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Showing posts from June, 2014

Keeping it cool during workouts

Rising body temperature during rigorous exercise is quiet common. Humans have an inbuilt capability to increase their body temperatures at will, such as during periods of intense exercise. Some factor which also add to this are the environmental factors (climate, etc), time of the day, current diet and hydration status, etc. In countries where the climate is more humid or if there is a heat wave going on thereby increasing the day temperature to over 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), exercising can become more exhausting. While it may come as a surprise to some but given the so many functions that the human body is capable of performing, one thing that it just cannot do is cool itself down intentionally. Of course there is temperature regulation taking place from evaporation (from sweat), radiation, convection, etc. but these are mere process of heat loss (heat dissipation) which as a result cool the body down. Some strategies for working out in extremely hot condit

Fat Loss (Part-1 of 2)

Losing body fat is unarguably an intriguing topic for discussion. In this post I'm sharing one of the two strategies that I've found to work. First and foremost, it is always helps to know the reason for fat loss as in "Why do I want to lose body fat"?  An elite athlete may want to lose fat and hence body weight to qualify for a sporting event, while an overweight teenager may want to lead a more healthy life by increasing her/his fitness levels, losing body fat/weight and thereby increasing their self-confidence. There can be various reasons and these reasons guide the path for our motivation for starting and eventually succeeding on a fat loss program. Following is the first strategy: Increasing Energy Expenditure: This simply means to do more physical activity (than currently doing) in the form of a structured exercise program. If, for example, I currently workout 2 days in a week by doing strength exercises and 2 days of cardiovascular exercise amounting to a

Lean Body Weight

Stepping foot on a weighing scale can be motivating at times although it is not always so. The scale reading that appears on the weighing device usually shows the total weight comprising of but not limited to the lean body weight, the fat weight, weight of the bones, etc. So the next time you step on your scale keep in mind that all of it is not fat. If you're a fitness enthusiast who regularly does strength training, cardio, etc or any other activity and monitor your weight either every day or every week, the increment or decrement you may see on the scale can also refer to your gaining or losing for both lean body weight and fat weight, depending on your individual calorie intake and training goal. Calculating the Lean Body Weight For calculating the Lean Body Weight we would need the total weight i.e. what we see on the scale by stepping on it, and the fat weight which is calculated from the fat percentage. Body Fat percentage can be calculated easily using an electronic bo