Burn Fat For Summer - 5 Fitness Answers Revealed

How can I burn fat?

Aerobic exercise (cardio) burns fat and stored carbs for energy. Depending on the style of exercise that you are actually doing, the percentages of each that are used for fuel change. Walking, casual bike riding, and light hiking burn more fat than they do carbs as they are lower intensity activities. Running and serious cycling or fast-paced swimming use more of the carbs and less fat but can burn more overall calories. Going the slower route is not necessarily better however since running and walking the same amount of time produces different fat-burning results percentage wise (running being a lower percent) but since the running burns so many calories, the fat-calorie count ends up being higher.

How about Pilates and Yoga?

You constantly see celebrities claiming they owe their beautiful bodies to yoga and Pilates. While these do tend to sculpt muscles, Pilates often is not intense enough in nature to actually get the point where it ever burns that many calories or fat. When certain styles of yoga and Pilates are used in tandem with other forms of exercise, the results can be magnificent. Yoga which is more aerobic like power yoga can produce excellent fat-burning results similar to many other types of aerobics. So if you are aiming to burn fat and calories with the above, go for the more intense power yoga.

What about lifting weights? Is that just for men building muscle?

Lifting weights is great for just about everyone. It can be a great source of exercise for fat-burning. It get your metabolism going (as long as the weight is heavy enough) and keeps it up after the actual process raising your resting metabolic rate helping to burn fat even when the workout is over.

So how long can I expect to burn fat after exercising?

Of course, like anything, the answer to this question varies depending on various factors such as intensity of workout, how long you were at it, what you were actually doing, and your natural metabolism. Experts say the range for fat-burning can be anywhere from a few hours after your workout to the next day. So it is important to up the intensity whenever possible and remember that the pain you feel at that moment will benefit you for quite awhile after it is all over.

Isn't there an easier way?

As with any task that produces great results, there are no shortcuts. There are ways to make your fitness decisions worth more, but no way to completely eliminate the fitness part from the decisions. The people who own supplement companies will try to tell you differently. But over the years, we have all seen that at best, some of those over-the-counter pills are a waste of money and unfortunately at worst, have had serious health side effects. When it all comes down to it, the good old fashioned way to fat burning is still the truest method. Exercise to burn fat and burn more calories than you take in. I know, a boring and predictable note, but the way to a healthy, lean and sexy body!

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Health and Fitness Gift Baskets Perfect For That Active Retiree

Is someone in your office workplace or someone that is close to you set to retire in the near future and you are looking for ideas on what to get him or her? Try a health and fitness themed gift basket. There are hundreds of different variations of baskets that can be made depending on the budget, gender of the person, general likes and dislikes, and where a person lives. Part of the gifts can be serious and the rest can be gag gifts. Here we will try and supply some different ideas for both men and woman that can neatly fit into a gift basket.

Gift Basket Themes

1. Golf Lovers Basket

It may be a bit cliché but a large majority of retired men intend to play a lot of golf and a golf driving range gift certificate or golf course membership would fit perfectly in a gift basket. It can be a center piece of a golf themed gift basket which could include golf gloves, tees, balls, shoes, and any other golf related item you can think of. For a gag you can get the DVD Dwarf on Golf or all used products in the basket before giving the real basket.

2. Exercise or Fitness Theme

Many people say they want to exercise more but the eight do not have the time or they don't want to spend the money. If you think your retiree would be interested in a gym member ship you can center a gift basket on a gym gift card and take those excuses away. You can include weight lifting gloves, exercise clothes, protein and nutritional bars, vitamins, head bands, and other like gym going products. Again, for a laugh you can personalize a T-shirt, towel, a big supply of sports cream for all the aches and pains, make a funny exercise tutorial or whatever else you can think of that would be funny.

