The Supplemental Kick

You’ve decided you want to exercise at home. There are hundreds of pieces of home cardio equipment available. The most popular are treadmills and exercise bikes. In deciding between the two, you should compare long-term sustainability, the effectiveness of the workouts, and safety.

Overcoming Boredom

The biggest obstacle to a home exercise routine is sticking with it. You don’t have to drive to a gym, so your home fitness equipment is more convenient. The problem is that other distractions are just as convenient at home. The key is to make your routine fun. You want to look forward to your daily workout. You have to be realistic. Playing with the heart rate monitor or watching the calorie counter go up will only be fun the first couple of times you exercise.

Treadmill vs. Boredom

On a treadmill, you walk. Walking isn’t that fun. You can walk at different speeds, but that isn’t really much more fun. If you get a treadmill that offers an incline, that keeps it a bit more interesting. Walking uphill isn’t exactly fun, but it’s different. It presents a challenge.

You can’t really read on a treadmill because you are bouncing up and down. You can’t keep your eyes on the same sentence, and you usually end up with a headache. Basically, the only thing fun to do on a treadmill is watch television or movies. If you are really into TV or movies and are able to put your treadmill in front of a television, you can probably keep your treadmill workout from becoming too boring. Problems consist of commercials, the noise coming from the machine, and again, the bouncing.

Exercise Bikes vs. Boredom

Exercise bikes are unique in that many of them come programmed with various biking routines. You simulate different courses that require you to sprint, pedal uphill, and perform at different levels within one workout without having to keep pressing buttons and changing everything. You can even select random programs so you don’t know what’s coming, which really keeps you on your toes. Some exercise bikes can even be plugged into televisions and video games to let you interactively pedal through visual courses.

On upright exercise bikes, you run into some of the same problems as treadmills as far as reading is concerned. Recumbent bikes, however, allow your hands to be free to hold a book or magazine, video game controller, or phone. Multi-tasking during an exercise bike workout keeps it from becoming boring and allows your workout to more easily fit into a busy schedule.

Defeating boredom to successfully keep up a long-term exercise routine is much easier with an exercise bike than a treadmill.

The Calorie Factor

In a study conducted by Nordic Track, young, healthy people used various exercise machines and did cardio workouts. Although they felt they used the same intensity on all machines, they burned the most calories on treadmills and ski machines.

On average, most people burn about 750 calories per hour on a treadmill. The same people are likely to burn about 550 calories per hour on an exercise bike. So it’s a no-brainer, right? You should get a treadmill because they burn more calories.

Well, not exactly. You can’t get so caught up in which machine burns the most calories. You have to take a lot of other factors into consideration. How likely are you to sustain a treadmill routine as opposed to an exercise bike routine?

Because exercise bikes are usually more fun than treadmills, you are much more likely to stick with it long-term. This means that even though you can burn more calories on a treadmill, you are also more likely to stop using it altogether.

You might also find it difficult to use it long enough per workout session to get the full benefits. Most people find it easier to workout for 20 minutes on an exercise bike than 20 minutes on a treadmill. You have to think about that. If you are likely to only do 10 minutes on a treadmill but can easily do 20 minutes on an exercise bike, you will burn more calories per session on an exercise bike.

So just going strictly by the numbers, treadmills burn more calories. If you easily get bored or have tried and failed to stick with exercise routines in the past, you might want to consider burning less calories per hour in favor of a sustainable long-term exercise bike regimen.

Your Safety

The biggest difference between exercise bikes and treadmills is overall safety to your body.

The first case of safety is the most basic. You can fall off of a treadmill. It’s very difficult, however, to fall off of an exercise bike. In fact, you would probably have to try to fall when riding an exercise bike. While you might be thinking you’d have to be pretty clumsy to fall while walking, it happens more than you’d think. People get involved with watching television or the beat of music. One wrong step and you can seriously injure yourself. It’s also possible to spill water or sweat on the treadmill track, causing a safety hazard you might not notice until after you’ve slipped.

Another safety hazard is injury from the activity itself. A treadmill puts quite a bit of stress on your joints, especially your knees and ankles. Even if you invest in a treadmill with some degree of shock absorption, when you eventually get to a jogging or running point, you can put severe orthopedic stress on your body, even up to three times your body weight. People with existing conditions such as arthritis will find a treadmill painful at times due to this stress. Otherwise healthy individuals can sustain injury and possible long-term damage over time.

