Vegetarian Fitness
Being a vegetarian requires a full understanding of the
role nutrition plays in achieving your fitness goals.
There is a direct relationship between nutrition and physical
performance in workouts or sports. Hard physical activity
requires an increase in nutritionally dense calories and
also due to sweating a higher fluid intake. Threfore you
need to carefully plan what you eat and drink.
Your calorie intake needs to be balanced with your energy
output and goals. If you want to lose you need to cut back
on calories, if you want to gain you will need to increase
calories. If your going in the wrong direction, adjust your
calorie intake and/or activity levels, so you are moving
towards your goals.
An important point for vegetarians to realize that they digest
their foods more quickly than non vegetarians. This means
you need to eat more often to compensate for the higher
energy needs.
When engaging in fitness training workouts you do need
to increase your protein intake, but remember excess
protein that is not burned for energy will be turned into
fat.
Best Vegetarian Protein Sources
It's easier than you might imagine to get plenty of protein
from vegetarian foods. If you include dairy products and
eggs in your regimen, look no further. These are good
sources of protein. Stick to low fat dairy products to avoid
excess saturated fats.
If you want to be certain that you are getting all eight
essential amino acids, you should eat learn to combine
foods to form complete proteins, such as:
Beans on toast
Cereal/muesli with milk
Corn and beans
Granola with yogurt
Hummus and pita bread
Nut butter with milk or whole grain bread
Pasta with beans
Pasta with cheese (e.g., lasagne, macaroni and cheese)
Rice and beans, peas, or lentils
Rice with milk (rice pudding)
Split pea soup with whole grain or seeded crackers or bread
Tortillas with refried beans
Veggie burgers on bread
Note that these combinations don't necessarily have to be
eaten at the same time; you can eat one several hours after
the other and still benefit from the complete protein.
Complete protein can be gotten from eating soy based foods
like tofu tempeh or sprouted legumes, and meat substitutes
made from soy protein.
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Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Friday, March 16, 2007
Improve your Football Fitness
By Zach Bashore
Many people like to call football a game of inches. However, I
believe that in order to turn these inches into touchdowns,
many aspects are necessary in order for this to take place.
This article is an in-depth guide to improving your abilities
as a football player. You are going to learn how to increase
your speed, acceleration, agility, balance, and the most
important, strength.
There are three ways in which to practice increasing your
speed: Improving running mechanics, improving technique, and
strengthening your legs. Most players don`t have great running
mechanics and if they would just improve their technique, they
would run alot faster. Leg strength is important because the
more force applied to the ground, the faster you will run. You
simply cannot reach your full speed potential by just running
sprints. A number of elements must coincide with each other if
you want to reach your maximum speed potential. From a
scientific standpoint, speed is the by product of two elements:
Stride length and stride frequency. Stride length is the distance
you cover during each step of your run. Stride frequency is
basically the number of steps you take per socond. By using the
following training methods, you can increase your stride length
and frequency; hence, increase of speed.
* Shuttle sprints - Start in your preferred position, run 10-15
yards, run backwards to starting postion, and then repeat.
* Pylometric circuit - Use this drill no more than once a week
and not on days before the big game, since this circuit may
take a couple of days to recover from.
Speed and acceleration go hand-in-hand. To improve your
acceleration, repeated sprints of more than ten seconds,
performed with a standing start will be most useful. This will
help the neuromuscular and metabolic qualities of the muscles
involved. Another way of improving acceleration is to practice
accelerating as fast as possible during practice. A slow
acceleration topped with a quick burst is another good method
that can be used. One of the best utilities you can train with
to increase acceleration is using the PowerBlast gauntlet.
Practice with this equipment and you're well on your way to
increasing your acceleration.
Ladder drills are best performed in increasing your agility.
In sports competition, the body is constantly asked to perform
movements from unusual angles. The main purpose of the agility
ladder program is to promote a wide range of different foot
and movement patterns. These movements become second nature,
and the body is able to quickly respond to the various angles
required. You can improve your agility by practicing the
movements in training and the agility ladder is a useful tool
in a good agility program. The common ladder is roughly ten
yards long with 18 inch squares, but you can make your
own ladder just using tape or even sticks. When you start
the agility ladder program, introduce your body to two to
four different movements. Once you get good at these movements,
introduce yourself to new patterns to keep your body guessing.
