Archive for the ‘Fitness Tips’ Category

Top 5 Signs That You’re Overtraining

Thursday, May 16th, 2013

Don’t Let Overtraining Derail Your Progress

Sexy with Protein Shake
When you start working out, whether you’re preparing for a triathlon or pumping iron in order to bulk up for a competition, you may find that early successes give you the motivation you need to push harder, exceed your boundaries, and reach your fitness goals. And anything that helps you to stay on track when all you want to do is veg out on the couch with a bowl of pasta is a good thing.

Of course, there’s always the chance that you’ll get a little over-zealous with your training and end up doing more harm than good. So if you’ve been putting a lot more into your exercise routine than normal and you’re starting to wonder if you’re overtraining, here are a few signs that could help you to determine if you should forge ahead or take a breather.

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Top 5 CrossFit Safety Tips to Prevent Injuries

Saturday, May 11th, 2013

Staying Safe at CrossFit

Crossfit Girl Beer Keg

CrossFit is a great way to increase your level of health and fitness and stay in shape. It can help you to condition your body, build muscle, and improve cardiopulmonary function. Because it combines aerobics, gymnastics, weight training, and dynamic exercises into one comprehensive routine, you’ll get all the benefits of hitting multiple stations at the gym.

The diverse array of exercises can be tailored to your specific wants and needs, offering you the ability to reach your fitness goals more quickly than you might with traditional types of workouts, as well as keep the process fun and interesting thanks to changing routines.

Like any form of physical fitness, the practice of CrossFit isn’t without its risks for accident and injury, which means you need to observe proper safety tips when participating in such exercises. But also, because you perform so many different exercises, there are many movements to master. Performing them awkwardly for the first time, could land you will a sprain or strain.

Here are just a few tips to help you stay safe and ensure that you don’t get set back by injuries.

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Why Rest and Recovery Is Important for Athletes

Thursday, May 9th, 2013
Exhausted Fitness Girl

When you first set out on your journey to bulk up and build the muscular physique that allows you to look and feel your best, or even pit yourself against other athletes in strength, endurance, and overall fitness challenges, you might be focused on working hard in order to build muscle and advance as quickly as possible. While this is certainly an important part of the equation, over time you’ll learn that there’s more to bodybuilding than simply lifting weights.

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How College Students Can Make Health and Fitness a Priority

Tuesday, May 7th, 2013

More Tips to Stay Fit in School

Fit College Girl
With time and experience you’ll learn that the things you end up getting done are the ones you assign priority to. While you can certainly say that health and fitness are priorities, the truth is that actions speak louder than words. And if you’re sleeping all morning, attending class in the afternoon, and then partying all night with your friends, it’s pretty clear where your priorities lie. That said, it’s never too late to start putting your money where your mouth is, so to speak.

Freshman 15

If you’re upset about the freshman fifteen you’ve packed on, not to mention the fact that you battle fatigue, anxiety, a lack of focus, and other obstacles related to your poor diet and nonexistent exercise regimen, then perhaps you’re ready to make your health and fitness a priority so that you can get back to looking and feeling your best. For most college students this won’t be easy, but with a few tips and tricks up your sleeve you can definitely reach your health and fitness goals.

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How to Manage Arthritis Pain When You Exercise

Monday, April 29th, 2013

Exercising with Arthritis

Fit Woman Kickboxing
If you have been living with arthritis for a while then you probably know that exercise is a key part of fighting the pain, stiffness, and swelling that accompany this chronic condition. And yet, hauling yourself to the gym, hitting the track for a jog, or joining your local sports league can be difficult when you are already suffering from the discomfort and fatigue of arthritis.

You might not want to move, let alone stress your already painful joints. And yet, without your daily workout to increase strength and flexibility, your condition only stands to worsen. This could lead to even less activity, accompanied by increasing stiffness, soreness, and weight gain, all of which could further derail your progress in the fight against arthritic symptoms.

Without exercise you could eventually become incapacitated by the ongoing degeneration of arthritis. Luckily, there are ways to manage your pain in the here and now so that you can continue to follow your workout regimen and hopefully improve your overall condition, ultimately reducing pain and other symptoms.

Here are a few tips you can try.

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Best Workout Routines: How Does It Help You Keep Your Body Healthy and Fit?

