That's Fit

For the serious lifters out there (and I know there are at least a few of you), you've almost certainly at least heard of creatine. And, there's a good chance you've used this nutritional supplement. Nevertheless, you may find the following tips helpful, as may the lifting newbie who may, at some point in his or her illustrious career in the weight room, consider trying creatine.

First of all, regardless of the type of creatine you take (monohydrate, ethyl ester, alpha-ketoglutarate), you should take it every day for a cycle of five to six months, according to Muscle & Body magazine. Then, stay off creatine for a month to provide your body with the chance to reduce its muscle creatine saturation. This way, if you decide to start using it again, your body will respond with better results.

Also, if you weigh less than 200 pounds, it's not necessary to take the bottle-suggested 5-10g (or 3g if you're using the more potent ethyl ester or alpha-ketoglutarate kinds). You will do just fine with around 3-5g (or 2g ethyl ester or alpha-ketoglutarate), and you'll save yourself a little bit of coin in the process. The best time to take creatine, experts say, is about 30 minutes before a workout and then again 30 minutes after a workout. On non-training days, take with a meal or protein shake at any convenient time of the day.

**Before trying creatine or any nutritional supplement, first check with your doctor to see if it's safe for you.

Subway has it all over McDonald's and Burger King in the spokesperson department. The weight-loss maven Jarrod doesn't wear make-up and clown shoes, and he definitely doesn't have an oversized plastic head. And, best of all, according to spokesman Jarrod, eating Subway can help you drop pants sizes.

But is this true?

By and large, and comparatively speaking, yes, it is true. In most cases, Subway is a healthier choice than McDonald's or Burger King menu items. However, just because it's the lesser of three evils, doesn't mean all Subway sandwiches are truly healthy. Case in point: The six-inch double-meat Italian BMT.

If your performance at the gym has been second-rate lately, it may be due to the lack of shut-eye you've been getting at night.

Researchers from Stanford University found that getting a proper night's sleep can improve physical performance, in addition to increasing alertness and improving mood. Citing this study, Muscle & Body magazine reports that university swimmers participated in this study, with researchers finding that those who slept enough every night for several weeks noted faster 15-meter sprint times, faster starts off the blocks, improved turn times, and increased kick strokes.

Previous studies on athletes playing football, tennis, and basketball yielded similar results. It would appear, then, that if you want to improve your game a bit or just bang out a few more reps at the gym, you'd be wise to get to bed early at night.

One size fits all may work for certain types of clothing, but certainly not for exercise programs. That's why it's important that you find a workout that's right for your specific fitness level, rather than relying on one that's better suited for a world-class athlete.

That said, for the person returning to the gym after a year-long hiatus (or, as stated before, someone who's completely new to lifting weights), try using a combination of free weights and machines. Ideally, try to start with a 60:40 ratio of time with free weights to machines, progressing gradually to nearly all free weights after two months.

Stick with light weight and concentrate on maintaining proper form. Also, resist the temptation to focus on T-shirt muscles and instead target larger muscle groups with compound exercises. Before long, you'll be ready to build to the next level, and by following this approach you'll be doing so with a well-built foundation.

Eating healthy; sure we'd all like to, but who the heck has the time? Grabbing an on-the-go meal is simply a much more feasible option when you're always, well, on the go. The downside of that option, however, is often times the consumption of too many calories, unhealthy fats, and fast-digesting carbs. Sounds to me like it's time to make time for eating healthy.

Weight Watchers magazine offers some easy, time-saving tips for whipping up a healthy meal in a pinch. Here are a few you can use for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Breakfast Time-Saver. Hard boil five eggs on Sunday evening (they'll last one week in the fridge), and portion one-cup servings of cereal in plastic bags. Each morning, just grab an egg and a cereal bag for a fast and satisfying breakfast you can eat on the run.

There are a wide variety of ways to keep your workout fresh. Changing rep counts, limiting or extending break time in between sets, and performing new exercises are just a few ways to avoid the dreaded fitness plateau.

