Gizmos and Gadgets | Cool Gadgets - Health Fitness » Exercise

What Is Aerobics Exercise?

fitgizmos — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 21:00:00 +0000

Much has been said about aerobics exercise, and how it’s a very important part of any workout regimen. But some bad comments about it have been made as well, such as how too much of it can actually hurt you instead of help you. So what’s the real deal about aerobics exercise? Let’s find out in this article.

Aerobics Exercise And What It Does

Aerobics, also known in many circles as “cardio” (short for “cardiovascular”), are exercises meant to get the body running. Aerobics exercise boosts circulation and improves respiration. It also gives the body’s cardiovascular system a workout — which is important, because the more easily oxygen reaches your organs, the better your overall health will be.

Aerobics is a favorite among weight-loss aficionados, because it’s known to boost metabolism and burn calories very efficiently. It also stretches and warms up the muscles to take on tougher, more rigorous exercises later in the workout session.

How Aerobics Exercise Fits Into Your Workout Regimen

Most people use aerobics to start their workouts. Simple aerobics exercise stretches and warms the muscles so they can tackle more intense exercises without hurting themselves. Aerobics also gives the individual an opportunity to increase their stamina and endurance every single workout session.

More intense exercises include resistance training (weight-bearing exercises utilizing free weights, exercise machines, or one’s own body weight) and high-intensity interval training (HIIT). HIIT is a variation of common cardio exercises, where periods of maximum intensity are alternated with periods of rest or low activity.

Types Of Aerobics Exercise To Try

The first aerobics activity that most individuals try out is jogging. Nearly anyone can jog. In the beginning, a new jogger may need to alternate periods of jogging with periods of walking. But after jogging for 30 minutes, 3 times a week, for 3 months, most joggers find that they can jog or run the whole way.

Other good types of aerobic activities to try include biking, swimming, and even boxing. Look for one that sounds fun to you, and try it out. If it IS fun, stick to it. No sense forcing yourself to do an exercise you don’t enjoy!

How Much Aerobics Exercise Should You Do Every Day?

Most fitness trainers will tell you that 30 minutes of aerobics exercise is optimal, whether you’re aiming to lose or gain weight. Any less than that, and you won’t burn much fat. Any more, and you’ll risk injuring yourself.

Of course, all that depends on what you’re training for. If you’re just aiming for weight loss or muscle gain, 30 minutes is okay. But if you’re training for a long-distance athletic event, such as a marathon or a channel crossing, you can go well beyond the 30-minute guideline!

A Few Reminders About Aerobics Exercise

When doing aerobics exercise, remember to stretch well first. Keep the proper forms throughout the exercise. Keep track of time, and stay hydrated. And of course, pace yourself — you don’t get good at anything overnight!

P90X — Intensity For The Xtreme?

fitgizmos — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 18:16:16 +0000

Have you heard of the P90X home exercise system? It’s actually short for “Power 90 Extreme,” a home workout system co-created by personal fitness trainer Tony Horton. It’s so popular that pop singer Bruno Mars mentioned it in his single, “The Lazy Song.” But is it really effective?

How The P90X System Works

The P90X home exercise system involves 90 days of rigorous training, consisting of various intense exercises you’ll be doing six days a week. No two exercise days are exactly the same, since the entire point of the P90X system is to “confuse” the body’s muscle groups.

“Muscle confusion” is the technique used by many fitness enthusiasts to prevent the body from getting used to daily exercise routines. When the body is forced to adapt to constantly-changing kinds of physical stress, it works at peak capacity, and muscle growth continues past the usual plateaus.

The P90X home exercise isn’t just about exercise, either — it also has a detailed diet in place. Following the diet will teach new P90X diets the delicate relationship between protein and carbohydrates in the diet.

The Face Of P90X

Tony Horton, one of the creators of the P90X home exercise system and its most visual and vocal

promoter, has worked on personal fitness programs for several years. He was approached to produce a fitness program for people who already had some knowledge of health and fitness, but were unable to continue their progress due to the “plateaus” they encounter.

