How many calories in a banana?

This popular and tasty fruit, a firm favorite with adult and child alike, is rich in vitamins and many other things you need in your diet.

Like all fruits, the banana contains some calories, carbs and "good" sugar, but it provides considerable benefits, such as potassium to keep your body's nervous system working, when the banana is included in the daily diet along with other healthy foods and fruit.

So what number of calories does banana have? The answer to this question involves more than simple counting if nutritional issues are not ignored. The calories in the banana's soft inner core depends of course on its size and weight.

Here are some important key points on banana calories, and on the even more important big picture: banana nutrition.

The following is the calorie count for raw bananas:

Extra large (9 inches or longer, 152 grams)……. 135
Large (8-8⅞ inches, 136 grams)…………………… 121
Medium (7-7⅞ inches, 118 grams)………………… 105
Small (6-6⅞ inches, 101 grams)…………………….. 90
Extra small (less than 6 inches, 81 grams)………. 72
Slices (1 cup, 150 grams)…………………………….. 134
Mashed bananas (1 cup, 225 grams)…………….. 200

These amounts are higher than for most other fruits, but the quality of calories you consume is just as important as the total. So how do bananas stack up?

 Important to know is that they’re very low fat and a good source of quality carbohydrates.
Bananas have many valuable micro nutrients as well, such as potassium, magnesium, manganese and vitamin B6.

Some more nutritional information:

Fiber in a banana: about 2.5%
Fat: is ultra low at 0.5%
Sugar: is fairly high: 12-15%, and
Protein: is low at around 1%.

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The Top 7 Foods to Boost Performance

Your diet can make or break your run. Work these nutritious bites into your meals, from Marni Sumbal, RD, a sports nutritionist in Jacksonville, Fla.

Here are 7 foods that are not only healthy, but will also help boost sports performance in one way or another. Their benefits are backed both by science and experience.

Brown rice

Its carbs give you energy, while the fiber keeps you feeling full. Avoid cramps by giving yourself about an hour to digest before you run.

Beetroot

Beetroot triggers the release of nitric oxide to regulate blood flow. It'll bump seconds off your race time.

Pomegranates

Pomegranates are high in the polyphenols shown to cut muscle soreness and inflammation by up to 10%.

Berries

Fruit is good, and berries are the best! Loaded with antioxidants, important vitamins and minerals, and bioflavonoids/phytochemicals that are strongly anti inflammatory! That’s always good news for anybody who’s training hard.
Not only healthy for you, berries can even reduce post workout/post practice muscle soreness… Some athletes use blueberries or tart cherries as their post workout carbohydrate source and report their recovery is much improved!(4)

Bananas

Bananas have been found to be just as beneficial to stamina as sports drinks. Only without the chemicals or price tag.

Peanut butter

A tablespoon (high in muscle-fueling protein and healthy fats for sustained energy) spread on a piece of whole-grain toast can power up your run.

Pineapple

Chow down on this fruit after a run: It's loaded with bromelain, which acts as a natural anti-inflammatory that could accelerate muscle repair.

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The Best Chest Workout for Big Chest

What makes it the best? And why for men? Of course women can do this too, but I believe most guys like nice, flat and square pecs, NOT these droopy, booby-kind of chest muscles that look like you might need a bra anytime soon!

Even with really low body fat, pecs can look more like MOOBS (man boobs) than anything, if you train them wrong!

For women on the other hand, that might even be beneficial. So there is a difference.

Can you change the shape of your pecs?!

By following this Workout

Incline Barbell Bench Press
Warm up and 3 sets of 4 – 6 reps

Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
3 sets of 4 – 6 reps

Flat Barbell Bench Press
3 sets of 4 – 6 reps

Dips (Chest Version)
3 sets to failure

Close-Grip Bench Press
3 sets of 4 – 6 reps

Decline Bench Press
3 sets of 4 – 6 reps

Reverse-Grip Bench Press
3 sets of 4 – 6 reps


Mark’s top 5 chest exercises, in order:
1) Arnie Flies
2) Incline Arnie Flies
3) Incline Dumbbell Presses
4) Incline Barbell Presses
5) High Cable Flies

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Shoulder Workout Routine to Add Size Your Shoulders

No matter how big your arms, chest, or back are…an upper body just isn’t complete without well-developed shoulders.

Now, if you’re reading this article, I don’t think I have to do much to convince you to build bigger, stronger shoulders. You’re sold. You just need to know how.

I bet you’ve tried too. You’ve poured who knows how many hours of time and gallons of sweat into your delts only to be disappointed. I know how that goes.

The reality is anyone who says building impressive shoulders is easy is lying. It takes a lot of work–the right work–and patience.

Shoulder Workout Routine

 Overhead press
Sets 3 Reps 12  Rest 10sec

Push press
Sets 3 Reps 12  Rest 10sec

Barbell shrug
Sets 3 Reps 12  Rest 90sec

 Seated Arnold press
Sets 3 Reps 12  Rest 10sec

Seated lateral raise
Sets 3 Reps 12  Rest 10sec

Bent-over reverse flye
Sets 3 Reps 12  Rest 90sec

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The Trapezius Works to Stabilize the Shoulders and the Upper Back

Have you ever wondered why body builders tend to have such curved, muscly necks?

It’s because they’ve heavily worked their trapezius, a large, stingray-shaped muscle. The trapezius starts right below the skull, runs down the neck and across the shoulders and then continues down the spine in a “V” shape.

The trapezius works to stabilize the shoulders and the upper back. Bodybuilding may not be for you, but in order to maintain good posture and avoid back pain, it’s important to keep the trapezius strong.

to learn some easy ways to work the trapezius, whether you’re a regular at the gym or prefer to work out in your living room.

5 Trapezius Exercises.

Barbell Shrugs

This exercise is excellent for working the traps. Secondary stress is placed on the forearms from gripping the weights.

Cable Upright Rows

This is a good exercise for working the muscles of your shoulder girdle. Primary muscles are the traps and the deltoids. Secondary muscles are the biceps, brachialis, and the forearms.

Bent Lateral Raises 

This exercise works the rear (posterior) deltoids and the middle traps. Secondary stress is applied to the forearms.

Face Pulls

This exercise is excellent for building up the trapezius and upper back muscles.

Hise Shrugs

This exercise is excellent for building up the trapezius and upper back muscles.

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The Big Back Workout

The latissimus dorsi (also known as the "lats"), lie across the middle section of the back on each side. This muscle group when well developed gives the upper body that V shape. The lats originates from attachments along the spine and inserts with a large tendon to the humerus (upper arm bone) on each side of the body.

The erector spinae muscles of the lower back are like two thick columns of muscle on either side of your spinal column. The spinal erectors run from the base of your pelvis to almost the full length of your spine. However, they are most easily visible from the middle to the lower back.