Friday, April 26th, 2013

Muscle Ups ChickOne of the best things that you should consider when you want to stay healthy and fit is your workout routines. You should not only focus in the food that you are consuming because the body needs some activities that can help regulate the blood and strengthen the muscles.

Being fit means having the ability to perform different things without getting tired easily. On the other side, being healthy means being able to live everyday with the absence of different sicknesses. Many people are living without knowing that they are no longer healthy because they do not have active lifestyles.

If you try to get away from the daily routine and try to engage yourself in different activities that requires strength and agility, you will notice that you are not fitted for such activities because you lack the needed strength for such activities.

Simple Exercises for Conditioning

With the scenario given above, you will realize that being healthy is not just about being able to survive. In order for you to know that you are truly healthy, you should be able to function well no matter what type of activity you face.

In order to make sure that you are healthy and fit, you should look for the exercises that you can do regularly. Here are two of the best workout routines that you can choose from:

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Ramp Up Your Conditioning With Speed Interval Workouts

Monday, April 22nd, 2013

How to ramp up the speed for better fat loss and fitness gains

Female Sprinting
If you want to run faster, then you need to start running faster. This may sound as a cliché but because it’s true.

Speedwork—in all its forms—is key for unlocking your full potential as a runner. Not only that, speedwork will make you fitter, enhance the range of movement in your joints, boost power and drive in your lower body, and it will eventually help you to run harder for longer.

Furthermore, Speedwork is key for weight loss. According to many studies, interval running—a form of speed work— burns up to three times more calories than sticking to a steady and easy pace. Of course, long runs at a low intensity have their benefits, but when it comes to burning the flab, speedwork wins the race.

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5 Tips for Treating Common Exercise Injuries

Friday, April 19th, 2013

Exercise ChickRegardless of the type of exercise regimen you’ve chosen, chances are that sooner or later you’re going to push yourself too hard and suffer some type of injury. Even if you’re careful, accidents can happen, so you want to be prepared when they do.

Luckily, the most common types of injuries that occur during exercise, such as sprains, strains, muscle cramps, and the like, are not too detrimental, although contact sports, for example, can certainly lead to more serious bodily harm. When it comes to addressing these issues so that you can get back on track with your workout routine, there are a few simple steps you can take to ensure a speedy recovery.

Here are some tips that should help you to treat any injuries you may sustain.

  1. Diagnosis.

    The first thing you need to do is determine the severity of your injury.

    For example, it’s important to know the difference between a muscle cramp, which may be treated fairly immediately through stretching and hydrating, and a sprain or strain, which will certainly require more than a few minutes of rest and light stretching to correct before you can get back to lifting weights or swimming laps.

    Although you may not be as qualified as a doctor to diagnose common exercise injuries, and you may therefore want to call your physician for an exam if you’re not sure about the cause of ongoing or chronic pain, most athletes and even amateur exercise aficionados can tell when something is seriously wrong and when they can handle recuperation on their own.
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Are You a Beginner? What the Seasoned Lifting Pro Knows That You Don’t

Thursday, April 11th, 2013

Epic Quads ChickWe all have someone that we envy. You know what I mean — the lifter with the toned abs and softball-sized biceps you can’t help but covet.

If you’re a beginner, getting from point A to point Bodybuilding Pro is just as hard as learning to ride a bike blindfolded. Fortunately, there are many successful weightlifters willing to share the tricks of the trade.

Here are a few tips from the pros to get you started on creating your own envy-worthy body.

If You Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail

“Lack of planning” is among the top 10 reasons beginner bodybuilders fail to achieve their goals. Planning daily workouts takes time, dedication, and some exercise research. It’s definitely not the most exciting part of training. But you won’t build bulging biceps and washboard abs by sporadically visiting the gym and dinking around on random equipment.

A good plan — like those experienced builders follow — doesn’t have to be elaborate.

Here are 4 basic elements to get you started:
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5 Tips for Improving Your Strength and Balance

Sunday, April 7th, 2013

Strength and Balance Conditioning

Sezy Balance
When it comes to exercise, people often find one type of workout they like and focus on it almost exclusively. For some people this means jogging until they can run a marathon. Others engage in weight training in order to build muscles, bulk up, or bench press their own body weight. Still others rely on yoga and Pilates to help them increase flexibility and muscle tone while restoring a mind-body connection or adding a spiritual element to their workout routine.