If a gym membership is not ideal but you think the person would want to exercise you can still do a gift basket but gear it more towards exercises that can be done at home. Include some exercise videos (P90X or Turbo Jam for example), exercise bands, weighted aerobics gloves, yoga mat, exercise cloths, different fitness drinks and foods, small weights, roller blades, running shoes, and so on. The combination or themes are truly endless. Again, for fun you can include a funny videos, exercise for the "never even though of beginning" manual, a funny list of do's and don'ts, and a funny list of motivational quotes.

3. Day Spa Theme

For the person that needs to relax and be taken cared of send them to a spa for a day so they can get that much needed massage, acupuncture treatment, and aroma therapy. The basket can include some soft nature music, candles, lotions and oils, massaging tools, foot soaker, facial creams, and anything else that will go along with the theme. The mockery that can be created with this can get crude in a hurry, but having funny labels on the lotions, creative titles of manuals, hair waxing products, toe jam cures, and so on. Like I said this one could get funny so have fun with it.

4. Sports and Recreational Themes

A lot of people are fanatical about a specific sport, so you can do a football themed gift basket including tickets to a game, or for a tennis player buy a racket. Where I live people are nuts for the Ohio State Buckeyes so buying a golf bag with Brutus the Buckeye on the side, or football jersey with his or her name on the back would go a long way. To get a laugh buy something that is totally irrelevant to the sport like ping pong ball for a golfer or soccer ball for a basketball fan. A big gag is making a basket of a rival sports teams products, but keep it inexpensive because most of it will never see the light of day.

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Balancing Muscle and Cardio Fitness For Total Gains

There is much to say about balance. When everything is balanced, there is leverage, things are even. With such a state of equilibrium, you can expect a better footing which most likely results to stability and optimal benefits. Balance is advisably applied to health and fitness and life in general. Take the case of an exercise regimen. Many people are under the notion that a certain or specific kind of exercise would be most suited for them. Aerobic exercise had been a popular exercise scheme in the past. People were under the notion that aerobic physical activity alone will deliver the best fitness results.

But as more advancements in the health and fitness arena took place, innovative fitness schemes emerged, one of which is combining exercises. As certain exercises are combined, the key to making them efficient is through balance. When aiming on fitness, it is not enough that you lose weight. You have to ensure that your muscles are toned as well. You ought to develop muscle mass not only to have an appealing physique, but more so, to boost your metabolism. And boosted metabolism is the most crucial factor in weight loss. Then again, when fitness is considered, health should also be taken into account.

In muscle building, you grow muscle mass, you look better. But more than looking better, you should be healthy, too. You have to make sure that your body processes such as blood circulation and respiration are functioning at their best. This is termed as cardiovascular health, or cardio fitness. Building muscle mass is aimed on gaining fit and well-conditioned muscles. You have to consider that your heart is a muscle as well. In the same as the other muscles in your body, you have to keep your heart working well by working it out. Cardio exercises are effective in this regard.

So other than your body building program, you ought to take time for aerobic exercise. You can do so by engaging in certain cardio fitness workouts such as jogging or brisk walking. Gym exercises can also fare well in this endeavor especially with the availability of commercial gym equipments. Other than giving you leisure and relaxation, playing your favorite sport will also benefit your cardiovascular health and fitness. Cardio fitness workouts primarily effect the heart and lungs. When performing such workouts your heart rate increases, and circulation in your system improves. Oxygen flow throughout your body is also enhanced. Bodybuilders should consider incorporating cardio fitness activities in their bodybuilding plan.

In a bodybuilding plan, an athlete is usually advised to eat a diet rich in proteins. When having a protein-rich diet, chances are that fat will develop in the body. Muscle building exercises are designed to burn these fats, but what about cholesterol? Cholesterol in itself presents too many health detriments, and they have to be done away with. Cardio fitness workouts will be effective in this aspect. But remember the rule of balance in the program. Too much aerobic activity can reverse the effect of your bodybuilding workout- it can reduce muscle mass. So it is should be the proportionate amount of bodybuilding and cardio workouts to gain total health and fitness.

