Archive for June, 2010

The Best Thing You Can Do For Yourself – Hire a Quality Fitness Trainer

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010

Why Investing Into A Fitness Trainer Will Save You Time, Effort And Money In The Long Run.

For those interested in obtaining quality fitness results, a fitness coach is the only correct way to go.

For those wanting to waste their time with ineffective methods, a fitness coach is not the solution for you.

On the other hand, if you are one of the many people looking to improve their level of fitness without wasting valuable time and resources, a fitness coach is the correct choice.

The Benefits Of A Fitness Coach

The benefits of a fitness coach span longer than the rap sheet of a career criminal. Some of the benefits of using a fitness coach include:

1. You receive exclusive fitness knowledge from the person who is an expert on the subject.

2. You receive access to invaluable assistance that will help you reach your fitness goals.

3. Hiring a fitness coach allows you to focus on the actual exercise and not the fitness planning.

4. Finally, a fitness coach allows you to learn ways on how you can keep the body that you are trying to achieve.

If these aren’t enough to convince you to hire a personal trainer, you might not be that interested in improving your fitness.

Giving the gift of better personal fitness to yourself is one of the best gifts that you can receive, so you should reward yourself today by employing the services of your local fitness trainer.

Free Fitness Tips

A great advantage of having a personal fitness trainer is that he or she will have many fitness tips that will assist you in achieving a higher level of fitness.

If you are trying to achieve better fitness on your own, you will most likely lack the knowledge about important fitness tips that will help you achieve your desired level of fitness. Speak to a fitnes trainer and find out have these special fitness tips.

Benefit #1: Fitness Assistance

Another positive reason for having a personal fitness coach is that you will have access to fitness assistance. Many people simply lack the knowledge on how to exercise properly. By setting up a meeting with your local personal fitness trainer, you can gain access to someone who can properly assist you in all aspects of your exercise regiment.

Benefit #2: Fitness Is For Exercise, Not Planning

By hiring a fitness trainer, you can allow him or her to plan your personal fitness plan. By doing this, you will be able to concentrate on exercising those pounds off while your fitness trainer will inform you on how to do so. You will not have to think about what type of exercises you will need to do to achieve desired results.

Benefit #3: Keeping That Body Fitness Helped You Achieve

Perhaps the thing that most people struggle with after achieving a higher level of fitness is that they will revert back to their old ways simply because they lack the knowledge on how to keep their new and improved body in shape. Your personal trainer can give you the inside tips on how to keep your body looking great, even years after you hired the fitness trainer.

Call Your Local Fitness Coach Today

What are you waiting for? If you are reading this article, you are probably interested in improving your fitness level. The best way, without a doubt, to improve your fitness is by calling your local fitness center today and scheduling a meeting with a fitness trainer.

By doing this, you will be taking the first step to improved fitness.

A Fitness Partner Is A Great Motivation For Exercise And Fitness

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010

In a quest for a healthier lifestyle, women know that fitness and exercise are important. Exercise can improve your health, increase your energy level, relieve stress, and help you to sleep better. A fit woman will remain stronger and more independent as she ages.

Sometimes the road to fitness is a difficult path when you are attempting to initiate and exercise program and eat healthier alone. Attempting to exercise daily, watching your nutrition, and making healthy lifestyle changes are often overshadowed by boredom or a too busy lifestyle. At one time or another, most women have had trouble starting or sticking with a fitness or exercise program.

Being a fit woman does not have to mean a solo journey. If you have ever had trouble initiating a fitness program or sticking with the exercise program you have started, a fitness partner may be the solution. A fitness partner is a powerful motivator. Being accountable to a fitness partner can help you start a new exercise program or stick with the exercise program over time as you continue on your road to fitness.

The right fitness partner can motivate you to achieve your fitness goals. Your fitness partner should be positive and supportive as she encourages and supports you. In choosing a fitness partner, look for someone whose fitness level is close to yours. As you become fit together, you can progress at a similar pace, and encourage each other to climb to new levels of fitness. Having similar fitness goals will allow you and your fitness partner to share triumphs and encourage you to accomplish individual fitness goals.

Keep lines of communication open with your fitness partner. A good fitness partner is honest and sensitive. Cheer each other on in your fitness successes and avoid being critical.

