Tag Archive 'muscle'

Mar 05 2010

A Look At The Philosophy Of Yoga

Published by Adriana Noton under Sports Apparel

For many people the word yoga conjures up something only vaguely related to the lotus position. However, it is more than just one pose; it embraces not only a physical discipline but also a philosophical basis for leading one\’s life. The word itself comes from ancient Sanskrit text and roughly translates to \”royal union, \” which is to say a proper balance between body and mind.

The ancient text that provides the foundation is the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. It was written over two thousand years ago and is divided into four books. They are called the Samadhi Pada, Sadhana Pada, Vibhuti Pada, and the Kaivalya Pada. It is in the Sadhana Pada that one can discover the physical aspect of yoga.

Within the Sadhana Pada one will find the eight \”limbs.\” These steps are known as the Ashtanga yoga. The first five limbs concern external aids while the last three address internal issues. Asana is one of the five external aids, or the third limb, and refers to discipline of the body. It stresses that the body should be kept disease-free while preserving vital energy. It is the teachings found in this book of the Sutras that give rise to what most Westerners construe as yoga.

Asana is the plural of asan which means body position or posture. Its purpose is to improve flexibility, vitality, and promote meditation. Some adherents of asana believe that practicing its positions open up the energy channels and psychic centers in the body. According to asana, any position assumed should be steady and comfortable, yet firm.

As alluded to earlier, the body should not experience any discomfort when assuming any pose. There are dozens of positions that a practitioner can strike, from beginner level to advanced.

Regardless of one\’s level of expertise, there are some fundamental concepts that should be adhered to. The stomach should always be empty before commencing any exercise. The body should not experience any trembling from force or pressure. Breathing should be controlled and not erratic. Most of the exercises are not performed on a floor but rather on a mat, and at the conclusion of the session, time should be spent attaining a deep state of relaxation.

Poses can be done standing up, seated, supine, while balanced, or while the back is bent. There are a wide variety of poses and they can be classified as beginner, intermediate, or advanced level positions. Some beginner standing poses are The Downward Facing Dog, The Standing Forward Bend, and The Pyramid Pose. Seated poses such as Half Lord of the Fishes, Seated Wide Legged Straddle, and the Cobbler\’s Pose are also geared towards those just starting out.

As mentioned, yoga encompasses much more than just forming your body into a specific pose. It is a philosophy that addresses not just corporeal well being but also spiritual needs as well. In fact, the first \”limb\” of the Sutras preaches such virtues as non-violence, truth in word and thought, and celibacy for those who are not married and monogamy for those who are.

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Feb 18 2010

The Most Powerful Football Strength Training Routine–What It Really Needs To Have To Become Successful

Published by Rob Maraby under Fitness

Foot ball is one of most demanding sports to choose from .simply because football players need to be everything on the field. Like for example he ought to be explosive as well as have muscle endurance plus have ample muscle tissue. He needs all this without sacrificing speed. His workouts need to be powerful swift as well as dynamic in nature. This is especially true within the weight room .Now different positions in football require different training methods For example .a running back wont have the same training practice or training program as the line backer .now as a whole football players ought to be explosive and powerful. But can we define power? What is it?

Power is strength plus speed and that\’s what football is it\’s the strength belonging to the player mixed along with his speed to dominate and play the interesting game of football.

Now ordinary body building workouts is not really satisfactory for football players as they need to have specific explosive training designed for them that includes a mix of Nero muscular strength training and owner. Neuromuscular training is the ability to speed up the brain signals you send in your body to carry out sudden explosive activities. The faster you signal the signals the faster you\’ll be able to gather muscles to accomplish the movements. You need the following in any football weight training program

1. Muscle building which is increasing overall strength in the footballers body

2. Endurance training that happen to be exercises that improves the functionality of oxygen use of your physique .the better the body will use oxygen the better endurance you have get

3. Dynamic training that is the combination of plyometric and strength workouts together this produces maximum power within the body that is definitely required by the sport of football

All these kinds of exercises are designed in a football players exercise program. Most of these components are needed by the football player in order for him to execute at an ideal overall performance

