Feed Your Muscles And Get Lean

If you want to build muscle, burn fat and get lean then feed your muscles before your weight training workout......you will need energy for your workout and you want to continually provide nutrients to build muscle on your body.....

Pre-workout nutrition should mainly include carbohydrates and proteins. If you haven't eaten properly, a protein shake will work in a pinch.....

Your body depends heavily on fuel from carbohydrates (glycogen) for energy during an intense weight training workout. Eating fruits, vegetables, smoothies, etc. 1-2 hours before a workout will build up your glycogen stores. I ALWAYS PREFER TO GET MY NUTRITION FROM FOOD...BESIDES, SUPPLEMENTS AND DRINKS ARE EXPENSIVE AND MANY OF THEM DON'T WORK!

If you are a protein shake type of person, research has shown the effectiveness of pre-workout protein drinks (such as whey and casein). These drinks will make enough amino acids available to take advantage of the increased blood flow to your working muscles. Also, your muscles get 2 times as much benefit from a pre-workout protein drink compared to having just a post-workout protein drink.

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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Combining Yoga And Weight Training

Combining yoga and weight training can have mental, emotional and physical benefits. If you've been thinking about taking a yoga class, go right ahead. You need to learn to do yoga correctly to get maximum benefits.

According to a study commissioned by the American College of Sports Medicine, combining yoga and weight training helps you with anxiety, tension, energy and fatigue. Weight training helped most with producing positive moods. Yoga provided the most benefits with anxiety reduction and calmness. Of course, weight training also provides other physical benefits such as improved strength, bone density and metabolic health.

Personally, I don't practice yoga. But, I am for any activity that promotes health and fitness. If you're looking for ways to enhance your fitness and well-being, disciplines such as yoga and pilates are great alternatives. Its important to learn these disciplines (both mental and physical) to reap the benefits.

Yoga and pilates also have strength benefits, especially in how they improve core strength and flexibility. There are many different disciplines of both yoga and pilates so it is important to find the particular one that best suits 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!

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Does Late Night Eating Cause Weight Gain?

Late night eating can add unwanted pounds to your physique---depending on how much you eat during the entire day! Late night eating will not, in and of itself, automatically make you gain weight.

If you consistently eat more calories than you burn (caloric surplus), you will consistently gain weight and add on body fat, no matter when you eat.

If you do eat a late night dinner, think about what you have already eaten that day. This will help you stay on track with your daily caloric intake goals. So, high-fat fast food is probably not a good idea for your late night dinner! The same goes for late night snacks---it all adds up, no matter when you eat it. If you like sugary snacks, the calories can add up fast and get out of control!

Personally, I will usually eat a light late night dinner (if I happen to eat late) like tuna and a salad. And, a late night snack will be something like popcorn, nuts or fruit. For me, its easier to sleep on a "light stomach."

You should know how many calories you need each day. Start by learning your basal metabolic rate (how many calories you would burn if you did nothing all day). You must maintain a daily caloric deficit in order to lose weight and burn fat. If you exercise regularly, it will be easier for you to achieve your caloric deficit.

Keep track of how much you eat during the day, whether its early eating or late night eating! Doing this will help you control your weight gain.

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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Gym Class Wallflower To Fitness Enthusiast

"I Was A Gym Class Wallflower" is an article contributed by Heather Dugan, my good friend, voice-over talent, fitness enthusiast and professional traveler:

It’s true. Pressed against the cafeteria wall, hoping to camouflage my lack of athletic experience and skill as blasé disinterest–that was me. This surprises all those who missed my mandatory sixth grade gymnastics routine–heavy on dramatic spins and arm flourishes that did little to hide the fact that my abilities were limited to somersaults, ballet-style cartwheels and half of a back walk-over (as I recall it, half of my three minute routine was spent ineffectively attempting to kick my way back out of a backbend…riveting humiliation when viewed on a TV monitor outside the cafeteria during the high traffic lunch hour!).

I’m a fairly fit 40-something now, but the truth is, I sort of stumbled into personal fitness.

My first foray into team sports came my senior year of high school. Lacrosse. How good was I? Good enough to be my coach’s gift to an opposing team when they were short a couple of players for our game. My team won–that is, the team I arrived with, not the team I guest-played for, but I chose to call it a victory. And it was. I’d shown up and put my feet on the field.

I began running towards the end of college, primarily for the opportunity it provided my friends and I to pass a local fraternity on a regular basis. Running didn’t require great amounts of coordination (right left, right left… I could do that), and once I got past the whole “do I look silly” question, I found I enjoyed it.

The running habit stuck. My folks didn’t really know what to make of it when I returned home for summer break. We’d hiked and biked in the course of our travels, but with a regular exercise routine, I’d now swung far out of “normal” for my family. I kept at it anyways, because I was already noticing some remarkable benefits: less stress, more confidence, focused “thinking time” -and best of all, my “skinny” body now had runner’s legs.

