Archive for the 'Exercise & Fitness' Category

Pregnancy and Weight Loss, How to Lose Baby Weight

Many women spend a large portion of their pregnancy stressing about how much weight they’re gaining and how quickly they can get it off afterwards. It’s especially hard when you’re trying to care for a brand new baby. Just as it took you 9 whole months to gain the weight, you should not expect that it will melt off in 9 days.

But, our society tells us otherwise. Celebrities are shown in magazines with a very slim figure just a month after giving birth to a child. The give them very positive feedback like it is something everyone wants to do. However, healthy weight loss takes time. If you lose weight too quickly, your body may not be healthy and you main gain the weight back.

The best way to lose pounds is to breastfeed. Your body retains additional calories to nourish you baby after his birth, which is why you gain extra weight during pregnancy. Breastfeeding burns 200-500 extra calories a day. That is how mamma nature helps you to lose the weight you gained during pregnancy. As all mothers are not lucky enough to breastfeed their babies, there are other methods which could help you to get back in to great shape.

Eating healthy is not only important for weight loss but also if you are breastfeeding. You want your baby to be getting the most nutritious meal possible. If you are not eating properly, all the nutrients from what you are eating will go into your breast milk, leaving very little vitamins for you. Try eating 4-5 smaller meals throughout the day instead of 3 larger ones, this will boost your metabolism and keep you from being hungry.

It is very important to keep yourself well hydrated, especially when breastfeeding. Drink 8-10 glasses a day. It will take away toxins in you body that come as a result of being pregnant. Drinking water gives a feeling of being full, making you consume less.

Exercising after giving birth is important for several reasons. First of all, it won’t interfere with breastfeeding, unlike dieting. Secondly, it will help prevent postpartum depression because exercise boosts endorphins, which in turn give your mood a boost as well.

Women who do lose the weight gained from pregnancy sometimes discover that their figure is not what they remembered it to be. Your muscle tone will be lax and you your skin, once stretched so taught, will appear loose and flabby after you lose the baby weight. You can gain a firm and fit body and toned muscles by proper exercising.

Always start your exercise regimen slowly only. Your body need time to heal and rest and this time can be used to create a healthy bond with your baby. When starting a workout regimen, its best to begin with short 10 minute workouts and as you get stronger gradually work your way to longer workouts.

Pregnancy has a powerful impact on your body. Spend this valuable time focused on your newborn, not your weight. Weight loss can happen at any time, but children aren’t babies forever.

About the Author:

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Proven Goal Setting Techniques to Make a Calories Loss Diet Work

One of the most common mistakes that people make when it comes to weight loss is setting unrealistic expectations about how much weight they need to lose and how fast they can lose it. Setting unrealistic weight goals is really sabotaging your calories loss diet and your efforts to lose weight. That is why it is important to have some tools you can use to set realistic weight loss goals for yourself.

The end product of losing weight is a re-shaped body and to reach this goal, weight loss professionals have established one or two pounds a week as a healthy weight loss rate. Unrealistic weight losses like five pounds a week or sixty pounds by the end of winter are not only unhelpful but also potentially medically dangerous. These goals can cause disappointment and lead to you quitting the calories loss diet that drives your weight loss, so consider the tools below to make sure your weight loss goals are achieved.

Reduce the outcomes you expect of your weight loss if they are unrealistic because dropping a pound or two each week is a success that you can enjoy and continue to achieve. Celebrate this drop in weight, stick with your calories loss diet and stay focused on continuing to reach this gaol on a regular basis. A slow and steady weight loss is a great way to stay motivated and this keeps you committed even when your weight loss may slow down for a time.

Percentage weight loss of your body weight instead of pounds alone, means that you will avoid aiming for a pre-determined weight loss and give up if you do not appear to reach it. If you are carrying excess pounds now, it is likely that losing around 10-20% of your total weight is worth aiming for to reach a healthy weight. By losing 20-40 pounds a 200 pound person who is overweight is far more likely to reach a healthy weight than one who was calculated a set weight loss because it seemed like a good idea at the time.

Chart your weight loss in different ways to accommodate the various body changes that following a calories loss diet and exercising will cause. This means that when your weight loss, measured in pounds slows for a time, you can still feel encouraged by the diminishing size of your hips, chest or waist. Including these different ways to measure your changing body shape not only accommodates a healthier perspective on losing weight but also helps keep you motivated as you see your weight loss from different perspectives.

Do the math because if you want to lose 25 pounds and you know that a safe weight loss rate is 2 pounds per week then you need to plan on taking 12 to 14 weeks to lose this weight. In the beginning it might make it seem more difficult to lose weight, but if you have a realistic expectation of how long it will take to lose the amount of weight that you want to shed, it will help you remain focused and stay on your calories loss diet. Weight loss goals that are ’short and furious’ generally go out with a bang soon after they have been set.

Try to reduce your daily calorie intake by 500 per day either by exercising more and burning more calories or by eating less. Use a calories counter to estimate the changes you need to make to bring about this calories loss each day and use it to determine the foods that you can continue to include in your menu. Losing weight is a numbers game so get familiar with those numbers and how to use them to lose weight.

Create goals that can be achieved soon but remain focused on the ultimate goal and reflect this determination in your calories loss eating habits and your exercise program. Always include opportunities for the celebration of your weight loss successes along the way and reward yourself with special treats like clothes, CD’s, or even a night out somewhere special. Use these rewards as incentives to continue losing weight and always keep looking ahead at the final goal - the new you.

About the Author:

Maximizing your workout time

Using your time wisely can drastically change your results from working out. Isolating your muscles cannot yield the same results as more efficient, full-body training.

Kettlebells can provide the most bang-for-the-buck. Using high-impact exercises like the get-up, swing, snatch, and clean provides both a strength and cardio workout that can get you into amazing shape. For the kettlebell newbie, only 10 minutes a day can enable you to change your body and functional strength in no time.

Popular fitness magazines encourage you to split your workouts down into each body part, however, full body exercises can yield faster results. These exercises include pull-ups, dips, and squats. In addition, using heavy-weights will allow you to build your muscles and increase functional performance.

Below is a full body workout I used for awhile that gave me great results. The key is heavy weights. Obviously, don’t go overboard, but with a weight that’s heavier than you’re used to will burn more calories and increase your strength tremendously.

Workout A

1a: Deadlift (5×5)

2-1: Weighted Pull-up 3×5

2-2: Weighted Dip 3×5

3-1: Hanging Leg Raise 3×10

C2: Kettlebell/Dumbbell Swing-3×20

Workout 2

1a: Bench Press (5×5)

B1: Double Kettlebell/Barbell Clean and Jerk-3×6

2b: Renegade Row (3×6)

C1: Kettlebell/Dumbbell Get up (Right Arm)

3b: Kettlebell or Dumbbell Get-up (Left Arm)

4a: Jump rope intervals (10 Minutes)

For a month, use Workout A and B every three days a week. This routine combined with a good diet and one or two cardio sessions will yield improved strength and rapid fat loss. Using these full-body exercises will hit all the muscles that would be hit with muscle specific workouts.

No need to do curls because heavy pull-ups will build your arms. No need for lateral raises because the push press will take care of your entire shoulder. You’ll build a better body in half the time of a muscle magazine workout. Time is expensive so why waste it on actions that aren’t going to give you the most bang for your buck. I doubt you would spend twice as much money for a car you could get for half the price elsewhere. Spend your time wisely and start seeing results!

About the Author: