7 Tips to Get Fit Without Going to the Gym

7 Tips to Get Fit Without Going to the Gym

It’s not always the best option to hit the gym for working out.

You will be required to shell out a significant amount of your hard-earned cash to get enrolled at any fitness center out there.

Moreover, one needs to devote a considerable amount of their valuable time to visit a gym on a regular basis which you could have spent on something else.

So here are 7 tips to get fit without going to the gym.

1. Create a plan

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The initial step will be to figure out which workouts seem interesting to you.

Think whether you like to go for a weightlifting routine, play any particular sport or take up jogging as a means of getting fit.

Once you are sure regarding your favorite stuff, it is time for you to decide where and when to work out, whether you need any equipment, and also what resources are obtainable to you.

If you are sure of all these essential things, you should be able to attain success and for that.

You might need to clear some space in the drawing room for squats or figure out some means to stay away from inclement weather that might hamper with your exercises whatsoever.

In case you are not familiar with strength exercises, it will be advisable to go for bodyweight exercises at your own residence.

For this, you will need some YouTube videos to help you get started and you will be able to perfect your lunges, squats, planks, push-ups, and crunches without taking the aid of any equipment at all.

Try to purchase some basic equipment so as to keep the exercises varied as well as intriguing.

A flat bench, a resistance band, jump rope, an exercise mat, a couple of dumbbells, and so forth will be ideal for you.

Otherwise, make it a point to go for weight training in case you like some more challenge while working out and this can include back squats, bench presses, bent-over rows, and weighted step-ups as well as plyometrics for adding intensity to your exercises.

2. Never neglect nutrition

Working out on a regular basis will help you to achieve your goal, but only up to a certain extent.

It is imperative to supplement your exercises with appropriate nutrition and for this, you need to make smart eating habits.

This does not imply crash dieting, and you ought to think twice prior to consuming your favorite snacks.

Although workouts will aid in developing your muscle tissues, enhancing your endurance level, burning your calories, and helping to change the shape of your body, your diet will play the primary role in attaining your target of staying fit.

For this, it will be prudent to stay away from any sugary and fatty food items as well as processed foodstuff, and you must try to provide yourself with balanced proportions of whole grains, protein, plus fruits and vegetables.

However, enjoy your preferred foodstuff although in moderate amounts.

In case you feel confused, it will be a smart idea to take the help of a nutritionist who will be the best person to guide you.

3. Go for outdoor exercises

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The most notable part of working out outdoors will be the sweat sessions.

For this, you might go for a hiking, jogs along a wooded trail, indulge in playing beach volleyball, stroll through the neighborhood at a fast pace or even join a sports team.

There is no need to invest your cash in a machine for helping you stay fit.

You can simply go to any nearby playground and perform step-ups after finding out a bench, go for pull-ups using the monkey bars, and perform things similar to that.

Otherwise, you might even go for some long-distance running in the morning.

4. Change your mode of transport

Changing your mode of transport can help you to enhance your overall health to a great extent.

Try cycling to your workplace for several days each week or walk to a public bus stop for 20 minutes or so.

Otherwise, always make the best use of any available opportunity to remain active throughout the day like strolling while speaking on the phone, parking your vehicle a bit away from your workplace, and so forth.

Else, make it a point to reach your office by walking up the staircase rather than using the elevator.

This is a surefire as well as a fast method of burning your calories as well as strengthening your bones plus toning your muscles too.

5. Yoga

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Yoga will aid in strengthening and lengthening your muscles.

It will be responsible for developing your core strength as well as enhancing your flexibility and balance.

You can take the help of any YouTube video or DVD for helping you to get started.

You might likewise check the local listing for the “donation only” yoga sessions which are available for free.

6. Re-assess your workout regime regularly

It might be the fact that you are not able to make any significant progress, and in that case, you need to make some modifications.

The major components of a typical fitness strategy happen to be duration, frequency, type, and intensity.

Try to change at least one of those for getting better results like increasing the duration of your workouts, exercising for more days every week, working out with more intensity, and experimenting with innovative exercises every week as well.

7. Remain hydrated

It is advisable for any person to consume at least 6 glasses of water every single day.

