Maybe you’re just beginning a brand new strength training program for the first time

Or maybe you’re returning to strength training after a long absence.  Either way, congratulations!  Here are some helpful tips to get you started along the road to success!

1. Get expert advice. Schedule at least a few sessions with the trainer at your gym to learn the correct technique to use in order to avoid injury.
2. Take it slow.   Don’t try to start out with the most reps or the heaviest weights.  You will be sore when you begin training but, if you over do it and feel miserable, you’ll be more likely to quit.
3. Take rest days. Plan rest days into your training schedule.  Your muscles will respond better and you won’t burn out.
4. Don’t quit! You must have had some reason or goal in mind when you started strength training.  Don’t stop because the going gets a little tough.  Stick with it and you’ll be glad you did!

What advice can you offer to someone who is  beginning or returning to strength training?  Please share in the comments!

A while back I wrote a post about using resistance bands for strength training.

Today I came across a video that shows a good example of a resistance band workout.  Enjoy!

In an earlier post we discussed how to design your own circuit training routine to do at home.

But if you’re having trouble coming up with a routine or you’re just getting bored with the one you use, here are some ideas to get you moving. You can use this circuit training routine as it is or incorporate the activities you like into your own routine.

What exercises do use in your circuit training routine? Please tell us about them in the comments. Thanks!

This is one of the best core strength training workouts I’ve ever seen.

The Gorgeous Core DVD is put out by Suzanne Bowen who is a certified trainer, fitness studio owner, and star of numerous workout DVD’s.  If you’re not fond of workout DVD’s because they take so long to complete, you’ll appreciate the format of this one.

It is divided into 6 “workout blasts”. Four of the segments are 12 minutes long, one is 7, and one is 5.  You can do one or two of them at a time or the whole thing at once, whatever you have time for.  My two favorites so far are “Metabolism Bootcamp” and “Total Core Fast Blast”.

Gorgeous Core is designed for intermediate and advanced levels of core work but there are modifications included for beginners so just the one DVD will take you through all levels.

Suzanne has a wonderful, calm manner. I love that I don’t feel as though she’s yelling at me but  gently coaching and demonstrating.  The movements are fluid and graceful, nothing jerky or jarring.

I was lucky enough to receive a free copy of this DVD but, if I hadn’t, I would definitely buy it.  It’s well worth it!  I recommend that you get your own copy of Gorgeous Core and start working on your new tight tummy!

What is the core and why is core strength training important?

Your core is made up of your abdominal and lower back muscles which attach your spine to your pelvis.   This is where your center of gravity is.

What does core strength training do for you?

• Improves balance thus helping to prevent injuries
• Reduces or eliminates lower back pain
• Creates stability
• Improves posture
• Allows for better power transfer from legs to upper body and from upper body to legs
• Reduces waist size

What are some exercises you can do to increase your core strength?

1. Bicycle Lay on the floor on your back, raise your legs, and pretend you are pedaling a bicycle.
2. Donkey Kicks Get on your hands and knees, then raise one leg at a time back and up.
3. Leg Lifts Lay on the floor on your back.  Raise both feet slightly, bend your knees, and bring your feet toward your butt.  Keeping your feet only slightly raised, straighten your legs and lower them to the floor.

When doing core strength training exercises, be sure to keep your belly button pulled in toward your spine at all times.

One of the best ways to strengthen your core is to use a stability ball. Here is a video from the American Council on Exercise which shows how to get started using a stability ball for core strength training.

When I visited Lynn’s blog the other day and followed her link to this article, I immediately knew I wanted to share it with you!  Enjoy!

How to Maximize Weight Lifting Effectiveness

By Lynn Hahn

Weight lifting is extremely important. Having good muscle mass increases your metabolism and makes you strong. It also changes the appearance of your body. Most women do not want to get large muscles but instead want to get firm and toned. That can be achieved by weight lifting.

There is some conflicting information about the proper way to lift. There also are some truths that most trainers agree about.

Starting with your largest muscle groups is one rule that most trainers use. It really is common sense when you stop to think about it. If you start lifting with your smaller muscles those muscles will not be able to support the weight the larger muscles need to be challenged.

