International Fitness Tour

April 2024
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Treadmill Workouts to Add Variety, Kick Boredom

Treadmills can be a godsend when there’s snow and ice, or when you don’t have time to run or walk during daylight hours, or just don’t have a safe, suitable place to do so. But, they can also bore you to tears and sabotage your workouts. Here are three great ways to add some variety and stave off boredom.

Interval Training

There are several great things about interval training, both from a fitness standpoint and in terms of staying entertained. Interval training is when you alternate between brief bursts of increased intensity and longer periods of recovery, or less intensity. On the treadmill, you can do this either by increasing your speed, or by increasing the incline, to make your activity more or less challenging. Try alternating between the two, either within a workout or between workouts.

This not only gives you a better cardiovascular workout and a better calorie burn, but also gives you something else to focus on besides just putting one foot in front of the other. One of my favorite ways to do intervals on the treadmill? I pick up the pace during commercials, either on the radio or on television. This is great, unless you don’t have access to either at your treadmill or you’re listening to public radio. Another alternative is to watch the clock; you might want to jog easy for four minutes, and speed up for one. Or, just play it by ear. When you feel ready to really hit it, go for it, and dial it down when you need to. Above all, really the only rule here is to tailor your intervals to your level of fitness. Make your intense intervals challenging for you, not what you think you should be able to do.

Fun With MP3 Players

Podcasts are one of the best tools out there to add variety & entertainment to your tread mill workouts. If you go to the iTunes Store, click on Podcasts, and search for running, the options abound. For example, Running Mate is a free podcast that guides you through various intervals set to upbeat music. Podrunner is great for this as well, and is also free.

Or, perhaps you’d simply like to add some learning to your time on the treadmill? The podcasts from How Stuff Works, such as Stuff You Should Know and Stuff You Missed In History Class, are fantastic. There …

Parenting: Being a Stay-At-Home Mother

In defense of stay-at-home mothers. While my children were growing up, I was a stay-at-home mother. Often times, people would ask me what I did for work. When I said that I didn’t work outside of the home it seems the conversation had immediately lost interest and was dropped. It was as if I suddenly became a “lesser” person just because I didn’t have a “job” or bring home a paycheque. But to me, doing without some luxuries and that extra cheque, was far less important than the “job” I was doing….looking after my children!

WEIGHING OUT THE PROS AND CONS of stay-at-home parenting.

If you’re only working so that you can afford all those little “extras” in life, I definitely think that stay-at-home parenting is the best option. Yes, some mothers do have to work due to extenuating circumstances in their lives. When a mother is single and working just to pay for rent/mortgage on her own, or if married and her husband is working a lower paying job, then it is probably a necessity for her to work.

However, it’s a fact that there are so many instances of mothers working only so they can have that extra SUV in the driveway, or the 3,000 square foot luxury home, the yearly expensive holidays, trips to the spa, and/or all the trappings of a modern, stylish life. I would add here, that it would be at the expense of their children. Yes, I am probably sounding harsh to those very mothers, but is it that important to have so much material wealth, taking valuable time away from your children, leaving their upbringing to the care of strangers or day care centers? If a young toddler were able to have their say, I am certain that they would vote to have their mothers at home with them, and probably settle for less toys and fancy, brand name clothes. These things hold no value or desire to a child!

There was a time in history when the parents had to work to literally put a meal on the table. Fortunately, in this day and age, North Americans are doing quite well, that there is usually a little money left over for the finer things in life. It depends on how many of these finer things you think you need to have. Priorities need to be put into perspective.

LIVING WITH LESS…

How to Create Workout Routines in Nintendo Wii Fit Plus

If you have a Nintendo Wii Fit Plus, you can create routines to customize your daily workout. Wii Fit provides a variety of different exercises that you can use to create a workout routine that will help you to reach your fitness goals. Wii Fit routines cycle through the exercises automatically so that you don’t have to manually select exercises. This can help you to burn more calories and build strength faster. If you already have a Wii Fit balance board with the original disc, you can access the Wii Fit Plus Routines feature by purchasing a Wii Fit Plus disc.

To get started, place your Wii Fit Plus disc into the Nintendo Wii game console. Select the “Disc Channel” with the “A” button on your Wii remote, then select your Mii. Select “Start.” Select the “Training” button and press “A.” Select “My Wii Fit Plus.”

Creating Workout Routines with Wii Fit Plus Routines

In “My Wii Fit Plus,” select “My Wii Fit Plus” with your Wii remote control. You can select from four different categories to create you Wii Fit Plus workout routine. “Lifestyle” includes a warm up, shoulder and back exercises and a relaxation exercise. “Health” includes three exercises to help you lose weight. “Youth” has exercises for posture, mind and body and legs and hips. “Form” includes exercises that target the hips, arms and whole figure. Each selection contains three exercises whose order can’t be rearranged. Select “Start” to begin your chosen workout routine.

One of the best ways to create a Wii Fit workout routine is to select the “Combine” button. This will give you access to all four workout routine categories. Always start with “Warm Up.” Then add an exercise that will help you reach your fitness goals. It’s best to alternate between categories as you add exercises to your Wii Fit workout routine. Also vary the part of the body to be exercised each time you add an exercise to your Wii Fit workout routine. For example, you could choose “Tummy,” “Posture,” “Arms,” “Legs and Hips,” “Leaner Mii” and “Hips.” Finish your Wii Fit Workout Routine with “Relax.” Start out with “One at a time,” then as you build more strength and stamina, try moving up to “Two at a time” or “Three at a time.”

