Showing posts with label exercises. Show all posts
Showing posts with label exercises. Show all posts

Tuesday, 1 July 2008

Six-Pack Abs Muscle Building Program

Six-Pack Abs Muscle Building Program

Before we get into the exercises, let’s get one thing straight. If you have a layer of fat around your midsection then you’ll never see your abs. You could have the best six-pack in the world, but no one will ever know it if it’s obscured by fat. If this is the situation you’re in, you need to first focus on losing fat by cleaning-up your nutrition and getting on a solid muscle building program.
With that disclaimer out of the way, let’s get to some ab-ripping exercises!
Exercise #1: V-ups
Lie on your back on a semi-soft surface. A thin mat on a hard floor works well. Straighten your legs and raise your arms overhead. With your knees straight, raise your feet a few inches off the floor. This is your starting position.
From this position you are going to simultaneously raise your legs up and sit up with your upper body. This is basically a combination of a leg raise and a crunch. In the top position you should touch your toes with your fingertips, or at least come very close.
From this position you reverse the motion and go back to the starting position. Remember that in the starting position your feet are off the floor. This keeps constant tension on the muscles, making this exercise even more effective.
Exercise #2: Hanging Knee Raises
You’ll need a chin-up bar or other object you can hold on to without your feet touching the floor. Your starting position is simply hanging from the bar with your arms straight.
From this position, bend the knees and bring them up towards your chest. You want to bring your knees as high as possible. In fact, if you are strong enough you should curl up into a ball by leaning back slightly and bringing the knees up as high as possible.
Don’t make the mistake I see most people in the gym making. Most people bring the knees up and then stop when the thighs are parallel to the floor. If you do it this way you only get about 10% of the benefit from the exercise!
When you get really advanced you can do these with the knees straight. From the starting position you raise your feet up all the way until they touch the chin-up bar. You should see the looks you get at the gym when you do these!
Exercise #3: Ab Wheel Rollouts
Remember those “ab rollers” that used to be on all the late-night infomercials? Well, these were just knock-offs of the old school ab wheel you can buy for $10 at any fitness store. If you haven’t seen this before it just looks like a small wheel with a stick through it. If you can’t find one of these, you can simply use a bar with a plate on each side.
Kneel on the floor with the ab wheel in front of you. Hold on to the handles and put the wheel on the floor directly in front you. From here you simply roll the wheel out as far away from you as possible.
The key here is to make sure you don’t roll-out so far that your back arches. If your abs aren’t very strong then you won’t be able to roll-out very far without this occurring. This puts all the stress on your lower back and off of your abs. This is dangerous and ineffective. Only go as far as your current abilities will allow you to maintain the proper position.
When this becomes easy, you can move on to the super-advanced version. For this version you stand on your feet and bend-over to hold the handles of the ab wheel. From this position you roll-out as far as possible. This is much more difficult from the kneeling version.
Summary
These exercises should be complimented by a well-designed muscle building program for the entire body. Remember that one exercise isn’t the answer to achieving your goals. A complimentary training and nutrition program must be designed with your goals in mind. Get more information on muscle building programs for the abs and a FREE muscle building report on “The 13 Reasons You Suck at Gaining Muscle.”


by TONY SCHWARTZ

Six-Pack Abs Muscle Building Program

Tuesday, 10 July 2007

Butt exercises

Butt exercises

If your goal is toning your gluteal muscles there are several butt exercise to achieve the desired results. Working your gluteal muscles, as with any other muscle can make them toner, and more beautiful. Whether you want to take inches off and tone or turn a flat tush into a nice round one these exercises can do the trick. The gluteal muscles are the center of the body. It helps with your balance because it is the biggest muscle in the body. Butt exercises provides lower body strength for lifting as well as other movements such as pedaling a bicycle. If your goal is a bigger butt then add more weight and do less reps. These butt exercises will definitely add quality muscle to your rear. If your goal is toning then light or no weight is the key. This will firm what you have plus burn the fat off.

Butt exercise 1 Standing kickback with no weights

Stand facing a walk, lightly holding on with your hands for balance. Lean slightly forward so that your whole body is in a straight line. Shift your weight onto your left leg. Slowly raise your right leg as far behind you as you can, feeling the contraction in your butt. Your knee should be slightly bent. Don’t arch your back or over extend yourself. Hold on for a second, then slowly lower your leg. Finish the set, then switch to your left leg.

Butt exercise 2 Duck squat with dumbbell

With your feet farther than shoulder-width apart, your knees unlocked, and your toes pointing out, hold a dumbbell by the end, using both hands with your arms extended. Your chest should be out, your shoulders back, your abs tight, and your back straight. Keep your head in line with your spine and look straight ahead. There will be a slight forward lean to your upper body, which is natural. Slowly squat until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Don’t bounce, and don’t let your knees turn in. Hold for second. Then, keeping your feet flat on the floor, rise slowly with your hips slightly forward and your abs tight.

Butt exercise 3 Kneeling Kickback

Get down on your hands and knees. Keeping your right knee slightly bent slowly raise you right leg behind you until your thigh is parallel to your torso. Hold for a second, then slowly return almost to the starting position. Immediately raise your leg again before it touches the floor. Finish the set then switch legs.

