Archive for July, 2009
Effective Back Flexibility and Strength Exercises
Anyone who has ever suffered from a major backache knows how central the back is, even in times you might think it isn’t important. Even something like squeezing a tennis ball, an action that involves a focus on the fingers, forearm and bicep will involve the latissimus dorsi and other back muscles.
The lats are the [...]
Here Are a Few Upper Body Exercises to Get You Going
Most upper body exercises have as their goal to build strength. In order to maximize the beneficial effect of the routine, you’ll want to mix in some good cardiovascular workouts – spinning, jogging, etc – and alternate the activities with lower body work.
Before starting any routine, be sure to spend at least 10 minutes warming [...]
Try These Basic Yet Powerful Leg Exercises
What kind of leg exercises you do will, of course, depend on your goal. Are you trying to build massive thighs or heart-shaped calves? Do you want to build strength, increase running endurance or improve balance and flexibility? Are you a weight-lifter, a jogger or a ballerina?
Naturally, not all goals are mutually exclusive. Building strength [...]
How Men and Women Differ In a Workout Routine
Though stereotypes are dissolving with each generation, there are some that persist – in part, because they are based on real differences between men and women.
While some women can and do achieve the upper body strength of some (even very fit) men, the overwhelming majority of males have a natural advantage in this area. Male [...]
Tips to Keep Fit as You Age
It’s a commonplace observation that as you age you have to work harder to keep the pounds off and to stay fit. One major reason is the inescapable biological fact that metabolism slows as we age. Inescapable for now, at least, until medical technology finds some safe way to alter it.
Genetic research into aging is [...]
Exercise Is Important For The Young As Well
Individuals under 20 are naturally more flexible, have higher metabolic rates and more energy than those older. But they, too, need to exercise (in appropriate ways) to avoid injury and build strength and endurance, avoid obesity and stay fit.
Particularly today, when there are so many electronic alternatives, young people may exercise less than they should. [...]
How Exercise Can Strengthen Your Immune System
Few subjects in health or diet ever get put to a final rest. Present studies often contradict earlier ones, until no one knows what to think. One of the few areas that almost all serious studies seem to agree on is the relationship between exercise and the immune system.
No reputable researcher will claim that exercise [...]
How the Body’s Energy System Works
Some of the major goals of exercise are to improve muscle tone, strength, and endurance. All of this is made possible by, and requires, the body’s energy production-and-use system. Central to that system is a complex molecule called ATP, Adenosine Triphosphate.
ATP is a core element of a process known in biochemical studies as (ready for [...]
What Does it Mean to be Fit?
Aristotle helped define the standards of fitness 2,500 years ago when he taught that a thing that suits its purpose well is fit. Fortunately for us, the cardiovascular system, lungs, skeleton, muscles, endocrine system and all the other amazing components of the body function for our purpose: to live well.
Exercising aids fitness in numerous ways, [...]
The Benefits and Limitations of Abdominal Exercises
Anyone interested in fitness wants to have great looking abs – firm, rippled and well-toned, along with a trim waist. All those are achievable, but beware accepting any myths about flat stomachs and spot reduction around the waist.
As you exercise, you consume energy measured in calories. When you consume enough to deplete the available energy, [...]