Exercise bikes put much less stress on your joints. A properly positioned exercise bike supports your weight and still allows you to receive the benefits of a higher impact cardio workout. Upright bikes can sometimes stress your back in the way you have to bend to reach the handlebars. Recumbent exercise bikes, however, can actually improve existing back pain by forcing proper posture and giving support as you exercise. On any exercise bike properly used, your knees and ankles are not stressed as they are on a treadmill.

The less you stress joints, the less likely you are to sustain an injury during your workout. You are also less likely to be sore afterwards. Most importantly, a non-workout injury doesn’t always have to halt your exercise routine on an exercise bike. If you hurt your back or neck, you will find the support of a recumbent exercise bike will keep you from having to stop your exercise regimen altogether. Let’s face it – if you have to stop, you are less likely to start again.

An Exercise Bike is Better for Your Health than a Treadmill

As you can see, both pieces of home fitness equipment have advantages. While the treadmill continues to be the most popular piece of home gym equipment, most people are more likely to faithfully use an exercise bike. This means you’re more likely to have to dust a treadmill until it gets the garage sale sticker.

Michael Walker is a freelance author providing useful information about exercise bikes, recumbent exercise bike and www.all-in-exercise-bikes.com/10001-home-fitness-equipment.htm“>home fitness equipment. His numerous articles offer comprehensive tips and solutions for the fitness enthusiast.

I tend to view massage therapy independently of broader categories of therapy, healing or other restorative practices or systems. I am inclined to do this because I am cautious about allowing massage to be classified as a traditional therapy versus an alternative therapy.

There are many practitioners who cringe when they see massage therapy lumped in with “alternative” practices such as acupuncture, chiropractic or naturopathic health. To some these smack of quackery, fakery or, in some cases, lunacy. I believe that this aversion to association with alternative medical practices is extreme but I concede that a massage therapy purist could develop such a phobia.

On the other hand, more open-minded massage therapists abhor associating massage exclusively with clinical practices such as physical therapy or other forms of rehabilitation. There is some resentment towards the incorporation of massage therapy into traditional medicine only because they feel that massage may be viewed as simply a procedure. This view strikes me as a bit vindictive but given the historical view of the mainstream medical industry towards the alternative medical community, some bitterness can be expected.

I would hate to see massage go the way of today’s politics which attempt to label every political view as either liberal or conservative. Massage therapy is neither traditional nor alternative. Frankly, traditional medicine is, in actuality, an “alternative” to massage when viewed in an historical context.

The first documented description of massage as a technique or therapy dates back to 3,000 B.C. in China. The Chinese believed that all illness was due to an imbalance of “Qi” within the body. The inequitable distribution of this “life force” or “life energy” was blamed for all ailments and this philosophy was absorbed and incorporated by Japanese Buddhist monks into Japanese massage techniques. This eventually evolved into the unique Japanese massage therapy called Shiatsu or “finger pressure.”

At the same time, similar approaches were evolving in India, eventually becoming the practice of Ayurvedic medicine, or the “arts of life,” which also utilized massage as an instrumental healing methodology. Greeks, Romans and even Native Americans highly valued not just the therapeutic, but also the actual healing value of massage. Hippocrates himself is quoted as stating that “anyone wishing to study medicine must master the art of massage.”

But with the advent of the industrial age and the development of modern scientific inquiry, massage was relegated to the list of unenlightened, unsophisticated medical practices. In my opinion, however, to dismiss the medicinal and restorative benefits of massage was to dismiss the wisdom of the Ancients. The lack of modern scientific diagnostic techniques and the inability to examine the physical being at the cellular level, forced the earliest physicians to take a macro view of the person since a micro view was unavailable. That macro view and the knowledge garnered through the ages is still the essence of the practice of the ancient art of massage.

That is not to say that the more clinical modern approach to massage is without merit. On the contrary, contemporary research has validated many of the formerly unsubstantiated claims of alternative practitioners. Scientific studies have confirmed the effectiveness of massage in alleviating some depressive symptoms, altering the immune system, controlling pain and reducing stress. As stress is identified as the precipitator of so many medical problems, physicians are less reluctant to recommend massage as part of an overall regime to address certain conditions.

