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Guest Post: 10 Reasons to Start Body Training

10 Reasons to Start Body Training

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For some people, the best form of exercise is the one which you can keep on repeating over a long time. With bodyweight exercises, there are no barriers to maintaining your efforts. All you need to do is consider a routine and choose some favorite workouts then find the most convenient place and time to make your exercise a sustainable solution.

Each year, the American College of Sports Medicine surveys the prevailing fitness market to make some prediction of the coming year’s largest exercise trends. Last year, the number 1 fitness trend predicted for 2015 was a hands down winner: Bodyweight Training.

What is Bodyweight Training?

Bodyweight training is simply what the name sounds like – using the bodyweight for resistance in performing your exercise. You don’t use free weights which means you are not supposed to use any type of equipment or machine. It includes all the numerous exercises from your old gym sessions like squats, push-ups, crunches, and lunges.

These classic exercises started the fitness era which is now making a dramatic comeback into modern 21st century gyms and apparently for good reason. Bodyweight training provide results that are totally essential for health.

10 Reasons to Start Bodyweight Training

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1. It is an Efficient Workout

Research declares high-output, bodyweight exercises yield awesome fitness results in short durations. Since no equipment is involved, bodyweight workouts allow easy transition from one form of exercise to the next even with very little rest.

2. It develops core strength

At least 29 muscles comprise the trunk of your body, and not surprisingly, a lot of bodyweight movements may be used to move and engage them all. These exercises do not just give you tightly packed abs, you will also relieve lower back pain and stress, gain better posture, and improve your overall performance.

3. It can burn fat easily

Bodyweight circuit training even for only a few minutes can already do wonders for one’s metabolism because of the so called “after burn effect.” This means that your body remains fully revved up and continuously burning calories for a few more hours. It’s right up there with cardio workouts in terms of calories being spent.

4. It Can Be Enjoyed with Endless Variety

You can adapt bodyweight exercises in a variety of ways to the rewards and challenge high. If push-ups are difficult for you, then do them less stressfully from the knees. Or if you think they lack challenge, then try the inverted push-ups. You’ll find no other form of exercise that gives you wider alternative and freedom to change, adjust, perfect, and adapt.

5. It can increase your flexibility

Performing bodyweight exercises that cover a wide range of motion ensures the free movement of your joints. It also prevents certain exercise related injuries and improves your posture. Yoga is actually a favorite example for many of using bodyweight training to improve flexibility and strength.

6. It’s free

Experts admit that the rising popularity of bodyweight training is largely due to its being without cost, meaning, it’s free. It is always available. This goes without saying that bodyweight training is available anytime and anywhere.

7. You’ll see results

Bodyweight training includes “compound movements which involve several muscles and joints in each exercise. Because of this, bodyweight exercises get results easily and immediately.

8. It Prevents Injuries

Bodyweight exercises just use normal workout positions and bodily movements without added strain hence preventing untoward incidents like injuries. Bodyweight training is generally safe for everybody notwithstanding his or her age, fitness level, or experience.

9. You’ll never get bored

If you usually work out on exercise bikes and treadmills, or perform the same set of exercises at the gym whenever you go there, the tendency is to get bored easily. But with bodyweight exercises, countless variations are available. With this, you don’t only overcome boredom, you also get to ignore your dreaded plateaus easily.

10. You’ll achieve better balance

In this balanced training you also improve your balance. If you try to swap a squat or push-up for a pistol squat (single leg squat) you can improve your balance by increasing control and body awareness.

Arguably, of the 10 reasons to start bodyweight training, more particularly important is that bodyweight exercises deliver all the goodness and benefits of resistance training like the traditional weight lifting.

In addition, bodyweight training is incredibly accessible, simple, and versatile. Bodyweight training is also unique in a way that its exercises are multi-functional, because they practically help your body regularly function in ordinary day-to-day life.

It supports and strengthens the body movements you use when playing sport, at work, or at home. They provide the strongest resistance against any type of physical decline.

About the author: Jane McCafferty is a personal trainer and fitness fanatic. In her free time, she blogs over at Jane’s Best Fitness.






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…Back 2 School, Back 2 Fitness…

It is time for your kids (and possibly yourself) to get back to school.

That does mean that your schedule may get busy, but you also have to get into a routine to make sure that you can still work towards your health and fitness goals.

