Lose Weight With Vertical Jumps

If you're trying to burn fat and lose weight, vertical jumps (and like exercises) will help you burn fat and sculpt your lower body! You will also begin to lose more weight as your body changes and your metabolism speeds up (with weight training and high intensity exercises/cardio).



See various jump exercises on Speed Camp Youtube video!

Vertical jumps will burn more fat because they are very intense! Shorten and intensify your workouts with jump training (plyometrics)! Plyometric workouts also burn more fat and calories during and after your workout! Just do 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions at full speed! Jump as high and fast as you can and jump on a soft surface like rubber or grass to protect your knees against injury.

If you're having trouble sculpting your butt, hips and thighs then you need to do more jump training.

Jump training workouts are advanced workouts. You need to perfect jumping and landing techniques or you will injure yourself. And, if you have knee and low back problems, high-speed vertical jumps are not for you.

If you need to know how to lose weight the right way, get My Fitness Hut's 7-Day Weight Loss And Fat Loss e-Course! The e-Course is FREE!

"Exercise is not my life.....exercise makes my life better!"

Check out my other great blogs:

Her Fitness Hut Blog Her Fitness Hut is featured on EmpowHER, a great health issues website for women! Her Fitness Hut has also been named in the Top 50 Personal Training Blogs by Physical Therapy Assistant Schools!

Sports Fitness Hut Blog has been recognized by Stanford University Wellsphere as the #1 Sports Fitness Blog and NursingDegree.net as one of the Best 100 Health and Nutrition Blogs for Athletes! The blog has also been named as one of the "50 Best Sports Medicine Blogs by Masters In Healthcare! It is an honor to be recognized by those in the health and academic fields! Afterall, health is number one for everybody---including athletes!

Read more »

Bentover Dumbbell Rows Burn Back Fat, Build Muscle

If you're trying to build up back muscles and burn back fat, bentover dumbbells rows should be in your routine. Bentover dumbbell rows allow you to work your lats using heavier weights. Your lower back will be worked more if you row with both arms at the same time. You will also work your obliques in the process.



See Dumbbell Rows on Speed Camp Youtube video!

If you experience back pain doing two-armed rows, then try doing one-armed rows so you can support your body with the other arm.

Do two-armed bentover dumbbell rows this way:

1. With your feet about shoulder width apart, bend over and grab the dumbbells. Keep your back straight (don't bow or arch back) and keep your head in line with your torso. Look straight down during the exercise.

2. Pull dumbbells up to your side until they make contact with your ribs. Keep your elbows close to your side during the exercise. As you pull the dumbbells up, squeeze your shoulder blades together.

3. Don't curl the dumbbells as you lift. Curling will allow too much use of your biceps. This is primarily a back exercise. Return the dumbbells until your arms are fully extended. That is one repetition.

Build your back muscles and burn fat at the same time with bentover dumbbell rows.

If you need to know how to lose weight the right way, get My Fitness Hut's 7-Day Weight Loss And Fat Loss e-Course! The e-Course is FREE!

"Exercise is not my life.....exercise makes my life better!"

Check out my other great blogs:

Her Fitness Hut Blog Her Fitness Hut is featured on EmpowHER, a great health issues website for women! Her Fitness Hut has also been named in the Top 50 Personal Training Blogs by Physical Therapy Assistant Schools!

Sports Fitness Hut Blog has been recognized by Stanford University Wellsphere as the #1 Sports Fitness Blog and NursingDegree.net as one of the Best 100 Health and Nutrition Blogs for Athletes! The blog has also been named as one of the "50 Best Sports Medicine Blogs by Masters In Healthcare! It is an honor to be recognized by those in the health and academic fields! Afterall, health is number one for everybody---including athletes!

Read more »

Tone Hips With One-Legged Exercises

Train more with one-legged (unilateral) exercises to better tone your hips. The muscles that move your hip joint (mainly gluteus medius) are activated more with one-legged exercises. Many running injuries can also be traced to a weak gluteus medius.



Sometimes, too much focus is placed on two-legged (bilateral) exercises. These two-legged exercises, like squats, are needed in your exercise program. But one-legged exercises improve your muscular balance in each leg. Having dynamic balance means that you are able to maintain your center of gravity over a constantly changing base of support. You cannot have dynamic balance without muscular balance.

