Posts tagged weight loss

Rambling

Feb 22nd

Posted by Funkster in Hints and Tips

1 comment

If you’re new to exercise or want to increase your fitness in an easy way by getting fresh air and walking with friends then rambling may be the sport for you. Rambling is very similar to hiking, although poles are usually used with hiking for the steep hills. Rambling is perfect for people of all ages and is walking on country paths. Working out in fresh air vs. the gym has many benefits.

  • Combats Depression – Fresh air clears the mind and helps those who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), and it also helps sufferers of depression. Natural daylight also provides the skin with Vitamin D, which is wonderful for boosting the nervous system and banishing negative thoughts. Vitamin D also helps the body to absorb calcium, so it helps joint health and prevents age related diseases like osteoarthritis and brittle bone disease.
  • Regular rambling will increase fitness –  The heart will grow larger and the resting heart rate will be a lot slower  (a good sign of fitness).
  • Weight loss – Rambling will increase the metabolism if performed regularly. As we grow older, the body naturally needs less calories and muscle tissue breaks down therefore reducing the body’s basal metabolic rate. A good way to increase the metabolic rate over the long term is to participate in weight bearing exercises, such as rambling. The changes may be slight but you will definitely feel better in yourself.
  • Protect your joints – It is important when you undertake any form of exercise to protect the leg joints so make sure that you buy a good pair of walking boots that have a good grip but are also light so that you can carry on with the sport for hours.

A few things to consider with rambling is the countryside codes.  Some areas may be private so be well aware.

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Muscle vs. Fat

Feb 6th

Posted by Funkster in Diet and Nutrition

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What is important to remember when you are undertaking any exercise or weight loss programme is that if you perform weight training, you WILL put on weight. If you’re obsessed with weighing yourself, this isn’t going to help you one bit and can lead you off the right path onto the wrong.

Instead, get rid of the scales and let your clothes tell the truth. I always know when I’ve lost weight because my clothes are loose. The scales always show me at the same weight or more but I do a lot of weight training.

The reason I state this is because muscle does weigh more than fat, so obviously if you are doing regular weight training the muscle gain will show up on the scale. This can make some people panic but remember muscle is your best friend and will help to burn off the fat over the long term. It may not be overnight but you will certainly look leaner if you keep up weight training.

Another myth that most people worry about with weight training is that they will bulk up to look like Arnie. Even if you start with light weights and perform 20-30 reps, you will start to build muscle. To burn serious fat, try to increase the weights every week. The more weight you can squat or press, the more leaner your muscles will become. Avoid pyramid training which use heavy weights and you’ll be fine. I would highly recommend Body Pump. It is tough but work on building your mental strength to perform weight training.

Even today I weighed myself and I usually never do. Twelve stone. I am lean but I perform a boxing training, body pump, spinning, and skipping over the week so my metabolism is high. Another great thing you must know about weight training is that it will burn still be burning off fat for up to 48 hours afterward. Cardio may burn it for up to 2-3 hours afterward so how cool would it be to burn fat through the night.

Remember to eat lots of protein to fuel the additional muscle.

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Tips to get Killer Abs

Jan 21st

Posted by Funkster in Hints and Tips

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We all have beautiful killer abs inside us. It is only because fat covers the muscles that we do not see them. It is pretty simple. Lose weight and  improve muscle tone equals weight loss. What many people seem to think is that starvation diets will help them to lose weight or thousands of crunches will burn off fat around the stomach. This is a myth!

In order to shed weight and show off those killer abs, it is important to carry out both aerobic and anaerobic training. Aerobic training may be cycling, walking, rowing, skipping, running etc. Anaerobic training can take advantage of body weight training ie. sit-ups, pressups etc, weighted machines like the leg press and chest press, or free weight training, which involves using the core muscles and specific weights to tone areas of the body. Free weight training is a lot more effective than weighted machines but this kind of training may cause an injury if the exercises are not performed correctly.

Remember that muscle tissue does weigh more than fat so if your weight increases slightly and you have made no changes to the diet, this may be because you have gained muscle tissue. This is good because, over time, it will get rid of fat and shrink the cells. Although your weight may stay the same your body will look leaner because the body is burning many more calories per day and at rest.

If you are serious about getting killer abs, both weight training and aerobic exercise is extremely important. Women need to get their body fat percentage down to around 12-15% for sexy muscle tissue to be visible. Men need to lower it to 8-12%.

Obviously, do it the right way without any silly diets. It is important to eat a lot of protein when you are undertaking weight training to repair the microscopic tears to the muscle tissue. Also have a rest day every two days. Weight training performed regularly will increase the metabolism for up to 48 hours afterward.

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Body Brushing

Jan 17th

Posted by Funkster in weight loss tips

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Body brushing is fantastic and an excellent way to shift the pounds. When foods and drinks are consumed every day, toxins start to build up. A great way to reduce toxins in the body and help the lymph drainage system is to body brush. Just 2-5 minutes of body brushing before every shower or bath every day can help to shift a couple of pounds a week.

Swedish Remedial Massage is also an effective way to flush toxins out of the system. All types of massage use strokes that focus on draining fluids out of the lymphatic system. Unfortunately, there is no pump that will perform this miraculous task, this is why drinking warm water with lemon juice, massage, and body brushing is so important.

Other ways to rid the body of toxins is via the diet and drinking a lot of clear, natural fluids. Body wraps are effective but can be expensive. If you wish to get rid of cellulite or boost a sluggish system, body brushing will certainly help you on your weight loss journey.

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