Bowflex: Great Products for Your Workouts?

By Trevor Smith | Fitness

A Review of One of Our Favorite Fitness Manufacturers: Bowflex

If you’re like most Americans, then you have probably heard of Bowflex – the maker of top-of-the-line fitness equipment. You may even want a Bowflex home training program? These Bowflex home exercise centers are some of the most amazing home fitness centers available on the market, and for that reason, we highly recommend considering just about any of their products if you’re looking for high quality workout gear.

After dicing which equipment is best for you, then it will be time to start lining up your workouts. Bellow we’ll detail just a few of the routines you can get started with:

BOWFLEX ROUTINE FOR THE ARMS

For these workouts you will want to utilize a Bowflex home gym – there are a couple and I encourage you to check out reviews of the Xtreme or some of their other equipment. With that said, the bicep curl bow bowflex exercises target the biceps, the tricep kickback and tricep extension trgets the tricep. And the wrist curl and wrist extension targets the forearms.

STANDING BICEP CURL USING HANDLES

Stand in front of the vertical structure. Grasp the handles with your hands, palms facing upward. Pull the handles towards the shoulders. Allow them to slowly return after a short pause. Keep back and upper arms still throughout.

LYING BICEP CURL USING HANDLES

Lie on your back on the flat bench with legs near the vertical structure. Grasp the handles with your hands along the sides of your body.

SEATED BICEP SURL USING HANDLES

Sit on the flat bench with one foot on top of it.

Knee bent and grasp the handle while your upper arm sits on top of your leg. Pull the handle towards your shoulder. Allow it to slowly return after a short pause. Alternate sides after a set. Keep your back and upper arms still all throughout the routine.

BENT-OVER CONCENTRATED BICEP CURL USING HANDLES

Crouch –down, one foot on the platform. And the other on the floor. Grasp the handle while your upper arm rests against the side of the knee. Pull the handle towards your shoulder. Allow it to slowly return after a short pause. Alternate sides after a set.

Keep upper arm pressed against the side of your knee throughout.

STANDING BICEP CURL USING HANDLES WITH PRONATION GRIP

Stand with your back facing the vertical structure. Grasp the bar with both arms with palms facing back. Pull the bar towards your upper arms. Allow it to slowly return after a short pause. Keep back and upper arms still throughout.

STANDING BICEP CURL USING BAR

Stand with back facing the vertical structure. Grasp the bar with both hands with palms facing forward. Pull the bar towards upper arm. And allow it to slowly return after a short pause. Keep your back and upper still throughout.

STANDING BICEP CURL USING BAR WITH PRONATION-GRIP

Stand with back facing the vertical structure. Grasp the bar with both arms with your palms facing back. Pull the bar towards your upper arms. Allow it to slowly return after a short pause.

Keep the back and upper arms still throughout.

TRICEP KICKBACK

Kneel on the flat bench with one knee. Grasp the handle with your hand, elbow at a 90 degree angle, palm facing back. Pull the handle by straightening arm and allow it to slowly return after a short pause. Alternate arms between sets. Keep your upper arms between. Keep your upper arms still throughout.

LYING TRICEP EXTENSION

Lie on your back on the flat bench. Grasp the handle with hands. upper arms straight up and elbows at 90 degree angle. Pull the handles by straightening your arms. Allow them to slowly return after a short pause.

Keep your upper arms still throughout.

STANDING TRICEP PUSHDOWNUSING BAR

Stand in front of the vertical structure and grasp the bar with both hands. Upper  arms parallel to your body. Body ,elbows at 90 degree angle. Push the bar down by straightening your arms. Allow it to slowly return after a short pause.

Keep your upper arms still throughout.

Once you get nice muscle workout in, you may also want to get some cardio in as well. Good thing is, Bowflex has an answer for that as well. Between their Max M3, M5 & M7 series you pretty much a full line of cardio options, depending on your price range, and that’s not even including their TreadClimber!

Either way, if you’re looking for a great full body workout, Bowflex is your one stop solution!

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Weight Loss: Rapid or Healthy Weight Loss?

By Trevor Smith | Weight loss

My guess is that your weight gain happened over a number of years, so shedding those extra pounds may take some time. Everyone loses weight at different rates. So how do you know if your weight loss is normal? Did you know that losing weight too fast can actually put your body under stress by not giving your body time to adjust.

We live in a toxic world and are exposed to toxins in the air we breathe, water we drink and the foods we consume. The body stores many of these toxins in our body fat. Assuming you’re doing a good cleanse program as part of your regimen, your body should be processing the release of these toxins. If you’re not cleansing, the toxins will stay stored in the body, potentially, well, most likely, resulting in a weight yo-yo loss-gain experience.

What is Rapid Weight Loss?

Rapid weight loss is usually associated with starvation diets which are very stressful on the body. The body becomes more stressed the longer you are on the diet. The no-protein diets or diets that focus on specific foods or food groups are particularly tough on the body (think grapefruit diet, banana diet, no carbs diet, etc.). The body requires a combination of specific nutrients for optimum health and most of these diets do not provide the nutrition the body needs to cope with rapid loss of excess weight.

The danger of rapid loss based on the “starvation” principle is that it slows the body’s metabolic process. Because the body thinks it’s being starved, it begins a hoarding process because it doesn’t know when it will get the nutrients it needs. Essentially, the complete opposite result of your weight loss objectives.

What is Healthy Weight Loss?

Healthy weight loss based on good nutrition has numerous benefits. Good nutrition provides the essential nutrients your body needs to be healthy. Once the body has all of these essential nutrients, it can get to work putting the body in balance, releasing toxins and fat, and achieving an optimum weight. Feed the body good nutrition with all the essential nutrients your body needs and your body will strive to achieve a healthy weight.

