Unfortunately that seldom works for the long-term and when you mix in exercise as a part of your weight loss plan, you need to take a whole different approach to how you eat and lose weight.

You need the energy to exercise and the body needs enough fuel in the form of food to properly function. It all depends on how much you exercise and what kind of activity. However, you need to make sure that you are providing yourself with enough calories in the day to exercise and also the ability to give your body the proper nutrients and calories to completely recover.

In fact, if you’re trying to lose weight, exercising and not taking in enough calories, it can be much harder or even impossible to shed the pounds. It’s a strange to think that when exercise is put in the mix, eating more can actually help you to lose more.

So how do you need to eat to continue exercising as efficiently as possible?

1. Eat Breakfast

For weight loss purposes, but especially for exercise, it’s important to start the day with a good breakfast. Researchers analyzed data from government sources that revealed regular breakfast eaters  exercised more regularly as well as ate fewer calories throughout the day. Also both men and women that consumed cereal versus other breakfast foods had a lower overall fat intake.

If you exercise in the morning it might not be ideal to eat a breakfast just before exercising because of the time. However, you do need to get up early enough to eat and drink something before you head out and do whatever exercise you do.

It’s suggested you take in some calories and drink some water about an hour before you start. Your body needs to start working and the metabolism needs to wake up. Besides, you’ve been fasting because of sleep for an extended period of time and your body needs energy to get through a workout.

After you’re done, then use your breakfast as a way to recover from the morning workout to get going with the rest of your day.

2. Drink A lot of Water

Many people will suggest that you drink the many sports drinks on the market, but unless your exercising beyond 60 minutes at a time and you’re losing a lot of electrolytes, you can just stick with water to keep you hydrated. You need to think about water before, during and after exercise.

• Before- The American College of Sports Medicine recommends the following in regards to water consumption:

Drink around 0.5 to 0.7 liters (2 or 3 cups) of water a couple hours before you work out.

• During-Drink a half to a cup or .12 to .23 liters of water every 15 minutes while you’re working out. Depending on the humidity factor and how much you perspire, you might need even more.

• After you workout, drink an additional 2 to 3 cups  (0.5 to 0.7 liters) for each pound you lose during your workout.

There is a little technique you can use to make sure you’re properly hydrating after your workout. Weigh yourself before and after your workout. The weight lost will be all water weight. It’s important to take in enough water after exercise, because this is a major reason most people become dehydrated.

3. Time Your Snacking

This is the same principle used similar to getting up in the morning. Make sure you eat something, preferably high in carbohydrates between 30 minutes to an hour before you exercise. You’re body needs fuel to function, but you don’t want the food giving you cramps. Something easily digestible like a snack bar, yogurt, or fruit would fit the bill.

Usually you won’t need to eat during your exercise, but it’s a great idea to eat something immediately after to start the recovery process so you’re ready for your next workout.

This is an important point. Most people don’t look beyond a day in the life of their exercise. A good way to motivate yourself to do these things is what you do today will have an effect on the next day and the next. If your thinking, “It’s Tuesday, but I need to have the energy to get my Friday workout done.” With this mindset, you’ll take care of the little things like eating and drinking for recovery.

4. Experiment With What You Eat

You need to figure out what works for you and what doesn’t, depending on the exercise,  duration, intensity etc. Every body reacts differently to foods and general guidelines are just that, “too general”. The only way you are going to figure out the right foods to eat as well as the amount and frequency of water to drink pre and post exercise, is to start with the general guidelines and modify them according to how you feel.

Don’t follow the masses and do what someone tells you to do because everybody else is doing it. You need to figure out exactly how your body will react to your eating in regards to your exercise and how you feel. By figuring out exactly how you tick, will be the most beneficial  for you in your every day life.

In conclusion, If you follow these tips and make sure you eat and drink in sync with your exercise, you’ll be able to exercise more consistently and without injury. You will be greatly assisting your overall weight loss, fitness and quality of life for the rest of your life.  Only you will know what’s best for you based on experimenting with what works and what doesn’t for your own situation.

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It is posible to  lose the weight and get the ripped, six pack abs you’ve always wanted. However, you’re not going to get there if you’re making these abdominal mistakes. Take this advise, so you can be on your way to a firmer toner sexier stomach.

1. You’re Not Putting the Effort Into Your Abs Workout

Many people do their ab exercises and never see the results. It’s not about a lot of repetitions as much as really focusing on each rep.