Water is essential for flushing out the harmful toxins from the human body and improving skin complexion too.

Also, consuming more water will allow you to have enhanced levels of energy and will likewise encourage weight loss in the long run.

It will do this by helping you to avoid eating snack items every now and then plus minimizing the levels of sodium and sugar too.

Conclusion

Let us hope that, after going through the above-mentioned 7 tips to get fit without going to the gym it should not be difficult for you to get the physique that you have always dreamt of.

However, feel free to experiment with other tips as well for getting the desired outcomes. 

8 Post-Gym Hygiene Habits You Should Never Skip

8 Post-Gym Hygiene Habits You Should Never Skip

 

8 Post-Gym Hygiene Habits You Should Never Skip

We go to the gym to sweat off the toxic chemicals in our bodies and try to achieve the form that we so desire. Every gym establishment has its own in-house existing rules. These rules are meant to ensure the guests enjoy their time there because working out is not such a fun endeavor. 

In case you have no idea, the most important part of going to the gym is right after the work-out session. For that reason alone this article will point out 8 post-gym hygiene habits you should never skip.

The eight tips are as followed:

1. Check out A Gym First Before Committing

A gym is a place you might go to become healthy and so it makes sense to seriously look at several options before choosing one. It is okay if you don’t choose the right gym for you right away because you can always cancel a subscription and move on to the next offer. 

Hygiene is the first item on the list of gym criterion. First, research online and make sure to visit the physical location personally. If hygiene is wanting, do not think twice and go find another one. 

It is better to choose a spotlessly clean gym that is expensive than to go to a cheaper and unhygienic place; that will eventually lead you to spend more on medical bills. 

2. Be Selfish

Remember that most gyms are visited by different people with various problems. One of the problems can be a communicable illness. The act of kindness in this situation might be one that you will later regret. 

When you share a sweaty towel is the same as purposefully smearing some else’s face with germs. When you refuse to share, it might rub others the wrong way but find comfort in knowing that you have saved both of you a trip to the hospital in the near future. 

It is fine to share gym equipment but when it comes to personal effects, keep them to yourself unless it is an emergency and someone’s life depends on it. Even in this situation trade carefully by observing hygiene protocols.

3. Always Carry Wet Shoes

A flip flop is an example of a wet shoe, something that you wear on your feet when you take a bath. It is recommended to head into a shower as soon as possible after a workout session. 

A gym workout is meant to make you sweat and then a shower cleans off the sweat from your skin. A shower is more efficient than a bath in a tub. This is because the water in the tub will become contaminated and the person taking a bath will carry some of the dirt with them as they arise from the tub. At the same time, a shower is more time efficient than a bathtub.

Wet shoes protect your feet from the diverse microbes lurking about on the gym shower floor. After making sure you have the proper showering shoes then jump into it.

4. Shower Right Away

As soon as you end the workout session think about hitting the waters and get rid of all that sweat. Taking a shower is essential because after the working out pressures your body, the water relaxes it. 

This can be compared to a metal rod, it expands when hot and gets back to shape when cool water is poured onto it. Many people prefer cold water after an intensive workout session and you should too. It makes you feel more relaxed as compared to hot water. However, this is all personal preference because the main goal is to get rid of the sweat. It is unhygienic. 

5. Clean Equipment

Sanitary wipes have become a cliche but make a habit of always having one wherever you go. The level of disease attach today is not as aggressive as it was sometime back. Back then people didn’t care much about hygiene and they easily got away with it. 

Today, a simple cold can result in life-threatening illness, the environmental pollution levels of our urban habitats are not helping the situation. A sanitary wipe is a first and basic defense against infections. 

Gym equipment is handled by many people and not many people stop to think about the hygiene of equipment handlebars in regards to how many people have used it before. The simple act of wiping the seat, the bars is more important than weight lifting. 

Of course at first other people will put you down for it but eventually, they will secretly admire you for the habit. In no time you will notice everyone in the whole gym walking around subconsciously with sanitary wipes.

6. Use Alternative Cleaning Agents

It is common for a gym to run out of soap and sometimes water. It becomes ironical when you bring your own soap and water but most gyms have policies against this improvisation.