Back Exercises

It is essential that when you do any exercise that you perform the movements correctly, if you don't you will receive less then optimum benefit from the exercise. It is very difficult to unlearn bad exercise habits, so it is best to learn the right exercise technique from the very start.

Tip - You can fully contract the lats only when you arch your back. When training your lats, arch your back in the fully contracted position of each lat exercise to maximize the peach contraction and get full lat development.

For each back workout pick 3-4 of these exercises and do 4 sets for each exercise. You can vary the exercises you do for each back workout.
 
Back Workout

1 -Plate-Loaded Rows
7 sets x 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 6, 6

2 -Lat Pulldowns (reverse grip)
4 sets x 10 reps

3 -Seated Rows
4 sets x 8 reps

4 -Lat Pulldowns
4 sets x 10 reps

5 -Cable Pullovers
3 sets x 15 reps

6 -Hyperextensions
3 sets x 15 reps

7 -Deadlifts
3 sets x 15 reps

8 -Good Mornings
3 sets x 15 reps

9 -T-Bar Rows
3 sets x 15 reps

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Best Exercise Ball Workouts Back And Abs

Most of the exercises making up an abs workout on the exercise ball will strengthen the back as well as the abdominals and other core muscles.

An exercise ball is a piece of equipment that you will find at any gym. You can also buy them for home use. They are not expensive.

Exercise balls work by requiring you to use your muscles to balance or keep stable. Therefore they are also sometimes called stabilizing balls. The exercises may sound easy, like children’s games, but if you try them you will find that a lot is required of your abs. If you do not feel this at once you probably will feel it the next day!

Abs Workout Stabilization Exercise

Hip Raise

In & Out

Hamstring Leg Curl

Reverse Hip Raise

Ball Side Crunch

Knee Tuck

Pike Crunch

Scissors Crunch

Decline Push-Ups

Back Extension

Back Stretch


Alternating Superman

Finally, repeat walking forward on hands until the ball is under the thighs, stay there and do pushups. Do not go too low at first. Do the reps then walk back to starting position and finish.

Cool down with some stretching, because the abdominal muscles and the muscles of the back will be very tight after this back and abs workout on the exercise ball.

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Big Leg With All Supersets

 One of the things that keeps our lower body growing is we switch up the workout techniques we use almost every week. And we also take turns picking the type of punishment we will endure on leg day.

High volume for all of our leg workouts is expected and today the technique Big Mike picked was supersets for legs.

 I completely change my “typical” style of training for something totally different or even off the wall, just for the “shock” value. Such was the case today when we did a session consisting of 100% supersets, which was also very hamstring and posterior chain focused.

Lying Leg Curls: 4 sets x 20 reps

– superset with

Leg Extensions: 4 sets x 12 reps

Machine Squats: 5 sets x 12 reps

– superset with

Leg Press: 5 sets x 12 reps

Hack Squats: 4 sets x 12 reps

– superset with

Walking Lunges: 4 sets x 10 reps (each leg)

Leg Extensions: 4 sets x 15-20 reps (one leg)

– superset with

Standing Leg Curls: 4 sets x 12 reps 
– One legged Dumbbell Stiff Legged Deadlift  3 sets X 30 lb dumbbells X 10-12 reps

Stiff legged Deadlift
1 set X 225 lbs X 20 reps
1 set X 225 lbs X 20 reps
1 set X 245 lbs X 17 reps, pause, then 4 more reps

Post exhaust group supersets

A post exhaust superset is where you select a compound exercise and then follow it with an isolation exercise. Because the compound exercise is performed first in the superset combination, this allows you to train that exercise heavier than if you did the reverse (pre exhaust). Therefore, you could say that post exhaust is “size and strength, then pump” An example is stiff legged deadlift supersetted to dumbbell leg curls. Another example is Any squat exercise (including quad blaster squats as we did today) supersetted to leg extensions

Pre-exhaust supersets

Pre exhaust was invented by Robert Kennedy of Muscle Mag international and popularized in the Nautilus days of Arthur jones and HIT training. A pre exhaust superset is where you choose an isolation exercise first and then follow it with a compound exercise. This allows you to take a target muscle group beyond the normal point of fatigue and failure by using the assisting muscles in the 2nd (compound) exercise. A true pre exhaust superset would be like a leg extension supersetted to a squat, lunge or leg press. Another example would be a leg curl supersetted to a stiff legged deadlift. Today we did a “pseudo pre exhaust superset” by performing lying leg curls to step back lunges. I say “Pseudo” because this was an isolation followed by compound exercise, but lunges hit quads moreso than hams.

Same muscle group supersets

In todays fitness literature there is a ton of information being published about supersets, but most of it is focused on antagonistic supersets such as quads to hams or chest to back (or the opposite movement pattern such as push to pull), or on “non competing body part” supersets like a row (upper body) and a squat (lower body), and so on. these methods can be great for fat loss and conditioning, but for bodybuilding I actually prefer same muscle group supersets. Examples today include quad blaster squats supersetted to leg extensions and stiff legged deads supersetted to dumbbell leg curls

Antagonistic supersets are where you work the muscle on the other side of the joint, Ie, quads to hams, chest to back or biceps to triceps. Antagonistic supersets we used today included leg press (quads) to one leg stiff leg dead (hams) and leg curls (hams) supersetted to lunges (quads)

Hi-low rep supersets

Using different rep ranges in your superset pairs is a great method that is often overlooked. When most people do supersets, they focus mostly on their exercise selection, as rightly they should. But one thing they miss is the choice of rep range.

It can be extremely effective to pair a heavy exercise (6-8 rep maximum) with a lighter exercise (20 reps). For example, we did 20 rep stiff leg deads followed by 8 rep dumbbell leg curls. Next, we selected a 6-8 rep max for lying leg curls (heavy), then immediately went into step back lunges for 20 reps per leg (40 reps total). It knocks the wind out of you, for sure. Excellent for conditioning and fat loss, plus muscle growth at the same time. You cant lose… if you can hack it.

We hit 5 sets of standing calve raises after that. The leg exercises for leg day don’t change much but as stated above, the techniques change (as you can see if you go through my Blog for ‘Leg Workouts’). Make sure you’re mentally prepared and 100% focused before trying this leg workout. I must also mention that we didn’t take long rest periods between the non-supersets. You won’t be doing a ton of weight during this type of leg workout but my legs have grown more from high reps and high volume workouts than going super heavy.

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8 Simple Exercises That Show Results After One Workout

Everyone knows that building muscle takes months of dedication. However, there are a few simple moves that can give instant definition, by bloating your muscles in a good way. Make sure you get in 3-5 sets of 8-12 reps for maximum impact.

Kettlebell swings

People may not see results immediately, but they will definitely feel a change, Brown says. Done with proper technique, kettlebell swings and Goblet squats, while holding a kettlebell will challenge you. Your hamstrings, glutes and inner thighs are guaranteed to be sore for a few days. The swings, which are a high-intensity move, work your entire backside, making it look more toned.

