6 Reasons to Row Your Way to Fit While Burning 800 Calories - FitSugar

6 Reasons to Row Your Way to Fit While Burning 800 Calories

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Updated Aug 18 2011 - 10:26am · Posted Aug 17 2011 - 4:08am by Self ·

We are pumped to share one of our fave stories from Self here on FitSugar!
Once upon a time, rowing was considered a man's sport, beloved by preppy Ivy League boys and lake fishermen. Times have changed. Here's what happened: we ladies found out it was fun. You know what else is fun? Being toned. And, contrary to popular belief, rowing accomplishes that for more than just your upper body.

Just ask ultra-endurance athlete and World Rowing Champion, Josh Crosby, who created the now internationally practiced Indo-Row workout with partner and fitness developer Jay Blahnik. (They even collaborated with WaterRower on a special Indo-Row Machine that uses actual water.) Though the first classes began in 2005, Indo-Row went global in the last three years and is now offered at over 50 clubs from Equinox and Sports Club LA to The Mayo Clinic's Wellness Center. And, as with any growing trend and especially ones that start in California, Hollywood has caught on. Though the Indo-Row team is hush-hush about A-list clientele, a few names have leaked out like Nicole Kidman, Estella Warren, Kevin Bacon, and Jason Patric.

In the creator's own words, "Indo-Row was designed to bring the benefits of rowing to the masses." See Crosby's top six reasons to row after the break!

The beauty of these specific classes and of rowing in general is that the same workout session can be completed — at different paces — by everyone from male triathletes to 80-year-old women. "I wouldn't be able to do all the mountain biking, kayaking, and trail running that I do during adventure fitness competitions without rowing," says Crosby. "It's the ultimate cross-training for everyone from cyclists, who need to build more upper body strength, to people who are dealing with rehab and recovery. It's pretty amazing because you can have all shapes, sizes, ages, and abilities in one class. I've been rowing since I was eight-years-old and my grandfather rowed until he was 94."

1. Total Body — The biggest myth about rowing is that it's all upper body. It's actually an amazing full-body, low-impact, killer strength, and cardio workout. You're working nine major muscles groups: quads, hamstrings, glutes, lats, core, shoulder, triceps, back, and biceps. Posture is a huge benefit from rowing. And then obviously you're jumpstarting your cardio system too.
2. Low Impact — The reason why rowing is good for rehab is because, especially for runners, it's a much lower-impact alternative.
3. Teamwork — If you're doing a rowing workout at home alone, it's not quite the same. But during an Indo-Row class, community spirit is emphasized as it would be in an actual boat race. Every class ends with a race, measured by the monitors (tracking total time, distance, calories, current strokes per minute, and pace) on each machine. And those races tend to end with actual cheering.
4. Easy To Learn — The movements themselves are relatively simple, so there's not much of a learning curve. People generally get the basics down in 10 minutes.
5. You're In Control — Resistance is created by how hard you push or pull, so you control the level of your own workout. The Indo-Row machines actually use 17-liters of water — that even makes requisite sloshing sounds — as resistance, so the harder you push and pull, the faster that water is going to move. And your "split" time goes down as you row faster.
6. Calorie Burn — In the average Indo-Row class, people burn between 400 to 800 calories in less than an hour.

Do the Indo-Row workout at home with only a resistance band!



http://www.fitsugar.com/Taking-Indo-Row-Workout-Class-18784724

Tim Ferriss' Jumpstart: Supercharge and Reshape Your Body - doctoroz.com

Tim Ferriss' Jumpstart: Supercharge and Reshape Your Body

Articles on Fri 02/10/2012

How would you like to reenergize your mood, get the best sleep of your life, and jumpstart your metabolism quickly and easily? Let Tim Ferriss, author of the bestselling book, The 4-Hour Body, show you how with his revolutioAdded to Are you worn out? Feeling down? Having trouble sleeping? Frustrated by your inability to lose weight? Tim Ferriss, author of the 4-Hour Body and self-proclaimed human guinea pig, has spent years researching and testing unusual health and fitness theories on his own body. Those he’s found safe and effective have made him.

Here he tackles some of your biggest complaints – from fighting a slow metabolism to experiencing the blues to difficulty sleeping. His solutions will show you how to supercharge and reshape your body with very little extra effort.

1. Supercharge Your Metabolism: 5-Minute Deep Freeze
By taking a cold shower anywhere from 5 minutes to 30 minutes, you can jumpstart your metabolism. That’s because cold temperature activates brown fat, the fat-burning fat tissue in your body that burns energy to keep you warm. When taking a cold shower, you may experience some shivering, which indicates that you’re using energy to keep your body temperature up.