When you do each rep with correct technique and give it the most intensity that you have, you don’t need to do hundreds of reps to get the results.

2. Your Technique is Causing Neck  Pain

This is probably one of the most complained about issues, when it comes to doing abdominal exercises. This neck pain is usually caused by doing crunches.

Who said you even need to do crunches to develop your abdominals?

There are numerous abdominal exercises that you can implement that work on each specific muscle in your core and abdominal region while at the same time supporting your neck. If your neck hurts, you need to use better technique or it’s just a bad exercise to begin with. I say, look for exercises that prevent neck pain and perform these exercises in your abdominal workout.

3. You Force You’re Back Into Spinal Flexion

This is another movement that you want to avoid at all costs.

Spinal flexion is the type of movement you make when you bend over to pick something up. The same movement is performed when you do sit-ups or crunches.

Much research has been done in the last 10 years that’s confirmed that sit ups and crunches increase disc herniations as well as many other related pathologies.

Every time you do a sit up, you cause compression in the low back that is near the safety limits set by the Occupational Health and Safety Organization. This movement causes more back problems than any other type of exercise leading to bulging or herniated discs. The numbers of back pain and back surgeries would be significantly reduced if people would stop doing sit-ups altogether.

When you’re developing your abdominals, again you don’t need to do any exercise that creates unsafe spinal flexion. Finding alternatives to sit-ups and crunches while using good solid technique will protect you from these types of injuries.

4. Your Abs Aren’t Braced At Every Repetition

Have you ever heard the term loose cage when it comes to doing any core or abdominal work?

When you’re working out your abdominals, you want to brace your abs on every rep. This bracing action not only protects your back, but it also works your abs at the same time. Remembering to brace during all your workouts will be one of the most important tips to avoiding injury and improving results.

5. The Abs Don’t Have Any Stamina to Aid With Low Back Support

When it comes to doing abdominal work many people only think of strength and power.

They forget that endurance and stamina is even more important when it comes to abdominal performance.

Dr. Stuart McGill, an expert in the fitness and performance of the low back says that endurance of the core correlates more strongly with lower risk of back injury. So the ab routine should consist of exercises that produce endurance as well as strength. One of the best ways to do this is by performing the plank exercise. When you’re starting out, you can do this exercise with a 10 second hold. As you advance, you’ll  get to the point where you’ll hold it for 2 minutes at a time.

6. You’re Working Your Abs At Only One Angle

How many times do you watch someone doing crunches and sit-ups?

They’ll do numerous repetitions, but only doing it one way. Besides the fact that sit-ups and crunches are ineffective and dangerous to perform, there are many other abdominal exercises that you can perform that will work your muscles at multiple angles. Those people that have six-pack abs do many different exercises that work the muscles at many angles.

Using a variety of exercises,  you can work the upper and lower rectus abdominus, the obliques, the erector spinae and the other core exercises without ever doing one sit up or crunch.

7. Your Head Nods

This happens a lot and it goes along with why people have neck pain from doing abdominal exercises.

You might perform an abdominal exercise and move the head instead of contracting the abdominals through the required range of motion. You’ll see some one doing numerous sit-ups and they’re not really working the muscles at all.

If you decide to do crunches (you shouldn’t because there are many safer more effective alternatives) your head shouldn’t move at all. A good way to keep your head from nodding is to clasp your hands behind your neck and while doing the exercise, keep your eyes fixed on the ceiling. This prevents your head for moving forward and keeps it in sync with the rest of your body.

8. Your Arms Flap Too Much

You see this quite often, the arms moving up and down while going through any of the abdominal motions.

This creates the same effect as the head nod as you move your arms a lot without working the abdominals. You don’t want to move your arms at all. Your arms are only an extension of the exercise movement. You don’t lead with your arms. The idea is to go through the exercise motion with the targeted muscles. By focusing on good technique and doing the exercise correctly your arms won’t flap.

9. You Fail To Plan Your Workout

Surprisingly, a lot of people wing their abdominal workout.

They’ll get done with their cardio or strength training and then do some crunches or sit-ups to finish off the workout. If you want to get results, you have to design a specific abdominal routine that works all of the muscles at multiple angles as well as the right intensity.

Bottom line, don’t just think of your ab routine as something you do quickly between your main workout and then it the shower. Make it count just as much as any other workout.

10. Your Workout Routine Stays the Same

This is another mistake that most people make. Their ab routine never changes.

