by robert on October 28, 2009
There is a good reason why boxing has become enormously popular in fitness circles. A one hour boxing workout has the potential to burn upwards of 700 calories. That is an absolutely enormous amount and someone that attends class three times a week can end up getting ripped in no time. However, there are still those a little leery about venturing into a boxing workout. After all, are not all boxers tough guys and do you not risk getting hurt when taking part in a boxing class?
The answer here is that you do need to be tough when training for boxing competitions. When you train to get in great shape, there is no “toughness or resiliency scale” required as a prerequisite for training. A hobbyist exercise based boxing class will center on equipment training designed to promote fat burn and lean muscle mass development. It is not about getting hit.
The bulk of a cardio class involves using traditional boxing equipment for the purpose of resistance. You cannot just punch in the air like so many cardio kickboxing classes and hope to see the great results you would experience with equipment. Hitting a heavy bag, for example, is designed to help greatly expand your endurance and cardio vascular conditioning. It requires more effort to hit a bag hard than it would when you merely wave your arms in the air. Hitting a heavy bag will burn a lot more calories than just shadow boxing or performing boxing aerobics. The same can be said of focus mitt training, speed bag training, and double end bag training.
When you opt to enter a fitness boxing program, there will are no mandatory requirements to spar so you can completely avoid this phase if you wish. In short, you can take part in a high intensity exercise program that delivers results with no risk of injury. So, no, you do not have to be a proverbial tough guy or gal to take part in a boxing fitness program.
by tracy on October 16, 2009
Avoid steroids. There are safe ways to encourage muscle development. Don’t fall for an instant answer to building muscles by using drugs. They can be illegal and are certainly unhealthy.
Don’t overdo. Muscle develops when you tax a muscle group and then give your body time to repair tiny tears in the muscle caused by taxing. Each workout requires a rest period for muscle to build. Constantly lifting will negate this process and you won’t get the results you want.
Use good form. Go slow, keep your balance, stay flexible and concentrate on each movement, allowing full range of motion with each repetition.
Avoid watching guys in the gym and copying them. This will get you set into bad habits, causing injuries and not giving you the results you want.
Avoid reading bodybuilding magazines that sponsor various supplements and protein drinks. They masquerade as legitimate information and then lure you in to wasting money on unnecessary products.
Do not work out more than an hour per day, and limit your workout to 5 days a week. Focus on the quality of your workout, not the quantity.
Avoid lifting too much weight too soon. Don’t try to prove-to yourself or others-how much you can lift, and end up getting injured or looking like a fool or both.
Chose exercises that require you to balance your body and affect multiple muscle groups rather than using machines that work only one muscle at a time. For instance, free weight leg squats are better for you than a leg press: They require you to move up and down, controlling your entire boy, while you simultaneously control and balance the free weights. This stimulates almost every muscle in your body.
Follow these tips and read up on the facts about weight training and it will become a normal part of your life well into your senior years. You will have the vitality and strength at 70 that you did at 40, or better if this is your first time bodybuilding.