Try taking a quick shower in the morning or night. Start with 2 minutes of warm water to get your body temperature up, then switch to cold and work toward keeping the water temperature under 60 degrees. Over time, your body will become less sensitive to this drop in temperature.

2. Supercharge Your Mood: Kimchi Kick-start
Millions of people take prescription SSRI antidepressants to keep levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin high so they can maintain a good mood. However, most people don’t realize that more than 90% of the body’s serotonin is produced in the gut, which is why scientists often refer to it as the “second brain.”

Science has suggested that if you eat fermented food regularly, such as kimchi (Korean pickled cabbage), its healthy, probiotic bacteria will help the serotonin in your gut move to your brain. Eat 4-5 tablespoons of kimchi or any lacto-fermented food such as sauerkraut or plain yogurt daily to chase the blues away.

nary self-tested approach.

3. Supercharge Your Sleep: Butter Before Bedtime
Do you turn in early yet still toss and turn all night – and then wake up tired? Tim Ferriss believes that one of the biggest culprits for walking up during the night is low blood sugar. To prevent this, eat 2 tablespoons of raw almond butter before bed. This low-glycemic index food can prevent blood sugar spikes so you can sleep better. In fact, according to Ferriss, correcting your blood sugar level can actually make you feel as if you’re doubling up on the sleep you’re actually getting – 4 hours can feel like 8, 6 like 12, etc. Remember that the recommended amount of sleep for adults is 7-8 hours.

Sleep Power Position
The position you sleep in can greatly improve the quality of your rest. Tim Ferriss recommends lying on your chest with your head on a pillow, turned to the right. Place both arms straight by your sides, palms up. Then bring your right arm up until the top of your right elbow is bent 90 degrees and your hand is close to your head. Then bring your right knee out to the side until it is bent at approximately 90 degrees.

By keeping both your arm and leg at 90 degrees you’ll distribute your weight more evenly so that you’re not putting any pressure on your shoulder or on your hip. This position mimics a swaddled baby, which means you’ll move and fidget less and enjoy a deeper, uninterrupted sleep.

Reshape Your Body: 3 Things You Must Do Within 30 Minutes of Waking Up

Tim Ferriss’ 30/30 rule – consuming 30 grams of protein within the first 30 minutes of waking up in the morning – has already helped transform women’s bodies across the country. Now, he has 3 new rules to help you reshape your body by barely doing anything at all. However, you must also do these within 30 minutes of waking up.

1. Use an All-Fat Creamer in Your Coffee
Millions of women think they’re doing the right thing by using skim milk or fat-free creamer in their coffee, but these dairy products can actually cause weight gain by spiking insulin. Go for full-fat cream instead since dairy fat contains CLA-conjugated linoleic acid, which has been linked to a decrease in stored body fat.

Tim Ferriss has seen women lose 2-4 pounds a week by making this small change, which also helps prevent afternoon energy dips. Put 2 tablespoons of all-fat cream in your coffee and you’ll actually lower your chance of gaining weight over the course of the year. 

2. Drink a Fat-flushing Tea: Yerba Mate
Popular in South America, yerba mate tea is chockfull of antioxidants and vitamins, and acts through 2 mechanisms to help you lose fat. The first speeds your digestion for the entire day – drink Yerba mate in the morning instead of coffee. Second, it actually reduces fat absorption by decreasing the pancreatic lipase enzyme. Additionally, yerba mate does not produce the caffeine-related crashes that some people experience with coffee and can give you 3-4 hours of very stable, clean energy.

3. Cassia Cinnamon Cheat
Cinnamon helps keep blood sugars in check, which helps control weight gain. Both Cassia and Ceylon cinnamon help regulate glucose levels, but some studies show that Cassia does it better.

To determine the difference between these types of cinnamon, Ceylon sticks roll up from both sides like a scroll. Cassia looks more like bark and will often roll up from one side like a cigar. Use Cassia cinnamon in your coffee or even sprinkle it on a bowl of oatmeal or cottage cheese. Cassia cinnamon, it turns out, is the type you find in most coffee shops. Look for it at grocery stores for about $5. If unavailable, look for it at specialty food stores.

http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/tim-ferriss-jumpstart-supercharge-and-reshape-your-body?page=3#copy

15 Best Workout Tips of All Time - Fitness Magazine

15 Best Workout Tips of All Time

By Mark Anders

Want to know the secrets to getting a toned, trim body in record time? We did too, so we went straight to the top personal trainers, exercise physiologists and fitness instructors for the ultimate moves and motivation tricks to kick a fitness routine into high gear. Put a few of these tips into action each week and you're guaranteed to see faster results!

