Fitness

5 Ways to Push Yourself to Become a Morning Gym Person

We know—bed is greater than the gym, especially in the morning. But if you’re in desperate need to bring your beach bod back, you have to make time to hit the gym. You can squeeze in an hour workout after work, but wouldn’t you rather to go straight home and sink into the comfort of your couch and watch netflix?

That’s one of the major reasons why morning workouts are preferable by many. If you often skip the gym because you’re just too tired to exercise after work, here are some ways to help you stay on your fitness track and become a morning gym rat instead.

1. Go to Bed Early
Seriously though, have you ever tried going to bed at one in the morning, woke up at six and said ‘I’m ready for a five-mile run today!’ Perhaps, you’ve never had. When looking forward for a morning workout, aim to have seven solid hours of sleep. Trust us, it’ll be easier to pull yourself out of bed and into your sneakers.

2. Prepare Your Gym Kit Before Going to Bed
Some even recommend sleeping in gym clothes. But sports bras are never comfortable in bed. Instead, have your workout clothes ready and your gym must-haves—sweatband, towel, earbuds, toiletries—ready in your gym bag> keep it close to your bed, so it’s one of the first things you’ll see in the morning.

3. Make Your Morning Routine Quicker and Easier
Likewise, make your morning routine quick and easy. Prep your healthy lunch the night before, turn on the coffee maker as soon as you wake up, pack your purse before going to bed—basically, get it together ahead of time so you won’t waste 45 minutes running back and forth t get ready.

4. Keep Windows Curtain-Free
Want to be up as soon as the sun shines? Go curtain-free and let sunshine wake you up in the morning. It’s like a natural alarm clock—as it’s almost impossible to go back to sleep with the light beaming down your face.

5. …Or Set an Alarm and Place It Far From the Bed
If your room faces west or the sunshine has just no way of getting into your room in the morning, set your alarm instead and make sure to place it somewhere far from your bed. When it goes off, you’ll be forced to get up to shut it off.

Morning workout is great. It pumps you up for the day and, most importantly, you won’t have an excuse to skip a session when you feel tired after work or your schedule suddenly changes.

10 Great Movies that Will Inspire You to Get Fit

Some Athletic Inspiration
Rocky
It would be a crime if this classic boxing film was not present in a list about fitness! This movie shows just how much passion, determination, and hard work can lead you to success. Plus, this is where playing “Eye of the Tiger” in the background while training came from. Nothing like having good music to motivate you.

Miracle
Even with the hot climate in Singapore, it’s wrong to think that the country has no Ice Hockey Club. This movie is about the 1980 US Men’s Hockey Team and how they fought a renowned Soviet Union team in the Olympics. As this is based on one of the greatest moments in the history of sports, you’ll be hungry for some competition and be motivated to work hard!

Fittest on Earth
“Fittest on Earth” is a documentary film focusing on several athletes and their journey in the 2016 Crossfit Games. Because the film includes the athletes’ struggles and triumphs in training and in competition, you may be able to relate to them on a certain level. Seeing these guys’ and girls’ physical feats will definitely light a fire in you.

Pumping Iron
For anyone aspiring to be a professional bodybuilder, you surely do not want to miss this one! Although it’s a docudrama about how Arnold Schwarzenegger got his legendary physique, it gives us peek into the world of professional bodybuilding.

Heroic Inspiration
Captain America
For all the skinny guys out there, you can’t deny that this movie didn’t inspire you to hit the gym. Seeing that one scene of skinny Steve Rogers turning into a muscular hero should be enough to take anyone off their seats and start getting fit.

Batman Begins
Playing the role of Batman, Christian Bale’s muscular physique is hard to miss in this one. But what happens behind the scenes is the amazing story behind it. Before “Batman Begins”, Bale had just finished filming “The Machinist”, where he lost 61 pounds and weighed only 124 pounds. He just had 6 weeks before his first screen test for “Batman Begins”. In that period, he successfully gained weight and lean muscle ending up at 185 pounds with a most-muscular physique for the movie.

