Fitness Training

Fitness 

With a selection of the latest fitness tips, gym exercises, workout plans and general fitness tips, the netfit.co.uk collection of over 1,500 different strength and fitness exercises is a great place to start. With our fitness testing section enabling you to establish your current fitness levels, simple tests can be used to show you how you're improving. So from gyms in hotels, to personal trainers to using our 100 different free home exercises your choice to find out more with fitnessandmusculation.blogspot.com is evident.

Resting Heart Rate :

Your resting heart rate is often a good determination as to how fit you are, as well as indicating if you're either over training or unwell - showing up as unexplained increases in resting heart rate.

If using a heart rate monitor, make sure that there is a good connection between the chest strap and your chest, with adequate connection fluid, as often most heart rate monitors will require a little body perspiration prior to performing consistently.

Its important to remember that the best time to take a resting heart rate test is first thing in the morning, when you awake, as simply getting up and walking around your bedroom will cause your resting heart rate to rise.

There are many other factors that can cause your resting heart rate to be higher, than normal, such as smoking - caffeine and stress.

Don't forget a personal trainer should also measure your resting heart rate before training too!

Remember to take your resting heart rate over at least 3 days so that you can get an average reading.

For example if on day one you record 72 bpm (beats per minute) day two you record 78 bpm and on day three you record 72 bpm, then your average is 74 bpm.

Look at recording your resting heart rate for a full minute to make the test as accurate as possible.

As you become fitter through aerobic exercise, your heart becomes more efficient at pumping blood around the body, especially if combined with a reduction of the plaque (fatty deposits) within your arteries.

As a result you will find your resting heart rate gets lower so you will need to check your RHR on a regular basis and recalculate any target zones you have, especially if working with a heart rate monitor.

Drugs found in many medications raise the heart rate and do not give a true indication of your resting heart rate.

A high resting heart rate, such as 10 - 20 beats higher than your normal resting rate, may be a sign that your training too hard and as such a rest may be good for your heart.

The below charts have been created by the Netfit team as a combination of different sources, as many sites will give a variety of different ranges for resting heart rates.

As an example, a man with a resting heart rate of 72 at an age of 40, will be classed as having an average resting heart rate.

A young women at 22 years of age with a resting heart rate of 55, would be classed as (athlete), but not all low resting heart rates are a good indication of an individuals fitness.

Cool Down Stretches :

On completion of your workout or sporting activity, it's important to bring your heart rate back down slowly and gradually prior to easing into a number of suitable stretches.

In your cool down period, keep moving such as walking at the end of your run, to prevent your muscles from becoming locked up by blood pooling - (basically poor blood flow).

Do you really understand cool down stretches and why they are important? When you train, the cool down is almost important as the warm up. However hot you feel, it's worth wearing warm clothing if it's cold in order to keep the muscles warm prior and during your stretching.

When you do coll down stretches, hold each stretch for a minimum of 20-30 seconds, breath comfortably, with deep breaths through your nose, and out via your mouth.

Below you'll find a number of our favourite cool down stretching exercises that we know help to alleviate not only potential injuries, but also to maximise the stretch for that muscle group.

Easy Calf Raise Down

1. Stand on a raised platform, on the balls of your feet, holding onto a secure object for balance.

2. Exhale, slowly dropping your heels down towards the floor and allowing your toes to raise naturally.

This movement can be performed using either one or both feet.

Try all of them, but do not put too much pressure on your muscles for the first stretch. We have also graded them to help you understand which may be the best for you to try first.

The more time you spend stretching your body, the greater the understanding you will have of the benefits that your giving it.

Home Fitness Programs :

It is not easy to get fit and stay fit. However, it is easy to make excuses - you cannot get to the gym, you have no time, you can't afford it, or the weather may not be suitable to get outdoors and exercise. There is no excuse to avoid exercising totally, here is information about exercises that you can do at home with limited equipment, which can easily slot it into your busy schedule.

