Weight Loss
There are many reasons why people want to lose weight, from getting ready for a special day to toning up for a summer holiday. But perhaps the most obvious reason for most people to try and lose weight is simply to improve overall health and fitness. Studies show that even being mildly overweight contribute to leaving a person feeling sluggish and fatigued and there is also strong evidence to suggest that obesity can create low self-esteem and cause depression. Not only this but over time fat deposits gradually disrupt the normal flow of blood through the body by blocking blood vessels which puts pressure on the heart and can ultimately lead to a heart attack.
There are many reasons why people want to lose weight, from getting ready for a special day to toning up for a summer holiday. But perhaps the most obvious reason for most people to try and lose weight is simply to improve overall health and fitness. Studies show that even being mildly overweight contribute to leaving a person feeling sluggish and fatigued and there is also strong evidence to suggest that obesity can create low self-esteem and cause depression. Not only this but over time fat deposits gradually disrupt the normal flow of blood through the body by blocking blood vessels which puts pressure on the heart and can ultimately lead to a heart attack.
Losing even a little weight through moderate exercise such as running or resistance training can greatly improve a persons mood and also improve health related illnesses like heart disease and also diabetes, which is an important reason in itself for wanting to lose weight right. By watching what you eat you can begin to live a more healthy active life even before setting foot in the gym.
Reasons to Exercise?
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The healthy way to lose weight.
If you are looking to lose weight then you want a routine that offers maximum results in the least amount of time possible. Scientists and nutritionist have been hard at work looking at this particular issue and now after years of research the results are in and it turns out that it is not rocket science after all. It seems that by simply combining a healthy diet, cardio and simple training exercises you will achieve that slimmer, fitter and more toned body that you are looking for quicker than you think.
Cardio.
Firstly, when doing cardio you can actually elevate your metabolism for up to 24 hours post-exercise by adding one thing to your routine and that is 'intervals'. The way this works is you inject brief but intense period of effort into your regular workouts no matter if it is running, swimming or cycling the same principle applies. The intensity of the exercise effectively resets your metabolism to a slightly higher rate during your workout and it takes a number of hours for it to slow down again. This means that you will actually be burning calories long after your workout is over. So for instance, if you're a walker and you typically exercise for 30 minutes, then you should add a short burst of jogging for 30 seconds every 5 minutes. As your fitness increases you can step up the interval length to a minute and decrease the walking segments to 4 minutes. The most important thing to remember is that to gain the biggest metabolism boost you will want to make sure that the interval portion leaves you breathing hard.
Strength Training.
You may be asking yourself how strength training can help you to lose weight, well, by working your muscles and targeting all of the major muscle groups 2-3 times a week for around thirty minutes your muscles will begin to grow and in doing so they will require more energy to feed them. One of the things that feeds your muscles is the fat stores within the body, so by combining cardio with strength training the quicker you will actually begin to lose fat. It is worth while remembering that you should not keep checking the scales to see how much weight you have lost. The reason for this is that muscle actually weighs more than fat pound for pound, so your weight might only go down slightly but that is OK because you will still look slimmer and feel more healthy in a far shorter frame of time than by just dieting on it's own.
Push Ups.
There is a reason why this particular strength training exercise is so popular with the armed forces and boot camps around the world and that is because the push-up stimulates a number of muscles groups all at once including your chest, shoulders, arms, and even gets your abs working just as long as you do them strictly and with the correct form.
Crunches.
Ok, so these little fellas have got a bit of a bad rep over the years but make no mistake, crunches are like the super food of the exercise world and can be a super-effective way to tone your abs in a very short space of time indeed so ignore them at your peril.
Curls.
The bicep curl is the simplest way to increase your arm strength and sculpt your muscle very quickly indeed and there is no need to go heavy or overdo the number of repetitions for you to begin to see results. By simply doing 2-3 sets of 10 repetitions three times per week at around 50% your maximum you will begin to feel your muscles becoming more taught and this of course will help burn that excess fat.
Squats.
The squat is arguably the most popular exercise used by most athletes and fitness enthusiasts, and for good reason. There is a stack of evidence which proves that this particular exercise is extremely effective for improving lower body muscular endurance, strength, muscle tone, and power. With this powerhouse lower-body move you will quickly trim your thighs and sculpt your butt.
Reverse Dip (Or bench Dips).
When performed with strict form then the bench dip or reverse dip is an extremely effective exercise that develops all three heads of the Triceps. It also does not require fancy or expensive gym equipment either as it can be effectively performed at home with two stable chairs if two gym benches are not available.
The Lunge.
The lunge is another extremely important exercise as it is a wonder for working the muscles in your lower body. Performing the lunge is like taking a big step forward and then returning back to your original position again, it helps to develop functional stability and overall body coordination. It is important to ensure that when performing the lunge it is executed correctly to avoid putting unnecessary stress on your knees.
The Row.
Last up we have the row, this exercise powers up your back and shoulders and is a great way of giving you the definition that you want in both of these areas.
Nutrition is the key
Apart from training of course the first and most important factor in the fitness equation is to look at the food that you eat because by simply avoiding sugary or fatty foods and switching to a healthy, nutritional diet you will be amazed at just how fast you begin to lose that weight. For more information about the foods that you should be eating please take a look at our nutrition pages.
Meal Planning Apps
We all know that reading food labels and studying ingredients is not much fun and trying to decide what to eat can be a bit of a chore. So we have done a little research and it turns out that there now some amazing meal planning apps out there which are designed to make planning nutritious, healthy meals both quick and easy. By simply using a little technology you will be able to plan, prepare and enjoy nutritious, healthy, balanced, meals in minutes, to download apps simply follow the link.
Premier Food Delivery Service
For most of us cooking can feel like a real chore, it can be really tough trying to stick to a healthy diet particularly after a long day at work or a session at the gym. Trying to find the time to shop for healthy ingredients not to mention the time it takes to prep and cook a nutritious meal is one of the main reasons why so many of us simply give up on our fitness goals. The good news is that Taste Fitness have teamed up with premier food delivery service Fresh Fitness Food who offer a nutritionist designed chef-prepared food delivery service straight to your door. For more information simply follow the link below
By quoting reference TASTEFITNESS25 you will save a generous £25.00 off your first order with Fresh Fitness Food and to save a further 10% off all future orders all you need to do is quote TASTEFITNESS10 what could be easier.
Fitness Training Apps
According to a recent study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, people who use fitness apps are far more likely to reach their fitness goals. Fitness apps are now becoming all the rage, but with so many now available on the market it can make life pretty difficult when it comes to choosing the right one for you.
Because we have some experience in these things and know what you are looking for we have taken the time to review the best fitness apps on the market and have come up with our top three apps which we think will definitely help you reach your fitness goals. To go to apps simply click on the link below.