In addition to a fitness partner, the right fitness program is also important to achieve health. Sisters in Sneakers provides a complete home fitness program and exercise program designed especially for the fitness needs of women. Sisters in Sneakers includes color coded exercise cards for flexibility, strengthening, and cardiovascular exercises so you can vary your exercise routine day to day. Since exercise alone is not enough for a healthy lifestyle, Sisters in Sneakers includes nutritional information including fat and calorie awareness to get your eating on the right track. Motivation is important for fitness, and Sisters in Sneakers includes inspirations and nutrition tips as well. An exercise band is a great tool for resistance exercise and is also a part of the Sisters in Sneakers complete fitness program.

Look no further for your new fitness partner. Sisters in Sneakers will connect you with a fitness partner just for asking. You and your new Sisters in Sneakers fitness partner can motivate each other on the way to fitness and health, as you work out in the privacy of your own home.

It is time to get serious about starting to exercise and becoming involved in a fitness program. Your health is important. You do not need to be an athlete to be fit. The first step is the hardest.

Portable Fitness Equipment

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010

Since I first began personal training in 1985 people have stated basically the same goals: To lose fat and gain muscle, improve athleticism, heal the body,increase movement skills, spend little money and train whenever and wherever they wanted. I am pretty sure you want the same, but there’s a problem. Maybe you travel, it’s hard to get to the gym, or maybe you don’t like the gym and/or you can’t afford to build your own machine laden gym at home? So what do you do? Well the answer has been here for over 30 years. The answer to true physical fitness is portable fitness equipment from the Monkey Bar Gym! Portable fitness equipment has evolved from the light resistance bands and ankle weights they use in aerobic classes. Today portable fitness equipment is literally all you need to get into the greatest shape of your life. Whether your goal is basic overall fitness, strength, conditioning OR high level sports performance you can get it all with portable fitness equipment.

How do I know this? It is all I have ever done and all that my dad Bobby Hinds has ever done. My Dad started the beginnings of portable fitness equipment with the beaded jump rope and training program in 1973, which sparked the Jump Rope for Heart program. He followed it up in 1976 with the first ever Portable Gym. Back in the day people thought my dad was crazy…still do , but he was way ahead of his time. He saw a huge need for people to stay in shape while on the road, traveling, working out at home or outside. He knew that not everyone wanted to workout on machines, or had the money, time or drive to workout in a gym or inside for that matter. So, he took it upon himself to change it and the fitness world has never been the same.

Today, portable fitness equipment can do everything you desire in your fitness training: YOU CAN get stronger, leaner, improve athletic performance, heal & prevent injuries, increase movement skills, spend little money and train anywhere you want, anytime you want!!! Portable fitness equipment can also allow you to follow an online training program, almost like having your own personal trainer! Because of all of these tremendous benefits, portable fitness equipment is a common term in the fitness industry. I feel my Dad and his company, Lifeline USA, are a huge reason for portable fitness equipment being such an integral part of the fitness industry today. I have always believed in portable fitness equipment, so much that I opened up my Monkey Bar Gymnasium in 2001. It is the first hard core strength and conditioning training facility in the country that uses ONLY portable fitness equipment!

“Full body anywhere, anytime training is all we do and all we’ve ever done” says Monkey Bar Gymnasium, Certified Natural Trainer, Jessica Rucker. “We teach movement mastery first and then add resistance via portable fitness equipment. Using Resistance cables, Kettlebells, Jungle Gyms, Med & D-balls, Jump Ropes, Power Push ups, Power Jumpers, Vertical Jumpers and Power Wheels all add more challenge to basic bodyweight movements, thus taking them to the next level. It’s clearly the main reason everyone who trains with us either online or at the Monkey Bar Gymnasium is incredibly fit”.

So what exactly is portable fitness equipment? Any piece of exercise equipment that you can easily pack and take anywhere in the world and get a tremendous workout. That is why my dad’s first Portable Gym’s tag line was “a gym in a bag”. Portable fitness equipment gives you a great workout, not just an okay one.

