Enjoy Life More with a Balanced Approach

    Want to slim down and lose weight faster? Combine weight training with flexibility exercises and aerobics. 

     If you think lifting weights is just for pumped-up hard-bodies who flex their pecs in public, think again. 

    Building muscle benefits everyone man or woman, at any age. In fact, older people may have the most to gain from weight or resistance training, because strength is so crucial to functioning independently.

Weight training will give you the strength and endurance

WEIGHT TRAINING IS NOT JUST FOR BODY BUILDERS

• First, get seek out proper instruction on the best type, weight, and number of repetitions you should perform. Go slow at first.
• Try to include at least one exercise for each of the major muscle groups.
• Work the larger muscle groups first (e.g., chest, back, quadriceps), then work the smaller groups.
• Alternate among upper-body, lower-body, and trunk (abdominal) exercises.
• Always allow one day between weight-training sessions. This enables your muscle fibers to rebuild.
• Don't overdo it. If you can't perform 10 repetitions, then youre probably trying to lift too much weight. Start with a lesser amount and work up.

STRENGTH BUILDING TIPS:

Squats work multiple muscle groups -- the quadriceps, hamstrings, and gluteals -- at the same time.
How to: Keep your feet shoulder-width apart and your back straight. Bend your knees and lower your rear as if you were sitting down in a chair, keeping your knees over your ankles.

Like squats, lunges work all the major muscles of the lower body. Lunges also help improve your balance.
How to do it: Take a big step forward, keeping your spine straight. Bend your front knee to approximately 90 degrees. Keep weight on your back toes and drop the back knee toward the floor-- but don't let it touch the floor.

Push-ups strengthen the chest, shoulders, triceps, and core muscles.How to: Face-down, place hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Place toes or knees on the floor, creating a smooth line with your body, from shoulders to knees or feet. Keeping rear-end muscles and abdominals engaged, lower and lift your body by bending and straightening your elbows, keeping your torso stable throughout the move.

Begin by lying on your back with feet flat on the floor and palms supporting your head. Press your low back down. Contract abdominals and raise first your head (tucking your chin slightly), then your neck, shoulders, and upper back off the floor.

Do crunches with your feet off the floor and knees bent. This technique may help you avoid arching your back; it also engages your hip flexors.

Keep your neck in line with your spine. Don't stick your chin out. Don't hold your breath. To keep chest and shoulders open, keep your elbows out of your line of vision.

The bent-over row works all the major muscles of the upper back, as well as the biceps.
How to: Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, bend knees, and flex forward at the hips, then engage the abdominals and extend spine to add support. Hold weights beneath the shoulders with hands shoulder-width apart. Flex your elbows and lift both hands toward the sides of your body. Pause, then slowly lower your hands back to the starting position.

The facts are clear - if you want to enjoy life more and live longer - your odds are much better if you get some exercise most days of the week!

For the best results - try a balanced approach. Combine weight or resistance training with flexibility and aerobic exercises!  Start building muscles and  getting in shape and enjoy life more!

The Quickest Way to Lose Weight

What is the Quickest Way to Lose weight? Does it come in a pill? Is there a magic formula you can buy?

Don't we wish!!

Losing weight is really very simple.

To lose weight you need to take in fewer calories than you use. You can do this by creating and following a plan for healthy eating and daily exercise or regular physical activity.

     Many healthy people - just like you and I -  choose to follow a formal weight-loss program. These formal programs can help you make lifelong changes in your eating and physical activity habits.

    Enjoy Eating Healthy Foods! It may be hard to stick to a weight-loss “diet” that limits your portions to very small sizes or excludes certain foods. Many of us have a hard time making that work over the long term. A more realistic healthy eating plan might take into account your likes and dislikes, and include a variety of foods that give you enough calories and nutrients for good health. Why bore yourself to death eating the same dull stuff every day?

    The second part of any sustainable weight loss plan is daily exercise. Exercise can come in any form you like. Many fitness lovers would rather go to the dentist than miss a day of running. Jogging or even walking every day can become quite addicting! The natural high you get after a good run lifts your spirits and literally helps you enjoy life more.

    Fitness makes you happier in your day to day comings and goings. Not only will you lose weight and look better - you'll almost inevitable feel better about yourself!

