Cycling For Runners?

Cross-training With Cycling

Cycling is one of the best ways to build overall fitness including cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength in your glut-es, quads and hamstrings and flexibility through your hips and ankles. The fitter you are overall, the stronger and faster you’ll be able to run! 

 5 specific benefits to cross-training:

1. Injury prevention: If you’re new to running, cross-training with cycling can help you establish a base of fitness and get your muscles and joints used to repetitive motion without the impact. As you begin to mix in more running mileage, you’ll be stronger and better able to handle the impact. This decreases the chance of injury and makes running much more fun! The same goes for seasoned runners. Cycling builds and helps maintain strength in the glut-es, quads and hamstrings, minimizing muscular imbalances that lead to injury.

Exercise Your Brain

Sharpen Your Intellect

We all know that regular daily exercise is a great way to take care of ourselves. We may choose to utilize exercise equipment, such as a Treadmill, Recumbent Bike or maybe the Total Gym. We could go for a walk, jog or ride a bike. Our reward is a healthier, stronger, more physically fit body. And that is a great accomplishment! Just like our body, our brain needs to exercise also.

I have had little lapses in memory from time to time and I think it would be safe to say you have also. Things like not remembering a familiar PIN for your bank account that you always use, forgetting someone’s name or missing an appointment, just to name a few. Most of the time it’s due to a lot going on in your brain. You have so much on your mind that you’re stressed out. Or maybe you didn’t concentrate enough on what it was you were supposed to remember.

Research shows that brainpower can increase with mental activities in seniors. Aging does not mean automatically losing mental capacity. The National Institute of Aging has conducted a series of tests that prove most dramatic memory loss occurs around age 70, if it occurs at all. Even though memory may fade with time, thinking ability remains strong. Vocabulary and reasoning skills often improve with age.

Why Recumbent Exercise Bikes Beat The Competition

Exercise bikes continue to be popular options for home exercise despite the competition from trendy new fitness inventions. They offer the same aerobic benefits of riding a bicycle. And you can use it any time, in any weather, without leaving the comfort and safety of your home.

Exercise bikes don’t take up much space, require little or no balance or coordination, and can provide an effective workout for users of any level, from beginners to seasoned competitors. While the same could be said for a number of other types of home fitness equipment, the exercise bike is one of the few that allows you to watch television or read a magazine while you work out.

   5 Reasons Recumbent Bikes Are A Smart Choice 

1.) Recumbent Bikes Work for All Fitness Levels - Even the most inactive person will find a recumbent exercise bike easy to use. You can adjust the settings to offer little or no resistance as you pedal. People who are overweight will definitely find the seat much larger and more comfortable than other exercise bikes. Athletes will find the recumbent exercise bike a challenge. The resistance can become incredibly difficult. The bike can simulate pedaling up hills. Most recumbent bikes offer various programs that will require you to sprint and tackle hills. If you want an upper body workout as you pedal, you can easily add weights and do repetitions as you sit back in the recumbent bike seat.

Morning Exercise Is Great!

Jump Start Your Day

To be healthy, fitness exercise must be included in your overall daily activities. Beginning in the morning with an exercise program is the greatest habit to obtain.

Whatever type of exercise you choose to do will certainly benefit your overall health. Whether you like exercise videos or prefer to utilize fitness equipment such as a treadmill, recumbent bike or any other fitness product, the choice is yours.

The key is getting exercise whenever you can, whether it’s morning, afternoon, or evening. And by starting your morning with physical activity, you set the day’s pace. You get your exercise in before any other distractions can lure you away to something else.

When you exercise early in the morning, it jump starts your metabolism and keeps it elevated for up to 24 hours! Wow! That means you’re burning more calories all day long, just as a result of morning exercise.

When you exercise in the morning, you’ll find that because of the increased intake of oxygen and circulation of blood in your body, you’ll stay energized for the whole day. It will automatically put you in a healthy frame of mind. Whatever you may have on your schedule for the day, you will have the extra energy and drive needed to take it on.

Being a morning person gives you a good jump start to a more productive day. Research has proven that people who exercise in the mornings tend to be the ones who are the most consistent in their fitness routines and diets. So get yourself going and have a great day!

Diet And Exercise Tips

All of us want to be healthy and at the same time enjoy a fun and active lifestyle. But we need to approach it with some knowledge and preplanning. A recent report from the National Center for Health Statistics concludes that seven out of 10 adults don’t regularly exercise, and nearly four in 10 aren’t physically active. Lack of exercise can increase the risk of diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. About 300,000 people in the U.S. die each year from diseases related to inactivity.

Proper diet and exercise is essential for a healthy lifestyle. There needs to be a well planned program to follow and determination to adopt smart habits.  The basic steps to gradual weight loss and good health include developing healthy eating habits and increasing daily physical activity.

Self-Help Guidelines For Healthy Activity

Consult your doctor before adopting an exercise regimen, especially if you are at risk for chronic health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, or obesity. Start out slowly and build up activity gradually over a period of months. This will help avoid soreness and injury. Try to accumulate 30 minutes or more of moderate cardiovascular activity each day. You can do all 30 minutes together or through several short sessions. Some examples of cardiovascular activity are running, swimming, bicycling and jumping rope. You can utilize indoor exercise equipment such as treadmills or exercise bikes.

Add strength development exercises at least twice per week.You can do 6 to 12 repetitions of weight resistance exercises and increase the resistance as it becomes easier for strength development. Incorporate physical activity into your day. Walk to the office or store, take the stairs instead of the elevator, walk or jog at lunch time. Make leisure time active. Ride a bike, participate in an exercise class, join in a sports activity. Select activities you enjoy, find satisfying, and give you a feeling of accomplishment. Try “active commuting.” Cycle, walk or in-line skate to work or to the store. For those who are already regularly moderately active, increase the duration and intensity for additional benefits.