Your Gym Advice

Are you looking for a cardio workout that you can enjoy? Finding a workout that will keep you entertained is just a matter of knowing yourself. What do you like to do? Dance, swim or kick boxing? If you want a challenging workout that will get your heart pumping here are a few activities to get you started in the right direction:

Swimming: Swimming is just about the best all-around exercise that you can do. Swim about 45 minutes, three times a week and you will see your body becoming toned and fit – and after only a few weeks. Swimming at a fast pace will work your muscles twice as much as running. As with any new exercise, start slow and for shorter periods of time. Then, work your way up to swimming faster and for longer periods.

You might also try water aerobics. Do the same exercises that you do in the gym: leg lifts, squats, lunges. When these exercises are done under water, the water provides a resistance so that your muscles are required to work harder than if you were doing them out of the water. Exercising in water is also better for your joints, especially if you are older. People with arthritis or other joint disorders seem to tolerate water exercises better than gym exercises.

Belly Dancing: Belly dancing is especially good for the waistline, hips and thighs. Once you get going, the cardio benefits are enormous. Belly dancing has become so popular in the United States that most gyms have at least one class.

Yoga: Ashtanga yoga is a form of yoga that takes the most effort. It uses the regular yoga poses but it is also good for aerobic workouts. You should use a certified yoga instructor since he or she is trained to show you the correct poses that will boost your heart rate and burn calories. You can also buy videos online that will show you the poses and how to do them.

Walking. Not just walking, but “power” walking. Power walking requires more effort than plain walking. You swing your arms while walking very quickly. You can power walk outside around your neighborhood or go to the gym and walk on a treadmill. If you are just starting and you are out of shape, start with a plain walking routine until your body adjusts to the exercise. Then, start swinging your arms while walking slowly. When that feels comfortable, go on to a fast walk and match your arm swings to your walking stride.

If you power walk at the gym, have a trained instructor give you the best workout for your strength and stamina. When you are power walking at a fast pace easily on a flat treadmill, start increasing the incline level. That will really give you a workout!

Doing an exercise activity that you enjoy will encourage you to keep with it. And that is what you need to get yourself fit and to lose weight.

Most people think that the only way to achieve an effective and thorough workout is to use weights while training or exercising. Although weights do have a place in the world of physical fitness, there is no book that says a person absolutely has to use weights in order to build strength, stamina, or even a decent-looking body.

Some people are simply too busy to fit in a drive to the gym and a weightlifting or exercise workout. Other people simply cannot afford the cost of a gym membership or the expense of exercise equipment.

There is hope though – and this is where the idea of a workout without weights can really prove to be helpful. With a little creativity and some modification of everyday activities, even the busiest person can find the time for an effective workout.

Life Without The Gym

Believe it or not, there actually was a period of time in human history when gyms did not exist. Yes, it’s true. What in the world did people do to get their daily exercise before there was Gold’s or Bally’s or Bowflex? People found a way.

Whether it meant lifting heavy rocks and objects, climbing mountains, or running marathons, people found a way to exercise. In ancient Egypt, people lifted bags of sand to keep in shape, while the Greeks lifted (and threw) heavy rocks and objects as part of training and exercise regimens.

What’s the bottom line? You don’t need weights or fancy equipment to get an effective, whole-body workout.

Ways To Workout Without Weights

If you’re looking to workout without weights, there are many options for you to explore which will ensure you of an excellent workout.

Knee Bends (Squats) – Viewed as essentially a squat without weights, the goal here is to develop the muscles of the thighs and glutes. This exercise can be done by grabbing on to anything that will provide stability and support (a table, a sink, or a desk).

With the feet set apart about shoulder width, with a firm grasp of the supporting object, and with the feet flat on the ground, the individual simply lowers him or her self until the butt is as close to the ground as possible.

Calf Raises – This exercise can be done by simply locating a raised area such as a stair or step. If neither one is available, find an object such as a book which will allow you to raise yourself off the ground.

With the toes on the edge of the object (stair, step, or book), lower the heels of your feet, then lift yourself up on your toes to complete one repetition.

Pull Ups – This one presents a little bit more of a problem, since it does require the use of a pull up bar or some object that you can pull yourself up on (i.e. a jungle gym at a school or park, or even the section of a doorway that sticks out). Upon finding the right spot, grip the bar or doorway using an underhand grip and allow your body to hang down.

Slowly pull yourself up until your chest reaches the level of the bar.

Push Ups – The original and still the best, push ups represent the best way to workout without weights. Not only do they train the arms and chest, but they also provide a decent workout for the abs, shoulders, and legs. Simply place the hands about shoulder width apart, stretch the legs and feet out, and keep your back straight.