In your weight training program, you can incorporate activities such as jumping rope, fitness walking or jogging, riding a bike and even playing basketball with your friends. Again, do your balancing with working hard and leisure even as you strive towards being healthy and looking good.

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The Best Types of Aerobic Exercise For Weight Loss and Fitness

Have you ever noticed that what is commonly thought of as the truth about any subject is usually outdated and quite often later proven totally false? I can only speak about my field of health, fitness and longevity for sure, but I suspect it is also true in other areas as well. The myths of cholesterol, calcium, sunlight and aerobic exercise are all good examples.

Definition
Aerobic exercise is exercising using large muscle groups, legs, hips and arms, while using large amounts of oxygen. Running, walking, cycling, swimming, water workouts, and dancing are good examples.

Benefits of Aerobic Exercise
There is no doubt that most any form of aerobic exercise offers some benefits such as better circulation, improved respiration, better muscle tone and a feeling of well being. However most people are doing aerobic exercise for weight loss.

In the past aerobic exercise was touted as the best way to burn fat, lose weight and protect the heart. However recent studies have put these assumptions in question.

If You Want to Burn Fat/Lose Weight
Studies and real life experience from many of the top fitness trainers show, that long bouts of medium intensity aerobic exercise like jogging are not very efficient at burning fat. Many people will admit that they have been jogging for hours and can't get rid of their excess body fat.

Short bouts of high intensity exercises such as weight training and aerobic intervals training are much more effective and time efficient. It seems this type of exercises keeps the metabolism raised for a longer time, thus burning more calories.

Your Best Types of Aerobic Exercise
Spinning on a stationery bike for 20-30 minutes with several 30-60 second sprints is best. It is convenient and easy on your joints. You can also do interval wind sprints while running, cycling or swimming.

Running
Running is very popular, however many people would be better off power walking or swimming. I see many people running with knees wrapped up, struggling with bad posture. If you don't have joint problems and can run easily with good posture, then running is fine. However it isn't necessary to run for more than a few miles, especially if you are running on a hard surface like the street. I highly recommend running only on grass, sand, dirt or running tracks, if you want to preserve your joints and avoid over use injuries.

Improving Your Heart Function
Aerobic endurance training is supposed to improve heart function. Think about this; the heart is already an amazing endurance muscle. It can beat non stop 50-80 times per minute for up to 100 years. If that's not super endurance I don't know what is. The heart doesn't need to be trained for endurance unless you want to compete in endurance events. The heart needs to be trained to withstand moments of high intensity stress. High intensity stress can come from life and death threatening situations of all kinds and from extreme emotional times.

Short bouts of high intensity aerobic exercise will prepare your heart to withstand the stress of maximum heartbeat required to meet a certain challenge.

Conclusion

You can be highly successful at burning body fat and strengthening your heart, by undertake shorts bouts of high intensity aerobic exercise on a regular basis. And as always; I highly recommend hiring a qualified fitness instructor to get you started on a safe and effective overall fitness program.

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Establishing a Fitness Training Routine

Determined to become healthy and get into shape? You'll want to establish a fitness training routine. The tips in this article can help the beginning athlete to get the best results possible from a training program.

Effective training is well-rounded training. Do not choose only one type of exercise and consider your routine complete. Instead, include aerobic exercise, strength training, core stability training, and stretching in your routine. It is best to begin with aerobic exercise. Once you have completed your aerobic exercise, move to the strength training component to strengthen muscles. Next, attend to core stability with exercises to strengthen the midsection and back. Once all strength and core training is complete, be sure to stretch out and cool down.

Many people find that morning exercise works best for them, and studies have actually shown that people who exercise in the morning are more likely to stick with it.

People tend to plan their days in the morning, and if exercise is completed first thing, it provides a healthy and beneficial start to the day.

You may find that you like some forms of exercise more than others, and you may be tempted to choose your favorite and neglect the rest. This is a common error. Although many people believe that they can maintain health and fitness with only one set of exercise, the truth is that more than one set is generally needed to maintain fitness.