Resistance band bicep curls

 This is a great way to work your biceps, because the bands provide continuous tension in the muscle. The longer you tense the muscle the more the pump.

This one is all about the booty. After just one set, you’ll notice that your glutes feel firmer, look bigger, and even sit rounder and higher on your backside, he says. Your glutes are your body’s biggest muscle group, and this move hits them hard.

Deadlifts

Get instant results: Grab a pair of dumbbells with an overhand grip, and hold them at arm's length in front of your thighs. Stand with your feet hip-width apart and your knees slightly bent. Without changing the bend in your knees, bend at your hips and lower your torso until it's almost parallel to the floor. Pause, then raise your torso back to the starting position. That's one rep.

One-leg exercises

“One leg is stronger than two halves of legs,” Brown says. This is called “bilateral deficit.” It’s completely counter-intuitive, she adds, but it works very effectively. Single-leg (Romanian) deadlifts while holding 8-12lbs dumbbells, or a Bulgarian split squat, will show a lot of definition really quickly, especially in your thighs, Brown says. Ph

 For Your Back and Arms

“You really just have to go heavier,” Brown says. “Most women don’t do enough and they don’t realize they can go a lot heavier.” Latissimi dorsi, commonly known as lats, are among the strongest muscles in the body. “If you’re looking for definition on your back, do pullups or other simple exercises, just add more weights,” she adds. Also, the lat muscles work all of the arms, shoulders and biceps muscles. “Do back exercises and you’ll see benefits all throughout your arms,” she adds.
 

 Push-Ups

Push-ups, simple but powerful movements that can be used to increase your overall fitness, are a challenging upper-body, bodyweight exercise. They primarily target the pectoral (chest), anterior deltoid (rear shoulder), and triceps muscles, which means they’re ideal for building total upper-body strength. Do them correctly and you’ll see a difference in no time. Try Spider(wo)man pushups (by bringing one knee to your chest) to make it more difficult.

Sumo squat

This will fire up your butt and inner thighs. Make sure your feet are turned out at 45 degrees, to get the most out of this move.

Crunches on Bosu Ball

For flat abs, try crunches or other ab exercises that you normally do while sitting on a Bosu Ball. “You will feel the difference right away,” Brown says. There is going to be definition on your abdominal muscles within a week, especially if you are a thin person. Your muscles are working harder than normal because you have to balance y

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Best Exercises for Women & Belly Fat

Belly fat exercises are important for anyone, especially women. A flat tummy is flattering on the figure, not to mention healthier too. Belly fat can be blamed on hereditary factors but in most cases it is the result of bad eating habits and a sedentary lifestyle. If you want to get into your bikini you should start working on your midsection now. Belly fat exercises for women and a balanced diet will help tone your abdominal muscles and get rid of belly fat.

A new kind of crunch

Try this two-in-one abs-and-obliques move from David Barton Gym owner David Barton. Here's how: Sit so thighs and upper torso form a V shape, with lower legs crossed and lifted.

How to do it:Hold a 5-pound medicine ball (or dumbbell) between both hands. Swivel left to right and back, bringing ball across body while maintaining the V shape.

Side Plank

Why it works: This abs exercise is more challenging than a traditional plank because you're supporting your entire body weight on two points of contact instead of four. As a result, you must work your core harder to stay stabilized.

How to do it:
A. Lie on your left side with your elbow directly beneath your shoulder and legs stacked. Place your right hand on your left shoulder or on your right hip.

B. Brace your abs and lift your hips off the floor until you're balancing on your forearm and feet so that your body forms a diagonal line. Hold for 30 to 45 seconds. If you can’t hold that long, stay up as long as you can and then repeat until you’ve held for 30 seconds total. Switch sides and repeat.

U-Boat

his may be a small movement, but it works your lower abdominals in a big way!

How to do it: Sit with your knees bent, feet flat on the ground. Lean back to prop your upper body up on your elbows (your back should remain lifted), palms facing down. Brace your abs in tight and lift your legs into a 90-degree angle (knees should be touching), toes pointed. Slowly bring your legs over to the left (both hips should remain on the ground). Keeping the 90-degree angle with your legs, lower your legs and then lift them up to the right, as if you were tracing a letter 'U' with your knees. That's one rep. Do 20 reps total, alternating sides each time.

Make it harder: The longer the lever, the harder this gets, so if you want more of a challenge, try extending your legs out further (even straightening them completely).

Bicycle Crunch

This is one of the most effective belly fat exercises for women. Lie down flat on the floor on your back, with your hands behind your head. Raise your upper body through your shoulders and bend your left knee while keeping the right leg straight. Twist your torso and try to touch your left knee with your right elbow. Return to the starting position and repeat the movement with the other leg. Do 10 reps of this exercise for each side.

Low-belly leg reach

This targets the corset and six-pack. Lie faceup with knees bent to 90 degrees, hands behind head, and abs contracted. Keeping knees stacked over hips, lift shoulders and crunch up; inhale and hold for 3-5 seconds.

Exhale and extend legs to 45 degrees; hold for 3-5 seconds while squeezing lower belly. Do 2 sets of 10-15 reps.

Reverse Plank Hover

This is another move that's much harder than it looks. You'll engage your abs and just about every other muscle in your body!

How to do it: Sit with your legs extended, feet flexed, hands just outside your hips with your fingertips facing your forward. Brace your abs in tight and press down through your arms to lift your hips a few inches off of the floor. Bend your knees slightly, keeping your heels on the ground. Inhale and scoop your abs in deeper towards your back, and as you exhale, fully extend your legs and try to push your hips slightly behind your shoulders. Hold for 1 count. Bend your knees and return hips under your shoulders to gently lower to the floor. That's one rep. Repeat up to 3 sets of 10 reps.

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The 6 Best Compound Exercises

There are many fitness tips and secrets that are claimed to be the most important. In fact, there are so many tips and secrets we hear that it becomes difficult to discern which ones are the most important, the most beneficial, and the most necessary to make the greatest changes and achieve the greatest results in your fitness.
Here is one of the most trusted secrets that will truly help you reach your health and fitness goals in a short and powerful way: Compound exercises.
Compound exercises and compound movements are those that involve multiple muscle groups at the same time. By definition, compound movements are movements of the body where two or more muscle groups are working simultaneously. These can include the chest and back, biceps and shoulders, and quads and glutes, all for example.
Compound exercises have a wide array of benefits, benefits that are almost endless.

The Best Compound Exercises

Bench press

As already mentioned bench presses are great as they will work all of your chest, shoulders and triceps.

There are three kinds of bench press.

