Fitness4Her

Women's Fitness

Summer Shape Ups That Keep You Fit All Year

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The number one exercise that gives lots of summer pleasure has got to be swimming. So refreshing on a hot summer day, a dive in the pool can cool you down and wash away all your stress. Swimming works all your major muscle groups without putting any stress on your joints. An important benefit for anyone who has knee or back problems.

Depending on your weight, one hour of swimming can burn anywhere from 600 to a whopping 1000 calories. Of course, most people don’t swim consistently for an hour, but there are other fun activities that you can do in the pool.

Playing pool volleyball, having relay race laps or just doing kicks on the side of the pool can help you burn calories and work those muscles. An activity that can be enjoyed by the whole family, swimming and water sports are great for helping you to shape up for the summer. Find an indoor pool at a gym near you so you can stay fit all year.

A day of active swimming means a peaceful night of sleep. Whether swimming in a pool, lake or beach, a full day of water fun helps me sleep like a baby. Swimming provides a great benefit for your cardiovascular and respiratory systems and improves your coordination and flexibility.

Long walks on the beach will burn calories and help you to unwind after a long week. Enjoy the ocean breezes as you treasure hunt along the shore but don’t stroll too slowly. Walk as fast as you can in one direction and slow down on your trip back to search for seashells, shark’s teeth or colorful sea glass.

Water skiing and jet skiing are excellent water sports that burn lots of calories. Both require balance and engage the core muscles while working the glutes, quads and hamstrings as well as your upper body. You’ll build your arms quickly with these fun activities.

The long days of summer offer more daylight for evening activities, like tennis. Playing tennis can burn 600 to 800 calories per hour. You get a complete body workout, with this cardio activity that works your major muscle groups and improves cardio and respiratory functions. Tennis increases stamina, coordination and keeps your body flexible. It’s a great game that can keep you fit all year.

Slim For Life

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You can be slim for the rest of your life when you make fitness a top priority. Imagine never having to worry about your weight, never having to feel awkward about your size. If you have been struggling with your weight and searching for a solution to slimming down, I have good news for you. Fitness will keep you slim for the rest of your life.

If you burn more calories than you eat, then you will lose weight. If exercise is a regular part of your schedule and fitness has a firm footing in your life, then you will never have to worry about gaining weight again.

Most women, if they were active when they were young, weren’t plagued by sudden weight gain. But as we grow older, we become less active and as a result our bodies burn fewer calories. Our metabolism slows and it becomes harder to lose the weight once we gain it. However, we can turn back the clock and train our bodies to start burning calories again. Exercise is the key.

A combination of resistance and cardio exercises is a must for any fitness program. Resistance exercises build muscle, increase flexibility and burn calories. Keeping your body in shape with resistance exercises will probably mean less chance of injury when you perform a task that your body isn’t accustomed to. Staying agile through exercises such as yoga or Pilates is also a great way to keep your body long and lean. Each exercise works various muscle groups, to lengthen and strengthen your muscles, organs and improve your health to make you healthier mentally, physically and spiritually.

Cardio exercises burn even more calories and improve heart functions as well as building stamina. Your heart is strengthened through cardiovascular exercise and these exercises also burn calories to help you lose weight. Building your cardiovascular strength means it will be much easier to complete every day tasks without fatigue as well as those unusual times when you may need extra strength to accomplish a new challenge.

Confusing your muscle groups is a great way to build strength and tone your muscles too. Keeping your muscles confused will help them to work harder. Between sets of your resistance exercises, take a minute and run in place, do jumping jacks, jump rope or hop on a treadmill or an elliptical machine. Reversing exercises, walking backwards, running backwards, working your biceps and your triceps are all great ways to train opposite areas of your muscles to keep you slim for life.

Why Fitness Is Important For Women

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For centuries, women never concerned themselves with fitness or staying active. They dieted to lose weight and the most exercise they got came from chasing their children. There were of course, exceptions to this rule. There were women who participated in physical games with their kids or maybe a bike ride with their husbands. But for the most part, women, once they were grown, didn’t make it a point to exercise. Only a few women understood why fitness is important to women.

Today, women are beginning to consider fitness and exercise an important part of staying healthy. As information becomes available about the benefits of exercise and the dangers of a sedentary lifestyle, women are paying close attention and doing something about it. They are making fitness a higher priority in their lives.

