Why is Exercise Important?

Have you ever heard the expression "use it or lose it"? It's true! If you don't use your body, you will surely lose it. Your muscles will become flabby and weak. Your heart and lungs won't function efficiently. And your joints will be stiff and easily injured. Inactivity is as much of a health risk as smoking!

Helps Prevent Diseases 
Our bodies were meant to move -- they actually crave exercise. Regular exercise is necessary for physical fitness and good health. It reduces the risk of heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes and other diseases. It can improve your appearance and delay the aging process.

Improves Stamina 
When you exercise, your body uses energy to keep going. Aerobic exercise involves continuous and rhythmic physical motion, such as walking and bicycling. It improves your stamina by training your body to become more efficient and use less energy for the same amount of work. As your conditioning level improves, your heart rate and breathing rate return to resting levels much sooner from strenuous activity.

Strengthens and Tones 
Exercising with weights and other forms of resistance training develops your muscles, bones and ligaments for increased strength and endurance. Your posture can be improved, and your muscles become more firm and toned. You not only feel better, but you look better, too!

Enhances Flexibility 
Stretching exercises are also important for good posture. They keep your body limber so that you can bend, reach and twist. Improving your flexibility through exercise reduces the chance of injury and improves balance and coordination. If you have stiff, tense areas, such as the upper back or neck, performing specific stretches can help "loosen" those muscles, helping you feel more relaxed.

Controls Weight 
Exercise is also a key to weight control because it burns calories. If you burn off more calories than you take in, you lose weight. It's as simple as that.

Improves Quality of Life 
Once you begin to exercise regularly, you will discover many more reasons why exercise is so important to improving the quality of your life. Exercise reduces stress, lifts moods, and helps you sleep better. It can keep you looking and feeling younger throughout your entire life.

How Often Should I Exercise?
The benefits of any exercise program will diminish if it's disrupted too frequently. A "stop-start" routine is not only ineffective, but can cause injuries. Being consistent with exercise, therefore, is probably the most important factor in achieving desired results.

People often assume that more is better. Wrong! Doing too much too soon or performing intense exercises on a daily basis will have  negitive effects, such as muscle/tendon strains, loss of lean tissue, and fitness-level plateaus.

If you are a beginner, start off slower than you think you should. Three days per week is realistic, safe and effective. If you are experienced, do cardiovascular (aerobic) exercises such as walking, jogging and bicycling for no more than  60 minutes per session. It usually takes 4 to 6 weeks of regular exercise to develop some basic conditioning...then you can increase the intensity depending on your goals and life style.

Weight training should be done no more than three times per week targeting the same muscle groups. Exercise the same muscle groups on non-consecutive days because muscles need adequate time to recover and cannot be effectively trained if they are tired or sore.

Many people forget to stretch or make the excuse that they don't have the time. Flexibility is important, so make the time! Stretching can be done every day, but stick to a minimum of three times per week in order to reap the benefits. When the body is warmed up, such as after a workout session, perform five to 10 stretches that target the major muscle groups. Hold each stretch for 10-30 seconds.
The majority of the population are not keen on exercise, but understand the benifits.
So try exercising with a friend or better still get a personal trainer to help you get started.
Depending on your goals no matter what level of fitness you need to take care of your body now....where else are you going to live.
It does not matter how old you are or what your focus is, exercise can be both enjoyable, fun and rewarding for everyone....REMEMBER.....health and fitness are your greatest assets .

Remember, health and fitness are your greatest assets.

Ask the Body Guru

www.totalharmonyfitness.com.au 

Machine work-outs that work

Imagine for a moment you just paid for a membership at that fancy new gym that you have committed to getting into shape at, motivated in part by the sum of money you parted with to gain access to it. But one look at the expanse of intimidating machinery on the floor has you wondering if you might have gotten in over your head. Where do you start?

The free weight area is even more threatening, with thick-necked body builders cranking out reps with barbells, so laden with plates that you can't see the bar holding it all together.

... No you're definitely not ready for that sort of workout.

The first question crossing your mind as you head back to the room filled with fancy new machines is, 'can a machine workout provide anywhere near the effectiveness of a session with free weights?' ... The answer to that is YES!