Inclined bench presses get the upper part of your chest and shoulders more,

Flat bench presses hit all of your chest and

Decline Bench presses (when you are using a decline bench) are best for the lower part of your chest and triceps although doing too many decline bench presses will really give you a saggy looking chest.

Military press

This is the classic exercise where you sit upright and push a barbell up from behind your neck straight up above your head.

Military presses push your anterior deltoid (front of shoulder) and again your triceps and are a great mass gainer for both.

I find that when I am doing this exercise it is really important to feel where and how you are pushing the bar up. You have to remember that there are some secondary muscles at work, mostly the triceps which are a very strong and leveraged muscle for this exercise.

When you are pushing concentrate on those shoulder muscles doing the pushing up. If you have to get the weight a bit lighter to do this then that is better as you get lots of opportunity to work your triceps in other exercises

Squats

Probably the greatest compound exercises ever are squats. Doing squats are great for all of your core muscles as well as the muscles in your legs. This is perhaps the toughest and best workout for gaining mass ever devised.

As you likely know the biggest muscles in your body are your quadriceps on the front of your legs. To do squats properly you need to take care that you lower back is not bowed in or out and to do this a belt or lower helps most.

Also when doing squats I have found that my calves do not extend far enough so I have always rested my heels on a block of wood. I have also written about a 30 day squat challenge that I did which is without weights and has you doing squats everyday. In doing the 30 day squat challenge you will definitely feel the lower back and abs getting a lot of work as well as your glutes. The legs do definitely burn

Rowing

Using a machine row is a great way to work your whole back and is hard to emulate doing free weights. This exercise works all of your back muscles, upper and lower and also work your biceps.

After doing a few sets of rows your whole back will be sore. Doing rows it is again important to protect your lower back by making sure that you do not twist it in any direction.

Pullups

Pullups are done by holding a barbell with both hands fairly close together and then pulling up towards your chin. Pullups work your biceps, rear deltoids and your traps.

Traps are the muscles on either side of the top of your back beside you neck.

This a great exercise I find for opening up and strengthening the very top of my body.

Deadlifts

Deadlifts are a phenomenal full-body exercise. Nearly every muscle in your body is stimulated in the one singular movement of the deadlift: Your back, shoulders, arms, legs, forearms, quads, glutes, and hamstrings are all involved in the movement.
With such intensity as the deadlift and similar compound exercises, maximum levels of natural growth hormone and testosterone will be able to released, promoting and stimulating increased muscle growth.
Additionally, maximum stimulation of the metabolic and cardiovascular systems will be promoted as well.
Each compound exercise and compound movement has different primary muscle movers. Primary muscle movers refer to the main muscle group that is being worked in a compound exercise, even though the exercise is working and benefiting other muscle groups as well.
If you are rushed for time or if you want to try something new with your workout routine, give compound exercises a try. These will be able to provide you with maximum results, maximum benefits, and maximum excitement in your routine.

SUMMARY

Compound exercises are a secret key to fitness success and goal achievement.
With compound exercises and movements in your workouts, you will be able to achieve the greatest results you are looking for in an efficient, effective, and encouraging way. Your body will be thanking you with the powerful, innumerable, immeasurable health benefits you will uncover.
As you begin or continue your health, fitness, and wellness journey, incorporate compound exercises and movements into your workouts. Add new variations to your workouts by regularly changing up your compound movements and by adding new ones into your routine.
Be ready for powerful transformations and have the time of your life doing so!

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6 Tips To Prevent Muscle Cramps

Whether we call them cramps, stitches, or just a pain in the butt, muscle contractions can strike without warning, putting a serious damper on any workout, practice, or especially intense game of charades. But what’s to blame for these uncomfortable muscle troubles?6 Tips To Prevent Muscle Cramps.

Drink Enough Water

Dehydration is one of the main causes of muscle cramps during exercise. Physical activities need to be performed in the aqueous environment. When you exercise, the water in your body may be lost. The organs, tissues and muscles in your body need water to function well.
Loss of water and dehydration may increase the risk of muscle cramps. Therefore, if you want to prevent muscle cramps before and after exercise, you should drink about 8 glasses of water daily.
Moreover, before and during exercise, it is necessary to supply the water to your body, to replace the water lost through sweating.

The Need for Salt

Fluids aren't alone in the task of maintaining your body's fluid balance. Electrolytes control the shift of fluids in and out of cells. The electrolyte of most concern during exercise is sodium. Found as sodium chloride in table salt. We lose more sodium in sweat than the other electrolytes. Both water and sodium are lost in sweat. Replacement of water without sodium can lead to dangerously low blood sodium levels, called hyponatremia. Hyponatremia will also occur if you are sweating a lot and simply losing a lot of sodium in sweat. This is most likely to occur during endurance exercise or with repeated sweating throughout the day. Muscle cramps may occur when the concentration of sodium in the blood decreases; cramps can progress to a serious medical emergency when hyponatremia is not treated.

To prevent hyponatremia and the muscle cramps it may cause, sodium should be consumed with fluids. This is particularly useful for cramp-prone individuals. High sodium sports drinks can delay muscle cramps in those who cramp often. Sodium may be consumed from salty foods (such as pretzels) or through sports products.


Train specifically for your race.

Most cramps happen when you push yourself harder than you’re used to. If you make your training more similar to racing in terms of intensity and duration, then you’re probably less likely to cramp.

Stretching

One thing that nearly everybody agrees upon is that a regular stretching program targeted at muscles prone to cramping can greatly reduce the incidence of exercise associated muscle cramps as well as stopping cramp once it’s started (14,15). Passive stretches held
for 15-30 seconds at time seem to be effective; the mechanism is unclear but a regular program of stretching is known to lengthen muscle fibres, favourably altering spinal neural reflex activity. Regular massage may also be beneficial as it promotes general muscle relaxation and helps accelerate the disposal of exercise metabolites from muscles cells.

Eat A Healthy Nutritional Diet

A healthy nutritional diet is necessary if you want to protect your health from damages, diseases, and ailments.
Moreover, a healthy nutritional diet can give you a plenty of nutrients, essential minerals and vital vitamins that help you prevent muscle cramps as well as a variety of damages during exercises.

Try a vitamin

 Some studies suggest getting enough vitamins and minerals — including vitamin B, D, E, magnesium, and zinc — may help ward off the attack of a muscle cramp (or at least help ease the pain).

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Top10 Tips On How To Lose Belly Fat

It’s fairly common for men to pack extra weight around their midsection. Call it a beer belly, a gut, or just plain fat, but the presence of a little extra weight around your middle probably doesn’t have you winning any shirtless competitions. The sad truth is that you’re not alone. Both men and women are substantially heavier today than they were in the 1960s. If pure vanity isn’t motivation enough, keep in mind that excess abdominal fat is a predictor of heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, and some cancers.

The good news is that with some time and dedication you can reduce your pooch. While you can’t funnel your fitness and healthy eating efforts to one part of your body,

Here are 10 Tips to lose belly fat.