After two years of development, consultation, and experimentation, Tony introduced the P90X system, with its revolutionary “muscle confusion” approach to quickly, steadily, and effectively build muscle and burn fat.

Tony doesn’t do much of the promotion — actually, most P90X ads you’ll see on TV and on the Internet are about testimonials from people who tried the P90X system themselves. And if you’ve seen some of the ads, you’ve likely also seen some impressive changes in the P90X graduates’ bodies from Day 1 to Day 90!

Is P90X For You?

Make no mistake, though — the P90X home exercise system will be one of the most rigorous exercise-and-diet systems you’re going to undergo. If you’re not 100% serious about committing to the 90-day plan, then don’t try it until you are!

You’ll also need certain pieces of gym equipment in your home, such as push-up bars and handles, dumbbells, yoga mats and blocks, gloves, chairs, etc. The detailed program will let you know what else you’ll need for your new workout regimen.

Ready for extreme workouts? Ready for extreme results? Then the P90X home exercise system may be for you. Follow the schedule religiously, and you just might become one of the toned, cut, sexy graduates on P90X’s promotional ads.

Double Your Toning Workout

fitgizmos — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 21:17:55 +0000

There are many different exercises that many women use for a body toning workout, however, some focus on just one body part. To double your toning workout, the best type of bodyweight exercises are the more complicated moves that can work more than one group of muscles at a time. This will help you to burn more calories during your workout and tone more muscles in less time.

Examples of These Toning Workouts for Women

Bodyweight exercises are great for women because they don’t create big, bulging muscles but they are a great body toning workout. Here are a few examples of bodyweight exercises that will work the upper and lower body through one fluid motion:

Plank
For this position, get down on your stomach and put your hands on the floor beside your shoulders and push up until your arms are extended. Your body should be as flat as a plank of wood, hence the name. Your abdominal muscles should be tight and you should be breathing. Holding this for a period of time is a workout. It seams simple but it is effective. You can make it a more challenging toning workout by bringing one knee in towards the opposite side of the body and repeat with the other leg.

Bridge
For this move lie flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Keeping your feet and shoulders on the floor bring your butt up until your body forms a diagonal line from your knees to your chest. Bring the butt back down until about 2 inches off the floor and repeat. You can make this a more challenging toning workout by pointing one leg up towards the ceiling and repeating the process.

Lunges
There are three different types of lunges. There is the forward lunge, the backwards lunge, and the side lunge. Each move works a different muscle. So when I do my lunges I like to do lunge circles. The lunge circle is a circuit of all the different types of lunges. First you complete a front lunge by kneeling forward with the left leg without allowing your knee to actually touch the floor. Use the left leg to push yourself back up. Then do the same move with the right leg. Then do a side lunge by keeping the left leg straight while you take a step to the right bending the right knee. With the right leg push yourself back up to standing. Next you would perform a reverse lunge by stepping back with the right leg and kneel without the knee touching the ground. Repeat with the left leg and then side lunge to the left. Now your back to the front lunges and you repeat the circle. This is a great toning workout for the legs.

Squats
The squat is a great move for the whole lower body. This move is like sitting on an imaginary chair behind you. There are three different types of squats and each work the lower body in a different way. The regular squat is with the toes pointed forward and your legs shoulder width apart. The plie’ squat is with your toes wider than shoulder width apart and your toes pointed slightly outward. The damsel squat is with your toes pointed forward but with your legs together. Combining the different types of squats will be a great lower body toning workout.

Doing Body Workout With Proper Cool Down Exercises

fitgizmos — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 21:15:19 +0000

While warming up is important before you begin any body workout exercise, it is also important that you cool your body down upon completing your session. Cooling down allows your body to gradually return back to its normal resting state, and calm the rapid blood flow to your heart.