Another great approach is to redesign your workout strategy. One way of doing so is to utilize a technique known as pyramiding. By and large, a weightlifting pyramid is a process of lifting heavier weights each set while reducing the number of reps performed. For example, for your first set of bench press, you may start with 10 reps of 135 pounds; second set, eight reps of 155 pounds; third set, six reps of 175 pounds.

Some people also like to "climb back down the pyramid" after they have reached the pinnacle; after completing the set with the maximum amount of weight, they then begin scaling backwards (ex. if you just finished the aforementioned set of six reps using 175 pounds, you would then work back to doing a set of eight reps using 155 pounds.). Incorporating a pyramid into your workout from time to time will help prevent sticking points and will keep your workout working.

The weather is perfect for nice, long outdoor runs on the beach or right through your neighborhood. The leaves are changing colors, the air is crisp, and you've got miles and miles to go. That's why picking up a new pair of kicks is one of the most sound investments you can make for this autumn climate (and economic climate, for that matter).

To help the shoe shopping experience that much easier, Maximum Fitness offers these five tips in their current issue, on newsstands now.

• Do You Need New Shoes? This is obviously the most important step of all. If the soles of your shoes are showing significant signs of wear, the forefoot is shifted medially and laterally or you're always suffering injury, then it may be time to ditch those kicks for a new pair.

Halloween is always full of thrills and surprises, but that fun shouldn't include health risks. Here are some tips, adapted from the Sierra Club website, for having a happy and healthy October 31st.

Healthy Treats. It's OK to be the person on the block who hands out fruits, organic chocolate, or other healthier options. Nontoxic crayons, coloring books, stickers, and even pocket change can also be great alternatives to sugar- and fat-laden candy.

Eco-Friendly Costumes. Avoid costume jewelry, especially glossy, fake painted pearls and toys from vending machines, which may contain lead. To be sure, use a lead check kit, available at LeadCheck.com. Also, whether going glam or ghoul, use natural makeup to avoid chemical exposure.

What's the big deal about breakfast? Well, I'll tell you -- so you can then go tell your teen (you know, the one who rushes out the door for school every morning without giving as much as a glance to the plate of eggs you left for him or her). It's called breakfast for a reason; it breaks the fast that the body has been on since going to sleep and finally waking up. Try going seven or eight hours without eating while you're awake and see how you feel. Catch my drift?

A recent study from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health found that teens who start their day by eating breakfast appear to have healthier diets overall, in addition to being more physically active and reporting fewer weight problems.

Not just any breakfast will do, however. Separate studies have shown that eating a protein-rich breakfast (such as eggs) is a better way to satisfy appetite than a breakfast loaded with carbs. This will also help prevent weight gain, for your teen will be less apt to nosh on candy and snacks before lunchtime rolls around.

I'm in pretty serious need of some new running sneakers, something I noticed yesterday as a small patch of the sole flapped against the spinning treadmill belt. Filt-filt-filt-filt-filt-filt ... and so it went for about 30 minutes, the redundancy no doubt causing a woman running nearby to wish for my early death.

As I left the gym, I happened to grab a copy of Metro Sports New York magazine, one of those freebie publications health clubs usually keep in towering stacks right by the exit. Serendipitously, there was an extensive article inside featuring a comprehensive review of what the author considers the best running shoes for Fall. Here, a quick breakdown of his top nine, in no particular order:

• Addidas Supernova Sequence
• Avia Avi-Lite Guide
• Asics GEL Nimbus 10
• Brooks Trance 8
• New Balance 1224
• Reebok Premier Verona KFS
• Saucony ProGrid Ride
• Mizuno Wave Alchemy 8
• Nike Lunar Trainer
  

Now all I need to do is narrow down my selection to one of these choices. Any suggestions?

Wouldn't it be nice if all you had to do was put your food on a scale and it would magically tell you how many calories, carbs, fat, and protein it contains? Well, thanks to the EatSmart Nutrition Scale, that's really all it takes.