While it may seem counterintuitive, getting lots of good nutrition into your daily diet (vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fats, carbohydrates, and natural sugars, etc.) results in healthier, long-term weight loss. The body doesn’t hoard the nutrition because it knows it can count on a regular daily dose of all of the building blocks it needs. And with all that good nutrition, the body has everything it needs to function at peak health.

The benefits of Healthy Weight Loss

• Increased energy
• Consistent weight loss over time towards optimum weight
• Reduced cravings for unhealthy food
• Build lean muscle and improved muscle tone
• Improved memory and alertness
• Less joint discomfort
• Balanced digestion
• Better Sleep

Given good nutrition your body will naturally rid itself of excess weight at a rate that is normal for you. And keep in mind, even though this articles refers to “weight” loss, a more accurate indicator of healthy living is the “inches” you release in body fat. That ensures you are releasing toxins and fat as opposed to water and lean muscle.

Nutrition based weight loss works from the inside-out so focus on how it feels. If you feel great and you’re losing weight and inches, then you’re more likely to stay on track.

How to lose your belly?

By Trevor Smith | Weight loss

Summer is the time of year when both men and women show a little extra skin. It is a pleasant time of the year to stay cool during the hot and humid weather months by wearing a little less. However, if you have extra weight around your tummy, wearing less can make you feel self-conscious. Fortunately there is a way of obtaining a flatter belly without going on a crash diet and enduring food cravings. All you have to do is include certain delicious foods in your diet.

The secret to getting a flat belly is to eat a diet of nutritious unprocessed foods that includes plenty of MUFAs (Mono Unsaturated Fatty Acids).

Monounsaturated fatty acids are healthy fats that come from plants. Research shows that monounsaturated fatty acids are good for heart health and may protect the body against various serious diseases and conditions. They also have the extra added benefit of targeting belly fat. So, if you want to get rid of excess belly fat then it is a good idea to include at least one monounsaturated fatty acid rich food with every meal you eat.

Eat Fried

Different types of vegetable oil including flaxseed oil, peanut oil, sesame oil, walnut oil, olive oil, sunflower oil, canola oil are rich in monounsaturated fatty acids. Pesto sauce is also rich in MUFAs because it contains both olive oil and pine nuts. Simply use any of these oils to stir fry lean protein and fresh vegetables, or include them in a salad dressing.

Go Nuts

All different kinds of nuts are packed with monounsaturated fatty acids. For instance you can eat pine nuts, peanuts, walnuts, cashews, Brazil nuts, pecans, pistachios and macadamias. You can include nuts in your salad.  Alternatively you can simply eat a handful of your favorite nuts whenever you fancy a snack. Try to opt for dry roasted or unsalted nuts where possible as they are healthier.

Munch Avocados

Avocados are an excellent option for any individual who is trying to eliminate belly fat, and fortunately they taste divine. They can even be turned into guacamole and eaten as a snack on crackers or wholegrain bread. It doesn’t matter how you eat your avocados, as long as you enjoy them.

Desserts!!!

Candy lovers will be pleased to note that dark chocolate is one of the foods that are packed with monounsaturated fatty acids. You might choose to simply eat a few squares of dark chocolate as an after dinner snack. Alternatively you may wish to prepare some delicious dark chocolate covered strawberries or bananas and munch away without feeling any remorse.

Exercise

If you are eating a diet of unrefined foods that is rich in monounsaturated fatty acids you can do absolutely nothing and still see a reduction in belly fat. However, the results will be even more dramatic if you also make time for abdominal exercises such as crunches and rockers. If you include abdominal exercises you will definitely see the results of you efforts in time for summer.

Eat anything you like and lose weight – How is it possible?

By Trevor Smith | Weight loss

There are always new kinds of food products which come out on the market that are designed to increase people’s health and even enable them loose extra weight. These designer fat burning foods can aid an individual to lose bodyweight, bring down high cholesterol, or even reduce blood pressure. Stop and consider it, why did a designer food item end up being created to replace trustworthy ordinary food? It quite frankly ceases to make sense that a person needs to invest hard earned money on buying genetically designed food to just be healthier.

At least one answer why these designer foods are on the marketplace is to make the manufacturers a lot of money. The custom made food industry is truly a multi-billion dollar marketplace, and these food designers are increasingly becoming wealthy off of innocent people who are caused to believe that merely using their food will make them lose the fat. It fails to make a large amount of sense that putting something in your body might possibly take body fat off. Putting something in your body invariably contributes to your body, not take something out.

Burn calories

In contrast, the strategy to slim down requires you to create a calorie shortage. In plain english, you must burn more calories in comparison with what you consume. By using up more calories than you consume, body fat comes off. There is no secret, amazing method, or even special food items that could influence this. This continues to be the rule ever since the beginning of the world and yes, it still works in these modern times. If our planet continues another 2000 years this valuable law connected with fat loss will definately continue to exist. How could a company persuade somebody that when you eat more calories than you actually burn up may likely cause a person to experience weightloss?

Eat less than you will lose

Scientifically, any time you gain weight, particularly extra fat, that increase must develop from somewhere. Fat cells do not just turn up from nowhere; they are manufactured in your body due to a surplus of fat and calories within the individuals diet. No matter how simple and easy it seems to put on weight, through the process of reducing the volume of food you eat lower than everything you burn causes ones body to shed pounds. The exact opposite is also true, that if you eat extra food and calories than you will burn off, your body will store body fat and furthermore increase weight. It is without question that easy to understand.