Top Ten Gifts For Fitness Enthusiasts

Here are some great gift ideas if you are shopping for someone who loves to workout, bike, run, lift weights, take fitness classes, or exercise at home. Shop at your local stores or find these things online. Any fitness enthusiast would love to have any of these gifts!


Athletic shoes - Whether someone bikes, runs, dances or does strength training they need to have the appropriate shoes. Athletic shoes need to get replaced every 3 to 6 months so a gift certificate to a store that sells a variety of athletic shoes would be a great gift.

iPod - The well-dressed fitness enthusiast often has an iPod strapped to their arm. Listening to music while working out helps to cut the monotony of a treadmill walk or helps to pump up the energy for someone lifting weights.

Workout apparel - Just look at people working out in a gym and you see that many people like to workout in style. Look for stretch pants, tank tops, sports bras, socks, warm-up jackets, sweat pants, baseball caps, and headbands. Buy high quality materials that wash and dry well over and over.

Fitness DVD's - Many people prefer to workout at home. There are a variety of fitness DVD's on the market now including yoga, pilates, weight training, and dance cardio DVD's.

MP3 workouts - MP3 workouts are audio classes that the exerciser listens to on their iPod or MP3 player. It is the next best thing to being in a live class or working with a live trainer. You can find several different workouts from yoga to cycling, from pilates to weight training.

Books - Books are great references and learning tools. Look for books on health, exercise, healthy eating, strength training and yoga to name a few.

Equipment - There is a variety of fitness tools and props that you can buy. If a person loves yoga you can get them a mat, yoga tie or yoga blocks. For someone who wants to begin working out at home look for a cushioned exercise mat, a set of dumbbells and resistant tubing. You can also buy a treadmill, elliptical trainer, bosu, stability ball, or medicine ball.

Health Club Membership - You can always buy your fitness enthusiast a membership to their local health club. Memberships are usually sold month to month or by the year. You can also buy them some sessions with a personal trainer.

Heart Rate Monitor - A heart rate monitor is a great tool. It will show the person if they are working out in their target heart rate zone. Look for one that also calculates the amount of calories burned.

Massage - Finally, every fitness lover would appreciate a gift certificate for a massage at a local spa.

Do you know someone who loves Zumba? Check out dancenyoga.com/gifts-for-zumba-fanatics.html gifts for zumba fanatics!

S. McRee is a personal trainer and fitness instructor who loves to inspire people to live a healthier lifestyle.

The Fundamentals of Child Training

It is the duty of parents to make  deliberate efforts to teach their wards how to find their ways in life. At the same time, discover their potentials and help to develop them to achieve socially acceptable standards of behavior.

As a child grows, it is important never to compare a child with other children no matter the circumstance. Make it a point of duty to accept a child as he is, failure to do this might result in inferiority complex or sibling rivalry. It is the responsibility of a parent to watch a child closely, note his likes and dislikes and help to develop his interest as much as they can.

The vital areas of child training are.

o    Mental-This might involve training in a formal school or a skilled profession that will provide him with daily bread. If this is not done the child might not be able to contribute meaningfully to the development of the society, thus making him or her  a liability.

o    Social - A child should be well schooled in the culture and norms of the society so that he'll fit in perfectly and be self confident.

o    Physical-The provision of food, shelter and clothing must not be lacking. The opportunity of exercise should be made available to the child. All of these make him or her strong and healthy and help keep ailment at bay.

o    Spiritual- He must be exposed to spiritual things early in life. To some extent this helps to curb youthful vices that children are apt to get involved in as they grow old. Any spiritual exercise; yoga, tai chi, martial arts would suffice.

Child training is an interesting venture, the satisfaction of bringing up an innocent nestling is enough. In this respect, no one is an island of knowledge. It might require consulting experienced parents to find out how they handled their own children ,or regular trips to a training consultant. Whatever the means of knowledge acquisition ,the crux is knowing what to do ,and how to do it.

Dele Adeleke is a prolific and talented writer,vast in a variety of topics and delivers on schedule.You could view my article samples on myarticlesamples.blogspot.com myarticlesamples.blogspot.com

Designing Your Own Integrative Training Program

We follow this simple template for all of our workouts: Warm up, Power, Strength, Cardio/Muscular Endurance, Flexibility

1 - Warm up your body without resistance (5 minutes): Start with dynamic joint mobility exercises such as rotations of the neck/spine and circles of the shoulders/wrists/knees/ankles. Move onto bodyweight compound movements with easy rep ranges such as 10 squats, 10 lunges/side, 10 pushups (kneeling or toes), 10 situps.

2 - Power focus (10-20 min):

Rep Range: Low [1-20 for explosive (rapid movement) kettlebell exercises, 1-6 reps for advanced exercises (such as double kettlebell lifts or Olympic Lifts)], 1-7 sets.