    Two simple habits is all it really takes. Save your money - avoid the magic pills and all the hocus-pocus. Stick with the time honored and proven system for lasting weight loss. Health and fitness experts agree - the quickest way to lose weight , and keep it off is as simple as these two healthy habits.

Will to Win

The athlete trains for his race; and the mind must be put into training if one will win life's race

There had been no great parade about the training of this champion runner. From his work at the plough he quietly betook himself to the task of making Greece victorious before the assembled strangers from every land. He was known to be a good runner, and without fuss or bustle he entered himself as a competitor. But it was not his speed alone, out-distancing every rival, that made the young Greek stand out from among his fellows that day.

When he left his cottage home at Amarusi, his father said to him, "Sotiri, you must only return a victor!" The light of a firm resolve shone in the young man's eye. The old father was sure that his boy would win, and so he made his way to the station, there to wait till Sotiri should come in ahead of all the rest. No one knew the old man and his three daughters as they elbowed their way through the crowd. When at last the excitement of the assembled multitude told that the critical moment had arrived, that the racers were nearing the goal, the old father looked up through eyes that were a little dim as he realized that truly Sotiri was leading the way. He was "returning a victor."

How the crowd surged about the young peasant when the race was fairly won! Wild with excitement, they knew not how to shower upon him sufficient praise. Ladies overwhelmed him with flowers and rings; some even gave him their watches, and one American lady bestowed upon him her jewelled smelling-bottle. The princes embraced him, and the king himself saluted him in military fashion. But the young Sotirios was seeking for other praise than theirs.

Past the ranks of royalty and fair maidenhood, past the outstretched hands of his own countrymen, past the applauding crowd of foreigners, his gaze wandered till it fell upon an old man trembling with eagerness, who resolutely pushed his way through the excited, satisfied throng. Then the young face lighted, and as old Louès advanced to the innermost circle with arms outstretched to embrace his boy, the young victor said, simply: "You see, father, I have obeyed."

Obey your wishes. Adopt a new habit and stick with it! You can improve your body. Your strength and your fitness level! 

Want Lasting Weight Loss?

"To lengthen thy life, lessen thy meals."           Benjamin Franklin

Health experts and fitness buffs alike have known the secret of healthy, lasting weight loss for centuries. There are but two simple rules to follow.

1. Enjoy Eating Healthy Foods.

2. Exercise every day or,  at  least 5 days a week.

Take an honest look at where you are today - in terms of your weight and body shape. If you are happy with your current shape and size - that's great! A half hour of daily exercise is probably all you'll need to stay at or near your ideal body weight. As long as you enjoy a balanced and sensible diet of healthy foods!

Or, maybe you are like the millions of Americans who would probably like to shed some weight and lose a few inches around their waistlines.

No Worries!!  Join the Club!!  You're not alone!  You can rest easy tonight knowing that 2 simple habits - practiced daily - will lead you to a slimmer, healthier body!

Start your new life and new habits with a healthy breakfast every day! Get some protein and complex carbs early in the day. Enjoy more healthy eating choices throughout the day. Some experts suggest eating 4-6 small meals a day to optimize your metabolism and keep your body energized and in balance. Don't deny yourself treats, but make sure that the majority of your food choices are high in nutrients, fiber, "good fats," and lean protein.

Exercise for at least 30 minutes a day. Just a 15 or 20 minutes more can make a real difference in your health. Play with your children at the park after work. Jump rope, walk, roller blade or play basketball with your friends. Park the car farther away from your destination and get in a few minutes of brisk walking. Always take the stairs instead of the elevator. Walk or ride bikes with your family after dinner.

Get in some exercise while watching your favorite show.  Try sit-ups, push-ups and leg lifts to get your body moving while watching a funny comedy. You'll burn even more calories while you laugh! Add hand weights or use a stationary bicycle, treadmill or try indoor rowing to make the most of your TV time.

Health experts agree - the quickest way to lose weight and keep it off is with a daily regimen of exercise and healthy eating!