It is now normally acknowledged by coaches that football players should conduct weight training exercises but in my opinion IT is incorrect as it is not really enough because lets say a football player lifts a specific weight as he increases the weight his repetitions will probably go down. So lets say he is lifting a heavy weight for just one rep he can lift that weight slowly for a minute just for one rep. Now that will offer a person massive strength but that\’s not all what a footballer is all about. .what about explosiveness, speed and agility most of what football players need what happens to those components. All of these components are gone when you perform an ordinary strength training exercise

A football player must have a combination of strength training, neuromuscular activation and education, endurance training and dynamic training all in their exercise program to get in the in the best physical condition

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Feb 14 2010

Top Gear – Jeremy tests Lamborghini Murcielago and Stig test lap – BBC

Published by larry under Sports Apparel

Jeremy gives his opinions on a Lamborghini murcielago and we see how fast it can make it round the Top Gear track with Captain Stig at the helm. Another free episode of the fast new automobiles featured on BBC Worldwide's Top Gear.

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Feb 12 2010

Principles To Get A Good Bicep Exercise

Published by Rob Maraby under Fitness

Observe the bicep muscle and notice how they are made out of two heads. The long head and the short head. In a bicep exercise both the long head and short head are worked. Your bicep muscle is in charge of your elbow flexion not to mention your forearm supination. Your shoulder muscle is also activated to some extent when you perform any bicep exercise

There are many key principles that professionals recommend you keep in mind when performing any bicep exercise. This of course is to make your workout more effective and to help reach your desired goals. Some of the key principles to work your biceps are:

Lifting heavy on a bicep exercise to really stimulate the most muscles. Lifting heavy weights is an almost guaranteed way to grow big guns. This requires a lot of physical and mental effort.

Another principle is the working with intensity. Performing a bicep exercise with intensity is another way to force growth into your biceps. The more intense the bicep exercise the more bicep fibers are stimulated and the more fibers stimulated the bigger the your bicep will grow

One more factor should be considered. That is rest. Rest is even more important than the bicep exercise and the method you performed it. Growing big guns is all about resting after you butchered your biceps.

Here are a bunch of solid bicep exercises

1. Barbell Curls with cheats. This move is great for bicep length and thickness. Make sure to have full range of motion as well as only cheating when you can no longer keep form

2. Incline Curls-this move is fantastic for \”connecting\” your biceps and forearms as well as offering the fullest range of motion in any bicep exercise

3. Preacher Curls. The preacher curl is actually one of the best bicep exercise out there. Why? Well no other move allows you to lift heavy weights and at the same time isolate your biceps. meaning nothing but direct your growth to your biceps

4. Concentration curls. You need at least one concentration bicep exercise. A move that will allow you to squeeze definition into your biceps. you don\’t only want your biceps to be big you want them to look good to

It\’s ideal to train your biceps twice a week. This of course being after ample rest in between workouts. Don\’t train biceps on consecutive days, you will only injure yourself. The routine above is just sample but try and follow the same template. Using core moves and finishers.

It\’s all about method. It doesn\’t matter what bicep exercise you are performing what matters is the manner. Train hard and always push your self to the limit and in no time at all you will be sporting biceps that are the envy of all

Discover How To Use The Right Bicep Exercise To Develop Big Arms By Downloading My Free Book That Shows You How To Boost Any Bicep Exercise For Big Arms

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Feb 09 2010

Losing Weight Using An Elliptical Machine

Published by Freddie Daitatt under Fitness

Recent years have seen an growing amount of emphasis being laid on personal fitness and health routines. Although searching excellent is no doubt the primary motivational factor for many people who choose to take up regular exercise routines, there is an increasing awareness about the other equally important gains of looking after one\’s body and staying fit.

This is now widespread understanding that allowing your fat to cross the medically designated level according to your Body-Mass ratio can prove to be dangerous, indeed hazardous to health. There isn\’t an end to the number of health conditions and risks related to becoming overweight and it\’s imperative that you just carefully watch your weight.

In case you do not have the time to undertake elaborate exercise routines or go to the gym every day we suggest purchasing an Elliptical Machine and taking out a small amount of time, say Forty five minutes, every single day to spend on it. Elliptical Trainers grant outstanding workouts and can assistance you to lose fat and develop into fit in a measured pace. Here we let you know how to lose fat AND inches by using one of these machines.

