That's Fit

I visited my niece this weekend and she was complaining about a few pounds she can't seem to shed. She has a health condition that prevents her from doing more than walking, swimming, stretching, and using light weights, but she remains very active. She said that it used to be so easy for her to lose 5-10 pounds when necessary. But now that she's getting older it seems to be harder. I hated to break it to her, but she should just wait until she hits her late 30's!

According to a Good Housekeeping article, our metabolism decreases by about 5% each decade. So, at age 35 you may burn up to 100 calories less per day than you did when you were 25. (Assuming your fitness level is roughly the same.) But there are things you can do to ward off middle-age pounds:

• Get a body-fat reading. Muscle burns more calories than fat. If your muscle mass is low, you're more susceptible to gaining weight (even if your BMI is right on target). Start incorporating more strength exercises into your fitness routine. You may want to book a session (or two or three...) with a personal trainer for some custom advice.

In my teens and early twenties, I belonged to a women's-only gym that was pretty hands-off in their style of management. Basically, you filled out your membership paperwork then were left to your own devices. At the time, I loved the hassle-free atmosphere, since I like to be left alone when I'm working out. But looking back, I think I'm very lucky that I didn't hurt myself trying out equipment I'd never used before!

Over at Diet-Blog, they've got a short tutorial about seven gym exercises to avoid. Though many people can and do use the exercises and machines on their list without overuse or injury, Mike offers several safer and more effective alternatives. If you're new to strength training, it's definitely worth checking out.

If you're not new to strength training, then share you're opinion with us. What's the number one exercise that you think should be avoided?

As I've mentioned many times before, it's vital that you change your workout every 4 to 6 weeks. If you don't, you're going to reach a fitness plateau.

But what if you really like your workout and you don't want to change it? That's fine, so long as you change something about it. For example, if you're a mile logger, pumping those legs with daily runs either outside or on a treadmill, try adding some upper-body strength training. Or, if you're a Yoga fanatic, you could do the opposite -- add a lower-body strength training element to your workout. While Yoga does a good job of toning your arms and abs, most Hatha styles don't target the legs all that much.

There's nothing wrong with being attached to a workout, especially if it's providing you with results. However, there will come a time when you either must part ways or, as suggested above, at least incorporate something new. For additional ideas on how to go about tweaking your workout without ditching its best parts, visit AOL Body by and check out the fitness section.

I don't know about you, but when I set out to drop some weight, I don't mind working extra hard for a defined period of time. I know, I know -- it should be a life choice, but the fact of the matter is that, while I can hit the gym six or seven days a week for several weeks, most of the time I'm more likely to get there five days, and sometimes less. So, when I received a copy of The Six-Week Bikini Countdown, I was stoked -- I can totally stick with a program for a month and a half!

The book, by Karon Karter (host of Pilates from the Inside Out) has some really good features. Each week has cardio, weight-training, and Pilates incorporated for a well-rounded workout.

Some of the workouts aren't too hard -- the first week, I found myself adding intensity to the cardio and doing extras on the weights. However, Week Two was harder, and by Week Three, I was working really hard. However, I tend to work hard at the gym anyway -- this book would be extremely challenging for someone brand new to fitness.

A good percentage of today's career opportunities involve at least some traveling, and whether it's required or voluntary, fun or a drag, close to home or across the world, if it involves overnight stays and hotel rooms, it's most likely going to have an impact on your exercise schedule. And that impact, for most business travelers, is a bad one. How many of the hotels that you've stayed in have had nice workout facilities with enough equipment, and enough of the right equipment for you to keep your home routine going seamlessly? For me, just being in a different place with a different atmosphere is enough to make jumping on the treadmill for my usual routine hard.

Have you ever heard a guy say that he needs to shed a few pounds, make some tiny changes in his lifestyle, and -- BOOM! -- he's at his goal weight? I know that's how it is for my dad. He'll state he wants to lose weight, drop desserts for a week, and all of a sudden he's down five pounds. Quite frankly, it's annoying. Granted, this is a bit of a stereotype -- not all men can lose weight easily. Differences in body chemistry, lifestyle habits, and other health factors can make it difficult for some men to lose weight. But, as a general rule, most men can lose weight more easily than women. Why is that?

Men have a larger muscle mass which helps them burn 30% more calories. Women have the added disadvantages of extra body fat and a predisposition to store fat. Also, many women retain water at least one week each month. There are other reasons men might have an easier time with weight loss, too.

You really can't have a well-rounded fitness plan without including at least some strength training and although in and of itself it's a pretty simple concept, there are an amazing number of misconceptions out there regarding how to do things and what is and what isn't effective in building and maintaining muscle. Alive.com is looking to help us all clear up some of those misconceptions, though, with their list of the 7 biggest muscle myths.

When you're stuck in a rut sometimes all you need to do to get back on track is to switch things up and try something new. I've tried a lot of different ways to workout, like with a stability ball, resistance bands, free-weights/dumbbells, a stepper, etc, but here's something I have yet to try: a workout using a foam roller.

Foam rollers can help with strength, balance, and even stress relief. Foam rollers themselves are very similar to the foam "noodles" kids use in swimming pools, but they're thicker and shorter. The primary benefit of adding foam rollers to your workout is an increase in calories burned and better core strengthening due to the balance challenges added to traditional moves like squats, arm exercises, and even massages. Try some of these foam roller moves from Alive.com and see if you don't feel muscles working that you didn't know you had!