Fiery Ladies
G.I. Jane
This movie is about the first woman to join the US Navy Seals. All the one-arm pushups and the tortuous training will make your own workout session look like child’s play. Regardless of gender, this will get you more fired up to workout than ever.

Million Dollar Baby
This is another boxing film but it’s about an underappreciated trainer and how he helps an underdog achieve her dreams of becoming a professional. This movie can be a great motivator for the ladies to sweat it off at the gym or on the ring. You don’t have to be a boxer to see how toned Margaret Fitzgerald (main character played by Hillary Swank) is in this movie.

Is Bodybuilding Safe for You?

With all the new trends and fitness programs available today for everyone, it’s almost a sin to stay unhealthy and inactive. For some people, staying fit means not just losing weight, but also building muscle mass and sculpting the body. Bodybuilding for example has been known to change the body’s composition, making it leaner and stronger even as you age.

But is bodybuilding for everyone? And are there precautions that need to be taken when starting a bodybuilding routine?

You Need to Remember the Goal of Bodybuilding
The core element of bodybuilding is the same throughout the training regardless of the level of the trainee. Its primary goal is to build muscles naturally through training, proper nutrition, and supplementation. While teens aged 16 years and above can start bodybuilding, they need to be carefully guided by an expert trainer to avoid injuries and health complications, because their bodies are still developing.

The fitness regimen of a beginner will of course be different from experienced trainees who compete in bodybuilding contests. Several studies, however, show that even if bodybuilding can make your muscles and bone stronger, there is a risk of reducing heart health over the years. But this scenario happens only when your bodybuilding routine is intense and extreme.

You Need to Understand Your Body
As a beginner, you will not only have to make significant changes in your lifestyle, but you also need the patience to see actual results. The training regimen will be different for every person depending on the age and overall health. It will take years of consistent training and discipline for others to improve their mass, strength, and tone, but the trainer also needs to consider the risk of injuries, especially if the trainee is still young.

There are cases among a few bodybuilders who developed body dysmorphic disorder, causing them to think that they are not lean or muscular enough. This is rare, but trainees should be aware of the risks.

You Need to Follow a Strict Diet
The training is the least difficult part for beginners, because significant changes in the diet need commitment and discipline. The diet that will be recommended to a beginner will allow them to cut fat and gain muscle mass at the same time, but this can be complicated for younger trainees who still need calories and proteins to develop their bodies.

Teenagers for example, are recommended to eat a balanced meal consisting of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and lean proteins. They can still eat refined sugars and processed food, but they should always choose healthier alternatives. Supplements are not recommended for young trainees because their bodies are still developing, and the long-term health effects could be detrimental.

Overall, bodybuilding is a beneficial fitness routine if your training routine and diet are appropriate for your age and experience. However, knowing the risks of overtraining, overexertion, and the use of supplements can help you make better choices to avoid such injuries and health problems.

Workout Sabotage: 5 Mistakes You Might Be Making in the Gym

You finally decided to sign up for a gym membership, and even made a resolution to get yourself there several times a week. By now, all your sweat sessions should’ve payed off, right? But if your jeans aren’t getting any looser and your abs still look more like the laundry pile than a washboard, then you’ve probably fallen prey to one of these gym mistakes.