Your body will move a great deal during your workouts; this is normal, and to be expected. You will also be repeating exercises. Most exercises give maximum benefit when performed in sets of two or three.

If you have no prior fitness training experience, you will want to be careful not to overdo it or cause injury. Begin with one set of exercise, and build up slowly as your body becomes used to the exercise. More exercises can be added as fitness increases.

Whenever possible, exercise at home and outdoors. Unlike exercise at a gym, exercise at home or outside does not require a membership, is readily available, and doesn't become too crowded for efficient use.

If you feel yourself becoming bored with exercise, take it outside. Outdoor exercise, such as jogging or walking, can be a great way to condition the body while providing variety to a fitness routine.

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Fitness Tips - How Much Exercise Should You Do?

Americans are always wanting to find a short cut. There is no quick fix. Attaining fitness requires a lifestyle change and making the right healthy choices. The most benefits come from cardio-respiratory fitness, and to attain this a regular exercise program is often needed. Failing this, making active choices, such as using a push mower rather than a power mower, and walking to each tee rather than using a golf cart on the golf course, will help one stay fit.

Those who promote fitness exercise are following along the more recent lines of nutritionists' thinking, he says, which involves behavior modification. If you do not change your behavior and make it a lifestyle change, it's not going to become a habit.

The message that many experts are starting to put out is: A little bit of exercise is good enough.

How little? All you need, is to expand 285 calories a day - 2,000 calories a week - in activities above and beyond your job.

But if it's a healthy life you're interested in, they write, all other things being equal, the gardener's odds against heart disease are as good as the marathoner's.

How much exercise you should do depends upon what you want to achieve. If you just want stress reduction, you don't have to do aerobic exercise,... but you won't get reduction in the risk of heart disease if you do not meet minimum standards of exercise. That means exercising at 60 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate for 20 to 30 minutes at least three times a week. Do less than that and you will never achieve a level of conditioning. You won't improve.

But being moderately fit is OK. In a paper based on data collected at the researchers showed that the largest difference in mortality - about 60 percent - was between the sedentary and people who were only moderately fit, as judged by performance on treadmill exercise tests.

It's dangerous to do nothing and easy to do enough.

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Calories burned in a single hour
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The following figures are for a man weighing 180 pounds and a woman weighing 130 pounds.
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Activity Men Women
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Cooking 216 156
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Chopping wood 414 299
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Mowing lawn 486 351
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Scrubbing floors 522 377
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Trimming trees 630 455
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Gardening 576 416
(heavy chores)
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Painting outside 378 273
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Washing the car 270 195
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House cleaning 288 208
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Raking 270 195
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Stocking shelves 270 195
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Window cleaning 288 208
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Fishing 234 169
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A Manual Treadmill, a Watch, and a Pulse a Cardio Fitness Program Make

You want to start an effective cardiovascular fitness program but you are put off by the high cost of personal trainers, club memberships, and fancy exercise equipment. You could always get a pair of properly fitted running shoes and hit the pavement, but that is impractical for many.

Even if cost were not a concern there are always the questions about how much and how hard you have to workout to get a positive training effect. Complicate your training effect questions with your desire to sensibly lose 20 or 30 pounds in a reasonable amount of time, and your fitness and weight loss program becomes either expensive or hit and miss. There is nothing more discouraging to continuing a fitness program than doing the work and not getting the result.

Here is a specific plan for an effective cardio fitness and weight loss program that will cost you from nothing to a couple hundred dollars, and that provides you with the specific information you need you know about "how much" and "how hard."

The plan includes a manual treadmill that sells new for between $100 and $200. I assume you have a watch or a clock with a second hand, so if you want to go for a no cost program you can dump the manual treadmill and substitute running in place, or jumping rope if you want. The equipment is not critical. You exercise your body after all, not the equipment. By the same token if you already have a motorized treadmill that works too.

