Diet & Fitness.

Muscle Building, Strength Training Program – Top Rated.

Nor is it the kind of exercise that will make you euphoric after a good cardiovascular session. You need to counteract the effects of jet lag, artificial air in pressurized aircraft cabins and sky fatigue. Suzanne Schlosberg says,

“Sometimes your travels help you recognize how humdrum your workout routine has become. At home, it’s easy to fall into a rut – to use the same weight machines in the same order, week after week, month after month, simply out of habit. But a trip may take the routine out of your routine. You may have no choice but to try new strength exercises or jog in the pool instead of swim laps. And you might find these new pursuits so enjoyable that you add them to your fitness repertoire at home.”

Common Obstacles

What are some of the reasons why travelers do not incorporate exercise while they’re on the road?

They’re stressed or too tired

They don’t feel comfortable about working out in unfamiliar surroundings

They don’t have access to a hotel gym

But if they made just a tiny effort to change this thinking, they’d be on the road to fitness sooner.

Engaging in exercise allows you to get out of that bubble of meetings, seminars and tours.

Walk when on the Road

When traveling, have a pair of good walking shoes (trainers preferably) so that you won’t feel so daunted about getting from one side of the airport to another.

Having the right pair of walking shoes will encourage you to walk up the stairs instead of take the escalator, to walk instead of taking the conveyor belt, and to transfer from one concourse to another on foot instead of taking the shuttle service.

You may not know it, but walking these long distances with your luggage in tow serves as a combination/weight lifting exercise!

Fitness while Flying

Once settled comfortably on the plane, make sure you time your stretching and walking periods. If it’s just an hour’s flight, walk around the plane once and do your stretching at the back of the plane; if it’s a three hour to five hour flight (east to west in the North American continent), try to get up from your seat and walk around at least once every hour, doing leg extensions and trunk/neck movements.

If you’re crossing the Pacific or Atlantic oceans, those killer flights need not kill you. Increase the frequency of your stretches and walking.

Airlines such as Japan Air Lines show videos of how travelers can incorporate flexibility movements while seated or standing. Take full advantage of these videos. The exercises may help you ward off fatigue and jet lag.

A note about DVT

In the last five years, there have been reports about flight passengers, especially in economy class, suffering from DVT – deep vein thrombosis.

The link between confining airplane seats and deaths from DVT (formation of deadly blood clots) has been established by the United Nations World Health Organization. It has nothing to do with gender, risk factors or genetics. Everyone is at risk in economy class! This should constitute compelling reason to integrate exercise while high in the sky.

To make exercise possible while traveling, schedule your flights so that when you get to your destination, you don’t rush through dinner and then go to sleep.

Try to arrive during the late afternoon/early evening, to give you time to shake off the fatigue from the trip, and have at least an hour to do exercises either in your hotel room or in the hotel gym.

Important “to do” things when traveling

Be fully rested before a trip – have the usual “to pack” items ready well in advance so you’re not scampering for them at the last minute, depleting your energy levels.

Time your sleep correctly – as soon as you board, get the local time of your destination and set your watch accordingly. If it’s already night time in your destination, wear blindfolds and ask for a pillow and try to catch a few winks.

Drink plenty of water – wine and cocktails will only dehydrate you further; note that humidity levels inside aircraft is below 10%, so water is your best bet.

If your job requires you to travel at least four times a month, ask your company’s travel department to book you in hotels with gyms or a swimming pool.

Make time out of your travel schedule to insert a workout into your grinding schedule.

Here’s a friendly suggestion: get up earlier in the morning and before or after breakfast, head over to the gym and do a brisk walk on the treadmill for 10 minutes, or do the rowing machine (great for the core muscles, back problem reliever) for 10 minutes.

This session is just to wake you up from your travel stupor. See if you can walk to your business appointment instead of taking a cab (that’s another 10 minutes).