Creating Workout Routines with My Routine in Wii Fit Plus

In “My Wii Fit Plus,” select “My Routine.” …

Infrared Portable Sauna – Health on the Go

We all want a healthy lifestyle. But with the hectic schedules, time will not simply permit us to get that regular exercise and even that relaxing visit to the spa and sauna. The benefits of saunas have been proven and widely documented. Surely there is a sound reason why humans have used sweat baths as early as the Stone Age! Sweating will not only keep the skin soft and smooth, it also flushes out toxins and promotes an overall health improvement. However, there are major drawbacks for sauna enthusiasts, and this is the accessibility and convenience of scheduling a sauna visit (unless you have one at home). With the availability of Infrared Portable Sauna in the market, saunas nowadays have been more than accessible; you can even take it anywhere.

Like its namesake infrared portable saunas is heated using an invisible light, Far Infrared (FIR). Far Infrared, uses the same heating mechanism as the sun, unlike any other heat source warms people and other objects without warming the air molecules around. Far Infrared’s heat passes through body tissues, effectively promoting better blood circulation and digestion, healing and breaks down dangerous toxins.

There are 2 kinds of portable saunas available in the market today, the folding box-like apparatus that one person can use and sit in. The other being is the pre-made, pre-built into your home that you can take if and whenever you decide to move into a new home, but not take it on a weekend getaway.

The folding sauna easily collapses into a manageable compact package and can be set up as easily in any place as well. With no need for special set-ups, plumbing or electrical wiring, the foldable portable sauna is so far the most practical, manageable, and economical infrared portable sauna you can get in the market today. Another advantage is the ingenuity of this sauna itself. You will only have to sit down on it with your hands and head protruding from the unit since the device has integrated slits for your hands and head. Giving you access to do some other stuff you normally cannot do in a regular sauna.

Meanwhile, a pre-built sauna gives you the effect of being in a “real” sauna. But since you can have this kind of infrared portable sauna installed in your very own home, office or place of choice, it saves you the hassle of having …

PowerHouse Gyms Opens Its Doors in Joplin, Missouri

Powerhouse Gyms have been in business for 30 years now. Powerhouse Gyms are located in 39 states in America, so it is one of the largest chains in fitness clubs. Joplin, MO was blessed with their Powerhouse Gym a few years back. Located very conveniently at 530 S. NorthPark Lane, Powerhouse Gym is home to people with many different fitness levels and many reasons for carrying memberships. Rather you are a couch potato with inspiration of a healthier life, or the fittest of the fit, Powerhouse has the equipment for you. And, with staff that help with accountability and encouragement, the road to a better you is made a bit smoother.

State of the art work out equipment is what is featuring inside Joplin, Missouri’s Powerhouse. With an educated staff to help introduce you to every machine, you can rest assured that you are getting the most effective workout possible.

Don’t want to make a drive to the gym everyday? Powerhouse has you covered. Sign up for online gym through them, and they will provide you all the necessary tools needed for a successful home-based training. From food and nutrition, to stretches and a workout routine, this online program gives you everything needed for the results requested by you, all the while in the comfort of your own home.

Powerhouse Gym in Joplin, Missouri offers two ways to try out their services. One option consists of a free three day pass to the gym. Check out all the exercise machines and classes available. Then, of course, if you think the Gym is a good fit, simply sign up for a monthly paid membership. If not, then you are free to leave with no obligations for membership. Another option is a great offer as well, a free, two-week trial to the online fitness program. This allows you to create an online account, and log in at your convenience, and browse through all the options listed for your optimum results from diet and exercise. Sign up for both free trials, and see which platform works better in your lifestyle. Find the right fit, sign up, and apply yourself to stick with the program. Motivate yourself, and find extra motivation and see how they are helpful to help hold you accountable for the goals you have set for yourself.

Contact Joplin’s Powerhouse Gym today at 417-624-3224 for more information. Or, feel free to …

The Health Effects of BPA Go Back to the Womb

Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical used to make the plastic items people use everyday, has been in the news recently as people express concerns about its health effects. It’s hard to completely avoid BPA since it’s found in plastic bottles and containers used to store food – and even lines the inside of metal cans. Now, a new study shows that the effects of bisphenol A on health could go way back – all the way back to the womb.

The Health Effects of BPA

In a study published in the journal Hormones and Cancer, researchers discovered that mice exposed to BPA while in the womb produced higher levels of a protein called EZH2 – which increases the risk of breast cancer in humans. They also found that DES, another chemical, caused a similar increase in expression of this protein.

Like BPA, DES is an endocrine disrupter; a chemical that alters the reproductive hormones produced naturally by the body and increases the risk of abnormalities of the reproductive tract and cancer. When exposure to endocrine disrupters occurs early in life when the endocrine system is still developing, the damage can be permanent.

In this study, once mice were exposed to the effects of bisphenol A in the womb, their mammary glands continued to produce higher levels of the EZH2 protein that increases the risk of breast cancer – even when they reached adulthood. Researchers believe that exposure to endocrine disrupters such as bisphenol A and DES early in life, even while in the womb, alters breast architecture in such a way so as to predispose an animal, and possibly people, to developing breast cancer later on.

Even though this study was done in mice, the results were compelling enough that experts are suggesting that women who could have been exposed to BPA in the womb be monitored more closely for signs of breast cancer.

Endocrine Disrupters are Everywhere

It’s hard to escape the effects of endocrine disrupters such as BPA. The health effects of BPA have only recently started to be recognized. When you consider the widespread use of plastic bottles, containers, and cans containing bisphenol A are, you can assume that most people have had a significant amount exposure to this chemical. BPA and DES aren’t the only endocrine disrupters. These hormone disrupting chemicals are found in many consumer products including cosmetics, in household products, pesticides, and in the …

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