Mobility Vs Flexibility: Do You Understand Them?
If only we were all so mobile… Pic: tanakawho
Mobility and Flexibility are two terms you hear used frequently, and often at the same time. Both are very important, but they are two very different concepts. Mobility is the new term that gets thrown around a lot, but with very little understanding of what it actually is…
Flexibility and Mobility: What Is The Difference?
Flexibility is the ability to take a joint through a range of motion passively. For example, if someone takes you through a hamstring stretch whilst you are lying on your back, it is a test of your hamstring flexibility. They are passively assisting you in taking your joint through its range of motion.
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Isolation Exercises: You Still Need Them
One way to isolate your bicep… Pic: cking
The fitness world is starting to come around now. There is still a lot of crap out there, but better concepts are becoming much more prevalent. There are myths floating around the fitness world that just never seem to be totally abolished. On the other hand, there are many incidents where certain theories or practices are being completely wiped out because there is thought to be a better practice. We are in an industry of extremes. It’s either one way or another. Me? I like to sit on the fence sometimes…
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Foam Rolling: Get On It
Yum…but wrong kind of foam.
Massage therapy is a necessary part of recovery and adaptation, but it can make a massive dent in the hip pocket. If you want an easy, cheap, and effective way to relieve the aches and pains that are slowly building up against your body, look no further than your own long, round and hard piece of foam.
What is it?
Foam Rolling is the most cost effective way to get relief from muscle aches and pains. All you need is a piece of foam (most gyms will have a few lying around), and some pain tolerance! If you aren’t doing it already in your routine, then you should start, right now. You will see and feel the benefits immediately.
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Overhead Squat: The Ultimate Exercise?
Pic: AdamBowie
This question is always asked, if you could only do one exercise in the gym, what would it be? Well I think that is an extremely stupid question and I am not going to answer it. But, I’m going to tell you about one of my favourites, the Overhead Squat. Want a great warm up exercise that doubles as a killer strength manoeuvre? To simply look at this exercise you know it’s good for you. You get strength, co-ordination, balance, flexibility, range of motion, and a big workout…all in one.
What Is This So Called Ultimate Exercise?
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Glycemic Index: Do You Really Understand It?
Low GI- good for your health?
Carbohydrates have taken a major hit over the last few years, with the latest diet craze being to eliminate any form of carbs or you will die a big fat diabetic death. The truth is though, they aren’t so well understood. One of those reasons revolved around the Glycemic Index (GI). I know most of you will be familiar with what it is, it’s splashed around the TV nowadays, it’s on most of your products from the supermarkets, and there is even a GI diet. But what is it, what are its implications for our eating habits, and what does it mean for us fitness freaks?
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Bored With Your Warmup?
Make your warm up fun?
No one likes warm ups. They are often boring and slow, and don’t get your mind focussed on the task ahead. However, they are really important and people fail to get their bodies properly prepared for a session. Here I am going to give you a warm up that will not only get your heart pumping, but it will give you a large range of motion, work you dynamically and get you ready in under 3 minutes.
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Hip Mobility: Exercises To Get You Mobile
I recently did a post on how to loosen up tight hip flexors. It focuses specifically on how to get mobile through the front of your hips, however a recent comment that I have had reminds me that everyone has different problems.
I also run a site on Volleyball Conditioning, and have recently done a post on how to get more range through your hips, as it is actually quite important for many skills in Volleyball. The post has a lot of exercise examples, pictures and videos on how to general loosen up what is a pretty tight area in most people. Check it out if you have problems associated with tight hips or simply want to get more range through your hips in general.
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Increase Your Metabolism: 11 Hot Tips To Get Your Furnace Burning
Get Your Metabolism Firing Pic: Robpatrick
Eat enough
It’s extremely common for people on diets to eat too little. You will lose weight to start, but your body is smarter than you. Way smarter. It will start thinking, “this crazy kid is simply not eating enough to survive, I’m going to drop his/her metabolism, so he/she doesn’t burn as much during the day and can survive off this ridiculously small amount he/she is eating”. Bottom line, starvation won’t work as a diet, your body will make sure you don’t burn too much and die. Cut down your calories a little, and exercise more. Also check out this post on cheat eating and how it can help you trick your metabolism.
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Soreness Post Workout: Let Your Body Heal
Pic: Ende
Everyone has felt the pain of doing a hard workout. You are tight, you can’t move, going to the toilet is excruciating, and you can’t even think about working out again within the next week. You stretch, doesn’t help. You go to the pool, doesn’t help. There is a view out there that taking some anti-inflammatory drugs will help ease the pain. Is that a good idea? Absolutely not.
What Is The Pain?
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Recover Properly & Get More Gains
Stretch for Recovery… Pic: Tomas Caspers
Hydrotherapy, Ice Baths, Hot/ Cold Showers, Compressions…when you hear all these words you immediately think of athletes. Recovery is an essential part of an athletes training. It allows them to train harder, more frequently, and get better gains. Recovery is scheduled into most athletes week, and it is just as important as one of their main training sessions. If athletes can get such a great benefit from recovery, then why can’t you?
Why Is Recovery So Beneficial?
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