Differentiating Strength Training and Aerobic Fitness

If you see strength training and aerobic fitness as one and the same: exercise, then it would benefit you to learn a little bit about their respective definitions.

Strength Training:

When we speak of strength training, we speak of weightlifting. However, don't be fooled into thinking that only aspiring weightlifters should do this kind of exercise. Characterized by brief spurts of effort, strength training effectively burns off calories while developing your muscle strength. This benefit extends to help you acquire more stamina, enabling you to perform daily tasks with a considerably decreased risk of exhaustion. What's more, increased muscle mass further improves your body's calorie-burning capacity even when it's inactive. The other benefits of strength training are as follows: stronger joints, more developed bone density, better balance, posture, and stability.

Aerobic Fitness:

Walking, jogging/running, and swimming are just some of the kinds of exercises falling under the category of aerobic fitness. Technically, aerobic activity is described as a kind of rhythmic, moderate-intensity exercise that utilizes the large leg muscles. Performing them works to speed up your heart rate, hence making breathing harder. On the whole, aerobic activities are significant to healthy weight management and good health maintenance.

Written By: Maris Modesto

Small Weighttraining Booboos Count

Weighttraining does a lot for your health, especially where fat-loss and your muscular endurance is concerned. However, being unmindful of some wrong albeit small practices could put you at risk in the long run. They are as follows:

• You do not do the warm-ups. Too tired? Out of time? Regardless of whatever your reason is, remember this: there is no reason good enough to be used as an excuse for skipping warm-ups whenever you do weighttraining. Failing to follow this important rule could result to physical injuries, ranging from minor to severe. The primary purpose of warm-ups is to warm the muscles in order to keep injuries at bay. 

• You are not breathing properly.You might be too focused on doing your reps that you have overlooked the importance of breathing properly. Two significant pointers that you should always keep in mind: breathe properly and employ an entire range of motion as you perform each movement. 

• You are performing your routine way too fast. Going slowly is more advisable when you are lifting and lowering weights. If you find yourself swinging in order to lift weights, it only means that your lifting too much weight.
  

Written By: Maris Modesto

Three More Female Weighttraining Myths Debunked

The disparity between the proverbial muscular physique bodybuilders are known for and that of the curvaceous softness identified with the female form is so pronounced that it comes as no surprise why myths surrounding weighttraining for women abound.  But remember: these are only myths. As a follow up to a previous post discussing the fallacies behind weighttraining for women, here are three more myths debunked.

• Weighttraining stiffens the body. 
  On the contrary, bodybuilding even promotes overall flexibility, particularly when all exercises are performed in their full range of motion. Specific exercises that are identified to stretch the muscle in the bottom range when done correctly are as follows: dumbbell presses, stiff-legged deadlifts, flyes, and chin-ups.

• Weightraining enlarges the breasts.No, it doesn't. But it does expand your back size, resulting to an eventual increase in your cup size. Since breasts are composed primarily of fatty tissue, it's only through gaining fat or getting implants that they could be enlarged. 

• Weightraining transforms fat to muscles.Balderdash! Fat and muscle are two very different tissues. The only way you can rid your body of excess fat is through religious dieting and exercise. Weighttraining, on the other hand, promotes muscle development.
  

Written By: Maris Modesto

What You should Know About Weighttraining

If there is something you should know about weighttraining...

• There is no such thing as an overnight success. Selecting the right program and doing it religiously every day is what would get you through until you achieve the results you want. With this, it is a must that you include your workouts among your top priorities. Performing your routines religiously while ensuring that each one stays efficient for you are the keys to your eventual success.
  
  
• You do not necessarily have to join a gym to get started on weighttraining. The only time you should consider this is when you think you have the needed confidence, time, and money to follow through with their programs. Using basic weight training equipment, start out gradually in the comfort of your own home. After some time, in order to maximize your training, you may continue your workouts in a gym.
  
  
• You can't over do your training. Spending three hours in the gym only promotes overtraining,which could be far more damaging than you think it's beneficial in the long run. Intersperse ample rest time in between workouts. An hour to an hour and a half workouts three to four times weekly is ideal. 

Written By: Maris Modesto

How Exercise Benefits the Aging Process

Exercising works to your advantage even as you age. How? Read on:

• It helps you shed the excess pounds and stay at your healthy weight.
  Since your metabolism is bound to decrease speed as the years creep in, it would be harder for you to lose weight once you have started to age. However, sticking to a regular exercise routine prevents your metabolism's total slow down. Moreover, it develops your muscle mass, meaning that it would be easier for you to lose weight. Also, exercising regularly works to effectively keep you at your healthy weight, hence, keeping the excess pounds off.

• It dulls the potency of illnesses while reducing your risk of acquiring serious chronic ailments.
  You think you are getting too old to keep up with your exercise routine? With all these health benefits of exercise to seniors, it would be unsurprising if you decide to view things from a totally differentiated perspective: stronger immune system, a healthier heart, better bone density, healthier digestive functioning, and a well-regulated blood pressure.

• It helps keep your body young and agile.
  Don't think that exercising ups your accident proneness. On the contrary, it improves your body's overall agility, balance, and posture.

Written By: Maris Modesto

Weight Training and Your Teen

If your teen is interested in strength training, tell him that his goal should never be to bulk up. In fact, sports activities like weightlifting and bodybuilding are not advisable for his age just yet. To keep him safe, take note of these pointers:

• Before you give your teen the go signal, make sure that he gets a thorough consultation with his doctor first.
• Upon getting the doctor's approval, the next move would be to ensure that your teen has everything he needs. See to it that he gets the right supervision and has the proper kinds of safe equipment.
• As a rule, teens should only use light weights to tone their muscles. However, they're advised to have more repetitions. Experts say this works more effectively than lifting heavy weights for only a few reps (1-2).
• Kids in their pre-adolescent stages aren't advised to take up strength training to increase the bulk of their muscles. The only time this should be made part of their goal is after they've passed puberty. And even if they are already eligible for this, using the right method is still the main concern to ensure that they stay safe while doing strength training. 

Written By: Maris Modesto

More Sets=More Benefits?

If done right, the benefits of weight training go a long way. Besides ridding our bodies of that unwanted cellulite, it does a world of wonders in speeding up our metabolism while improving our total muscular endurance and natural body strength. When performed regularly as a part of our daily healthy lifestyle, we can be assured of having a tone, fit, and healthy physique. Although doing regular strength training suffices to provide proper muscle development, some people hold the idea that doing diversified multiple sets ups their benefits all the more. And does it really work?

According to Edward Lawkowski MD in his article in MayoClinic.com, there is hardly any proof backing-up this claim.  Using the right weights, doing a single set of 12 repetitions could develop our strength just as effectively. To maximize our benefits, doing progressive strength training whereby we increase the amount of weights as our strength works to maximize our benefits over time. Besides employing this gradual increase in difficulty as our strength develops, it also helps if we vary the exercises time and time again. The only time doing multiple sets would benefit us is if we are looking to significantly increase our muscle mass.

Written By: Maris Modesto