Golf is good for you
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If the thought of chasing a golf ball around a course seems a little silly to you, you may just be missing out on one of the world’s best forms of exercise. There are many reasons to consider giving golf a try, especially if you are looking for a way to lose weight. Golf is much more than a game, for many it is a pastime, and an outlet that allows them to find relaxation, better peace of mind and better health. Let’s look at just a few things that golf can do for you.
- Walking. Unless you are using a cart, golf is one of the best forms of exercise you could ask for. You’ll be walking more than 6,000 yards on most courses, which translates into roughly 3.4 miles. The best part is, it won’t really seem like that much because you do get a chance to stop, and you can set your own pace. Just playing golf once a week can offer you a way to easily get fit without even trying.
- Nothing beats fresh air and sunshine. Why slave away in the gym when you could be out enjoying the sunshine and the fresh air? Golf offers a great reason to get outside and take advantage of the benefits of getting sunlight for melatonin production that can leave you feeling more balanced and help you sleep better. Fresh air will also have a big impact on your overall well being and at the end of your day, chances are you will sleep like a baby.
- Burning Calories. Due to the fact that you will not only be walking several miles, but pulling a golf cart and actually playing, this is one of the best sports for burning calories. We’ve found a great utility that will help you keep track of how many calories you burn with each outing. The Gmap Pedometer allows you to enter in the golf course where you will be playing and track the entire route. The calorie counting option will take into account how much you weigh and display just how many calories you burned. This is terrific motivation!
- Friendship. If you are looking to make some new friends, golf is a very social sport that will open up new horizons for you. This is a great way to network with a support system that will help you stay on track with your weight loss goals and you can make some terrific life-long friendships while you are at it.
- It’s just plain fun. At the end of the day, despite all of these great health benefits, golf is just a lot of fun to play. That means that you’ll be getting exercise without even really knowing it, and you may even find yourself looking forward to your next outing. This contrasts sharply with dragging yourself to the gym for another torture session.
These are just a few of the many health benefits you can reap from playing golf. Give it a try today and see just how much fun you can have and how much better you will feel.
If you are looking for a discount golf equipment please consider starting you search at the Golf Course Ladder store.
Photo Credit: dskciado
This post deals with:
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Posted by Lazy Man on September 9, 2008
in Exercise.
As people age it can become more difficult to stay fit, especially if your life keeps you very busy. Many empty-nesters quickly find that once they are no longer chasing the children around, those extra pounds pile up all too quickly. Perhaps this is what Tough Money Love before he lost 52 pounds and turned his health around. While there is a common consensus among many people that middle-age equals weight gain, this does not have to be the case. There are many different ways that you can stay fit well past middle age.
Three Tips for Staying Fit
- The first thing you can do is to come up with an easy fitness plan that will work with your schedule and with your personal tastes. It doesn’t have to be complicated, and in fact something as simple as walking every night can have a big impact on your health. There are many different little ways to get exercise throughout the day so that it won’t interfere with your schedule. Try out several different types of exercises to see which one will suit your particular needs the best.
- Next you can work on making small dietary changes that will support your efforts with extra exercise. Although fast food is certainly well ingrained in consumer consciousness, the fact remains that it is not the healthiest food you can eat. In many cases you may have to sacrifice a small amount of convenience in order to eat the foods that will help you stay fit. Try cutting out just one fast food meal a week and you can easily start seeing weight loss results.
- Another key to staying fit past middle age is to develop a network of like-minded friends. It is much easier to keep exercising when you have the support of friends to keep you going. There is a lot to be said for having an exercise buddy and in many cases you can actually form a little exercise group. Whether you get together to go to the gym or simply walk around the park, having a support network with you can keep you motivated to stay on your exercise plan.
One of the biggest problems for many people once they reach middle age is the fact that their hormones start to work against them. When you couple this with a lack of exercise and a poor diet this can easily spell trouble with weight gain. While there is not much you can do to beat the natural course of aging, there are ways that you can combat the effects that hormones and aging can have on your body.
As we get older our caloric needs change. The amount of calories you need every day for basic survival will drop off significantly each year. It is a good idea to calculate your basal metabolism needs to see just how many calories you need each day. This should be done once a year to keep on top of the natural reduction in the amount of calories that your body requires for basic functions. When you are aware of this it is a lot easier to either ramp up your exercise efforts or cut back a little on certain foods.
This post deals with:
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Posted by Lazy Man on September 8, 2008
in Exercise, Nutrition.
For those interested in resistance training, bands have become incredibly popular and for many, this is a great way to get fit. If you don’t want to have to bother with clunky free weights, or your budget won’t allow a weight machine, this little GoFit Ultimate ProGym with DVD
may be the perfect answer. It includes three resistance bands, ranging from five to fifteen pounds, as well as an instructional DVD that will show you how to attach them to a doorknob for your workout.
I found the bands to be of pretty decent quality, and liked the fact that the handles were removable. One major problem however is that the bands are not labeled and the documentation does not indicate which is which. You’ll have to figure this out on your own and there is simply not a lot of help to be found on this question. This seems to be a problem that plagues this entire set.
Popping in the DVD did not offer much help either. The quality was surprisingly poor and the instructor was not very helpful. Since you will need to attach these bands to a doorknob, it’s pretty important to make sure that you are doing it correctly, otherwise, there is the potential that someone could injure themselves. Add this to the fact that the bands aren’t labeled and you have a recipe for a mini-disaster.