So I echo the plea of Rodney King when he asked, “Can’t we all just get along?” Massage does not need the blessing of the medical establishment to claim its place among the healing arts, thank you. Nor is it the exclusive therapeutic domain of the alternative community. I am comfortable with claims that massage can benefit the whole person and I welcome the recognition of the scientific examiners who methodically study the benefits of touch for healing. But I intend to plant myself firmly in the middle and surrender to no particular ideology of massage therapy. I endorse massage for what it does.

It’s that time of year when giving and indulging in the sweetness of sweets (especially with your sweetie) is seen as perfectly acceptable.

But, new research shows that there are more reasons than ever to NOT avoid or deny your chocolate cravings all year long.

According to some studies done in Italy, dark chocolate has many of the same benefits as vitamin C helping the body use insulin more effectively and lower blood pressure.

The research examined two out of three chocolate varieties, dark chocolate and white chocolate. Dark chocolate is made up of cocoa solids and sugar but no milk solids (prevalent in milk chocolate) and white chocolate, although referred to as chocolate had no cocoa solids, but instead is made of cocoa butter (the fat in chocolate), mil solids and sugar.

According to the study, participants who enjoyed 100 grams of dark chocolate daily for 15 days had reduced blood pressure and become more sensitive to insulin than they were prior to the “experiment”.

Researchers believe that the benefits of dark chocolate are because of the flavonoids it contains, which are associated with the ability to lower the risk of heart disease and some cancers. However, white chocolate exhibited no effect on patients since it is free of cocoa solids, where the flavonoids are found.

So what does this mean for you and me? Is it time to replace the celery and carrot platters with chocolate samplers and related goodies? Is it time to switch from “an apple a day” to “a chocolate bar a day”? The answer to this is probably a big “no”. Nonetheless, knowing this little tidbit and what other discoveries it may lead to in the future sure won’t inhibit a healthy person from treating themselves to the oh-so-desirable rich goodness of a nice piece of dark chocolate on occasion.

With prom season right around the corner, you are no doubt already thinking about how you want to wear your hair for the special night. While many of your friends may end up spending a fortune getting their hair done at a salon, you can easily do your hair at home and achieve stunning results. The key is in the details.

When creating updos at home, one of the hardest things to do is craft perfect twists and dramatic effects. But you can have equally stunning results by taking a few shortcuts. Here are a couple of ideas that you can do yourself at home.

Loose, Romantic Updo

Remember Kate Winslet’s hair in the Titanic? This classic, romantic updo is very simple to pull off at home. All you need is a medium sized curling iron, some bobby pins and super-hold finishing spray.

To begin, start with dry hair. Give your hair a once over with the hairspray and start to curl your hair in ringlets. You can do this by taking ” sections starting in the nape while pinning the rest of the hair up. After completing each section, pull down another ” parting and curl until the whole head is covered in Shirley Temple ringlets. (Don’t worry; it’s not going to stay like that.)

Next, pull hair in 1″ sections from around the hair line. Twisting slightly and loosely, pull the sections up and back toward the top of the crown and pin into place. Continue around the entire perimeter of the head until all of the hair is pinned up. If the curls on the crown look a bit funky, rearrange them to where you would like them and pin into place. You can also leave tendrils of soft hair falling around the face and neck of this updo to create a wispy effect. Spray to hold.

Fun and Modern Updo

This updo is extremely easy to create. Start again dry hair. First, create a dramatic design parting in the front and top of the head. You can do a zigzag parting or an angled parting, really any parting that adds interest. Sleek the rest of the hair down and back to the nape of the neck in a temporary ponytail. Holding the ponytail in your fist, twist up until the end of the hair are pointing up and over the crown leaving only about 1″ of hair to play with. Hold with a clip and fan the ends out with some pomade or styling wax. Spray to finish.

You see, it’s not that hard. And when your friends all show up with cookie-cutter hairdos and less money in their pockets, you can smile with the knowledge that you not only have an individual updo but that you also have more money to burn.

Star Trac used treadmills are one of the most popular used treadmills that you can buy and it’s easy to see why. Star Trac has been around for about three decades and has always had a good reputation for always supplying good quality exercise machines and has been one of the brands that many aspire to own.