1) Low body fat levels = Visible abs

This is probably one of the most important things to be aware of if you are on a quest to get show stopping abs. No amount of crunches and sit ups will get you amazing abs if you have high body fat levels. The level of body fat needed to attain visible abs varies from individual to individual.
The healthiest way to reduce your body fat levels is by monitoring your diet and exercising. Monitor your progress by taking frequent pictures and measurements; this will help keep you motivated on your journey to defined abs!

2) Don’t eat sugar and avoid sugar-sweetened drinks

3) Exercise in bursts
- Belly Crunch
- Cross Crunch
- Inverted Crunch
- Sleeping Plank
- Side Plank

4) Eating more protein is a great long-term strategy to reduce belly fat

5) Cut carbs from your diet

6) Eat foods rich in fiber, especially viscous fiber

7) Get to sleep

8) Drink smart

9) Minimize stress

10) Eat right

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What is carb backloading ?

First off, if we asked you to name foods you should eat to lose weight and build muscle, what would you say? Chicken? Salad? Vegetables? Brown rice? Egg Whites? Basically, foods which are conventionally considered as healthy and balanced right? What about pizza, ice cream, cookies, and chocolate? Yep, you did read that right, and we’ll tell you more about that shortly.

In a nutshell, carb backloading is a method of eating, in which you back-load each and every single carb you consume, so that before you workout, you’re not consuming a single carbohydrate at all. Now, at first that may sound horrendous to many of you, as carbohydrates before you workout are what gets you through each session. Well, don’t be so quick to throw in the towel, because before you workout, you’ll be consuming healthy fats and lean proteins, and saving all of your carbohydrates for immediately following your workout.

So, to be clear, before you workout and lift weights, you’ll be eating and drinking NO carbohydrates in the slightest, and will only consume them immediately following your workout. Now, if you’re still not sure, let’s go back to the pizza and ice cream part . When we talk about carbohydrates immediately following your workout, we’re not talking about rice cakes, brown rice, boiled potato, and whole wheat pasta, oh no. We’re talking about ice cream, pizza, candy, chocolate, cake, cookies, and much more.

So…What is Carb Back-Loading?

Carb Back-Loading is a fairly simple concept. Nutritionist John Kiefer is largely responsible for its popularity as of late! Basically…

You can break the diet down into several simple ‘rules’:

✔ Eat light in the morning (which may mean skipping breakfast) and in the early hours of the afternoon, but consume a lot in the evening.

✔ Eat virtually no carbs until after you have worked out, which ideally should be mid-afternoon.

✔ Your first meal containing carbs is your post-workout meal, and you continue to consume carbs throughout the remainder of the evening.

That is essentially it, it seems pretty mad and goes against what we naturally think which is to consume less food; especially carbs in the evening!

Does carb back-loading work? It definitely helped me to lose several Kg of body fat in preparation for a holiday, and now I use it as a framework for my everyday nutrition. It’s convenient, it makes perfect sense and it works. If you want to know the specific diet I used (and still do) .

People looking to loose fat, or minimise fat gain while adding muscle (probably most of us)
People with a sedentary job
People who can eat a shit ton of carbs in a couple of sittings
But isn’t carb back-loading the same as carb cycling? No, not in my book. Carb cycling for me refers to the practice of a planned fluctuation of carbohydrates over a period of days, for example, over the course of three days you might have a high carb day, a medium carb day, and a low carb day, but throughout the course of a day, carbs may be evenly spread across all meals.

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6 Best Bodyweight Exercises for Stronger Legs

When most people hear “leg day," they immediately think of heavy weights and exercise machines. There's no doubt that a heavily loaded barbell or weight machine can build strong, muscular legs.

 Squats

The squat may be the single most important exercise that you can do.  because nailing proper squat form from the beginning is incredibly important. In order to do a squat, you’ll need access to barbells and a squat rack. There are machines at some gyms, like the Smith Machine, but experts recommend you avoid it.

Squats will build up your abs, lower back, glutes, hamstrings, quads — actually, just about everything. In fact, many in the lifting community call it “the king of exercises,” at least according to Stronglifts. But again, don’t overlook perfecting your form when starting out. You may even want to try just doing body squats to begin with, and then move on to the barbell.

Standing Calf Raises

Standing calf raises work to target the muscles of the calf, predominantly the outermost, larger muscles (ie: the muscles responsible for providing shape and definition of the calves.)

Calf Stretches

Calf stretches will elongate the calf muscles and make them appear slimmer. Choose a wall and support your body weight into the wall with your arms. Put one foot forward and bend the knee at 90 degrees while keeping the other foot back and straight. Push the back leg down by pushing the heels into the ground. Keep the calves of the back leg stretched like this for 30 seconds, then switch legs.

Running

Have you noticed that runners always have really slim legs? This is because endurance running is one of the best ways to get defined, slim calves. For best results, perform it for 30 minutes at a moderate pace, three times per week.

 Leg Press

Sit on the machine with your back and head against the padded support.

Place feet on the foot plate about hip-width apart, ensuring the heels are flat. The legs should form an angle of about 90 degrees at the knee with a little variation either way as long as the heels sit flat on the plate.

The knees should be in line with the feet and neither bowed inward nor outward.

Your bottom should not be raised from the seat platform. If it is, and the legs are at too sharp an angle, then you need to adjust the seat back until the correct position is enabled. You can recognize this poor position when the knees seem to be in front of your eyes and you feel cramped.

Grasp the assist handles.

Deadlift

If squats are the king of exercises, the deadlift would be the Duke — or the prince.

Deadlifts are exactly what they sound like: You’re essentially lifting as much dead weight as possible from the ground up. This is another exercise in which form is incredibly important. If you don’t get your stance right, you could end up hurting yourself. Stronglifts has a fantastic walk-through as to proper deadlift form, a. You’re best-off giving it a shot with a trainer or spotter at first, to ensure you get the process down.

Deadlifts will work your entire lower body, and your core, but can be pretty intense. So go in ready to be exhausted after a few reps.

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8 Reasons Your Muscles Stop Growing

After switching up your diet and workout routine, you finally started to pack on some solid muscle—and people were noticing. But then, disaster struck! Despite your continued efforts, your shoulders started to shrink, your biceps became less buldging and your quads refused to grow any bigger. Unsure of what went wrong, you were simply left thinking, “Now what?”

A number of factors influence the body’s ability to pack on gains—your sleep schedule, your diet, your fitness program, even your state of mind. You could seriously go crazy trying to figure out what went wrong. To help you get to the bottom of things.

Here are the most important 8 reasons why your muscles stopped growing.

 You are training too hard

Every time when you train your muscles intensely, you are actually breaking down your muscles. So your muscles need to recover from the damages you inflicted on them. So train each muscle group only once or at most twice a week.

