Calorie Burning Tips

CARDIO SPRINT PYRAMID
This adds sprint interval training for a fast and fun workout. Here, after each burst of hard work, you'll recover for the same amount of time.
How to do it:
•Warm up for 15 minutes, adding a few 20-second bursts at the end to prepare for the workout.
•Run, bike, or row: During the work periods, you should have a rate of preceived exertion (RPE of 8 to 10, followed by 30 seconds of active recovery.

Build and taper the workout like this:
30 seconds sprint/30 seconds recover
1 minute sprint/1 minute recover
2 minutes sprint/2 minutes recover
4 minutes sprint/4 minutes recover
2 minutes sprint/2 minutes recover
1 minute sprint/1 minute recover
30 seconds sprint/30 seconds recover

•Finish with a 10-minute cooldown.
Bonus benefit: This major calorie-burning interval training plan gives you the best of both worlds—high-octane cardio and muscle-sculpting sprints.

Row your Weight Off!

This is an often overlooked machine in the gym because we're confused about how it works and, perhaps, aren't sure it delivers a great workout.

However, rowing is a physically demanding exercise involving both the upper and lower body, which means a higher heart rate and a greater calorie burn. Like an elliptical trainer or stationary bike, there are different levels of resistance, allowing you to get a challenging workout no matter what your fitness level. In 30 minutes, a 145-lb person can burn about 300 calories, but if you've never tried rowing, it can be tough. Start with 10-15 minutes and add time to subsequent workouts to give your body time to adapt.

Extreme Weight Loss with One Workout!

The Fastest Payoff with one workout

Running hard, backing off, and repeating is great for your ticker, fat loss, and muscle—which is why this isn't the first time we've suggested intervals. But here's a new spin: Instead of resting or slowing down between sprints, fill the gaps with basic weight exercises. Do each circuit without resting between exercises, unless specified below.

Preform your circuits on a great treadmill or spin bike for hollywoodfit4less.com. We offer both for 70% off retail. Call today! 1-888-816-6615.

