5 Myths about Kids Strength Training
Should kids strength train and are there benefits to doing so? According to an article published in Pediatric News, kids who strength train have certain advantages over their peers who don’t. In fact, some of the health and fitness benefits are similar to what adults enjoy. Like adults, kids who…
Dieting to Lose Weight May Endanger Bone Health
Maintaining a healthy body weight is one of the cornerstones of managing your health. Obesity is linked to a host of chronic, health problems, including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes. Plus, it’s associated with as many as 13 types of cancer. Most people try to lose weight by modifying their…
How Negative Reps Training Works
You’ve probably heard the term “negative reps” or “negative training.” This is an advanced training approach that places the emphasis of an exercise on the negative, or eccentric, portion of the movement. Why would you want to do this? Using this approach offers benefits you don’t get when you work…
5 Ways to Make Bodyweight Exercises More Effective
Drop to the floor and do 20! It sounds like an order from a drill sergeant, doesn’t it? Push-ups are more than a punishment for an insubordinate military recruit. They’re a classic bodyweight exercise. Bodyweight exercises probably don’t make up the bulk of your workout, nor should they, but they…
5 Isometric Exercises That Boost Strength and Endurance
There are two types of muscle contractions: isotonic and isometric. Isotonic is a muscle contraction where the muscle changes in length. An isotonic contraction can be either eccentric (lengthening of the muscle) or concentric (shortening of the muscle). In contrast, isometric exercises are those in which you hold a position…
Is Foam Rolling Good for Your Heart?
You’ve probably seen long, firm tubes called foam rollers and may have used one after a workout. Foam rolling is popular as a way to increase flexibility, although the way foam rolling works is probably different than what you’ve heard. You often hear that foam rolling improves flexibility by self-myofascial…
5 Reasons to Ditch Restrictive Dieting
You’re trying to lose weight, and you want to do it fast. In fact, you want those pounds gone yesterday! Sound familiar? Slashing calories might seem like a good approach when you want to supercharge your results – but don’t fall into the calorie restriction trap, as many people…
How Often Should You Change Your Strength Training Routine?
Changing your fitness routine is good for your muscles, right? We know that our muscles adapt to the stress we place on them and this adaptation promotes muscle growth and strength gains. Without enough stress, a muscle would have no reason to adapt and change would never take place. In…
Mobility vs. Flexibility: They Aren’t the Same Thing but They’re Both Important
Mobility and flexibility are terms that people often confuse. Too many people think that flexibility and mobility are the same things but they’re actually two different entities that both relate to physical fitness. You can be flexible and not have good mobility and vice versa. Let’s define what each means,…
Add This to Your Next Meal & You Might Make Healthier Food Choices
Maintaining a healthy body weight and staying as healthy as possible is closely linked to the food choices we make. No surprise here, right? We need food for energy and for the nutritional content it offers. Plus, when we make the wrong choices we may develop nutritional deficiencies and not…