Butt exercise 4 Alternation Lunge

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, your hands on you hips. Keep your upper body uright and your head in line with your spine. Take a long step forward with your right foot. Plant that foot firmly on the floor an bend your knees until your right thigh is parallel to the floor. Don’t let your right knee extend past your right foot. Your left leg should be extended behind you, the knee slightly bent and the heel raised. Immediately step back with your right foot, pressing your left heel to the ground. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart. Repeat the exercise with your left foot. That makes one repetition.

I am a 32 year-old personal trainer from Birmingham, AL. My experience includes over six years of Personal Training. I have studied diet techniques, weightlifting, and nutrition for over 10 years. This includes the study of kinesiology at the University of Alabama. You may visit Fitness website for additional questions.

by CLINTON WALKER

Butt exercises

Saturday, 12 May 2007

Dieting doesn't cure cellulite

An estimate 85% of women are plagued by cellulite, and new research from the US has shown weight loss isn't always the solution for orange-peel thighs. The study showed that most women's cellulite improved with weight loss, but that is worsened for some.Women who saw the biggest improvements were those who lost the largest amounts of weight and lowered their percentage of thigh fat. Women whose cellulite worsened, started with a singnificantly lower BMI, lost smaller amounts of weight and had no change in percentage of thigh fat.Regular exercise and balance diet and daily dry skin brushing are still your best defence against those dimples!
by JIRI KADERABEK

Monday, 9 April 2007

Cheap Exercise Equipment

One of the best ways to get a hold of some usable home gym equipment is to check out yard sales. Of course many people would overlook this option but if you look you are able to find some great equipment at a great price.
It is all too common for someone to get new exercise equipment for Christmas or as a New Year's resolution only to use it once or twice and let it collect dust in the corner until they get tired of looking at it and sell it. You may also run into someone who is upgrading their equipment.

You can usually see big exercise equipment from the street before you even get out of your car making it very easy to spot out in a yard sale. When you see something that looks promising don't be afraid to ask any questions. In fact the more questions you ask the better idea you will have of the type of shape the equipment is in.

You want to ask the seller when they bought it and how often they used it. Also ask them if they cleaned it or had to perform any maintenance on it. If they didn't use it very often ask they how long it has been sitting there in their home idle, and where it has been stores. These are all important questions that will tell you how the quality of the equipment is and if it is even worth the super discount price.

After you have asked questions, or even prior to talking to the owners you need to look the equipment over closely and make sure it is functional as well. You want to look closely and make sure there aren't any missing pieces that go to the equipment such as missing screws or safety pieces.

See how well oiled the equipment is and be sure to ask if they still have the original manual that came with it. This manual will give you a great idea as to what the machine looked like when the sellers' first purchased it.

The manual is useful in many ways as it will tell you how to use the machine as well as the basic care and maintenance that is required. If you find missing or damages pieces then don't be afraid to ask for a discount. People are usually trying to get rid of the equipment and are more than willing to give it to you at a steal.

When you are checking out local yard sales looking for exercise equipment then one thing to keep in mind is the prices you will accept. Try to familiarize your self with some equipment or even use your cell phone and call someone to check online for the price of the exact machine you found brand new. Knowing how much the original price was will help you determine how much you should be willing to fork over for a used piece of equipment.

by SVEN ULLMANN

Wednesday, 28 March 2007

Get Awesome Abs Before Summer

Exercising is one of my daily activities. I go to the gym a least five times a week and work out at home on the weekends. I work out my abs every other day. I do several exercises to form pack six abs. I diet regularly in order to have a healthy body and strong abs. You may not know, but there are many abs exercises. Just to get you started working on getting awesome abs. You can start out at home or go to a local gym. Here are some examples of abs exercises. You can purchase an exercise ball at your local store. Instead of doing crunches on the floor, lie over an exercise ball and squeeze your abs as you lift your shoulders. You’ll challenge your abs in a whole new way while also working other muscles in your body, like your legs and butt. With the ball your can do exercises like back rotation stretch, back extensions, push ups, abdominals/obliques, trunk curls, ab extension rolls, ab front extensions, and side abs extensions. you can purchase a bicycle for cycling. Cycling is ranked as the best abs exercise by the American Council on exercise, because it uses every muscle in your abs to create awesome abs. Make sure you pull your abs in and keep them contracting throughout the movement to protect your back. The plank is another great exercise that you can use to exercise your abs as well as the muscles of your back. Position yourself a though you’re about to do a pushup and hold that position, making your body into one long, straight line from head to toe. The reverse crunch is great for working your obliques and it helps you target the lower portion of your abs as well. There are many ways to do reverse crunches, but one of the best is to put an exercise ball under your knees. Make sure you contract your abs and use them to lift your hips off the floor. It’s a very small movement and you shouldn’t swing or use momentum. Incline sit-ups are another very affective way to strengthen your abs. You do not have to join a gym or health club. Just take a piece of plywood or a two by twelve and lay it on a block or something about a foot off the floor. Lie on your back and do three sets of ten about three to four times a week. You can also put flat weights on your belly to give you a little added weight. As your body gets used to the work out just add more weight. As you have read, there are many abs exercises you can do at home, work, or at the gym without taking a lot of your time.

by TERRY DOUCET