Pros and Cons of Drinking Alcohol

I was so happy with the French paradox. This was the phrase researchers came up with in the early 1990s to explain the completely not-fair scenario of how the French were indulging in duck confit (duck cooked in lots of fat, a waiter once explained to me) and buttery croissants while not only remaining thin but also having fewer heart attacks. So not fair to Americans who were glumly gnawing broiled chicken breasts and low-fat cookies and buying increasingly outlandish books about losing weight, only to find themselves fatter than ever and just as likely to get heart disease.
But the French paradox offered a bonbon of hope. Some researchers suggested that the secret to French coronary health was, in part, the red wine sipped over the course of a long, leisurely dinner.
I began having wine with my dinner, too. And even if I finished my second glass while hunched over the sink scouring pots, I still felt a bit of that French glamour. As if it were Edith Piaf wailing in the background, not Bruce Springsteen.
Then I heard someone say that drinking moderate amounts of any alcohol was good for the heart. While wine is thought to have hundreds of substances, such as resveratrol (an antioxidant found in the skin of grapes linked with cardiovascular benefits and cancer prevention), that favorably affect health, I, too, began reading the reports that suggested that any form of alcohol increases "good" cholesterol, decreases inflammation and "thins" the blood, making dangerous blood clots less likely. Lo, another door to the good life opened! I didn’t learn to mix anything fancier than a vodka-and-tonic at home, but when my girlfriends and I went out we ordered drinks that were considerably more exotic, with silly names: the Coexistence Collins, the Rose of Warsaw, Bluebeard’s Passion. (Surely, no one has more fun coming up with names than cocktail designers and breeders of thoroughbred racehorses.) It was easy to feel downright virtuous as we sipped our drinks, especially as we heard about new studies suggesting that moderate alcohol consumption also lessened the risk of stroke and increased bone density.
Here come the caveats …
Not everyone in the scientific community is so enthusiastic about the health benefits of moderate imbibing. Critics pooh-pooh the French paradox, saying that the French might have lower risks for cardiovascular disease but that they don’t have significantly lower rates of overall mortality.
In fact, not all research suggests that moderate alcohol consumption confers health benefits. For example, multiple studies have shown an increased risk of breast cancer for women who drink even as little as one glass of alcohol per day, leading some researchers to conclude that when it comes to breast cancer, any level of consumption can be considered unsafe. Other research suggests that the B vitamin folate—found in leafy greens, oranges and legumes—and its supplemental form, folic acid, may blunt alcohol’s breast cancer impact by supporting normal cell division and repairing DNA damage. One study found that women who drank alcohol did not have a higher risk of breast cancer if they consumed at least 600 mcg/day of folic acid.
"For people who have had breast cancer, or are at risk of getting breast cancer, and who drink, I do not insist on total abstinence. But I advocate that if you do drink, you should do so moderately," says Larry Norton, M.D., medical director of the Evelyn H. Lauder Breast Center of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. "That’s a reasonable choice if you’re eating lots of fruits and vegetables." (Fruits and vegetables provide nutrients, like folate and vitamin C, that may mitigate the cancer risk associated with drinking alcohol.)
However, even eating bushels of fruits and vegetables won’t erase the ill effects of too much alcohol. Some scientists are concerned that ordinary people like moi have gotten the idea that if one serving of alcohol might be good, several more might be better.
"Either consciously or subconsciously, some people omit the word ‘moderate’ and come away with the idea that drinking is good for you," says Tim Naimi, M.D., M.P.H., an epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). "The concept of moderate drinking tends to be adjusted elastically at the level at which one already drinks."
There’s no quibble that excessive drinking is bad for every system and every part of our bodies. Although there may be some debate about the definition of moderate drinking—from half to two servings of alcohol per day for women, two to three for men—researchers are quick to point out that this is not a weekly average. We can’t abstain from Sunday through Friday, have seven drinks on Saturday, and call ourselves moderate drinkers—that’s binging. Both excessive daily drinking and binge drinking are harmful, leading to liver damage, inflammation of the pancreas, various cancers, high blood pressure, sleep disorders, accidents and violent behavior. There’s nothing even slightly alluring about any of that.