Avoid ending a workout abruptly, especially if it is a vigorous activity with a workout machine. When we suddenly stop without a gradual cool down our blood pressure drops, which could cause dizziness or fainting. A proper cool-down prevents sudden pooling of blood after activity and re-circulates it back to the heart, muscles and brain.

Benefits of a Proper Cool Down:

Allows the body and muscles to relax
Gradually lowers the heart rate to its normal resting rate
Helps discard some of the waste formed in the muscles – including lactic acid, which can leave you feeling stiff and tired the next day.

Cool Down exercises for homebody workout:

Here are some cool down exercises to try at home. Ideally, a cool-down should consist of five to 10 minutes of jogging or walking and five to 10 minutes of stretching. However, that is just a guideline, and similar to warm-ups, cool downs are also individually based. Here are some examples for cool-down exercises:

- Tai Chi. If you know martial arts at all, slow controlled movements allows the body to moderately cool down all together. (I.e. Fitness instructor Billy Blanks is notorious for his Tai Chi component at the end of every body workout.)

- Aerobics. Yoga, pilates, etc. are another alternative for progressively relaxing your body.

- Easy jog/walk, either on the treadmill or outside for some fresh air.

- Stretching. Great for helping you gradually bring your heart rate down. Static stretches (holding each stretch for 10 – 20 seconds), and working your way from the head down are suitable as part of cooling down.

Tips for after body workout:

- Drink water. Helps hydrate your body and flushes out any bodily toxins created during the workout.

- Eat a healthy snack within half an hour of your completed workout session. Replenish the energy that you used up, because while many people think that they should avoid eating after working out to lose weight – it’s actually the opposite. Within that half-hour window, consumed food gets turned into energy rather than stored fat; however, one should be reasonable and avoid junk food.

Yoga for a Tone Butt

fitgizmos — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 21:08:00 +0000

Ever heard of the term “Yoga Butt”? It is the status of achieving the best, tightest, round and high butt. Want a butt like that? You need a yoga butt tone workout! Well! What do we have here? A yoga butt tone workout! Just what you need!

The Yoga Butt Tone Workout

This workout consists of yoga or yoga inspired moves that will help you to get a nice, toned butt perfect to flaunt in those new jeans!

Chair Pose- This pose involves standing with your arms at your sides. Sit back as if you were about to sit in an imaginary chair behind you as you extend your arms out in front of you. Hold the pose for 3 seconds and come back up into standing position. Repeat desired number of times. For an extra challenge you can try to complete this pose on your toes.

The Bow- For this pose you need to lie down on your stomach. Reach behind you and bring your feet up. Grab you feet with your hands and bring them in while you bring your head back. Release down but keep a hold of your feet. Repeat.

The Plow- Lie down on your back and bring your legs up toward the ceiling. Then bring your legs down slowly towards and past your head. Bring your legs back up to the ceiling and repeat.

Warrior 1 to Warrior 2- This is a combination pose that really blasts that bottom. First start out in an extended lunge position with your arms up overhead, then extend your arms, one in front of you and one behind you. During this pose changing, you should be pumping your front leg up and down. Switch legs and repeat.

Lying Toe Taps- For this move, lie on your back and bring your knees up towards your body and your legs out, forming a 90 degree angle with both your knees and your hips. Slowly bring one leg down and tap your toe on the ground. Bring it back up and switch to the other leg. Repeat desired amount of times.

I hope you enjoy this great butt tone workout through yoga poses. If you are looking for a way to tone the rest of your body, try the Body Shaper Machine. This little piece of workout equipment uses the yoga principle to tone the whole body.

Sore Joints? Use This ROM Exercise

fitgizmos — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 20:47:32 +0000

The range of motion, or ROM, is a medical term used to describe the amount of flexibility you have left in each joint, like the knee, the elbows, the hips and more. Stiff joints get that way from lack of use, so it is important in order to keep your normal range of motion in all your joints that you move them everyday. Normal daily tasks such as housework, climbing stairs, and walking around are not considered ROM exercises. If you have fallen behind in this task, try this great ROM exercise to help limber up.

