There’s a new rowing machine in town, and it’s a new, improved version of those old, fairly hard to use rowing machines of the seventies and eighties. It just may be the new fitness craze since it is safe for people who have knee injuries and other fragile parts of the body.
I’d compare it to the eliptical machine, because it’s a smooth, fluid movement, and it’s really great for scultping muscles as well as burning calories. In fact, it’s actually an excellent calorie burner. It’s been compared to the calorie burning abilities of the highest impact and highest calorie burning exercises of cross country skiing and swimming.
Both of these are exercises which burn the most calories of any other known exercise, and are great for losing weight and keeping weight off. To watch the new Indo Rowing Machine in action, it almost looks like an eliptical machine on it’s back.
It’s got a large wheel at the front, covered up, as the engine is on the eliptical, and it works smoothly. It works the whole body like an eliptical or cross country machine does, especially the glutes and the back due to the rowing action we all know and love. Check it out, it should be available soon at some of the finer gyms.
November 12th, 2006
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EatingToLive |
Exercise Equipment |
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I was just talking to my boyfriend about how much I love what the exercise Yoga does for me. Not only does yoga help sculpt beautiful, long lean muscle, but it is also therapeutic in several ways. I just ordered a set of Yoga DVDs called Yoga Zone, and it comes with six dvd’s, each about 40 minutes.
The cool thing is, they are 40 minutes, but they are also divided into two different practices, each 20 minutes each, so once you get bored with one set of instructors, you are starting another set of different yoga poses in twenty minutes anyways, with a bit of a different background, music and feel. It staves off boredom, and somehow makes you feel like you aren’t doing 40 solid minutes of exercise, so for me it really works well.
The practice of Yoga is often thought of as almost a contortionist exercise, which requires great flexibility and movement, but really it doesn’t. You can be a beginner and just slightly modify the moves or do something a little different when the truly expert moves come up. Also, you can buy DVDs or go to Yoga classes that are tailored to beginners, intermediate and advanced.
Yoga has a great calming effect on me. It not only conditions my mind and body, but it also helps me breathe more effectively as well as to focus inward, on only myself, making other thoughts and worries melt away.
This is a wonderful way to either start your day or end it. There are many poses, all modeled after nature, such as the cat pose, plank, downward dog, child’s pose, mountain and other poses that are reminiscent of all things natural. Yoga has a way of making you feel at one with the world, and making everything seem like it’s ok.
It revitalizes the mind and makes you feel more empowered to face that next high stress day at the job. It also instills a kind of sense to be nice to people around you, and that you get what you give. I recommend everyone work in yoga to their fitness routine, even if it’s just once a week, to help unwind, condition that muscles and the mind and make you more self aware.
November 11th, 2006
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EatingToLive |
Health & Fitness Tips |
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A lot of people say they simply don’t have the time or energy to think of cooking health and eating healthy, and so they end up going to a fast food joint or odering in nutritionless, calorie packed foods instead the majority of the time.
I’m a big proponent of cooking meals and preparing lunches ahead of time. I’ve always tried to cook nutritious, health supporting meals that will last for 2-3 nights in a row rather than something that is eaten up all in one night and it works pretty well for us.
Now, I’m not saying it’s perfect - there are always times when I find either I run out of food, or we simply are craving junky food, and we’ll order a pizza - but once or twice a month is ok to indulge like that. Here’s a typical meal idea that I like, which lasts for a couple of nights. Actually, let me give you a few. They’re fairly easy, and they do last you a few nights, so you don’t have to think of putting something new together every night.
And, if you live with someone or you’re married, you could switch off thinking of new and creative lighter fare that you can make ahead of time, so when you get home afer 5:00, as most working men and women do, you won’t have to think of something, and you won’t be tempted to go through that drive thru or order takeout to avoid having to come up with a nutritious meal.
2 Long Lasting, Prepare Ahead Meal Ideas :
1.) Turkey Chili. I like to make my chili with lots of black beans, which are plentiful in fiber, and also contain other vital nutrients. I like to use the organic type, as I’ve found they do not cause excess gas like the non-organic types tend to. You’ve basically got a nutrition packed meal, since you have onions, ground turkey which is virtually fat free and easy to digest, tomato sauce, rich in beta carotene and other vitamins, and then you add all the spices, which are generally good sources of healthy phytonutrients, especially if you use the organic kind (my personal favorite).
2.) Turkey breast and green bean casserole. I like to make turkey breast with whole wheat stuffing (which I primarily use to flavor the turkey, but I rarely eat any of it). The turkey breasts last several nights, and the low fat green bean casserole does as well. The low fat green bean casserole is made very simply with french style frozen green beans, sauteed onions and a can of low fat, low sodium cream of mushroom soup. Voila, you’ve got a meal for at least 3 nights, if not more. Add a salad to the mix, and you’ve got an easy three course meal for a few nights.
November 10th, 2006
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EatingToLive |
Health & Fitness Tips |
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Exercise is something we all know we should do, and yet many of us (too many) avoid it like the plague. I even find myself in this boat sometimes. I know it’s good for me, I know I feel ten times better after I’ve put a good workout in, and yet sometimes I find myself doing anything and everything just to avoid going to the gym. Why is this? Who knows, but sometimes it is difficult to talk ourselves into getting to the gym.
Another new study has come out as yet another backup to the common knowledge and belief that exercise can actually save our lives, and it also benefits us on so many levels, including emotional and physical levels. This latest study shows that when you feel tired, although your first instinct may be to take a nap, exercise is actually better for boosting energy levels, and getting your out of the rut of the fatigue/energy cycle many of us experience.