They always perform the same exercises with the same amount of reps at the same intensity. Just as in strengthening and building any muscle in the body, the abdominals need to be constantly challenged with  different exercises and varying repetitions.

11. You’re Not Doing Any Weight Training

You might be thinking, what does weight training have to do with my abdominals?

It has everything to do with whether or not you’re going to develop the six-pack Abs. You see, there’s no such thing as spot reduction. You can do all the abdominal exercises in the world, but those exercises are never going to burn the fat off your belly. A clinical study involving 33 adult males engaging in weight training revealed that after 10 weeks, everybody had significant lean muscle gains and an incredible 5% reduction of body fat.  As you a train and you build lean muscle mass  throughout your whole body, you’ll increase your metabolism and burn more fat all over. As you continue to burn fat all over, it’ll eventually come off your belly.

12. Your Exercise Routine Focuses Solely on Abdominal Exercise

This goes hand in hand with what I just discussed. Some people just focus on their abdominals and forgets everything else.

For sure you’ll build strong well-developed abdominal muscles, but neither you nor anyone else will ever see it. All you’ll have are developed abdominal muscles underneath your fat belly. For this reason, a complete exercise program is needed to burn the fat to reveal the six-pack abs underneath.

13. You Compare Your Body to Others

You don’t want to compare yourself to others.

What usually happens is that we compare our weaknesses to people’s strengths. Of course, it never hurts to get inspiration from others, but judging yourself on somebody else’s results is counterproductive. A good way to avoid the comparison trap is to take before and after photos. This might take some courage on your part, but take off your shirt and take pictures of your front, your sides and your back. You don’t have to show anybody these photos if you don’t want to.

Every couple of months, takes new photos and compares those to the previous. As you do this, you’ll see the results based on how you were as compared to how you are now.

14. You Don’t Take in Enough Calories

This is a major mistake most people make when trying to get in shape and lose weight. The more you exercise, the more calories you need to consume to keep up with your energy needs.

If you exercise and you don’t take in enough calories, your body will shut down. You can lose muscle and it becomes extremely difficult to recover from workouts as well as lose more weight. This is a good thing though, because you can get to the point that you don’t have to restrict calories. If you eat nutritious food and exercise regularly your body will respond by getting fitter without starving yourself. This benefits the abs because fat lost means your able to reveal the abs underneath.

15. You Missed Too Many Workouts

Missing a workout every once in while is not a bad thing.

Sometimes you’re just tired and your body is telling you that you need a slowdown. Also, you might not be mentally prepared for a workout and you decide to do it another day. However, when this becomes a regular occurrence, it can mean a couple of things. One, your over training and your body is not able to recover properly. Two, because you’re working your body so hard, it’s mentally difficult to keep up the intensity from one workout to the next.

If this is happening, you need to reevaluate your workouts by cutting down on the duration or the intensity of each workout.

16. You Only Do the Exercise That Are Easy To Do

You see this all the time when it comes to strength training and abdominal exercises. They’ll be a favorite exercise that someone will do a lot of while neglecting other important ones.

Don’t do this. In fact, spend less time on the exercises that come easy to you and spend more time on the ones you just don’t want to do. If you want to properly develop your abs, you need to work on your weak areas. So next time you do your ab workout, by doing the exercises you want to avoid, you’ll be doing the ones that are most important to fully develop your abdominal area.

17. Your Weight Training Consist of Only Single Joint Exercises

Single joint exercises consist of moments like bicep curls triceps curls etc. Multi joints exercises consist of squats for the lower body and dumbbell presses for the upper. Do you’re weight training performing multi joint exercises.

One good reason to do this in relation to the abdominals is that these motions not only develop the primary muscles but the stabilizing muscles as well. Most multi-joint exercises use the core muscles of the body as stabilizers to correctly complete the motion. So by doing these types of exercises, your developing and strengthening your abdominals at the same time.

18. You Don’t Prepare For Your Workout

Just like you would prepare for an exam at school, you need to prepare for your workout.

Make sure you’ve eaten enough before to give you enough energy to get through the workout. Also, make sure you drink enough water so you’re always properly hydrated to do your best.

If you want to prepare for your workout you also need to eat and drink after. You might be asking how that’s preparing for your workout? It’s all about getting ready for the next workout . You are essentially preparing for your next exercise session the minute you finish the previous workout. What you do during that time will be a big indicator of how well you recover.