At night before going to bed, go to the hotel gym again and lift weights for 10 minutes, to complete your workout for the day. This way you did your cardio and resistance training, two essential components of a fitness program.

Now, tell us, doesn’t a 10-20 minute session sound less intimidating than clocking 1.5 hours in the gym?

Working out with Friends

Another friendly suggestion: if you’re traveling in a group, ask a colleague if he or she would do a game of squash or tennis with you. The concierge can give you local addresses of sports or recreational centers in the vicinity.

When there’s no Gym!

If the hotel gym is crowded or “temporarily closed for maintenance,” you can still exercise – in the comfort of your room.

Here are some exercises that you can perform:

Turn on the TV or sound system and jog in place; or look up the TV guide and see if some old Jane Fonda or Denise Austin shows are on. Get on with the beat

Jog in place or jump rope (great cardiovascular workout)

Conduct floor exercises (described below)

Floor exercise 1: the Cobra (or back extension). Lying on your stomach as though getting ready for push-ups, keep your hands on your side with palms facing down and fingers pointed forward. With your hands, push to lift your torso off the floor (ensure you’re lifting head, shoulders and chest only).

Keep pelvis on the floor and your head looking ahead. Hold and then release. Repeat 3 times. You should feel your spine lengthen. Joe Decker recommends not just pressing back with your hands, but also pushing your upper body up and forward.
Do not tilt your head back to look at the ceiling (many people make this mistake). This puts a strain on your neck.

Floor exercise 2: Crunch (for lower abdominals). The lower abdominals are the weakest muscles in your torso because they are rarely worked, and they’re the first to sag after childbirth and after menopause.

This exercise will help:

Lying flat on your back with your knees bent, cross your arms over your chest. Squeeze your buttocks, tighten your abdomen and push your lower back into the floor. Hold for 10-20 seconds, breathing normally. Relax, and then release. Repeat as often as you can, without overworking yourself

Floor exercise 3: Hurdler’s Stretch. Bend the knee towards the front, and then tuck your lower leg in toward the opposite thigh. Stretch gently toward the straight leg. Do not bounce. This movement is like the ballet movement when an arm goes above the head gracefully, which stretches the sides of the trunk to increase flexibility.

If you pick up any exercise book, there will be a rich inventory of exercises you can perform while on the go. Pack this in your bag so you can refer to it for correct form and posture.

Yoga

Yoga on the train? Yes! A news report was published in the Montreal Gazette recently saying how many overstressed Germans still hide behind their papers rather than exercise. We’re sure Americans and Canadians are no less guilty.

So these commuters are being taught yoga and relaxation techniques on their way to and from work. Instructors are now in what the German government calls “wellness trains” in southern Germany. This was an initiative taken by Deutsche Bahn – Germany’s state-owned railway. The organization decided to offer relaxation and yoga techniques to calm an anxious work force.

This article along with several others that I will be posting over the next several days is YOUR key to fitting exercise into your life.

To keep things organized and simple, the articles will be broken down into five easy sections:

Section 1: Assessing Physical Damage And Accepting the Importance of Exercise

Section 2: No Matter How Busy you Are, there are Ways you can Exercise

Section 3: Busy Traveler? You can Fit Exercise into your Trips (Which you are reading at this moment)

Section 4: Exercise Aids To Go

Section 5: Information / Resources for the Hurried and Harried

Read them in order, or if you wish, focus on the section that is most relevant to you right now. Regardless of how you choose to read these articles, you can be confident of one thing: once you apply the advice within these pages, your busy life will include something new and important: exercise!

If you’re like most people, you spend a lot of your day nailed to a desk. And when you actually do make the time to workout, you probably aren’t spending a lot of time keeping stretching.

Well that’s where a foam roller comes in. It’s a phenomenal corrective self-massage tool that will dramatically bolster injury prevention and improve performance. It’s ideal to use for at least five minutes post-workout to promote healing of the small micro-tears in your muscles that result from high-intensity training, which is a huge help to recovery. Plus, a foam roller both kneads out and lengthens your muscle and connective tissues thus alleviating, if not eliminating, nagging aches and pains in your back, knees, hips, shoulders, and elbows.