Have Your Best Summer Ever

Do you wish you could have more fun this Summer? Get out and play. Pick up those golf clubs or get out  your tennis racket and go enjoy an evening playing your favorite sport(s). If you've been out of practice for a while - no worries! Just start slow and take your time. We can't all hit serves like Andy Roddick or Rafa. Who cares? Enjoy the company and the activity.

The more you sweat  - the better. You'll lift your spirits and experience that natural high every athlete knows when they get into "the zone".

Have you been inactive for a few years? Is your belly a little larger than in your college or high school years? You're not alone. Millions of Americans have reached their 30s or beyond and had the same issues with their waistline. Summer is the perfect time to get outdoors and enjoy family and friends while you get into better shape!

Set a goal for yourself. Wipe your schedule clean for just 2 hours some evening and go play 9 holes or chase tennis balls with your children or loved ones. Invite a friend to go jogging with you or even just a walk! Next week - try for 2 nights. Sneak in an early morning run before the temperatures get into the 80s or even hotter.

If losing weight is one of your goals - Start today. Or pick up the pace of your fitness efforts.  Healthy and successful weight loss pros have known the path to lasting weight loss for years. For healthy, and lasting weight control, the secret is not found in miracle potions or herbs. The quickest way to lose weight has been practiced with astounding success for hundreds of years.

Two simple habits - Work your body hard and eat healthy. Since so many of us have office jobs - requiring extended periods of sitting - the hard work usually means exercise. 

Any kind of exercise you enjoy will work! Choose several fun activities where you can burn a bunch of calories and really work your heart and lungs. Get your heart pounding and feel yourself breathing hard! Work your muscles too. Muscles burn calories and help you shed those extra pounds of body fat!

Want to tighten up those abs? The best way to lose belly fat is burn it off! Burn those extra calories and do some abs exercises to help build your core muscles. Sculpting a tighter tummy and getting rid of belly fat is never easy. You'll have to put in the time - running, walking, swimming, or even rowing.

If you really want to kick up the pace of your fitness program and get a great whole body workout - you might enjoy the Concept2 Model E Indoor Rowing Machine

Good Health

Good health is the foundation both of judgment and industry and therefore of success. And without health everything is difficult. Who can exercise a sound judgment if he is feeling irritable in the morning? Who can work hard if she is suffering from a perpetual feeling of malaise?

The future lies with the people who will take exercise and not too much exercise. Athleticism may be hopeless as a career, but as a drug it is invaluable. No ordinary man can hope to succeed who does not work his body in moderation. 

Here are the amounts of activity necessary for the average healthy person to maintain a minimum level of overall fitness. Included are some of the popular exercises for each category.

WARMUP - 5-10 minutes of exercise such as walking, slow jogging, knee lifts, arm circles or trunk rotations. Low intensity movements that simulate movements to be used in the activity can also be included in the warmup.

MUSCULAR STRENGTH - a minimum of two 20-minute sessions per week that include exercises for all the major muscle groups. Lifting weights is the most effective way to increase strength.

MUSCULAR ENDURANCE - at least three 30-minute sessions each week that include exercises such as calisthenics, pushups, situps, pullups, and weight training for all the major muscle groups.

CARDIORESPIRATORY ENDURANCE - at least three 20-minute bouts of continuous aerobic (activity requiring oxygen) rhythmic exercise each week. Popular aerobic conditioning activities include brisk walking, jogging, swimming, cycling, jumping rope, rowing, cross-country skiing, and some continuous action games like racquetball and handball.

FLEXIBILITY - 10-12 minutes of daily stretching exercises performed slowly, without a bouncing motion. This can be included after a warmup or during a cooldown.

COOL DOWN - a minimum of 5-10 minutes of slow walking, low-level exercise, combined with stretching.

Try these 10 tips for better fitness.

If you want to speed up your fitness program  and start seeing results even soon - go to a trusted online vendor like Amazon and buy an Indoor Rowing Machine

Want More Happiness?

 Strength develops in direct proportion to the difficulty of the environment. There is no substitute for hard work. If you work your body hard you can expect awesome results!

Found the following excerpt in a centuries old book about success:

It would seem almost unnecessary to suggest the ordinary regimes for health of body. Nevertheless, I shall refer to these regimes because, first, their importance cannot be overestimated, and secondly because they involve certain laws of laws in relation to health which are seldom worked out in hygienic instruction.