Lots of individuals voice doubts about whether an Elliptical Machine will actually assist them to lose fat. If you are judging by the appearances from the workouts, it\’ll most likely seem like an effortless exercise and you\’ll be fooled into believing that there is no hard work involved. This is not true at all as Elliptical Trainers can give extremely intense workouts and you can raise or lower the level of difficulty and effort required by adjusting the incline settings and/or the resistance settings. Elliptical Machines are an excellent exercise tool which work at swiftly improving your heart activity and bringing your system into fat loss mode.

Elliptical Trainers work on the principle utilizing the legs to support the weight on the body. You possibly can opt for a trainer with arm handles for an increased upper system work out as well by adjusting the handles closer to your torso or farther apart you are able to make a decision how much strain you need to put on your arm muscles and thus influence the amount of activity essential. As your legs help your body mass while also pedaling you will receive an outstanding lower system workout that lessens fat, firms up muscles and strengthens bones all in one go.

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Feb 02 2010

Learn How To Get Rid of Abdominal Fat With the Help of Abdominal Exercises

Published by Michael Fleischner under Fitness

Reduce body fat and improve the way you look and feel. Getting fit is important if you want to live a long and healthy life. Unfortunately, many individuals don\’t consider exercise and diet as high priorities. Many studies have proven that individuals who combine diet and exercise tend to live longer, healthier lives.

Changing the way you eat is easy if you focus on consuming plenty of fruits and vegetables and control your intake of saturated fat. Even if you are not focused on losing weight, adding fruits and vegetables can provide essential nutrients for your health. If you are not currently consuming fruits or vegetables today, begin by introducing just one piece of fruit daily.

Vegetables can be eaten in a variety of ways. Do you like eacting salad? Try to eat a salad at least 3 – 4 times per week. But go easy on the dressing. Salad dressing is usually loaded with unhealthy fat and tons of calories. If you don\’t care for salad, try raw carrots or other vegetables you may like. By adding these into your diet slowly over time, you\’ll enjoy the benefits of healthy eating.

Some people think they can go on a diet and stay healthy for a long time. However, the opposite is true. Diet implies short term and that never works. You need to change habits. And you new habits must include both diet and exercise. Proper exercise is essential if you want to build muscle and improve the overall look and feel of your body. Begin by working out just a few days per week and build up to a daily routine. This will produce lasting results.

Exercise can be challenging for many. Either they don\’t have enough time or can\’t see themselves sticking to a regular exercise routine. The key to exercise is to find something you enjoy and start out slowly. Even if you\’re a fan of cycling, don\’t go out and try to compete in a cycling marathon. Rather, pick a few days a week to hop on a bike and go for a ride.

Some people believe that weight lifting will make you look heavier and shouldn\’t be part of an exercise routine. Nothing could be further from the truth. Good exercise includes weight lifting or resistance exercises that build muscle. Muscle burns calories faster and can contribute significant to your long term weight loss. Don\’t overlook weight lifting as part of a regular exercise routine.

Achieving a flat midsection requires both stomach related exercises like crunches as well as physical exercises like running or biking. In combination, you are not only targeting your mid section, but lowering the fat composition of your body as well. In combination you can have a direct impact on the body parts you are trying to reshape.

To get lasting results, you must attack your mid-section from a number of different angles. Nutrition alone won\’t do it. Exercise alone wont have a lasting effect either. You need to combine both diet and exercise if you want to achieve a six pack of abs or strong core. In combination, you can achieve lasting results.

Learn how to quickly and easily get rid of abdominal fat with the help of fitness experts. Proven methods to get rid of belly fat and powerful information and advice.

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Jan 20 2010

Gain Calm, Sleep Better With Yoga Hot Yoga

Published by Adriana Noton under Fitness

For centuries those who enjoyed the physical and mental benefits of yoga hot yoga lived mostly in Asia. Over the past 175 years, however, these disciplines have spread their marvelous gifts completely around the globe.

Yoga is based on a series of physical postures known as \”asanas.\” These asanas work on development flexibility and strength throughout the body by concentrating movements on every muscle group, and on improving breathing. The emphasis on breathing may surprise some people used to more vigorous exercising, but yoga masters have long believed that the breath of life is key to physical and mental health.

What\’s more, intense concentration on performing the physical postures of yoga also serves to calm and clarify the mind. Certain poses focus specifically on the central nervous system and include forms of meditation involving breathing and disengaging from troubling thoughts. By releasing physical tension through yoga postures, practitioners discover that their minds also become less stressed.