If you take this seriously, you’ll get better results, because of better workouts and less injury at the same time.

19. You Need  to Eat within 2 Hours After Your Workout

This goes along with the previous tip. It’s critical that you take in a good amount of calories in the form of carbohydrates and protein immediately after your workout.

As soon as you finish your exercise, your body starts recovery process. It needs carbohydrates to replenish the glycogen stores in the muscle. Also, because of the abdominal workout you’ve essentially broken down your muscle. When you start to rest, the muscle needs protein to rebuild and adapt.

The optimal window of time for this process is within 2 hours after your exercise. It’s easy to do by having food and water on hand so you can immediately start eating and drinking after you’re done.

20. Stop Making Excuses

If you want to get the results that you’ve always dreamed of you have to do the work.

Lots of people talk the big talk, but they just make excuses when it comes to taking action. If you really want to have the Abs you’ve always wanted, stop the excuses and just do it. You’ll be glad you did. When you can  take off your shirt or wear that bikini, and everybody stares at you and wishes they could have your body, you’ll be glad you did.

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As a parent you only want your kids in good health with the ideal weight doing good kids exercises, right? We want them to have this growing up as well as maintaining that weight for life. It used to be you didn’t have to worry about your kids. They always seemed to find things to do out in and around the house being active and always moving.

Unfortunately, in our modern society, that’s no longer the case. With all the modern conveniences, TV, video games and computers, your kids are no longer physically active. In fact, there have been major studies conducted during the last 10 years that present surprising statistics. In studies of  overweight children between the ages of six and seventeen, they scored remarkably low in areas of flexibility, cardiovascular endurance as well as strength.

All you need to do is go to the local pool, lake and beach to see that the majority of kids are overweight to obese.

Who’s to blame?

As parents, we can only blame ourselves for the weight problems of our children. Of course, there might be instances of metabolic conditions that parents have no control over. But for the most part, it’s bad lifestyle and nutritional habits that we teach our kids that become the root cause of the problem.

How much exercise does a kid need each day?

A minimum of 30 to 60 minutes of moderate activity each day. Personally, I think this recommendation is a little weak. Besides school, they should be out all the time.

So what are some tips to help you as a parent to teach as well as get your children to exercise?

1. Be a model

Everything that your child does they learn from you. If you want your child to exercise, you need to do it first. Everything you ask a child to do, you have to be willing to do it yourself. As you change your life, by eating right and exercising, your children will see your example and in most cases, they’ll want to do what you’re doing. How many times  what do you hear from an athlete when they’re asked how they got started in their particular sport? Most of the time they started because a parent sparked their interest and started playing it with them.

2. Exercise together

Go out and spend time with your kids running around at the park, the pool or anywhere else that you can be physically active. It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to get your kids  going and have some fun. They already have that imagination, it just needs to be reignited by giving them the opportunity to use it.

3. Make it fun

I don’t know a kid that doesn’t want to have fun. Whatever activity or exercise you do with your kids, make it fun. The one reason most people don’t exercise is because they can stand what they’re doing. The only difference between kids and adults, is adults will grind through exercise activities that they might not even like. Kids will have nothing to do with that. If it’s not fun, they’re not going to do it.

4. Limits TV and video time

As you get out more and get your kids active as well as spend time with them, the TV and video will naturally be less of a concern. Nevertheless, you need to set limits and stick to those limits for these activities. If they’re used to spending a lot of time in front of the TV, computer or a video game, this will be a hard habit to break. However, they might resist, but if you stay firm, they will start to form new habits.

5. Make exercise a part of everyday life

Just like eating, drinking, getting dressed or, whatever else we do every day, exercise has to be in that category. If you make it a part of your everyday life, your kids will automatically make it a part of theirs.

6. Schedule physical activity

This goes hand in hand with the other tips that a been given. Even after it becomes a habit, if you don’t schedule physical activity in the day, everything else will get in the way. Plan to go to the park, walk or run with your kids, play a family baseball game or whatever else you can plan for the day. Even if it’s planning to make sure your kids are in the backyard or at the park, do it instead of them parking themselves in front of the TV.

7. Plan to walk everywhere

In the course of the day it’s amazing how much physical activity anyone can receive by walking everywhere they go. Now, I’m not saying to literally walk everywhere, but if you’re going to the mall, park far enough away where you need to walk a little. Of course you’ll be walking throughout the mall, but take the stairs instead of the elevator. If possible, have your kids walk to and from school instead of driving them there. The point I’m trying to make is with a little thought and practice, your children can get a lot of exercise in by just doing the normal activities of the day.