IT WORKS!! A workout with really good portable fitness equipment improves your strength (functional muscle), conditioning (leaner body), sports performance, agility, mobility, stability, strength and power. Want proof, At the Monkey Bar Gymnasium we AVERAGE 17 lbs of fat loss and 5.4 lbs of muscle gain over the first 60 days of training…did I mention, only using portable fitness equipment!

More Proof. On a recent road trip, Jessica and I brought along all of our favorite Portable Fitness Equipment, a Power Push Up, Jungle Gym, TNT Cable, Power Wheel, Power Jump Rope and even the new Lifeline Kettlebell. Yes, the Lifeline Kettlebell. This may not be a true piece of portable fitness equipment, but it is a heavier version, it still is portable and definitely is fitness equipment. On our road trip we really put all of the portable fitness equipment to the test.

Could we drive more than 3,000 miles & get great workouts at the same time? The answer was definitely YES!!Every hour we drove, we stopped and did a killer set with each piece of equipment. One hour we did a set of squat presses with the TNT Cable, the next hour a killer set of chins and rows with the Jungle Gym, the next hour 100 doubles jumping rope as fast as possible, the next hour 40 snatches each arm with the Lifeline Kettlebell. Honestly, it was amazing! Each set only took us 3 minutes! When we would get back in the car we felt incredible! We were totally energized and ready to go and looked forward to the next hour and what we would do. By the end of the day, we had without question, gotten a heck of a workout and we were both tired but very satisfied in knowing that we not only can do these workouts anywhere at anytime, but that working out with Portable Fitness Equipment is the best way to attain ultimate fitness.

The World is your Playground” workout anywhere / anytime (AA), indoors or outside!!!

Lets lay out a Backpack of Portable Fitness Equipment for you to workout AA!!

1) Jungle Gym: Pure bodyweight training: chin ups (assisted to kip ups), push ups, dips, rows, flys, assisting pistols /1 leg squats, leg curls, runners, core rollouts and lots more. One piece of equipment that can do full body training for strength & conditioning! Weight about 1.5 lbs, fits in pocket.

2) TNT Cable: Pure resistance training: squats, full extensions, cable cleans, presses, Russian twists, diagonal chops & lifts, resisted running & backpedaling, 1 arm punches, rows and lots more. Weight about 1 lb., fits in large pocket.

3) Power Jump Rope: Pure conditioning training: probably the single best tool for overall full body conditioning. Weight 1.5 lbs, fits in pocket.

We put them all together in the Portable Monkey Bar Gym. It even includes a comprehensive training DVD.

Add more fun to your BackPack with the following:

The Power Push up: Voted Best piece of exercise equipment by Mens Fitness. Can adjust from 20 to 270 lbs of resistance for your push ups. Weight 2.5 lbs., fits in backpack easily.

The Power Jumper: The Best Jump Training device on the market…and it’s portable! Get the Jump Training DVD, it’s great. You can do all lower body exercises with it too. Athletes average 6-8″ improvements over 12 weeks of training. Weight 2.5 lbs, fits in backpack too.

A Note on the Resistance Cables – 3 big points:

1) Non-Fixed ranges of motion – meaning you must react and balance the resistance, this improves motor function and performance greatly.

2) Progressive variable resistance – as cables lengthen they increase in resistance, creating an excellent balance as your leverage becomes greater, it becomes greater!

3) Adjustable resistance – in seconds you can lighten or increase the resistance. This means you can match bodyweight movements with precision resistance, can load or resist up to max loads thus giving covering all levels of strength training from endurance to power.

In general portable fitness equipment is in a league of its own. It’s accessible, light weight and convenient but yet can generate max resistance loads if needed or maximum challenge of exercise if needed, it literally can do it all!! With portable fitness equipment you never need to stop your workouts because of business trips or vacations and working out at home with $1,000.00′s of dollars of bulky equipment has become a thing of the past. Compare that with a mere $100 or so for all of the above listed portable fitness equipment. You can use portable fitness equipment to perform online training with any of the great sites out there, and achieve incredible results!