Bend at the elbows to lower your body, then push down on the ground to lift it back up.

Crunches – Nothing works the abs like a few sets of crunches. They don’t require special equipment or weights, and can be done anywhere where there is room. Lie on your back with your legs bent. Lift the shoulders off of the ground and crunch the abdominals. Only lift the body up until the shoulders are off of the ground – any higher and you run the risk of injuring your back.

If you are like me, then you will probably know that using free weights and machines is the fastest and most efficient way there is to improve your metabolism and strength but for many reasons these may not be convenient or readily accessible to you.

You may also have no access to a commercial gym, home gym or are on business trip, but there can be a solution, a strength-training workout without the need of expensive machines.

As with any exercise, whether you are using your own body weight, machines or free weights, if the resistance doesn’t increase, your muscles won’t be worked to their maximum capacity and the stimulus these fibres need to grow will be missing.

Exercises done correctly will build the lean muscle and increase your metabolism in the same way as performing exercises at a gymnasium, but without the time constraints and associated costs.

These exercises can be easily done in a bedroom, hotel room, a park, school yard, ceiling rafters in a garage or in a doorway and all you have to do is use your imagination. There will always be a way to add more resistance to your workouts.

Please remember: It doesn’t matter where you are working out – at home, a hotel, or a park – always warm up properly before beginning your session, and cool down and stretch when you are finished.

Leg Exercises

Squats -

They build muscle in the thighs, shape the buttocks and improve endurance. Position your feet about 13 to 17 inches apart or at shoulder width, keeping the back straight and your head up. If you want you can use something that will give you some support, i.e. a desk, bookcase, sink etc.

Now squat down to where the tops of the thighs are parallel to the floor, hold for a second and then stand up, but don’t bounce at the bottom of the movement, use a nice fluid motion. Always exhale your breath as you stand up.

Lunges -

Stand straight in correct posture; now stand with one leg forward and one leg back. Keeping your abdominal muscles tight and chest up, lower your upper body down, bending your leg (don’t step out too far).

You should have about one to two feet between your feet at this stage, the further forward you step, and the more your gluteus and hamstring muscles will have to work.

Do not allow your knee to go forward beyond your toes as you come down and stop where your feel comfortable (try not to let your back come forward) then push directly back up. Do all your reps on one leg then switch legs and do all your reps on the other leg.

Back Exercises

Chin-ups -

Chin-ups are a great upper body workout, particularly targeting your biceps, deltoid and lat muscles. Use a doorway chin-up bar, ceiling rafters in a garage or grab the moulding of your door frame, position your hands with an under hand grip and hang down stretching the lats, slowly raise your body until your chin reaches the bar level.

Pause a moment before slowly lowering yourself back to the starting position. Don’t swing or use momentum to get your body to the top, just use the target muscles. Doorway chinning bars remove from the doorway when you are not using them and can be put up and taken down in seconds.

Bent Over Row -

Take up a position with your right hand and right knee braced on a sturdy bed or some other flat surface that will provide a good support. Now pick up a dumbbell or something heavy that you can hold onto with your left hand.

Visualize your arms as hooks and slowly bring the dumbbell or object up to the side of your chest, keeping your back straight, then lower the weight back down to arms length, no lower, on extremes, safe form only please.

Concentrate on your back muscles. Reverse the whole procedure and do the exercise now with your right arm.

Chest Exercises

Push-Up -

The push up is used for building chest, shoulders and arms. Lie face down on the floor with your hands about shoulder width apart and keeping your palms turned slightly inward. Now push-up until your arms are straight, lower and repeat for repetitions.

To make it more difficult elevate your feet. Try placing the toes of your feet on a stable, elevated surface such as a bench, chair or a stair.

Straightening your body, position your hands on the floor at shoulder width, lower your body until your chest touches the floor at the bottom, and then return to the starting position in a nice fluid motion.

Dips -

This exercise can be done between two sturdy chairs or other surfaces that provide stability. The dip is another great upper body exercise. It’s a compound movement as well and involves working all the muscles that the push up works.

Keep your head up and body as vertical as possible. For the beginning of the movement, start at the top (arms fully extended) and lower yourself until your upper arms are parallel to the seat of the chairs, hold and then push up to the top of the movement until your arms are fully extended again.

Keep looking straight ahead and don’t bounce at the bottom of the movement.

Adding Weight

Although the simple weight of your own body is enough resistance to provide an effective workout we need progressive overload (added resistance) to become stronger.

