Go The Distance

Some of us run for fat burning benefits and others run to train for long distance runs such as marathons.  Fueling our bodies is important for both, but different kinds of fuel work better depending on our goals.

For long distance running, carbohydrates go a long way.  Complex carbohydrates keep a steady flow of energy in our bodies to help us endure throughout the race.  Foods such as pasta, whole grain breads, oatmeal, sweet potatoes and legumes go a long, long way.

But for those of us who run as exercise and to burn fat, fueling our bodies is a little different.  Rather than loading up on carbohydrates, eating more protein is much better.  When we burn fat we do not want to burn muscle.  Muscle keeps our metabolism running at an optimum rate.  To retain muscle, we need protein.  Also, when we eat carbohydrates before a run, we use those carbohydrates for energy as described above.  When we do that we burn those carbohydrates and never get to our fat reserve.

No matter what your goals, remember to maintain a healthy diet at all times.  For more information on healthy eating and more on a healthy lifestyle, check out. . .

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Interval Training

We are always looking for the best way to burn fat with the least amount of effort.  It is often hard to find hours to go to the gym with work, family, etc.  But we do it so we can look good.   Well with interval training, it is possible to work out a shorter amount of time, and actually burn more fat.

Interval training works on short bursts of high intensity exercise followed by a short rest period, repeated.  There are variations in the length of time for each, but all accomplish more than a steady 40 minute high intensity work out.  There are a few interval training work outs that only require 15 to 18 minutes total time.

You start out with a 5 minute warm up and then interval train with intervals of 2 minutes high intensity, 2 minutes low intensity, or 1 minute high intensity, 30 minutes low intensity or 1 minute high intensity, 2 minutes low intensity and the most dramatic, 20 seconds high intensity, 10 seconds low intensity.

If you notice there are different ratios and there are different theories on each, but one thing is certain, they burn a load more fat than walking on a treadmill for an hour at the gym.

For more info on healthy workouts, foods and more check out. . .

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Benefits Of A Life Of Health And Fitness

Living a life of health and fitness may seem a huge sacrifice but the rewards are truly immeasurable. Not only will you be able to enjoy your life a little bit longer, you can also live it while looking good and looking young.

You don’t believe us? Here is a rundown of the benefits that healthy living can give. Read on and you may be tempted to leave the dark unhealthy side.

1. Active body Eating the right kinds of food and keeping your body in shape will result to having more energy and that will spill over to your work and your “play” time. You will be more active and will have more chance to shine in your line of work. People who are active also come across as more capable and more independent. They are also perceived as more approachable, confident and charming.

2. Younger looking People who live healthy are younger looking than those who smoke and drink in excess. This is because chemicals in alcoholic drinks and cigarettes dry up the skin and create a more older appearance. Chemicals in the body also reduce the nutrients that go into the body, thus depriving the body of vitamins and minerals that keep the skin and other organs healthy and functioning.

Being young looking of course gives you a whole set of benefits, from a remarkable love life to success with career and in your social life. After all, whether we admit it or not, appearance do count in a lot of ways and being young looking and attractive can take you in places. As shallow as it seems, you will have more friends and more romantic involvements. Everybody loves beautiful people.

3. Clear thinking It is not true that chemicals in alcoholic drinks and cigarettes and drugs can amp up creativity levels. These are actually just short-lived and as studies have shown, only in the mind. People who eat and live healthy are more able to think clearly. They are more able to focus on the jobs at hand and therefore are able to accomplish much with their work than other people. They are also more dependable when given instructions and their memories are often clear and good.

4. No illness People who live a healthy lifestyle are well, healthy. They are not prone to sickness that can slow down a person’s achievement levels. Thus, these people accomplish much of what they set out to do. They are not hampered by problems with their health or appointments with doctors that they have to go to. These people rarely take a leave of absence and when they do, they will often take a vacation and just relax. They don’t take a leave because they are sick.

5. Emotionally-secure Although there really is no direct relationship, people who live a life of health and fitness are happier. They are able to enjoy their life more and are not distracted by odd habits and health problems. They also have less worries and are able to cope better with stressors. This is perhaps because they do not need to rely on chemicals for coping with the hardships that they encounter. Early on, they have developed natural coping strategies that can help them get through the daily grind.

Which The Best Fitness Exercise Bike For You?

There are a wide range of fitness exercise bikes on the market today, offering the perfect workout for literally everyone who with fitness goals. From someone looking to drop a few extra pounds to those just looking to tone up or maintain their current weight, an exercise bike is the perfect home tool to help achieve these goals.

You probably know by now that the only formula for real weight loss or maintenance is calories in versus calories out. You have to burn more than you eat to lose weight or balance it nicely to keep at your current weight. Try going in the other direction and you will find your need for a home exercise bike even more urgent as you pick up more weight.

No matter which version you prefer, there are many features that you will find on all the exercise bikes in the Life Fitness range.

• Self powered. All Life Cycles are self-powered which means no power cords to fall over, and no need for a power point. You can set up anywhere from the basement to the shed to the courtyard. The only trick to this is that your bike won’t light up until you start pedaling.

• LifePulse Digital Heart Rate is a great system featured on the Life Cycles. Once you enter your age, and the sort of workout you are after, these bikes will set their own resistance to keep your heart rate in the target zone. What’s more, if you don’t pedal hard enough, the console will tell you that you need to work harder, or lower your ideal heart rate figure. This is a great benefit for those who want to workout in their ideal zones. All the guesswork is removed leaving you to just focus on pedaling and sweating.

• Comfort Curve Plus Seats. The generous sized seats are made with extra padding so you won’t be suffering from a sore butt when you have finished your workout. Anyone who has spent many uncomfortable hours on an exercise bike will appreciate this design.

• Plenty of programs to select from to keep the boredom away including Hills Plus, Personal Trainer, Random, Quick Start, Customized Workouts, Interactive Heart Rate Workouts, and Customized Cool Downs. 25 levels of resistance will offer a great workout from the beginner to those just about ready for the Tour de France.

• Recumbent bikes, including the Life Cycle 9500HR recumbent exercise bikes are great selections for those who suffer from lower back problems. Looking more like an armchair than an exercise bike, these offer a lot of ergonomic lumbar (lower back) support.). This allows you to pedal for miles without having your back hunched up over the handlebars. You still get the workout benefits without your spine being strained.

• Upright bikes include the Life Cycle 9500HR exercise bike. These stationary exercise bikes are the traditional design appearing more like a standard bike. These have been ergonomically designed to ensure the hip knee placement is correct, and the handle bars have been aligned to encourage ideal posture.

The Life Cycle range of exercise bikes offer a wide range of programs and resistance levels suited for those of all fitness standards. The interactive heart rate programs are especially useful for those who like to stay in their target heart rate zones. These bikes are extremely hardy and are made to last. Life Cycles would be well suited to those seeking a gym quality exercise bike for their home.

8 Great Benefits of Routine Physical Activity