Exercise Machines
Published April 16, 2011 | 
Leg and lower body simulators.
All the simulators, which require too much effort to install or use, or are too boring, or unattractive, or do not allow to receive health benefits for less than 30 minutes of continuous work – are not good for home workouts.
Judge for yourself: if you have too little room in the house, you are likely to experience discomfort of a large unit, who took half of the bedroom, you will feel a constant desire to fold it or cover with something.
If your training takes too much emphasis and lasts too long and continuously, it will be hard to carve out this time and avoid interfering with your households. That is why it is useful to know the advantages and disadvantages of some models and, eventually, select the best.
1. Treadmill.
The dimensions of the simulator of a treadmill type, is usually too big to be inconspicuous in your home. I cannot deny that in the harsh regions of the North (in one of which I’ve been living for 10 years) the possibility of a run in the evening and remain without a sore throat is very attractive. The problem is only in the fact that not everyone likes to do it every day. The experience has shown that exercises on a treadmill for a person who is not a fan of running are very boring.
Even if there is a TV in front of you, this is the best option. It is better to train with a cheerful music, which will allow you to enter into the regime of running and maintain it for a long time on one load level. It should be noted that out of 6 treadmills that I have seen in the apartments all 6 were mainly used as a convenient hanger. Naturally, this indicates dissatisfaction with the workouts and the size of this simulator, since as a hanger it is too expensive. In addition, while running the load on the knee joints is very high, this you should know in advance.
A running simulator takes a lot of space and it is most convenient to hang clothes on it. Unless you do this, then someone from your households can do it. Then you “forget” it and abort the workouts – in most cases, it happens like this. A treadmill is worse than a bike stimulator in size and price, but better as a hanger. The cost of the simulator is of $ 500, depending on the manufacturer.
2. Elliptical Stimulator.
This option is a hybrid of a treadmill and a stepper uses a more natural trajectory of the feet movement – the elliptical one. Equipped with the levers for hands, this machine provides you with the load on your back muscles and arms in addition to the legs.
The overall impression of the simulator is a positive one. However, it was not so easy to catch the footrest. Eventually, of course, it will pass, but nonetheless.
The size of the elliptical trainer is much smaller than the one of a treadmill and is closer the bike in compactness. It gives a great load on the muscles and the return in the knees is not so big. It is more interesting to train here than on a treadmill, due to the fact that your hand are also involved in the process. The cost is about $ 350.
The Myths of the gym
Published April 16, 2011 | There is an opinion that gym is not a lady’s job. The desire for femininity is firmly holding the fair sex from exercises with weights.
Myth 1. IN THE GYM ONE CAN PUMP TO THE TERMINATOR’S DIMENSIONS
Of course you can. But, fortunately for women and, unfortunately, for professional athletes, it is not so easy to sculpt such muscles as of Schwarzenegger. They do not appear just because of the fact that you lift for 15 times a dumbbell weighing 3 kg. If you knew how much effort, time and money is spent to increase the muscle mass of such size, the type that throws you in hot and cold! In addition, the very nature simply will not allow a woman’s body to become masculine. Muscles grow due to the presence of the male hormone testosterone, which is also present in the body of the weaker sex. But its quantity is so small that is enough only to create a beautiful sports shape. And if you’re going to conquer the summit of bodybuilding – you’ll have to use the male hormones. In addition, the female skeleton is more subtle and is not able to retain a huge muscle mass and therefore without additional stimulation in the form of special drugs your body will simply not allow to create them. In addition, the trainings aimed to increase the volume (muscle) and the burning of the excess fat are very different – as well as the lifted weight and the exercise technique. Take, for example, bodybuilding and powerlifting: in that and the other athletes are working with heavy weights, but if in the first everything is aimed at increasing the muscle mass, creation of necessary proportions, the main goal of the second is to lift more kilograms than the opponent.