Many of today`s athletes are using balance training as a
crucial part of their overall training program. Balance is
needed by runners in wooded areas, soccer players need balance
when taking the ball on a volley from just behind themselves,
and even tennis players need balance when reaching for a drop
shot. Each of these situations requires the exercise of just
the right amount of flexibility at the right time. With balance
training, the idea is to recreate and manipulate what you would
do in a game situation. Maintaining balance means having the
center of your mass within the middle of your base for support.
In the past, people believed that perfect balance was best
illustrated by standing on one leg and staying as still as
possible for as long as possible. This method still works but
there are also other methods in which are useful. Exercises
such as the one-leg punch and jump steps are both perfect for
improving your balance.
Another point to remember is that maximal strength training
should be a progression from general strength training with
maximal loads. Heavy maximal exercise is only used for advanced
strength trainees. Good abdominal and lower back strength is
crucial if heavy lifting exercises are going to be used.
Pylometric exercises are classified into bounding, hopping,
and jumping movements. These exercises demand a high force of
contraction in response to a rapid loading of lengthening the
muscles. For this reason, they should be renamed rebound or
reversible action exercises. The training effort increases
the force production in the muscles, but the movements are
performed at faster speeds than that of weight-training
exercises. Rebounding exercises are more common to the
sprinting and jumping reps on each leg, with at least one
minute of rest between sets. Endurance should not be a
factor. Running with weighted jackets and sprinting uphill
are also useful exercises because it adds resistance to
the sprint movement, which places greater load on the
muscles.
Football is not an easy sport by any mean, but being
physically prepared of its tough demands is half of the
battle. The other half is using what you know and a little
of bit of luck as well. You have learned the five most
important areas of physical fitness needed to be a good
football player.
Lose Fat, Gain Muscle, Shape Up. Sign up for our Free Weekly Bodybuilding, Fitness and Health Tips Newsletter,and you will be automatically entered in our monthly drawing to win Free Supplements and other great prizes. Stay informed, stay motivated, win free stuff, join today!
Click Here To Sign Up Free
By Zach Bashore
Many people like to call football a game of inches. However, I
believe that in order to turn these inches into touchdowns,
many aspects are necessary in order for this to take place.
This article is an in-depth guide to improving your abilities
as a football player. You are going to learn how to increase
your speed, acceleration, agility, balance, and the most
important, strength.
There are three ways in which to practice increasing your
speed: Improving running mechanics, improving technique, and
strengthening your legs. Most players don`t have great running
mechanics and if they would just improve their technique, they
would run alot faster. Leg strength is important because the
more force applied to the ground, the faster you will run. You
simply cannot reach your full speed potential by just running
sprints. A number of elements must coincide with each other if
you want to reach your maximum speed potential. From a
scientific standpoint, speed is the by product of two elements:
Stride length and stride frequency. Stride length is the distance
you cover during each step of your run. Stride frequency is
basically the number of steps you take per socond. By using the
following training methods, you can increase your stride length
and frequency; hence, increase of speed.
* Shuttle sprints - Start in your preferred position, run 10-15
yards, run backwards to starting postion, and then repeat.
* Pylometric circuit - Use this drill no more than once a week
and not on days before the big game, since this circuit may
take a couple of days to recover from.
Speed and acceleration go hand-in-hand. To improve your
acceleration, repeated sprints of more than ten seconds,
performed with a standing start will be most useful. This will
help the neuromuscular and metabolic qualities of the muscles
involved. Another way of improving acceleration is to practice
accelerating as fast as possible during practice. A slow
acceleration topped with a quick burst is another good method
that can be used. One of the best utilities you can train with
to increase acceleration is using the PowerBlast gauntlet.
Practice with this equipment and you're well on your way to
increasing your acceleration.
Ladder drills are best performed in increasing your agility.