If you’re going to get a foam roller, get a good one. The cheaper options tend to wear down into a limp noodle for larger individuals after just a couple of months. I have had great success with the foam rollers from Perform Better. My brand of choice is The EVA Premium Foam Roller (about $30), it has stood up to regular use for a long time! You can get it here http://www.performbetter.com?kbid=2610.

2.) Resistance Bands

Resistance bands are by far the most simple, convenient, and affordable equipment option in the fitness industry. They supply total portability for killer workouts that can be done anywhere. If you are a busy professional who does a lot of traveling, bands are the perfect lightweight training tool to take your workouts with you on the road as they can fit in the smallest of bags without a problem. If you are a busy Mom looking to workout in the comfort of your own home, bands can make this happen too. Bands provide the perfect compliment to your body weight circuit training workouts for added variety, allow for multiple levels of resistance with practically zero transition and set-up time, are easy on the joints, and are fun to use!

Dave “The Might Band Man” Schmitz is the world’s premier resistance band training expert. This guy is a n unbelievable coach  who creates the most innovative workouts with bands that you’ll ever see. He has his own line of resistance bands that are virtually indestructible and I use them year round to crank it at home or on the road. To get the best bands in the business check out http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?af=885797

3.) A Gift Card to a Sporting Goods Store

You can’t beat a sporting goods store like Dick’s Sporting Goods to get some great fitness equipment and clothing.. I always recommend going with a gift card here because everybody has their own preferences, particularly when it comes to clothing sizes and styles.

4.) A Gift Card to Whole Foods, Trader Joes, or Other Premium Grocery Stores

Rather then another gift certificate to an overpriced restaurant, why not give a week’s worth of groceries to a an organic grocer like Trader Joe’s? After all, everybody’s got to eat, but how many of us actually eat the right stuff to support our fitness goals? You’ll be doing your loved ones a huge favor by introducing them to the wonderful world of a quality supermarket

5.) A Gift Card to a Massage Therapist

Most of us are crazy busy and super stressed out during the holiday season and nothing eases the tension like a good massage. This is about as can’t miss of a gift as it gets, unless you know someone who doesn’t like to be touched. It’s nice to be pampered on occasion, and though the foam roller I mentioned above can do wonders for the majority of your body, nothing can alleviate tension in your upper back, neck, and head like a good massage therapist! If you are in our local area, give Amy a ring over at http://chichestermassage.com/

6.) Supplements that Work: Protein Powders, Fish Oil, Multi-Vitamin

Forget the fat burners and wonder pills!  In my journey, I have found only three supplements to be a mandatory part of the optimal fat loss program: protein powders, fish oil, and multi-vitamin supplements.

Protein powders provide great liquid workout nutrition and a convenient meat alternative for on-the-go snacking. For a protein powder, look for a brand low in sugar and carbohydrates and with a mix of both whey and casein (fast and slow absorbing proteins). In my opinion, the best protein powder out there is made by Beverly International. You can get more info on this great company here: http://www.cr8health.com/beverly-international/

Fish oil, or more appropriately entitled an essential fatty acid (EFA) supplement, is critical to providing key omega 3’s to maximize overall health, performance, and body composition. Studies show that krill oil provides the most effective dosing of EFA’s.

A multi-vitamin provides keys vitamins and minerals that are tough to obtain unless your diet is near picture perfect. I don’t know about you, but I like to cover my bases when it comes to my health. Be sure to choose a multi-vitamin supplement that is made from whole foods rather than synthetic materials, in addition to being made specifically for your gender.

Check out VGF+25 and EFA Icon, both included in Prograde’s Health+ Package available at http://getfitnhbootcamp.getprograde.com/

7.) Sport-Specific Gift

This one’s pretty basic: if you want to give a great gift to an athlete then get them something unique that compliments their sport, whether it be fitness equipment, clothing, or both.