Recovery Time::30 to upwards of 2:00 depending on % of 1RM (1 rep max) used and goals

Exercises: Swings, Snatches, Jerks, Cleans. May be performed independently or in chains/complexes

Other Notes: Superset with other explosive movements such as plyos (jumps) if desired. See sample workout for examples.

3 - Strength (10-15 min):

rep range: moderate to low 1-8 reps, 1-5 sets

Recovery time::30 - 1:30 depending on goals and % of 1RM used

Exercises: Squats, Lunges, Presses, Rows, Pullups, Pushups, and all variations.

Notes: May be super setted or arranged in a circuit

4 - Cardio/Muscular Endurance (10-15 min):

Rep Range: high (8-30)

Recovery time::10 - 1:00 desired work:rest ratio

Exercises: any, using little or no weight. May be performed in interval style protocol such as HIIT, Tabata, or KJs VO2 max

5 - Flexibility (10-60 min):

Rep Range: 30 seconds or 5 slow, full breaths per stretch (or "pose")

Recovery time: none - creative yoga practitioners "flow" through stretches. Non yogis may simply switch stretches w/o rest

Exercises: Too many too list. Please reference "Sport Stretch" or a descriptive yoga book for a sequence best suited for your body. Stay tuned for our archive on our website.

Example Workout (approx. 45 minutes):

Power:

Swings super setted with Vertical Jumps, 3 sets of 20 swings then 6 Vertical Jumps

Snatch Ladder, 2 sets of up to 6 reps/side= 1 snatch per side, then 2 per side, up to 6 per side

Strength (upper body focus):

Double Military Press super setted with Double Bent Over Rows, 3 sets of 6 reps of each exercise back to back

Pushups super setted with Pullups, 3 sets of max reps of each (no failure)

Conditioning:

2 tabatas (2:1 work:rest ratio = 2 x 8 rounds of:20 max intensity at given exercise, then:10 rest) of Burpees

Flexibility (each 5 breaths):

Downward Dog, Standing Forward Fold, Wide Angle Forward Fold, Seated Twist, any Shoulder Stretch, Childs pose

Putting it together:

Create 3-5 workouts per week using this template. 3 workouts per week would be for a person who also trains in an additional sport/martial art/training style. 5 workouts for week for a stand-alone training regime that will get you in awesome shape. This program template will force you to be creative and have the flexibility to mix up your workouts and tailor it to meet your individual goals. You may also split up your focus throughout the week or add more emphasis to one type of training...maybe more conditioning or strength training to best meet your goals.

Danny Clark, RKC II

Yoga Teacher Training - What You Can Expect to Learn

If you are just beginning a yoga teacher training program, you may be concerned about the level of knowledge that you should have before the training begins. However, there is no need to worry if you don't know your capitulum from your clavicle or your pranayama from plain old yama. Any respectable yoga teacher training course will cover yoga history, philosophy, anatomy, physiology, asana, aryuveda, meditation, breathing techniques, pranayama, Sanskrit, dialogue sessions, and practice teaching.

If you know that one or more of these subjects are near and dear to your heart than I suggest seeking out a school that has a focus on that particular aspect of yoga. Some of the more popular yoga styles are Hatha, Vinyasa, Ashtanga, Iyengar, Kundalini, Bikram, and ISHTA Yoga.

The focus of your curriculum in a yoga program will depend on what kind of studio you select. If you're more concerned with the spiritual side of yoga perhaps a Hatha or Kundalini studio may be right for you. In a Hatha teacher training, you can expect to get a firm knowledge of the basic yoga poses while learning to practice and guide meditations. Kundalini studios will emphasize breathing, meditation, and chanting while challenging you with a few sequences that can be intense.

If you are interested in a more vigorous work out, or perhaps would like to teach in a gym, Vinyasa, Ashtanga, or Bikram maybe more to your liking. Vinyasa is a general term used to describe a yoga style that focuses on linking the breath with body movement through a series of poses referred to as a "flow". Ashtanga is the precursor to what is commonly known as power yoga because of the relentless movement involved in the sequence.

An Iyengar teacher training course will spend a lot of time focusing on Anatomy and physical alignment. ISHTA Yoga teacher trainer courses blend the study of Hatha, Tantra, and Ayurvedic practices and philosophies. Each teacher training is a unique process of self discovery and can have a profound impact on you and the students who take your class.

If you are interested in teaching, it is a good idea to choose a studio that is respected within the yoga community. I would recommend asking to see an old syllabus or manual if the school can provide one. This is a good indicator as to the level of organization and professionalism you will encounter at that studio. They may only allow you to peruse their manual briefly since you are not a student, but you can at least make sure it covers the aforementioned general topics.