By now, we should all be aware of the importance of breathing. After all, it's what keeps us alive, right? So why is it that when we work out our hardest, we sometimes forget to breathe? That's when our bodies need it the most--when we're pushing our limits and challenging ourselves to the max.

So how's your breathing during your workout? For me, it's the weights that make me forget my breath. I take a weight-lifting class a few times a week and funny though it sounds, I usually need to be reminded by the instructor to breathe--otherwise I'll hold my breath until I get a short break. No wonder I get dizzy sometimes!

From pull-ups, to sit-ups, to heaving tractor tires end over end, this is a fitness routine for the really dedicated. CrossFit was originally designed as a workout military, police, champion martial artists and others who required serious strength conditioning. The program is moving into gyms and is available for the average Joe now.

There are no shiny, fancy machines required for this workout. All that's needed is a mat for floor exercise, a climbing rope, jump ropes, various weights, and a few other key ingredients. The workouts are short -- only 10 to 20 minutes -- but they're intense. There's no rest between exercises, it's move-move-move from station to station. You'll work your abs, arms, shoulders, legs, glutes... basically you'll work everything! Even though it's an "elite" fitness program, anyone can join. The instructor will assess your fitness level and determine the exercises that are best for you. Prepare to be challenged -- and be all that you can be!

Did you miss your workout today? Or is it just too cold to go out for a walk or a run? You can still squeeze in some physical activity, you just have to be a little creative. Exercise doesn't have to happen in a gym, nor does it have to involve expensive props or even workout gear. As long as you can get that heart rate up, you're burning calories. So if you're stuck inside but still want to get moving, try some of these ideas:

• Run up and down your staircase.
• Sit down and stand up repeatedly during commercial breaks.
• Give your child a piggy-back ride and do lunges.
• Do jumping jacks.
• Jump rope (if you don't have a downstairs neighbor).
• Do push-ups -- try doing them against the wall if you're just getting started.
• Pull out an old fitness DVD or video.
• Turn on the music and dance.

Don't let excuses get in between you and your workout. Just get moving -- you'll be so glad that you did!

Functional training is all the rage these days. Working your body so that it not only is fit for gym activities, but also for everyday functionality (hence the name, at least I would assume). What many also find appealing about functional fitness is that it combines many strength-building movements with cardiovascular exercises. A good example of this fitness combination is an exercise called the Spider-Man Crawl.

To perform the Spider-Man Crawl, first, place your body in a standard push-up position, with your body slightly elevated off of the ground. Next, you want to step forward with one of your legs, placing your foot as far outside of your elbow as you can. From that position, push off at your planted foot and "crawl" forward a pace. Next, make the same move with the opposite leg. This motion repeats, causing you to move steadily across the floor. For a visual demonstration (believe me, I'm aware that my written description wasn't exactly the most easy to comprehend), check out THIS LINK from Duke University Fitness:

Lastly, if you do find yourself in a very cramped area of the gym and would still like to perform this exercise, know that it is possible to do it while remaining in one place. To do so, simply turn the motion into a modified Mountain Climber; switching your legs repeatedly but never actually moving your body forward.

An estimated 20 million people suffer from diabetes, a disease that, at least to some degree, has a great deal to do with an excess amount of weight (this is mostly true of type-2 diabetes. Type-1, by contrast, is not caused by anything related to weight). For years, doctors have recommended that their diabetic patients perform a cardio workout to help them lose weight and regulate their blood sugar levels. However, new research, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, revealed that adding strength training to the mix lead to even greater results.

Type-2 test volunteers were put into one of three groups: 1) Cardio workout only, 2) Resistance training only, 3) Combination of cardio and resistance training.

After five months, the researchers found that the group that performed the cardio/weight training combo routine had lowered their glucose levels by nearly twice as much as the other two groups.

Kenneth G. Williams. That's him in the picture. Pretty big guy. More than just a little ripped. Body builder. Vegan.

Wait, what?!? A bodybuilding vegan? That's right.

Williams hasn't always been a vegan, in fact back when he first got started in body building he was very much into the usual fare of meat, eggs, and dairy. But then one day, in the middle of the night, he had "a moment" and has been a vegan ever since.

Just goes to show that you don't need to eat meat to feel "tough" and to be healthy and fit. If you want to eat meat, then by all means go ahead. But if you've been leaning towards vegetarianism or veganism then don't let stereotypes be the thing that holds you back.

When you begin weight training, you gain muscle and lose body fat at roughly the same rate, so initially you may not see a difference in your weight -- or you may even be surprised to find that your weight may go up a bit -- even though your body really is changing.

Don't be afraid: Gaining muscle is a good thing, it burns more calories than fat does, which will boost your metabolism and help you continue to lose weight and stay slim.

Rather than measuring your success by the number on the scale (which 99.9 percent of us do -- myself included at times), a better gauge is to go by how your clothes fit. After a few weeks, you'll probably find that they're looser than before -- even if you haven't lost much actual weight -- because even though you're replacing fat with muscle, muscle is more compact taking up about 25 percent less space, pound for pound.

So don't let the scale fool you, instead let your jeans be your guide and keep on lifting weights.