Some people know that they have to exercise and eat right, but what else do they know about fitness? Fitness is an entire lifestyle and in some instances, it is a major lifestyle change. Here are some great techniques that will help you get and stay fit, so you are in the best shape of your life.
In order to maximize your fitness routine, be sure to always stretch. Stretching will help to prevent injury. Many times you may think that you do not have to stretch, or that if your exercise is light enough that your body will stretch itself. This is never the case, and becomes more important the older you get. Always stretch to prevent injury and get the most out of your workout.
When you’re working through a fitness regimen, remember that you should always warm up. If you are under the age of forty, hold your stretches for thirty seconds. If you are over the age of forty, your stretches should be held for sixty seconds. Muscles become less limber as you age, so it is wise to adjust your workout to keep on top of these changes.
When on an exercise routine it is best to have a day of rest once a week. During rest your muscles will grow and recover. In order to have the best results, your body needs its rest so it can be at full potential when you are exercising.
If you want to improve your nutrition you should shop at a farmer’s market. It is easy to find nutritious whole foods and avoid highly processed foods at these markets. Processed foods often contain unhealthy amounts of salt, sugar, and fat. Instead of artificially colored and flavored foods you can get lots of good nutrition from local and seasonal fruits and vegetables.
Use your smart phone to set alarms that remind you to get up from the desk and climb a set of stairs. Even a little bit of exercise is better than no exercise. In our harried day to day lives, however, it is sometimes difficult to remind ourselves to do it. Exercise during the work day will benefit you both physically and mentally. Your work will likely benefit as well.
Instead of only doing seated calf raises or only doing standing calf raises, mix it up! Calves are actually made up of two separate muscles. By doing both straight-leg reps and bent-leg reps, you are ensuring that both muscles in your calves are getting a proper workout. This will allow you to see noticeable results much sooner.
Even the most seasoned runner encounters muscle soreness in their calves upon waking in the morning. Try this: sleep on your stomach and allow your feet to hang over the side of your bed. Overnight, the effects of gravity will lightly stretch your muscles, making them noticeably less sore when you wake up the next morning.
Add calcium rich foods, such as low-fat milk to your daily diet to boost the effects of your workouts. Try to consume at least 600 milligrams or more of calcium everyday. This about two glasses of low-fat milk. Also add other calcium-rich items to your diet such as broccoli, cottage cheese, low-fat yogurt, etc.
A great fitness tip is to measure your stats often. You should aim to measure waist size, body fat, or some other variable at least every four weeks. This will show you the results that your training has given you, which will motivate you even more to accomplish your goals.
When doing any sort of workout you want to be able to stretch in between. These stretches should stretch the entire muscle and should last for about thirty seconds. This allows for a healing time between the work outs, and you won’t damage your muscles over your workout time.
Even when you are not participating in a structured fitness program, find ways to keep moving. Make it a point to go on a walk or take a jog around your neighborhood. Use your breaks at work as an excuse to find something active to do, even if you just go outside and walk around the building a few times. The more physical activity you include in your life, the happier you will be with your level of fitness.
Don’t forget that it’s important to warmup your mind as much as your body prior to a work out. While your body may be doing all the heavy lifting, it’s your mind that’s coordinating its efforts. To prevent silly mistakes that can cause injuries, be sure to do some stretches that challenge the brain, like one-legged squats.
If you plan on exercising longer than an hour you need to consume between 45 and 60 grams of carbohydrates per hour of exercise. This will help your body work more efficiently, as your body can only store so many carbohydrates. Once these carbohydrates have been used, you will feel physically and mentally exhausted.
A good way to work out when it comes to fitness is through swimming. In order to build speed in swimming, it is necessary to develop ankle flexibility. The more flexible your ankles are the easier it would be for you to propel yourself through the water as they act as flippers.
Don’t try to become a fitness guru overnight. Focus on spending a reasonable amount of time exercising every day as a baseline and then work from there. It’s easy to become burned out and discouraged when you try to go from no exercise to running a 5k, so just work up to walking 15 minutes a day first and then improve gradually.
You can work out and save money by doing chores like snow shoveling yourself rather than hiring a neighborhood kid to do it for you. Snow shoveling burns 400 calories an hour and is great power training, as well as saving a good $25/hour you’d have to pay someone.
Getting in shape is an ongoing process that lasts as long as you are committed to it. You can always learn new methods and techniques to keep you fit. Let these tips help you on that journey, and use them to provide ideas that you can use to make fitness a permanent part of your life.