9 Pioneers of Fitness

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010

In composing any list of important people in almost any field, everybody will have his or her own favorites. Also, in weight lifting, body building, physical fitness, aerobics, just to name a few areas, there are so many people who have contributed so much that it is difficult to pare the list down adequately. I have attempted, however, to include people who have repeatedly come to my attention since my first contact with weight training at age 16 in 1961. I have tried to put the emphasis on people who I felt were somewhat pivotal in the areas of weight lifting, body building, aerobics or general physical fitness. I am sure that many readers will have their own favorites.

Eugen Sandow The Non Pareil (1867 – 1925) Born in Germany, Eugen Sandow has often been called “Father of Modern Bodybuilding”. Like Charles Atlas, as a youth, Sandow was a great admirer of Greek and Roman statues depicting athletes and gladiators. Sandow is considered to be a pioneer in bodybuilding because he measured statues to determine exact proportions and then worked to develop his own body parts to match them. In his late teens, while performing in strongman shows, he was spotted and taken on by legendary showman Florenz Ziegfeld. His big splash in America was at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. His intelligence, natural charm, and cultured appearance combined with his astounding physique and strength made him a star. Women actually paid him money for the privilege of feeling his muscles. For the men, he wrote widely on health, fitness, and bodybuilding. He, like Bernarr Macfadden and Charles Atlas offered a mail order course teaching his students how to achieve health and fitness. He eventually opened a progressive fitness club in London which stood in stark contrast to the dank, dark, and sweaty gyms of the day. Through his personality and innovation, he made exercise and physical fitness popular for a broader audience than had previously been reached.

Bernarr Macfadden (1868 – 1955) Born Bernard Adolphus McFadden in the state of Missouri, Bernarr Macfadden changed his first and last names because he felt that the new names had a greater appearance of strength. This was not the only strange activity of the man who advocated regular fasting, and some very esoteric health practices for the day and whose wife called him a kook. He combined his own personal views of fitness training and health practices into an entity he referred to as “Physical Culture” which became the title of his first magazine. He eventually became a bit of a publishing mogul, but was usually considered to be skirting the edges of reality in his obsessive approach to physical fitness. However, he inspired young men like Charles Atlas and brought the idea of health and fitness as a way of life to a broader portion of the public.

Charles Atlas (1892 – 1972) was born Angelo Siciliano in 1892 in Acri, Calabria, Southern Italy. In 1905, his parents emigrated to America with young Angelo. A few years later, he had changed his first name to “Charles” when he won a photo competition in a magazine run by the creator of “Physical Culture”, Bernarr Macfadden. Young Charles was inspired to improve his physique.by Greek statues he saw at the Brookly Art Gallery. His first attempts at fitness was with improvised barbells made of sticks and stones. His observation of animals in the zoo, however, led him to base a series of fitness actions on their apparent means of maintaining their fitness in captivity. He called his discovery Dynamic Tension and went on to market his program to thousands of boys and men. On the path to becoming “Charles Atlas”, he posed for statues of Atlas. Some of which were exhibited in the museum where he found his initial inspiration. At the time of his death, he was still exercising daily and running every other day. His course on Dynamic Tension had been the inspiration for over three million men and boys.

Bob Hoffman (1898 – 1985) Bob Hoffman is considered by many to be “Father of World Weightlifting” and was the founder of York Barbell. He was an athlete, nutritionist, weightlifter, coach and philanthropist. Although an exceptional athlete as a young boy, the mature Bob Hoffman was never a great weightlifter or coach. However, his vision, sense of purpose, and personal belief in the value of weightlifting led him to create York Barbell, a company which was long recognized as the leader in the manufacture of weightlifting equipment and which is still in existence today. while many felt his writings and opinions were “over the top”, his personal bravery and willingness to face adversity was shown not only in his later life as he espoused and defended his positions, but also during World War I where he was awarded three Croix de Guerres with two palms and a silver star from France, The Belgian Order of Leopold by Belgium, the Italian War Cross by Italy, and the Purple Heart by America.

Jack LaLanne (1914 – present) Francois Henri LaLanne, better known to the American public as Jack and considered the “godfather of fitness”, had a widely viewed TV show in the 1950′s. Interestingly, his show was probably seen and followed by more women than men, and he may have been instrumental in promoting the idea that women could “get fit”. Unlike many of the earlier proponents of fitness, Jack LaLanne studied his field very carefully and introduced what he felt his studies told him was the proper way to do things. He is still active in fitness today, marketing a wide line of fitness and nutritional products.