Your ability to monitor your heart rate is the key to success in cardiovascular training. Your heart before and during exercise will tell you exactly how hard you have to train to get a beneficial training effect. Generally, any activity that works the large muscle groups (legs) continuously for 20 minutes or longer can produce some effect.

But why generalize or guess when you can know for sure what heart rate, within a few beats per minute, you need to maintain during exercise. This specific heart rate is called appropriately your Training Heart Rate (THR), and it varies by age and physical condition.

Here is the quick formula to determine your THR in beats-per-minute. Subtract your age from 220. Call the answer your MHR (maximum heart rate). If you are in excellent physical shape your Training Heart Rate is 90% of your MHR; in good physical shape 80% of MHR; and if in poor shape 70% of your MHR. If you feel any discomfort exercising at 60% of your MHR then stop and go get a complete medically supervised physical exam. Exercising at less than 60% of your MHR would have almost zero cardiovascular training effect anyway so why take the risk.

You can go with an electronic heart rate monitor, or you can take your own pulse to get your heart rate. Do not take your pulse until five minutes after beginning your aerobic exercise. You can put your hand over your heart, or the tips of your fingers on the radial artery, which is on the wrist just above your thumb. Count your pulse for 10 seconds and multiply by six to determine your heart rate in beats-per-minute. You can pick up the pace or slow down to get to your THR. Exercising at more than 90% of THR can be dangerous.

Here is another simple and accurate formula to determine how much exercise you have to do to lose weight. This assumes no change in your normal diet or weekly caloric consumption. 1 pound of fat = 3,500 calories. To burn 2 pounds of fat per week (a realistic and sensible goal) you must burn an above-normal 7,000 calories of energy per week.

Picking up and putting down your feet on the treadmill at about 75 counts per minute burns .078 Calories/Minute/Pound of Body Weight, or more easily remembered, 7.8 calories per minute, or 468 calories per hour, per 100 pounds of body weight.

A 200 pound person would require about 7 1/2 hours per week of exercise that put their feet on the treadmill 75 times per minute. Use this formula to convert for your situation:

(Your Body Weight/100) * 468 * (Steps Per Minute/75) = Calories Per Hour. Divide 7,000 by the Calories Per Hour figure and that is how many hours of exercise per week you must do to lose 2 pounds of body fat.

You can play with the number of hours of exercise per week by changing the steps per minute or by changing your caloric consumption per week. Make sure that you get your heart rate to THR for 20 minutes during three sessions, and you know for a scientific fact that by continuing your program you will accomplish your cardio fitness and weight loss goals.

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The Four Primary Elements of Fitness

All-Over Fitness

Four primary elements of fitness

No matter your level of fitness or experience, to maximise all-over body health and fitness, ensure your weekly programme includes the following four components:

Aerobic fitness

Aerobic exercise is the cornerstone of most fitness programmes and the key to life-long health. The repetitive use of large muscles makes your lungs and heart work more efficiently, and you'll burn calories. Try walking, jogging, swimming, cycling, dancing, water aerobics, and even gardening and housework. Aim for at least 30 minutes, five times a week.

Muscular fitness

Regular strength training will increase body fat, increase lean muscle mass and help burn calories. It will also boost stamina and power, increase bone density and protect joints from injury. Try the resistance machines at your local gym or create your own workout at home; use hand weights, a resistance band and even your own body weight for press-ups, lunges and squats.

Stretching

When you perform aerobic activity or strength training, your muscles contract and flex. In order to balance your programme, ensure you stretch these muscles after exercise to increase flexibility and the range of motion of your joints. Regular stretching can also relieve stress and improve posture so you may want to incorporate it into your daily routine; when you wake up in the morning or before you go to bed. Perhaps join a local yoga or Pilates class.

Core stability

The muscles in your abdomen, lower back and pelvis, known as your core muscles, support, balance and stabilise your entire body. This strong foundation improves posture, supports limbs and muscles and protects you from injury. However, doing 100 sit-ups every morning is not going to give you the benefits you need. Vary the exercises and keep the movements slow and controlled. Try the plank position and leg extensions, or use a balance ball. Yoga, Pilates and Tai Chi also train you core so investigate local classes.

