What are the best food options before and after exercise?

Living a healthy lifestyle requires making changes in every aspect of your life. Being really vigilant with exercise and always sticking to your fitness plan is great, but if you continue to eat poorly and make the wrong nutrition choices, it will counter the good you’re doing with the exercise.

To see the most results and benefits, you should create a workout plan and also a food plan. Fitness professionals suggest that to maintain a higher metabolism and avoid growing too hungry and binge eating, people should eat five to six smaller meals throughout the day. Continue reading “What are the best food options before and after exercise?”

Creating a cardio circuit training program

For many people, finding time to work out can be a challenge. Whether you’re looking to lift weights or do cardio, is can be a struggle to find a free part of the day to devote solely to exercise, but circuit training can make this possible.

Circuit training is great for a number of reasons. For people who work, it’s time efficient and can be finished in as little as 30 minutes. Circuit training is also usually offers a total body workout  so every part gets attention. When people think of circuit training, they usually think of weight lifting and setting up various stations to challenge and strengthen muscles. Continue reading “Creating a cardio circuit training program”

Elliptical training tips from an Olympics coach

The M50's preset options allow you to focus on all of your training goals.
The M50’s preset options allow you to focus on all of your training goals.

If you’re training for a triathlon, you may not have thought your elliptical machine would be a prime option. However, Lance Watson, a four-time Olympic Games coach for several triathletes, provided some stellar tips for using your elliptical to get your body into tip-top triathlon shape. Continue reading “Elliptical training tips from an Olympics coach”

Breaking through plateaus

Many runners will hit what is not-so-fondly referred to as “the wall” during a long run. But what if the wall isn’t appearing on a single run, but across your running regiment in general? What if you are at a point where you are having trouble making gains, seemingly regardless of how hard you train? This is called a plateau, and it occurs in any form of exercise. Essentially, your body reaches a level at which progress stalls. This can be caused by physical or mental barriers, but is most commonly some combination of the two.  Continue reading “Breaking through plateaus”

No sleep before race day? New study says no problem

Many competitive runners have a lot of trouble falling asleep the night before a big race. It’s usually a combination of stress, anxiety and nerves, but whatever the cause it can prevent many people from sleeping well if at all. The running adage is that a good night’s sleep two nights before the race is much more important, but is there any truth to this? A new study says it just might be correct.  Continue reading “No sleep before race day? New study says no problem”

Using different running surfaces

Most runners will put in the majority of their work on paved roads. Neighborhood streets shouldn’t be the only place that you train, however. Many experts report that running on different surfaces offers myriad benefits, from injury prevention to improvements in performance. Runner’s World recommends taking routes to trails, grass, sand, or even water to reap the individual benefits of each. Here are the best ways to take advantage of a new environment.
Continue reading “Using different running surfaces”

Strength training for the avid runner

Many runners are afraid to touch any sort of strength routine out of fear that added bulk will weigh them down and slow their race times. While few runners aspire to look like a bodybuilder, there is a comfortable medium that can help improve your running rather than detract from it. In some cases, the best training plan is a comprehensive one that allows you to combine the benefits of a few different methods. Any runner can find a place for the appropriate strength training in their routine. You may find the results are better than you expected the next time you use your home treadmill. The TRUE M50 Home Treadmill‘s preset and custom workout routines can easily complement any weight training that you choose to add!  Continue reading “Strength training for the avid runner”

Exercises to prevent compensation injuries

The kinetic chain is a term used to describe the myriad joints and muscles used to perform a compound movement, and this reveals itself as especially important for an activity like running. Just like any other, this chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and any imbalances are not only detrimental to performance but also risk injury. This is because the body trains itself to compensate for muscular weakness over long periods of time, so you may end up dominant in some areas of your body while conversely weak in others. This is most problematic for endurance athletes. The constant stress of their activity causes these imbalances to surface, often through injury. Continue reading “Exercises to prevent compensation injuries”

Is it safe to work out more than once a day?

For major fitness enthusiasts, sometimes working out just once a day isn’t enough. Whether you’re training for a marathon, focusing on building muscle, losing weight, or are addicted to the endorphin rush you get from exercising, working out more than once a day sometimes seems like a great idea. While exercising is undoubtedly important for your health, this begs the question: Is it possible to overdo it? In other words, is it safe to work out more than once a day? Continue reading “Is it safe to work out more than once a day?”