Want to improve your stamina while toning up at the same time to achieve a leaner body? Instead of solely focusing on strength training exercises, it’s also essential to perform cardio workouts to burn more calories and build endurance along the way.
Beginner
If you’re a beginner, don’t worry! There are cardio workouts targeted toward beginners as well, so you won’t lose out. For starters, the simplest way to elevate your heart rate is to do Jumping Jacks. If you wish to increase the intensity as you go along, you can always try picking up the pace as you wish to. Did you know? A simple 15 minute Jumping Jack workout can help to burn 180 calories! Another workout you can perform is Jump Rope, since you just need one equipment to get you started. Rope Jumping also comes with many varieties and sequences, including the normal rope jump, jumping from one feet to another or even high knees for an added challenge!
Intermediate
As you slowly get used to doing Cardio workouts, the intensity of each exercise also increases. Firstly, you can start with Stair Climbing – the best way to tone your legs, especially the calves area – as well as improve your stamina. This exercises can be done anytime, anywhere! It increases your cardiovascular capacity and overall fitness level, so you should try it out! Next, Squat Jumps. They help to train your glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps and calves while allowing you to maintain an elevated heart rate still. Lastly, Lunges are not to be missed! It’s also a good workout that keeps you sweating and works your legs, but if you’ve had knee injuries in the past or current knee issues, you might want to search for other alternatives like the aforementioned workouts to prevent further damage due to the impact this workout may bring upon to your knees!
Advanced
Now that you have slowly accustomed to doing Cardio exercises, you can move on to more advanced and challenging workouts. Mountain Climbers can be added into your workout plan, since it works your abdominal muscles, shoulders, arms and legs – a fully body workout indeed! Next, Burpees. This exercise is sure to keep your heart rate up, since you’re essentially working every major and minor muscle group in your body.
If you like our content, check out other things we post under on our social media channels listed down below!
Resistance bands are one of the best complements to your workouts! Not only are they affordable and lightweight (hence easily transportable), but they can be used for tons of exercises.
They are so great because they can elevate or simplify different movements, for upper body or lower body, and for cardio or strength.
But, admittedly, they can be confusing to start off with. What kind of resistance band is best suited for you? What kind of exercises should you be focusing on? Read on to learn how to use resistance bands in your training to burn and build muscle.
Active Zone Blog Post: Resistance Bands – Why You Should Be Using Them and How to Use Them!
Picking the Right Resistance Band for You
How do you pick which resistance band to use? You should always choose a band that feels challenging for the movement based on the number of reps and sets in your circuit. The resistance in each band is usually denoted by its colour! (Refer to the chart below)
Active Zone Blog Post: Resistance Bands – Why You Should Be Using Them and How to Use Them!
If you’re just getting started, test the bands beginning with the least resistance available. A quick gauge would be to test how doing 10 to 15 reps with that band feels. If it doesn’t tire your muscles out, it’s time to up that resistance!
That being said, don’t immediately choose the band with the highest resistance or you risk compromising your form. The goal is always to feel challenged by the exercise but able to control the resistance band throughout the entire move. (ex: You shouldn’t feel like your legs or arms are being snapped back to starting position)
Doing so would put you at risk of performing the move with bad form-which negates the effort you put into the workout.
Benefits of Adding a Resistance Band to Your Workout
GREATER MUSCLE STIMULUS
Resistance bands generally have the upper hand over free weights like dumbbells because of the variable resistance applied through the full range of motion of an exercise. With free weights, there are actually parts of the movement when the muscles aren’t performing much work due to lack of gravity, such as at the top of a bicep curl.
However, when you use a resistance band, the muscle is receiving greater resistance at its strongest point in the range of motion and therefore is receiving more adequate resistance to better stimulate strength adaptations.
2. AIDS IN LEARNING THE PROPER WAY TO EXECUTE A MOVEMENT
Another unique benefit of a resistance band is that it can be used to make an exercise easier-not just harder. Banded deadlifts and pull-ups are perfect examples of this, says Pignataro. If you’re just getting started on barbell deadlifts, the elasticity of the band makes the deadlift pull easier, which can help you learn the proper hip-hinge mechanic.
