24 Hr Fitness

There is hardly a week that passes without an article or study touting the benefits of exercise. Exercise to cure cancer, exercise to lose weight, feel better, livelonger, and stop dementia, the list appears endless. The benefits of exercise sound fantastic but there is just one problem. You have to exercise to gain the benefits! For many, this is a big problem.

So, what can you do to get yourself motivated to join the wonderful world of exercising? A great solution is to join a gym where you are in the company of like-minded people. Joining a gym for the first time or after a period of inactivity can be a little scary. I hope this article will make your fitness journey a little easier.

Aren’t all gyms pretty much the same?

The short answer would be. . NO. Every gym has it’s own personality both in the equipment and the type of people it attracts. Some gyms cater to weight lifters with lots of free weights and little else, while other facilities might cater to working women and offer activities such as yoga, spinning or aerobics. There are locally owned gyms and nationwide chains. Small gyms as well as mega fitness centers. There is a gym for everybody but it will take a little footwork to find your perfect fit.

What’s the most important feature when looking for a gym?

In my opinion, location must be considered before anything else. Absence will not make the heart grow fonder. A gym more than 10 minutes from your home or office will end up not getting used. If you like to work out in the morning you might want to stick with gyms close to home. If you’re a lunchtime sweat maven then a gym near work could be a better option. Some of the larger chains may have facilities by both work and home. In addition, if you travel, gyms with multiple locations may let you work out for FREE, or at a discount, if they have a facility at your travel destination.

Other Features to Consider

Membership Clientele - Check out the other patrons in the gym you are considering. Each gym has it’s own personality. Is it mostly women or men? Is everybody wearing fashionable workout gear or is it a shorts and t-shirt crowd? Does it cater to families or is it an adult’s only gym?

Equipment - The quality and variety of equipment is very important if you plan on starting a comprehensive fitness program. Is the equipment well maintained? Check to see how many machines are “out of order”. Check to see if free weights are offered as well as machines. Is there an adequate cardio section with plenty of bikes, climbers and treadmills? These tend to be high use pieces of equipment so it is important that the facility have several.

Hours - Everybody has different times for his or her workouts. Make sure the gym you choose will accommodate your schedule. If you are an early bird and your gym opens at 10:00 a.m. then you are probably going to end up not using it despite the other features you find appealing.

Price - Don’t get fooled by a low-ball price. Make sure the membership includes the use of everything of interest to you. Some gyms have a low membership fee and then charge extra for using the tennis courts, pool, classes etc. Read the fine print. Also, there are all-inclusive low priced gyms that are in the business of selling memberships and don’t really care what happens after you sign up. You may find that half your town has a membership and you have to wait in line to use the equipment.

Management - Is there an active owner or manager on the premises? What is there policy regarding restacking your weights and the playing of loud music? In some gyms, anything goes and you may hear 3 or 4 different stereos playing at the same time, weights are thrown around and you can never find the equipment you would like to use. This is a sign of poor and inattentive management and should probably be removed from consideration.

Everybody is different and there is not a single solution for picking the ideal gym. The key is to find a place that you feel comfortable and that you will use on a regular basis. Working out is a habit that takes time to form. Don’t make an impulsive decision that will cause you to lose your desire to get in shape.

Before making a commitment, visit and workout at a few gyms that you are considering. Most facilities will let you try them out for a few days. Make sure you go at the times you would if you were to join. This will give you a feel for how crowded the equipment is at that time. Now, the only thing left to do is just go out and GET STARTED!!

Here is a list of several gyms with nationwide locations. These will offer a good starting point on your quest for the perfect gym. Check for locations in your area.

http://www.powerhousegym.com/
http://www.goldsgym.com/
http://www.worldgym.com/
http://www.ballyfitness.com/
http://www.24hourfitness.com/

Mike Brooks is a life long follower and proponent of the fitness lifestyle. Mr. Brooks believes that being healthy is a choice and includes not only a proper diet but total fitness of the mind, body and soul. His column appears weekly at http://www.ultimatehealthreport.com

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Elliptical trainers, sometimes also known as cross trainers, are very useful and effective exercise machines. Although they are not essentially complicated, as with all new types of equipment, it is a good idea to learn how to use elliptical trainers properly to get the maximum benefit from them. That way you are less likely to incur any injury or discomfort and achieve a fat fighting, body-toning workout at the same time.

When you a first learning how to use elliptical trainers, it is best to follow the manual that is supplied with the machinery and also to start slowly until you are sure of what you’re doing and what your tolerance levels are. Only then should you safely build up to a higher level and increase your activity. Although elliptical trainers are a very safe and low impact form of exercise, it is always best to check with your doctor before starting on the new exercise system. Elliptical trainers can subject you to a high level of aerobic activity and increased heart rate and although this is generally good for you, it is always worth checking with your doctor as to whether your health is good enough to start on a dynamic exercise program.

One of the best ways to learn how to use elliptical trainers, even if you have just bought your own machine, is to got to your local gym and use their machines. That way, you get used to using the machine into safe environment, where qualified instructors can tell you the best way to safely use the cross trainer and how to monitor your heart rate and extract the maximum benefits from your time on the machine. They can also tell you how long and what level you should start out at, how long you should exercise for, and also the best way to build up when your tolerance levels are higher and you want to progress further.

