Tag Archive for 'Cardio'

Have You Noticed Some People Find Spinning Classes Addictive?

Published on March 6, 2013 in Future Fitness Programs & Classes. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Spinning ClassSpinning offers a great cardiovascular workout and has even played an important part in lifestyle changes that has resulted in men and women loosing large amounts of excess weight. Read on to understand why this exercise class is loved by so many.

Unlike stationary bikes of years ago, spinning developed as a class in which certified spinners taught routines ranging from strength and endurance training to calorie burning sessions. Spinning is a cardiovascular cycling workout on a stationary bike on which the tension can be increased, decreased, mileage and lapsed time is kept by a small computer, and calories burned and heart rate can be tracked.

Participating in Spinning classes can have a positive effect on your health and lifestyle. Below are the top seven benefits. Click here to visit the Spinning section of our website.

Burn Baby Burn
Once you get accustomed to the work out watch the pounds begin to melt away fast. A good thirty minute workout on a Spinning Cycle can burn as much as 500 calories. 50 minutes or longer workouts can burn from 800 to 1,000 calories.
Heart Health
There are aerobic benefits of Spinning. Planned Spinning programs include both endurance and cardiovascular training during the workout. During classes you may be asked to break your steady pace and speed up to increase your heart rate.
Move at Your Own Pace
The amount of resistance you apply, as you gain strength and endurance is up to you. While instructors recommend a speed, you don’t feel out of place for not knowing a routine. No one really knows what level at which you are working, so you are free to move at your own pace.
Time Goes by Quick
On the spinning bike, the challenge is constantly changing. As you work through each level you tend to lose track of time.
Low Bearing
Spinning keeps the pressure off of your knees and feet. It is also a good workout for those who cannot use the treadmill or elliptical because of arthritis.
Group Training
Whether you are a beginner or an exercise pro Spinning classes keep everyone together, with each individual working equally as hard at their own level. Spinning together also gives you the opportunity to encourage others.
Mental Toughness
Spinning does two things mentally. Helps you push through difficult times – through hill climbs and push through endurance training. Spinning also helps develop a positive, “can do” attitude.

Consult a Spinning trainer before beginning a class. It is recommend to participate in Spinning no more than three or four days a week.

Research Discovers that Exercises Builds the Brain: “Musclehead” Takes on New Meaning!

Published on November 7, 2012 in Fit News, Future Fitness Programs & Classes and Healthy Steps for Fitness. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

We all know that exercise builds muscles, but newly released scientific research indicates that it may also build the brain – literally! A team at the University of Edinburgh followed more than 600 people who were 70 years old at the time the study began. The subjects provided details on their daily physical, mental and social activities.

Three years later, using imaging scans, the scientists found that the subjects who engaged in the most physical exercise had less shrinkage and damage in the brain’s white matter – the “wiring” of the brain’s communication system. The relationship remained even after factoring for such variables as age, health, social class and I.Q.

The study, reported in the journal Neurology, also indicated that exercise had a more positive effect in preventing brain shrinkage than engagement in mentally stimulating activities or having an active social life. While the authors of the study couldn’t rule out the possibility that people with less brain deterioration were just more likely to be physically active, they said that based on their findings, they would recommend that people take up physical exercise whatever their age.

If you’re already keeping your brain toned and pumped, you’re ahead of the game! If you’re looking for a fitness program that will be fun, challenging and beneficial – regardless of your age or fitness level – spend some time learning about all the great classes and programs Future Fitness offers. We now have something to improve every brain as well as every body!

 

Common Sense Exercise Tips

Published on October 26, 2012 in Fit News, Future Fitness Programs & Classes and Healthy Steps for Fitness. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

If you’re considering starting a workout routine and have reached this blog for some advice, congratulations! If you’ve recently joined Future Fitness and want to be sure you have every advantage in keeping your commitment to a healthy lifestyle, here are five simple tips:

1. Consult a fitness professional – Have a professional assessment to determine what types of exercise will be most beneficial. You may learn that following a program based on aerobics or resistance training will get you where you want to go. You’ll also learn the areas in which you need the most attention, and how to avoid injury.

Future Fitness provides free sessions with a personal trainer, plus the industry’s leading instructors for all classes and programs. You can begin your program with complete confidence that you’ll enjoy the maximum benefits – as long as you follow the subsequent tips!

2. Follow an effective exercise routine – The American Council on Exercise (ACE) surveyed 1,000 ACE-certified personal trainers about the best techniques to get fit. They recommended a combination of strength training to help tone the entire body, interval training and cardio/aerobic exercise.

3. Choose a fitness regime you enjoy – Don’t take up a program that you’ll approach like a chore, or a fad workout that’s getting all the media buzz (unless you find that it really is a good program for you, and not just the celebrity who made it famous). For example, spinning may appeal more to you than walking on a treadmill (or vice versa).