Joe Weider (1922 – present) Joe Weider is probably one of the most easily recognized figures in the field of bodybuilding today. He has been credited with not only being a driving force in the fields of body building and fitness, but has helped the careers of innumerable bodybuilders, not the least of which was a young Austrian named Arnold Schwarzenegger. He began his own fitness career by building his first barbells out of junked car wheels and axles. At age 17, with a stake of $7, he began his publishing career by rolling out the first issue of “Your Physique” in 1939. In 1968, he changed the name of the magazine to Muscle Builder, and in 1982 changed it again, this time to “Muscle & Fitness”. Together with his brother and partner, Ben Weider, Joe Weider founded the International Federation of Body Builders (IFBB). His publications now include such diverse offerings as “Shape”, “Men’s Fitness”, “Living Fit”, “Prime Health and Fitness”, “Fit Pregnancy”, “Cooks”, “Senior Golfer”, and “Flex”. Weider now offers a broad range of books on fitness and bodybuilding, nutritional supplements, and bodybuilding and weight lifting equipment and accessories.

Kenneth Cooper (1931 – present) A doctor (MD) and former Air Force officer, Dr. Ken Cooper is probably most widely known for his book, “Aerobics” which was published in 1968 and which was a driving force in getting me interested in fitness. Dr. Cooper’s down-to-earth description of what he called the “Training Effect” as well as a formatted process by which one could achieve health and fitness coupled with vivid descriptions of what the personal effects would be for someone pursuing a fitness program, made his book a success. In fact, some have speculated that Kenneth Cooper’s simple little book, “Aerobics”, may have been the impetus which put physical fitness into the minds and hearts of millions around the world. Today, Dr. Cooper is the head of the Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas.

Richard Simmons (1948 – present) Flamboyant is one word commonly used to describe the bouncy, incessantly cheerful aerobics guru, Richard Simmons. It has been estimated that Richard Simmons has helped and encouraged people around the world to lose over 3,000,000 pounds through a combination of healthy eating and energetic exercise. Simmons has produced several programs, such as “Disco Sweat”, “Sweatin’ to the Oldies”, and “Stretchin’ to the Classics” that all include his humor and signature high level of excitement. He has created instructional products and programs that range from gentle stretching for the elderly to highly intense aerobic workouts. My wife, who hates exercise, loves Richard Simmons and actually got to where she could follow some very intense routines although she had to begin by sitting on the couch and just making the hand movements.

Jane Fonda (1937 – present) Many would not recognize the famous star of such films as “Barbarella” and “Coming Home”, and daughter of actor Henry Fonda, as a fitness pioneer or guru. For many years she was better known as an actress with a sexy body, a big name, and intense political views. However, beginning in 1982 and continuing into the mid 90′s, Ms. Fonda released several fitness videos which became very popular, particularly with women. In fact, today, many people who know of Jane Fonda know her more as a proponent of fitness, health, exercise, yoga, and aerobics than as a famous movie star. While Jane Fonda made no immediate contributions to the science of health and fitness, she, like Richard Simmons, was able to elevate its stature among a large female audience and helped make it fashionable to work out, sweat, be fit, AND feminine. Jane Fonda may have helped move the public awareness of the value and virtues of exercise and fitness to the point where many people now consider a physically fit woman to be a sexy woman just by virtue of her fitness.

Well, there you have it. Nine people who in some way positively affected, altered, or enhanced the fields of body building, weight lifting, aerobics, or physical fitness in general.

Donovan Baldwin is a Texas writer and a University of West Florida alumnus. He is a member of Mensa and is retired from the U. S. Army after 21 years of service. In his career, he has held many managerial and supervisory positions. However, his main pleasures have long been writing, nature, health, and fitness. In the last few years, he has been able to combine these pleasures by writing poetry and articles on subjects such as health, fitness, weight lifting, yoga, weight loss, the environment, global warming, happiness, self improvement, and life.

Life Fitness Treadmill a Great Piece of Exercise Equipment for Users

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010

Life Fitness treadmills have been designed in such a way that they fit well in almost any home. Not only that, but Life Fitness treadmills are also priced to be affordable for most of the people looking for a treadmill and they have all the features that they need in order to get a good workout without having to travel anywhere.

