Great Home Workout Exercises For Fast Muscle

Recommended muscle building at home involves total body workout targeting the entire body; chest, back, shoulders, arms, legs and abs. One should note that people with co-existing injuries, illnesses or other condition, a doctor should be consulted beforehand to avoid further aggravation of the condition.

Equipment Needed
A barbell, dumbbells of various weights, an exercise ball, a weight bench, and an exercise mat.

Few examples of workouts to try at home:

Before starting, do a warm-up session of 5 minutes of light cardio. For beginners, start with no weight for 1 set of 14 -16 reps and upgrade to 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps with enough weights as you progress

1. Bench press (chest)

Lie on a bench, step or floor, and hold a medium-heavy barbell straight up over your chest. Bend your elbows and lower the weight until elbows are at 90 degrees. Press back up and repeat.

1. Lateral raise (shoulders)

Hold light-medium dumbbells and, keeping elbows slightly bent, lift arms out to the sides to shoulder level. Lower and repeat.

2. Barbell row (back)

Hold a medium-heavy barbell and tip forward to 45 degrees, keeping your back flat. Squeeze back to pull the weight in towards the belly. Lower and repeat.

3. Back entension (lower back)

Lie face down and squeeze the lower back to lift your chest a few inches off the floor. Lower and repeat.

4. Hammer Curls (Biseps)

Holding medium-heavy dumbbells, perform hammer curls with your palms facing each other. For added intensity, stand on one leg for a balance challenge, switching legs with each set.

5. Kickbacks (Triceps)

Bend forward, keeping back flat and abs in, and hold light-medium weights, elbows bent. Straighten the elbows to engage the triceps. Lower and repeat.

6. Deadlifts (Glutes, hamstrings and back)

Stand with feet hip-width apart, and hold weights in front of your thighs. Tip from the hips and lower weights towards the floor, keeipng your back flat and shoulders back. Return to start and repeat.

7. Static lunge (quads, hamstrings, glutes)

Stand in split stance and bend both knees, lowering into a lunge while keeping your front knee behind the toe. Lift back up and repeat before switching sides.

8. Squats (quads, hamstring, glutes)

Place a medium-heavy barbell on the upper back/shoulders or hold dumbbells in either hand. Bend the knees and lower into a squat, knees behind the toes. Push back to start and repeat.

9. Bicycle (abs)

Lie on the floor and bring the knees into the chest. Straighten the right leg as you twist the body, bringing the right elbow towards the left knee. Repeat on the other side in a cycling motion.

 Damian@FitnHealthy

Best Battle Rope Workout

Battle Rope Workouts Burn Fat While Building Muscle!

Battle Rope workouts are becoming more and more popular in the fitness world thanks to circuit style training and new research about the negative effects of steady state cardio. According to all the recent articles out there, they are able to burn high amounts of calories and fat while building muscle. It also has the advantage of being very low impact (considering you're just standing, it is virtually no impact). 

 But, can we believe the hype?

What Does the Research Say?

Well, unfortunately, there isn't a lot of research out there at this point about battle ropes, so I took the liberty to do a little test run on my own to see just how effective they can be. I set up a HIIT style workout using the battle ropes, and I kept it short and sweet at just 10 minutes. I worked at maximum effort for 30 seconds then took 30 seconds of active recovery (I walked during the 30 second recovery period). Using a heart monitor and my Polar T4 wrist monitor, here is what I found:

Workout Duration (excluding warm up and cool down): 10 Minutes
Total Calories Burned: 149
Max. Heart Rate: 172

Notes: I also felt some serious burn in my arms and shoulders, and I could tell my core got a solid workout also.

So, what does this mean? Is that a good workout? Well, in terms of calories, that is an awesome workout for the duration. For a HIIT style workout, I wouldn't recommend going longer than 30 minutes. Typically, if you can last longer than 30 minutes, you could be working harder. So, in 30 minutes, that works out to 447 Calories, plus all the extra calories you'll burn in EPOC which varies, but usually works out to around 100-200 more. Interval training like this also promotes some very important health benefits including insulin resistance, increased VO2 max and many others. For those of us looking to get more defined, interval training maintains muscle mass which is crucial for getting a nice physique.

To put this into perspective, let's compare this to some other forms of cardio.

