Friday 20 August 2010

Discount Fitness Equipment - A Little Known Way To Pick Up Bargains

Finding discount fitness equipment and picking up real bargains is not that easy. While so many stores advertise "sales" it usually take $20 or $30 off the price tag and since exercise equipment is so expensive that is hardly a real discount. When I look for discount exercise equipment I look for stuff that has 30-50% off the price tag. Now that's a bargain!

The real question is where do you find that? Most people spend hours searching online for the best deal. Although its true that there are a lot of online warehouses that offer great deals, the reality is that most of them are only slightly cheaper than your local superstore or even your local supermarket.

You can always look on eBay, but this comes with its own problems. The biggest problem with buying fitness equipment on eBay is the fact that you cannot see it. You cannot inspect it and you cannot try it. Although you can save big - especially when you buy used fitness equipment, you cannot see how it works.

The best place by far to go shopping is where you can get 30-50% discounts. Not only can you get these huge discounts but its usually some of the best equipment you can buy. What am I talking about? Its refurbished equipment! See, every year gyms and health clubs all over America throw out millions of treadmills, bikes, ellipticals, weights - you name it! There are several companies that take this equipment and refurbish it. The end result is a good-as-new piece of equipment at half price. Check it out. you won't be disappointed.

Are you looking for discount fitness equipment? See my blog to learn more about buying used exercise equipment.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Deon_Du_Plessis

Wednesday 18 August 2010

The Secret to Building Big Muscles

Most men want to build big muscles and be ripped at the same time. But, most men always seem to hit a plateau where they just can't seem to get any bigger. And usually, they think it is there training that is the problem. But the real culprit is not their training, but their diet. Today, I will give you the basic plan for any man to build bigger and bigger muscles.

First, lets start with the training. To build big muscles, you need to lift heavy weights. You want to focus on compound exercises that focus on multiple muscle groups. The basic exercises you should be focusing on are:

1. Bench Presses
2. Back Rows, (Dumbbell or Barbell Rows)
3. Shoulder Barbell Presses
4. Lat Pulldowns
5. Squats
6. Leg Presses
7. Deadlifts

These are 7 of the most basic, yet muscle building exercises, that will stimulate growth in your muscles. You also need to lift these heavy weights in a certain rep ranges that stimulate fast-twitch muscle fibers. These are the fibers that are responsible for the majority of muscle size. The ideal rep range to build large muscles is between 6 and 12 reps.

Next, is the diet. This is the area that most men fail at. Not eating the right foods, or the right amounts, or the right combinations. To make this simple, here is a great starting point. You should be eating about 1 gram of protein for every pound of lean body mass that you have. Next, start out with at least 2 grams of complex carbohydrates for every pound you weigh. Then with fat, you should be consuming around 20% of your calories from fat.

Now, if your muscles are not growing, you should up your complex carbs and protein a little bit. If you are gaining some fat, drop the carbs back a little. Just experiment what will work for you. And remember, the more muscle you gain the more high quality calories you will have to consume.

Ron Khawar
Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutritionist
http://www.getfitorangecounty.com

Ron Khawar has been a certified personal trainer and nutritionist for 17 years, helping thousands of people lose weight, tone muscle, and become much healthier.

Ron Khawar is the owner of Getting Fit Personal Training, located in Orange County, California. His team of qualified expert trainers help transform the residents of Orange County through their innovative and advanced training techniques.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ron_Khawar

Tuesday 17 August 2010

Depression and Health Influence

Depression is a serious illness. Running the risk of taking high blood pressure's "glory", depression could be considered the silent killer. Clinical depression is not simply being "down" or "n the dumps". Clinical depression is a severe condition that affects a person mind and can ultimately cause a plethora of issues. A popular misconception is that a person should be able to simply "snap out of it". In fact, clinical depression must be fought by appropriate medical treatment or it can have effects that last for months or even years.

Here are a few complications or issues that are common to those who suffer from clinical depression:

1) Alcohol abuse - It's no secret that alcohol abuse leads to a multitude of issues including liver problems, brain damage, neglecting responsibilities and general impaired judgment.

2) Substance abuse - Substance abuse due to any reason is dangerous. However, it is a common path to take for depressed individuals.

3) Anxiety - Anxiety can lead to many issues including difficulty swallowing, breathlessness and chest pains.

4) Heart disease

5) Problems in work environments or school environments.

6) Relationship issues

7) Familial issues.

8) Isolation

9) Suicide

How do you know if you are depressed vs. sad?