Advantages of exercise machines

The main advantage of exercise machines is how easy they are to use compared with free weights. You have to have a certain amount of know-how to safely work-out with bars, interchangeable plates and dumbbells - the kind that comes with experience.

Using free weights builds your 'core' trunk muscles through the ongoing effect involved with maintaining balance and coordinating movements. Since the core muscle group is your foundation for all powerful and lower body movements, that's a big deal.

You're sure to notice this the first time you try a free weight lift with the same resistance you set on the machine. It will feel a whole lot heavier with free weights.

Real strength comes from core muscle activation and is developed not just with floor to overhead olympic style lifts, but simple dumbbell exercises as well. 

Even though you may be focusing on just one muscle group with a certain free weight exercise, the coordination and balance required to stand there cranking out reps, activates the surrounding muscles including your core.

Until you're ready to work out with free weights, you can compensate for core muscle underdevelopment by incorporating bridges, push-ups, squat thrusts and other core building calisthenics into your fitness routine.

A disadvantage that may not be all that obvious, until you actually get set to begin exercising on a machine is the way it fits or does not fit your body. 

Proper form is important for maximising the valve of each of the many different free weight exercises, not to mention reducing the risk of injury.

Starting out with exercise machines is a great way to gain exposure to the form requirements of resistance training. There's usually a diagram displayed prominently on each machine showing the range of motion and muscles utilised. This is valuable information because it is the same basic movement you would perform if you were doing the exercise with free weights. All you really have to do is position your body as shown on the machine's instructive diagram.

A quick tip is to keep the momentum from taking anything away from your efforts. Remember to keep your butt on the seat and your back/chest (depending on the exercise) touching the protective padding.

Muscle isolation is another advantage that machines have to offer. Machine resistance is provided through a cable or series of levers that provide continuous tension throughout the full range of motion.

Let's use barbell curls as an example. With free weights, the most difficult part of the exercise is when the bar is a mid point. That's when the pull of gravity is at its greatest. As the bar moves beyond mid-point, resistance decreases.

Momentum can also effect resistance when using free weights. But both of these issues are nullified by the machine's continuous tension. Plus, because you don't have to worry about balance and coordination, the way you do with free weights, you can focus on working only on the muscle or groups of muscles that the machine was designed to train. That's valuable to people who may have well developed ham strings and need to focus on calves. The abdominals are another popular group of muscles to isolate with machine exercises.

The biggest advantage that exercise machines have over free weights is the ability to train yourself without relying on a partner. Go ahead and lift heavy, all the way to muscle failure if that's your plan. You don't need a spotter, since the machine is designed to prevent you from being crushed by all that weight. Just remember not to let the weight stack drop freely from the raised position, since that could easily jar the bottom couple of plates, in addition being a very noisy distraction to others.

Disadvantages of exercise machines

With all the benefits that exercise machines have to offer, there is a down side to using them. The biggest disadvantage is the lack of work your core muscles get on machines.

Machines are designed for the average person and despite the fact that adjustments can often be made to seating height, grip width and chest pad reach. Typically stall or short people may have a hard time achieving the correct range of motion. In extreme examples, you might even strain a tendon or pull a ligament because of the way you've tried to adapt your frame to push or pull through through the the machine's fixed movement pathway. That's one of the reason's why it is a good idea to always warm up with a lighter weight, or no weight at all. If a certain movement doesn't feel natural, you can make adjustments or simply avoid that machine altogether.

When weighing the advantages and the disadvantages, consider the fact that exercise machines provide you with every opportunity to achieve a serious full body workout.

So if you're just getting used to resistance training at the gym, or you're travelling and need to lift without a training partner, pick the right machines and the right combination of exercises and you can train all the major muscle groups.

So the key here is - don't fall into the most common mistake most people make by using several different machines to train the same muscle groups.