They have always offered a good standard of construction, which is one of the reasons that they still have a good reputation after so long in the treadmill and exercise machine business. Many of the current lower costing treadmill models that are for sale suffer from a lower quality of construction and do not offer the same features that a Star Trac treadmill does. This is one of the reasons that some people would rather purchase or own Star Trac used treadmills than buying a new one from a lower costing competitor or other name brand treadmills that are in the same price range.

If you are thinking of buying a used treadmill but are worried about whether it will be worn out or unreliable then you could look at buying a refurbished model. These machines are still considered used but they have the advantage of being totally refurbished by a team of engineers. This means that everything that was not working properly or was not in good condition would have been replaced. In effect it is almost a new machine but at a considerably lower cost.

If you are thinking of buying one of the many Star Trac used treadmills then this is a good way of getting a great savings without having to worry about whether a used machine is in good enough condition. In fact, the treadmill should even look like almost new because when they refurbish the machines they usually repaint them as well. As with most things if you buy a treadmill from a company other than the original Star Trac you may be able to find an even better deal. Just make sure to check that the company supplies good machines and that the work is guaranteed when you buy. Buying from the original company normally provides a guarantee that the work is good but it may cost a little more.

Star Trac used treadmills offer a great money saving alternative to buying one of the newer and cheaper treadmill machines and models. The build quality is the same as it always was and the machines are nearly as good as new. So if you are cannot afford the cost of a new Star Trac but would still like to own one then that may be a viable alternative.

Stress affects the whole person – body, mind, feelings, and behavior, and just as symptoms can take many forms, so there are many simple actions that you can take to relieve these symptoms.

Take Action on Stress. Ask yourself “Am I stressed, or am I in denial?” Simply making a conscious decision to act upon your situation will bring to you, such a sense of relief that this unpleasant situation is going to change, that you will immediately start to feel some benefit. Chunk Down. Chunking down helps you to define what the problems actually are. It helps you to divide the problems causing you stress into smaller and therefore more manageable parts. You can then look for solutions, options and ways forward. This is a good problem solving technique.

Speak to Someone. A problem shared is a problem halved, it’s good to talk. Talking it over with a friend or someone who is willing to listen, who wont judge or offer advice, can often help to de-clutter the mind and clarify your perspective and help you to take appropriate action to relieve stress.

Write it down – Let it out. Write a letter to yourself or to someone else, without posting it, but find a means of getting your true thoughts and feelings down on paper. You can then destroy it if you wish, it’s a form of release, which you can then follow up with a plan to resolve your issues.

Ask for Professional Help. Seek out a hypnotherapy DVD or find a hypnotherapist to help you refocus on relaxation and stress relief.

Stop Procrastinating. Procrastination is itself a cause of stress, Eliminate procrastination from your life. Don’t put things off until tomorrow. Do them today. Create a “DO IT NOW” mentality.

Don’t be afraid to say NO. Change the Dynamic of your situation. If you can learn how to be more assertive, this will enable you to say what you think and act how you want to. Imagine how much less stressed this will make you feel.

Give yourself choices. Change the stress factors that you can and strengthen your ability to cope with ones that you cannot change. Be creative, find compromises, Reframe problems and look for solutions that create win-win outcomes.

Take a step back from the situation. Create some distance between yourself and the stressor. Walk away and find a quiet place even if that’s sitting in your car or a bathroom. Take a couple of deeper breaths and imagine yourself far, far away from it. See the stressor for what it really is. See it small and manageable compared to the bigger picture and see how much calmer you feel.

Manage your Time – Be Organized. Time management allows you to plan and organize your life to give yourself more space and opportunity. It involves planning, delegating, setting an agenda and not wasting any time doing unnecessary things or worrying about things over which you have no control.

Start the day with confidence. Prepare for the coming day, the night before. Then you’re not rushed in the morning and off to a bad start straight away.

Don’t rely on your memory (it’s the first thing to go when you’re stressed). Write down appointments, to-do lists, directions and shopping lists. Create order out of chaos. Don’t be late. Give yourself more time to do things so that you are not pressured. Get up a little earlier, leave a little earlier for appointments.

Focus. Do one thing at a time and do it well, focus on the job at hand and forget everything else you have to do.

Take a moment. Allow yourself some personal time, everyday, a private moment for peace, quiet and contemplation.