Starting with the larger muscles in the buttock and chest is the most effective way to lift weights. If you workout your biceps first they will not be able to assist the other muscles in your arms when you lift the heavier weights needed to work your chest.

I start my clients with buttock exercises. That is really the best muscle group to start with, especially for women. Then I use a couple of different methods. I may workout the large muscles in the thighs next, to the lower legs and then begin working the upper body beginning with the chest and working down to the smaller muscles in the arms. The other method is rotate between the upper and lower body starting with the largest muscles and working down to the smaller muscles. Either of those methods are very effective.

As far as the order goes I am a very firm believer in saving the abdominal muscles and lower back for the end of your routine. Your core body needs to support all the action taking place while the other parts of your body are being challenged. If you start with the abs or lower back they will not be able to do their job of supporting your action as well and may get over stressed resulting in injury.

How often you lift weights is an area of conflict. The courses I have taken suggest lifting 2 to 3 days a week on non-consecutive days. There are some trainers that believe in working a different body part each day.

Your body uses a fuel called glycogen when you lift weights. You do not have a large supply of that fuel. Your body lets you know when you are running a bit low by causing you to breath hard and creating a burning sensation in the muscle group you are working.

The burn that you feel is lactic acid. That is the by-product of burning glycogen as a fuel. The heavy breathing is your body’s way of trying to get more fuel. It is trying to get to your fat storage which requires oxygen to burn. Your body takes about 48 hours to restore its supply of glycogen after lifting weights.

Working different parts of your body is not the best idea. Your body does not take glycogen from some parts and not other parts of your body. It just uses what it can get to. If you do not wait for it to replace that fuel it can lead to problems.

Also, your body builds muscle on your rest day not when you are lifting. If you do not have a rest day your results may not be as good. Even though you are letting the upper body rest and just working the lower body your body is still being challenged.

It is best to drink water and eat a small amount of food about half an hour before you lift. Fruit digests quickly and has the carbohydrates your body needs so that is a good choice. Drinking water and eating some protein within an hour after your workout adds to the effectiveness of your session as well.

So to recap, if you start with your largest muscles, train every other day and feed your body you will maximize your weight lifting.

By Lynn Hahn

My name is Lynn Hahn. I’m certified by the American Council on Exercise as a fitness instructor and a Lifestyle and Weight Management Consultant. I’m also a certified Third Degree Black Belt in American Kenpo.

I produce and create very effective fitness DVDs designed for women. Come and visit my website http://www.getrealfit.org to get more fitness information and to see my products!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lynn_Hahn
http://EzineArticles.com/?How-to-Maximize-Weight-Lifting-Effectiveness&id=5022948

Please share your thoughts in the comments below.  Thanks!

People are always asking about ways to burn fat and, in fact, I have written quite a few posts about that topic.  However, there are lots of tools and tricks you can use so here are 4 more ways to burn fat.

1. Lower your calorie intake gradually.  If you decide to reduce the number of calories you eat in a day, don’t suddenly cut your intake in half.  If you drastically decrease your eating from one day to the next, your body will believe it’s starving and, rather than burning fat, it will hang on to it.  Lower your calorie intake little by little over the course of a couple of weeks.
2. Use interval training. Interval training involves alternating short bursts of very intense activity with periods of less intense recovery activity.  For example, you might ride your bike (or stationary bike in the gym) as fast as you can for 20 to 30 seconds, then slow to a moderate pace for a minute.  You could also alternate running and walking.  Not only is interval training good aerobic exercise, but you can exercise for a shorter amount of time while getting up to 3 times the fat burning benefit.
3. Eat 5 or 6 small meals a day. This keeps your metabolism constantly fueled so it is continuously burning fat. It also keeps your blood sugar on an even keel so you don’t experience energy level crashes.
4. Do strength training. Strength training is the number one most efficient way to burn fat.  Of course you are burning fat during your strength training workout but muscle tissue continues to burn calories even when you’re at rest.  This means that the more muscle you can build, the easier it will be to burn calories, thus burning fat.  If you’re looking for a good explanation of using strength training to burn fat, I recommend the Fat Burning Furnace.