They key: try to set up a routine that will allow you to fit in some time to get active!

This can be before school, after school, or sometime during the day.

 

This may be hard to do when you have work, school, and your family to take care of.  But, those exact reasons should also be the reasons that you want to get healthy and in shape.

Do it so you can set an example for your family to make your health a priority in life.  Teach your family that you need to get active as well as consuming well balanced meals.  You will also want to do it for school and work.  If you are in a regular workout routine you will be less likely to get sick AND you will be more focused.  This will allow you to show up to work/school and be focused and full of more energy to get things done.

Get healthy and fit for not just yourself, but for those around you and the things that you want to achieve in life.  You can get so much more done if you are not tired and have more energy.  The best way to get ahead is to be physically and mentally prepared for whatever life, school, and work has to throw at you.

Here is a great at home workout you can do with your friends and your family!






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…Guest Post: Why You Should Choose HIIT Over Steady State Cardio…

This guest post is something that i know that i personally practice! I do a lot more HIIT than steady state cardio (steady state cardio is hopping on the treadmill, elliptical, or other machine and just going along for 30…40…50+ minutes).

Why You Should Choose HIIT Over Steady State Cardio

Step into any gym up and down the country and you will probably see lots of people on the exercise bikes, treadmills and steppers gently puffing along while hardly breaking a sweat.

Most will be glued to the latest reality TV show, lots will be deep in conversation with the person on the machine next to them, and some will be nonchalantly flicking through the pages of a celebrity magazine.

Why? Because they were told by someone years ago that hours of steady state cardio is an effective way to burn fat.

Well I’m here to tell you that this approach to losing weight is outdated, extremely ineffective and a colossal waste of your time.

Instead, you should be swapping those leisurely hours on the treadmill for bursts of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), which will be much more effective in the long-term – and will also save you hours of time.

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Push it harder!

Ultimately, if you want to lose fat quickly and effectively, and get that cover model physique you’ve been dreaming of, then you need to step up the intensity NOW!

Fear not, this doesn’t mean giving it everything you’ve got for hours on end – unless you are a world-class athlete, this is a completely unrealistic target.

Instead, we’re just going to need your max effort for a few minutes.

Indeed, studies show that 5 x 30 seconds of super high intensity work followed by 4 minutes recovery are just as effective as 90 minutes of constant, low intensity cardio.

So, for the same gains, you can either workout for 90 mins or 22.5 mins.

Which one would you rather choose?

This is one of the beauties of HIIT – you can easily fit in an effective workout around a busy schedule.

However, be warned, these intensive bursts will be tough – we’re talking sick buckets at the ready tough!

Example workouts

These following workouts should give you a good idea of what HIIT involves – that is, high intensity intervals followed by rest periods.

1)      Squatting Carnage

Warm up and then rack up the barbell with a light weight. Squat 1 minute for reps. Rest 1 minute. Repeat 10 times.

2)      Hill Sprints

Run 1 mile to a hill as a warm up. Sprint 30 seconds up the hill and then jog back down. Repeat 10 times.

3)      ‘The Destroyer’

Warm up. Squat for 1 minute, 1 minute rest; Deadlift for 1 minute, 1 minute rest; Bench Press for 1 minute, 1 minute rest, Pull Ups for 1 minute, 1 minute rest. Repeat 2 times.

When attempting these workouts, there is one important caveat which you should bear in mind.

That is, the high intensity intervals should be max effort – in other words, give it everything you’ve got!

Wrapping it up

Importantly, steady state cardio still has its place when training for endurance events, and don’t get me wrong I still really enjoy the occasional 5 mile run – there’s nothing better when it comes to clearing my head and getting away from it all.

However, if you’re training exclusively for fat loss, you need to cast aside that low intensity work for good, as it’s not really achieving anything.

Ultimately, 3 bits of fruit, a Special K bar and low intensity cardio is not going to lead to fat loss anytime soon; getting down and dirty at the squat rack, hill sprints, and hard work will.

Good luck!

If you have any thoughts or questions on this topic, I’d love to hear from you – just leave me a comment below and I’ll get back to you!

About the author

Henry is a fitness junkie with a passion for heavy squats, strength training and martial arts. You can find him blogging over at GymTalk.

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