Have an optimistic view of the world. Expect things to go right, expect people to be nice. You may find that’s exactly what happens!

Learn to be Tolerant. Remember that most people are doing the best that they can. Find it within yourself to be tolerant and understanding. People make mistakes. Accept the fact that we live in an imperfect world.

Take Regular Exercise. Exercise combats many of the physical and emotional symptoms of stress and can make you feel better about yourself. Feeling healthy can bring about improvements in self-esteem and self-image and increase confidence. When our confidence and esteem are lifted our perception of ourselves changes completely and becomes much more positive.

Make exercise Fun. Don’t ignore the mental and emotional aspect of regular exercise. Giving yourself time out to do something fun simply makes you feel good, so if you’re feeling stressed and unsure about whether to exercise or not, simply remind yourself of how you are going to feel afterwards.

Get Outside and Walk it off, – Breathe in some Fresh Air. If you work in an office with air conditioning, get outside and clear your head. Walk about and Fill your lungs with Air. Try some Deep Breathing Techniques, which re-energizes and invigorates your mind and body. This simple exercise also releases hormones that affect your mood, creating a more relaxed and positive frame of mind and releasing physical stress from the body.

Treat yourself – Have something to look forward to. Get away from it all, even if it’s just for one day. Better still, have regular weekend breaks and don’t ever take work with you. Make sure that you book a proper holiday each year to recharge your batteries, it doesn’t matter where, just do it.

Learn to use your body’s Relaxation Response. Imagine… having relief on tap – something you could experience whenever you need it, something that would remove all the stress from your body and return the sparkle to your mind.

You can use hypnosis to trigger this wonderful natural effect, which will release hormones and neurotransmitters that flood your body and mind with pure, cleansing relaxation. You owe it to yourself to feel the relief you can have instantly, so learn this technique. Make Relaxation part of your daily routine. The following practices will help you to relax and unwind.

- Guided relaxation and visualization techniques: obtain a CD or DVD

- Meditation: Brings an abundance of calm into your life

- Progressive Muscle Relaxation: deeply, physically relaxing

- Massage/ Aromatherapy: Go on, pamper yourself

- Yoga; a mixture of meditation and gentle movement and stretching

- Shiatsu; Energy balancing and deeply relaxing

Other methods and therapies include; Floatation tanks, Reiki, Indian head massage, Thai Chi and Reflexology. Do your research and try a few things and find the treatment most suitable for you.

Eat Properly – Food is not just fuel. Make the time in your schedule to eat properly and take time to enjoy your meals when you do eat them. Don’t just shovel the food in and dash off for the next meeting, give your digestive system a fighting chance by eating slowly and resting after your meal.

(Remember, peptic ulcers aren’t fun).

Eat Healthy. Look after your health by eating a sensible balanced diet. Eat breakfast to kick-start your day. If you need to, create new good eating habits. Ensure that your lifestyle changes to suit your real needs. Poor nutrition will further weaken your resistance to illness and allow other symptoms of stress to develop.

Lay off the coffee and tea. (the caffeine doesn’t help you to relax)

Take a hot bath. Have a good soak in the evening to relieve the tension in your body before going to bed

Ensure that you get enough sleep. This is essential. You’ll wake up feeling refreshed with more energy and able to function better throughout the day.

Enjoy the moments. Find something that makes you smile or laugh out loud. Laughter is the answer to stress, because it’s hard to be stressed and anxious when you’re having fun!

Remember to Enjoy Life. Every day, take time to do something that you enjoy.

Learn to live one day at a time and take each day as you find it. Life only comes round once, it’s quite short and you have to appreciate what’s good in it.

Refurbished treadmills are big business. Because treadmills can be so expensive there are many who can not afford to buy a new one. That’s where refurbished treadmills come in. But what exactly are refurbished treadmills?

It’s not just because treadmills are expensive that people are looking to buy some form of second hand, used or refurbished treadmill. It can also be because there is a huge range of treadmills on the market. With a huge range of features.

The aspiring treadmill user is often aware that it is better to start at the lower end of the treadmill market and spend some time getting the feel for exercising on a treadmill.

Although treadmills are some of the most popular items of fitness equipment in the US, they don’t appeal to everyone. Some people can find that they use a treadmill for a while and decide that they prefer some other form of exercise. Sometimes it not another piece of indoor exercise equipment, it’s just that they prefer to exercise outdoors.

