My girlfriend and I just returned from a 10 day vacation in Costa Rica. As always when planning my trip I took in to account what kind of exercise I was going to get while I was there. Initially I was going to take along some of my smaller home exercise equipment thatI can fit in my luggage like exercise bands and perfect pushups. Unfortunately there was a problem with that.
While in Costa Rica we were scheduled to fly to different destinations via a small plane witha company call Nature Air. These planes are very small and only seat about 10-15 people. Along with limited space and weight for people, there is also limited weight and space for luggage. We were told that we could only have 25lbs of luggage per person before we left. So that meant, we only took small pieces of luggage and limited amount of personal items which unfortunately didn’t include exercise equipment.
Have you ever gone on a 10 day trip with nothing but a carry on sized suitcase. Needless to say you can’t fit a whole lot in there.
We spent very little time in populated areas, but there were in fact gyms in every little town that we passed through. We flew in to San Jose and stayed outside the city the first night we arrived. San Jose is packed with gyms which included national gym chains such as World Gym, Life Fitness and of course the Mecca Gold’s Gym. On a walk through downtown Quepos we spotted 2 gyms, one of which was fairly big and had everything including a boxing gym.
Since most of our trip was spent in the very remote areas of Costa Rica like the Osa Peninsula, we had to be creative with our workouts. Actually, it did take much thought as we were hiking through the rain forest most of the time. With a back pack loaded with 4 liters of water, a first aid kit, some energy bars and a few other personal items for our few hour to a whole day hike, there was not much else needed for exercise. Intense hikes through the rain forests, national parks, up to the Arenal volcano and beaches in the heat and humidity is surely good for keeping in shape!
With the intense all day hiking trips and a diet filled with fresh fruits and vegetables locally grown, we felt like pillars of health by the time we left. In fact, I am sure that I burned a couple percentages of body fat while there.
How do I get rid of this spare tire? Well, it’s not an overnight choir, it’s a long term goal, but you will realize the results in 4 weeks.
If you don’t have time or the equipment you can be creative. I am going to share something that is easy to do without the effort of going to the gym or buying expensive abdominal equipment. The best place to work on your stomach muscles is in your bed, yes I said bed! The bed provides the benefit of less strain on your lower back and more muscle groups to attack.
How do I utilize this approach?
1. Lay in your bed with a pillow under your knees, keeping your knees approximately 6 inches off the bed.
2. Bed Crunch: This builds upper abdominal muscles. Raise your upper body 6 to 8 inches from your bed with your chin close to your chest and hold it for 5 seconds. You should start to feel tremors in your stomach area. This is the beginning of the ultimate stomach burn. Make sure you feel the tremor.
3. Perform 3 sets with each set at 10 repetitions per day.
4. Leg Rises: This will build your lower abdominal muscles. Sit down on your bed naturally and lay back. Raise your legs until they’re about 10 to 12 inches above the bed. Hold each leg raise for a count of 5 seconds with your legs together, than open your legs and do another count of 5 seconds. Repeat this for 3 sets at 5 repetitions per set. It’s important that you feel the tremor or burning, if not lower your legs slightly until you feel that shake.
You can accomplish this exercise all in the comforts of your bed without any expensive equipment. Remember muscle burns calories!
Joggers have it made. Not only do they tend to weigh less, be nonsmokers, have fewer chronic health problems and enjoy better overall health than their non-jogging peers, they have stronger bones as well.
These are the findings of a recent study of 4,254 black, Mexican-American and white males that took part in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
Those who reported jogging at least once per month (about 900 men) had higher bone density than their sedentary counterparts. And those who jogged nine or more times per month had the greatest bone density.
In this case, more may not necessarily be better, as those who reported jogging 20 or more times per month had about the same bone density as less frequent joggers.
In a recent study, British researchers confirmed that some exercise is better than nothing.
Researchers found that for sedentary people, even a few minutes of daily stair climbing - a vigorous but easily accessible form of exercise - can improve cardiovascular health.
Previous studies have shown that accumulating short bouts of exercise can make a difference; this one shows just how short those bouts can be.
Twenty-two sedentary college-aged women walked up 199 steps - more than you’re likely to find at home, but doable in a high-rise - in 2.25 minutes, a “brisk but comfortable” pace which shot their heart rates up to 90 percent of their predicted maximum.
They progressed from one ascent per day during the first week to six ascents per day, for a total of 13.5 minutes over the course of a day, during the sixth and seventh weeks.
By the end of this modest exercise program, the women were measurably more fit: Heart rate, oxygen uptake and blood lactate levels during climbing were reduced, and their HDL (”good”) cholesterol levels had increased.