1. Tone Up on the Treadmill"Save time at the gym with this 10-minute cardio/sculpt session: Hop on a treadmill holding a three- to five-pound dumbbell in each hand, and set the speed to a brisk walk. Do a one-minute set each of shoulder presses, biceps curls, triceps extensions, side laterals, front laterals and standing triceps kickbacks one after another as you walk. I's an amazing upper-body challenge that also gets your heart pumping. Do this series two or three times each week. As you improve, work up to doing four-minute sets."
   --Michael George, trainer and owner of Integrated Motivational Fitness in Los Angeles
2. Power Up Your Runs"Adding wall sits to the end of every run will strengthen your quads, hamstrings and glutes, improving your speed and endurance. Lean against a wall with your feet shoulder-width apart, then squat until your knees are bent at 45 degrees. Hold for 30 to 60 seconds; work up to doing 10 sets. Add a challenge by including heel raises: Lift your left heel, then the right, then lift both together twice."
   --Mindy Solkin, owner and head coach of the Running Center, New York City
3. Chart Your Progress"Stay motivated using a fitness report card. Jot down these subjects: Cardio, Muscle Conditioning, Flexibility and Attitude. Set goals (for example, doing 10 "boy" push-ups) and grade yourself A through F at least four times a year. When you see how much you improve, you'll want to stay in great shape."
   --Ken Alan, Los Angeles--based personal trainer
4. Try This All-in-One Toner"A side-step squat with wood chop works your arms, torso, abs, back, legs, inner thighs and butt. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart holding a three- to four-pound medicine ball in your hands. Bend your arms up so that the ball is at eye level over your right shoulder. As you bring the ball toward your left knee, step out with your left leg and bend it no further than 90 degrees, keeping your right leg straight. Return to the starting position. Do 10 to 15 reps and repeat on the other leg."
   --David Kirsch, trainer and author of The Ultimate New York Body Plan (McGraw-Hill, 2004)
5. Break Out the Shovel"Why pay someone to clear snow from your driveway? Besides burning nearly 400 calories per hour, shoveling snow develops muscular endurance and power. But be safe: Minimize the amount of snow on each shovelful, and bend from your knees and hips, not your back."
   --Tom Seabourne, Ph.D., exercise physiologist and sports psychologist at Northeast Texas Community College in Mount Pleasant, Texas
6. Work Out During Your Workday"Sit on a stability ball to strengthen your core, and keep dumbbells or exercise tubing at your desk. Squeeze in 12 to 15 reps of exercises like dumbbell curls, overhead presses and ab crunches; aim for two or three sets of each. This gives you more free time to fit in fun workouts like biking or tennis."
   --Gregory Florez, personal trainer and CEO of Salt Lake City -- based FitAdvisor.com
7. Take This Jump-Rope Challenge"The best cardio workout is the jump-rope double-turn maneuver. It's intense: You'll burn about 26 calories per minute! Do a basic jump for five minutes, then jump twice as high and turn the rope twice as fast so it passes under your feet twice before you land. This takes timing, patience and power. But you'll get in great shape just by working at it."
   --Michael Olajide Jr., former number one world middleweight contender and cofounder/trainer at Aerospace High Performance Center in New York City
8. Give Yourself a Break"You don't have to be a fitness saint to get results. Follow the 80/20 plan: Eighty percent of the year, you'll exercise regularly and eat well. Know that you'll slip 20 percent of the time due to holidays and work deadlines. When you accept that fitness isn't an all-or-nothing proposition, you're more likely to stick with it for life."
   --Maureen Wilson, owner/personal trainer/instructor, Sweat Co. Studios, Vancouver, B.C.
9. Get a Jump on Weight Loss"Add plyometric box jumps to your workout to improve your cardiovascular stamina and leg strength -- you'll really sculpt your hamstrings, quads and glutes. Find a sturdy box that';s at least one foot high. Starting from a standing position, explosively jump to the middle of the box, then jump back down. Repeat 20 times."
   --Michael George
10. Don't Skimp on Carbs"Your body needs them to fuel a workout, so reach for fruit or high-fiber crackers an hour beforehand. If you'e exercising for 90 minutes or longer, include some protein so that the carbs break down more slowly, giving you longer-lasting energy. Your best bets: low-fat cheese and crackers, trail mix or half of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich."
    --Cindy Sherwin, R.D., personal trainer at the Gym in New York City
11. Maximize Your Crunches"Don't relax your abs as you lower your chest away from your knees during a crunch -- you get only half the ab-toning benefit! To get the firmest abs possible, you need to sustain the contraction on the way down."
    --Steve Ilg, founder of Wholistic Fitness Personal Training and author of Total Body Transformation (Hyperion, 2004)
12. Intensify Your Push-Up"Squat-thrust push-ups get you in great shape because they work your upper body, core and lower body and improve agility, strength and endurance all at once. From a standing position, bend down, put your hands on the floor shoulder-width apart, and jump your feet back into plank position. If you're strong, cross your ankles; otherwise, jump your feet wide apart. Do a push-up, then jump your feet together or uncross your ankles. Jump your feet back to your hands and stand up. Do eight reps total, rest for one minute, and repeat."
    --Keli Roberts, Los Angeles -- based trainer
13. Paddle Your Way to Flatter Abs"Go kayaking to get a taut stomach -- it's ideal because much of your rowing power comes from your core. Mimic the motion and resistance of the water at home by looping an exercise band around the bottom of a table leg or other fixed object. Sit on the floor with legs extended, knees slightly bent; grasp one end of the band in each hand. Rotate your torso to one side as you bring the elbow back slightly, then switch sides. Do three sets of one to three minutes each."
    --Barbara Bushman, Ph.D., associate professor of health, physical education and recreation at Southwest Missouri State University
14. Make Over Your Running Routine"Unless you're training for a marathon, skip long, slow, distance running -- sprinting builds more muscle. Add a few 10- to 60-second sprints to your run, slowing down just long enough to catch your breath between them."
    --Stephen Holt, 2003 ACE Personal Trainer of the Year
15. Super-Sculpt Your Butt"Get great glutes by targeting the muscles and connective tissues buried deep in your body. To hit them, do high-intensity squats, such as jump squats. Then, blast off butt flab with cross-country skiing, bleacher running and stair climbing."
    --Steve Ilg