8. Schedule play time with friends

Schedule time for them to be with their friends and go somewhere where they can all play. This means the backyard, the park or wherever else they can run around and have fun.

9. Sign them up for sports

Sign your kids up for sports throughout the year. Keep them busy. This is a great way for kids to have  a lot of interest, develop their motor skills as well as their fitness.

10. Sign them up for day camp

During the summer, get them out of the house by signing them up for camp. This’ll keep them busy all day and they’ll be active and having fun at the same time.

11. No negotiations when it comes to exercise

Make exercise mandatory. Of course you don’t want to be a drill sergeant, but you can lovingly let your kids know that they need to go out every day and play. As soon as they know you mean business, they’ll conform and get in the habit of daily exercise.

12. Put your child in charge that of the activities

You don’t always have to be the one that plans the activities. Let your kids do it. They’ll learn planning, develop leadership skills and will be more likely to follow through on their plan, because they were the ones that thought it up.

In conclusion, there are many ways to keep  children healthy and active. If you set the example and instill good habits, they’ll be healthy kids that will grow to be healthy adults.

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Unfortunately, it becomes difficult for most people to follow the strength-training program on a consistent basis. The main reason is the equipment needed to carry out the exercises. There are free weights, which include dumbbells and also all the weight machines that target all the different muscle groups of the body.

The problem arises when you don’t have access to a gym or you can’t afford the equipment you need at home to carryout your strength training routine.

So how about resistance bands to perform your workouts?

Most people can’t believe that resistance bands could ever replace weights. Well I’m here to tell you that they can not only replace weights, but you can get in awesome workouts by using them.

If you’re not convinced, there was a study conducted on the electrical activity of muscles being used during exercise. The device was used to measure the EMG of each strength exercise. EMG is the measure of electrical activity of muscles during exercise. It can’t measure the tension of the muscles directly, but it’s simply a measurement or signal of the activity of the nervous system when producing muscular force. This measurement is very similar to the actual muscular tension produced.

Before any exercise was examined, there needed to be a baseline. The researchers used isometric contractions as a baseline measurement. Subjects flexed their muscles as hard as they could and the EMG measurement was taken. This hard contraction is called the MVC or maximum voluntary contraction.

So how did the resistance bands work comparing the EMG based on the MVC of the isometric baseline tests?

The resistance bands work very well. It was observed that they worked just as well as the free weights.

So why use resistance bands?

• The bands do a good job of fatiguing muscle time efficiently. The reason for this is because this type of resistance offers the person using them resistance on the lifting as well as the lowering phases. Marla Erickson, a Reebok master trainer and international fitness presenter states that resistance bands give those a legitimate way to achieve the overload necessary when participating in strength training. They offer the resistance necessary, based on EMG readings, to provide the overload resulting and the proper training effect.

• Resistance bands are extremely versatile. They can be used in a number of exercises working almost every muscle group in the body. Any angle can be used to produce the proper training effect. Also, bands are coded for Resistance vs. weight. Each band has a color that correlates with a particular tension.

• Bands help facilitate the proper technique. If someone using the bands isn’t very familiar with body positioning, like I mentioned above, alas tick resistance gives the individual a path of motion that’s easy to follow.

How do you use the bands correctly?

• It’s important to choose the correct resistance. Keep in mind that new bands will be hard to stretch as compared to older ones. Obviously, thick bands will be hard are then thinner ones. It’s important to be conservative when starting out and not use too much of a resistance. Most people that try to use too much resistance in the beginning often get injured.

• It’s vital that you learn proper technique before you attempt to do the exercise. It’s important to practice each exercise without any resistance. Learn how it feels to go through this range motion. After you can perform the exercise successfully, then start adding Resistance period

• Make sure you know how to position the tubing to get the proper tension for each exercise. Tony Horton, a famous personal trainer and developer and author of the P90X training systems shows how properly looping the band’s can offer the correct amount of Resistance for each exercise. Every single exercise that uses weights can be modified using bands.

What are some other advantages of using resistance bands vs. Traditional barbells and dumbbells?

• Convenience. Resistance bands are extremely portable. You can take them virtually anywhere. If you’re traveling you have your weights with you. You don’t have to rely on having access to Gym or transporting all your weights to a different location.