And wanting to improve your health isn’t a reason to start drinking alcohol, most experts emphasize. There’s the issue that some people may have a history of alcoholism or predisposition that renders any level of alcohol intake dangerous. Some take medications that can cause serious health problems when mixed with alcohol. Finally, many experts argue that there really is no ironclad proof that one or two drinks daily improve anyone’s health and longevity. "You have to take these studies with a big grain of salt," says Larry Norton.
At the heart of their caveats is this: most of the research studies on the health impacts of alcohol are observational. In this kind of research, large groups of people are studied for a long period of time, and their eating habits, their exercise patterns, their medications, their incomes and many other factors are tracked, along with their evolving health profile. Researchers look for links between lifestyle or environmental factors and certain health outcomes. Observational studies are valuable tools for the scientific and public health community. For instance, they were the first solid indication of the connection between smoking cigarettes and lung cancer. But since certain populations tend to have complicated clusters of either negative or positive behaviors, it’s tricky to draw medical advice from their comparison. "When you look at the profiles of moderate drinkers, you see that they exercise, they eat lots of green vegetables, they have a glass of wine at dinner, and so on," says Tim Naimi of the CDC.
So is it the wine at dinner that’s really making a difference? Or is it something else?
Glass still half full?
Researchers who conduct observational research believe that the level of consistency across different studies is highly compelling. They say they work hard to account for "confounding factors" (e.g., diet and exercise habits) that might skew the results. And sometimes, they’re able to support the observed benefits with the findings of small clinical trials.
Take, for example, diabetes. Observational studies have linked moderate alcohol consumption with lower rates of diabetes among people at high risk for the disease, particularly those who are overweight. (This was initially surprising since it’s well known that, in people who already have diabetes, drinking alcohol can cause blood-glucose levels to dip dangerously low or to spike alarmingly high.) One group of researchers followed up these observational studies with a small, three-month clinical trial that randomly split a group of nondrinkers with type 2 diabetes into two groups: one that received a daily "dose" of merlot or sauvignon blanc versus another that abstained. The moderate drinkers were able to control their blood-glucose levels better than the nondrinkers. Scientists still are trying to tease out the cascade of molecular events at work but it appears that, among other things, moderate alcohol consumption nudges fat cells to release a chemical called adiponectin.
"Adiponectin probably allows insulin to work more efficiently and do a better job of bringing glucose into our muscles and other tissues," says Eric Rimm, Sc.D., a Harvard epidemiologist who studies the connection between alcohol and health.
While scientists try to hone in on the biochemistry that explains the health benefits seen in older observational studies, new studies keep pouring in. Geriatrician Kaycee Sink, M.D., M.A.S., from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, recently concluded what she believes is the largest, longest U.S. observational study to look at the effects of regular alcohol intake on dementia. She separated more than 3,000 seniors into current abstainers, light drinkers, moderate drinkers and heavy drinkers and evaluated them every six months for up to six years. At the conclusion of the study, moderate drinkers were 37 percent less likely to develop dementia than their nondrinking counterparts. The observed benefits of alcohol on the heart and brain are probably connected. To function optimally, the brain needs a healthy supply of blood, and it’s believed that alcohol’s beneficial effects on "good" HDL cholesterol may protect the brain as well as the heart. "Anything that’s good for your heart is probably also good for your brain," says Sink.
To drink or not to drink?
Some experts recommend keeping our health profile and history in mind as we decide how much to drink. Young women with a family history of breast cancer might decide to keep their consumption very low or abstain completely. Middle-aged men with a family history of heart disease or dementia, on the other hand, might continue their evening cocktail or glass of wine with dinner with a clear conscience.
But other experts tell moderate drinkers not to let the barrage of studies overwhelm their joie de vivre. "My message to people who enjoy drinking moderately is to stop obsessing about whether it helps your health or not," says Tim Naimi. "You don’t need an excuse to drink a moderate amount of alcohol."
I’ve decided to make a cocktail of these bits of advice. My family history is rife with heart disease, dementia and diabetes, but not much cancer. So I’ll keep drinking, but remind myself that "moderate" is somewhat short of the number of drinks that inspire me to call my brother and sing Daffy Duck’s Rhapsody. And when I pour myself a glass of red wine, I’ll slough away the conflicting messages about alcohol as medicine with a Gallic shrug, inhale deeply, and enjoy.