http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/tips/quick-tricks/best-workout-tips/

Strength Training Section - Sports Fitness advisor

Strength Training Section

Strength training is an essential element of fitness for virtually every sports man and woman. Long gone are
the days when coaches believed resistance exercises only added unnecessary bulk to the athlete, hindering
their ability to execute skill.

The benefits of strength training to athletic performance are enormous and many. Not only is it an integral conditioning component for power athletes such as football and rugby players, performance in the pure endurance events can be improved with a well-structured strength routine.

However, aside from perhaps bodybuilders, sport-specific resistance training requires a more refined approach than simply lifting heavy weights to complete exhaustion. A physiological analysis of any game or event will confirm that most athletes require explosive power, muscular endurance, maximal strength or some combination of all three in order to excel. Rarely is pure muscle bulk the primary concern and when it is, other elements of strength are equally as important.

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Elements of a Strength Training Program

Hypertrophy
Synonymous with most people's perception of strength training, hypertrophy refers to increased muscle bulk and size. This is only one aspect of a sport-specific strength training program and one that should be included for only a select group of athletes. Football and rugby players require significant bulk to withstand very aggressive body contact. For most athletes however, too much muscle bulk is a hindrance. And remember that a larger muscle is not necessarily a stronger muscle.

Maximal Strength
Maximal strength is the highest level of force an athlete can possibly generate. Its importance will vary between sports but this relates more to the length of the maximal strength training phase than whether it should be included or not (1). The greater an athlete's maximal strength to begin with, the more of it can be converted into sport-specific strength endurance or explosive power. Maximal strength training can improve exercise economy and endurance performance (2,3). Interestingly, it does not appear to lead to a significant increase in muscle hypertrophy (4).

Explosive Power
Rarely is an athlete required to produce a singular maximal effort in their sport. With the exception of powerlifting, most sports require movements that are much more rapid and demand a higher power output than is generated during maximal lifts (5,6). So while maximal strength training lays an important foundation increasing the potential for additional power development, if there is no conversion of this strength into sport-specific power, the program as a whole is much less effective.

An athlete can be exceptionally strong but lack substantial power due to an inability to contract muscle quickly. Power training is used to improve the rate of force production and a range of methods such as plyometrics can be employed to convert maximal strength into explosive power.

Strength Endurance
Explosive power is not always the predominant goal of the strength training program. For events such as distance running, cycling, swimming and rowing, strength endurance is a major limiting factor. Again, the greater amount of starting maximal strength, the more of it can be maintained for a prolonged period.

Strength endurance can be developed through circuit training or the use of low weights and high repetitions. However, many strength endurance programs are inadequate for endurance-based sports - a set of 15-20 repetitions for example does not condition the neuromuscular system in the same way as a long distance event.

Periodization
The concept of periodization is key to sport-specific strength training. Dividing the overall training plan into succinct phases or periods, each with a specific outcome, allows sport-specific strength to peak at the right times, whilst minimizing the risk of over-training.