So all we need to do is add some weight wherever we can find some. Because there are no metal plates and fancy machines to use it doesn’t matter because the body doesn’t care where it is as long as it’s receiving resistance of some kind.

You can use heavy books clasped in your hands. You can buy some cheap weighted dumbbells or ankle weights. A weighted vest will also allow you to add resistance for both chin-ups and push-ups.

Try to buy one that will let you remove and add weight as you see fit. Also a backpack filled with books can be perfect for most of the exercises and is a cheap alternative.

How about a couple of buckets and fill them with a certain level of water? As you get stronger fill them with more water. This is perfect because depending on the exercise, all you need to do is to increase or decrease the amount of water in the buckets for the required amount of resistance.

To wrap things up we know that using free weights and machines are the fastest and most efficient way there is to gain lean muscle and strength, but by performing the exercises in this article you’ll find that they will provide you with the same benefits as going to a gymnasium but without the ongoing costs and time constraints.

Are you not exactly sure how to behave when you are at a gym? Here is a succinct guide to the body building etiquette that is expected at most health clubs, gym’s and weight lifting facilities.

One of the most important rules is to put your weights back on the rack where you found them. There is nothing more frustrating for your fellow body builders than to go to a weight rack and not be able to find the weight that they need. Replace them on the right rack so people don’t have to hunt around on other machines for them.

Try not to bounce around from machine to machine. This is usually associated with the newbie who is eager to try everything out and only does a move or two before racing to the next machine. This throws the entire circuit of machine users who are waiting to rotate out of whack time wise. If you use the machine take the time to use it thoroughly and properly.

It is also a cardinal sin in most gymnasiums not to wipe down the gym equipment after you have finished using it. Most gyms have towels and bottles of disinfectant handy that are specifically supposed to be used to wipe down the machines after you work out on them.

Do not walk in front of people using the mirrors to do exercises like squats. It is considered very poor etiquette to block someone’s view of himself or herself and you can make people working out very angry. That is because it is important for them to keep their focus on their form while looking at their reflection and getting in the way of their view is a form of sabotage. Do not block other peoples access to weight racks by working out immediately in front of them, have some consideration for others who also want to use the equipment.

If you are male or female it is not considered proper etiquette to hit on people who are working out. A gymnasium is not a “meet market.” You are also expected to mind your own business the best you can and not stare at other people no matter how much you admire their well toned muscled or firm physique. If you do bring a friend with you to the gym it is also proper etiquette not to talk too loudly with each other. Yet another no is talking loudly into a cell phone, especially via a Blue Tooth, while people are trying to focus on working out.

Watch your body functions! There is something about bodybuilding that is very macho and in some cases encourages the spontaneous relapse of bodily gases. If this should happen to you make some effort to be discreet about it. Not everybody has a casual attitude towards flatulence in a gym. In fact being chronically flatulent can actually get you kicked out of a gym.

In fact body hygiene is very important in the sport of bodybuilding. You should always remember to bathe. A body building gym is the type of place where you will definitely be told if you smell, which can be very embarrassing!

Working out at home is convenient and can save you a lot of time. The biggest problem most people run into with working out at home is that they feel limited in their exercise selection because they have limited or no equipment at all.

By changing the speed you perform your exercises, you can create an unlimited number of progressions and variations without having to learn a single new exercise. There are three types of muscle action that need to be defined in order to clearly describe tempo. First off is eccentric action, which describes lowering the weight or your body (imagine going down to the bottom of a push-up). Isometric action describes muscular contraction with no movement at all (imagine holding a push-up at the bottom). Concentric action refers to overcoming resistance (imagine now lifting yourself up to the top of a push-up). The collective process of adding timing to exercises is known as tempo.

These three phases of movement can be modified to burn more fat and build muscle and there is real-world evidence that modifying tempo can lead to great results. The kings (and queens) of bodyweight exercise are gymnasts. Gymnastics involves frequent use of slow eccentrics (demonstrating body control on rings and bars), isometric pauses (iron cross and other holds), and explosive eccentric and concentric actions (flips).

While the average person is not a gymnast, we can still apply these principles to home workout routines to increase the challenge without needing more equipment. For example, rather than do a simple push-up, you can lower yourself over 3 seconds, pause 2 seconds at the bottom, then explosively lift yourself to the top, trying to launch your body into the air. This push-up is much more advanced (and challenging) than a normal push-up.

These principles can be applied to any type of exercise to improve your home workouts. Slow down the eccentric and add pauses to movements to make them more difficult. Squats, lunges, push-ups, and abdominal exercises are a great place to start. Start out slow and experiment with a variety of tempos and pauses to find out what works best for you.