What may be called the laws of laws of health would seem to be as follows:

1. Scrupulous Cleanliness of the Body, Without and Within, Makes for Royal Health-Tone. The law should be given rational, not slavish, obedience. Your body and your deeper self are in a constant state of interaction. Material uncleanness consented to contaminates that self. Uncleanness of the self also contaminates the body. A good life requires the clean dress of honored flesh. You are invited, therefore, to affirm always and practically,

    This robe I wear of unsoiled flesh
    Keeps mind and spirit ever fresh.

2. Sweet, Sound and Early Sleep Gives the Universal Forces their Perfect Opportunity for Good. During sleep the Universal Thought strives to restore, as our conditions permit, harmony of vibrations between its manifests in matter within the body and its manifests in the non-material self. The degree of harmony is made less in all cases by centuries of wrong living, the effects of which are more or less accumulated by inheritance in every man and woman (right living, however, promising in the future perfect freedom there-from on earth), and by the disturbing power of individual wrong living. In order, then, to secure the best results of sleep, our waking thought should be kept in attune, by all practical as well as by all idealizing methods, with reality, truth, beauty and goodness. You are invited, for the reason suggested, to live during the day in such a manner that your last fearless thought at night may be,

    "Let my soul walk softly in me,
       Like a saint in heaven unshod,
     For to be alone with Silence
       Is to be alone with God."

3. The Utility of Nourishment Issues From Conformity to the Plan of the Universal Forces for Each Individual. For every human body there is a plan on which it is intended to be evolved and maintained. The individual plan is merely a variation of the general plan of our common human nature. That general plan provides for certain foods and kinds of drink, for the manner in which they are to be taken and digested, and for their utilization in building and sustaining the body. 

This general plan is varied for different persons in the primary intention of the nature of things. Your food and drink, therefore, should depend upon your own peculiar needs. The science of the matter investigates the kinds of nourishment which you in particular require and advises all items furnishing the material elements you demand. 

But some individual variations, in respect to questions of taste, usefulness and harmfulness, digestibility and adaptation, are undoubtedly results of restrained liberty and wrong thought-life in the past, either of your ancestors or of yourself. 

That degree of liberty, therefore, which ought to be yours, has perhaps, come to be more or less limited. It is possible for you to secure a desirable enlargement of freedom with regard to food and drink. Of course you have no liberty in the way of natural poisons and beverages which dethrone common sense. Aside from the limits set by Nature, you may acquire the largest measure of personal freedom in the matter if you will determine therefor in the exercise of sound reason. 

It is for you to bring yourself more nearly to the original plan for human bodies in this respect, if you will begin with your inner thought-life and proceed more or less in the following manner:

(a). By insisting upon a LARGER FREEDOM, not in the way of demanding one thing or another, but in the way of realizing in your deeper self the idea of power therefor;

(b). By endeavoring constantly to bring your thought-life more and more into HARMONY WITH LIFE IN NATURE;

(c). By affirming that the food and drink of which you partake will surely enjoy Better Health and buoyancy of the body; not merely stating the proposition, but, while so partaking, believing the truth and assuming it to be true—actual for you;

(d). By manifesting at all times the mood of blended COURAGE, HOPE, CONFIDENCE, HAPPINESS;

      Relays of races, rugged and long,
       Up the peaks rising and blending!
     Wine for the daring, meat for the strong,
       Power with toil contending!
    "Higher! Yet higher!" the man's full song—
      "Never a last ascending!"

How to Lose Belly Fat When You're Over 40!

Are you over 40 and hoping to lose some belly fat? Take heart - You're not alone. Just look around at your workplace or church or even the mall.  The older you get - the easier it is to tack on a few extra pounds. (Or, in my case - quite a few!)

Sitting at a desk for hours each day and coming home to a late night supper and some couch time with the family can too often result in a tummy that just seems to keep slowly expanding.

The Good News is - You can still enjoy life well past 40 or even 70 with a slimmed down tummy and waistline. Not a member of the local gym? No Problem! Grab a walking buddy and start walking your way to a flatter belly!

Eating healthy foods is also a key ingredient to losing that belly fat. Just a few simple changes in your food choices can help you start shedding those extra pounds and inches.