It also allows more specific elements of strength to be built on a solid and more general fitness foundation. Athletes cannot progress week-in week-out indefinitely so periodization permits variations in intensity and volume to promote performance enhancements for as long as possible.

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http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/strengthtraining.html

Obesity: Exercise: Teen: Child: Fitness Programs: Beating Obesity - Simplefit.net

Obesity: Exercise: Teen: Child: Fitness Programs: Beating Obesity

Programs: Overweight, Obese Children & Teens

Do you remember your middle and high school years? Many of those years included physical fitness classes in school. Today, we see that successful PE (Physical Education) classes are a thing of the past. According to a recent article offered by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention website, 'nearly half of American youths aged 12-21 years are not vigorously active on a regular basis.' About 14 percent of young people report no recent physical activity. Participation in all types of physical activity declines strikingly as age or grade in school increases.

Childhood obesity in the United States has grown considerably in recent years. About two-thirds of adults in the United States are overweight, and almost one-third are obese. Obesity is among the easiest medical conditions to recognize but most difficult to treat. Unhealthy weight gain due to poor diet and lack of exercise is responsible for over 300,000 deaths each year.

Inactivity in Adolescents, Teenagers, and Young Adults?

Overweight and obesity in children and adolescents is generally caused by a combination of factors, including, lack of physical activity and unhealthy eating patterns, or a combination of the two, with genetics and lifestyle both playing important roles in determining a child's weight. Risk factors for heart disease, such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure, occur with increased frequency in overweight children and adolescents compared to children with a healthy weight. Type 2 diabetes, previously considered an adult disease, has increased dramatically in children and adolescents. Overweight and obesity are closely linked to type 2 diabetes. Overweight adolescents have a 70 percent chance of becoming overweight or obese adults.

This increases to 80 percent if one or more parent is overweight or obese. Overweight or obese adults are at risk for a number of health problems including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and some forms of cancer. The most immediate consequence of overweight as perceived by the children themselves is social discrimination. This is associated with poor self-esteem, lack of interest or inclusion in social situations, and depression.

Health risks associated with overweight or obese children:

How to Determine if Your Child or Teenager is Overweight or Obese?

A Body Mass Index (BMI) can be calculated from measurements of height and weight. Health professionals and physical fitness trainers often use a BMI 'growth chart' to help them determine whether a child or adolescent is overweight or obese. BMI growth charts are not intended to be used as a sole diagnostic instrument. Instead, growth charts are tools that contribute to forming an overall clinical impression for the child being measured. You may find the Body mass index-for-age percentiles using the 'intersection' of your childs BMI and age to find your childs percentile rank. Please examine the BMI Growth Chart for Children and Adolescent’s below for a closer look:

Beginning a New Exercise Program for Overweight, Obese Children & Teens

Now that you have a better idea of the risks associated with obesity, now may be the time to get your child involved in regular activity and exercise. Even if your child manages challenges related to mobility, fatigue, and lack of motivation, now is the time to start planning for a healthier future. In the beginning, activities should be scheduled around more social engagements. Perhaps simple walks around the neighborhood, trips to the park with family and friends, or even weekend activities in the back yard can begin your child on his or her new journey to better health and fitness. Here are some tips to consider when planning regular activities or exercise for your overweight or obese child:

• Walking around the block
• Riding a bike
• Walk the dog
• Use the stairs (if pain free) 
• Light chores
• Modified crunches
• Modified squat
• Resistance Rowing
• Counter push or Wall push
• Use small weights for various arm exercises
• Other large muscle rhythmic movements

Benefits of Regular Exercise for Overweight, Obese, Children & Teens?

Reduced: risk of premature death risk of developing and/or dying from heart disease high blood pressure or the risk of developing high blood pressure high cholesterol or the risk of developing high cholesterol risk of developing colon cancer and breast cancer risk of developing diabetes body weight or body fat depression and anxiety LDL (bad cholesterol) insulin resistance feelings of faultiness/depression

Increased: cardivascular/cardiorespiratory function (heart and lungs) maximal cardiac output (blood pumped every minute) maximal stroke volume (blood pumped with each beat) blood volume and ability to carry oxygen heart function and strength HDL Cholesterol (the good cholesterol) muscular strength strength of tendons and ligaments flexibility (range of motion of joints) strength, balance, and functional ability self-esteem

Defeat teen obesity, find a personal trainer for motivation, injury prevention, greater strength & safe weight loss. Find a personal trainer for exercise advice. Simplefit personal services include personal training, fitness consulting, diet plan & exercise equipment advice.

http://simplefit.net/static_pages/Teen-Obesity/

Exercises for Better Posture - WebMD.com

Exercises for Better Posture

Want the lean look and elegant posture of a yoga or Pilates teacher? Good posture comes from strong core muscles that stabilize your torso, whether you're sitting at your desk or running errands all day.

