Strength training is the best way to build lean muscle to get a toned and defined body. Muscle burns twice as many calories as fat does which means even at a resting rate, people with more muscle will burn more calories. This is why a strength training workout is so important to losing weight or maintain weight. Despite what many people think you don't have to spend 2 hours in the gym to get a good strength training workout in. There are plenty of workout DVDs that are just as effective as any workout you could get in a gym.
Here are the best strength training workout DVDs.
P90X
The P90X workout program is the ultimate in strength training. It was developed by Tony Horton to give you a ripped body in only 90 days. With the P90X workouts you build lean muscle that burns more fat from your body, even in a resting stage. Tony Horton developed the program so that you never hit that weight loss plateau but you are constantly challenging your body in new ways. This workout DVD is just not for men though. Women can also benefit from building lean muscles using lighter weights. We all know how great toned and defined arms can look in a strapless dress for women, and this workout program helps you achieve it. P90X does not require much equipment and can be done in the privacy of your home.
ChaLEAN Extreme
ChaLEAN Extreme is workout program from Chalene Johnson that works to build muscle so you can burn fat. The more muscle that you have, the more fat that you can burn. ChaLEAN Extreme uses a technique called lean phasing which consists of 3 different phases she takes you through to build muscle and burn the most amount of fat possible in the shortest time. It has 15 different workouts that comes with the program and you don't need much equipment, just some dumbbells and resistance bands, which are included as a free bonus gift.
Power 90
The Power 90 workout DVDs were developed by Tony Horton before he came out with P90X. Power 90 does involve cardiovascular exercise as well as strength training exercises for a complete workout program. This program was basically the precursor to P90X and utilizes a lot of the same weight loss principles.
Think about how much time and money you can save with strength training workout DVDs over a gym membership. There is no need to drive anywhere and your workouts are done in the privacy of your own home. Also, most of the strength training programs cost no more than what 1 or 2 months to a gym would cost. Instead of messing with the gym, get your own personal trainer in your home with strength training workout DVDs.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Thursday, February 11, 2010
5 Workout Accessories To Take You To The Next Fitness Level
Sooner or late a person is going to need to add different workout accessories so that they can continue to challenge their body and lose weight and get lean. But what accessories are the best ones to add to your workouts? Here are five workout accessories that you should consider adding to your exercise programs.
Resistance Bands
Resistance bands are a great workout accessory to have on hand that takes up very little space. In fact, you can pack them away in a small suitcase for a vacation or business trip and you have a workout right there for you to do in your hotel room. Resistance bands can be used for tons of different strength training moves, just like any free weights would be used. They work with using your own body's resistance to build muscle.
Push Up Stands
When you use push up stands during your workout, you don't have to worry about hitting your face into the ground. Push up stands also allow for a greater range of motion which can increase the intensity of the exercise. They are portable and convenient and can really make a difference when building upper body strength. Workouts like Tony Horton's P90X utilize push stands to further challenge your body and engage different muscles.
Balance Ball
A balance ball can add intensity to just about any exercise. Simply balancing while sitting on the ball can work your core muscles as your abdominal muscles have to be engaged to keep you balanced. There are hundreds of different exercises that you can do on a balance ball. You can work just about every area of your body from your butt to your shoulders with a balance ball. Engage more of your muscles and burn more fat when you use a balance ball during your workouts.
Weighted gloves
Weighted gloves can be worn during cardiovascular workouts to increase your calorie and fat burn. They can help you achieve lean and sculpted arms in a shorter period of time. Such workouts like Turbo Jam and Hip Hop Abs use weighted gloves to add more intensity and get a more advanced workout. Weighted gloves can add something new to any cardiovascular workout or help you to get past a weight loss plateau by engaging new muscles.
Medicine Ball
Medicine balls can be used to target your core and sculpt your abdominals into a six pack. They can also be used to help you increase your flexibility, strength, and endurance during your workouts. They are a great addition to your strength-training workout that help to mix up your exercises a little bit.
These five workout accessories can help you achieve greater results during your workouts and give you more options for exercises so that you are sure to continue on for a long time with your workouts.