• Expense. For the effectiveness of resistance bands, their a hands down  bargain when it comes to costs. All people need are three bands (Light, Medium and Heavy) with various tension. To buy high quality bands it will cost you at the most $80. In comparison, dumbbells that would give you all the weights you would need to perform your workouts would cost you around $300 to $450.

• Storage. When you go the gym you can see how much space free weights take. If you want to workout at home you need space and a place to put all your weights. With resistance bands you don’t need any space. In fact when you’re done you can throw them in the closet or tuck them away in your dresser.

• Limitless amounts of exercises. Because you can stretch resistance bands in any direction, the amount of exercises you can do is left to your imagination. Every time you change the angle of your exercise, you’re essentially doing a new exercise. As you become more proficient and doing your strength training workouts with resistance bands, you’ll be able to vary each exercise to gain the maximum amount of muscle strength and development.

In conclusion, resistance bands are to be taken seriously as a means of performing quality strength training exercise routines. It seems for all up sides of using bands, there’s not a lot of downsides. So if you want all the benefits of using resistance bands, you can have quality workouts, gain lean muscle mass and efficiently burn the fat just as well as using weights.Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2011-2012 Marius Bakken

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by Marius Bakken, M.D.
Two time Olympic runner and author of the NWLC system

Have you ever heard the phrase and I’m paraphrasing here, “If we don’t learn from history we’re doomed to repeat it”?  You will see this in action in this article about a weekly food diary.

For the purposes of this article what you don’t learn from your own eating habits, you’ll just keep repeating over and over and never make any real progress.

A great way to learn from your mistakes is to write them down, so you can remember them and do something about it.

With this said, a food journal can become the missing link in your long-term dieting success. A study conducted and published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine followed nearly 1,700 women and men who were categorized as either overweight or obese. All the research participants attended twenty group meetings and were asked to consume 500 fewer calories every day, exercise and follow a low fat Dash dietary plan.

They were also asked to keep a food diary and record all they ate as well as their exercise routine. The results showed that after twenty weeks the average weight loss for all participants was 13 lbs. Interestingly, the more consistent and detailed food journal entries equated in more weight loss.

The participants that followed the plan and didn’t keep the journal lost 9 lbs. The participants that recorded 6 entries or more a week doubled their weight loss with 18 lbs.

Clearly there’s something to be said for keeping an account of your daily eating and exercise habits.

Here are some tips to keep a food journal and make it a powerful tool in maximizing your weight loss.

1. Buy a notepad that you can carry around with you

This is probably one of the most important tips and why I put it at the very top. Good intentions will get you nowhere. You need to have your notebook ready to write down any info at anytime. Too many people opt to use their computer or a special food diary program that they purchase to use on their computer.

The problem is that you are probably not at your computer when you eat. The best time to write down your information and thoughts is after you eat. Go out and save yourself the hassle and time by buying a small inexpensive notepad that you can fit in your pocket or purse and have it everywhere you go. Making this as simple as possible on your self will assure that you’ll be consistent and make this work for you.

2. Write down any information that will help you better know yourself

The whole process of keeping a food diary isn’t to torture you and cause you to have to do another task in your day. It’s to bring awareness to what you really do and think in relation to food.

Record what you eat and write down calories including the breakdown of fat, protein, carbs, fiber and anything else you think is relevant. Consider your reasons for eating. Was it because you were hungry or was it some other factor? You might eat when you are in high emotional states such as depression, angry etc.

3. Be aware of your cravings or appetites throughout the day.

• Write down your portion sizes.

• Record all of your thoughts and feelings before and also after eating. At this point you might be feeling overwhelmed, but think of how this one action will help you bring awareness to the surface and you can realistically figure out the reasons why you eat. It goes back to the saying about history at the beginning of the article. If you know exactly why you do something, then you can make changes on a conscious level and you’ll minimize the chance of repeating it over and over.

• If you’re overwhelmed, accept it and continue using your diary. You may start to use this very effective tool and may then stop. It’s just like your dieting or anything else you do. You need to get into a habit of doing it. At first it’s going to be tedious and more time consuming until you get the hang of it. This is why you need to focus on the results by going through the hassle of writing down your daily eating activities. If you have to stop, start and it takes a while to get the hang of it, be easy on yourself. Just do your very best. As you start to see the results, this will motivate you more to continue.