The point is that it’s easy to get stuck in a rut with one type of exercise. Sometimes we’re seeking specific results, but more often than not we simply end up doing what we like. But this may not be the best way to increase your overall fitness since the practice tends to focus on only one benefit of exercise at the expense of others.

So if you’re looking to improve both your strength and balance, here are a few tips that can help you to reach your fitness goals.

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The Importance of Staying Hydrated When Trying to Build Muscle

Monday, April 1st, 2013

Hydrate for Health

Fitness Girl
We all know that it’s important to get eight glasses of water each day in order to ensure that our bodies are properly hydrated and that waste and toxins are flushed out of our systems.

When you engage in intense exercise, a lot of fluids can be lost to through sweat, increasing the need for not only water, but also essential electrolytes that allow your body to retain the life-giving fluids you drink.

While you might not think that pumping iron is as intense as running a marathon or swimming laps, the truth is that lifting weights can make you sweat.

That said, there are other reasons why staying hydrated before, during, and after your weight lifting regimen is important. In case you didn’t know it can have a dramatic effect on the results of your workout, as well as your overall state of health.

Here are just a few reasons why you should definitely strive for optimum hydration.

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Suggested Rehabilitation for Common Types of Shoulder Injury

Monday, March 25th, 2013

Shoulder Rehab
Fitness Shoulders
Chronic Shoulder Instability and Impingement Syndrome are the most common types of shoulder injury. Chronic Shoulder Instability occurs when the ‘head’ of the upper arm bone moves out of the shoulder socket. This results in a shoulder joint dislocation and causes great pain. On the other hand, impingement syndrome is prompted by friction occurring between the shoulder blade and rotator cuff. The friction from the rotator cuff and the shoulder blade may be caused by inflammation in a tendon or muscle.

Preparations to Rehab an Injured Shoulder

It’s important to remember that any injury needs to be checked and treated by an accredited physician.  They may recommend medication and several rehabilitation techniques to encourage the shoulder to heal and function as soon as possible.  The Physician will also be able to see the specifics of your injury that may alter they way you would treat it. Here are some tips to consider when preparing an injured shoulder for rehabilitation.
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How Pregnant Moms-to-Be Can Weight Train Safely

Saturday, March 23rd, 2013

Here is another excellent fitness article for pregnant women. At Project Swole we care about everyone.

Exercising During Pregnancy

Pregnancy Weightlifting

Many women are concerned about exercising during pregnancy, but the fact is that the right kind of workouts during the natal period can be tremendously beneficial. The rewards of exercising while pregnant include fewer childbirth complications, reduced incidence of aches and discomfort, higher energy levels, and better blood circulation.

Benefits like these make both the pregnancy period and the birthing process much easier and promote an overall sense of well-being. Weight training is especially good for pregnant women, as pregnancy tends to bring on extra body weight while muscles shrink due to inactivity.

Be Considerate of Exercise Technique

Of course, the body of a pregnant mom-to-be is in a delicate state, and this should be a cause for concern when exercise is being considered. Any exercise that involves a face-down posture should be avoided to reduce pressure on the abdomen, and the muscle groups focused upon should be those that need extra strength during pregnancy.

Lighter weights are highly recommended.

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CrossFit – One of the Best Overall Fitness Programs

Thursday, March 21st, 2013

Why CrossFit Could be Good for Everyone

Crossfit Girl Laura Plumley
CrossFit is one the fastest growing fitness programs in the United States, but why has it been so successful?

High intensity interval training, weight lifting, Olympic weight lifting, gymnastics, and rowing have all been around for a long time. However, CrossFit utilizes all of these movements and creates a complete program that takes the best of all the different disciplines.

This might seem overwhelming at first, but many CrossFit gyms allow scaling down to what you’re comfortable with, a trainer always watching you, and usually a two to three week starter program. This allows anyone of any age or fitness level to take advantage of CrossFit.

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How Bodybuilders Can Eat Clean and Train While They Travel

Wednesday, March 20th, 2013

Fitness VacationIf there’s one part of a bodybuilder’s lifestyle that’s more important than the workouts, it’s got to be nutrition. If you’re not giving your body the fuel it needs to build muscle, all your efforts are going to go to waste as you burn out and lose both your energy and your muscle mass.

Traveling makes it even more difficult to stay on top of your nutrition, especially when you’re mostly limited to the offerings of airlines, terminal food courts, and restaurants. To keep your fitness routine up while you travel, it’s important to keep training and eating clean all the while.