Resistance Bands
Resistance bands are a great workout accessory to have on hand that takes up very little space. In fact, you can pack them away in a small suitcase for a vacation or business trip and you have a workout right there for you to do in your hotel room. Resistance bands can be used for tons of different strength training moves, just like any free weights would be used. They work with using your own body's resistance to build muscle.
Push Up Stands
When you use push up stands during your workout, you don't have to worry about hitting your face into the ground. Push up stands also allow for a greater range of motion which can increase the intensity of the exercise. They are portable and convenient and can really make a difference when building upper body strength. Workouts like Tony Horton's P90X utilize push stands to further challenge your body and engage different muscles.
Balance Ball
A balance ball can add intensity to just about any exercise. Simply balancing while sitting on the ball can work your core muscles as your abdominal muscles have to be engaged to keep you balanced. There are hundreds of different exercises that you can do on a balance ball. You can work just about every area of your body from your butt to your shoulders with a balance ball. Engage more of your muscles and burn more fat when you use a balance ball during your workouts.
Weighted gloves
Weighted gloves can be worn during cardiovascular workouts to increase your calorie and fat burn. They can help you achieve lean and sculpted arms in a shorter period of time. Such workouts like Turbo Jam and Hip Hop Abs use weighted gloves to add more intensity and get a more advanced workout. Weighted gloves can add something new to any cardiovascular workout or help you to get past a weight loss plateau by engaging new muscles.
Medicine Ball
Medicine balls can be used to target your core and sculpt your abdominals into a six pack. They can also be used to help you increase your flexibility, strength, and endurance during your workouts. They are a great addition to your strength-training workout that help to mix up your exercises a little bit.
These five workout accessories can help you achieve greater results during your workouts and give you more options for exercises so that you are sure to continue on for a long time with your workouts.
P90X Recipes
There are plenty of P90X recipes that are within the nutritional guidelines of the fitness program. There should be no time while you are following the nutritional program that you become bored of the food. P90X recipes don't have to include a ton of different ingredients as you can find just about everything for a healthy P90X recipe at your local grocery store or your farmer's market.
When you order the P90X fitness program from Beachbody, you receive a nutrition guide that lists plenty of different recipes that are acceptable on the fitness plan. You can go by those specific recipes or you can get creative and make your own meals and snacks from the list of approved foods in the guide. There is no need for you to get stressed out about cooking healthy P90X recipes as some won't even require you to cook anything at all.
For some people coming up with new meals and snack ideas that are healthy is complicated but for others this comes natural to them. If you are getting bored of the ideas that are set forth in the nutrition guide that comes with the fitness program, you simply need to flip over to the portion approach for the approved foods on the program. A good idea is to list all the foods that you are willing to eat and the ones that sound good to you. Next, list some possible combinations of the approved P90X foods that sound like they would taste good together. It may be something simple like grilled chicken kabobs with onion and green pepper. If you are skilled in the kitchen, you may come up with more complicated P90X recipes such as chicken fajitas.
Remember that you don't have to cook every meal that you eat. Most grocery stores have pre-cooked grilled chicken strips or you can even use lean lunch meats like turkey breast. Add in some raw vegetables and fruits and you can easily make a quick and easy P90X approved meal or snack.
Without a health diet like the one that is outlined in the nutrition guide, it is much more difficult to have success at P90X. Nutrition and exercise needs to go together so that you can get the maximum benefits from your time and work that you put into the fitness program. It makes no sense to exercise as hard as you do in P90X and then go ruin your efforts with unhealthy foods. Instead, be sure that you are following the complete program to a tee so that you can reap the most benefits from it.
P90X recipes should not be complicated or boring. The key is to finding healthy foods that you like and preparing them in a healthy way.
When you order the P90X fitness program from Beachbody, you receive a nutrition guide that lists plenty of different recipes that are acceptable on the fitness plan. You can go by those specific recipes or you can get creative and make your own meals and snacks from the list of approved foods in the guide. There is no need for you to get stressed out about cooking healthy P90X recipes as some won't even require you to cook anything at all.