The included instructional booklet is even worse than the DVD. If you can see the images, good luck. It may have just been the copy I received, but everything was quite blurry and the instructions were just not complete. All of this aside however, I will give the company points for at least making some nice bands and the handles are actually pretty useful.
The DVD should not be used as a workout tool, since it is basically a quick run through about how to set up the bands (even if it did fail miserably.) If you are expecting a workout to go along with the bands, once again you will be pretty disappointed. It is a shame really, since there was a lot of potential here to put together a really good product that would be incredibly useful for many people. The company fell short of that by a mile, and although the bands are decent, it’s tough to really get behind this one due to its many shortcomings.
If you are completely new to working with bands, this product may disappoint you. The overall lack of guidance and information is frustrating for those that are just getting started. However, if you do train with bands already and are a looking for a great way to continue that training at home, the package is certainly worth it. The bands are priced well and you can simply chuck the DVD out the window. Definitely not for beginners, but a nice product for those that already know what they are doing.
This post deals with:
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Posted by Lazy Man on September 5, 2008
in Review.
Squats are fun!
Squats are perhaps one of the most misunderstood strength training exercises. They can be very beneficial if done properly, but there are a lot of misconceptions out there. If you’re not doings squats the right way, you can risk painful injury and you won’t be getting the full benefit of the exercise. Here are some tips on how to make sure you are doing squats the right way.
First, let’s talk about your posture. When you’ve got the bar behind your back, where are you looking? If you’re looking down, your back will be slightly rounded. If you’re looking up, your neck will start to strain. Both positions are wrong. Look straight ahead and make sure that your shoulders are square. You should be completely aligned with the bar behind you, feeling equal pressure on both shoulder blades.
You may need to check yourself as you go down and come back up. Once again, look straight forward and resist the urge to look down when you’re on the way down and up when you’re lifting the weight back up. This will result in either a neck injury or a knee injury if you do not keep your posture in the correct position. Adjust slightly and try to keep as centered as possible.
Next, it’s important to make sure that your knees are in the correct position. This is hard to do without looking down, so we recommend getting into the right position without the weight and doing a few stretches. Your knees should never cross your toes. Keep doing this until you get the feel for being either too far forward or too far back. This will help you make corrections without looking when you’re actually lifting.
Now, before we go any further, one of the most common squat misconceptions is that it is better to stop before your knees are fully flexed. In reality, this can lead to injury. Your knees are strongest when they are either fully flexed or fully straight. Stopping in between puts excess stress on your joints and will be painful.
It is also very important to remember that safety has to come first. If you are new to lifting in general or you have never done squats with weights before, you will need to work up to your capacity slowly. Add a little more weight every day until you get to the point where you should be. It’s better to go slow and avoid injury than to rush. You’ll also want to pace yourself. You may not be able to do twenty reps your first time out.
Squats are incredibly beneficial for your body and they will give your entire body a workout, if you are doing them correctly. Always remember to stretch before and after squatting to avoid injuring your knee or hip muscles. Make the right adjustments to your posture before adding the weight. If in doubt, use a Power Rack until you are more confident.
This post deals with:
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Posted by Lazy Man on September 4, 2008
in Exercise.
I'm going to kick your blocks off
While most of us understand that exercise is vital, particularly if you want to lose weight, it’s getting there that can be the problem. Whether you can’t find the right motivation or you are simply stuck wondering what exercises are right for you, there are many stumbling blocks they can keep us from reaching our goals. Regardless of the reasons you aren’t exercising there are ways you can demolish those stumbling blocks, and start reaping the benefits that exercise can bring you.
- No more excuses - The first word that you have to take out your vocabulary is “but.” Every time you find yourself saying “but I…”, stop yourself and demolish that stumbling block. One of the main keys to a successful exercise program is cutting out the negative thinking. By realizing that you can and that there are no excuses you can find that inner motivation that will help you stay committed to getting fit.
- Find the time - Another common reason that people fail to exercise, is simply due to their busy schedules. However, even the busiest person can spare half an hour or even three blocks of 10 minutes every day. Think of how much time you waste and compare that to the time that could be spent getting healthy. It’s a good idea to keep a logbook of your entire day and see just how much time you to waste. Chances are you be surprised at how much free time you could have for exercise.
- Get past body image issues - If you are out of shape the thought of going to a gym can be incredibly embarrassing. No one wants to be the center of attention and it is easy to think that if you do go everyone will be staring at you. The truth is most people are there for the same reasons you are and everyone has to start somewhere. If this is truly a problem for you consider finding ways to exercise at home until you get to that point where you are comfortable exercising in front of people at the gym
- Set attainable goals - No matter how much weight you need to lose is easy to get a little discouraged thinking that you will never reach your goals. One way to get around this stumbling block is to work on setting smaller goals that are much easier to attain. Try to avoid basing these small goals on numbers on the scale. If you can start small, chances are you will notice that results you may be surprised at how quickly they occur.
Once you get over your stumbling blocks the rest of the pieces of the puzzle will fall into place when it comes to exercising. In fact, if you get a chance, you may even find that you actually like exercising, especially when you start to see the results and you start to feel better. The endorphins should definitely kick in at some point. The first step however is getting rid of all the reasons you use to avoid getting to that place.
Photo Credit: Yogi
This post deals with:
... and focuses on:
Posted by Lazy Man on September 3, 2008
in Motivation.
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