8.) A Gift Card to a Fitness Boot Camp

Boot camps provide a fun and exciting team environment that guarantee better results than one-on-one personal training for only a third of the cost… it’s a total no-brainer.

Look for a local fitness boot camp who wants you to take to current clients to be sure they have a solid reputation and a bunch of raving fans of people just like you. Plus, any good boot camp worth its weight offers free trials to all newcomers because they are so confident their program works that you’ll more than likely continue after a test-drive, This way there is typically no risk on your part… besides getting you butt kicked, in a good way

So join a fitness boot camp with at least one other friend or family member or buy a boot camp gift card to give to your loved ones. As a boot camp instructor myself, I know firsthand that clients always get better results when they embark on a fitness journey with others.

And if you live in the local Concord area, come work with us for the best personal training in New Hampshire by visiting http://GetFitNHbootcamp.com. You’ll get the most effective, addictive, and fun workout you’ve ever had!

Have a safe and happy Christmas season, and it make it your best year ever!

Nancy

I have just Been on a Chic Luxury fitness boot camp, we travelled to Bali we stayed in a Luxury 5 Star Hotel we were located right on the Beach

How I lost Weight in Luxury

I have just Been on a Chic Luxury fitness boot camp, located in Belize where we stayed in a fabulous 5 star Accommodation located right on the Beach.

One day we did yoga on the beach with the early moring sun very peaceful, then we had breakfast the trainers adviseed what was the healthies to eat, less carbohydrates was key, as these are sugars, which helps you gain weight. After breakfast we had a hr to let are food go down then a body core class on the beach to stregthen the core, which was great really helped get rid of my love handles!

After that class we had a shower ready for some lunch the hotel was top notch and the food was lovely, ate a lot of healthy food and felt healthier for it, a thumbs up so far for the Chic fitness boot camp.

One afternoon we went for a power walk along the beach mixed with some other exercise a real good all over body workout, it was all in total luxury we would be doing exercises on the beach, looking a multi million pound yahts, very impressive. On are fitness boot camp we had some top finance guys that had a hedge fund in new york very pleasent people, had a lovely couple who were property develpers in the uk, and some great brits who lived in the south of france.

We had our evening meal’s about 7:00 p m chatted about during the course of the day, and relaxed some or the other members, mentioned they had been on boot camps before, they said this camp was much better than any of the others that they attended, top quality instructors, luxury 5 star hotel, own private room,excellent food and the lovely location.

To finish off; the experience included great company, great people and a great fitness boot camp, will be booking again with my friend, have a look
Chic Fitness Boot Camp

Namely: actually learning how to become a travel agent.

Becoming a a travel agent really isn’t that difficult, if you follow the same formula so many before you have tried and tested.  Once you are an official “at home travel agent”, all of the studying and the preparation will prove more than worth it.

Here’s what you need to do to get started:

Choose a discipline

The Burger King motto is quickly becoming a way of life in the U.S.  Everybody wants “it” their way, and when they want it.

This is killing traditional business models that were geared to serving everybody with a “one size fits all approach”.  But it is making a fortune for those that are willing to focus and specialize on a particular niche.

So, your first step is to decide what you want to pursue as a travel professional.  You can get decide by the travel method, such as a cruise planning specialist.  Or, you can work by demographic, such as working with Italian-Americans or Bostonians…. or whatever.

The key is to find a focused group of people you can cater to with highly specific travel packages and highly relevant marketing efforts.

What’s better: School or Home Study?

They both hold their own merits.  Schooling at an actual “brick and mortar” establishment gives you a chance to network with your instructors and fellow students.  You also get to ask your questions to somebody standing right in front of you… to get an immediate answer.

The downside is that it is expensive and that the course material tends to be a bit outdated.  The travel industry is one of the fastest changing industries, and what’s important to know often changes before the curriculum dries on the paper.