Expending energy in increased quantities for that 45 minute workout actually increases your overall energy levels both in the short term and the long term, making it a sure bet that it will increase the quality of your life. It also has been shown to benefit chronically ill patients by giving them energy boosts when usually they would feel chronically fatigued all the time due to their medical condition.
It’s the old saying, laziness begets laziness, energy begets energy (ok, I made that up, but the old saying does go something like that). And I’m not even saying it’s “laziness” - it’s really just a lack of understanding about what our bodies need, and how they respond to inactivity.
I’ve known a lot of people who are constantly depressed, and never have any energy and wonder why. 100% of the time, these same people are the ones that do not exercise on a regular basis. Put the two together, and you have one irrefutable fact : we need exercise.
November 8th, 2006
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EatingToLive |
Diet and Weightloss News |
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We always look at maintaining a svelte, flat and strong stomach as being a purely cosmetic, vanity issue. But really maintaining a strong abdomen as well as little belly fat also has other, more important implications to our health, comfort and well being. First off, and most importantly, excessive belly fat has been linked in more than one study to an increased risk for heart disease.
People who have bigger bellies and have a noticeably bigger belly than the rest of their body, are at a much higher risk to develop heart disease, statistically speaking. This is another reason why people are encouraged to eat less and restrict calories, because both women and men can have genetic predispositions to having proportionately more belly fat to the rest of their body fat, and this can have dire consequences on their health.
Another reason for maintaining a flat and strong tummy is your posture. Many people complain of back problems because their abdominal muscles are not strong enough to hold a proper posture, and many times excess belly fat comes along with this complaint, because the abdomen is not being worked out properly.
These two reasons alone are enough to be convincing to someone who has excess belly fat to try to trim down there. Not only that, there are probably numerous other health consequences to excess belly fat, but these are the two that I know of that can improve your health and life noticeably.
November 6th, 2006
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EatingToLive |
Health News |
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Yes, it is possible - make that very possible, to eat more and stay thin or even lose weight, without being hungry all the time. There are foods you can eat which are not calorie dense, yet appear “bigger” and actually take up more space in the stomach and make you feel full a lot quicker than calorie dense, non-stomach filling foods.
An example of a calorie dense food would be chocolate chip cookie dough. This seemingly “small” food actually tastes great going down, but if you knew how many calories and fat grams were packed into this sweet little treat, you just might think twice about downing a fourth of the bowl or licking the beaters after you make it! Cookie dough is the perfect example of eating what you think is a little, but getting a lot more calories out of it than you bargained for.
Another excellent example of consuming less calories and fat would be starting off your meal with a nice big green salad, with some cucumbers, onions and a low fat, low cal dressing (there are some great ones out there today). This actually fills you up before your real meal comes along, which usually tends to be more calorie dense. A salad contains fiber and size, and therefore fills up your stomach, taking the edge off the hunger, so you eat less of your meal which may be meat and other more calorie dense foods, in favor of a fiber and vitamin filled salad.
My favorite salad is field greens with cucumber and onions, field greens are more nutritionally sound than regular iceberg lettuce, which has very few nutritional benefits unfortunately. Not only salads are a good thing to add to your meals, but low calorie and low fat soups fill you up - hot liquid is notorious for being filling, and add some veggies and you’ve got more fiber. Veggies, soups and salads are a great way to get more food in your diet, with less calories.
November 4th, 2006
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EatingToLive |
Dieting Trends |
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Well, it does appear that obesity and the lung ailment called asthma, may be connected even more than thought - to the tune of about three times the people in obese groups that have asthma compared to normal weights.
Asthma is a lung condition where the bronchial tubes do not expand fully when a person breathes in, as they should. Instead they constrict, leaving the person feeling winded, as if there is a vice around their lungs. A person with asthma may weeze and cough in an effort to get mucous out of their lungs.
They may be irritated by stress and certain allergens, and you can be born with it, although usually people grow into it. There is growing evidence that a protein found in fat cells, which obese people have more of, actually irritates the lining of the lungs and contributes largely to the condition of asthma.
There is also substantial evidence that when obese people lose weight, their asthma becomes better, sometimes even obsolete - but at the very least it is much more easily managed.
November 3rd, 2006
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EatingToLive |
Health News |
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If there ever was a person who was against “hurting people’s feelings” or taking the high road, it would be me. However, in the battle of the bulge which has become increasingly important in today’s society of diabetes, obesity and health issues directly associated to excess weight, I’m all for a little more directness when it comes to weight issues.
A police chief in Winter Haven, Florida police chief was recently relieved of his duties, serving as a $92,000 a year police chief, when he sent out a memo, not directed to anyone in particular but his whole department, encouraging “jelly bellies” to shape up.
I’ll admit, the title may have been a little hurtful, but in the end, this polic chief was really just trying to encourage some of his men, who seemed to be increasingly unfit and overweight, to start to shape up a little. He emphasized in the email several points of why a police officer should be in tip top shape, and could become a liability or a danger to himself if he was not fit enough to chase a suspect or use non life threatening force on a suspect before a gun.
I hate to say it, but I agree with the guy. If he looked around and saw that there could be some improvement, even though it fell in the self improvement arena, these guys actually should have thanked him for possibly saving their lives from the likes of a heart attack, diabetes, stroke and other health issues associated with obesity.
This man, while he may have approached it a bit differently than I would have, was really just trying to improve these guys, and he got fired for it. From the sounds of it, he was a pretty good police chief also, so it’s a shame he got fired for voicing his opinion and stance on weight control and physical fitness in the law enforcement profession.
November 2nd, 2006
Posted by
EatingToLive |
Diet and Weightloss News |
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