| |
| |
|
Exercise Information |
|
|
|
Movement That Matters: Exercise With a Greater Purpose
You've seen the commercials Ive fallen and I cant get up! While this has been a topic of many jokes and late-night comedy skits, the reality is falling is a very real danger for many people. Too often falls can lead to broken bones, hospitalization, and sometimes life-threatening illnesses due to being confined to a bed while recovering. A less extreme, but still real situation is when a person lacks the leg strength to get out of a chair. Or someone who throws out their back just picking up a child or the groceries from the trunk of the car. Did you know that this is not inevitable? With consistent and effective exercise, you will maintain your daily activities without injury well into your sixties, seventies, eighties, and beyond. You may have heard the buzzwords functional training and core training mentioned in the latest fitness magazines. While these terms sound complicated, they are really terms for the most effective and exciting system of strength training being used today. Functional training strengthens your body for the everyday movements it has to perform. This could be any type of movement, whether for a sport, your job, or just picking up your kids. Most injuries occur in the course of our everyday lives. Strengthen your body for these activities and you will sustain less injury. Functional training also improves balance. This is essential for preventing falls. A combination of strength and balance will give you the confidence to move through your day with ease! Core training works on strengthening your core, your abdominal and low back muscles. Just as a house needs a foundation to build upon, so does your body. Work on the core first and every other exercise you add will be more effective and make you stronger. Many functional training exercises incorporate core training. There are also exercises that isolate the core for maximum benefit. Core training is the idea behind Pilates and is also used in yoga. You can incorporate both types of training into your regular workout with equipment such as stability balls, medicine balls, elastic tubing, slides, and dumbbells. Some exercises require no equipment at all! Several videos and guides on the market can teach you many of these exercises. You can also hire a personal trainer for a few sessions so you can learn the proper techniques. These methods are more effective than traditional gym strength training machines because more muscles are used and the body becomes more coordinated and strong as a result. Machines do play an important role, however. As a new exerciser, you may not have the strength or coordination necessary for functional training. I recommend a combination of basic core strengthening and the use of machines to develop basic strength before starting the more complex functional and core movements. One of the best and simplest functional exercises is the squat. We use this motion all day long getting up from a chair, or picking an object up from the ground, as examples. Learn to squat properly and do it consistently and you will remain strong, independent, and less prone to injury. A great core exercise for beginners is one you can do anytime, anywhere. While sitting or standing, pull your navel towards your spine. Concentrate on performing this movement without flattening your back it is important to maintain proper posture. This strengthens very deep abdominal muscles that are responsible for protecting your back. Try this exercise while driving when you stop at a red light, perform 10 repetitions. Your abdominals will thank you for it! Think about it, do you walk around during the day doing leg extensions? What about abdominals crunches on the floor? While these exercises work targeted muscles and are good accessory exercises, functional exercises create a stronger, healthier body that will be protected from injury and provide a higher quality of life. About The Author Gillian Hood-Gabrielson, MS, ACSM is the president of Flexible Fitness, a nationwide coaching practice offering health and fitness solutions for your busy lifestyle including Fitness Coaching by Phone, Intuitive Eating, and monthly motivational seminars. She can be reached at 866-618-8814 or by email at gillian@flexiblefitnessforyou.com. To receive our free report, I Hate Exercise Too! and our newsletter, please visit www.flexiblefitnessforyou.com.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Exercise Equals Fun! Getting America's children to exercise has never been more difficult as the new boob-tube generation slouches in front of TVs, or sits for hours, mesmerized behind shoot-out video and computer games.However, it is possible to foster a regular exercise pattern for children from an early age, with simple activities that are more "fun" than "exercise. Get a Health Screening Before You Start Training So, you have decided to hire a personal trainer to help you with your workouts. If your trainer is reputable and following proper certified techniques he/she will probably ask that you go through a Health Screening exam before begging your program. 6 Things A Norwegian Fable Teaches Us About Healthy Perseverance Part 2 4. Ideas, goals and dreams have a shelf life. Exercising for life - The magic is in the synergy! Synergy: the working together of two or more things, people, or organizations, especially when the result is greater than the sum of their individual effects or capabilitiesMomentum toward your goals is generated when all components of fitness are incorporated into your workout program." Heart-through cardiovascular workout" Skeletal muscle-through strength training" Joints-through flexibility exercises. 