With home study courses, you get to tap into the latest developments in the industry.  They also give you a well rounded approach that is usually based on real world experience. You never have to unlearn any theory that only works in the classroom.  When you finish the course you hit the ground running, ready to start making travel agent commissions from day one.

The downside is if you don’t have much self-discipline you won’t learn a lick.  The books won’t open and read themselves.

By the way…

Getting your travel agent training out of the way doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg.  There are plenty of inexpensive options out there, if you know where to look.

Personally, I’m a fan of the course materials offered over at Amazon.com.  Not only are they less expensive, they are incredibly in depth… covering everything you’ll need to know from A to Z.

You can find my top three recommendations in the link below.

Lose 30 In Thirty.

I recently went on a Chic Luxury fitness camp, we travelled to Maldives we stayed in a Luxury 5 Star Hotel we were located right on the Beach

Lose Weight on a Fitness Holiday

I had a amazing weight loss experience on a Chic Luxury fitness camp, we travelled to Belize where we we put up in a fabulous 5 star Accommodation located right on the Beach.

One day we did yoga on the beach with the early moring sun very peaceful, then we had breakfast the trainers adviseed what was the healthies to eat, less carbohydrates was key, as these are sugars, which helps you gain weight. After breakfast we had a hr to let are food go down then a body core class on the beach to stregthen the core, which was great really helped get rid of my love handles!
After that class we had a shower ready for some lunch the hotel was top notch and the food was lovely, ate a lot of healthy food and felt healthier for it, a thumbs up so far for the Chic fitness camp.

One afternoon we went for a power walk along the beach mixed with some other exercise a real good all over body workout, it was all in total luxury we would be doing exercises on the beach, looking a multi million pound yahts, very impressive. On are fitness camp we had some top finance guys that had a hedge fund in new york very pleasent people, had a lovely couple who were property develpers in the uk, and some great brits who lived in the south of france.

At about 7 o’clock in the evening, we had a great meal an chatted about during the course of the day, and relaxed some or the other members, mentioned they had been on boot camps before, they said this one wins hands down, top quality instructors, luxury 5 star hotel, own private room,excellent food and the lovely location.

To finish off; the experience included great company, great people and a great fitness camp, will be booking again with my friend, have a look
Chic Fitness Camp

Fitness For Weddings.

What are some things you lose (to your advantage) when you stop going to the gym?

1. Wasted time on travel and changing clothes

Well, you don’t have to drive to the gym anymore, so that cuts out travel time. And, you’re not changing in and out of street clothes into workout gear in the locker room, either.

2. Following the “sheep mentality”

When you work out in the gym, there’s something called the “sheep mentality” that can actually be to your disadvantage. Most people who work out at the gym do so because they want to fit into what infomercials and fitness magazines say they must do. That means when you go to the gym, it’s likely that you’re going to do what everyone else does instead of what’s truly beneficial for you.

Let’s take an example. Instead of doing hours of cardio, you can do several minutes of intense interval training and burn fat on your belly, hips and thighs that simply seems permanent.

The guys are no better, because they might work chest, bicep or ab muscles to “look good,” but they also take really long rests between upper body exercises. In other words, they could probably bench 300 pounds or more, but full range of motion push-ups using just their body weight is something they probably could NOT do.

Instead of doing what everyone else in the gym is doing, do something that really works. And, you can do this at home.

3. Waiting for your turn

When you’re at the gym, it’s likely that you spend a lot of time waiting around just to use a piece of equipment. In fact, 10 to 20 minutes of workout can be spent doing just that, when you could be doing something much more valuable. Not only is this bad for your workout momentum, but it actually is a detriment to your workout itself because you continually “warm up” and “cool down”. In addition, you are continually on a “stop and go” basis, which is completely counterproductive because what you really want to do is a work to rest ratio with an alternating set format. This will help you burn fat and lose weight fast, which is what most people want to do when they work out.