Your training sessions are too long

While you should maintain high level of intensity, your training sessions should not exceed the hour mark. This is due to the fact that cortisol levels rise after 45 minutes of intensive workout. One of the nasty properties of this hormone is that it destroys the muscle cells.

 Not working your big muscles

This is another common one. So many people are going to gym and doing nothing but curling. Or nothing but benching. Ok, remember..your legs and chest are your main biggest muscles. There is no way that your body will ever allow your smaller muscles to be bigger or stronger than your big muscles (the exception is steroids). It’s a natural hierarchy that applies to everyone’s body. Working out your biceps 3 hours a day will never make them grow bigger than your chest. If your biceps are growing try working out your chest. Believe it or not, you CAN get a bigger upper body by getting a bigger lower body. Train your big muscles (especially your legs) to allow room for your smaller muscles to grow. It just works that way!

You are not getting enough sleep

Good night sleep is one of the topmost requirements for good muscle growth. Sleep provides the muscles with time to recover and grow. Providing your body with 8 hours sleep every night will prompt muscle growth.

You are abusing alcohol

Alcohol is known to break down muscle mass plus many other body destruction ability.

You do not change your workout routine

  You must change your workout routine every 6-8 weeks. Your muscles adapt to your routine and stops growing.

Bad Diet

Your muscles will never grow if you do not feed them the carbs and proteins they need. Do not just eat proteins. Proteins help muscle growth, but you still need carbs to give you energy to use those big muscles! And bigger muscles need alot more energy!

You are not applying progressive overload to your muscles

To achieve steady muscle growth you need to gradually increase either the reps or the weight each next training of a specific muscle growth. Otherwise, you rob your muscles of the reason to grow.

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Exercises Shoulder Workouts To Build Mass

Broad, strong shoulders are impressive, but unlike a chiseled chest, bulging biceps and 6-pack abs, they are actually always visible even when fully dressed.

Use the following shoulder workouts in your weight  training program.

 Dumbbell Press

This is a great shoulder building exercise and can be done using both hands simultaneously or alternating from one side and then the other. Dumbbell presses are should be performed from a sitting position on a backless bench or stool. Using a chair temps you into leaning back which will shift a great deal of workout energy away from the shoulders and to the chest.

EXECUTION:

Position dumbbells to each side of shoulders with elbows below wrists.

Press dumbbells upward until arms are extended overhead. Lower to sides of shoulders and repeat.

 Front Press

The front press will build shoulder strength as well as work out your pecs. You can perform front presses from either a seated position (seated front press) or from an inclined position (inclined front press).

EXECUTION:

Hold dumbbells in front of you with your elbows tucked into your sides and your shoulders held back and relaxed. Contract your abs, hold the weight steady and push it up until arms are extended with only a slight bend at the elbows. Hold for a moment and then slowly lower the dumbbells back down until your elbows are in the starting position. Repeat.

 Front Raise

This strength workout builds the shoulders as well as arms and chest. Front raises can be accomplished from either a seated or standing position. However, if done standing, don’t use your legs to assist with the lift.

EXECUTION:

Grasp dumbbells in both hands. Position dumbbells in front of upper legs with elbows straight or slightly bent.

Raise dumbbells forward and upward until upper arms are above horizontal. Lower and repeat.

Behind the Back Cable Side Lateral Raise

 By using a cable you’re keeping tension on the muscle throughout the movement in a way that can’t be matched by the dumbbell. In addition to that, by doing the raise behind the back, you’re isolating the lateral deltoid in a more efficient way than you would be if you were doing it in the front.

EXECUTION:

Stand sideways next to a pulley machine with a D-handle. Grab the D-handle (from behind) with the hand further from the pulley and take a half step forward and away from the pulley to establish some tension. Brace your abs and keep your chest up while optionally bracing yourself with your opposite hand.  Maintain a very slight bend in your elbow during the movement and make sure this angle doesn’t change at all from start to finish. Lift while concentrating on your deltoid and continue until your arm is parallel to the floor or just above it. Hold and squeeze your delt at the top of the movement and lower it back slowly. For a visual demonstration.

Lying Side Lateral Raise

These days, it’s very rare to see someone lying down to work on the lateral deltoid. That said, it’s a wonderful exercise that lost popularity for no identifiable reason in particular. It’s time to bring it back, because, well, Arnold.

EXECUTION:

 Lie on your side and brace yourself so your body is in a firm position. Grasp a dumbbell with the hand opposite side the side touching the bench and, starting from your thigh area, lift it up in an arc until it’s nearly above the shoulder. Try to keep the arm straight with only a slight bend.

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3 Important Tips for Each Bodybuilder

maintain muscle mass, get in shape and transform your physique . You want to not only look better, but have the fitness level and strength to match your new body.

We will look to the three basics that will help to move away in bodybuilding,

TRAINING, NUTRITION, and MINDSET.

Training:

You’ll learn how to combine strength training workouts and cardio conditioning together for building lean muscle while burning body fat at the same time.

Nutrition:

Find out the exact number of calories that you need for your body type, in the proper ratios of protein, carbohydrates, and fat. It even outlines a sample daily meal plan that you can follow along with.

Mindset:

Learn how to set you up for success by taking a practical and realistic approach to goal setting and following through with your fitness program.

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Exercises The Deltoid And Tricep

The following  Tricep  and deltoid strengthening exercises are designed to improve the strength of the deltoid  and Tricep muscles . Generally, they should only be performed provided they do not cause or increase pain.

DELTOIDS

• A1 Seated Dumbbell Press

1 set X 80 lbs X 10 reps

• A2 Seated “W Press” (press up and out with neutral/palms facing grip)

1 set X 50 lbs X 6-8 reps

• B1 Seated Dumbbell Press

1 set X 80 lbs X 7 reps

• B2 Arnold Presses (rotate hands; supinate to pronate while pressing up)

1 set X 50 lbs X 6- 8 reps

• C1 Seated Dumbbell Press

1 set X 80 lbs X 6 reps

• C2 Alternating Dumbbell Presses (left-right-left)

1 set X 50 lbs X 6-8 reps each arm

• D1 Prone Incline bench 2 dumbbell front raise

3 sets X 25 lbs X 12 reps (strict)

• D2 Prone incline bench dumbbell cross body lateral raise

3 sets X 15 lbs X 12, 11, 10 reps (slow and strict)

• D3 Standing dumbbell side lateral raise

3 sets X 25 lbs X as many reps as possible (loose form)

• E1 Prone incline bench reverse flyes (rear delt raise)

3 sets X 20 lbs X 15, 12, 12 X 3021 (strict)

• F1 Resistance Band Forward Raises

3 sets  X 12, 11, 10 reps (slow and strict)

TRICEPS

• A1 Seated Dumbbell tricep extension (behind head)

3 sets X 90, 85, 80 lbs X 10 reps, 10 reps, 10 reps

• A2 2 Dumbbell Tricep Kickback

3 sets X 45 lbs X 12 reps, 10 reps, 10 reps

• B1 Reverse grip pushdown

3 sets X 70 lbs X 12 reps X 3012 (squeeze hard! in contracted pos of each rep)
1 set 80, 90, 100 lbs X 6, 6, 6 reps (ascending set, change grip with each weight change: reverse grip, wide overhand grip, narrow overhand grip)

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What Exercises Will Get You A Abs?