The body awareness that develops through yoga encourages greater self-confidence. This self-confidence is expressed through better posture and a more positive mental outlook.

Practicing hot yoga also have been very helpful at relieving body aches, especially back pain. Long-distance truck drivers and people who work all day on computers often experience back. Their pain comes from the way the spine is compressed by their sitting positions, which they have to maintain for many hours. Yoga postures specifically are designed to stretch and strengthen the muscles that support people when they\’re sitting, as well as relieve the tension that results from keeping one posture for long periods.

Many poses require the practitioner to hold the body in new ways that improve muscle strength. Some of these include the Tree Pose, in which the body is balanced on one leg, and the Downward Facing Dog, in which the arms support the body. Several poses require moving slowly into and out of the position, a method that builds muscle strength.

Strengthening the muscles also leads to better muscle tone. Yoga poses help to shape long, lean muscles, and practitioners often can be identified by their long, lean bodies.

\’ \”Happy Baby, \” in which the practitioner brings the knees to the chest, and then opens them out toward the armpits to stretch the hips;

Those who have such chronic illnesses or physical problems still can engage in less challenging forms of yoga. In fact, many people who suffer chronic pain often are encouraged to practice yoga regularly because it has been shown to be quite effective in pain management. The postures practiced in Hatha Yoga, for instance, serve to loosen and strengthen cramped muscles, ligaments and tendons and increase flexibility. Both these yoga benefits reduce physical pain.

All of these exercises that benefit the body also serve to clear and focus the mind. By concentrating on yoga\’s physical poses, practitioners relieve their physical stress, which in turn releases the stress-related body chemicals that can cloud the mind as well. The body awareness that results from regular yoga practice serves to strengthen the mind, producing a calm demeanor that helps practitioners endure life\’s ups and downs better.

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Jan 20 2010

Stubborn Belly Fat – How To Finally Remove It From Your Top 10 New Year\’s Resolutions List

Published by Rizal Shaik under Fitness

Every year, how to get rid of belly fat fast is listed as one of the Top 10 New Year\’s Resolutions

Indeed, get rid of belly fat is definitely one of the most difficult Top 10 New Year\’s Resolutions and it never seems to fall off the top 10 list for most people.

But first, why am I saying reduce belly fat instead of losing weight? Let me explain. You see abs is like the sign that says whether you are fit or not. Simply put, you will never have flat abs if you are not fit. Therefore, if you put all your energy to reduce belly fat, you will in the process also lose weight.

Now you may wonder whether there is really any way to finally tick off stubborn belly fat from appearing again in your Top 10 New Year\’s Resolutions next year?

Well the answer is an absolute yes…

You need three steps. These are Mindset (M), Nutrition(N) and Workouts (W) in the order of priority. I called it the MNW principle.

Let\’s tackle Mindset/Motivation. Now almost everyone who failed to get rid of belly fat and take it off their list of Top 10 New Year\’s Resolutions did not do this correctly. Remember this is the most important step.

Let\’s do this immediately:

1.Picture exactly the things you desire (think about how you want to feel, how you would like to look..)

2.Really want what you are going to do

3.Make a list of very specific things that you need to target (time to set aside for workouts, when to achieve your goals, dietary changes you need to make)

4.Really believe that your goals are achievable

The next step is proper nutrition. If you want to get rid of belly fat, this is where you want to focus a lot of your energy on. Why? Simple. If you put trash into your body, there is no miracle workout that can take them out of your body!

The best thing you can do about nutrition is to eat natural foods.

Unprocessed, natural foods like fresh vegetables and fruits, meat, nuts etc are what you need to eat.

If you think foods with labels such as slim, low fat, low sugar or diet are healthy, then think again. These are nothing more than over-glorified processed foods that are no less unhealthy as those without these labels. So simply avoid them as much as you can.

Most importantly of course, avoid fast foods. Also read food labels when you are shopping for groceries and don\’t buy anything with transfats in it.

Once you get nutrition on the right footing, your workout is actually a much easier step. But first let\’s correct your idea of what actually is a good workout.

A great workout is not those long boring cardio workouts that many fitness trainers ask you to do. A good workout to lose fat must instead gives you a range of heart rates, not the constant rate that cardios do.