Similarly, doing banded pull-ups and chin-ups can help you learn the movement pattern and technique while you’re still developing the proper strength. As the movement gets easier, you can switch to a thinner band with less assistance, until you’re able to do a bodyweight pull-up, unassisted.
3. LOWERS YOUR CHANCE OF INJURY
Resistance bands provides similar and sometimes even greater muscle activity as weight training. However, training with the, actually lowers the amount of force acting on your joints. This means that you can get through greater strength training, but with a lesser chance of injury.
This is extremely beneficial for those of you who experience joint pains or have similar injuries, because resistance bands allow you to continue working out and performing exercises that you can’t with dumbbells.
Exercises to Do with Your Resistance Bands
Cardio
Do as many reps of each exercise as you can for 1 minute, take a 30 sec break and continue on to the next one!
Skater Squats
Active Zone Blog: Resistance Bands – Why You Should Be Using Them and How to Use Them!
Stand on top of the band with feet hip width (try looping it under arches of your sneakers), holding evenly onto handles with elbows bent by sides. Push hips back and bend knees to lower into a squat.
Immediately rise up out of squat, shifting weight into left leg and extending right leg out to side, lifting foot off the floor. Step right foot down to return to squat position and repeat on opposite side.
Alternate legs each time as quickly as possible for 1 minute. Adjust your intensity by pulling up higher on band for more resistance or keeping arms lower for less.
2. Opposition Jacks
Active Zone Blog: Resistance Bands – Why You Should Be Using Them and How to Use Them!
Stand with feet together holding onto both ends of a folded resistance band. Extend arms out to sides, pulling ends of band as far apart as possible, drawing band in towards chest, and squeezing shoulder blades together.
Quickly jump feet apart and bring arms together in front of chest, shoulder-width apart (arms stay at shoulder height).
3. Knee-Up
Active Zone Blog: Resistance Bands – Why You Should Be Using Them and How to Use Them!
Hold your hands slightly in front of your face and drop the back leg down through the resistance of the band. Now, drive up the knee and bring the arms down simultaneously.
Avoid slouching or drooping and focus on lifting your leg using the hip flexor and the quad. A 30-second rep on each side is a quick and tiring cardio movement for you to try.
Strength
Feel the slow burn spreading through your body as do these strength-conditioning exercises. Keep going and work those muscles!
Resistance Band Deadlift
Active Zone Blog: Resistance Bands – Why You Should Be Using Them and How to Use Them!
With band tied in a loop, stand on band with feet hip width, holding onto other side of loop with both hands. Bend knees slightly, hinge forward from hips until chest is almost parallel to the floor, keeping back naturally straight and abs in tight. You should feel a slight stretch in your hamstrings.
Maintain a straight spine, engage your glutes to bring body back to start position.
2. Front Squat
Active Zone Blog: Resistance Bands – Why You Should Be Using Them and How to Use Them!
Stand on the resistance band with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, and bring the top of the band up to rest on the front of your shoulders. Lower into a squat, with your chest up and your knees over your toes. Then push up to the starting position.
3. One Arm Bicep Curl
Active Zone Blog: Resistance Bands – Why You Should Be Using Them and How to Use Them!
Stand on the band hips width apart. Now take each end of the band in each hand and stand up straight. Keep your back straight, head straight, chest up and stomach tight.
Start with your arms straight down with palms facing forward, and elbows tight to your sides. Pull the band up and bend your arms until your hands are at chest height.
Remember to keep your elbows stationary at your sides, do not let them move forward and back during the movement.
Conclusion
Resistance bands are a great addition to your workouts! It might be worthwhile to invest in some to get your home workouts going during this period 😀
Exercise is often touted as a good way to keep your body healthy. However, most people are only aware of the cardiovascular benefits of it – how it helps your lungs and heart etc.
Did you know that your skin benefits from exercise as well?
Here are some main reasons why exercising is good for your skin:
Increased Blood Circulation to Better Nourish Skin Cells
Active Zone Blog Post: Reasons why exercising is good for your skin!