So many people will spend a more limited amount of money on a lower end machine and wait until they are happy to upgrade. Others will buy a refurbished treadmill at a much lower price and get a better machine than they would get buying new at the cheapest end of the market.

Not only that, once you have spent some time using a treadmill you will get some feel for the types of features you require in a treadmill. There’s no point in rushing out and buying the most expensive, top of the range model just to find that you don’t use most of the features.

So it makes sense to spend less, get some basic treadmill experience in, and then upgrade to get the exact model you want with the features you need. So you may not need to buy new for your first treadmill anyway, as you may only have it for a year or two.

That’s where refurbished treadmills come in. There are risks in just going out to look for ordinary used treadmills. You don’t know what you are getting. If the motor breaks down the day after you buy it then it may become an expensive treadmill.

A refurbished treadmill, although usually more expensive than a similar second hand model, is a safer bet, especially in the long term.

So, back to our question, what is a refurbished treadmill?

There is a whole range of “cheaper” treadmills. They can be called refurbished treadmills, factory refurbished treadmills, remanufactured treadmills or just used or second hand treadmills.

Lets dispose of the last two first. Used and second hand treadmills are generally just treadmills that someone has used and wants to sell. You buy them, you take all the risk. Unless you know exactly what to look for when buying a treadmill like this then stay clear. Cheap treadmills like this can certainly be, well, cheap. But risky.

And the others? Generally all the terms mean that the treadmills have been disassembled to some degree and rebuilt, usually with new parts to relace broken or worn out parts. The frame sand blasted, sometimes, and the treadmill resprayed, sometimes. However there can be some differences.

Remanufactured treadmills or refurbished treadmills means just that. Treadmills which have been remanufactured or refurbished as we have described above. It doesn’t tell you WHO remanufactured or refurbished them. Was it the local bicycle mechanic who did it? Often you don’t know.

And what is the difference between refurbished and remanufactured? Generally remanufactured will mean an older machine which needs parts replacing because it is getting more worn out. Refurbished usually means newer machines which may even be only a year or two old and which do not have enough wear to require serious rebuilding.

Better always to look for FACTORY refurbished or remanufactured treadmills. Machines which have gone back to the original factory and been refurbished by qualified technicians. Or else a business which makes a living from remanufacturing or refurbishing treadmills.

This process should involve taking the treadmill apart, examining all the parts and replacing all broken, worn out or old parts. Before it is reassembled it should be sand blasted and repainted. It should look like a new treadmill, or at least very close to it.

So, things to look for:

1.The age of the treadmill.

2.Who is refurbishing or remanufacturing it.

3.Most importantly, the warranty you get with it.

Why the warranty? Well if it’s a great refurbished treadmill then they ought to recognise this with a great warranty.

No warranty? Stay clear. 60 or 90 days? Better but not perfect.

The longer the warranty, the more confidence you have in the machine. So when you buy, make sure you check out the warranty.

I have just been looking on the net at some refurbished Precor treadmills at my favourite refurbished treadmills merchant. Certainly amongst the refurbished Precor treadmills there is a lower range to choose from than new, but you’d expect that. But there are still plenty of choices. And expect a substantial saving off new price.

So if you’re new to treadmills and looking for refurbished Precor treadmills, or any refurbished treadmills for that matter, then there are some good choices available at some substantial savings.

Refurbished treadmills, certainly something to think about for the new treadmill user.

The foolish idea that ‘more is better’ when it comes to bodybuilding goes directly against the basics of exercise science. When is comes to increasing your rate of muscle gains, more exercise is almost never what is needed. As I have mentioned already, once you have “stimulated” muscle gains by hitting the gym hard, any additional amount of exercise, will in fact, prevent any muscle gains from happening.

You see, muscles are made up of ‘muscle fibers’. Muscles themselves work by contracting and reducing their length. In order for muscles to contract, they must move. For a muscle to produce movement, and therefore the power to move a given weight, it must do so by lengthening and contracting.

In other words, a muscle performs exercise by contracting, and by doing this it generates force and power. While a muscle uses some of it’s fibers to perform a given exercise, it almost never uses all of them at the same time.