No one will dispute the fact that you need to train your core, the general area that connects all of your fleshy stuff from below the chest and above the waist, all the way around. The core provides a stable base to produce, reduce, and redirect force with the limbs of the body. But some people will argue that directly training the anterior core—or front, which includes the rectus abdominis (the "six pack")—is unnecessary because big and heavy compound movements like the squat and deadlift already work it sufficiently.

Anterior Core Training

I argue that you need to specifically target the anterior core. I believe that it’s part of what has made me a strong and healthy deadlifter. When I train clients in our gym—The Movement Minneapolis—it’s not at all uncommon to have two full movements dedicated to some sort of anterior or lateral—or side (think obliques)—core stability training, in addition to squats and deads. It’s a primary, fundamental part of the training.

Here are the main types of core movements that we rotate through in our programming at Movement:

1. Anterior core dynamic: exercises that generate movement through the core, primarily in flexion. Things like crunches, weighted, standing crunches, leg raises and leg lowers fit into this category. Yes, we do crunches. Believe it or not the spine is designed to flex and I believe it should be trained in ways it can move.

2. Anterior core static: These exercises are mainly movements that resist motion such as planks, farmers walks, weighted planks and body saws.

3. Rotational core dynamic: These are movements that require a twisting or rotating movement of the spine. They both generate the rotation and also stabilize. We favor Russian twists, Palloff twists and windshield wipers.

4. Rotational core static: These movements focus on preventing rotation through the spine. A palloff press is the most classic example, in which you’re alternating between a short lever trying to rotate you and a longer lever trying even harder to make you rotate. The goal here is to resist the movement. Side planks also align closely with this category as an anti-lateral-flexion movement, as do single-sided carries and deadlifts.


These are some exercises that outlines the types of moves that doing have challenged us by,

 Cable Side Bend

The Pike

 Weighted Crunch

Overhead Crunch

 Ball Planks

Windshield Wipers

Barbell rollout

Bench leg raise

Plank

Jacknife

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The Triceps Exercises To Your Size

Your triceps make up 60% of your upper arm, so demand some serious attention if you’re looking to improve definition. Pulley machines help you target them as you train but the order of your moves can be crucial to muscle development. Tax your triceps before working your chest and shoulders and they’ll fail you when you want to challenge those latter muscles. Tri on these moves for size.

The solution? These workout finishers, which will polish off your muscle definition and ensure you empty your tank of every last bit of energy. For these particular finishers, you can expect to hit your triceps with a completely different set and rep scheme, increase blood flow, and maximize muscle growth.

Dumbbell tricep kickbacks  25 reps

cable Pushdown Burnout Set  1 set of 50 reps

Dips  25 reps

Skull Crusher 25 reps

Seated Dumbbell Triceps Press 25 reps

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The 10 Top Protein Sources For Building Muscle and Losing Fat

Protein is without a doubt the most vital nutrient for those trying to build lean muscle and melt off body fat.

Protein is a macronutrient that is made up of a chain of smaller building blocks called amino acids. After you consume and digest protein it will eventually be broken down into individual amino acids to be used for literally thousands of functions throughout your body.

Almost every single process within your body that is geared towards building muscle and burning fat relies heavily on this all-too important nutrient.

Next to water it is the most abundant bodily substance and can be found in every single one of the trillions of cells you are made up of.

It is also important in the production of enzymes, blood health maintenance and proper immune system function.

Above all, it is responsible for the growth and repair of damaged muscle tissue. If you do not provide your body with a sufficient amount of high quality protein each day, building muscle will be next to impossible.

If your body were a house, consider protein to be the bricks. Your body already needs protein for natural everyday processes, so your consumption of protein must increase as you train intensely with weights.


Lots of you struggle to get these foods. Sometimes because you’re too busy or sometimes because you just lack information. This list will help you “” 10 super foods you need to build muscle & lose fat.

Eggs

Eggs have been vilified for years as artery-clogging foods. But further research into the role of dietary cholesterol and heart disease shows that for most people, the two are not linked. Eggs have since returned to the spotlight as a health food, especially for building serious muscle. The cholesterol found in eggs yolks serves at the scaffolding for steroid hormones, and the ½ a gram of leucine in each egg is like throwing gasoline on your muscle-building fire.

Red Meat

Red Meat. Protein, vitamin B12, heme iron, zinc, creatine, carnosine and even omega-3 if you eat grass-fed beef. Eat steaks & hamburgers from top round or sirloin. Read Dr. Lonnie Lowery’s article on Meat.

Cottage Cheese

Not many people know this, but cottage cheese is almost entirely pure casein protein. Casein is a slow-digesting protein, which means it is perfect for muscle maintenance. This is useful especially for people who have no choice but to go long periods without eating. Cottage cheese is also an excellent source of vitamin B12, calcium, and other important nutrients.

Fish Oil

Fish Oil. Reduces inflammation (joints/skin), lowers body fat and increases testosterone levels. Since you’ll probably struggle to get enough from eating fatty fish, consider a fish oil supplement.

Lean Poultry

Chicken and turkey are another muscle building and fat burning staple. The white portion of the meat is very low in fat and extremely high in protein.

Poultry is an excellent protein source and can be used to make an endless number of different meals.

Lean Pork

Although not typically mentioned in bodybuilding and fitness discussions, lean pork is actually a very high quality protein source with an extremely high bio-availability. Pork tenderloin contains just 1 gram of fat per ounce, which is about the same amount as a skinless chicken breast.

Fish/Seafood

There’s almost no end to the possible choices here.

Salmon, cod, tuna, halibut and talapia are just a few of the possible options. Not only is fish high in protein, but it also provides the body with a high amount of the omega 3 fatty acids EPA and DHA, which are critical to your overall health as well as improving muscle growth, fat loss and joint strength.

Don’t overlook other sources of seafood that you could include in your diet as well, such as shrimp, lobster, crab and scallops.

Yogurt

Yogurt. Contain bacteria that improve your gastrointestinal health. Don’t buy frozen yogurt or yogurt with added sugar and fruits at the bottom. Get plain low fat yogurt. Eat it with berries & flax seeds.

Mixed Nuts

Mixed Nuts. Contain mono- & polyunsaturated fats, proteins, fiber, vitamin E, zinc, potassium, magnesium, etc. Mixed nuts are caloric dense, great if you’re a skinny guy who wants to gain weight.