ROM Exercise for the Knees

To strengthen and lengthen the muscles around the knee joint the best workout in the short arc. To perform this move, lie down on your back with your upper body propped up with your arms supporting it on the ground. Bend one knee with the foot on the ground and place a rolled towel under the other knee. Move the knee from bent to straight in a slow, strong movement. To make this move difficult, you can add a 3-5 pound ankle weight to the extended leg.

ROM Exercise for the Hips

To help the range of motion in your hips the best exercise is the hamstring stretch. To do this move lie on your back. Bring one leg up, using a towel or pillowcase behind your knee held in both hands, gently stretch the closer to your upper body. Hold the stretch for 10-15 seconds.

ROM Exercise for the Wrist

The wrist is a problem area for most office workers. To help with the wrist joint perform wrist extensions and flexions. With your fingers straight, bring your hand as far to the right as you can, then bring it back as far to the left. Repeat the motion, only this time with your fingers curled. Repeat with the other wrist.

ROM Exercise for the Back

To get more movement in your lower back, lie on your back with your knees bent. Slowly lower your knees to one side and twist your head to the opposite side. Alternating sides, repeat 20 times.

For more back range of motion, perform the Cat. Get down on all fours, push your back up and bring your head down and hold for 5 seconds. Then release and arch your back and bring your head up and back. Hold for 5 seconds. Repeat.

How to Fuel Your Body for a Good Workout

fitgizmos — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 20:44:04 +0000

The body is like an engine, it needs fuel to work. If you don’t put enough fuel in the tank of your vehicle, you won’t get to your destination. It’s the same for your body. If you plan to get in a really good, effective workout routine, woman, you need to give your body the fuel it needs to make it through to the end!

Prograde Fuel For Car vs. Your Body

To keep the engine analogy, the performance of your car is affected by the type of gasoline you put in the tank. If you put in cheap, poor quality fuel full of contaminants and additives, your car won’t work at its peak performance.

The same goes with your body. If you eat foods full of preservatives and additives, fat and sugars, you won’t perform at your peak level.

So if you are a workout routine woman, and you want to stick to your workout routine and see results from it, you need to fuel your body with the best ingredients possible. This means:

Plenty of fruits and vegetables

Rich in powerful vitamins

Minerals that power the body

Also, healthy carbohydrates, like whole grains or potatoes are a good in moderation. Lean protein is a must because of the amino acids in the protein help to develop lean muscle mass in the body. Along with this should be plenty of water.

Example of a Workout Routine Woman’s Diet

When you wake up on the day you want to have a good workout, eat a good breakfast. Depending on when you plan to exercise, in the morning, afternoon, of evening, you need to plan your meals around it.

You shouldn’t eat too close to your workout or too long before it.
About an hour to an hour and a half before you workout, you need to eat a well balanced meal of carbs, protein, and veggies.
Within 20 minutes after you workout, you need to have a small meal, something to help your body refuel after you used up all of your energy.

An example of a good diet for a workout routine woman:

Breakfast:
- Spinach and Tomato One Egg Omelet
- Orange
- Whole Wheat Toast

Lunch:
Roasted Chicken Breast Salad
Strawberries and low fat vanilla yogurt

1-2 hours later exercise

Supper:
Salmon with green beans and wild rice

This diet will ensure you get the best body ever, so will a good workout routine with the Body Shaper Machine. Give it a try for the toning part of your workout schedule.

Non Invasive Liposuction for Abdominal Fat

fitgizmos — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 13:00:14 +0000

When you want to shed weight easy and fast, liposuction comes to mind. But then surgical procedures are a bit scary. So it is best to find non surgical ways for the process of liposuction. These days, there are many ways to remove the extra fat from your body without any surgical procedures.

There are many techniques by which you can get slim fast and that too without surgery, like diet pills etc. But personally, I have never seen diet pills work.