When you exercise, your heart rate goes up. This means that your heart pumps out blood to the rest of your body much faster, improving your blood circulation.
The increase in circulation dilates your blood vessels, bringing more nutrients and oxygen to support skin cells. Generally, this results in the brighter skin complexion that many of us yearn for.
Moreover, each workout session actually helps flush cellular debris out of the system. Your increased blood flow will help to carry away waste products faster, including free radicals, from working cells.
Reduces Inflammation & Repairs Skin
Studies have shown that exercise, be it resistance training or cardio—helps to neutralize whole-body inflammation by releasing anti-inflammatory proteins, while also reducing stress hormones.
One of the biggest concerns regarding our own skin is how to keep it looking young and healthy. Well, did you know that inflammation actually causes your skin to age much faster? Exercising is hence necessary when it comes to protecting collagen and helping your skin age better.
Inflammation also compromises the skin ‘s barrier, making it more dry and sensitive. Hence the skin will be more prone to acne outbreaks and eczema, which is something that I’m sure you would want to avoid.
A study from Ohio State University, for example, reports that skin wounds take an average of nine days faster to heal for those who exercised regularly as compared to those who weren’t active.
Sweating cleanses the skin
Active Zone Blog Post: Reasons why exercising is good for your skin!
When you sweat, your pores open up and purges the skin of bacteria, oil, dirt and impurities. Sweat also plays a role in your immune system: It contains an antimicrobial peptide called dermcidin that acts as the first defense against harmful bacteria that cling to the skin’s surface.
However, it is important to note that sweat, if left on your skin for long periods of time, can result in natural bacteria and yeast fermenting on your skin. This may clog or irritate pores, which can cause small, red bumps.
Stress Reliever
Exercise has also been shown to ease stress. Hence conditions that are exacerbated by stress, like acne and eczema, can show some improvement.
Moreover, studies show that the sebaceous glands, which produce oil in the skin, are influenced by stress hormones. Relieving stress can reduce the secretion of oil onto your skin.
Active Zone Blog Post: Reasons why exercising is good for your skin!
Maintaining healthy and glowing skin as you grow older may be difficult, but exercise can be the key to doing so!
Start exercising more and see whether there are improvements to you skin 🙂
If you’re looking for a gym to help you get started, Active Zone is here for you! We’re a kickboxing and gym studio specially catered for women. Currently, we have started up live online classes for you to join from the comforts of your home.
Our contact details are listed below if you’re interested. Don’t hesitate to call!
Today we have a special feature by Julie, a participant in our ongoing #AZ10DayChallenge fitness programme.
Active Zone Client, Julie’s Testimonial Regarding The #AZ10DayChallenge
Julie has maintained constant contact with Active Zone since the circuit breaker measures were imposed in April, and we are so thankful for the support 🙂
When we first launched the #AZ10DayChallenge, Julie was one of the first few to sign up, and even managed to pull her friend, Adelle, in as well.
Since then, she has been consistently partaking in the challenge every single day!
Keep it up, Julie/Patota XD
__
Contact
Try out our online classes now! You might just love it ❤
Well for most of us, in fact everyone nearly are now working from home and being at home almost the whole day.
We run into issues where we tell ourselves I need to get started on some exercise. As come on, let’s be real? How much more are we eating or snacking now that we are all #wfh ?
Thankfully, I’ve realised one simple way to trick myself into exercising, no matter how much I’d like to flop on the couch: Wearing activewear all day. Honest truth, as I myself (aka Val) have tried it and it made it easier for me to workout or to film online workout videos for our clients 🙂
This trick works for the same reason that dressing for the job you want makes you feel more confident in your career: if you’re already wearing a sports bra, there’s no question that you’re going to get in a good workout.
I’ve tried this outfit hack a few times already, and it has never let me down. After all, the only thing you really need to exercise is the motivation to do it — everything else is optional.
To be kept safe from the Covid’19 pandemic and to stop the spread, most are complying with the government’s Circuit Breaker measures and staying home.
