Social Icons

twitter follow facebook followgoogle pluslinkedinrss feedemail

Featured Posts

Supported Single-Arm Dumbbell Row

Supported Single-Arm Dumbbell Row

Hold a dumbbell in your right hand, place your left hand on a bench in front of you, and assume a staggered stance, left foot forward. Hold your elbow in as you row the wight to the side of your torso. Do 10 reps, switch arms and leg positions, and repeat the movement.

Dumbbell Triceps Kickback

Dumbbell Triceps Kickback

Grab a pair of dumbbells, bend your knees and lean forward so your torso is nearly parallel to the floor. Tuck your upper arms next to your sides, bend your elbows, and hold your forearms about parallel to the floor, palms facing up. Simultaneously extend your arms straight back and rotate the weight so your palms end up facing each other. Return to the starting position. Do 15 reps.

Dumbbell Hammer Curl and Press

Dumbbell Hammer Curl and Press

Standing with your feet shoulder-width apart, hold a pair of dumbbells at arm's length by your sides, palms facing each other. Without moving your upper arms, curl the weights to your shoulders, and then press them overhead until your arms are straight. Reverse the move to return to the starting position. Do 10 reps.

Sunday, December 7, 2014

Useful Gadgets for Fitness Training

Nowadays we live in an era where technology can motivate us to great accomplishments in fitness. Whether we’re talking about pedometers or iPods, 21st century tech can make any workout — even the harshest — more enjoyable. Here are some gadgets that may help your workout or cardio training process:

Sports watch are ideal for hiking and several other outdoor activities, many of them feature GPS, heart rate monitors, barometers, compasses, and much more.


Pulse oximeter. This device usually attaches to your fingertip, then delivers pulse information and oxygenation levels directly to your smartphone. 


Waterproof Bluetooth earbuds will allow you to jog, bike, or skate through rainy weather.


Video game consoles that have has a variety of heart-pumping, muscle-moving programs.


Fitness tracking visor is a fashion statement that provides real-time, actionable feedback of your exercises.




Shoelace step counter an ultra-simple and ultra-helpful wireless device syncs to your smartphone, delivering intel on mileage, stride length and calories burned.


Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Ginger and Motion Sickness Prevention

According to Japanese traditions a half a teaspoon of ground ginger is more effective than chemical medication in suppressing motion or seasickness. And unlike most medication, it will not make you feel drowsy.

Ginger or ginger root is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale. Other notable members of this plant family are turmeric, cardamom, and galangal.  In medicine ginger has been promoted as a cancer treatment to keep tumors from developing.

Ginger has been used in the Orient for centuries to prevent sea sickness.Researchers asked subjects who were especially susceptible to motion sickness to sit in a reclining chair that spun around at high speed.
In a research using with human subjects all of those who ingested a well known medication or who took a placebo experienced violent nausea or vomiting.

On the other hand, six of the twelve subjects who took ginger twenty minutes before the test experienced no discomfort. They consumed only 840 milligrams of ground ginger, which is the equivalent of half a teaspoon.
The Japanese have a very curious method of treating all kinds of motion sickness, but eventually it has been proved to be efficient.


Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Useful Stretching Exercises


The yoga plough 

In this exercise, you lie down on your back and then try to sweep your legs up and over, trying to touch your knees to your ears. This position places excessive stress on the lower back, and on the discs of the spine. Not to mention the fact that it compresses the lungs and heart, and makes it very difficult to breathe. This particular exercise also stretches a region that is frequently flexed as a result of improper posture. This stretch is a prime example of an exercise that is very easy to do incorrectly. However, with proper instruction and attention to body position and alignment, this stretch can be performed successfully with a minimal amount of risk and can actually improve spinal health and mobility.

The traditional backbend 

In this exercise, your back is maximally arched with the soles of your feet and the palms of your hands both flat on the floor, and your neck tilted back. This position squeezes (compresses) the spinal discs and pinches nerve fibers in your back.

The traditional hurdler's stretch 


This exercise has you sit on the ground with one leg straight in front of you, and with the other leg fully flexed (bent) behind you, as you lean back and stretch the quadricep of the flexed leg. The two legged version of this stretch is even worse for you, and involves fully bending both legs behind you on either side. The reason this stretch is harmful is that it stretches the medial ligaments of the knee (remember, stretching ligaments and tendons is bad) and crushes the meniscus. It can also result in slipping of the knee cap from being twisted and compressed.

Straight-legged toe touches 

In this stretch, your legs are straight (either together or spread apart) and your back is bent over while you attempt to touch your toes or the floor. If you do not have the ability to support much of your weight with your hands when performing this exercise, your knees are likely to hyperextend. This position can also place a great deal of pressure on the vertebrae of the lower lumbar. Furthermore, if you choose to have your legs spread apart, it places more stress on the knees, which can sometimes result in permanent deformity.

Torso twists 

Performing sudden, intense twists of the torso, especially with weights, while in an upright (erect) position can tear tissue (by exceeding the momentum absorbing capacity of the stretched tissues) and can strain the ligaments of the knee.

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Golden Rules of Healthy Nutrition

healthy nutrition

Rule 1. Eat at least one gram of protein per pound of body weight. It is no secret that the protein - is strategically important for the proper functioning of our body. You definitely need to replenish the amount of protein if you want to build muscle mass. Remember that protein deficiency is bad not only for your muscles, but also the internal organs. If you do not get enough protein from food, the body begins to break down your muscle protein in order to produce the required amino acids.

Rule 2. Get 20-30% of daily energy intake from fat. Fat - is also a very important element, because it is part of the cell membranes. Also keep in mind that the steroid hormones that are so important for muscle growth are also of lipid nature and the best metabolic response to training requires adequate supply fats. Find the necessary fats in vegetable oils, eggs and lean meat.  

Rule 3. Eat at least 25 calories per pound of body weight. If you are a man and you are involved in weight lifting process, it is best to receive 30-35 calories that will allow you to grow. If you weight arround 90 kg, for a set of mass you need to consume 2700-3150 kilocalories, and for fat loss - 2250 kcal.  

Rule 4. Always eat the necessary amount of carbohydrates. Generally you should eat 3 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight, but if train lot, you can increase this number. Remember that the lack of carbohydrates may hinder the recovery problems and cause health problems.

 Remember that no supplements or vitamins will help you achieve the expected results if you do not respect a competent and faithful diet. If you want good results, you have to strictly follow the regime, providing the body with all necessary substances for adequate growth and recovery.
 

Ultimate 30's Workout

Increase the amount of testosterone and growth hormone your body produces by working multiple muscle groups and keeping rest periods short. For cardio, your lactate threshold can still be increased throughout your thirties, so intervals are king to counter any loss of lung power.


Ultimate 40's Workout

Short, sharp shocks are the way to fire up your body in your middle years - which means you can forget long-winded weights workouts. Vary exercises, intensity and timings to keep your muscles guessing.



Ultimate 50's Workout

You may not be able to lift the heaviest weight, but that's okay. Instead, stretching and yoga should be part of your training, and body-weight moves can replace heavy workouts. Do three sets of 10 reps of the following exercises to protect your joints and maintain muscle mass and testosterone.