The majority of reputable yoga studios will also spend a good amount of time teaching you about the business side of yoga. This includes but is not limited to ethics of being a teacher of yoga, when and how you need to insure yourself, sound advice on opening your own studio, and ways you can polish up your resume in order to get a job teaching. Last but not least, whether you want to teach or just expand your knowledge, it is a good idea to take your ishtayoga.com/teacher_training yoga teacher training course from a Yoga Alliance Certified school.

Roque L. Rodriguez III is a poet and yoga instructor in New York, NY. He is currently taking the 300-hour ishtayoga.com/teacher_training yoga teacher training course at ISHTA Yoga NYC.

Back Pain Motivation Part 3

In its core yoga is all about well-being of the self. Yoga is not meant to be a therapy for a one particular illness. A practitioner of yoga learns a new way of thinking and lifestyle and all of this in a broad holistic approach. Another product of this new lifestyle and thinking is that you start to see the healing effects of yoga, whether it's neck, shoulder or back pain or other. When you start to practice yoga you will see that one of the benefits of yoga is that some of the difficulties you have in life tend to go away or become less difficult. Clinical tests have been conducted that verified these effects so it is not just the practitioners that claim this.

Doing this form of practice daily will have the ultimate accomplishment of letting the practitioner become aware of the exact places of discomfort/pain in the body. It will help to identify strong and stress relieving areas surrounding those places that can be used to facilitate healing. Gradually, (depending on the time, focus and dedication of the practitioner) one learns the exercises that help the most and can then begin to formulate a personal exercise routine.

Published studies have shown that regular exercise can help people who suffer from chronic low back pain (LBP). Unfortunately, however, many LBP sufferers do not follow through and complete their recommended exercise program. Part of the reason, some scientists believe, is that these people do not receive enough motivation from their doctor to complete the program.

In this study, researchers looked at the effect motivation and positive feedback could have on people with chronic low back pain.

Ninety-three patients were randomized into two groups and followed at different intervals for 5 years. The first group participated in a series of 10 25-minute training sessions an average of 2.3 times per week, with gradual increases in exercise over time. The second group engaged in the same series of exercises, but also received other interventions, such as counselling, problem-solving strategies, positive feedback from practitioners, and the signing a "contract" in which the patient agreed to stay on the exercise program.

Most people who start a regular exercise program give it up after a short period of time. While there are a lot of reasons that they choose to stop exercising regularly, they often boil down to a few simple reasons. It's often hard to find the time to exercise, the motivation to get out there starts to slip after a while, and it's easy to slip back into old routines.

When your motivation starts to slip, having a partner who will drag you outside can be a lifesaver. This type of a partnership is often better if you have similar goals in terms of weight loss, healthy eating habits, and the amount of exercise that you want to work up to.

Chose someone who lives close by, perhaps even your spouse, and write your goals down. Put specific dates and amounts in your plan for increasing the amount of exercise that you want to do together. Think of ways to reward yourselves when you meet your goals, and write them down.

Glen Wood - The Yoga Teacher, dedicated to unlocking the Real Secrets of Back, Neck and Shoulder Pain.

To help you further with your shoulder/back pain you need to sign up for your FREE "Yoga and You" report at YogaTeachingwithGlen.com YogaTeachingwithGlen.com

Strength Train With Pilates

Pilates has caught on almost as fast as yoga in the past several years even though it's been around for the last century. If you haven't done pilates before, then you probably have heard of it but do not fully understand the concept. It is often envisioned as just a stretching, wimpy class for women. Actually, I have seen more and more men in pilates class and it can be quite intense depending on the modification level, which can range from beginner to advance. Did you know that it can be an alternative to weight lifting?

This 100 year old exercise tones muscles in a graceful way, without creating bulk. The quality of the movements is valued over the quantity. The traditional pilates method movements promote slender, toned thighs and flat abs. Who wouldn't want that? It strengthens the core of your body, meaning the trunk, pelvis, and shoulder girdle by using the adduction and abduction muscles. It also works the hip area, lower back, biceps, triceps, chest, and upper body. Another bonus of adding pilates onto your fitness routine is that it's low impact decreasing the chance of injury in the joints.

People at any age can benefit from this both mentally and physically. Along with relieving stress, it also creates body awareness, proper posture, flexibility and back pain relief. By applying proper techniques in spinal and pelvic alignment, this exercise is invaluable for injury recovery. Regular pilates sessions over the course of a few months have cured people of chronic joint pain. It incorporates a full range of motion which is needed as we get older to be pain free. It adheres to the old saying "use it, or lose it."

Tai Chi, yoga, and dancing are other ways to get a range of motion. It does not have to be costly, as there are hundred of free classes available and videos can be purchased for about $15. Pilates strength training combined with cardiovascular exercises are the keys to losing weight and keeping it off. So, what are you waiting for? Seize the day and start investing in your health now!

Lyla Feldman writes about health and fitness. Some of her favorite passions include writing about skinnygazelle.com energy drinks and liporidpm.com natural sleep aids.