To receive weekly health and fitness advice, please sign up for my newsletter and free ebook in the box near the top of the page.  Thanks!

There seems to be a common misconception that, if you have knee pain, you should stay away from any type of strength training such as weight lifting or resistance exercise. But actually, the opposite may be true.

According to Fitness Alert, researchers reviewed the findings of 18 studies involving 3,000 patients who had knee pain due to arthritis.   They discovered that resistance training “reduced pain and improved physical function, walking speed, and balance.”

When the muscles surrounding the knee are weak, it causes instability which stresses the joint. This stress leads to deterioration of the cartilage which cushions the joint.  With the protective cushion damaged, the joint surfaces develop irregularities and the membranes that secrete lubricating fluid don’t work as efficiently.

Strengthening the muscles around the joint helps treat the knee pain by improving the stability of the knee.  Of course, you absolutely must check with your doctor before using strength training or any other type of therapy for knee pain.

What methods have you used to deal with knee pain? Please tell us about it in the comments section below.

Many women believe that building muscle will work against their weight loss efforts.

We’ve all heard that muscle weighs more than fat so we tend to be afraid that strength training will make us gain weight.  However, when done correctly, building muscle actually helps increase fat loss.

When you are following a weight loss diet, you want to lose fat, not muscle.  The best way to ensure that you build and keep the muscle you already have is to do sets of 5 – 8 repetitions of your weight lifting or resistance training.

Performing more repetitions may increase your endurance but can actually cause you to lose as much muscle as fat.  Remember that muscle burns calories even while you’re at rest so the more muscle you can build, the more quickly you can melt off the fat, and the easier it will be to keep it off!

Don’t be concerned about becoming too muscular; testosterone or steroids are required to build massive, bulky muscles.  The average, non-supplementing woman will develop strong, lean, feminine muscle mass.  If you don’t like the look you are getting, you can always cut back on your strength training routine.

Studies have shown that dieting combined with aerobic exercise and strength training produces more weight loss than either just dieting or dieting plus aerobics.  The Fit Chic is a good, easy to follow, balanced weight loss plan which includes daily meals and workouts.

Don’t neglect protein in your weight loss diet.  Protein is not only necessary for building muscle tissue, which burns calories at a higher rate than other tissue, it also requires more calories to digest than fats or carbs.  (See my post on  Fat Burning Foods.)

If you enjoyed this article, please sign up for my weekly newsletter and you’ll receive a free copy of “7 Secrets of Permanent Fat Loss and Fitness”.

Often times we hear people talking about having a slow metabolism or how everyone’s metabolism slows down as they get older.

Your metabolism is not a physical part of your body, such as your heart or liver, but is the collection of chemical processes your body uses to convert fuel into energy.

Most of this fuel to energy conversion takes place in your muscle tissue.  Beginning around age 30, your body slowly but surely, year by year, begins to lose muscle mass.  So your metabolism, or your body’s furnace, actually gets smaller rather than slower.

Unfortunately, there’s still plenty of stored fuel – fat – that needs to be burned!  But since the furnace is smaller, less fat is being used so more is being stored.

What can you do to prevent or reverse the effects of this “slowing” metabolism?

The answer is strength training.  Building and maintaining muscle tissue is the only way to ensure that the fuel (fat) continues to be burned rather than stored.  And the more muscle you build, the more fat will be burned. Even when your muscles are at rest, the fat burning process continues.  .

You need to do some type of resistance exercise 3 times per week.  To provide the resistance you can choose resistance machines, weights, resistance bands, or even your own body weight.

The earlier you begin a strength training program, the better.  But it’s never too late to start. If you are reasonably able bodied, there’s no excuse for letting your body turn old, weak, and  squishy.  If you will spend 90 minutes per week, your body will reward you by staying strong, healthy, and lean for decades!

** When you sign up for my newsletter and you’ll receive a free copy of the ebook, “7 Secrets of Permanent Fat Loss & Fitness”.