With a workforce of women earning nearly as much or more than their male counterparts, women have been plagued by many of the health problems that men have encountered for years. Women are often in higher managerial positions now and stress related illnesses and diseases associated with certain lifestyles have increased for women. Fighting off these life-threatening diseases is one more reason why fitness is important for women.

Staying physically fit helps to strengthen the heart, respiratory and mental functions. Studies have shown a direct link between fitness and brain function. By sticking to a regular fitness program, women in decision-making positions find it easier to perform their jobs and will be able to better deal with the stress.

Fitness is important for all women, regardless of their occupation. Whether reaching up while stacking shelves or bending down to pick up children, women use large and small muscles throughout their bodies to do every day tasks. Staying physically fit can aid in every moves made throughout the day.

Regular physical activity includes a combination of resistance and cardio exercises. Be sure to mix it up to get maximum results during each workout. Cardio activities raise the heartbeat and help the body to burn calories. Choose activities that you enjoy like walking, jogging, swimming, or cycling, for starters.

Women are busier today than ever and many may think they don’t have time for exercise. 30 minutes of exercise each day is all it takes to stay in shape. You don’t have to spend hours at the gym—just commit to exercising at least 30 minutes a day and reap the full benefits of fitness.

Imagine a Slimmer You

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Most women who are trying to lose weight have an idea of how they want their body to look. They imagine themselves as a slimmer version. This visualization helps to define how they want to change their body and sets a goal for the brain to follow. The more a person engages in this type of visualization, the better chance they have for reaching their goals.

Imagine a slimmer you and keep your imagination stimulated with lots of visual aides. If you have old photographs of yourself in a slimmer body, put them in frames and place them in areas where you will see them often. If you don’t have photos of yourself, choose images of women who have figures that you admire. These visual reminders will help to keep your imagination vivid.

When top athletes enter the ring, many of them use visualization. Either, due to the fact that they have been there before or because they have totally imagined the scenario and practiced their reactions, the act of visualization allows these athletes to perform under pressure with spectacular results. The same can apply for women who want to take their workout to the next level. Imagine the exercise, visualize the muscle groups that will be engaged and plan your reaction to the resistance of the challenge.

For the brain, this act of visualization is almost the same as if you had actually done this task before. You imagine the exercise and the muscles being used and you see yourself doing all of the reps and sets suggested. If you visualize each step before actually executing these moves, your success rate will soar.

There are so many possibilities when you practice visualization. It can boost your ability to achieve many of your goals, help you to reduce stress and benefit your relationships with others. Any ideas you have must first start with visualization.

Along with imagining a slimmer you, you will want to visualize living a healthier, more active lifestyle. You will want to focus on eating healthy foods and exercising regularly. Women’s fitness requires much more than imagination. It requires the commitment, dedication and perseverance to make positive lifelong changes in diet and exercise.

Early To Bed And Plenty Of Rest

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Rest is essential for women who want to be healthy and fit. Most people require 7 to 10 hours of sleep each day to reach their full potential. Not only is the amount of sleep important for optimum health, research has shown the time of day that we retire is also very important. Sleep experts say that if you go to bed early and wake up early, you will experience better restorative sleep, allowing you to be more productive during the day.

For me, rising early means quiet time at my house. I use this time for my affirmations, journaling, goal-setting and planning my day. It’s a great time to exercise, go for a morning jog or do some resistance exercises in my living room. What I enjoy most about rising early is that it gives me time to focus on my goals and take control over my life. Planning healthy meals is also easy when I inventory my supplies first thing in the morning. This way I ensure that I have all the ingredients I need for healthy, satisfying meals. I have found this to be a good way to avoid the temptations of fast foods when I am hungry for a quick meal.

If you have trouble going to bed early, try going to bed each night just 5 minutes earlier. Continue this for a full week, and you will soon be retiring 35 minutes earlier. Try reading something enjoyable to help you get ready for rest. Studies have found that reading is a much more relaxing prior to bedtime than television watching. However, if you enjoy watching a little television before retiring that works too. Just try to stay away from viewing shows that tend to excite or aggravate you, as this may interfere with your sleep.

Another great pastime before going to bed is making love. Sex is the perfect way to relax and exhaust your body physically and mentally. It has been attributed to deep and restful sleep and will benefit both you and your partner.

Your bed and bedroom are also important for restful sleep. A comfortable bed and a cool and relaxing bedroom, free of distractions will help you sleep like a baby. Get to bed early and arise each day with enough time to exercise, write in your journal and eat a healthy breakfast.