In sports competition, the body is constantly asked to perform
movements from unusual angles. The main purpose of the agility
ladder program is to promote a wide range of different foot
and movement patterns. These movements become second nature,
and the body is able to quickly respond to the various angles
required. You can improve your agility by practicing the
movements in training and the agility ladder is a useful tool
in a good agility program. The common ladder is roughly ten
yards long with 18 inch squares, but you can make your
own ladder just using tape or even sticks. When you start
the agility ladder program, introduce your body to two to
four different movements. Once you get good at these movements,
introduce yourself to new patterns to keep your body guessing.
Many of today`s athletes are using balance training as a
crucial part of their overall training program. Balance is
needed by runners in wooded areas, soccer players need balance
when taking the ball on a volley from just behind themselves,
and even tennis players need balance when reaching for a drop
shot. Each of these situations requires the exercise of just
the right amount of flexibility at the right time. With balance
training, the idea is to recreate and manipulate what you would
do in a game situation. Maintaining balance means having the
center of your mass within the middle of your base for support.
In the past, people believed that perfect balance was best
illustrated by standing on one leg and staying as still as
possible for as long as possible. This method still works but
there are also other methods in which are useful. Exercises
such as the one-leg punch and jump steps are both perfect for
improving your balance.
Another point to remember is that maximal strength training
should be a progression from general strength training with
maximal loads. Heavy maximal exercise is only used for advanced
strength trainees. Good abdominal and lower back strength is
crucial if heavy lifting exercises are going to be used.
Pylometric exercises are classified into bounding, hopping,
and jumping movements. These exercises demand a high force of
contraction in response to a rapid loading of lengthening the
muscles. For this reason, they should be renamed rebound or
reversible action exercises. The training effort increases
the force production in the muscles, but the movements are
performed at faster speeds than that of weight-training
exercises. Rebounding exercises are more common to the
sprinting and jumping reps on each leg, with at least one
minute of rest between sets. Endurance should not be a
factor. Running with weighted jackets and sprinting uphill
are also useful exercises because it adds resistance to
the sprint movement, which places greater load on the
muscles.
Football is not an easy sport by any mean, but being
physically prepared of its tough demands is half of the
battle. The other half is using what you know and a little
of bit of luck as well. You have learned the five most
important areas of physical fitness needed to be a good
football player.
Lose Fat, Gain Muscle, Shape Up. Sign up for our Free Weekly Bodybuilding, Fitness and Health Tips Newsletter,and you will be automatically entered in our monthly drawing to win Free Supplements and other great prizes. Stay informed, stay motivated, win free stuff, join today!
Click Here To Sign Up Free
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Cybergenics Arm Workout
From The Cybergenics Total Body Building System Manual
1. Every cycle must be brought to the point of total negative
failure. At the end of each cycle your muscles should be
fatigued to the point that completion of the movement without
any added resistance is momentarily impossible or extremely
difficult (depending on the movement).
2. There should be no rest whatsoever between each set of the
cycle. You should only rest long enough between each cycle for
your partner to complete his/her cycle. Keep rest time to an
absolute minimum.
3. All training must be all-out, utilizing 100% effort. Concentrate
everything and focus every bit of energy on every set and every
repetition. The set and cycle is over only when raising or lowering
the weight is physically impossible, even when 100% effort is being
imposed.
4. Stretch hard for 30 seconds after each cycle. This is extremely
important to the Cybergenics effect.
5. When doing forced reps, offer only enough assistance to raise
the weight. Do not offer superfluous assistance as it is dangerous
and counterproductive to the Cybergenics effect.
6. Use music during workout, as it evokes excitement and contributes
to the "psyche". This will help to increase concentration and
actually release small amounts of adrenaline.
7. Concentrate on raising the weight as quickly as possible while
lowering it very slowly, taking up to six seconds to do so. This
is extremely important to the Cybergenics effect.
8. Do not count repetitions, as there is no designated number that
should be performed. The cycle and/or set is completed only when
total negative failure is reached.
Arm Training Schedule Summary
Always warm-up before beginning workout and stretch after every
cycle.
