You want to save time building muscle and losing fat. You want to put in as little time as possible, using as few days out of the week as possible, and get the most bang for your buck. In that case you should exercise only when you can maximize your returns on time invested. Here’s how:
There are so many choices out there for exercise equipment, sometimes it is hard to know what to choose. Free weights are always best – barbells, dumbbells, kettlebells, odd objects, and even bodyweight. Machines have their place, but they don’t usually belong in your main training routine.
So how can you choose your equipment based on your training history, goals, and injuries?
 Exercise Equipment |
 Hardcore Circuit Training for Men |
Chohwora Udu & Jim McHale are the Authors of Hardcore Circuit Training for Men, which is available at SportsWorkout.com and bookstores nationwide.
Special Project Swole discount:
Use coupon code HCCT to get 15% off the cover price!
Click here to order.
I posted an article written by the authors of the book Hardcore Circuit Training for Men the other day, called Losing Weight with Circuit Training. Since then I found my copy of the book and finished looking through it.
Here is what I think:
First and foremost, despite the book’s title, this is not just a book for men. These circuits can be used and adapted by women and even kids. It can be used by weightlifters, triathlon athletes, regular athletes, MMA fighters, boxers, and pretty much anyone else who is looking to develop their conditioning.
This contest is now over, and as a result of a random drawing, the winner is…
Todd!
Congratulations Todd, I will be in touch to ask you where I should ship your Powerhouse Hit The Deck.
Do you want to win a fitness game?
Apparently you just set a timer, draw a card, and do whatever exercise is on the card until the timer goes off. Then draw another card and do it again.
I’ve never used this, but if you want to win one for free, just leave a comment at the bottom of this post. I will choose a winner at random on Monday December, 14 2009. I will just need an email address, which won’t be posted, to contact you if you win, at which time I’ll need a name and shipping address.
Get more information about Powerhouse Hit The Deck here: Powerhouse Performance Coaching
Would you be interested to know that Project Swole will soon be undergoing a redesign? I’ve already expanded the layout to 1000 pixels where it was once only 800 pixels, but a whole new graphical layout is coming out shortly, and I’m thinking of installing the Social Networking plugin Mingle to let Project Swole readers connect with each other more easily. Project Swole 3.0 should be good.
I’ve received a ton of requests for new articles on Project Swole. Let me tell you what’s on my To Write List and you can add to it as you see fit by leaving me some comments.
Need another reason to add either HIIT or HIRT into your workout routine?
A university study has concluded that a combination of cross training and strength training produces the same strength adaptations as strength training alone, while also eliciting the wonderful benefits of cardiovascular conditioning.
 Conditioning |
 Lose Your Belly |
If you are reading this then you clearly want to lose some weight. You have probably tried several different ways, and let’s face it; there are thousands of pages of information about it on the World Wide Web.
Which methods work?
Which are actually effective and am I wasting my time?
Here are 5 seriously helpful tips, no rubbish and no lies.
 Mowing the Lawn |
After initially proofreading this post I was thinking to myself that I wouldn’t post it because it’s not a training article, and quite frankly some of the activities are pretty foo-foo. But on second thought, some of these ideas apply more to men, while others apply more to women, so there is something in this list for everyone.
I recommend referring to this list on your next boring spring, summer, or autumn weekend. When you are looking for something to do around the house or around the yard, these ideas might inspire you to create, clean, fix, or just burn extra calories.
After all being swole doesn’t always have to be about squatting, benching, power cleaning (the Olympic lift), or sprinting. Being swole is much more about the path we take to get there, than the end result. Although when you look great naked, the end result is pretty sweet.
This is an old post. For more and better information, check out How to Calculate Your Target Heart Rate. You can also score a sweet Reebok Strapless Heart Rate Monitor on that page.
 Female Athlete |
Do you own a heart rate monitor? If not, then you are not alone. However, heart rate monitors are becoming increasingly popular, especially among athletes and those with certain health conditions.
In the days before heart rate monitors, people would have to stop and manually count a pulse by placing fingers over the carotid artery. Not only would this pressure on the artery distort the reading, but would cause some to get light headed by their pressing too hard in an attempt to find a pulse. Now, with a heart rate monitor, one doesn’t even need to stop to get an accurate reading.
The most important reason to buy a heart rate monitor is for safety.
Most fitness professionals will tell average clients to keep their target heart rate between 55% and 85% of their maximum heart rate. In order to calculate one’s maximum heart rate, simply subtract your age from the number 220. Next, you can then use this number and multiply it by 0.55 to get the lower end of the target zone and by 0.85 to find the cut off point.
Those with threatening conditions would be advised to exercise in the 55-60% range.
Still, let it be known that heart rate monitors are also a vital tool for the endurance athlete. Not only do heart rate monitors make readings simpler, they also make monitoring progress a lot simpler as well.
With a heart rate monitor, an athlete can better determine how to set the pace in an effort to optimize race performance. Without one, endurance athletes would run the risk of either over-training and exhausting the body or under-training and not pushing the body hard enough.
One thing is for certain though, heart rate monitors are useful tools that can simultaneously help and protect both the fittest of the fit and those at extreme risk.
Those trainees that regularly participate in cardiovascular activities can benefit by constantly gauging their heart rate, thus targeting their intensity to more effectively burn fat.
Again, this is an old post. For more and better information, check out How to Calculate Your Target Heart Rate. Get more info about the Reebok Strapless Heart Rate Monitor on that page too.