Good Posture Starts With a Strong Core

Want to know the best way to improve your posture? Focus on a strong core -- the abdominal and low back muscles that connect to your spine and pelvis. Some of the muscles move your torso, for instance, by flexing, extending, or rotating your spine. Others stabilize your pelvis and spine in a natural, neutral position. The old-style sit-ups used only a few core muscles, often with jerky momentum. Today's yoga, Pilates, and core fitness programs target all of your core muscles with slow, controlled movements to get the most out of your core workout.

The American College of Sports Medicine and the American Heart Association urge all healthy adults to add muscle-strengthening exercises to their fitness program at least twice a week for optimal health.

Poor Posture and Back Pain

Weak core muscles are common for people with low back pain. And poor posture can make back pain worse. Core-strengthening helps ease and prevent low back pain, a common problem for 31 million Americans.

The North American Spine Society recommends core strengthening exercise for people with mild low back pain to improve posture, ease symptoms, and prevent future back pain. For severe back pain or injury, clear any exercise program with your doctor before you start. Depending on your health condition, some exercises may not be recommended.

The Anatomy of Posture Exercises

Picture these core muscles you'll strengthen for good posture:

• Rectus abdominis: The wide "six-pack" muscle runs vertically down your stomach. It's used when you bend your spine forward.
• Obliques: The obliques run diagonally around your waist to rotate your torso. The internal obliques lie under the external obliques.
• Transverse abdominis: The deepest core muscles wrap around your waist like a corset and pull your abdomen inward and upward toward your spine. Exhale strongly and pull your stomach in, and you'll feel these muscles working.
• Erector spinae: These back muscles extend your spine and prevent slouching.

Better-Posture Exercises

Make these posture-boosting exercises a regular part of your workout. Remember to exhale strongly and pull in your core muscles as you work -- a key principle in both Pilates and yoga.

1. Core Stabilizer: Single Leg Extension. This exercise trains your core muscles to work together to stabilize your pelvis.

• Starting position: Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor, and hands behind your head. Press your low back into the floor, and curl your head up off the floor.
• Action: Exhale strongly and pull your navel in and up toward your spine. Slowly pull one knee into your chest, keeping your low back pressed to the floor, while extending your other leg straight at about a 45-degree angle off the floor. Keep your abdominals pulled in and your low back on the floor. If your low back arches off the floor, extend your leg higher toward the ceiling. Switch legs. Start with five to 10 extensions on each side.

Variations to increase intensity:

• Double-leg extension: Pull both knees into your chest, then extend both legs straight at about a 45-degree angle, using your core to keep your low back on the floor.
• As you extend your legs, extend both arms overhead, reaching in the opposite direction from your legs.

2. The New Crunch. The new crunch works the rectus abdominis and obliques. It's also called a "curl up."

• Starting position: Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Press your low back into the floor. Place your hands behind your head, or reach your arms toward your knees if it doesn't create too much tension in your neck.
• Action: Exhale strongly and pull your navel in and up toward your spine. Curl your head and shoulders slowly off the floor. Hold, then slowly lower back down. Repeat until you fatigue.

Variations to increase intensity:

• Extend one leg straight at a 45-degree angle toward the ceiling.
• Hold both legs off the floor, knees bent, with your shins parallel to the floor.

3. Pilates Roll-Ups / Yoga Sit-Ups. These exercises work the rectus abdominis, obliques, and transverse abdominis.

• Starting position: Lie on your back with your legs straight, your feet flexed, and your arms reaching overhead on the floor. Press your low back into the floor.
• Action: Exhale strongly and pull your navel in and up toward your spine. Roll up in slow motion, reaching your arms off the floor, then your shoulders and head, rolling up one vertebra at a time until you're sitting up with your abdominals still pulled in. Slowly roll back down. Repeat three to five times, adding more as your core gets stronger.

Variation to increase intensity:

• Cross your arms over your chest as you roll up.

4. Crossovers.  Crossovers work all the core muscles, focusing on the obliques.

• Starting position: Lie on your back with your hands behind your head, your chest lifted off the floor, knees pulled into your chest. Keep your low back pressed into the floor.
• Action: Exhale strongly and pull your navel in and up toward your spine. Pull one knee into your chest while extending your other leg straight and rotating your torso toward the bent knee. Slowly switch legs, pulling the other knee into your chest and rotating your torso toward it while extending the opposite leg off the floor. Repeat five to 10 times, adding more as your core gets stronger.

