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5 Things Every Workout Should Include

FitSugar — Tue, 29 May 2007 02:30:00 PDT

Here are five simple things to include in your workout if you want it to be safe and effective:

Warm-up: Among other things a warm-up leads to efficient calorie burning, injury prevention and prepares the body for the workout.
Cardio: A cardio workout is great for the cardiovascular system and plays a very important role in weight management.
Cool-down: Among other things a cool-down prevents blood pooling, reduces the chances of dizziness or fainting and slowly brings the heart rate back down.
Flexibility Training: This maintains joint range of motion and reduces the risk of injury and muscle soreness.
Strength training: This creates strength and good posture, reduces the risk of lower back injury and is also a key player in weight management.

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8 Small Ways to Lose Big Pounds in 2012

Prevention — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 04:06:22 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Prevention here on FitSugar!

Quadruple your weight loss by making one easy tweak to your routine per week
By Alyssa Shaffer

If your goal is to lose weight and exercise more, forget the deprivation diet and marathon workouts. New research shows that taking baby steps - not giant leaps -is the best way to get lasting results. A study published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine found that participants who made one small, potentially permanent change in their food choices and/or physical activity each week (such as drinking one fewer can of soda or walking five more minutes each day) lost more than twice as much belly fat, two and half more inches off their waistlines, and about four times more weight during a four-month program, compared with those who followed traditional calorie-restriction and physical-activity guidelines.

"When you focus on just a couple of small changes at a time, you begin to ingrain some healthy habits that last for a lifetime, rather than trying an all-or-nothing approach that more often than not fails because it's too hard to follow," says Lesley Lutes, PhD, an assistant professor in the department of psychology at East Carolina University. We've uncovered these simple steps (with proven results) to help you move more, eat less, and look and feel better than ever. Add just one or two a week to your regular routine and you can lose nearly three inches off your waistline and be about 10 pounds lighter come in a few months. Even better: Once these healthy habits become second nature, they'll benefit you for a lifetime.

1. Pick Up a Pen After Every Meal
Mindlessly munching on a bag of chips could result in easily polishing off the whole thing; write down how much you've eaten and you're more likely to practice portion control. Keeping a food log helps control extra calories in two ways: the combination of plain old reality check (I just ate 30 minutes ago!) and awareness that what you're putting in your mouth will soon be recorded for posterity. In a recent study, people who kept a food journal lost twice as much weight as those who didn't. When they combined it with a moderate diet and exercise plan, they lost an average of 13 pounds in 6 months. Journaling also gives you insight on your eating habits, says Lutes. Do you skip meals? Eat the same during the week as on the weekend? Binge when you're feeling stressed? "Knowing your routine helps you figure out what changes are right for you," she adds.

Avoid these 14 "health food" diet disasters.

2. Limit High-Fat Foods to One Per Week
Tag the high-fat/high-calorie foods that are typically your favorites (our top five: cookies, candy, ice cream, potato chips, and fries) and gradually downshift. "If you're eating six of these foods a week, try to go down to five," says Lutes. Each week, drop another until you're at no more than one or two; at the same time, add in a good-for-you choice like baby carrots, sautéed broccoli, oranges, and other fresh fruits and veggies.

Keep reading for more simple tip to help you lose big.

How to Get Your Metabolism Moving

Health — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 03:03:06 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

Does your metabolism grind to a halt after 35? Can certain foods rev it up? Answers ahead — and they're good.
By Paige Greenfield

Here's something to feel good about: your body is a calorie-burning machine. You'll even torch a few while reading this article. The point is, every single thing you do — from breathing to eating to sleeping — uses energy. The number of calories it would take just to lie in bed all day is called your resting metabolic rate. And just like your curly hair or warm personality, yours is unique.

"There are so many factors that determine your metabolic rate," says Janet Rankin, PhD, professor of human nutrition, foods, and exercise at Virginia Tech. Among them: your height and weight (bigger people burn more calories), your gender (women have slower metabolisms than men), your age (your metabolic rate declines as you get older), how much muscle or fat you have (muscle burns more calories than fat does), and your DNA.