Life Fitness treadmills are being used by numerous world champion athletes, top athletes, military personnel and health club members.

Life Fitness offers two Life Fitness treadmill lines: Life Fitness Cardio and Life Fitness Sport Cardio. There are seven different Life Fitness treadmill options in the first line (T3, T3i, T5, T5i, T7, and T9i/e) and two in the second line.

Life Fitness offers the T-series as a direct descendant of its commercial model series, starting with the standard quality T3, their ‘benchmark’ value model, and topping out with the Life Fitness T9i, recommended by Health Magazine.

Basic treadmills are included in the T3 series of Life Fitness treadmill models. There are two choices in this category viz the T3 and the T3i. Both of these Life Fitness treadmill models offer a large number of features including classic workouts (hill, random, manual), sport training workouts (sport training, 5K sport training, 10K sport training) and EZ Incline TM workouts. Display options on the T3 and T3i models of Life Fitness treadmill include display of elapsed time, distance, speed, incline, heart rate, calories per hour and calories burnt.

Both Life Fitness treadmill models can accommodate speeds up to 10 miles per hour and an incline of 15%. The T3i Life Fitness treadmill includes heart features including Polar Telemetry® and heart rate zone training workouts (cardio, fat burn, heart rate hill, heart rate interval and extreme heart rate). Life Fitness treadmills in the T3 series consist of a 2.5HP motor and supports inclination up to 15%.

Life Fitness treadmills in the T5 series are meant for competitive running. The main difference between a Life Fitness treadmill in the T3 series and the T5 series is that those in the T5 series are capable of speeds up to 12 miles per hour.

The Life Fitness T5 treadmill provides a wide & long walking area and a powerful drive motor. It has a few less programs and a simpler display than the T5i but features the same durable construction throughout.

A Life Fitness treadmill from the T7 line, adds daily training workouts to the package (30-minute walk, 3-mile jog, 45-minute cross-train) and customizable workouts.

Finally, the T9 series of Life Fitness treadmill models additional customizable workouts, speed interval training, pace mode, calories goal, distance goal, and time in zone goal, as well as Life Pulse TM digital heart rate monitoring. The Life Fitness T9i treadmill bears up to 400 pounds weight and features a 5/8 inch 60 x 20 inch belt with cushioned deck, 3.5 inch roller and 4.0HP motor. This treadmill series offers a top speed of 12 MPH, inclines up to 15% and provides readouts/feedbacks. It also provides 16 preset programs as well as six custom memory slots for personal workouts and it monitors heart rate through Ergo hand sensors and a wireless chest strap.

The warranty period on Life Fitness treadmill models is impressive. Life Fitness treadmill provides lifetime warranty on frame and shock absorbers, fifteen years warranty on the motor, three years warranty on electrical and mechanical parts and one year warranty on labor. The Life Fitness T9 treadmill series provides a lifetime warranty on the motor and ten years warranty on electrical and mechanical parts.

A Life Fitness treadmill can get users well on their way to fitness. With the wide variety of workout options available, even on their basic models, users will never be bored. If users are keeping a close eye on their cardiovascular fitness, the heart monitoring available on a Life Fitness treadmill can’t be bet.

A Life Fitness treadmill might be the best treadmill choice for users. If users are going to use a Life Fitness treadmill, they should make sure that they know what they are doing before using it. Users should always make sure that they are very comfortable walking on their Life Fitness treadmill device before they decide to start running. This is always the case no matter what model or style of Life Fitness treadmill they own.

Before buying a Life Fitness treadmill model users should take a look at the different features that are offered with the treadmill model. Users should make sure that the treadmill motor has a high continuous duty rating and has a long warranty.

Life Fitness treadmills have an excellent life span. Some of the popular discount Life Fitness treadmills are model numbers 5500, 8500 and T3i. No matter how strenuous workouts users desire (use of hand weights to tone arms and body while walking/running on the treadmill), Life Fitness treadmills are a great piece of exercise equipment.

Copyright © 2012
Fitness Guide. All Rights Reserved.
Address -53 Cartwright Gardens, Russell Square, London WC1H 9EL