To achieve muscular balance in your lower body, one-legged exercises should be a big part of your training program. These one-legged exercises can be performed as strengh or power (full speed) exercises.

One lower body exercise that should be in your program is one-legged step ups with knee lift (pictured above). This exercise is done one leg at a time to force each leg to work evenly. For example, you would do 10 repetitions with your right leg and then 10 repetitions with your left leg.

The hanging leg should not touch the bench and you should lower your body under control. This exercise can also be done with dumbbells to increase difficulty. Other good one-legged exercises would be squats and lunges. Add more one-legged exercises to your training program to better tone your hips.

If you need to know how to lose weight the right way, get My Fitness Hut's 7-Day Weight Loss And Fat Loss e-Course! The e-Course is FREE!

"Exercise is not my life.....exercise makes my life better!"

Check out my other great blogs:

Her Fitness Hut Blog Her Fitness Hut is featured on EmpowHER, a great health issues website for women! Her Fitness Hut has also been named in the Top 50 Personal Training Blogs by Physical Therapy Assistant Schools!

Sports Fitness Hut Blog has been recognized by Stanford University Wellsphere as the #1 Sports Fitness Blog and NursingDegree.net as one of the Best 100 Health and Nutrition Blogs for Athletes! The blog has also been named as one of the "50 Best Sports Medicine Blogs by Masters In Healthcare! It is an honor to be recognized by those in the health and academic fields! Afterall, health is number one for everybody---including athletes!

Read more »

Cross Body Mountain Climbers Work Abs Hard

You need to add cross body mountain climbers to your ab exercise routine. This exercise will build strength and help tone your "six pack" and obliques. Cross body mountain climbers also work the calves, quadriceps, glutes, back, chest, triceps and shoulders. You will need high levels of core strength to do this exercise the right way for each set.





1. Start by getting in the push up position with your arms fully extended. Keep your hips and torso in a straight line. Don't let your hips sag and don't point your butt in the air during this exercise.

2. Do the exercise by moving your left knee straight up and across your body to the right armpit area (keep your abs braced). Also, don't let your foot touch the ground as you do the movement. Move your left leg back to the starting position and repeat with your right leg. Alternate your leg movements until you have completed all repetitions.

If you are doing the mountain climber exercise then just add on the cross body mountain climber!

Get FREE Training and Nutrition Insider Secrets for a Lean-Body with Six Pack Abs! This ebook, created by Certified Nutrition Specialist & Certified Personal Trainer, Mike Geary, details over 27 specific metabolism-boosting secrets that you can use to strip off your stubborn body fat faster and easier and get your six-pack abs! Contains unique workout methods and nutritional strategies to slash body fat and take your body to a whole new level of leanness. Get Your FREE Book Now!

Read more »

Lack of Vitamin D Weakens and Injures Muscles

Because of injuries in the springtime, I missed six Boston Marathons back in the 1960s. It wasn't until 40 years later that I found the cause: my vitamin D3 blood level was 20 nmol/l (normal is greater than 75 nmol/L, equal to 30 ng/ml). Recently I moved to Florida and have been relatively injury free for the first time in my life. I now know that people genetically susceptible to vitamin D deficiency are the ones most likely to suffer muscle weakness, injuries and poor athletic performance. Many exercisers and even competitive athletes are vitamin D deficient even if they live in the sunbelt. I believe that sunlight offers benefits that cannot be obtained just by taking vitamin D pills.

Vitamin D acts directly on specific receptors in muscles to make them stronger and prevent injury (Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, April 2010). As people age, they become increasingly susceptible to muscle weakness and falls caused by lack of vitamin D. Muscles are made of thousands of individual fibers that are classified into two types: slow twitch fibers that govern endurance, and fast twitch fibers that govern primarily strength and speed. Vitamin D specifically maintains the function of the fast twitch strength fibers. A review of the world's literature showed that lack of vitamin D is associated with muscle weakness in older people (Molecular Aspects of Medicine, June 2005). With aging, you lose muscle fibers. For example, the vastus medialis muscle in the front of the upper leg has 800,000 fibers in a 20 year old, but only 250,000 in a 60 year old. Vitamin D slows this loss of muscle fibers, preserves muscle strength and helps to prevent falls, while lack of vitamin D increases loss of fibers, muscle weakness and falls (Pediatric Clinics of North America, June 2010).