Want to burn more calories all day ? Eat some protein for breakfast. And some whole grains. If you love whole wheat toast - check the label before you grab a loaf of your favorite whole wheat bread. If the label has High Fructose Corn Syrup in the list of ingredients - put that loaf of bread back on the shelf. Stick with a whole grain bread that does not include those four - fattening words.

Skip the trans fats ( anything that says partially hydrogenated....) and the white ( so called enriched ) grains. Limit your sugar fix. Pass on that late night bowl of ice cream. Instead try an occasional piece of dark chocolate. Or a single glass of your favorite red wine.

Toss some strawberries in your low fat ( or fat free ) yogurt. Have a handful of walnuts for an afternoon snack. Keep a bowl of apples handy. And maybe a bag of celery sticks or baby carrots. When you feel the urge to snack - go for it! Pass the donuts and grab a piece of fruit instead!

After you enjoy a healthy lunch - try a spinach salad with, tomatoes, chopped walnuts, and shredded carrots and  some wild-caught salmon. Choose a fat-free or olive oil-based dressing on the side.  ( If you go with a fat-free dressing - check that list of ingredients for added sugars or the fat inducing high fructose corn sweetener.)

Then - take a 20 minute walk around the block. Or hit the stairs. Build up to as quick a pace as you can. If time allows - stretch your walk to 30 minutes or longer. The more you walk the quicker you shed those extra pounds around your waist and stomach!

The benefits you can realize from walking every day can last you a lifetime! Enjoy your 40s and beyond in a slimmer body! You'll have more energy for having fun!

Health experts agree - the best way to lose belly fat involves just 2 simple habits - exercise daily and enjoy a balanced variety of healthy foods!

Exercise - The Road to a Healthier Body

Take two boys, as nearly alike as possible. Place one in the country away from the hothouse culture and refinements of the city, with only the district school, the Sunday school, and a few books. Remove wealth and props of every kind; and, if he has the right kind of material in him, he will thrive. Every obstacle overcome lends him strength for the next conflict. If he falls, he rises with more determination than before. Like a rubber ball, the harder the obstacle he meets the higher he rebounds.

Obstacles and opposition are but apparatus of the gymnasium in which the fibres of his manhood are developed. He compels respect and recognition from those who have ridiculed his poverty. Put the other boy in a Vanderbilt family. Give him French and German nurses; gratify every wish. Place him under the tutelage of great masters and send him to Harvard. Give him thousands a year for spending money, and let him travel extensively.

The two meet. The city lad is ashamed of his country brother. The plain, threadbare clothes, hard hands, tawny face, and awkward manner of the country boy make  sorry contrast with the genteel appearance of the other. The poor boy bemoans his hard lot, regrets that he has "no chance in life," and envies the city youth.

He thinks that it is a cruel Providence that places such a wide gulf between them. They meet again as men, but how changed! It is as easy to distinguish the sturdy, self-made man from the one who has been propped up all his life by wealth, position, and family influence, as it is for the shipbuilder to tell the difference between the plank from the rugged mountain oak and one from the sapling of the forest. If you think there is no difference, place each plank in the bottom of a ship, and test them in a hurricane at sea.

Athletes don't carry the gymnasium away with him, but he carries the skill and muscles which give him his reputation.

The most beautiful as well as the strongest characters are not developed over night. Consistent healthy habits  practiced and developed over time bring great results. Want a tighter belly? Want stronger arms and sexy looking chest? Develop your strength gradually with consistent and strenuous muscle building workouts.

   It is rugged necessity, it is the struggle to obtain, it is poverty the priceless spur, that develops the stamina of manhood, and calls the race out of barbarism. Labor found the world a wilderness and has made it a garden.

The law of adaptation  is simple and well known. It is that which callouses the palm of the oarsman, strengthens the waist of the wrestler, fits the back to its burden.

If you want a tighter, sexier and slimmer body type you have to work your muscles.  Feed your body a healthy assortment of natural foods - avoiding as much as possible anything filled with high fructose corn syrup. Resist the temptation to indulge yourself with useless calories found in comfort foods. Enjoy eating healthy foods and a daily regimen of exercise.

You really can exercise and lose weight fast.