Content Provided by Kristin Ohlson, EatingWell.com

The Posture Principal

Without even looking at you, I'm pretty sure you have a posture problem. That's because almost everyone I see has a posture problem. After years of evaluating clients at my fitness center in Indianapolis, I've learned to spot an anatomical abnormality from the way a guy walks through the mall, sits on a park bench, or stands at a bar.
The trouble isn't just that slumped shoulders make you resemble a Neanderthal. Over time, your poor posture takes a tremendous toll on your spine, shoulders, hips, and knees. In fact, it can cause a cascade of structural flaws that result in acute problems, such as joint pain throughout your body, reduced flexibility, and compromised muscles, all of which can limit your ability to burn fat and build strength.
But don't worry—all these problems can be corrected. Are you ready to straighten yourself out? Use this head-to-toe guide to make sure your posture is picture-perfect.
Tip: Want to look great in the mirror—and to women? Build the 10 muscles ladies love most.
Analyze your alignment
Strip down to a pair of shorts and ask a friend to take two full-body photos, one from the front and one from the side. Keep your muscles relaxed but stand as tall as you can, with your feet hip-width apart. Now compare your photos with the illustrations at right to diagnose your posture problems. Then see the repair plans below.
Forward head
Where pain strikes: your neck
Problem: Stiff muscles in the back of your neck.
The fix: Stretch with head nods daily. Moving only your head, drop your chin down and in toward your neck while stretching the back of your neck. Hold for a five count; do this 10 times.
Problem: Weak front neck muscles.
The fix: Do this neck "crunch" every day. Lying faceup on the floor, lift your head so it just clears the floor. Raise your head, and hold for five seconds; do two or three sets of 12 reps daily.
Elevated shoulder
Where pain strikes: neck and shoulders
Problem: Your trapezius (the muscle that starts at the back of your neck and runs across your upper back) is shortened.
The fix: Perform an upper-trap stretch. With your higher-side arm behind your back, tilt your head away from your elevated side until you feel the stretch in your upper trapezius. Apply slight pressure with your free hand on your stretched muscle. Hold for 30 seconds; repeat three times.
Problem: A weak serratus anterior, the muscle just under your pecs running from your upper ribs to your shoulder blades.
The fix: Try chair shrugs. Sit upright in a chair with your hands next to your hips, palms down on the seat, and keep your arms straight. Without moving your arms, push down on the chair until your hips lift off the seat and your torso rises. Hold for five seconds. That's one rep; do two or three sets of 12 reps daily.
Tip: Improve your results instantly! Avoid these eight common weight-training mistakes.
Rounded shoulders
Where pain strikes: neck, shoulder, or back
Problem: tight pectoral muscles.
The fix: Try a simple doorway stretch: Place your arm against a doorjamb in the high-five position (that is, forming an L), your elbow bent 90 degrees. Step through the doorway until you feel the stretch in your chest and the front of your shoulders. Hold for 30 seconds. That's one set; do a total of four daily.
Problem: Weakness in the middle and lower parts of your trapezius.
The fix: Use the floor L raise. Lying facedown on the floor, place each arm at a 90-degree angle in the high-five position. Without changing your elbow angle, raise both arms by pulling your shoulders back and squeezing your shoulder blades together. Hold for 5 seconds; do two or three sets of 12 reps daily.
Hunched back
Where pain strikes: neck, shoulder, back
Problem: Poor upper-back mobility.
The fix: Lie faceup on a foam roller placed about midback, perpendicular to your spine. Place your hands behind your head and arch your upper back over the roller five times. Adjust the roller and repeat for each segment of your upper back.
Problem: Weak muscles in your back.
The fix: Perform the prone cobra. Lie facedown with your arms at your sides, palms down. Lift your chest and hands slightly off the floor, and squeeze your shoulder blades together while keeping your chin down. Hold for five seconds; do two or three sets of 12 reps daily.
Tip: Use insider secrets to strengthen every muscle. Sign up for the Men's Health Exercise of the Week newsletter today.
Anterior pelvic tilt
Where pain strikes: Lower back (because of the more pronounced arch in your lumbar spine). The tilt also shifts your posture so that your stomach pushes outward, even if you don't have an ounce of belly fat.
Problem: Your hip flexors, which allow you to move your thighs up to your abdomen, are tight.
The fix: Kneel on one knee and perform a front hip stretch. Tighten your gluteal (butt) muscles on your kneeling side until you feel the front of your hip stretching comfortably. Reach upward with the arm that's on your kneeling side, and stretch in the opposite direction. Hold this position for a count of 30 seconds, and repeat three times.
Problem: Weak glutes.
The fix: The glute bridge. Lie on your back with your knees bent about 90 degrees. Squeeze your glutes together and push your hips upward until your body is straight from knees to shoulders. Hold for five seconds; complete two or three sets of 12 reps daily.
Pigeon toes
Where pain strikes: knee, hip, or lower back
Problem: Tightness in the outer portion of your thigh (your tensor fasciae latae).
The fix: Stand up, cross your affected leg behind the other, and lean away from the affected side until you feel your hip stretching comfortably. Hold for 30 seconds. Repeat three times.
Problem: Weak gluteus maximus and medius muscles.
The fix: Use an exercise called the side-lying clamshell. Lie on one side with your knees bent 90 degrees and your heels together. Keeping your hips still, raise your top knee upward, separating your knees like a clamshell. Pause for 5 seconds; lower your knee to the starting position. Perform two or three sets of 12 reps daily.
Tip: Don't feel like working out today? We've all been there.
Duck feet
Where pain strikes: hip or lower back
Problem: You lack flexibility in all the muscles in your hips.
The fix: Drop to your hands and knees and place one foot behind the opposite knee. Making sure you keep your spine naturally arched, shift your weight backward and allow your hips to bend until you feel the stretch. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds, repeat three times, then switch sides.
Problem: Weakness in your oblique muscles and hip flexors.
The fix: Try the Swiss-ball jackknife. Assume the top of a pushup position but rest your feet on a Swiss ball. Without rounding your lower back, tuck your knees under your torso by rolling the ball with your feet toward your body. Roll the ball back to the starting position. Do two or three sets of 12 reps daily.