Another good way to learn how to use elliptical trainers, if you prefer to do it at home, is to buy an instructional video. Although you usually get instructions when you buy the machine, many people are much better at learning visually, and actually seeing somebody do the exercises and showing you how to use the equipment is the best way for some to learn the correct way of doing things. This is usually relevant to the cheaper machines as many of the more expensive ones are already supplied with a video to help you get started with your workouts.

No matter what method you choose to learn from it is a good idea to get some form of instruction so that you can safely get the best possible workout from your new cross trainer exercise equipment.

Timothy Gorman is a successful Webmaster and publisher of Elliptical-Trainer-Solutions.com. He provides more elliptical trainer ratings, recommendations and information on how to use elliptical trainers that you can research in your pajamas on his website.

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When it comes to exercise, routine is your enemy. Your body should constantly be forced to guess what crazy new workouts you decide to put yourself through. This practice inhibits your muscles and physiological systems from gradually adapting to the demands you place on them. While some training programs address this adaptation by completely changing the workout program’s set, rep, and exercise routine every 4-8 weeks, I’d like to explain a less common idea: changing the daily intensity. For the purposes of this article, I will be incorporating three different intensities - high, medium, and low. With a routine like this, you won’t have to worry about switching your workout mode every few weeks, as long as you constantly plug and play new exercises.

Think of your body as a car’s engine. Low intensity would involve idling at a stoplight. Your primary fuel is fat, and your actual caloric expenditure is low. There is still a good amount of blood flow to exercising muscles, but the actual cardiovascular stress and fiber tearing in the muscle is minimal. You are not breathing hard, conversation with your fellow gym-goers is fairly non-stressful, and muscles really don’t burn all that much. Such an intensity is great for a recovery workout, or for a strength/power workout with long rests between sets. You could potentially go for several hours at this intensity and still be able to do another workout the next day.

You’re cruising down the highway when in medium-intensity mode. Breathing and heart rate become a bit more rapid, you can feel a burn in the working muscles, and the primary fuel is a mixture of fat and carbohydrate. Mental focus is typically a little higher than low-intensity mode, and the workout itself is challenging, but not daunting. You can usually exercise the next day, but typically want to avoid stressign the same muscle groups.

In high-intensity mode, you are working at a 100%, all-out effort. Muscles are constantly burning, breathing and heart rate are very high, carbohydrate is the main fuel source, and caloric expenditure is through the roof (as is your post-workout metabolism). The entire body is tired after this type of workout and you generally need about 24 hours of rest of very easy work afterwards. Many times, it can be difficult to mentally force yourself to *begin* one of these kind of workouts, although once you launch into and the adrenaline kicks in, energy levels naturally rise.

The key to the sample training program outlined below that the low, medium and high intensities are stacked so that your body optimally responds and optimally recovers from each workout. So here is a sample daily-intensity based workout for a fairly frequent 6 day work-out routine.

Day 1 (i.e. Monday): high-intensity cardio intervals (shorter, i.e. 20 minutes) with high-intensity full body resistance training (longer, i.e. 45 minutes), incorporating back-to-back sets, challenging weights, difficult training scenarios, and short rest periods.

Day 2: low-intensity cardio, long and steady (i.e. 45 minutes+), with no lifting. Good day for an outdoor workout, like a hike or easy bike ride.

Day 3: high-intensity cardio intervals with medium-intensity full body lift, incorporating primarily body weight training. Great day to experiment and try new exercises and/or group exercise classes.

Day 4: low-intensity cardio, long and steady (i.e. 45 minutes+), with no lifting.

Day 5: medium-intensity cardio (shorter, i.e. 20 minutes) with low-intensity lifting (longer, i.e. 45 minutes),. For the lifting, incorporate heavier weights with longer rest periods, and focus on slow and controlled movements with perfect form and little to no ballistic activity.

Day 6: high-intensity cardio (longer, i.e. 45 minutes) with high-intensity full body resistance training (shorter, i.e. 20 minutes). Great day to try the Weekly Trainer Challenge, plus some extra cardio.

Day 7: active rest. Does not equal couch+bon-bons. Get up and move around, but just don’t stress your body too much.

There you have it. This type of exercise routine allows for sufficient recovery after the high-intensitiy periods, while still allowing for maximum caloric burning and efficient workouts. There are many different ways you could approach such a routine (in terms of exercises, specific cardio intervals, etc.). Just let me know if I can help you put a training plan together…you can e-mail me at elite@pacificfit.net.

Head trainer Ben Greenfield runs the online training website Pacific Elite Fitness, and holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Sport Science and Exercise Physiology, as well as certifications from the National Strength and Conditioning Association as a Personal Trainer and Strength and Conditioning Coach (NSCA-CPT & CSCS). For over 6 years, Ben has coached and trained professional, collegiate, and recreational athletes, and helped hundreds of individuals achieve their personal fitness goals. For more information on online personal training and fitness, contact Ben at elite@pacificfit.net.
www.pacificfit.net

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