For a muscle to contract every one of its available fibers at the same time, it must be in a totally contracted position. To increase your muscle mass in the shortest time possible, the maximum number of muscle fibers possible must be “stimulated”. The easiest way to achieve this is through multiple repetitions of a particular exercise. More often than not it is impossible to contract all of the muscle fibers in a specific part of the body, using only one repetition, without risking injury. Multiple repetitions however, allow it to be done safely.

As a general rule, it’s almost impossible to perform an exercise in a way that contracts all of the muscle fibers of the body parts involved. However, if the exercise is performed with intensity, many more muscle fibers will be stimulated, than there would have been otherwise.

As an example, when you perform a basic exercise like the barbell curl (standing upright with a barbell and curling your arms from resting against your thighs up towards your chest), you are using the fibers of the biceps muscle of the upper arm. At the beginning of the exercise, when performing the first repetition of a set of ten, your biceps muscles are at their strongest and most rested.

However, during the first repetition you can only involve a minimal number of the muscle fibers available. Most of the fibers are unable to contract unless in a totally contracted position. The bicep itself will only use the minimal number of fibers needed to perform that one repetition. Muscle fibers will only perform at full capacity, and are only “recruited” by a specific body part as they are needed.

By increasing your speed of movement you can dramatically increase the number of muscle fibers involved. However, in many cases this is extremely dangerous, leading to the muscle tearing loose from its attachment. Not fun or desirable. As well as the risk of severe injury, increasing the speed of movement will often involve extra momentum. By using overall body motion to “cheat”, the intensity shifts away from the muscles and body parts you are trying to stimulate.

So keep this in mind. In the case of the barbell curl example, the first repetition should be performed in perfect form, but at a pace that is considerably slower than is actually possible. A pace that will allow you to perform each repetition as fast as possible without risking injury.

The bottom line is this. Regardless of how you perform the first repetition of the barbell curl, you will still only be involving a very small percentage of the muscle fibers available. This is due to the following three reasons. (1) When the muscle is not in a fully contracted position, only a limited number of muscle fibers are involved. (2) During the first repetition the biceps muscle fibers are at their strongest and most rested. (3) The majority of the exercise equipment on the market provides practically no resistance to a muscle in a fully contracted position.

Zero resistance can become an issue during almost all basic exercises. For example, during the bench press, a totally contracted position is reached when the arms are completely extended. Because your arms also reach a point of total “lockout” of the elbow joints at this point, there is basically zero resistance in this position. The way this problem can be resolved is by performing all of your exercises in a series of repetitions. You can then make sure that you achieve maximum stimulation of the muscles involved.

Let’s look the barbell curl example again. If you are using a weight that allows you to perform about ten repetitions, then the first repetition will only involve about five percent of the total number of muscle fibers available. The remaining ninety-five percent of fibers are not involved at all.

When you perform the second repetition however, things start to change. And change fast! The previous five percent are no longer as strong or as rested as they were during the first repetition. The strength levels of these fibers have been challenged, and so they now need the help of additional fibers to perform the second repetition. These additional fibers are at their strongest and most rested. However, they too will only be used to the extent that they are actually needed.

As you continue to perform the exercise, more and more muscle fibers become involved. Finally, by the tenth repetition you will be using as much as twenty percent of the total muscle fibers available. By this stage of the exercise your breathing should be coming thick and be fast. And, the intensity level will be high.

In this example, the exercise is being performed with a weight that the you knew you could only perform ten repetitions with. It is at this point that most “skinny” guys stop the exercise. This is a big mistake. Doing so with result in almost no muscle gains at all.

By stopping the exercise at this point, you are not pushing through your comfort zone. You are just nudging up to it. Also, the various muscles involved are not being pushed enough to cause them to GROW. If you are “stupid” enough to train in this manner, your muscle gains will be slow and in many cases, totally non-existent. In short. If you are going to go for it. Then, make sure you go all the way… and then some!

We all want to achieve the toned and slender look that working out gives our body, right? Strong and sleek and ready to be shown off – what’s not to love! Unfortunately, achieving that gorgeous body can sometimes be harder work than it would be in an ideal world, and working out can just get plain old boring after a while. And while the incentive to exercise is always there, it sometimes simply isn’t strong enough to drag us through those predictable, repetitive sessions. Who isn’t jealous of those energetic folks who say they love exercise? Thankfully there is a fitness company called Proform treadmills who have come up with a plan for the rest of us, and now, with Proform treadmills and iFit technology, we can learn to love exercise too.

