Upper Body Muscle Imbalances Cause Injuries

Upper body muscle imbalances are almost a certainty with any new client that I get...in other words, the frontside of the upper body is usually much stronger than the backside of the upper body. Why? Because much more time is usually spent strengthening the frontside with exercises like the bench press, ab crunches and bicep curls! This is a big mistake!

Build your back muscles to avoid injuries and keep your upper body in muscular balance. Many of you put too much training time on the frontside of your upper body. Your backside is an important part of your core muscles so don't ignore them!

Seventy to 80% of Americans have back pain (many times low back pain) at some point. The spine also needs to be protected. Here are some common back exercises that I do on a regular basis:

--single arm bentover row or seated row
--pullups or chinups
--back extension or superman back extension
--cobras, planks, superman and bridges
--lat pulldowns
--inverted rows
--deadlift, good mornings and squats

When you don't adequately strengthen your back muscles, you are affecting your pulling potential and risking injury.

Learn how to lose weight the right way and 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!

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Replace Bad Foods With Healthy Foods

Replacing bad foods with healthy foods is critical for your weight loss and fat loss success. Otherwise, you will probably go back to eating those "tasty, fat-filled, calorie-rich foods!"

Don't ruin great workouts by eating bad food with a million calories! Its possible to hide those hard-earned muscles with thick layers of fat! Don't fight against yourself!

Keep your daily food journal to track what, how much and why you are eating! This will help you with portion control.

MAKE THE COMMITMENT TO CHANGE YOUR EATING HABITS AND DON'T "GIVE UP" EVEN IF YOU "GIVE IN" AT TIMES! PERSEVERANCE IS THE KEY TO BEING SUCCESSFUL WITH ANYTHING!

It will be easier to keep your commitment if you plan your meals for the week. And, instead of eating out during the day, pack your food. This will protect you from binge eating and haphazard eating (i.e. grazing).

Here are some common sense do's and don'ts when it comes to the replacement method of eating:

Cut out these types foods: sodas, sugary fruit juice drinks, candy, cookies, donuts, fried meats and fried foods, fast foods, ketchup, mayonnaise

Add these types foods: whole grain breads, whole grain cereals, oatmeal, almonds, nuts, low-fat dairy products, low-fat yogurt, fruits, veggies, unsweetened tea, water, lean meats (baked, broiled or grilled), olive oil, cinnamon, mustard. You get the idea!

The replacement method works when it comes to breaking bad eating habits and starting good eating habits!

Learn how to lose weight the right way and 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!

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30-Minute Friday Circuit Workout

Here is a great little 30-minute Friday circuit workout for you....its been a long week and you just need a workout to energize you for the day, right? This is a great fat-burning workout for you to try....you don't need any weights, medicine balls, resistance tubes or stability balls....just your body!

This workout is a strength and cardio workout so it will save you even more time during your busy day. If you have been doing some heavy weight training this week, this workout can be a good change of pace for you:

--Y bodyweight squats, 12 repetitions, moderate pace
--Plank, 12 repetitions, 10 second hold
--Pushups, 12 repetitions
--Squat jumps, 12 repetitions, fast
--Pullups, 10 repetitions
--Superman, 12 repetitions, 5 second hold
--Do this circuit 3 times.

Do this circuit with little or no rest between exercises. Rest 2 minutes between circuits.

Have a great day!

Learn how to lose weight the right way and 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!

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Eat Right, Feel Better

Eat right and feel better! You've heard me say that it doesn't help you to workout every day if you turn your body into a total wreck---because of overtraining and/or bad eating habits!

Check out this interview of Adam, a My Fitness Hut client, who is using our meal plans:

1. How long have you been eating the My Fitness Hut Meal Plan?

I just started this week.

2. Are you eating the On-The-Go Plan or other plan?

I picked my favorite foods from both plans.