Future Fitness members have an advantage in being able to take free demos of classes and programs, and in discussing the range of activities they like with instructors who can recommend the appropriate exercises.

4. Set realistic goals and be patient – If you’ve been a long-term couch potato, don’t expect to see a new slimmer, toned and ripped “you” in a few weeks. Trying to do too much too soon sets you up for injury and/or a lot of frustration. Either way, you’re more likely to give up.

Also, don’t strive for perfection or a goal that’s improbable based upon your physical limitations (which we all have). Talk with your instructor or trainer about your fitness goals, and the process involved in reaching them.

5. Be consistent – Achieving physical fitness is a process, and progress is made in increments. Schedule a regular time (at least three times weekly) for your workout. No matter how good your program, you won’t get results unless you do it consistently.

Get in the Swim with Aquatic Fitness Training

Published on October 10, 2012 in Future Fitness Programs & Classes and Healthy Steps for Fitness. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Aquatic exercise is all the rage as a new generation of fitness enthusiasts discovers its numerous benefits. Whether your goal is to improve your cardiovascular endurance, muscle tone, muscle strength, flexibility, blood circulation – or even your social life – following an aquatic workout program can help you achieve great results.

Also known as aquatic aerobics, aquatic exercise is ideal for the following:

  • Active baby boomers wishing to avoid further wear-and-tear on their joints through low-impact exercise
  • Those who have been inactive over the years but want to begin a fitness program
  • Those who have rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis or orthopedic disorders
  • Those who are unable to walk far enough to burn the necessary calories for losing weight

How it works: The buoyancy of water supports about 50 percent of body weight for a person immersed waist-deep, and 90 percent of body weight for a person immersed up to the neck. For this reason, aquatic exercise puts very little stress on bones, joints and soft tissues while still allowing for high levels of energy expenditure.

Also, water is a thicker medium than air. By moving in the water, the amount of resistance can range from 4 to 44 times that of air. This resistance can help in developing muscular strength and endurance for those who have been inactive, as well as helping to maintain strength for those who are currently active.

Other aquatic exercise benefits include:

  • Massaging effect – The hydrostatic pressure of the water on your body, joints, muscles and internal organs “massages” you while your exercise, greatly reducing the feelings of fatigue
  • Cooling effect – Because you’re immersed in cool water, you never feel overheated and sweaty
  • Social effect – Typically held in classes, aquatic exercise programs promote camaraderie among participants
  • Relaxation effect – Working out in water promotes a sense of general relaxation that eases the stress of daily life

Members of Future Fitness Centers can join one of our four fun aquatic workout classes. Experience for yourself the big difference that water exercise can make in your fitness level and sense of well-being. Any time is the right time for getting in the swim!

Add More Life to Your Later Years with Exercise

Published on September 11, 2012 in Fit News, Future Fitness Programs & Classes and Healthy Steps for Fitness. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

People are living well into their eighth or ninth decade, but not necessarily in the good health they assumed advances in medical science would make possible. Fortunately, a recent study has found that starting an exercise program in mid-life can help you stay healthier and more fit through old age, so you can really enjoy those additional years.

Published in Archives of Internal Medicine, the study indicates that becoming fit in middle age delays the onset of debilitating chronic illnesses and physical decline for a much longer period than being sedentary – or compounding a fondness for the couch with poor nutritional choices. According to the study, middle-age people who work out regularly can expect to live with chronic disease for only the last five years of their life – instead of the final 10 to 20 years of those who don’t.

The study was conducted by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the Cooper Institute in Dallas. The researchers gathered medical records for 18,670 middle-age men and women who had visited the Cooper Clinic (the medical division of the Cooper Institute) for a standard physical exam in 1970.

The subjects had an average age of 49, and were healthy and free of chronic illness. All had taken a treadmill test to determine their aerobic fitness. Based on the results, the group was divided into five fitness categories. From the years 1999 through 2009 – when most participants were in their 70s or 80s – researches checked their Medicare claim records (study participants gave permission).

Their findings: People who had been the least fit at the time the study began were the most likely to have developed serious or chronic conditions – such as heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer’s – early in the aging process. Those who had been the most aerobically fit did not experience such illnesses until much later, resulting in a higher quality of life.

So don’t assume it’s too late to start a fitness program because you remember when phones had a rotary dial. Future Fitness members have access to the fitness industry’s leading personal trainers, who can plan a workout program that will allow you to build muscle tone, strength and stamina in a safe manner. Plunging into an exercise program by doing too much too soon is a common cause of injury – which is definitely counterproductive.

Our excellent fitness classes and programs appeal to a wide range of interests, and offer something for people at every level of fitness. You’re sure to find an exercise routine you enjoy!

Just remember fitness icon Jack LaLanne’s famous declaration that he’d rather wear out than rust out. Although he passed earlier this year at age 96, no one could say he broke down. LaLanne lived every day to the fullest, remaining active and enthusiastic. We should all do the same to not only live as long as LaLanne, but as well.