So what is a good fat burning workout? Skipping. If you skip fast for say 30 seconds and take a rest to recover your breathing and skip fast again for another 30 seconds, you will be burning a lot more fat than extended cardio workouts. The great thing about it is that you only need ten to 15 minutes of this intense workout to do the trick.

You also need variety in your exercises. Most people stop exercising because they just got bored. Make it fun by having a variety of exercises. You can easily substitute skipping for sprinting or swimming or even stairs climbing. Variety is essential to keep your motivation strong.

That\’s all you need folks. Just 3 simple steps to beat those stubborn belly fat and strike it off from your Top 10 New Year\’s Resolutions list this year!

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Jan 15 2010

What Does It Take To Succeed In A Figure Competition?

Published by Fiona Cryendle under Fitness

If you are thinking about participating in a fitness contest here is some important information. If somebody tells you that this is going to be a walk in the park they\’re lying to you. When you are really dedicated to figure competitions you\’ll have a large amount of success. This article will share a few tips to assist you to get started and then show you where you\’ll be able to get more information that will assist you to be successful.

Without a doubt the most vital factor is your mindset. It is important that you believe that you\’ll be able to accomplish this. You being mentally prepared for what is required to be done is one of the single most significant things you\’ll be able to do. You\’ll be able to achieve success, it is not going to be easy though. Nothing in life that is worthwhile is simple. When you are ready to go into this with a positive mental attitude and a determination that nothing is going to get in your way, you can and will be successful. This is an absolute certainty. The largest battle to win is between your ears.

One of vital things you must do in order to be successful is to eat right. This means that you can not pig out on your favorite junk food or french fries whenever you desire. You\’ve got to stick to a terribly strict diet. This can be the sort of diet that makes you want to scream and pull the hair out of your head. It\’s terribly troublesome to style a diet all by yourself. The most vital thing you should do is get a qualified professional to put a diet together for you. There is a ton of unhealthy recommendations out there, thus you should be very careful.

Discipline is one of the most vital factors that you will learn and that you\’ll do when training for competition. Discipline isn\’t something that someone else can teach you it\’s something that you just have inside you. You develop this on your own and then you set it into effect on your own. You are your own boss, nobody else is going to drag you out of bed every day to try and do your routine.

One other thing you need to think about is getting a mentor or a role model who has won other competitions before. When you model yourself after somebody else who has been successful your probability of being successful will increase greatly.

Learn how to dominate figure contests and totally surprise your opposition.

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Jan 14 2010

The Wieder X-Factor Gym Muscle Building Product

Published by Aimee Jones under Fitness

Every year about this time, a lot of people trying decide to get in shape all at once. That also means that there are a lot of different home fitness systems and crazy diet plans that companies try to create just-in-time for the latest New Year\’s resolution.

A new fad and fitness equipment is what is known as a door gym. These kind of started with the pull up or chin up systems where you would have a device that will connect them to your door frame to help you be able to do a pull up. Now, these systems have advanced to the point that they now have resistance bands and can function as a full home gym system.

One of the biggest reasons that people get so excited about these is that they don\’t cost a lot of money. Whenever you have a product that doesn\’t cost much people get excited, but when you compare these to something like a total gym or a Bow flex you start to realize that the price difference is significant.

Weider, a well-known fitness company has introduced their own product. They call it the X-Factor. The Weider X-Factor is a very interesting product, because it is very similar to other products, while keeping costs down and fitness performance high.

The system is very simple to setup. You attach it to a door, using special clips in the resistance bands will connect to handle select straps. From there, you just are working out using your body parts to do harm or leg or core exercises.

The system is so easy to set up that you literally just clip the four corners to the door and attach the handles and you\’re ready to go. Entire process only takes minutes. A comparable system from Bow flex or another company would take you hours to set up and put together.

The price is also very attractive. At around $100 is something almost anyone can afford and you almost can\’t afford not to own it. When you compare that to gym membership is not even close.

If you\’re interested in the home gym system the Weider X-Factor is something you should strongly consider because when you combine the price and the features and the capabilities. It is extremely competitive, and can save your whole lot of money.

To find out exactly where Aimee Jones, a fitness blogger, goes to get Weider X-Factor, visit my website about Weider Fitness.

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