3. What types of food do you eat now?

Yogurt, Tuna sandwiches, Baby carrots, Bananas, Apples, Skim milk, Cereal

4. How did you generally eat before you started the meal plan?

All fast food basically...McChicken sandwiches, Wendy's, Sonic, Pizza Hut

5. Describe how you feel eating the MFH plan vs. the way you used to eat?

After having been used to eating fast food for several weeks, I started the meal plan and I felt like the food was cleaning my body out. The whole digestive process was alot smoother and my energy was regulated throughout the day.

6. Are you spending more or less money eating with the MFH plan?

Less money for sure. I'm a single guy and I went to buy groceries last week for $30 bucks and the food will last me AT LEAST a week.

7. Would you recommend a MFH plan to a friend?

Yeah! You save money.

There you go folks! You don't need any body cleansers---just eat the right foods on a consistent basis! This will help you reach your health and fitness goals!

Learn how to lose weight the right way and 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 »

Eating On The Run

"Eating on the run" doesn't have to be a disaster for your waistline and shapely figure! "Eating on the run" becomes a disaster when you don't plan your meals. Like anything else, just plan healthy "eating on the run" meals if you're "all over the place" on certain days! Some people live their lives "all over the place." For them, they just need to plan to "eat on the run" all the time!

What about the days that unexpectedly "go haywire" and you need to "eat on the run?" One tactic that I use is to have "default foods" when I'm unexpectedly busy and need to eat healthy and quickly. Some of those foods are nuts, popcorn, apples, bananas, grapes, peanut butter sandwich, oatmeal, cereal, etc. I don't even have to think about what to eat, I just choose from the list. Plus, I'm a huge snacker, so eating this way fits me just fine. Find what works for you.

Nuts are high-calorie so be careful to eat about a handful and skip the excess salt. As for fruit, I've never heard of anyone getting fat from eating fruit.

More and more, our culture is "on the run" and just plain "too busy!" We wear it like a badge of honor. I won't open that can of worms! Reach your fitness goals on the run if that's for you!

Learn how to lose weight the right way and 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 »

Be The Biggest Fat Loser

Your goal should be to be the biggest fat loser. Losing huge amounts of weight can be gained back quickly if you don't build muscle mass.

Build muscle, burn fat, speed up your metabolism and lose weight (and keep it off)!

Quick weight loss motivation focuses on pounds lost instead of body fat burned and inches lost. Fat loss is more important than weight loss.

Your motivation needs to be long-term fat loss and weight loss.

You do this by decreasing your body fat and increasing your muscle mass. If you use healthy meal plans and regular exercise, you won't have to worry about regaining the weight (no yo-yo weight gain effect).

Periodically check your body fat percentage. You could be losing inches. You could be burning body fat and losing inches while your weight remains constant. This is a good thing because your body is changing (you would be more lean).

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!

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Fat Burning Cardio Workout

A good fat burning cardio workout is a short and intense cardio workout! Long, slow cardio sessions wastes time and eats away at your muscle mass. Short, intense cardio sessions also burn more fat and calories during and after your workout!

I'm talking about interval cardio sessions that are 20 minutes or less! If your cardio sessions are 45 minutes to 1 hour, stop doing your cardio that way! You will attain more weight loss and fat loss sooner with short, intense cardio sessions.

Here is a great interval cardio session:

--Jump rope, fast, 1 minute
--Walk 1 minute
--Squat-to-Curl-to-Shoulder Press, 10 repetitions, moderate pace
--Walk 1 minute
--Jumping Jacks, fast, 1 minute
--Walk 1 minute
--Step Ups, 10 repetitions each leg, moderate pace
--Walk 1 minute
--Bodyweight Jump Squats, fast, 15 seconds
--Walk 1 minute

Repeat this circuit 1 more time.

If you don't like these types of exercises, then pick exercises that you like. I know that jump squats won't work for those with knee or back problems. As long as you change it up and keep it interesting, you will will make progress!

Learn how to lose weight the right way and 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 »