Variation to increase intensity:

• The closer your straight leg is to the floor, the harder the work for your core. Try extending your leg just inches off the floor, making sure your lower back stays on the floor.

5. Cobra Pose: Back Extension. The cobra pose strengthens the erector spinae and other low back muscles.

• Starting position: Lie on your stomach with palms flat on the floor near your ribs. Extend your legs straight behind you, and press the tops of your feet into the floor.
• Action: Exhale strongly and pull your abdominal muscles in and up toward your spine. Lengthen out through your spine and slowly raise your head and chest off the floor, using only your back muscles. Do not push down into your arms to press up. Keep your hip bones on the floor, and gaze down at the floor to relax your neck muscles. Slowly lower back down. Repeat three to five times, adding more as your lower back gets stronger.

Variation to increase intensity:

• Reach your arms long beside your head. Keep your elbows straight.

6. Plank Pose. This exercise strengthens the obliques and transverse abdominis, as well as your shoulder and back muscles.

• Starting position: Start on your hands and knees with your palms under your shoulders. Extend both legs straight behind you, toes tucked under, into a position like the top of a push-up. Pull your abdominal muscles in to prevent a "sway-back," and gaze down at the floor.
• Action: Hold the plank until you're fatigued. Rest and then repeat. Keep your abdominals pulled in and up so your low back doesn't sag as you exhale.

Variation to increase intensity:

• Forearm plank: Balance on your forearms instead of your hands.

Keep Your Core Exercises Safe and Effective

Follow these guidelines to keep your core exercises safe and to make them effective:

• Pull your abdominal muscles in and up toward your spine as you exercise.
• Work with slow, controlled movements, breathing evenly, without holding your breath.
• Tailor your number of repetitions and sets to your current level of core fitness.
• Remember that not every exercise is right for everyone. If you already have back pain, or if any of these exercises makes pain worse, check with your doctor before continuing.

Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD on July 08, 2011

http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/better-posture-exercises?page=3

Functional Fitness - SHEKNOWS.COM

Top 10 functional exercises for full-body fitness

Nov 20, 2008 8:09 AM by Michele Borboa, MS

 

Functional
Fitness

The focus in fitness these days is functional exercises - exercises that simultaneously use multiple muscles and joints to improve muscular endurance, overall strength, coordination, balance, posture and agility - to get a challenging, effective and fun full-body workout as well as prepare the body for everyday, real world activities. You'll get a dynamite - and functional - workout with these 10 full-body exercises.

 

1. Medicine ball squat with overhead lift

Functionality: Even though you lift things — like groceries, your kids, and other objects — with your arms, your legs and back are also key players. This exercise strengthens your legs, glutes, lower back, arms and shoulders. Exercise: Stand with your feet wide, holding a light medicine ball in front of you in both hands. Squat down moving your rear back, keeping your knees over your ankles and lower the medicine ball to the floor while keeping your head up and back straight (don't hunch). Return to a start position and lift the medicine ball up over your head. Repeat squat and lower ball to the ground. Perform 3 sets of 10 repetitions. Increase weight of the ball as you get stronger.

 

2. Stair climb with bicep curl

Functionality: Whether you have stairs at your house or have to climb them elsewhere, using stairs as part of your fitness program will keep your legs conditioned — not to mention toned. Partnering stair climbs with bicep curls will strengthen your arms and improve your ability to carry things up the stairs. This exercise will also boost your cardiovascular fitness. Exercise: Stand at the bottom of a flight of stairs holding a 5- to 8-pound dumbbell in each hand. Climb the stairs while performing bicep curls. Walk or run down the stairs holding the weights but not doing curls. Repeat 5 to 10 times. Increase the dumbbell weight as your arms get stronger and mix up your climbs by taking two steps at a time for a flight or two.

 

3. Hip extension with reverse fly

Functionality: This exercise improves your balance and coordination as well as strengthens your upper, mid and lower back, shoulders, glutes and legs. Exercise: Stand tall with a 5-pound dumbbell in each hand. Extend your right leg back and place your toe on the floor keeping your right leg straight. Lean forward slightly at the hips. Lift your right leg behind you as you bring your chest towards the floor and lift your arms straight out forming a T at your shoulders, squeezing your shoulder blades together and keeping your head in line with your neck. Return to start position. Repeat 10 to 15 times for each leg. As you get stronger, increase dumbbell weight and strap 2- to 5-pound weights on your ankles.