There is no doubt that Proform treadmills are an excellent tool to help us get fit. One of the most well known names in fitness equipment, Pro form treadmills combine quality construction with technological innovation, all at a reasonable price. Manufactured by Icon Fitness, one of the largest producers of exercise equipment in the US, the Proform treadmill package includes quality Proform treadmill parts, including good motors, clear and easy to read electronic readouts, and other great features, including a running deck with adjustable cushioning, ensuring that your Proform treadmill is as comfortable to use as possible. And while reviewers invariably write positive things about the Proform review treadmill they try out, even the most positive among them will admit that there is nothing in this Pro form treadmill package that could tempt the unwilling among us to come back for a workout time and time again.

But perhaps the most important of all the Proform treadmill parts that come together to make the manufacturer one of the most popular is the innovation with which they build their exercise equipment. Proform treadmills seem to have been designed by ordinary people like you and me – people who simply don’t think that running in a straight line for a half an hour every day is something that you’d do willingly. Unless you incorporate something that makes exercise a little more interesting.

iFit Technology – Introducing a Challenge to Your Workout

Have you ever noticed how a session at the gym can pass before you know it? Whether you take part in an exercise class with an enthusiastic instructor who shouts encouraging slogans at you each time you feel your legs start to weaken or try to see if you can do more reps on the tricep machine than the big burly guy who used it before you, there is something about the company of others when exercising that brings out your competitive streak. And by using a Pro form treadmill and the innovative iFit technology, you can achieve this same thing at home.

iFit is a supplement to your treadmill workout that shakes things up and makes them interesting. By hooking up to the internet, you can record your training history and track your progress. iFit will devise a personal workout program for you, so that each time you set foot on your Proform treadmill, you will have a new goal to reach, and a personal best to beat – after all, isn’t the most fun kind of competition the one you have with yourself?

iFit technology also allows you listen to music as you workout, and provides inspirational images that can be the backdrop to your run – fancy running in the park today? iFit allows you do just that, without having to set foot off your Pro form treadmill.

iFit’s latest innovation can even recreate that enthusiastic gym instructor – there is now a facility that allows you interact with a personal trainer online, as you exercise! You can compliment your running session with a strength training workout, helping you get the results you want even quicker. And with a personal trainer’s critical eye beaming right into your living room, you know you’ll keep up with your treadmill sessions!

So if you want to find out what the Proform treadmill reviews are talking about, try one for yourself, and make your workout even better by challenging yourself with an ifit workout. Not only will it help you get that gorgeous body that you deserve, you might actually find that you love working out too!

Top Home gyms analyzed

If you are a home gym lover then I have got great news for you. We will analyze the best home gyms available and see the pros and cons

If you are looking for a top high-end home gym then look no further, Hoist V5 has it all.

Here is a list of its features 1–lat pull down bar 2– chest press 3–leg curl, 4–chest-high cable for a variety of core-conditioning and 5– dumbbell-type exercises.

The weight stack is 200 pounds.

Also another optional addition is the Leg press.

So what’s the cost?

Hoist V5 will cost you around 3000$ and in case you do not want the optional leg press then the price drops by 400-500$

Read what some health and fitness industry has to say about the Hoist V5 home gym

Outside Magazine calls the Hoist the “Cadillac of all-in-one weight-lifting machines,”

Also other excellent home gyms a little less expensive are the body craft family express which costs about 2300$ and the body solid EXM 2500S which costs 1200$

Other cheap home gyms

Power techs workbench leverage gym which costs around 800$ and the weider cross brow gym which costs 500$.

Also make sure the warranty when you buy a new home gym.

Hoist V5 offers a lifetime warranty .Recently if you were at the user forums there were mixed results.

Epinions and Fitness Infomercial Review.com are full of user complaints about the digital control breaking within the first few days or weeks of use.

But on the other hand you will also see the comments from happy users. So make sure you learn all the facts about home gyms before you invest in home gyms.

For more information on home gyms visit our site www.homegymsforyou.com

We provide in depth information on the best home gyms available for you.

Visit our site www.homegymsforyou.com to learn all about home gyms. http://www.homegymsforyou.com http://www.exercise-equipments101.com http://www.nutritioninfopage.com