In any case, always have an extra sanitizer that does not require water. Hand sanitizers are the most common among the non-water cleaning agents. This comes in handy when there is a water shortage or you are in a hurry and the water sinks are occupied. 

There are many cleaning solutions that are a more effective alternative to traditional soap and water. Some of the solutions contain antibacterial properties that ensure a near hundred percent protection from germs.

7. Clean Your Kit

Our gym clothes absorb a huge percentage of the sweat that we secrete. Therefore it is important to thoroughly clean your clothes after every workout gym session.

Using dirty clothes and towels from the last gym session is a sure way to attract infections. Clean gym clothes uplift our moods, essentially clean items contribute to our happiness.

8. Clean Hands

Always clean your hands, this cannot be emphasized more. Our hands can reach all parts of our bodies which means they can transfer germs to any parts of our bodies.

Healthy people are more conscious about how clean their hands are more than anything. People should especially be concerned about how clean their hands are after a gym workout session.

Wiping your hands with a cloth does not count as cleaning your hands. 

In conclusion

One more habit that is not mentioned above is to follow rules. All gym walls have some sort of warning or text on how people should conduct themselves. Cultivate a habit of following rules because this is the only key to mastering the other eight post-gym hygiene habits.

10 Serious Signs of Over-Exercising

10 Serious Signs of Over-Exercising

10 Serious Signs of Over-Exercising

Let’s cut to the chase: working out is part of staying healthy. While most of us have trouble getting motivated to exercise, some have a challenge of resting even a single day. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a beginner or a fitness guru, everyone needs time to recover. During a workout, we lose fluids and energy stored which maintain blood glucose levels. But when you take some rest, the body starts to build new muscles and replenishes these important elements.

Let’s look at 10 serious signs of over-exercising. Read and learn more.

1. Weak immune system

While moderate training has remarkable benefits to your immune health, overtraining can wreak havoc to your body. It’s scientifically proven that over-exercising can reduce glutamine, an amino acid that plays a key role in your body’s immune system.

This explains why some athletes are susceptible to illness a few hours after an exercise. Besides that, the body can produce stress hormones (cortisol and adrenaline) which may suppress the immune function. It’s important that you take some rest to allow your body to recover after a high-intensity exercise. If you get sick more often, your immune system is telling you to slow down. 

2. Insomnia

Dozens of studies suggest that over-exercising can cause insomnia. A high-intensity exercise like weight lifting can lead to high blood pressure and an increase in heart rate which might interfere with your sleep-wake cycle. In addition to that, the adrenaline levels can increase making it hard to fall asleep. It’s worth mentioning that over-exercising can interfere with cortisol and epinephrine hormones. Therefore, you should ensure you rest 8-10 hours after working out.

3. Unexplained irritability

When you exercise, the body releases endorphins (feel-good hormones) which keep stress at bay. However, too much workout can worsen your mood causing irritability. If small things are setting you off, it’s a sign that your body is worn out. To keep your emotions in check, it’s important that you avoid pushing too hard during a workout. Above all, try to warm up before each exercise and listen to your body. Of course, you should keep your body hydrated throughout the exercise. And when your body says it needs some rest, listen to it.

4. Loss of appetite

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For starters, loss of appetite is a sign that you’re pushing your body too hard. A high-intensity exercise like weight lifting can trigger the release of ghrelin, a hormone that stimulates hunger. In extreme cases, loss of appetite can be harmful. It’s important that you listen to any signs of overtraining. Keep in mind that these signs may occur in the middle of the training session. Unfortunately, this can slow the metabolism as the body tries to reduce the workload. You should keep an eye on calories intake and most importantly emphasize on the quality of diet.

5. Prolonged muscle pain

If you experience prolonged muscle pain after a workout, it could be a sign of soreness. The great paradox of any exercise is that muscles take longer to rebuild rather than to breakdown. It’s normal to have achy and sore muscles after an exercise – usually lasts up to 48 hours. But when the pain lasts for a couple of days, it means you’ve overdone it.

After any intense training, the body needs time to recover. When you have constant soreness, it means you’re not giving yourself enough time to relax. To be on the safe side, look for a workout that can handle your strength. In some rare instances, overtraining can damage the skeletal muscles.

