I must admit, I’ve been slacking quite a bit during my workouts in incorporating my arms. I just have a really hard time working my arms out the right way to be honest, and since I have upper back problems, many times when I lift weights over my head, I have an extremely sore neck and shoulders the next day.

So, I do avoid arm workouts like the plague, and would much rather work my legs and abs any day of the week. But alas, my arms have become like mush, so I seeked out some help on good arm exercises that would lessen the strain on my neck and my shoulders, as well as my upper back. I think I found something that I like, and also something that apparently lots of female celebrities are liking as well.

I can’t remember what show I was watching, but a celebrity fitness guru was on the air talking about what her female celebrity list of clients likes to do most with their arms, or rather what she likes for them most to do to get sculpted, muscular arms in all the right place. She was talking about arm bands, thos one that you can bend and stretch, that create just the right amount of resistence, without you having to lug around heavy weights or take any compromising positions in your posture or handling of your stance that might increase risk of back and neck strain.

I tried it a couple times so far, after watching someone else being show by a trainer in my work gym how to do it. It is simple, but man I’m telling you, arm bands are definitely by no means easy. I could only do a total of about 8 reps and felt as though my arm muscles were already stretched to their max limit, and totally fatigued.

I can see why a celebrity fitness guru would want their clients to use this thing – it gets results fast because it is so intense and works the muscles efficiently to get results extremely quickly.

If you’re looking to get those sleeker, more toned and tight arms that are on the likes of stars like Sarah Jessica Parker and Madonna, you may not want to be looking to the weight benches to get their signature sinews. If you’re looking for more tone, but without the bulk, then pilates for your arms may be just what the doctor ordered.

I do pilates periodically for my arms, and it’s both because I want those more toned and taut arms without the bulking up, and also because my arms tend to have fat on them, especially my upper arms, which is a common places for fat to be stored on women, but also because I do not need to bulk up what I’m trying to slim down essentially.

Pilates are a combination of yoga and calisthetics, in that they are slow moving, very deliberate and targeted specific exercises that use a slightly isometric motion to target tone specific areas of the body. They are very popular for women who don’t want to bulk up, but rather want that longer, leaner look to their body, and want to tone areas such as their inner and outer thighs, butt, tummy and arms.

For my arms, the pilates I do are a small, targeted circular motion where the arms are extended out from my sides, and I am moving forward with them for about twenty counts, and then backward for about twenty counts, all while maintaining that small range of motion and the tight, specific region of the movement stays the same.

Do you know how many times I’ve gotten home from work and just wanted to punch something? A wall, a bag, whatever I could get my hands on, except of course, for an innocent bystander! Well, with one of the best workouts you can get for your arms, you can take out all your frustration from work and “vent” on a punching bag by throwing some well placed swings that land square on an inanimate object who’s only purpose is to let you take out your hostility and pent up energy. Can you tell I know a little about all the above?

But seriously, using a punching bag with boxing gloves is one of the best arm workouts you’re gonna get today. Not only that, it will leave you sweating and out of breath, so it’s also a good cardio outlet. You just have to be careful to protect your back and keep your legs strong as you rotate your torso around to get in your upper cuts and roundhouse blows.

I’ve used punching bags before, but I don’t actually own one in my home gym yet. I do think it’s a piece of home exercise equipment to consider, especially if you have a home gym since it is a fairly sizeable piece of home exercise equipment. All in all, you’ll get some great cardio as well as great muscle toning and arm strengthening in, and hey, a little self defense too!

Yep, there is supposedly some new fangled piece of exercise equipment (not sure if it’s actually on the market yet), that claims to give you a total body workout in just ten minutes. This type of workout is obviously going to appeal to those of us that feel we don’t have enough time in the day to work out – which, oh yeah means all of us!

It’s called the ROM machine, and it is a crazy looking contraption that requires the user to combine form and technique in the movement, working first the upper body for four minute, then giving a break and then working the lower body for the rest of the time. Users and club owners that offer the ten minute workout say the workout is so intense and requires so much concentration that users cannot hold a conversation while using it.