For some people coming up with new meals and snack ideas that are healthy is complicated but for others this comes natural to them. If you are getting bored of the ideas that are set forth in the nutrition guide that comes with the fitness program, you simply need to flip over to the portion approach for the approved foods on the program. A good idea is to list all the foods that you are willing to eat and the ones that sound good to you. Next, list some possible combinations of the approved P90X foods that sound like they would taste good together. It may be something simple like grilled chicken kabobs with onion and green pepper. If you are skilled in the kitchen, you may come up with more complicated P90X recipes such as chicken fajitas.
Remember that you don't have to cook every meal that you eat. Most grocery stores have pre-cooked grilled chicken strips or you can even use lean lunch meats like turkey breast. Add in some raw vegetables and fruits and you can easily make a quick and easy P90X approved meal or snack.
Without a health diet like the one that is outlined in the nutrition guide, it is much more difficult to have success at P90X. Nutrition and exercise needs to go together so that you can get the maximum benefits from your time and work that you put into the fitness program. It makes no sense to exercise as hard as you do in P90X and then go ruin your efforts with unhealthy foods. Instead, be sure that you are following the complete program to a tee so that you can reap the most benefits from it.
P90X recipes should not be complicated or boring. The key is to finding healthy foods that you like and preparing them in a healthy way.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
How To Help Your Child Lose Weight
It's sad but true that obesity rates among children are on the rise. As childhood obesity rates climb so do the number of children being diagnosed with adult medical problems like type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. Helping your child lose weight is a wonderful thing to do, but there is a certain way to do so that you don't come across too pushy or negative about them. Instead you want to encourage your child and never, ever put them down.
Always set realistic goals for your child. Depending on how old they are and how overweight they are, it may be a good idea to simply have them maintain their weight rather than have them lose weight. If you child is still young that means that they are still rapidly growing. A big growth spurt may just put them back on the healthy weight range. If your child is morbidly obese, then it is a good idea to have them lose weight and not wait for them to catch up.
Encourage your child to do fun exercises. Buy some fun workout DVDs geared towards children . . Your child can learn some fun and trendy dance moves all the while burning calories and getting fit. Try to incorporate fun activities into their schedule such as riding bikes or going swimming. They may just think they are getting a treat when in fact that are really getting physical exercise to help them lose weight.
If you buy potato chips and donuts, then your child is going to want to eat potato chips and donuts. If you buy healthy and nutritious foods such as fruits, yogurt, and low-fat popcorn for snacks they are going to eat those. Keep the junk food out of the house and there will be no choice for them but to eat healthy food for snacks and meals at home. Also, if they buy lunch, make them start packing a lunch at least 2-3 times a week. This way you know that they are getting a healthy and balanced lunch instead of pizza or snacks from the vending machines. Allow them to buy lunch only when their favorite food is being served or as a special treat. This should be limited to 1-2 times a week.
Be sure that when your family eats, it is at the dinner table and not in front of the television. Make it a priority to eat dinner as a family around the dinner table. When your child eats in front of the television, they may actually consume a lot more food than they would if they were conscience of what they were eating.
Never reward your child with food. Set up little goals and achievements for her such as if she eats a piece of fruit everyday, she gets a small toy or if she is older, maybe a bottle of nail polish or a new shirt. Don't ever reward her with ice cream or cake if she does something good. It will only set her back and make her see food as a reward and not as being something to get nutrients from and supply the body with energy.
Do you best to introduce new exercises such as Shaun T's Fit Kids Club as well as have the whole family start eating better. When your child loses weight, it can help her self-esteem and put her on the right path to a healthy life.
Always set realistic goals for your child. Depending on how old they are and how overweight they are, it may be a good idea to simply have them maintain their weight rather than have them lose weight. If you child is still young that means that they are still rapidly growing. A big growth spurt may just put them back on the healthy weight range. If your child is morbidly obese, then it is a good idea to have them lose weight and not wait for them to catch up.