Above the waist, however, I had the same willowy rag doll physique I’d always had. It lacked a certain something, but I just didn’t know what. Yet…

Years later, after prolonged manual labor on a landscaping project followed by an unfortunate stint on crutches, a neighbor commented favorably on my muscular “definition.” I confess that I had no idea what she meant. I looked in the mirror that evening, however, and discovered that I’d somehow grown baby arm muscles. I made an instant connection between my recent increases in strength and energy and decided to keep them.

Worth noting: These new muscles were “born” in my very late 30s making them younger than my three children! In the beginning, it was as simple as incorporating a few push-ups and crunches into my mornings. I advanced to trying pull-ups and chin-ups at playgrounds while playing with my kids. My method was simply to try and do at least as much as I did the last time. Nothing set in stone, but it became another positive habit to build upon. Eventually, I added free weights and began looking at how to further improve-rather than simply maintain, my accidental fitness. My “stumble” into physical fitness had taken me to a good place, and I was hooked.

That’s it! I use a gym now and find that the variety helps me keep my work-outs fresh and interesting. I lack the time for perfection but surge ahead on the theory that something is always better than nothing at all. I view my gym and outdoor running time as 1) my best investments in my future health, and 2) a sure way to keep positive about the present!

So, when a young lady stopped me at the gym last week to ask what I did and if she was too late, I smiled. I told her that she was so far ahead of me already and gave her the basics of my routine along with a couple words of encouragement.

We’re all made so differently, and the same regimens will look completely different on the bodies of two different women. But, we can all do something to maximize what we’ve been given.

And confidentially, it’s much more fun to be out on the gym floor than leaning against a padded wall. Take if from a former wallflower.

Read more from Heather Dugan!

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Drink Fewer Calories, Lose More Weight

Drink fewer calories and lose more weight by eating most of your calories! One quick way to "blow a hole" through your meal plan is to drink too many empty calories contained in drinks like sodas, sugared fruit juices and designer coffees. These are empty calories because they do very little to keep you full (satiety) and you end up eating more!

A 12-ounce can of soda has as much as 13 teaspoons of sugar in the form of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). If HFCS is the first or second ingredient listed, the product is heavily "laced" with HFCS. Nutritionists point to HFCS consumption as a major player in the nation's obesity crisis (the fact that we eat it is the real problem).

Foods that contain protein or fiber are examples of what you should eat to keep you fuller for longer. Doing this should help you eat fewer calories during the day. Choose drinks like water, unsweetened tea or low-fat milk.

You will slow down your fat loss and weight loss efforts by dehydrating your body. Drinking enough water will also help to control your hunger and flush toxins from your body. Aim to drink about half your weight in water every day. Foods and drinks with water would count as water consumed.

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 »

Your Appendix is Not Useless

You may have had your appendix removed because doctors believed that it was a useless vestigial organ. Now researchers have found that it serves as a storage tank for healthful germs that live in your intestines. These good bacteria help to break down food so you can absorb its nutrients. They also prime your immune system to recognize harmful germs and prevent them from invading your body, prevent your immune system from attacking your own body to cause auto-immune disease, and produce immune factors that may prevent colon cancer (Microbiology, February 9, 2009).

When you have diarrhea, bad bacteria can remove the good bacteria in the intestines and colon. A study from Duke University shows that the bad bacteria cannot dislodge the good bacteria from the appendix because its inner lining is covered with a thicker and far more potent biofilm (a layer of bacteria, mucous and immune system cells) than is found in the intestines (Journal of Evolutionary Biology, August 2009). No matter how severe the diarrhea or how extensively the bad bacteria drive out the good bacteria from the intestines, the good bacteria persist in the appendix and eventually re-colonize the rest of the intestines. More on good bacteria

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Bodyweight Exercise At Home

Doing bodyweight exercises at home is one of the most convenient ways to stay fit! A 20-30 minute bodyweight workout doubles as a strength and cardio workout. And, you don't have to waste time going to and from a gym!

Doing compound bodyweight strength exercises will "lean out" your body. These types of exercises work major muscle groups and many times are full-body strength exercises. Squats, pullups, lunges, bentover rows, inverted rows and pushups are great examples. Full-body core exercises like planks and side planks work well also. Spend less time posing on "mirror exercises" like bicep curls, calf raises and tricep extensions.



My friends at Ultimate Body Press have products that will help you tone your body with bodyweight exercises.

Ultimate Body Press has everything you need for high intensity, body weight resistance workouts in the smallest of spaces.

Your workouts will be rewarding and fun because each exercise engages multiple muscle groups and critical core muscles. You will look better, feel better and perform better than you ever have before.

Ultimate Body Press delivers strength and fitness to you in the most convenient and affordable packages. They also have secret speed and agility exercises that give you more variety, more fun and even better results.

Check out Ultimate Body Press and get fit at home!

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