Home is a place to rest and recharge, to spend time with family and to escape from the stresses of our busy work lives. But what happens when you’re now forced to be productive in an environment meant for the exact opposite?
Here’s some things you can do to keep yourself motivated and productive when working from home:
Make a to-do-list for the Day
By setting a clear list of things you want to accomplish in a day will make you more motivated to check everything off that list by the end of day. This keeps you on track and focused on your tasks rather than going through the motions and realising at the end of the day how unproductive you were.
This not only applies for your work-related things, but can also be for things you wish to do with your families or friends – for example planning a movie night!
Give yourself some Breaks
Being productive does not mean trying to be focused during your full 9-5 work hours. Sometimes to focus better, you need to take sufficient breaks in between. When you start to lose focus and your progress slows/ the quality of your work deteriorates, maybe it’s a sign to take a short breather.
It has been found that taking breaks are essential to your physical and emotional health as they prevent exhaustion and fatigue. While you may overlook it when working from home due to feeling as though you are not being as productive as before in your usual work environment. However, it is just as, or even more important to do so at home so you don’t burn out!
Some things you can do is make yourself a snack and a nice cup of coffee, do a short workout or even do a bit of housekeeping!
Play some Music
While is is definitely something you were not able to do at your usual workplace, you can definitely do so at home!
Without your colleagues to fulfil your social interaction quota for the day, there are other things to feed your soul – music.
Scientifically, music stimulates the connection between auditory neurons and motor neurons which would explain why we always find it easier to workout with music blasting in our ears. Well this applies to work as well and stimulates your brain for better productivity.
In addition, music relieves stress and relaxes the mind and body. These act as natural remedies to our exhausted brains.
______
Well, our new online classes can combine all 3!
Our schedule has all our online classes listed for the rest of the circuit breaker period to help you make your daily work schedule planning easier:
Take a break with our 30min online classes! We have:
A.B.T (Abs, Butt , Thighs) A.B.T is a target training class that focuses on the legs and butt! ABT utilises the largest muscles in the body to burn calories and get your entire body in amazing shape!
Active Bandz A full body conditioning class that uses resistance bands to sculpt and tone the arms, legs, glutes and core. No muscle goes untouched.
Active IMPACT A High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) focusing on fitness movements, functional movements and bodyweight exercises to keep get your entire body working and perspiring! Each week we will be focusing on different muscle groups 🙂
Active KNOCKOUT! A 30mins HIIT Kickboxing and bodyweight workout that will surely break a sweat! It also tones your shoulders, upper back and well as toning up those legs!
Our online classes are real time videos with both explanations of the exercises and high energy exhilarating music to keep your motivation high when tackling our workouts head on!
What are you waiting for? Check out our website to sign up for your online classes now!
Looking to tone your body but just don’t have the time to do it because of your busy schedule? Well you don’t always need to go down to the gym to use the equipment there, there are always other options that can done in the comfort of your own home! 🙂
All the items talked about don’t take up much space at all and are highly effective in toning your muscles!
Agility Ladder/ Agility Rings
It is always very important to warm-up before you do any workout, so why not do an exercise that can warm-up your muscles and improve you agility at the same time!
Using agility ladders and agility rings you can improve your hand eye coordination and it is great at getting your heart pumping!
Here’s a simple footwork workout using the agility ladder! You can also easily replicate these exercises with agility rings instead of an agility ladder 🙂
Resistance Bands
Now that warm-ups are done, lets get to tougher part of this workout!
Resistance bands…. They don’t seem like much when you look at them but when you really use them they can really work your muscles💪🏻
Here you can see that resistance bands don’t just need to be used for your arms, you can always target other parts of your body, like your legs if you want to! They could even focus on parts of your body that are very hard to train such as your butt and your back, using resistance bands it would be easier to fight these problem areas! 🙂
All the products that are in this post can be found on our store (activelife-shop.weebly.com), so if you are interested in the agility ladders, agility rings, SPRI Xertube or the Superband do head down to the store as we would be having a promotion as our store officially launches! 🙂
For more information do contact us at 📬: info@activered.sg or 📞: 83635661
Active Red 