Get acquainted with sludge.

It may not sound like the most appetizing food in the world, and it might be a bit tough to stomach at first, but it’s the traveling bodybuilder’s best friend. Most builders make their sludge by mixing whey protein and peanut butter or almond butter with with water until it reaches a pudding-like consistency.

Since you can’t bring liquids through airport security, pack enough pre-measured bags of whey and almonds to last through your flight, and a Tupperware container for mixing. Either buy bottled water in the airport, or take advantage of courtesy cups on the plane. Use a little less liquid than you would normally, and you can make your own protein-rich sludge anywhere.

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5 Benefits of Weight Training During Pregnancy

Tuesday, March 19th, 2013
Preggo Fitness

If you are expecting a child, it is important to know that doctors and specialists don’t discourage physical fitness and weight training like they used to do in the old days – they actually encourage it.

Physicians used to believe that any kind of rigorous exercise for a mother to be could potentially cause harm to the fetus, either due to miscarriage or a premature birth, but now it is widely believed that a routine fitness regiment during pregnancy can have a number of benefits, like lowering stress levels and increasing general well being.

Moreover, regular weight training is both risk-free and can have many benefits for a woman during her pregnancy, in all trimesters.

Here are 5 benefits of weight training during pregnancy.

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Top 5 Benefits of Interval Training

Friday, March 15th, 2013

Interval TrainingFor many of us the hardest part about working out is motivation. This could be due to the fact that you haven’t made fitness a priority; when you’ve always got something more important on your plate it’s all too easy to put your health on the back burner.

Or maybe you’ve been exercising diligently and you’re simply not seeing the results you want, a situation that can be frustrating and discouraging.

It could even be that you simply don’t find your exercise routine particularly challenging or fun.

Whatever your reasons for skipping the workout day after day, the truth is that you need to find ways to get motivated, and interval training can provide you with several benefits that might just move you to get your butt off the couch and into gear.

Here are a few benefits of interval training to consider:
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How to Relax After an Intense Workout

Wednesday, March 13th, 2013

Relax Fitness GirlThere’s nothing like pushing yourself to your physical limits and leaving it all on the field, so to speak, when you exercise. Not only does it make you feel like you accomplished something, but it also gets you one step closer to meeting your fitness goals, whether you’re shooting for 20-inch biceps, you want to bench press your own body weight, or you’re training for a marathon, just for example.

A good workout can boost endorphins, making you feel energized and amazing throughout the day, and it can also help you to sleep better at night. Unfortunately, it might have just the opposite effect, making you feel fatigued but amped up at the same time. If this is the case, you might be looking for a few good ways to recover and relax after an intense workout.

Here are just a few strategies that might help.

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5 MORE Ways to Burn MORE Belly Fat During Exercise

Wednesday, February 27th, 2013

No Belly Fat ChickOne of the first places the average adult body stores spare fat is around the belly, and this can be a real nightmare for anyone trying to trim down their midsection.

You might think that you’re doing everything right when it comes to your diet and exercise regimen, and yet, for some reason you just can seem to shed the unsightly padding around your abdominals.

If this is the case, you could find that doing everything right is actually all wrong. Your lifestyle might be sabotaging everything.

Here are just a few tips and tricks that could help you to finally melt away the belly fat that’s been plaguing you for years. Sure, they say diet is responsible for 75% of your progress, but if you are doing everything else wrong, your lifestyle could derail 90% of your progress.

Here are 5 more tips to help you lose belly fat:

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The 5 Most Common Weight Lifting Injuries and How to Prevent Them

Monday, February 25th, 2013

How to Prevent Injuries that Will Derail Your Progress

Deadlift Girl Good Form
Adding weight lifting to your workout routine on a weekly basis can offer the average fitness buff a world of benefits.

For one thing, it can make you stronger, as expected, helping you to overcome obstacles in other types of exercise (running faster, throwing farther, jumping higher, etc.). But it can also help you to create the physique you’ve been trying for (whether it’s bulking you crave or simply a frame that features better muscle tone) and even lose weight if that’s what you want (muscle burns more calories than fat). And that’s just the beginning.

Weight lifting, when done improperly, can also result in a slew of injuries, most of which can be easily avoided by warming up and cooling down, building up to greater weights or more reps over time, using proper form, listening to your body, and asking for help from a spotter.

Here are just a few common weight lifting injuries that are best avoided:

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