4. Be completely honest with yourself

If you want to reach your target weight, you have to get to know yourself and how you act in relation to food. If you only write down what looks good, you’re not helping yourself. This diary is for no one but you. Be honest and write down everything about how much, what, and why you think you’re eating. When you really know your eating habits and behaviors, you have given yourself the very best gift for long-term weight loss and maintenance. Honesty will equal the happiness you’ll feel being able to wear the clothes you want and receive all the complements on how you look.

In conclusion, do yourself the biggest favor and keep a food diary. This is a simple, but powerful way to consistently lose the weight. When you know yourself and why you eat the way you do,  you have the power to keep it off for the rest of your life.Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2011-2012 Marius Bakken

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Weeks 1

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Leg Press

The leg press is not always commonly used by women, as it is perhaps seen as a muscle building exercise as opposed to toning. However, using this exercise in the correct way can tone your whole leg. Firstly locate the leg press machine in your gym. Once sat on it, ensure your back in secure against the seat, and place your feet at the top of the plate. Ensure they are shoulder width apart. From here you should push away until your legs are straight, bringing it down until your knees touch your chest, and then return to straight out. It is important not to rush this exercise; keep it slow and controlled. Also, for stability, you should put your hands either on your knees, or on handles at the side of the chair. 3 sets of 12 repetitions should be enough. This will partially work your calves, but also practically your whole upper leg.

Tricep Pull down & Twist

This exercise is for your triceps; you will need a cable machine, and the tricep rope. Once these have been located, attach the tricep rope to the machine ensuring the base of the rope 15 centimeters above your elbows. Stand in front of the rope, with your legs shoulder width apart; grip the rope with your palms facing each other, thumbs up. From here split the rope so it is just less than shoulder width apart. Then pull the rope down by only bending your elbows, once you have reached the bottom twist the rope until your palms face out, squeeze here before slowly bringing back to the starting position. You should do 3 sets of 12 repetitions on a light weight to tone those arms.

Calf Raises

Now back onto the legs, for this part you will be working the lower part of the legs, the calves. You should either use a power plate here, or simply a step. Whichever you choose, grab two fairly light dumbbells, one in either hand at your side. Stand at the edge of the step, shoulder width apart, so that only the balls of your feet are actually touching anything. From here you should raise your feet until you are as high as possible, before lowering until your heels are below your toes. Then return to the starting position. If necessary you can lean forward for balance, and/or bend your knees slightly. Ideally 3 sets of 12 reps would be best for this exercise. The power plate is not necessary, however will help to work the muscles slightly more.

Abs

There are many abdominal exercises, however the one chosen here works a great deal of the abdominal area, and is fantastic for toning up. Simply lie on an exercise mat with your back on the ground. Raise your legs off the ground, bending your knees slightly. You should then place your hands at the top of your quads. From here you should raise your upper body off the ground until your hands are touching your knees and then lower back down, however do not let your upper body touch the ground. Throughout this exercise your legs should not move, and you should squeeze your abdominal muscles in all the time. 3 sets of 15 repetitions would be ideal for this to complete your four fantastic exercises.

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Leg Press

The leg press is not always commonly used by women, as it is perhaps seen as a muscle building exercise as opposed to toning.  However, using this exercise in the correct way can tone your whole leg.  Firstly locate the leg press machine in your gym.  Once sat on it, ensure your back in secure against the seat, and place your feet at the top of the plate.  Ensure they are shoulder width apart.  From here you should push away until your legs are straight, bringing it down until your knees touch your chest, and then return to straight out.  It is important not to rush this exercise; keep it slow and controlled.  Also, for stability, you should put your hands either on your knees, or on handles at the side of the chair.  3 sets of 12 repetitions should be enough.  This will partially work your calves, but also practically your whole upper leg.

Tricep Pull down & Twist

This exercise is for your triceps; you will need a cable machine, and the tricep rope.  Once these have been located, attach the tricep rope to the machine ensuring the base of the rope 15 centimeters above your elbows.  Stand in front of the rope, with your legs shoulder width apart; grip the rope with your palms facing each other, thumbs up.  From here split the rope so it is just less than shoulder width apart.  Then pull the rope down by only bending your elbows, once you have reached the bottom twist the rope until your palms face out, squeeze here before slowly bringing back to the starting position.  You should do 3 sets of 12 repetitions on a light weight to tone those arms.

