yourself is the key to success in any venture be it weight loss or life in general.

Paul Matthew Moore
http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/fat-loss-for-idiots-6-tips-for-healthy-eating-712013.html

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