Whey Protein

There is a reason why whey protein supplements are the most popular supplement in the fitness industry: they provide a fast and convenient source of protein at an affordable price. Bodybuilders normally use them when they wake up, right after their workout, and mixed with some of their meals. For the rest of us, a scoop in our shakers right after our workouts can be very effective for muscle mass gains. It’s important that you still get high quality protein from whole foods, and use whey protein as a boo

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The Lateral Raise : How To Do It and 5 Best Tips

When it comes to attracting attention for the right reasons, men tend to focus on glamour muscles like the biceps, pecs and abs. However, if you’re topping it all off with feeble shoulders, much of your beach body work will be wasted. To ensure that doesn’t happen, try the lateral raise, which will help sculpt shoulders of impressive bulk and power.

The dumbbell lateral raise is an isolation exercise that strengthens the entire shoulder with an emphasis on the sides of the deltoid muscles.

RECOMMENDED: Home Workout: Small Dumbbells, Big Shoulders

The Benefits

Lateral raises are great for strengthening your shoulders, and you should also find that your shoulder mobility increases after a few weeks of doing the exercise. The core comes into play if you’re bracing it correctly when you lift, and your arms should also feel some of the strain after a set.

How To Do It

Standing in a shoulder-width stance, grab a pair of dumbbells with palms facing inward and let them hang at your sides.
Raise your arms out to the sides until they're at shoulder level. Pause, then lower the weights back to the starting position.

Aim for 10-12 reps with perfect form. Selecting the correct weight is key to doing lateral raises properly and safely. You’ll find that even with relatively light weights, the last few raises are a real challenge, so there’s no need to try to impress by grabbing the heaviest dumbbell. You don’t even need to use dumbbells – a resistance band works well for lateral raises. Don’t go beyond parallel when you’re raising the weights, and ensure you keep your arms out to your sides. If they start creeping forward it’s time to opt for a lighter weight.


Tips for Practicing Lateral Raises

1-When doing lateral raises, don’t focus on using heavy weights. That’s not the point. The point is to isolate certain muscles and work them, and that does not require heavy weight. In fact, using heavy weight might lead to injury.

2-The risk of injury is also why you must keep your reps slow and controlled. This is not the time to show off! Using momentum to help you pull the weights up will not give you the best benefits from the exercise, so don’t do it. Feel the slow burn of each muscle by moving slowly.

3-Keep your elbows above your wrists. This helps ensure that you the focus stays on your side deltoids. You should also keep them under stress by not allowing the weights to touch your body, and don’t let them simply hang from your hands – you should be actively using them.

4-Keep your abs tight as you do this exercise, which will help support your body and keep your torso straight. Finally, remember to watch for the weights creeping forward – you should be lifting them straight out to the side. If they are creeping forward, that means they are too heavy. Switch them out for lighter weights and start again.

5-Build Bigger Shoulders - Lateral Raise Tip

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Best Back Routine & The 30 Minute Series

This workout, which covers back as well as abs and lower back, alternates weekly workouts that emphasize strength (4-6 reps) with ones that emphasize mass (8-10 and sometimes 12-15 reps). Simply insert these workouts into your current routine to build a stronger, thicker back and a rock-solid midsection.

Choosing the correct weight is critical; in your strength workouts, make sure you pick a heavy weight that causes you to reach muscle failure on only your last set for each exercise at the target rep. Although you’ll take longer rest periods, you’ll move through your size-gaining workouts faster using relatively lighter weights for higher reps, with drop sets and supersets thrown in to increase the intensity.



30 Minute Series: Back


Exercise   
                                
Barbell Deadlifts
                        
Bent Over Barbell Rows   

Pull Ups   

Lat Machine Pull Downs

Straight Arm Pull Downs   

Hyperextensions
   
Seated Row Machine   

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8 Essential Benefits Of Barbell Rows

While many fitness fads fail the test of time, the barbell row has prevailed as a go-to exercise for centuries. The reason for its continued use in strength programs is that it's one of the best "bang for your buck" exercises. The barbell row activates muscles throughout the whole body and burns a ton of calories in the process. Learn about the extensive benefits associated with the barbell row..

1. Build a Strong Back

2. Lats Are the New Biceps

3. Train Explosiveness

4. Build a Big Back

5. Reinforce Proper Hip Flexion

6. Carry Over to Other Major Lifts

7.Jaw Dropping Boulder Shoulders

8.Stability, It's a Full Body Thing

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Top Exercises For Bigger Traps

By building this long, triangle-shaped muscle that’s located on the top half of your back, you can seriously change the topography of your upper body.

Besides adding size to your back and shoulders, you’ll also improve strength in nearly every upper-body lift. Start now, with these 8 great traps exercises.

1 -Face Pull With Pause

2 -Power Clean From Hang

3 -Snatch-Grip High Pull

4 -Wide-Grip Deadlift

5 -Kroc Rows

6 -Barbell Shrug

7 -Dumbbell Jump Shrug

8 -Behind-The-Back Shrug

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How To Get The Abs

One of my very first goals, when I got into fitness, was to get my abs to show (aka ripped abs). That word is important to note: ‘show’.

Because we all have abs.

It’s getting them to show that is the part we have to figure out.

Maybe you will be surprised to hear that I rarely perform ab-specific exercises. These are only 1% of the equation maybe less.


 do a minimum of 60 crunches per day plus more depending on how shredded they feel. Also do leg lifts to work the lower abs & 2-3 minutes of the plank (works the whole lot at once)
Dont forget to run or bike or whatever at least 4 times a week for at least an hour.


That’s good news for our wallets. But are crunches really a magic bullet if you’re going after the superficial Jersey Shore six pack? If you’re naturally very lean, then yes – you can stop right here. But for the rest of us, no.


Here’s the real secret: A powerful workout that incinerates any body fat hiding your abs and a smart but lower (not crazy low) carbohydrate diet.


The good news is that you may already have a six pack. The bad news is that it’s probably comfortably hidden under a layer of body fat. Even a small and healthy layer of body fat will do a good job to hide your abdominal muscles from view. But if a six pack is really your goal and focus (spending that same energy elsewhere may be more rewarding), then you’ll have to step up the cardio and really monitor your eating. Goodbye pizza and pasta and hello up-hill sprinting and intervals!

Do shoulder lifts. Crunches are a staple exercise, but the more suitable name should be shoulder lifts because of the movement in the anatomical skeleton.  When you properly do a crunch, you should notice that you are not pulling on your head, neck, or forcing yourself up with your hands.  When you force your spine, you risk hurting your back and neck.  Follow good mechanics by simply elevating your shoulders off the floor and slowly lowering down.  It may not feel like you are doing much, but the results will come faster than doing more.  Use the two-second rule and remember that steady is better than fast.

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