So instead of doing that, try this at home: do 50 seconds of work, and then 10 seconds of transition and rest. Incorporate that into a five-exercise total body strength circuit. You can’t do this in a gym, because there’s too much wait time. But you can do this at home. So get yourself a couple of good pieces of exercise equipment you’ll really use, and be in control of your own workout.

4. You can get sick at the gym

Let’s face it. People carry cold and flu (and leave their germs all over equipment) to the gym just like they do anyplace else. Yes, gym personnel try very hard to clean up the equipment, but at the end of the day, there’s only so much they can do and they can’t keep the gym sterile. So a better way to stay healthy is to work out at home, where the only germs you are going to encounter are your own.

5. Nasty people

Let’s face it. People can be annoying. You’re in your zone, working out, and someone wants to talk to you. What kind of way to get results is that? For a lot of people, going to the gym doesn’t mean “working out.” It means “socializing.” In addition, it’s not entirely pleasant to have someone watching you when you’re in the middle of your workouts. In fact, it can be downright irritating.

Worse yet is when someone asks you about your workout routine. If they’re so interested, they can pay for a trainer themselves. Heck, they’re even sometimes provided free with gym membership. So to avoid all of these annoyances, work out at home. It’ll save you time and headaches, too. Best of all, you can do it in just about 20 minutes.

6. Membership expenses

Gym memberships can be expensive. How much better would it be to invest in some good quality equipment that you only have to pay for once and then work out for free (beyond that initial cost) for years to come?

7. Broken equipment, or equipment that doesn’t do what it says it does

When you get your own equipment, you know it’s going to work the way you want it to, and be best for your body. Too often, gym machines don’t work the way they supposed to, or they’re completely useless. They can cause injury because your body moves in ways that it wasn’t designed to. Better to invest in some of your own equipment that you know Is going to work for you, and leave it at that.

8. No space to really train in

A lot of the time, gyms are filled up with oversized machines that take up all of the valuable floor space so that there’s no space to do “body only” exercises like lunges. Yet another reason to stay home.

9. Dependence on the facility

Much of the time, a gym forces you to become dependent on them. If you’re used to using certain machines, all of a sudden you’re not able to work out when you travel or can’t go to your home gym. Most people use that as an excuse to take some time off of their workouts until they get home, which can be killer for progress and consistency.

Instead, exercises that depend on your body weight let you exercise anywhere, anytime. You get the same results or better than those that you get at the gym, and you can do them anywhere.

10. Bad trainers

A lot of trainers really don’t know what they’re doing. Basically, agencies that may or may not be above board certify them. Typically, if you go to a gym, you’re in a “fitness factory.” The gym wants you to go in, stay a little bit, and then go out. They don’t care if you reach your fitness goals and they don’t want to build a relationship with you. They just want their quota, and you help fill that quota.

So instead of using a trainer that gets paid $60 an hour and who may or may not be truly qualified, invest in some good equipment and do the job yourself with just a little bit of “on-the-job” training.

More than that, though, you don’t need a one-hour workout. Gyms (and trainers) simply follow that spiel so as to fill an appointment schedule. It doesn’t have much of anything to do with fitness.

A better alternative is to join a boot camp for fitness in your area that’ll develop your community as a fit entity in its entirety. And that’s going to cost you probably about $20, as opposed to the $60 a personal trainer will charge you. If you can’t be disciplined in your workout at home, you can look for trainers using Workout Muse. Change your body, and change your life in less than half the time you typically spend with a trainer, about 30 minutes. And, best of all, this fitness schedule will keep you burning fat for the rest of the day.

So instead of trying to get yourself to go to the gym, set up your own workout space at home for very little cost. If you are dedicated enough, you won’t have any problem. If you need someone to help keep you disciplined, try working out with a buddy.

So avoid the gym, and start working out at home instead. You won’t be sorry, and you’ll see results very quickly, for very little money. No gym rats to be found. What could be better than that?