Home Exercise List :

Here is a list of simple exercises that you can do at home and links to more detailed descriptions of how to perform these drills at home using minimal equipment that you can find around the house. See more information about home fitness, the body weight only exercise list and the complete training exercise list.

Chair Dips at Home :  

Technique

• Position yourself between the chairs, supporting your weight on your hands and with your feet out in front of you.
• Slowly lower yourself until your upper arms are parallel to the seat of the chairs
• Hold in lower position before pushing back up until your arms are fully extended again.
• Repeat for the desired number of repetitions

Home Push-Up :

Technique

• Select two books of the same size which give you the height required.
• Place the books on the ground about shoulder width apart.
• Lie face down on the floor with your hands on the books.
• Push-up until your arms are straight, keeping you back and legs straight. This is the starting position.
• Lower your body until your chest reaches the level of the books, and then return to the starting position.

Sit Ups at Home :

Technique

• Lie flat on your back on the floor with your knees bent at 90 degrees and feet flat on the floor.
• Extend your arms and place your palms on your thighs.
• Slowly curl the torso, raising your head and shoulders and sliding your hands along your thighs until they reach your knees.
• Lower your head and shoulders back down to the floor.
• Repeat until you have completed your set.

Home Side Bridge :

Technique

• Place a book on the ground, and rest your elbow on it. Your elbow should be directly below the shoulder.
• Raise your hips up and make sure your body is straight.
• Hold this position between 30sec to a minute.
• Repeat on other side.

Home One-Bucket Straight-Legged Dead Lift :

Technique

• Fill the bucket with water to an appropriate level (mark the bucket so you can replicate the same level next time).
• Hold the bucket with both hands, and stand with your feet hip-width apart.
• Keep your head up, looking straight ahead, with your knees slightly bent.
• Bend at the hips while keeping your back long and straight.
• Lower the bucket to the ground, then slowly raise it back up to the standing position.
• Repeat 8-12 times.

Home Exercise Routine :

It is possible to create a very effective exercise program right in your own home. This exercise program is designed for the beginner, using simple exercises that can be done around the home, with either no equipment required or minimal equipment that is found around most homes. See also Ideas for Cheap Home Weights, and the Complete Home Exercise List.

Instructions

Before starting you should warm up for about five minutes, with a brisk walk or jog around the block, skipping or jogging on the spot. Perform the following exercises in order, aiming for 3 sets of 12, meaning that for each exercise you should perform up to 12 repetitions (unless noted otherwise in the instructions), and complete 3 sets of each exercise before going on to the next. At first you may wish to aim for 2 sets of 8, and build up from there. You should rest for a couple of minutes between each exercise. Alternatively, you can group two exercises (which use different muscle groups), and alternate between the two which gives each muscle group a rest while you are working out another.

For the best results, do this workout two or three times a week, with at least a day between workouts for adequate recovery. You should always be striving to increase the load and/or intensity, to maximize your fitness gains. Once your fitness has improved, and you can go through this routine without too much bother, you need to find a more advanced program.

Follow the links for each exercise for more details instructions on how to perform the exercise and for possible variations. For some exercises there are alternatives, to be used if the primary exercise is not possible due to lack of equipment or injury. You should also add in the alternatives to the program for variation every now and then.

Exercise Routine :

Sit Ups : Start flat on your back with knees bent at 90 degrees and feet flat on the floor, and arms out straight. Slowly curl the torso, raising your head and shoulders and sliding your hands along your thighs until they reach your knees. Lower yourself slowly back to the floor. Repeat 10-20 times for each set.

Push-Up : Lie face down on the floor with your hands shoulder width apart. Push-up until your arms are straight, keeping you back and legs aligned. This is the starting position. Lower your body until your upper arms are horizontal, and then return to the starting position. Books or bricks can be used to elevate the hands (easier) or feet (harder).

Side Bridge : Place a towel or book on the ground, and rest your elbow on it. Your elbow should be directly below the shoulder. Raise your hips up and make sure your body is straight. Hold this position for between 30-60 seconds. Repeat three times on each side.