Category: Gym/Fitness

Every girl dreams of having lean legs, the ‘thigh gap’ has become the most coveted accessory since the creation of Louis Vuitton knock off handbags. Thigh gaps are the new diamonds. Unfortunately for some (well many) having a thigh gap might mean jeopardizing all aspects of health and choosing to don a gaunt, skeleton like face. Simply put, it is not a good look! But while a thigh gap may not be right for your body shape this does not mean you can’t have a set of lean legs that Millie Mackintosh would be envious of. Losing weight from your lower body is not easy. Girls especially tend to carry extra weight around their bums, tums and thighs. The following is a list of reasons as to why you may not be shedding the pounds from these stubborn areas:

The Benefits Of Strength Training!

Sensible resistance training involves precise controlled movements for each major muscle group. Learn how this type of exercise can benefit you! Public health guidelines primarily focus on the promotion of physical activity and steady-state aerobic exercise, which enhances cardiorespiratory fitness and has some impact on body composition. However, research demonstrates that resistance exercise training has profound effects on the musculoskeletal system, contributes to the maintenance of functional abilities, and prevents osteoporosis, sarcopenia (loss of body mass), lower-back pain and other disabilities. More recent seminal research demonstrates that resistance training may positively affect risk factors such as insulin resistance, resting metabolic rate, glucose metabolism, blood pressure, body fat and gastrointestinal transit time, which are associated with diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Research also indicates that virtually all the benefits of resistance training are likely to be obtained in two 15-to-20 minute training sessions a week.Sensible resistance training involves precise controlled movements for each major muscle group and does not require the use of heavy resistance. Along with brief prescriptive steady-state aerobic exercise, resistance training should be a central component of public health promotion programs.

BENEFITS OF AN EFFECTIVE PROGRAM

HEALTH
Increases HDL – High Density Lipoprotein (good cholesterol) and decrease LDL – Low Density Lipoprotein (bad cholesterol).Reduces risk of diabetes and insulin needs.Lowers risk of cardiovascular disease.Lower high blood pressure.Lowers risk of breast cancer – reduces high estrogen levels linked to the disease.Decreases or minimizes risk of osteoporosis by building bone mass.Reduces symptoms of PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome)Reduces stress and anxiety. Decreases colds and illness.

STRENGTH
Increased muscle strength, power, endurance and size. Enhanced performance of everyday tasks. You will be able to do everyday tasks like lifting, carrying and walking up stairs with greater ease.

FLEXIBILITY
By working the muscles through a full range of motion, weight training can improve your overall body flexibility. Increased flexibility reduces the risk of muscle pulls and back pain.

LIKELIHOOD OF INJURY
Strong muscles, tendons and ligaments are less likely to give way under stress and are less likely to be injured. Increased bone density and strength reduces back and knee pain by building muscle around these areas.

BODY COMPOSITION
Boosted metabolism (which means burning more calories when at rest). Reduced body fat. Your overall weight may not change, but you will gain muscle and lose fat. Over time you should notice decreases in waist measurements and bodyfat measurement.

MUSCLE TONE
The conditioning effect will result in firmer and better-defined muscles.

POSTURE
The way you sit and stand are influenced by the health of a network of neck, shoulder, back, hip and abdominal muscles. Stronger muscles can help you stand and sit straighter and more comfortably. Improved balance and stability.

STATE OF MIND
As you begin to notice the positive physical changes in your body and develop a regular exercise routine your ability to handle stress effectively will improve. Weight training allows you to sleep better, i.e. fall asleep quicker and sleep deeper. Clinical studies have shown regular exercise to be one of the three best tools for effective stress management.

BASIC PRINCIPLES

TYPE OF LIFT
You need to tailor your workout to address specific body areas. For example, if you want bigger and stronger arms, you need to use exercises that target those particular muscles.
INTENSITY
The amount of effort, there are a number of ways to increase the intensity, most of them considered “Weider Principles”, cut down on rest times, super set, rest-pause, etc.
VOLUME
The quantity of your workouts or duration. You can increase or decrease the volume by either training more or less often per week or by training for longer or shorter periods of time. (see variety)
VARIETY
Switching around your workout routine, vary your workouts by changing exercises, the rep scheme or your training volume. Variety challenges your muscles and forces them to adapt with increased size and strength.
PROGRESSIVE OVERLOAD
Gradually increasing your weights forces your muscles to grow stronger and larger.
REST
You need to rest between sets. If your goal is muscle size or endurance, rest for 30-60 seconds or so. If you want muscle strength, allow up to 2-4 minutes between sets.
RECOVERY
Muscle needs time to repair and grow after a workout. A good rule of thumb is to rest the muscle group for at least 48 hours to allow sufficient recovery time.

Don’t be Afraid to Lift Weights……. For too long, women have been slaves to every cardio machine on the gym floor, spending hours on them believing that they are shedding the pounds by the minute. Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news but¬ that is not what is happening. When it comes to health and fitness, we are all driven by results so in order for you to be able to achieve your desired results I want to share with you what I have learned through my own experiences. My goal is that by sharing my insights, you will be able to change your approach to both exercise and nutrition, and achieve awesome results. There is an ever-growing realisation that weight training is the most effective way for women to achieve a healthy, desirable, and sexy physique. It can be daunting to approach the weights section of a gym (“the testosterone zone”) but there is really nothing to be scared of. The reality is that there are more and more women in the weights section pumping iron. So if you want to transform your physique in the smartest, most effective, and rewarding way, I urge you to take the time to read this post. What You Need to Know….

Between Black Friday and the Toy Show, present buying for Christmas is first and foremost on a lot of people’s minds, and on this week’s Real Health, I thought, why not ask two of Ireland’s leading personal trainers what their wish list for Christmas would be?

John Belton of No. 17 Personal Training and Paul Moran from BodyRock Performance joined me with their recommendations for training-related gifts for friends and family.

There’s a few gadgets and gizmos on their list to aid in your running or gym work but I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by some of their wish list favourites that go beyond just health and fitness.

Go check out this episode of the Real health podcast with Karl Henry, Paul Moran & John Belton where we give you our top 10 fitness gift 🎁 ideas 💡 for this Christmas 🎄https://open.spotify.com/show/34V3reoPjzHBBlr4fS6PVQ

For more episodes and information from the Real Health podcast you can also go to: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/

The Real Health podcast with Karl Henry in association with Laya Healthcare.

Listen to the show on the SoundCloud player or subscribe and rate via the following links:

iPhone users can subscribe and listen on Apple Podcasts.

Android users can subscribe and listen on Google Podcasts.

Or listen on SoundCloud

And we’re on Spotify