Encourage your child to do fun exercises. Buy some fun workout DVDs geared towards children . . Your child can learn some fun and trendy dance moves all the while burning calories and getting fit. Try to incorporate fun activities into their schedule such as riding bikes or going swimming. They may just think they are getting a treat when in fact that are really getting physical exercise to help them lose weight.
If you buy potato chips and donuts, then your child is going to want to eat potato chips and donuts. If you buy healthy and nutritious foods such as fruits, yogurt, and low-fat popcorn for snacks they are going to eat those. Keep the junk food out of the house and there will be no choice for them but to eat healthy food for snacks and meals at home. Also, if they buy lunch, make them start packing a lunch at least 2-3 times a week. This way you know that they are getting a healthy and balanced lunch instead of pizza or snacks from the vending machines. Allow them to buy lunch only when their favorite food is being served or as a special treat. This should be limited to 1-2 times a week.
Be sure that when your family eats, it is at the dinner table and not in front of the television. Make it a priority to eat dinner as a family around the dinner table. When your child eats in front of the television, they may actually consume a lot more food than they would if they were conscience of what they were eating.
Never reward your child with food. Set up little goals and achievements for her such as if she eats a piece of fruit everyday, she gets a small toy or if she is older, maybe a bottle of nail polish or a new shirt. Don't ever reward her with ice cream or cake if she does something good. It will only set her back and make her see food as a reward and not as being something to get nutrients from and supply the body with energy.
Do you best to introduce new exercises such as Shaun T's Fit Kids Club as well as have the whole family start eating better. When your child loses weight, it can help her self-esteem and put her on the right path to a healthy life.
Finding the Best Yoga Workouts For Women
For many, yoga is becoming a popular way to exercise. It works both the mind and body, aiding in toning muscles, weight loss, and stress management. Many women may not know where to begin regarding yoga workouts. Fortunately, there are a wide range of yoga workouts for women available, and selecting one depends on a number of factors. You are bound to find the best one for your needs.
First, women should determine the intensity level they wish to experience with their work out. For those who are just beginning an exercise routine, it’s best to start with a short, twenty minute yoga workout comprised of basic techniques and poses. Starting at a low level will allow your body to get used to the unique positions, and allow you to work up to longer, strenuous programs. Some people participate in 1-2 hour long yoga routines that have the sweat pouring.
It is also important to determine where you would like to work out. Many women may choose to start doing yoga in their homes, at least until they get the hang of a few basic positions. The use of yoga DVDs is beneficial to those beginning on their own. Others prefer to enroll in yoga classes to learn from an instructor. Regardless of where you choose to work out, it is important that you have a flat space and enough room to move about.
Considering what you wish to gain from your yoga workout is another decision to make. This depends on whether you wish to practice yoga for stress relief, balance and stamina improvement, or weight loss. Some routines allow you to combine multiple benefits into one workout.
Yoga Booty Ballet is one of the many workouts that rolls all of yoga’s benefits into one. It’s a series of DVDs that allow you to combine yoga with cardio dancing and a body sculpting routine. It can be done in the comfort of your own home, or you could work out together with friends. The nice thing about Yoga Booty Ballet is that you don't have to get bored from yoga and you do fun things with yoga. Many women prefer exercising in their home rather than being front and center in a class.
Regardless of how you go about it, yoga workouts for women are in abundance. There is something for everyone, regardless of age, fitness level, and exercising desires. It is important to consider a few things before you take on a yoga workout. These factors mainly include the intensity level, where you want to perform yoga, and what you hope to gain from your workout.
First, women should determine the intensity level they wish to experience with their work out. For those who are just beginning an exercise routine, it’s best to start with a short, twenty minute yoga workout comprised of basic techniques and poses. Starting at a low level will allow your body to get used to the unique positions, and allow you to work up to longer, strenuous programs. Some people participate in 1-2 hour long yoga routines that have the sweat pouring.
It is also important to determine where you would like to work out. Many women may choose to start doing yoga in their homes, at least until they get the hang of a few basic positions. The use of yoga DVDs is beneficial to those beginning on their own. Others prefer to enroll in yoga classes to learn from an instructor. Regardless of where you choose to work out, it is important that you have a flat space and enough room to move about.