However, they do say that it can be tailored to each individual’s state of physical fitness. If I had to describe what the machine looks like, I’d say it looks like a combination between an elliptical machine, bike, and nautilus machine for the upper arms, with handle bar-like contraptions at the top, but it looks like you’re sitting at some points. It definitely is an interesting device!

So, if you’re a beginner or novice and are just wanting to get in quick workouts apparently this machine can work you out too. Many people are saying that they notice a quick difference after using the machine. There are centers that employ the ten minute workout now popping up in major cities and more fitness centered areas. I have not heard of any as of yet in my area, but I’m sure it’s soon to come since I have some major metropolitan areas around me.

Jazzercise, which began 38 years ago, is still extremely popular as a means of getting toned and fit and having fun while you’re at it. Judi Sheppard Missett created the Jazzercise program in 1969. Jazzercise is a dance fitness program that incorporates dance steps into an aerobic exercise routine.

Instructors for Jazzercise must be certified and are trained in dance technique, injury prevention and the science of anatomy and physiology.

Throughout the years, some transformations and additions have taken place within the Jazzercise programs. Jazzercise classes began as dance routines done to pop music but now have incorporated different fitness styles into it. Yoga, pilates and cardio-kickboxing have been integrated into many of the Jazzercise classes.

Jazzercise classes last an hour and start with a warm up. After that, there is 30 minutes of aerobic exercise, then strength training. To enhance the Jazzercise classes, the use of weights, exercise balls and stretch bands helps you to further tone your muscles.

Jazzercise classes have different formats specifically tailored to your level of fitness, age or time constraints. For a novice, seniors or pregnant women, there is the Jazzercise Lite program. Teenagers enjoy the Jazzercise Team Dance and children can participate in the Junior Jazzercise.

If you want to define your muscles more, there is the Jazzercise Body Sculpting workout that lasts 45 minutes with weights incorporated into the program. People who are always in a time crunch can sign up for the Jazzercise Express that is a 30 minute version of the traditional program.

The corporate website for Jazzercise can help you locate the classes near you. A varied range of contemporary music is used for the classes. At www.jazzercise.com, the basic aerobic movements can be looked up online to get a preview of what a Jazzercise class will consist of.

Also featured are the power legs movements, fancy footwork and side to side movements spelled out on video to view. Some general recommendations for participating in the classes are covered online. These are aimed at your posture and ways to move properly throughout the Jazzercise program. Jazzercise welcomes all different levels of fitness.

I feel great right now. Yep, I just worked out for the second time since my minor surgery, and I feel absolutely fannn-tastic! I feel like I could accomplish anything right now, and my body feels alive and revitalized after I worked out for a half hour on the horizon elliptical machine in our basement and did my muscle weight training afterwards. I was not able to work out for three weeks straight, and with someone who is used to working out at least 4 times a week on average, this is basically a very hard thing to do. I literally felt as though at times I would climb the walls or that I would go mad without exercise.

This only strengthens my belief that exercise is not only excellent for your health and longevity, but is almost as necessary as diet in keeping you functional and sane when it comes to brain function and mood control. They say that exercising makes your body release these chemicals that account for that feeling of happiness and exhilaration, called endorphins. Few things are capable at releasing the amount of endorphins that exercise can, at least not anything that’s actually healthy and not a chemical substance that people frequently abuse!

Exercise on a daily or weekly basis is vital in maintaining your thought processes, ability to think clearly and problem solve, and is also crucial at maintaining a positive mood and overall outlook on life. Many of the people I know that have problems with depression and problems controlling their moods or their feelings do not work out! What’s that tell you? It may be unfair of me, but it’s impossible not to draw the conclusion that working out, or lack thereof, is a big contributing factor to mental instability and mood fluctuations.

It’s allover the news, but I thought it was still Fitness News worthy, as it points out how much fitness related stuff makes it to the news now that our obesity epidemic has been getting national attention and magazines and online periodicals are compiling “fat city lists” and the most unfit city lists and things of the like.

The mayor of Oklahoma City, which has in past years won the unlucky distinction of being one of the top fattest cities in the US, has decided to take on this unfortunate labeling with a fight. Not only has he himself lost a lot of weight over the past year, but he is encouraging other Oklahoma City residents to do that same, and to take their own weight into their responsibilities and also to make sure they work out more.