First, it is not a simple process for an individual to diagnose himself as being sad vs. depressed. Always consult a physician in regard to ANY medical issue that seems abnormal. You should not base normality on your own life experience as many individuals suffer from depression for years. Assessing your current mental state and comparing that to your mental state 2 years ago may not be enough. You should simply look around you and determine if your coping process seems different than most. Also ask your friends and family. That being said, sadness is reactive. You may be sad because you lost a friend or family member. You may be sad because you lost your job or you may be sad because you received some troubling information. You can actually understand WHY you are sad based on the situation. Depression on the other hand is not necessarily tied to a specific event. You may experience depression out of the blue with no specific issue to tie it to. There could be times that stressful circumstances can trigger the depression and other times that the depression is seemingly there for no apparent reason.

Keep a log:

Keeping a journal may be beneficial to individuals who may be experiencing depression. Start by logging the way you feel when you wake up. Rate it from 1-10. 1 =feeling great and 10 = extremely depressed. Throughout the day, as your mood changes...be sure to log the mood swing and if there are factors that caused that mood swing vs. a mood swing with no apparent cause. Be sure to consult a physician as soon as you determine that there are mood swings without any apparent cause.

The Mayo clinic recommends exercise as an excellent way to ease depression. There are a few reasons cited:

1) Exercising releases feel-good brain chemicals and endorphins that ease depression.
2) Gaining confidence due to goals that have been met.
3) Exercise takes your mind off of issues that you may have.
4) Last but not least it enables you to cope with your issues in a healthy way as opposed to drinking or substance abuse.

Finally, depression is a sickness! You should not consider yourself week or less of a person if you suffer from depression. Alternatively, you should consult a physician and closely follow his or her direction. Many times consulting a psychologist can help significantly and in some extreme cases medications may be prescribed that may also help. If you suffer from depression, know that you are not alone. Know that there is help available. Most importantly, know that turning to alcohol or ignoring the condition will only exacerbate the problem.

http://www.texaslowcosthealthinsurance.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Simeon_Knight

Monday 16 August 2010

Men's Health 15 Minute Workout

The Best Home Workout - Exercise Routine

Lose Weight - Simple Tips To Help You Lose Weight

There has been a lot of material written on how to lose weight as obesity is a problem of a large percentage of many societies. A lot of money and time has been spent on buying and trying out rigorous programs aimed at weight loss. Here are simple, easy to follow tips to help you lose weight.

Read labels

When you are determined to lose weight you must watch what you eat. You should be able to count and calculate calories. When you shop for groceries it is essential that you read and compare calorie contents written on the product labels. Healthy dieting is very essential for success in weight loss.

Snack is good

When losing weight you need to maintain your sugar level every three hours. If it has been up to five or six hours since last meal you should resort to taking snacks. Choice of snacks should be healthy such as apples and cheddar cheese with low fat and calorie content. Going for long periods without food would not help your efforts to eat healthy.

Take plenty of water

Water is very vital in your goal to lose weight. Water reduces water weight and aids blood flow, counters dehydration and cuts on calories when it is used to replace soda and high calorie drinks. It is widely advised to take about eight glasses of water daily but drinking more than that can be even more useful.

Avoid skipping meals

Skipping meals is a wrong approach towards healthy dieting and shedding weight. Meal skipping does more harm than good as you are likely to eat even more later to make up for loss meal. Meal skipping could make our body revert to station mode which will make the body adjust itself and burn less calories and in the end retain its present weight.

Exercise helps

Anything that gets your heart beating faster will help. Exercising offers a lot of advantages. Simple exercise methods such as climbing stairs and walking for about 10 to 30inuites daily would have profound effects in your overall fitness, health and weight loss. If sustained it could even lead to substantial weight loss in a few weeks.

Keep a progress dairy

A progress dairy would contain what you eat daily and even exercise efforts. You then review it regularly to track your efforts and identify areas to improve. This keeps you focused and dedicated.

Whole grain meals

Whole grain diet is a major step in the right direction towards healthy living and weight loss. Whole grains combined with fruits and vegetables provide the needed nutriments to improve your health and be disease free. An added advantage is that they are high in fiber and very low in calorie content and fat so you can eat them as much as you want and not gain wait.

When losing weight one has to develop and follow a strict regime. These tips to help you lose weight are simple techniques that you can incorporate into your way of life. When you succeed in losing some weight you feel and live healthier as well as experience a boost in your self confidence level.

Is losing weight that difficult? No, at all. People say you have to suffer to lose weight. In fact it could be fun and you can eat normally without having to skip meals. Check out Simple tips to help you lose weight for reference about proven methods shared by people who only care about losing weight.

Ivy is a mother of three. She never succeeded in losing weight despite trying many so called proven weight loss methods until she found the secret methods. Find out her secrets at How to lose weight naturally and healthily

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ivy_Brown