So here I am, discussing various ways to get rid of abdominal fat.

Laser to remove fat, does it work?

There are many laser techniques to remove extra fat, and they all differ in the wavelengths that they use for treatment. All the non-invasive liposuction techniques work only on fat cells without creating any effect on the neighboring cells. And this treatment does not require the use of anesthesia.

Apart from that, no known side effects are recorded. In some methods, many technologies are mixed together to get the desired results.

Ultrasound non invasive liposuction

This is the safest non invasive liposuction method and it is not a surprise that it is the most famous way to get rid of excess body fat. Make sure you do not confuse it with ultrasound assisted liposuction, because many people get puzzled there. The ultrasound fat reduction is what you want. This treatment has no side effects, no recovery time, and no pain.

CoolLipo, laser assisted lipolysis

Also known as laser assisted lipolysis, this technique is minimally invasive. It liquefies fat cells that are then easily washed off. It works on a laser technique, which breaks the fat cells for easy removal. It basically works on areas like jowls, chin and neck.

Apart from that, this technique is also used where there is loose fat, like arms. CoolLipo reduces collagen and makes your skin tight – with its unique wavelength. This effect is not observed with the standard liposuction procedure.

Home Gym Set: Bowflex Gym

Fit Gizmos — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 22:53:04 +0000

While watching television, chances are, you might have seen an infomercial for the Bow Flex Gym. One of the most heavily advertised products on television, the Bow Flex Gym has been bought by fitness fans for their convenient home use.

Bowflex Gym Pros & Cons…

Bow Flex Gym does not provide the advantages of working out with free weights, like a regular fitness gym would offer. Everything is neatly stored in the Bowflex Gym, limiting the amount of equipment clutter around the room. Great for anyone who has a bit of space to spare, and would like to dedicate a corner of the room as “gym space”.

Bow Flex offers up to 410 pounds of weight to exercise. If you are just getting started on your path to fitness, and you are lifting 20, 30, or 100 pound weights anyway, this limitation should not be a problem for you. Bowflex allows you to gradually build your strength and weight levels at your own pace with just one piece of machinery. Doing all your exercises from a single location is much easier to manage than keeping a garage full of free weights.

Home Gym Set: Bowflex Gym

How Does Liposuction for Men Work?

fitgizmos — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 13:00:15 +0000

Liposuction for men is a relatively new concept. We all know that women get liposuction to shed the extra body fat, but where does the train turn the male way, and are there any differences? Let’s find out.

Awareness of men beauty
Women have always been conscious of their looks, but in changing times, men also want to look great-why be left behind when women are rising in every field. With this awareness, there was a need to understand the needs of the man who wanted to lose weight fast.

Areas for male liposuction
Liposuction for men is different than liposuction for women. There are different areas of male and female bodies that accumulate fat, so liposuction techniques also vary.
For men, the main area that accumulates fat is the part around the belly.

It seems that no matter how much we exercise, we cannot shed weight from there. When it comes to face, male liposuction is mainly about the neck, jowls and the chin. Removal of fat from these 3 areas restores masculine facial features.

Apart from these areas, other major areas that need liposuction are male breasts. This is a condition known as gynecomastia, when the male breasts are enlarged. But liposuction does not always work on male breasts- it only works if the breast is made of fatty tissues and not glandular tissues.

Obesity, lose weight first
If your weight is 100 pounds more than the desirable body weight, then you are certainly obese. You need to get rid of the fat that is accumulated in your body. Overweight increases the change of hart attacks. Besides, a big belly can cause back pain too.

First, get some exercises. Burn those fat by running every day or doing some weight lifting. If you have done all those exercises and you still can’t get rid of those fat areas, you may consider liposuction.

For more details, you can consult your physician and get to know if you should get liposuction therapy or not. Finding a local liposuction surgeon is not difficult. You can just use online tools to find good doctors. Go to any search engine and look for liposuction doctors in your area.