CYCLE 1-AA REPEAT CYCLE 3 TIMES
Barbell Curls at 95% maximum (+) and (-) failure
Barbell Curls at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
Barbell Curls at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
CYCLE 2-AA REPEAT CYCLE 2 TIMES
One-arm Concentration Curls at 95% maximum (+) and (-) failure
One-arm Concentration Curls at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
One-arm Concentration Curls at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
CYCLE 1-TR REPEAT CYCLE 4 TIMES
Lying Barbell Extensions at 90% maximum (+) and (-) failure
Close Grip Bench Press at same weight as above (+) and (-) failure
Lying Barbell Extensions at 90% maximum (+) and (-) failure
Close Grip Bench Press at same weight as above (+) and (-) failure
CYCLE 2-TR REPEAT CYCLE 2 TIMES
Medium Grip Pressdowns at 90% maximum (+) and (-) failure
Medium Grip Pressdowns at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
Medium Grip Pressdowns at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
For More Information on Cybergenics Visit
cybergenics.org
Lose Fat, Gain Muscle, Shape Up. Sign up for our Free Weekly Bodybuilding, Fitness and Health Tips Newsletter,and you will be automatically entered in our monthly drawing to win Free Supplements and other great prizes. Stay informed, stay motivated, win free stuff, join today!
Click Here To Sign Up Free
From The Cybergenics Total Body Building System Manual
1. Every cycle must be brought to the point of total negative
failure. At the end of each cycle your muscles should be
fatigued to the point that completion of the movement without
any added resistance is momentarily impossible or extremely
difficult (depending on the movement).
2. There should be no rest whatsoever between each set of the
cycle. You should only rest long enough between each cycle for
your partner to complete his/her cycle. Keep rest time to an
absolute minimum.
3. All training must be all-out, utilizing 100% effort. Concentrate
everything and focus every bit of energy on every set and every
repetition. The set and cycle is over only when raising or lowering
the weight is physically impossible, even when 100% effort is being
imposed.
4. Stretch hard for 30 seconds after each cycle. This is extremely
important to the Cybergenics effect.
5. When doing forced reps, offer only enough assistance to raise
the weight. Do not offer superfluous assistance as it is dangerous
and counterproductive to the Cybergenics effect.
6. Use music during workout, as it evokes excitement and contributes
to the "psyche". This will help to increase concentration and
actually release small amounts of adrenaline.
7. Concentrate on raising the weight as quickly as possible while
lowering it very slowly, taking up to six seconds to do so. This
is extremely important to the Cybergenics effect.
8. Do not count repetitions, as there is no designated number that
should be performed. The cycle and/or set is completed only when
total negative failure is reached.
Arm Training Schedule Summary
Always warm-up before beginning workout and stretch after every
cycle.
CYCLE 1-AA REPEAT CYCLE 3 TIMES
Barbell Curls at 95% maximum (+) and (-) failure
Barbell Curls at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
Barbell Curls at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
CYCLE 2-AA REPEAT CYCLE 2 TIMES
One-arm Concentration Curls at 95% maximum (+) and (-) failure
One-arm Concentration Curls at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
One-arm Concentration Curls at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
CYCLE 1-TR REPEAT CYCLE 4 TIMES
Lying Barbell Extensions at 90% maximum (+) and (-) failure
Close Grip Bench Press at same weight as above (+) and (-) failure
Lying Barbell Extensions at 90% maximum (+) and (-) failure
Close Grip Bench Press at same weight as above (+) and (-) failure
CYCLE 2-TR REPEAT CYCLE 2 TIMES
Medium Grip Pressdowns at 90% maximum (+) and (-) failure
Medium Grip Pressdowns at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
Medium Grip Pressdowns at 50% of the above (+) and (-) failure
For More Information on Cybergenics Visit
cybergenics.org
Lose Fat, Gain Muscle, Shape Up. Sign up for our Free Weekly Bodybuilding, Fitness and Health Tips Newsletter,and you will be automatically entered in our monthly drawing to win Free Supplements and other great prizes. Stay informed, stay motivated, win free stuff, join today!
Click Here To Sign Up Free
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