 

4. Diagonal reach with medicine ball

Functionality: When you reach for your boots off the top shelf of your closet, pay attention to how your body moves — one arm reaches up while the opposite leg slightly lifts to the side. This exercise works all the muscles — arms, shoulders, legs — involved in lifting something diagonally overhead as well as lowering it. Exercise: Stand tall holding a medicine ball at your chest with both hands. Lift medicine ball diagonally overhead to the right, straightening your arms, while extending your left leg to the side, making a diagonal line from the medicine ball to your toes. Lower to start position. Repeat 10 to 15 times for each leg. Increase the weight of the medicine ball and strap 2- to 5-pound weights on your ankles as you get stronger.

 

5. Lunge with back row

Functionality: This exercise will improve your posture by strengthening the muscles in your upper and mid back, shoulders, and arms while also toning and strengthening your legs and improving your hip flexibility. Exercise: Holding an 8-pound weight in each hand, step your right foot forward and your left foot back, keeping both heels on the floor and feet pointing straight ahead. Bend your right knee until it is over your right ankle. Lower your chest towards your thigh, bringing your arms perpendicular to the floor, keeping your back flat (don't hunch) — this is your start position. Straighten your right leg, row your elbows back and squeeze your shoulder blades together, keeping your torso angled slightly forward. Return to start position. Repeat 10 to 15 times for each leg. Increase the weight of the dumbbells as you get stronger. This exercise can also be done with a resistance band looped underneath the front foot.

 

6. Knee lift with lateral raise

Functionality: This exercise improves your core strength and balance as well as strengthens and tones your shoulders. Exercise: Stand tall with a 5-pound weight in each hand, arms to your sides. Lift your right knee until it reaches hip level while simultaneously lifting your arms straight out to the side to form a T at your shoulders. Hold for 2 seconds making sure your belly button is pulled back towards your spine then lower to start position. Repeat 10 to 15 times for each leg. Increase the weight of the dumbbells as you get stronger.

 

7. Push up with hip extension

Functionality: This exercise strengthens your chest, shoulder and arm muscles (primarily triceps) as well as your core muscles and glutes. Exercise: Get on your hands and knees, hands wider than shoulder-distance apart. Extend your right leg straight back and pull your belly button up towards your spine, tightening your core muscles. Keeping your leg lifted, lower your chest to the ground until each of your elbows is at a 90-degree angle then push up. Repeat 10 to 15 times for each leg. As you get stronger, increase the angle of your hips, increasing the distance of your knees from your hands. Eventually perform exercise with straight legs, one leg lifted, the other positioned on your toes.

 

8. Torso rotation with medicine ball

Functionality: Having strong obliques is key in avoiding lower back injuries. This exercise improves the strength and coordination of all of your core muscles — and will improve your tone and tighten your waist. Exercise: Sit on the ground with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor, holding a medicine ball at your chest with both hands. Lean your torso back away from your thighs, increasing the angle at your hips and pulling your belly button in towards your spine. Maintaining your hip angle, rotate your torso to the right, moving your right elbow towards the floor behind you. Return center and rotate to the left. Repeat 10 to 15 times for each side. As you get stronger, perform the rotations with straighter arms and/or use a heavier medicine ball. Always keep your belly button pulled in.

 

9.Supine bridge with arm extension

Functionality: This exercise tones and strengthens your arms, shoulders, back, glutes, legs as well as targets your core muscles. It also opens up your chest and the front of your hips (muscles that get tight with long hours of sitting and using the computer). Exercise: Sit on the floor with your hands underneath your shoulders, knees bent and feet flat on the ground. Keeping your arms straight, use your legs to push your hips up to the ceiling until your torso is flat and like a table top. Lift your right arm straight up towards the ceiling, rotating your upper body so that it is being supported by your left arm, keeping your hips lifted. Lower your right arm to start position and just slightly lower your hips but don't let them return to the floor. Repeat with your left arm. Repeat 10 to 15 times for each side. As you get stronger, hold your arm and hips up for 2 seconds before slightly lowering. You can also lay a weighted ankle strap across your hips to increase the weight your legs must lift.

 

10. Dynamic prone plank

Functionality: This dynamic exercise tones, lengthens and strengthens just about every muscle in your body. Though it is challenging, it's a perfect exercise to end with. Exercise: Get on your hands and toes, facing the floor, keeping your head, back and legs in a straight line and your arms straight underneath your shoulders. Lift your rear to the ceiling, pulling your belly button into your spine, forming a pike or downward dog (yoga) position, lengthening your arms and legs. Return to plank position and bend your elbows against your sides, lowering your torso and legs to the floor. Keeping your lower body flat on the floor, use your arms to push your chest and head up towards the ceiling (similar to the cobra in yoga), stretching out the front of your body. Lower down and push your body back into plank position. Repeat 5 to 10 times. As you get stronger, increase the number of repetitions.

 

 

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