Considering what you wish to gain from your yoga workout is another decision to make. This depends on whether you wish to practice yoga for stress relief, balance and stamina improvement, or weight loss. Some routines allow you to combine multiple benefits into one workout.
Yoga Booty Ballet is one of the many workouts that rolls all of yoga’s benefits into one. It’s a series of DVDs that allow you to combine yoga with cardio dancing and a body sculpting routine. It can be done in the comfort of your own home, or you could work out together with friends. The nice thing about Yoga Booty Ballet is that you don't have to get bored from yoga and you do fun things with yoga. Many women prefer exercising in their home rather than being front and center in a class.
Regardless of how you go about it, yoga workouts for women are in abundance. There is something for everyone, regardless of age, fitness level, and exercising desires. It is important to consider a few things before you take on a yoga workout. These factors mainly include the intensity level, where you want to perform yoga, and what you hope to gain from your workout.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
What Is The Difference Between Shaun T's Hip Hop Abs and Rockin Body?
You may have seen the infomercials for Shaun T's Hip Hop Abs as well as his other workout program Rockin Body and was wondering what exactly the difference was between the two workouts. Even though the two workout programs look similar, they are different and will appeal to different people's interests.
Hip Hop Abs.
The Hip Hop Abs program incorporates a technique that was developed by Shaun T called tilt, tuck, and tighten. This basically involves keeping your abdominal muscles contracted and tightened during every move of a workout. This makes the muscles work harder, therefore burning more fat from that area. With Hip Hop Abs, the main focus is on working the abdominal muscles to get a toned and flat stomach. Although, the workout series does work the entire body, the main goal of the program is to get that flat stomach. This is done through various standing exercise moves that have a little flavor to them. This is why it is called Hip Hop Abs.
Rockin Body
Shaun T released the workout series Rocking Body shortly after releasing Hip Hob Abs. He saw the that people were enjoying the dancing during the workout and were losing weight from it. He decided to make the Rockin Body series so that people could have fun dancing and burn fat from their entire body. For this workout he took some of the hottest music and choreographed dance routines that are designed to shed calories from your entire body. He came up with a mark it and move it technique to easily teach just about anybody who to dance for the workout.
There are basically two big differences between Shaun T's Hip Hop Abs and Rockin Body. The first difference is that Hip Hob Abs was designed to focus on slimming the abdominal muscles more than Rockin Body. Rocking Body can give you flat abs, but is not designed specifically for that.
The second difference, which is the most important is that Rockin Body is for the person who wants to dance for their workouts. All of the videos in the series contain dancing and trendy music to get your heart rate up. On the other hand, Hip Hop Abs does have some dancing, but focuses more on exercises and movements rather than flowing dance routines.
Each of these two workout programs will appeal to different people. Some people may like more of the dancing and being able to bust a move, while others may be interested in more of exercises to slim to the body. It all depends on how you want to lose weight and get achieve a slimmer body.
Hip Hop Abs.
The Hip Hop Abs program incorporates a technique that was developed by Shaun T called tilt, tuck, and tighten. This basically involves keeping your abdominal muscles contracted and tightened during every move of a workout. This makes the muscles work harder, therefore burning more fat from that area. With Hip Hop Abs, the main focus is on working the abdominal muscles to get a toned and flat stomach. Although, the workout series does work the entire body, the main goal of the program is to get that flat stomach. This is done through various standing exercise moves that have a little flavor to them. This is why it is called Hip Hop Abs.
Rockin Body
Shaun T released the workout series Rocking Body shortly after releasing Hip Hob Abs. He saw the that people were enjoying the dancing during the workout and were losing weight from it. He decided to make the Rockin Body series so that people could have fun dancing and burn fat from their entire body. For this workout he took some of the hottest music and choreographed dance routines that are designed to shed calories from your entire body. He came up with a mark it and move it technique to easily teach just about anybody who to dance for the workout.