Content Provided by Men's Health

When the only thing getting a workout at your gym is your credit card, it's time to throw in the towel.
We all know the benefits of staying in shape: fewer health problems, better moods and more energy. But just because your waist is shrinking doesn't mean your bank account should follow. Fortunately, there are ways to cut both costs and your cholesterol level.
There are many things people can do to stay in shape on a budget, says Dr. John Spencer Ellis, chief executive and founder of the National Exercise and Sports Trainers Association and the Get America Fit Foundation. "Swim in your community pool, hike, go to a park and do push ups on a bench, run. It doesn't cost a lot of money." All you really need to stay in shape is a good pair of shoes and the great outdoors. A pair of New Balance MX608 running shoes on the discount site Overstock.com is priced at just $44.64. TriActive America, of San Luis Obispo, Calif., makes outdoor exercise and fitness equipment for cities or companies to use in public spaces, such as parks. If you want a free outdoor workout with structure, TriActive has gyms throughout the U.S. and around the world. Each piece of equipment is installed with directions for use and technique tips. To find a gym near you, visit the TriActive Web site.
For those who prefer the hands-on assistance of a personal trainer, MyYogaOnline.com offers a subscription-based fitness Web site based in Vancouver, Canada. A $9.95 monthly membership gives you access to over 250 yoga, Pilates and meditation classes ranging from three minutes to 90 minutes. You can download them to a computer or iPod or stream them from the site. Non-members can download individual sessions for $1.99 to $9.99 per video.
"You can practice at home, at work," says Michelle Trantina, co-founder of MyYogaOnline.com. "It's great for business travelers." Sites like DemandFitness.com offer more conventional workouts, like step classes, for $100 a year. For those who insist on real-life assistance, consider joining a group workout session, which can cost less than half as much as individual classes. Or split the cost of a "private" session with a friend. Another option is to ask your employer for help. Around two-thirds of companies devote money to wellness programming other than health care plans, according to Glen Gunderson, vice president of business development at Life Time Fitness, an organization that works with corporate employees on developing healthy lifestyles. Employee support typically includes gym memberships, free classes or risk assessments. If your company doesn't offer health options, ask a human resources director to consider these programs.

Content Provided by forbes.com

Exercise as Medicine

While physical activity is just one component of developing fitness--the others include overall health and genetic predisposition--exercise is essential.
The ideal amount, says Jonathan Myers, Ph.D., a co-author of the ACSM study and a health research scientist at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System in northern California, is a half-hour of moderate-intense activity five days of the week. Even better is an hour of exercise most days of the week.
When Myers and his co-authors separated their 4,300 participants into different fitness quintiles and studied them for nearly 20 years, the ones that performed the best reached that five-hour-a-week threshold. Those with the poorest fitness had a three-fold increase in overall mortality risk; 170 participants in this category died of all causes while only 55 in the highest quintile died.
"We've been chasing this for the last 20 years or so," Myers says of the results, "and we've seen it over and over again." Fifty years of epidemiological studies, he says, have demonstrated that people who are more fit or are more physically active have lower mortality rates.
A study published last week in the British Medical Journal found a similar correlation between weight gain and maintaining optimal health into old age. Of the 17,000 women who participated in the 20-year observational study, those who were overweight at age 18 and gained more than 22 pounds by 50 had the worst odds for optimal health. For every 11 pounds gained during that time, the chances for "healthy survival" decreased by 5%.
But it’s never too late to start exercising. Myers' research shows that there are tremendous benefits to be had for the worst-off individuals who can change their ways. When the co-authors compared the least-fit group to the next least-fit group, they noticed a striking difference: The two-fold increase in mortality risk was predominantly due to variations in physical activity, not other risk factors like hypertension and diabetes.
"We don't know yet why exercise has such protective benefits," says Myers, "but your fitness level can outperform the traditional risk factors"--such as smoking and high blood pressure--"in predicting mortality."

Content Provided by forbes.com