He’s making working out more and increased fitness levels easier by increasing things like bike paths in the city, as well as trying to make the streets more pedestrian friendly to encourage calorie burning walking, and perhaps to make the city a bit more eye appealing by reducing traffic and large buses and things of the like by increasing it’s old fashioned appeal.

Now that walking has come back in thanks to the “Green” movement and exercise coming into the spotlight as a huge necessity for stress busting and weight control, he shouldn’t have too big a problem getting more people to walk. He also has initiated a website where people can track their weight loss and also can join others in their quest to lose weight on message boards and forums with tips and experiences to share. Very cool!

Stretching our muscles is an important part of any fitness program. In order to stretch our muscles properly, we should follow several simple rules.
The first principle to remember for proper stretching is to isolate the muscle group. The positioning of the group of muscles should not be putting a stress or load on other ligaments or joints.

Before starting your stretch, you should find the point of zero tension for that muscle group. Zero tension is the point where there is no load on the specific muscles. From this point, you can adjust the tension of the muscle group gradually.

From zero tension, you can find the first awareness of gentle tension in your stretching of a muscle group. The first awareness and zero tension of a stretch are important to avoid overstretching and a possible injury.

The principle of less is best helps the muscle to return to relaxing to it’s current resting length. This is the best rule to apply when starting stretches.

Allowing the loss of tension is another golden rule for stretching. Timing of stretches is not recommended. The duration of a stretch will vary according to fatigue of the muscle, the initial load on the muscle and the amount of warm up done before stretching. Listening to your biofeedback of your muscle groups will help you safely stretch.

Most mistakes made in stretching exercises involve errors in positioning, overstretching, timing of stretches or loading other structures such as joints or ligaments.
Stretches are defined in a number of different ways. Dynamic stretches occur when the muscles isometrically contract to maintain a position. An example of this is the hip flexors contracting to stabilize the femur to the spine when one knee is bent.

Another kind of stretching is called the PNF method. A PNF stretch,or proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation method, refers to a person stretching against resistance from a partner. The PNF method holds a higher probability for injury by stretching as overstretching can easily result.

Passive-active and active–assisted methods of stretching use some of the PNF method and some of the dynamic stretches. Either a partner or special equipment is used for these kinds of stretches.

Static stretches are the safest and are done individually without any equipment and with less risk of muscle soreness.

When stretching, the old adage of “no pain, no gain” does not apply. Build safely to your stretching part of your exercise program to avoid injury and enhance the strength and flexibility of your muscle groups.

Everybody has an area personally that they can improve upon. The New Year is upon us and the time is right to make our self improving New Year’s resolutions. When making a resolution, it’s great to set your goal high, whatever it may be.

While it’s admirable to set your standards high, remember to balance your personal goal as realistic and attainable. For example, if weight loss is your resolution, don’t set your goal at an unrealistic loss of 100 pounds. You could set your goals at healthier eating habits and realistically expect to drop a few pounds per week and set a more achieveable goal.

If your resolution should be to achieve physical fitness in 2008, you should, again, be realistic. Perhaps, your fitness goal could be to become more toned or increase your endurance. Setting your ideal for the buff body of a 21 year old could be doomed to disappointment if you are in your fifties or sixties.

Research different methods to stay with your New Year’s resolution before delving into it. People trying to achieve weight loss along with improved physical fitness can consult with their physician and have a diet and exercise program in place to get their results.

People wanting smoking cessation for their New Year’s goal can analyze different methods for this challenge. Besides quitting cold turkey, there are support groups, nicotene patches or gum, hypnosis and medications such as Chantrix to help you make this healthful change.

A buddy system can help you stay with your New Year’s resolution. Choose a friend or relative with a similar goal to work with for the social network and emotional support. Remember, if you get off track with your New Year’s resolution, be kind to yourself. Get right back on track and persist until you’ve met your improvement goal by year’s end.

The list of self improvements for New Year’s are endless. They can encompass completing your education, improving finances, better family relationships, or cessation of drinking alcohol. Whatever your resolution is, they are set to make ourselves a better and healthier person, both physically and mentally.