If you suffer muscle weakness, pain or injuries:
• Check your vitamin D3 level. That is the only available dependable test. If it is below 75 nmol/L (30 ng/ml), you are deficient.
• You can try taking vitamin D3 at a dose of at least 2000 IU/day for a month.
• If that does not bring your D3 level to normal, you can check with your doctor about taking higher doses.
• A certain percentage of people will have their vitamin D3 levels go above a normal 75 nmol/L and still suffer from muscle weakness, fatigue, pain and injuries.
• These people may benefit from exposure to sunlight.
• Since skin cancer is caused by cumulative exposure to sunlight over a lifetime, you should restrict exposure to sunlight on your head, face, top of ears, arms and hands.
• Try exposing your legs and bathing trunk areas. Be careful to avoid sunburn.
• Start at low exposures of less than a couple of minutes and work up gradually. You cannot tell that you have suffered a sunburn until the next day when your skin will burn, itch and perhaps blister.

Read more »

Shape Glutes With Marching Bridge Exercise

I know you are always looking for exercises to shape your glutes better. Glute muscles are like any other muscle group. You must consistently train your glute muscles if you want to see improvements in how your butt, hips and thighs look.





Use the marching bridge exercise to shape your glutes and stabilize your core. The marching bridge will also strengthen your lower back. Many people develop low back problems because too little time is spent strengthening the muscles of the lower back.

1. Start by lying on your back with your knees bent and your hands by your sides.

2. Lift your body off the ground into a straight line and brace your torso (like taking a punch to the gut). Don't let your body sag.

3. Lift your right leg, contract your glute and hold for 3 seconds. Lower your leg and do the same with your left leg. That's one repetition. Do 8-10 repetitions.

Other great core exercises that will strengthen your lower back muscles are cobras, stability ball plank, supermans and back extensions.

Don't neglect to strengthen your lower back muscles! You will pay with pain and injuries if you ignore training your lower back!

If you need to know how to lose weight the right way, get My Fitness Hut's 7-Day Weight Loss And Fat Loss e-Course! The e-Course is FREE!

"Exercise is not my life.....exercise makes my life better!"

Check out my other great blogs:

Her Fitness Hut Blog Her Fitness Hut is featured on EmpowHER, a great health issues website for women! Her Fitness Hut has also been named in the Top 50 Personal Training Blogs by Physical Therapy Assistant Schools!

Sports Fitness Hut Blog has been recognized by Stanford University Wellsphere as the #1 Sports Fitness Blog and NursingDegree.net as one of the Best 100 Health and Nutrition Blogs for Athletes! The blog has also been named as one of the "50 Best Sports Medicine Blogs by Masters In Healthcare! It is an honor to be recognized by those in the health and academic fields! Afterall, health is number one for everybody---including athletes!

Read more »

Burn Fat With Athletic Workouts

Athletic workouts will burn fat from your body sooner. If you need to ramp up the intensity and break through your weight loss plateau, athletic workouts will work.



Athletic workouts are very intense and will improve your body's composition (fat loss, more muscle). These workouts will sculpt your body without your joints taking a pounding from lifting heavy weights!

To get your muscles to improve power (how fast your muscles can produce force), do some or all of the exercises full speed. Also, you will really burn fat and shape your bulkier, fast twitch muscle fibers when doing exercises at full speed!

Athletic circuit workouts are a tried and true method to burn more fat, increase strength/endurance and improve heart health.

Do each exercise (10 repetitions) one after the other with little or no rest between exercises. Rest 2-3 minutes and do the circuit 2 more times. Here is a good athletic workout:

--Bodyweight squats, moderate pace
--Side shuffles (pictured above), full speed
--Pushups, full speed
--Walking lunges/Side Lunges/Tranverse Lunges, moderate pace (one for each circuit)
--2-Handed medicine ball chest pass, full speed
--Squat jumps, full speed
--Back extensions, moderate pace

Use correct form and get after it!

Get FREE Training and Nutrition Insider Secrets for a Lean-Body with Six Pack Abs! This ebook, created by Certified Nutrition Specialist & Certified Personal Trainer, Mike Geary, details over 27 specific metabolism-boosting secrets that you can use to strip off your stubborn body fat faster and easier and get your six-pack abs! Contains unique workout methods and nutritional strategies to slash body fat and take your body to a whole new level of leanness. Get Your FREE Book Now!

Read more »