30 Minute Battle Rope Workout: 447 + 200 in EPOC = 647 Total Calories Burned
60 Minutes on the treadmill at 6mph (10 minute mile): Approximately 700 Calories
60 Minutes on the treadmill leisurely walking: Approximately 270 Calories
60 Minutes of Basketball at a vigorous intensity: Approximately 600 Calories

Keep in mind, the Battle Rope workout is a 30 minute workout. Thirty minutes of Battle Ropes at maximum intensity burns as many, if not more, calories than many common forms of exercise can burn in twice that time. This is an awesome way for people with joint problems to be able to perform high intensity exercise while maintaining their joint integrity and limiting joint pain. Battle Ropes also promote strength gains in the upper body and limiting the catabolic effects present during steady state cardio. Overall, Battle Rope workouts are looking to be a great new form of cardio and a great addition to any workout program.

Source: Ryan M York Ezine

5 Essential Tips for Improving Running Form

Running. People either love it or loathe it more than anything. There’s no question that running for fitness can be a great way to improve many measures of health, including resting heart rate, blood pressure, body composition and bone density, among others. But how can we help our clients get the most out of their running, and turn “I guess I have to go for a run now” into “Is it time to run yet?!”

Here are a few tips you can offer clients that can help them improve their running economy and decrease their risk of injury so that they can enjoy the many benefits of running.

1. Start slowly

If your client has never been a runner, going out for a first “run” should be more of a brisk walk with a few short jogging intervals. Encourage your clients to try walking for 30 minutes and every five minutes, jog slowly for one minute. Over time, they can work toward jogging more and walking less, 30 to 60 seconds at a time. Once they have succeeded at 30 minutes of consecutive jogging, then they can begin to work on improving speed.

2. Ground contact

While jogging (slower form of running), it is important to be efficient with each foot strike. Ask your clients to think about contacting the ground with their mid-foot, rather than their heels. This way the foot will contact the ground under the hip and propel the body forward (when heel striking, the leg tends to act as a break and will slow the body down and put more stress on the knees).

3. Arm swing

While running, the arms should be swinging from the shoulders, with the elbows bent at about 90 degrees and the hands relaxed. Urge your clients to pretend they are holding two swords, one in each hand. If these swords cross over each other at any time during the arm swing, then the arms are crossing the body, which is a sign that energy is being wasted due to inefficient arm movements.

4. Body lean

The trunk should be tall, as if being pulled up from a string attached to the top of the head. Leading with the chest, the body should lean slightly forward (about 5 degrees) to propel the body in a forward direction. Encourage your clients to think of the trunk as a gas pedal in a car. Pressing it forward (not leaning forward) gently allows for an increase in speed.

5. Cadence

When an individual begins a running program, it may make sense to take long strides so as to cover as much ground as possible with each step. However, this can result in high ground-impact forces, which can lead to injury, early fatigue and inefficient running. Advise your clients to adjust their stride frequency to higher than 150 bpm (180 is ideal)—this would be the equivalent of running to Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run” or Kenny Loggins’ “Danger Zone” from Top Gun. 

Source : Jacqueline Crockford, MS, CSCS | ACE

7 Ideas to Take Your Fitness Training Outside

Are you getting bored with your current training routine? 

Are you sick of driving to the gym to work out when the weather is so nice? 

Are you stuck in a fitness rut and looking for some new ideas to renew progress? 

Let's face it. Driving 30 minutes to the gym to walk on the treadmill and lift weights does not make much sense when the weather is nice. Not to mention you have been cooped-up all winter long, you are bored out of your mind with your fitness routine, and you have not seen any progress in months.

Sit back and get comfortable. I am going to share with you some ideas that will get you outside, get you interested in training again, and will help you experience a level of progress that you have not seen in years. Interested? I hope that you said YES!

In my 10 years in the fitness game I have found that it keeps coming back to a couple key points. One: You need to try to strive to do more from training session to training session. Two: We all need regular variety in their training (for psychological and physiological reasons). Today I am going to talk about the second point and teach you how getting a little variety in your training can help get you back on track. Check out these outdoor training ideas to add a little variety to your routine:

1. Take your weight training outside to mix it up: During the summer months I really enjoy taking my strength training outside. I love taking my weights out into my backyard or to the local park. Training with a loved one or a group of dedicated friends is a great way to do it. Some of the training tools that work well for outdoor training are kettlebells (shown in the picture below -- looks like a big bowling ball with a handle), clubbells (a weighted bat), medicine balls (fun to throw around), sled dragging (great for athletes), weighted vest workouts, sandbag training (nothing fancy here, just sand in a bag), and good old dumbbells.

