Tag Archives: exercise tips

I Want to Know How to Keep the Weight Off

I asked and you answered. Today, we’re going to talk about keeping the weight off. In the world of fitness this is called “maintenance” – much like your car – you have to keep up your regular maintenance or you’re going to have problems. Sticking with the car analogy for the moment, let’s say that your car breaks down on the side of the road and you take it to a mechanic. The mechanic looks over the car, runs some diagnostics and fixes you up. Then he tells you that you need to get regular oil changes and tune-ups. Ideally, … Continue reading →

I Asked & You Answered

Yesterday, I asked and you answered. I wanted to know what you wanted to know and here’s what I found out: I want to know how to keep the weight off I want to know how to stick to a workout program I want to know how to build my own exercise program I want to know how to get the most out of a workout I want to know how to like working out I want to know how to exercise without hating every moment of it That’s just a sampling of the responses that I received from different … Continue reading →

The Fitness Blog Week in Review for July 23 – July 27

This has been a crazy week here and I’ll be filling in some details in later blogs, but let’s take a quick look at our week in review for the fitness blog as we close in on the end of July. Monday, July 23 Q is for Questions and we all have fitness questions. The best resources for getting your questions answered include your personal trainer, your physician and other fitness resources including Dear Heather. Tuesday, July 24 Fitness Journal – Stressing Your Pedometer is a great way to get an accurate read on how many steps you take in … Continue reading →

M is for Muscles

Your body has three different types of muscles. It’s important to understand a little about your own physiology when it comes to exercising properly and building a fitness program. The first type of muscle is called skeletal muscle or voluntary muscles. Tendons anchor these muscles to the bones and they are important for the control of locomotion and posture. Despite being called voluntary muscles, this control is often maintained as a reflex rather than something you have to think about doing. You can, however, exert some influence over them – such as when you consciously sit up straighter in the … Continue reading →

L is for Ladies

Ladies fitness is its own multimillion dollar fitness industry – after all, women comprise more than 50% of the population and women tend to be more aware of the differences in their bodies than men do. That being said, it should hardly be surprising that there are a lot of ladies only fitness centers that target this demographic with specialized exercises and exercise programs. Curves for Women Chief among these fitness centers is Curves for Women. I reviewed the Curves experience in January of 2006 when I was first starting out here in the fitness blog. Curves for Women offers … Continue reading →

K is for Kicks

Why kick boxing? Isn’t that a sport where people beat each other up? Well, yes – but in fitness, kick boxing has become the all the rage. It’s a great way to build your flexibility, increase your stamina and strength train while at the same time enjoying your favorite dance music. The origins of kick boxing date back more than 2,000 years, but it’s only become the competitive sport in the United States in the last thirty years. Cardio kick boxing has become incredibly popular just this century with the advent of cardio kick boxing classes at gyms, YMCAs and … Continue reading →

F is for Fitness

We talk about fitness a great deal here in the fitness blog, but we don’t always talk about what fitness is – exactly. Do you know what physical fitness is? Ultimately, it means a couple of things that are similar, but not altogether the same. First and foremost, physical fitness refers to the general state of your personal fitness – this includes your mental, emotional and physical fitness. There is also fitness that is specific – based on specific training to accomplish a specific task. For example, a dancer who trains to perform a specific routine is still engaging in … Continue reading →

E is for Energy

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Calories are a unit of energy that provides fuel for your body and that we consume in our food. Calories are things we count and things we burn – but what we need them for is pure and simple: energy. The human body gets energy from two major sources: food and sleep. If you don’t eat properly, chances are you sleep a great deal. You can generate a false sense of energy from drinking caffeine or eating sugary products – but that energy is often short-lived and the crash is considerable afterwards. Outside of eating and sleeping, exercise is the … Continue reading →

B is for Bad Form

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We talked about A is for Abdominals a couple of days ago and today, we’re going to talk about Bad Form. Bad form happens when we’re in a rush. You know what it’s like to rush around, you have a dozen errands to do and you may only have 30 minutes to hit the gym while your son or daughter is at their dance class or other activity. When we rush things and we try to squeeze too many activities into too little time, we make mistakes. B is for bad form because when we use bad form, we are … Continue reading →

Hump Day Hesitations & The 4th of July

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Let me preface this by saying Happy 4th of July to all our American readers and visitors. For everyone else, good morning. Wednesdays are a particularly tough day for a fitness program, why? Because Wednesdays are a particularly tough day for anything. It’s hump day. It’s the middle of the week and that means you are either still caught up in the doldrums of the Monday lag or your eye is firmly on Friday and you don’t want to think about today. Keep Your Fitness Thoughts on Today You need to practice focusing on your day to day work and … Continue reading →