Whether you create your own fitness training program or enlist the help of a personal trainer, make aerobic fitness, muscular fitness, stretching and core stability part of your overall exercise plan. You'll get satisfying results, stay injury free and maintain all-over health, for life.

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Water Aerobics Routines For All-Around Fitness

Water aerobics routines are something that can offer a complete physical workout. A complete workout consists of aerobic, resistance and stretching exercises and all these can be incorporated into a water aerobics routine. The best part about water aerobics is that water exercises will work for groups of people that cannot do other types of exercises, such as; individuals that are morbidly obese and persons that have problems with arthritis.

The water aerobics class I attend from time to time is at a new health club and the nice thing about it is you do not have to be a member of this club to take the class. This class has a huge range of people that attend this workout session. It has almost as many men as women and most of the people are 40 or over. The younger crowd tends to opt more for high-impact aerobics and kickboxing.

We usually warm-up by walking against the current in the lazy river and then changing directions abruptly, causing us to feel like we are walking against a brick wall. If you have ever tried walking against the current when it has momentum, you will find that you do not get very far very quickly. Usually the whole class ends up laughing hysterically, but it is a great warm-up.

Next the instructor introduces that aerobic portion of the workout. This is where you increase your heart rate to target workout rate. This usually includes water walking and other exercises that will elevate your heart rate, such as; jumping jacks and kicking exercises.

Then comes resistance exercises and this is where you work specific muscle groups to build muscle strength. My instructor likes to use swimmers noodles tied in a knot to create resistance as they are dragged through the water. We also use water belts that cause resistance and added weight for strength training.

The class ends with a cool down period that involves stretching the muscles and it feels great. These classes usually have music that makes you feel motivated to move. If you have a good instructor, this can be one of the most enjoyable hours of the week. This class offers a complete workout for anyone.

These are the types of exercise classes that are being offered at many health clubs. They offer complete workouts, making it easy for the busy person on the go to get everything they need out of one class.

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Wii Fitness With The Wii Fit

The Nintendo Wii revolution continues with the pending launch of the new Wii Fitness products as announced at this year's E3 2007. This brand new product from Nintendo, called Wii Fit, will take the form of a balance board controller accessory and a bundled exercise game.

The Wii Fitness products take off from where Wii Sports started by introducing active-play games that are not only great fun to play, but also great exercise as well. In fact the Wii balance board brings exercise and fitness for the entire body. The software and balance board is aimed at a large array of exercise based fun, including dancing, aerobics, balancing, and of course games.

The Wii Fit software uses the balance board to compile data in order to plan your fitness progress over a period of time. The software's fitness measurement system can collect data about an individual in order to keep track of their fitness goals. The fitness readings are presented in the way of a graph that measures your body mass index (BMI) and will adapt your Mii character accordingly. The Mii character is a animated character that represents an individual player's physique, so it's important to enter your stats correctly for accurate progress analysis.

Once your personal settings are calibrated, you can then start to have fun playing the fitness mini games. One of the most fun Wii Fitness games looks like the football heading game, in which the players are required to move their heads in the right direction to head the oncoming balls. Other mini games include doing hula hoops by shaking your hips and a marble madness style game where your balance is key to winning. The more serious fitness style games include doing strenuous balancing exercises, press-ups, and yoga.

The release date has still not been announced and neither has the price, but the price is rumoured to be in the range of $49 to $69. What the new Nintendo Wii Fitness products will hopefully bring is a whole new line up of interactive games. Who knows yet, but I can already imagine the likes of skiing, snowboarding, skate boarding, and so on. Maybe these future games could be used in conjunction with the Wii remote for a complete interactive experience?

Whatever happens next, the Nintendo Wii and the new Wii Fitness range are taking the console to a new level that the likes of Microsoft and Sony will find tough to match, especially at Nintendo's affordable prices.

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