Myth 2. I WILL LOSE FLEXIBILITY
A woman is associated with a cat: plastic motion, soft gait and graceful posture. The fear of losing it all is unjustified. Have you ever seen the performances of the fitness-women? Incidentally, most of them in the past were gymnasts. Trainings in the gym did not make them “wooden”, and therefore you are not to be threatened. Especially if you do not forget to perform stretching exercises at the end of the workout and after the strength load. On the contrary, the strengthened back muscles will align your posture, will remove the bulging bony spine and will straighten the shoulders. And the worked prelum will allow wearing short tops, keeping the tucked up belly, and after the childbirth – to restore the maiden shape a lot faster.
Myth 3. WORK WITH “IRON” DAMAGES YOUR HEALTH
Damaged joints, back problems, fractures and other unpleasant consequences can happen in any sport. Being thirty, some sportsmen do not have such a space that was not injured at least once. The same situation is with professional dancers, ballet dancers, skaters, etc. In the amateur medium, however, injuries occur mainly due to the improper technique of the exercises or ordinary negligence. Doing aerobics I’ve sprained my leg or during martial arts I’ve mistimed my blow and broke the opponent’s nose. Though such troubles await us time and again, even in our everyday life. That is why, in the gym, as well as elsewhere, it is necessary to comply with the safety rules:
first, warm up before the strength training;
secondly, before grasping the weight, try to examine the technique of the exercises without weight.
“Pregnant” fitness
Published April 16, 2011 | Today Fitness is fashionable. And what is it in reality? If in very short, it is a complex of exercises aimed at reviving the body and maintaining good physical shape. Every woman dreams of a good shape, excellent well-being and good health. And, of course, it is not to be forgotten during pregnancy.
It’s time to start fitness even if you’ve never visited any health clubs, fitness centers, then why not use your new state for the benefit, why not take care of yourself during pregnancy? This will give you great pleasure, add health and will certainly help in the childbirth. Because there is nothing more precious than your health and, consequently, the health of your unborn baby.
Simple exercises are advised to all women with the uncomplicated pregnancy. The obstetric practice proves that physical inactivity (sedentary lifestyle) is detrimental to pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum. Ii can result in strengthened toxemia, weakness of childbirth and reduction of the daily doses of milk.
The effects of inactivity can be avoided if the workload is organized correctly, in particular – physical exercises. Any fitness exercises are selected with the obligatory account of individual characteristics. During pregnancy, women gain weight this fact should be considered, as it increases the load on the heart and the musculoskeletal system.
The exercises should be aimed at strengthening and improving the elasticity of the muscle groups involved in the birth process as well as the back muscles and the chest ones. Today, virtually any “self respecting” fitness center offers the exercise program for pregnant women. Do not forget that all the loads must be carefully calculated, and, therefore, in search of the “pregnant fitness” it is better go to those clubs, that have developed special programs for women in “interesting” situation.
In order that the problem of choice was not longer a problem, you just need to consult a doctor who oversees the course of your pregnancy, to find the best health club and start training.
Physical exercises help your child to “fight” with hypoxia (oxygen deficiency) as during the exercises increases the lungs ventilation, and hence the amount of oxygen in the blood, which will be received by your baby. And this is so important in our modern urban life!
Exercises for the pectoral muscle groups help the future mother to keep the breast shape and to prepare it for a good full lactation (milk production) and harmonious and proper load on the muscles of the perineum and pelvis, will directly prepare your body for future childbirth.
Children to be born healthy, mothers to remain beautiful
The “Pregnant fitness” is designed not only to preserve health and beauty of any mother and future child, but also to prepare each of them to the childbirth. To do this they need:
Start aqua gymnastics, where exercises are designed for stretching, strengthening and relaxing of various muscle groups, proper breathing, decrease stress on the spine;
carefully study and daily practice the breathing exercises, whose many techniques will help to ease pain during the contractions and do the work of the birthing-mother during the bearing-down period the most successful.