This relatively small scale (7.5" x 9") is so incredibly intuitive and easy to use; there's no calculation, algebraic equations, advanced trigonometry, particle physics, or rocket science necessary. Just punch in the three-digit code for one of the 999 different foods stored in its memory, and it will provide you not only the food's weight, but also it's nutritional information right there in front of you within seconds.

I've personally had one of these scales in my house for quite some time, and I think it's great. It really takes the guesswork out of trying to eat healthfully and in the process replaces all the scales, books, and websites I previously used when trying to figure out what exactly I was about to eat.

You can purchase a scale directly from the EatSmart Nutrition website, or you can hop on over to I Look Like Fit (www.ilooklikefit.com), where they are running a contest to give one away for free. Tell them you're a That's Fit reader -- it may better your chances of winning.

Generally speaking, resistance training is anaerobic, in that it does not utilize a great deal of oxygen but is still intense enough to trigger what's known as anaerobic metabolism. Be this as it may, it's entirely possible to turn your resistance training workout into a cardiovascular dynamo by keeping your break time in between sets to a minimum.

Peripheral heart action (PHA) circuits, more popularly known as circuit training, are a great way to build lean, tone muscles while at the same time torching calories. Beyond that, other benefits include increased endurance, decrease in body fat, and perhaps best of all, less time spent in the gym.

When performing a resistance circuit, one of the more effective methods is to target compound muscle groups by using multi-joint exercises (as opposed to isolation exercises, which typically only hit one muscle group at a time). This approach will maximize your effort and burn more calories, something I'd venture to guess is of interest to you.

For a good selection of exercises to use in your resistance training circuit, click here.

Which works better in terms of helping to lose weight: Cardio or resistance training? The answer: Neither ... and both. If you can stop scratching your head for a moment and scroll down, I'll explain what I mean.

A study published in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine reports that performing a workout that incorporates cardiovascular training and resistance training not only works best to drop pounds, but it also decrease appetite (which also clearly plays into the whole dropping pounds thing).

Women's Health cites this study in their October issue, stating that for 16 weeks, study participants did cardio, lifted weights, or did both while reporting everything they ate. Those who doubled-up their efforts reported eating 517 fewer calories per day by the end of the study. This workout combo may cause a shift in hormones that control appetite, say researchers. Whatever it is that makes it work, the point is that it does, and that's reason enough to give the two-course workout a try.

On November 2nd, New York City will be set abuzz by a stampede of people wearing crotch-hugging shorts and sweat-soaked T-shirts, all adorned with numbers that range from one to around 38,000. Their feet will march to the beat of a wide variety of iPod playlists, and their bodies will be pushed to their limits for 26.2 miles. These determined runners will be competing in a race that's as much a test of physical endurance as it is one of their will. In less than 23 days, thousands of men and women from around the world will hit the streets for the New York City Marathon.

But before looking to the future of this world renowned event, let's take a quick look at its past, shall we? Here are a few milestones from the history of the New York City Marathon.

1970. First Central Park Marathon sees 55 people complete the race after all runners paid only a one dollar entry fee.

1972. Six female entrants sit for first ten minutes of race in protest against the AAU's insistence on their starting early.

Resistance training is a fantastic way to build lean, toned muscles while helping to reduce body fat. It has also been shown to increase bone strength, something older people, in particular, can benefit from.

But if there is one downside to resistance training, it's the risk of injury. Granted, there's a risk of injury in just about everything in life, but weightlifting comes with its own unique set. That's why adhering to these weightlifting safety suggestions provided by the American Academy of Family Physicians is the way to go.

• Always warm up before lifting with some light cardio and easy sets, and cool down and stretch afterward
• Wear shoes with good traction to prevent against slipping
  
• Use a spotter when performing any major lifts, especially pressing exercises that place the weight above you
  
• Find a trainer or workout coach to assist you in learning how to perform exercises properly
  
• Set realistic goals for yourself based on your age, gender, physical strength and maturity