Exercise Equipment: Strength Training Programs
23. June 2008
admin
The best strength training programs tend to be the ones that provide consistent resistance across a wide range of motions. People who like free weights frequently complain it can take forever to reset the barbells each time they do a set, but the alternative usually means paying hundreds for an annual gym membership. Isnt there a way to approximate the effects of free weights at home?
Of course there is, and anyone who has spent some time researching such options has probably by now become well-acquainted with the so-called home gyms. Many of these are little more than bench presses with some pulleys attached, but some of the best-designed models actually do provide gym-quality lifting for the upper and lower body. All you need to find the perfect product is a good resource to point the way.
Common Pitfalls
Some of the chief complaints about home gyms are that they are too heavy, too cumbersome, difficult to convert between exercises and easily broken. It is important to note that such criticisms are usually leveled against inexpensive gyms that dont boast the same materials technology major companies use. Thats why experts recommend you shop at the websites of companies whose products consistently earn high marks from the bodybuilding community.
Not everyone gets such a rating. Major companies like Bowflex continue to draw fire for controversial materials, and even some traditional stand-bys like Nautilus are falling out of favor. If you are looking for a truly reliable, professional-grade product, you may want to stick with the companies that have long maintained a loyal following among serious athletes.
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Exercise Equipment: Pulse Rate Monitors
22. June 2008
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Those of us who are serious about exercise often want to know just how hard were working. Thats why so many of the top cardio machines now include pulse rate monitors to let us determine how long we stay in the proper zone of exertion. For fitness fanatics who place a premium on pushing hard and getting it right, this little monitor can prove an invaluable exercise tool.
Why does it matter what your heart rate is doing? The point of cardio is to work your heart harder than usual, thus strengthening the muscle and providing all your body with increased blood flow. When your heart gets stronger, you invariably experience a number of collateral benefits such as lower blood pressure and a greater incidence of HDLs, or high density lipids (sometimes known as good cholesterol).
Cardiac Health
Pulse rate monitors arent often as easy to create as you may imagine, however, which is why so many companies tend to experience sluggish sales in this area. Although you can usually get a pretty good read from an arm band, the last thing you want is for your instruments to impede the very blood they are trying to measure. Thats why many of todays best products include metal bands or finger drives that do the work for you without applying undue pressure to the area under observation.
False readings and inaccurate blood rate monitors can be tremendously frustrating, especially if the equipment is part of a larger machine that would cost thousands to replace. If you want to get equipment that will last a lifetime, most experts advise sticking with the major manufacturers in this area. Usually their combination of good engineering and solid warranties makes the whole process somewhat less of a gamble.
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Exercise Equipment: Strength Training And Resistance
21. June 2008
admin
If you are interested in learning more about the correlations between strength training and resistance, youre not alone. These days it seems like everyone has an opinion about the best way to build lean muscle mass, and a good number of these claims tend to contradict each other. If youre seeking sound science, you may want to stick with the advice of true experts in the field.
Probably the most common misconception is that you need a stack of weights to provide the proper kind of strength workout. In fact, if someone were to pull on that steel cable as you exercised as hard as the weights pull, you would get an identical workout. Such is the reasoning behind the new generation of digitally controlled resistance machines.
Better than Weights
What are the advantages to using resistance instead of weights? For one thing, the machines tend to be far lighter and easier to transport, including shipping charges. If you should ever move or rearrange your home, digital resistance machines dont require the aid of four friends just to move a few inches. But the real benefits come in safety and effectiveness.
Unlike weight stacks, digital resistance provides completely even pull throughout the full range of your motion. You never have to worry about a snapped cable or broken pin causing a crash that could damage your muscles. And with few exceptions, the best of these machines can generate and memorize programs so you no longer have to keep a ledger for each muscle group.
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Exercise Equipment: Home Strength Training
20. June 2008
admin
Home strength training has come a long way since the days when most people had a couple barbells and a medicine ball. More advanced free weights evolved over the years, to the point where now, most serious bodybuilders can switch out those disks in just a few seconds flat. What hasnt changed is the general form of the exercises we do, and what is required to make them go smoothly.
It wasnt long ago that most people exercised in pairs even at home, as spotting was absolutely essential to safe exercise. Today, the rise of clever weight stations has obliterated this need and replaced it with the security that comes from knowing you are performing textbook motions every time. The only remaining problem is usually the high gym fees required to benefit from such technology.
The Home Revolution
All that changed with the advent of home gyms, and today these compact devices pack a lot more muscle than they used to. If you ever saw such a machine in your youth, you probably noticed the flimsy ropes, primitive pulley systems and poorly engineered straps required to make them work. Today, everything is designed with steel cable, ball bearings and the kind of space-age materials that protect you from friction burns and other collateral injuries.
It is a tremendous relief for millions of people. As gym membership continues to rise, more Americans are seeking intelligent ways to get the same rigorous workout from home. When you can exercise at any time of day or night and dont have to pay a penny for the privilege, its simply easier to stay in great shape year round.
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Exercise Equipment: Ab Benches
19. June 2008
admin
Good ab benches tend to be a little sturdier than the kind of inexpensive fare you find at most exercise stores. If you are serious about getting the most out of your crunches, you may want to invest in equipment that can incline, adjust and move without a lot of difficulty. More to the point, it needs to remain absolutely stationary as you do your sit-ups.
Not every company does this kind of product particularly well. Although most ab benches appear to be virtually indistinguishable in photographs, you can usually tell as soon as you sit whether youve got one that is solid or one that will forever seem in danger of collapse. It all depends on how robust the materials and design are, and how solid the assembly.
The Right Choice
Ab exercises have become more widely adopted than ever, thanks to a bevy of new studies that closely link abdominal strength with back injury. These muscles, which together comprise the core you hear so much about nowadays, are absolutely essential to your balance, posture and bone density. Let either one slide, and you could be left with an imbalance that can quickly lead to devastating injury.
Ab exercises are some of the easiest ways to stave off this destructive process. If you are in the market for a good ab bench, you may want to check the major manufacturers for their top-rated steel products. Usually a better brand will supply you with more reliable and effective workouts for years to come.
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