5 Mistakes People Makes When Doing a Workout Program When you start out with a workout program - whether the purpose is weight loss exercise or another - you have started a training process that hopefully is going to last for a while. It is important that you are aware of some factors that can decrease your motivation for the exercising or even damage your health - while you are executing your training program. No Pain, No Gain Isnt True For Arthritis, But Exercise Is Still Important Recent studies have shown that exercise may acually help people with arthritis in a number of ways. It can reduce joint pain and stiffness. Life Walking: Dont Walk Just For Exercise - Change Your Life "Life walking" is more than walking for exercise and fitness objectives. It's the larger ideal of using walking to change your life. Exercise - More is NOT Better! Years ago when I was a professional bodybuilder, I fell into the mindset that the more I exercised, the less fat I ate, the better I would look and feel. At the time this seemed like the logical thing to do. How to Avoid Using Your Home Gym as a Clothes Rack So here's the situation?You have a home gym, treadmill, elliptical trainer, or some other piece of home fitness equipment. But it's sitting in the corner of the room being used as a clothes rack. Home Gym Workout Routines Home gym workout routines can take the hassle out of staying healthy. How often have you claimed your busy schedule as the reason you could not get to the gym? How many times have you skipped a workout you knew would make you feel better because the fatigue of traffic and the pace of a gym with trainers were too much for your work weary mind?Well, say good bye to the excuses standing in your way because home gym workout routines are the answer for your busy schedule. Keep Exercise Journals For Real Results Always make sure to keep a detailed training journal. By keeping a journal of your training sessions, you will have a detailed log of your every exercise you perform along with reps, sets and how much weight you lifted. 10 User Friendly Habits for Successful Home Gym Training Are you dissatisfied with your current training program? Are you not achieving the results you had hoped for when you started training? If you are you stuck on a fitness plateau and are in need of some tips on how to start seeing progress then keep reading.I am sure you want to see results from your training program (why would you do it if you didn't want to see results, right?). Exercise and Heart Health: A Life Giving Marriage Most people get their health out of a bottle these days, be it a bottle of vitamins or pharmaceuticals. However, with a little effort and dedication you really can get a hold on your life, turn it round and live it to the full!If you've been diagnosed with heart disease or are at risk of developing heart disease regular exercise is essential for the health of your heart, body and mind. Benefits of a Good Training Journal Most of us have trained at one part in our lives. Chances are if you've ever taken your training seriously you've used a training journal or a training log. Dangerous Shoulder Exercises Have you ever suffered from shoulder discomfort after working out? I am referring to aching or sharp pain experienced in the front of the shoulder or lateral upper arm that is felt with overhead activities, reaching behind the back or even laying on the shoulder. These symptoms are often indicative of rotator cuff inflammation. Stretching for Health Lack of flexibility is now seen to be a major cause of general health problems and sports injury and is being linked to everything from stress. back pain, and even osteoarthritis. Do You Have A Fitness Battle Plan? In fitness, as in war, you want to be on the offensive, not the defensive and this means that rather than reacting to maladies as they occur, far better to be in good general physical condition; preventive maintenance is preferable to remedial effort every time. One general rule of thumb I use is energy is the basic coin of the fitness realm and without it is damned difficult to mount any kind of serious fitness effort. Arthritis Exercise - One Way to Relieve Pain & Stiffness in Your Joints (part 2) Even when you cannot make it out to walk or to an aquatics or yoga class, there are exercises you can do daily to improve flexibility, strength and conditioning when you suffer from arthritis. You can flex your legs while sitting in a chair facing forward, simply by moving your leg outward while keeping your foot on the floor and holding it there for a few seconds, then retracting it until your foot is behind you, then alternating to the other leg. Arthritis Exercise - One Way to Relieve Pain & Stiffness in Your Joints (part 3) There are three main types of exercises to include in a basic exercise program:Range-of-motion exercises - These lessen stiffness and help with improving flexibility. "Range of motion" refers to the area within which the joints move naturally or on a daily basis. Weight Loss, Bodybuilding, and Exercise Tips - Keeping Your Body-fat Low: Part 2 of 10 My name is Greg Ryan. I am a fitness expert, professional bodybuilder, personal, trainer to movie stars, former employee of Kathy Smith and over 50, 000 hours of paid personal training sessions under my belt.
|
| home | site map |
| ©2008 quick and easy ways to make money |