2. Try Some Interval Training to increase fat loss: Look, the "fat-burning" zone is a myth. Sure your body does use fat as an energy source after 30 minutes of continuous exercise at a certain intensity but the sports scientists have shown us that shorter efforts of higher intensity exercise can be even more effective at decreasing your body fat percentage (did you ever wonder why sprinters are so lean without having to run for 30 minutes straight???). A great way to incorporate interval training into your summer training can be as simple as warming up for 5-10 minutes and then alternating 30 seconds of more intense effort with 30 seconds of a more moderate effort. You could do this on your mountain bike, road bike, doing hill sprints, kayak sprints, jump roping, sprints on the track, or even doing a bodyweight callisthenic such as jumping jacks. Enjoy!

3. Perform mini-workouts throughout the day: A simple way to fit in some outdoor training is to pick any exercise and take short exercise breaks outside. You could walk out of your office and perform a set of squats, walking lunges, elevated push-ups, stair climbs where you skip steps, or even calf raises. Remember: It's your total energy expenditure at the end of the day that is important -- not doing it all at once.

4. Do some yard work: The yard is a mess so you might as well get a workout and be productive at the same time. Try stacking wood, raking leaves, building a rock wall, digging a hole (you decide what for), walk with a loaded wheelbarrow, carry things across the yard over your head, spread some mulch around your new plants that you just put in the hole you dug earlier.

5. Take in some scenery: Make the world your gym. Commercial health clubs have nothing on Mother Nature. Get yourself outside and go for a walk in the local park, go hiking, kayaking, mountain biking, and go to the beach to run in the sand or jump in the waves. Getting outdoors can be a great way to adopt a fitness lifestyle and add some variety to your current training program.

6. Go for obstacle walks: A cool way to add some variety to your routine is to mix in some bodyweight calisthenics such as squats, push-ups, and jumping jacks into your summer walks to increase calorie expenditure and challenge your body. Walking on a treadmill is boring and predictable. Going for an obstacle walk through your local park can be a lot more enjoyable and the "chaos" of walking outside could be the right kind of variety you have been looking for.

7. Participate in a summer sports league: Playing sports is a great way to add some variety to your routine and have a blast doing it. There are hiking clubs, mountain biking clubs, road bike clubs, triathlon training clubs, softball leagues, martial arts tournaments, basketball leagues, and more. In fact, I am participating in a summer basketball league for the first time in years and I can't wait to start. It's a great chance to get outside, make new friends, and perform a fitness activity that enhances your life.

There you have it -- 7 ideas to take your fitness training outside and incorporate some variety into your program. One thing to consider is to hit the gym a couple days a week and perform your other workouts outside. Mother Nature has provided us with some great options so get outside this summer and take advantage and I am sure that you will see renewed progress (and you'll have a blast doing it!).

Train with purpose.

Unconventional Way to Fitness Training - Get the Best Clubbells

When one enters the gym, they see a number of fitness training equipment which is widely known to the world. Such fitness gear can be counted under traditional training and workout equipment, for instance a run of mill, treadmill, a stationary bicycle, weights, bench press, and arc trainer. However, an experienced strength trainer will be able to think outside the box and bring forth new innovative ideas with a new kit like one has never seen before. Some unconventional workout fitness training equipment UK is explained in detail below with their individual advantages.

Clubbells are designed similar to a baseball bats which are used in strength training and building requisite muscle mass in the body after subsequent training. What many are likely to miss out on is the fact that these can also be used in weight loss. Every day there are a number of new nifty methods being launched that make high claims of cutting down fat percentage in the body, thus helping your lose weight. However, when you are looking for the best ways to exercise in the ease and comfort of a house or your back yard and garden, a clubbell will make your dream more attainable.

This tool is simple to use and doesn't demand any technical know how. Because of its simplicity in design, these conventional yet innovative tools have survived centuries of development in the field of fitness training equipment. Its use and application hasn't altered or changed much over the years, moreover, experienced trainers have identified them among sought after tool for not only losing excess fat but building muscle mass and inner strength in the individual.

Here are some unique benefits of Clubbells training in comparison to other gears that are widely popular in the market today.

The best and most unique function served by this gear is of its versatility. While you train with different weights, there are only a defined number of ways that you can lift them. Thus, this leaves lesser room to improve ones flexibility as the movements are constricted and redefined. However with Clubbells one needn't be worried about this aspect, as it allows versatility and effectiveness in the quality of your workouts.

Another benefit of training with this brilliant workout tool is losing weight and that too in a short time period. Many ignore the use because it may not have the capacity to exhaust a trainee that easily. However, what people fail to realize is that based on its strength building features, a person ends up reducing weight much faster without feeling too exhausted or wearied.

Fitness gear like speed sled is counted among many other underestimated and underutilized equipment in the gym as well.

Source Andrew Louis| Go