The Body Guru has put together two full body routines to get you started on the right track:

Machine Routine 1:

•   Machine bench press (chest) - 3 sets

•   Pec deck flyers (chest) - 3 sets

•   Wide grip lat pulldowns (back/lats) - 3 sets

•   Seated hammer strength row (back/lats) - 3 sets

•   Seated machine press (deltoids/shoulder) - 3 sets

•   Triceps pushdowns (triceps/arms) - 3 sets

•   Cable curls (biceps/arms) - 3 sets

•   Leg extensions (quadriceps/legs) - 3 sets

•   Leg curls (hamstrings/legs) - 3 sets

•   Seated calf raises (calves) - 3 sets

•   Seated machine cruches (upper abs) - 3 sets

Machine Routine 2:

•   Leg extensions (quadriceps/legs) - 3 sets

•   Seated leg curls (Hamstrings/legs) - 3 sets

•   Squat machine (legs) - 3 sets

•   Standing calf raise machine (calves) - 3 sets

•   Incline press machine (chest) - 3 sets

•   Cable cross-overs (chest) - 3 sets

•   Hammer strength overhead pulldowns (lats/back) - 3 sets

•   Seated cable rows (back) - 3 sets

•   Machine side laterals (deltoids/shoulders) - 3 sets

•   Smith machine seated press (deltoids/shoulders) - 3 sets

•   Seated tricep extensions machine (triceps/arms) - 3 sets

•   Preacher curl machine (biceps/arms) - 3 sets

As you can see routine 1 works upper body muscle groups first followed by muscles of the lower body. Conversely routine 2 starts with the legs and works its way up.

Remember your muscles need 48 hours of recovery between workouts in addition to a post-workout protein shake. That's true whether you're working top to bottom or vice versa.

Also, please note the watchful eye of an experienced personal trainer who can get you started properly, so you get the full benefit of these machine routines, otherwise your results and gains will be slow and tedious to the point where you will throw the towel in.

So to stay motivated and get the results you deserve, do it for you. You're worth it!


Remember, health and fitness are your greatest assets.
Ask the Body Guru
www.totalharmonyfitness.com.au

Dealing with Sports Injuries - SLAP Tear and Shoulder Impingement

An amateur body builder who is preparing for competition this year came to me with a SLAP tear and shoulder impingement injury. 
I suggested to him that he provide me with a breakdown of his current training program and what exercises are hurting more than others. From this breakdown, I will be able to provide him with a new rehabilitation program that will allow him to rehabilitate while still preparing for competition.


Here is a breakdown of what exercises are currently causing the most discomfort. 


 I will follow this up with a new program and with great tips that will assist him during the rehabilitation process.

Shoulder exercises

Good

1.      Lateral pull down using Pulley machine, one arm, start at 90 deg angle and pull to side.  12-15reps  35kgs (Physio exercise)

2.      Pull down in front of the body from high angle using both arms, keeping arms straight using Pulley machine 30 reps 35kgs

3.      DB shoulder press with a pronated grip 30 reps 5kgs

4.      DB lateral raise with neutral grip 30 reps 5kgs

5.      DB raise in front of body straight arm, pronated grip 30 reps 5kgs

6.      DB raise in front of body straight arm, neutral grip 30 reps 5kgs

7.      DB shrugs 30 reps 20kgs

Slight twinge

1.      Shoulder press machine, 30 reps 15kgs, neutral grip (slight twinge near the end)

2.      Barbell upright row 30reps 17.5kgs

3.      Lateral raise pull up using Pulley machine, one arm, 30 Reps, 10kgs

Twinge/Painful

1.      Shoulder press machine pronated grip (only done two reps as too painful)

2.      Machine lateral raise 10reps 10kgs (Twinge)

Chest

Good

1.      Decline Bench Press 30reps, 20kg plus bar

2.      Machine Bench press 30 reps with 10kg plates on each side

3.      Pullovers flat bench 30 reps 15kg db

4.      DB Press, neutral grip  30reps 15kgs

5.      Cable flies on Pulley machine from ankle height upwards 30 reps 10kgs

6.      Machine flies 30reps, 35kgs

Slight twinge

1.      Flat Bench with bar 30reps 10kg plates plus bar

2.      DB Press pronated grip 30 reps 15kgs

3.      Flies on flat bench 30reps 10kgs

4.      Cable flies at chest height 30reps 10kgs

5.      Cable flies from high angle 30 reps 10kgs

Twinge/Painful

1.  Incline flies 30reps, 10kgs 

Welcome to the Body Guru Blog on Body Building

This is the place to be for expert advice from The Body Guru, Richard Stoupel. Richard is a celebrity trainer and adviser to Australia's Olympic teams including: Swimming, Paralympics and Ballet. Richard has been a guest on many Australian TV Channels and is an advisor to the Australia's Biggest Loser TV Series.