If you are looking for some great ideas on how you can improve your fitness level, then look no further. This article is packed full of great information, tips and suggestions on ways that you can incorporate more fitness minded activities and routines into your day and your life.
To attain their fitness goals, many people turn to weight lifting at the gym. You really need to do only six simple exercises to maintain all your muscles. These exercises are pull ups, push ups, leg lifters, handstand push ups, squats and bridges.
Finding a fitness buddy can motivate you to keep working out. By finding someone to work out with, you can have someone to talk to, hang out with, and hold yourself accountable to. You are less likely to skip out on a workout if you are supposed to meet someone there.
If you’re just starting out with exercise, start out slow. Don’t jump in head first and try to run five miles without having exercised before. You can wind up injuring yourself and doing more harm than good. Instead start with a short walk and slowly increase the length and the speed. Before you know it you’ll be running five miles without any problems.
If you’re looking to get in shape another thing to consider is to gradually increase the difficulty of your regimen. If you increase it too fast you will lose your motivation, and too slow, the results will be too slow. For example if you used to walk 30 minutes a day at a rate of three miles an hour increase it to thirty minutes, or increase your speed to three and a half miles per hour.
One of the most underrated aspects of fitness is a good nights sleep! If you are not well rested how can you ever expect to be motivated and energetic enough for your workout the next day? It also is known by too few individuals that you actually burn calories while sleeping, in fact more so than you do watching television!
If you are a regular runner make sure that you replace your running trainers at least every 500 miles. If you don’t replace your trainers when the soles have worn out, you will be running in an unstable trainer which could lead to knee injuries and ankle pain. A worn out shoe sole can also cause the bottoms of your feet to be covered in blisters and hard crusty callouses.
To exercise your calf muscles, try heel ups. All you have to do is stand up like normally. Then raise your body on the tips of your toes. Then slowly lower yourself back down. Repeat this 10 times for three sets. Doing this is similar to a pushup, but for your legs instead of your arms.
It is very important to align your neck when you do crunches. In order to make sure your neck is in the correct position to do sit-ups or crunches, place the tongue onto the roof of your mouth. Placing your tongue in this position will help take the strain off of your neck.
If you’re cycling, whether one a stationary bike or a real one, try to keep your speed between about 80 RPM and 110 RPM. You’ll be able to go much longer before you get tired and you won’t put as much strain on your knees. You can figure out your RPMs by counting the number of times your right leg comes to the top of the pedal in ten seconds and then multiply that by 6.
To maximize your biceps when working out, try to flex your wrists more. You need to extend them slightly backward when exercising your biceps and keep holding them that way until the exercises are over. This is the best way to fully maximize the benefits of your standard arm curls.
When exercising in sets, make sure to take some time out to stretch in between them. Try to stretch a good 20 to 30 seconds between each stretch. This can not only keep the muscles you just worked limber, but it can help increase overall strength by maximizing the benefits of each set.
Try not to do any weight training that lasts more than an hour. This is because after that time your body starts to produce a lot more cortisol, which is a stress hormone that has been known to block the production of testosterone and have a muscle-wasting effect.
Try not to work out your lower and upper extremities on the same day. This can cause injuries or muscle strains. Instead work on your upper body one day, and your lower body the next day. For instance, if you work on your legs today, work on your arms tomorrow.
Don’t stop working out just because it’s winter. When the weather turns cold, layer your workout clothing and shed it as need be, or figure out a way to get your exercise indoors. Many activities can be done in your own living room, such as running in place, calisthenics, stretching and crunches. Don’t ever use the season or the weather as an excuse to not work out.
Cleaning is one way to get some exercise. If you are already scrubbing the floor, do some sit-ups while you’re down there. You could even do push-ups. If you engage in short bursts of exercise whenever you can, you will get back in shape before you know it.
Working out all of your body parts rather than focusing on one area gets better results. Working out one area over others can be a form of hypertrophy which results in some portions of your body being out of proportion with the rest. For example, if you only did bicep curls your arms would be unusually strong while the rest of your body would look disproportionately small.
A lot of us want to be in shape, we just don’t want to have to do what it takes to get in shape. The ideas and suggestions that you have read in this article, can be a great starting point to changing that around, but you have to be willing to stick with it and see it through.