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  1. Going with an Inconsistent Gym Schedule. Committing to a workout schedule isn’t easy, but hitting the gym once a week isn’t going to give you the results that you want either. You can’t possibly expect that doing an hour of treadmill run and no more than 35 minutes of lifting weights once a week will give you a fit body. The good thing is, you can easily correct this mistake by just setting a gym time that perfectly fits your busy schedule and stick with it until you reach your fitness goal.
  1. Stretching Before Doing Cardio. While there’s no danger in sitting on a mat and stretching your body out, this warm-up routine doesn’t really do much for your body. The best way to prevent injuries and really warm up your muscles is to mimic the routine that you’re going to do, but at a lower level. If you’re planning to use the treadmill, set it at the easiest level first and run for five minutes. Once you feel that you’ve warmed up enough, gradually increase the machine’s speed level until you reach your desired difficulty. This way, you get to properly elevate your heart rate while avoiding workout burnout in the process.
  1. Lifting the Same Weights Every Time. Most women have the impression that using heavier weights will bulk them up, which is why they stick with 10- to 15-pounders and don’t increase. If you’re using weight machines or free weights however, then you should be slowly upping your poundage. Aim to increase the weights you’re lifting by five pound every two to three weeks. As long as you can lift a 15-pounder without feeling anything other than fatigue, then there’s no need for you to worry about having action star-like arms.

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  1. Indulging on a Pre-Gym Snack. Contrary to popular belief, downing an energy bar before hitting the gym actually zaps your energy. How come? Well, most of these bars are actually high in fibre, and that amount of fibre takes a lot of time and energy to digest, causing you to feel sluggish by the time you start working out. So if you’re feeling ravenous beforehand, opt for a banana instead. Not only will it make you feel full faster, it’s also easier to digest and won’t inhibit your gym time.
  1. Ignoring the Weighing Scale. It’s true that you shouldn’t obsess over the numbers you see on the scale, but weighing yourself every now and then is actually the key to successfully ditch fat. In fact, some studies showed that people who regularly weigh themselves tend to lose more weight than those who don’t. It’s probably because you actually see the numbers decrease, and you get a concrete reminder that eating unhealthy has consequences.

Avoiding these gym mistakes is actually easy. Just ensure that you upgrade you routine when needed, eat the right pre- and post-workout snacks, be disciplined enough, and you’ll be rewarded with lesser numbers on the scale.

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Easy At-Home Exercises for Busy Moms

 

Going to the gym and working out can be tough for busy moms, but what if we tell you that there are a myriad of exercises you can do at home to stay in shape? Although you already have so much in your plate, you can still squeeze in these easy full-body exercises for a healthier and fitter you.

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  1. Squats

Squats don’t only shape up your leg muscles, but also create an anabolic environment to promote full-body muscle building. Likewise, this exercise improves your flexibility and boosts your body’s natural waste removal ability.

Make time to do 30 repetitions of squat a day, especially in the morning to rev up your energy and wake you up.

  1. Lunges

Lunges strengthen you leg muscles and buttocks, plus it tightens your core, which in turn improves your posture and balance.

You can easily squeeze in lunges into your day-to-day activity because they are easy to execute and doesn’t need any special equipment. To intensify this simple exercise, you can use dumbbells to your routine.

  1. Chair Dips

This workout is to toughen the triceps, making your upper arms look more toned, and improve upper body strength. Why is this best for busy moms? Because it can be anywhere in the house as long as there’s a chair.

You can squeeze in a couple of repetitions while checking your email, watching TV, or even getting your child to sleep.fitness-challenge-chair-dip-juicebar

  1. Stationary Exercises

These exercises are quick and easy to do and are effective for getting your heart pumping hard.

Waiting for the oven to ding? Jog in place for a minute or two, making sure to swing your arms up and down as if you’re really running for maximum calorie burn. Intensify the workout by doing a sprint in the last fifteen seconds.

  1. Jumping Jacks

This workout is an easy way to power up your cardio and your metabolism. By doing three sets of 100 jacks throughout your day, you’ll burn 60 calories a day—equivalent of ¼ cup of rice. This may not burn as much calories as you think, but remember that when it comes to getting fit, a little goes a very long way.

A set of 100 jacks only takes two minutes, so it shouldn’t be a hassle to squeeze in a set throughout your day. Perhaps, you can do a set before taking a bath in the morning, another set when you get out from the shower, and last set when you get home from work.

Squeezing in exercises into your already-full daily schedule may be difficult, but it’s definitely worth it. In the end, your body (and your family!) will thank you for that.

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