There are basically two big differences between Shaun T's Hip Hop Abs and Rockin Body. The first difference is that Hip Hob Abs was designed to focus on slimming the abdominal muscles more than Rockin Body. Rocking Body can give you flat abs, but is not designed specifically for that.
The second difference, which is the most important is that Rockin Body is for the person who wants to dance for their workouts. All of the videos in the series contain dancing and trendy music to get your heart rate up. On the other hand, Hip Hop Abs does have some dancing, but focuses more on exercises and movements rather than flowing dance routines.
Each of these two workout programs will appeal to different people. Some people may like more of the dancing and being able to bust a move, while others may be interested in more of exercises to slim to the body. It all depends on how you want to lose weight and get achieve a slimmer body.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Turbo Jam ? What is Turbo Training?
You may have seen the infomercial for Turbo Jam or heard about it from a friend and wanted to know exactly what turbo training was and what all the fuss was about the training technique. Fitness expert Chalene Johnson developed Turbo Jam a few years ago after extensive teaching and learning about the fitness world and what worked and what did not. Chalene has been involved in fitness since she was a young girl and her mom taught jazzercise classes. She knows what she is talking about and wanted to help others get the lean and toned body they have dreamed up, which is why she developed Turbo Jam.
A recent study done on Turbo Jam showed that a person could burn up to 700 calories in one of the 45 minute workout sessions. This is more than what has been found to be burned in that amount of time by other cardiovascular exercises such as jogging, biking, and even regular circuit training. When you choose to use the Turbo Jam gloves you can easily increase the burned calories to close to 1,000. So, how exactly does Turbo Jam work and what is turbo training?
Chalene Johnson uses 11 different basic moves in her Turbo Jam workouts called the "elite 11." The moves were designed by her to engage the abdominals and work the entire body to get a lean and sleek body. They especially target the core muscles through her technique of tilting and tightening the abs in every move you perform. Turbo training involves these 11 moves, which are inspired by martial arts and dance, and taking them to the next level.
During each one of the Turbo Jam workouts, Chalene has added a time that is about 1-2 minutes long in which she turbocharges the workout. This means that she pushes the person to the max to get their heart rate up and pumping for that time. It is the time in the workout that a person is to push themselves to work as hard as possible. This is then followed by a small period of rest (still moving though) and then usually another sequence and the final section of the workout. This little super charge of energy actually benefits the person more than they know. This is what turbo training is all about. That surge in energy triggers your body to release more endorphins and pushes you into a higher fat burning zone. You will continue to burn calories several hours after you finish the Turbo Jam workout.
Turbo training is not complex and can easily be done by beginners. Turbo Jam uses turbo training to give each person a unique workout that is like no other.
A recent study done on Turbo Jam showed that a person could burn up to 700 calories in one of the 45 minute workout sessions. This is more than what has been found to be burned in that amount of time by other cardiovascular exercises such as jogging, biking, and even regular circuit training. When you choose to use the Turbo Jam gloves you can easily increase the burned calories to close to 1,000. So, how exactly does Turbo Jam work and what is turbo training?
Chalene Johnson uses 11 different basic moves in her Turbo Jam workouts called the "elite 11." The moves were designed by her to engage the abdominals and work the entire body to get a lean and sleek body. They especially target the core muscles through her technique of tilting and tightening the abs in every move you perform. Turbo training involves these 11 moves, which are inspired by martial arts and dance, and taking them to the next level.
During each one of the Turbo Jam workouts, Chalene has added a time that is about 1-2 minutes long in which she turbocharges the workout. This means that she pushes the person to the max to get their heart rate up and pumping for that time. It is the time in the workout that a person is to push themselves to work as hard as possible. This is then followed by a small period of rest (still moving though) and then usually another sequence and the final section of the workout. This little super charge of energy actually benefits the person more than they know. This is what turbo training is all about. That surge in energy triggers your body to release more endorphins and pushes you into a higher fat burning zone. You will continue to burn calories several hours after you finish the Turbo Jam workout.
Turbo training is not complex and can easily be done by beginners. Turbo Jam uses turbo training to give each person a unique workout that is like no other.
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