Calf Raises

Now back onto the legs, for this part you will be working the lower part of the legs, the calves.  You should either use a power plate here, or simply a step.  Whichever you choose, grab two fairly light dumbbells, one in either hand at your side.  Stand at the edge of the step, shoulder width apart, so that only the balls of your feet are actually touching anything.  From here you should raise your feet until you are as high as possible, before lowering until your heels are below your toes.  Then return to the starting position.  If necessary you can lean forward for balance, and/or bend your knees slightly.  Ideally 3 sets of 12 reps would be best for this exercise.  The power plate is not necessary, however will help to work the muscles slightly more.

Abs

There are many abdominal exercises, however the one chosen here works a great deal of the abdominal area, and is fantastic for toning up.  Simply lie on an exercise mat with your back on the ground.  Raise your legs off the ground, bending your knees slightly.  You should then place your hands at the top of your quads.  From here you should raise your upper body off the ground until your hands are touching your knees and then lower back down, however do not let your upper body touch the ground.  Throughout this exercise your legs should not move, and you should squeeze your abdominal muscles in all the time.  3 sets of 15 repetitions would be ideal for this to complete your four fantastic exercises.

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Osteoporosis exercise

Osteoporosis currently remains an uncured disease. However, two things are used in treatment of the condition, namely medication and exercise. Of these two, exercise is known as the main treatment since it is what directly works on the bones. The bone may be quite resilient, but it does respond to exercise as long as it is continuously done. It also gains strength in the same gradual method. To prevent the onset and worsening of osteoporosis, exercises that help maintain bone density are very important.

What You Need to Know about Osteoporosis and Exercise

• Benefits of Exercise for Osteoporosis Sufferers
• Choosing the Right Exercise Program
• Different Types of Osteoporosis Exercises

1. Benefits of Exercise for Osteoporosis Sufferers

Some people who suffer from osteoporosis think that exercising can lead to fractures and make their situation worse. But the truth is, exercise should not be avoided because it can help improve your condition in many ways. First, it actually helps protect the bones from deteriorating even further. Second, exercise can help you gain muscle strength, regardless of your age. This means you will have more strength. Third, it can also improve make your body more balanced. By doing so, you can avoid the falls and slips that usually prove fatal to osteoporosis sufferers.

In the more advanced cases of osteoporosis, some patients encounter difficulties in moving and also experience constant pain. Both problems can be lessened by osteoporosis exercise. Aside from that, one of the most visible signs of osteoporosis that also damages not only a person’s body but also a person’s sense of well-being is the weakened posture. Exercise can help prevent this from advancing so you can maintain a proper posture despite the disease.

3. Choosing the Right Exercise Program

Choose your desired osteoporosis exercise well. It is best to choose activities that you will have no difficulty doing and activities that you will also enjoy. This way, you won’t have to worry about getting bored or too tired for the exercise. According to doctors who back the positive effects of exercise and physical activity on osteoporosis patients, the continuity of the exercises is the primary key to getting any positive results.

There are three known categories of exercises that are considered beneficial for osteoporosis. This is according to a conclusive report from medical experts. These three categories are weight-bearing exercises, resistance exercises, and flexibility exercises.

3. Different Types of Osteoporosis Exercises

Weight-bearing exercises include physical activities that affect the feet and the legs – the parts of the body responsible for supporting the entire weight of the body. These include walking, hiking, dancing, and even the simple activity of climbing stairs. The point is that you need to be held by your two feet, not by something else like a bicycle.

As for resistance exercises, these are activities where you need to work or resist against another object. These exercises are deemed as the most effective in improving bone density and protecting you from fractures. Some examples of the right resistance exercises include weights or weight machines, resistance tubing, and water exercises. Water exercises means your muscles have to fight against the force of the water. Weight exercises may be done at the gym or at home, as long as you have weights.

Flexibility exercises are exercises wherein you stretch your body. This helps make joints more flexible, so you can move with better balance. This way, you can protect yourself from injuries. Some examples of flexibility exercises you can take up include tai chi and yoga.

Preparing for Your Osteoporosis Exercise

Before you begin your osteoporosis exercise, there are a few things you should keep in mind. The most important thing is to do this only if you have clearance from a licensed professional who is familiar with your case. Your doctor will have you undergo a bone density test and an assessment of your fitness level to check whether it is safe for you to have osteoporosis exercises.[add_to_cart_btn_style_3 link="#" + target="_self"] [/add_to_cart_btn_style_3]

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