Health.com: Little Ways to Lose Big Pounds

Although you can't rewire your double helix or switch back the clock, there's still plenty you can do to be a fast burner, Rankin says. All you need to do is remember these four research-backed truths.

Cardio Revs Your Metabolism For Hours Afterward
Resistance training often hogs the metab-boosting spotlight. It's no wonder, since a pound of muscle at rest fries three times as many calories as a pound of fat. However, cardio is every bit as crucial for keeping your metabolism humming.

New research explains why: In a study published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, people pedaled a stationary bike as hard as they could for 47 minutes.
The finding: They slashed 190 calories above their resting metabolic rate for 14 hours after their workout. Add that to the 519 calories, on average, the cyclists scorched from the workout itself, and that's one heck of a sweat session.

"If you do just two to three vigorous bouts of exercise per week for 45 minutes, you could lose a pound of fat every two weeks from the combination of calories expended during exercise plus what you burn afterward," says study author David Nieman, PhD, a professor of exercise science at Appalachian State University.

So how can you tell if you're pushing hard enough? Any sweat-inducing activity you can sustain for 45 minutes will do the trick.

More useful tips after the break.

Fit Over 40: Why Time Is Key (Even For Celebrities)

Self — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 04:22:42 PDT

We are pumped to share one of our fave stories from Self here on FitSugar!

Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Halle Berry . . . these days, when a 40-something woman steps out in a bikini, it makes news.

Turns out, there's a scientific explanation for why we're so fascinated by these lean, toned, impossibly supple bodies. In some ways, these apparent genetic wonders are defying the aging process.

"Once a man or woman gets beyond their 30s, they're in a situation where unless they are really proactive about what they do from an exercise standpoint as well as eating sensibly, they are going to lose some muscle tissue," says Cedric Bryant, Ph.D., FACSM, Chief Science Officer for The American Council on Exercise.

Read the rest of this post after the break!

Go Ahead, Cheat a Little: 4 Easy Diet and Fitness Shortcuts

Michele Foley — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 15:31:45 PDT

Sometimes being healthy can be a major time suck. There's hitting the gym every day, making sure to cook healthy, and so much more that goes into maintaining a healthy lifestyle. But it doesn't always have to be that way. Between eating right and fitting in exercise, there are a few shortcuts you can take when being perfect seems unthinkable. Best of all, none of these shortcuts skimp out on health. Here's a look at the standard gold rules of a healthy lifestyle and the shortcuts that go with them!

1. Eat Fresh Fruits and Veggies
When it comes to diet, the ideal is to eat as close to the natural source as possible: fresher is better, and organic rules all. Let's be real though, sometimes prepping fresh veggies seems like a pain or we're not able to fit in enough fresh fruit between meals.

The shortcut: Rather than forgoing fruits and veggies altogether, always keep frozen produce stocked. In the morning, throw some frozen berries in a smoothie or on top of cereal or yogurt. At night, quickly heat up a serving of frozen veggies to go with any meal. Still without your fruit and veggie fix? Have a snack of unsweetened dried fruit and stock your pantry with canned fruits and veggies that haven't been doused in salt and sugar - think unsweetened applesauce and sugar- and salt-free stewed tomatoes. Even if it didn't fall off of the farmer's truck, these are all ways to get the nutrients that veggies and fruit provide.

2. Get Enough Sleep
Wouldn't it be great if eight hours of sleep each night was a reality? Proper sleep increases brain function and promotes weight loss. But if you miss out on a good night's rest, it may result in a host of problems including irritability, heart disease, and overindulging.

The shortcut: On days when you're short on sleep, make like your 5-year-old self and grab a nap. Studies show that naps lower the risk of heart disease and naps also help with memory. To help increase the amount of deep sleep you're getting, start small by getting to bed 15 minutes earlier than you normally do. Continue this pattern for a few weeks to add a full hour onto your sleep schedule! If the above still seems unimaginable, find a few minutes throughout your day to meditate; this will help clear your mind while also helping to decrease stress.

See how to shave hours off of your workout after the break!