6. Increased resting heart rate

When you start working out, the body responds to the new stress in training. A higher heart rate simply means you’re overloading the cardiovascular system. The heart has to work hard to pump blood to all parts of the body. While the heart rate can sound a little vague, this number will give an insight into your fitness level. Thankfully, you can rely on a fitness tracker to keep the stats in check. Note: an increase or decrease in heart rate means something is abnormal.

7. Lack of interest in exercise

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While an exercise is usually associated with the release of endorphins (feel-good hormones), it can sometimes lead to a decrease in energy. Perhaps, this is the most obvious sign that you’ve pushed your body beyond the limit. For those who enjoy working out, disinterest in exercise simply means burnout is on the horizon. This feeling is common to people who enjoy a rush of challenging exercises like weight lifting which is normally driven by speed and power. Make sure you keep it simple and you’ll make big changes.

8. Psychological stress

If you’re taking part in a tough competition, you may be forced to push above the limit. This can lead to stress which may affect your psyche. Apart from that, it could be a sign that you’re not fueling your body with enough calories before an exercise. To keep stress at bay, be sure to include some break in your workout routine.

9. Feeling dizzy or weak

It’s normal to feel dizzy after a strenuous workout. This happens when you perform an exercise that requires a lot of internal pressure like squats. You’ll also feel woozy when exercising your abs on the floor. Obviously, the body tries to balance the internal pressure which may
cause a lapse in blood flow. Apart from that, the body will feel weak if you are working out when on an empty stomach. If this continues for a prolonged period, it’s a sign that you are overworking your body.

10. Heavy or overlay fatigued legs

Heavy legs can mean two things – either you’re targeting specific areas of your leg muscles or overworking. When you’re in this kind of situation, you have to put more effort to achieve your weight loss goals. If you have fatigued legs/arms, you should give your body enough time to fully charge and repair. People who engage in aerobic exercises should take a break between the workouts. Alternatively, you can try different exercises that target the core muscles. Needless to say, you should massage the muscles in the problem areas.

Final thoughts

Whether you’re a beginner or a fitness enthusiast, overtraining can send you backward. To ensure you find your optimal recovery time you should keep an eye on the above 10 serious signs of over-exercising. If you think you might be overdoing it, just take a break. While this may sound like you’re taking some time off from your fitness routine, resting will refuel your body for the next exercise. The key to successful training is finding a schedule that works for you.

Do These 8 Things Every Night to Lose More Weight

Do These 8 Things Every Night to Lose More Weight

There are many ways to lose weight, however, not all are applicable to all types of people.

Thus, you should thoroughly assess what method best works for your schedule and lifestyle before you start a lose-weight plan.

Otherwise, you will be wasting time and effort on things that just won’t work.

If you are a person who can’t religiously watch your diet due to work, study, health or other reasons, do these 8 things every night to lose more weight.

1. Finish Your Dinner Before 7 O’clock In The Evening

It is said that it is not good to sleep just after having dinner.

Anatomically, it is not recommended to lie flat on the bed with a full stomach; otherwise, the food can regurgitate to the esophagus and cause heartburn.

At least two hours after meals is recommended for a person to rest before he/she hits the hay.

Eating before seven in the afternoon ensures the two-hour period for the food to move through the stomach and complete the digestive process before sleeping.

If you want to lose weight faster, make sure that the food you ate is properly digested and absorbed into your system before going to sleep.

Unabsorbed nutrients due to indigestion’s result in poor metabolism which leads to the accumulation of excess body fats.

2. Brush Your Teeth Early

Experience would prove that brushing teeth affects appetite.

Because of the clean feeling brought about by brushing, many lose the appetite to eat.

Losing appetite can lessen cravings for sweets or snacks during the night.

Thus, it controls food intake.

Food intake during the night is closely associated with the accumulation of excess fat for the fact that food is ingested when the digestive system is not at its peak performance.

Therefore, people who munch nuts, sweet candies, carbs or heavy snacks have the tendency to get fat than people who don’t.

If you want to lose weight, avoid eating at night.

3. Complete The Required Hours Of Sleep

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Sleeping does a lot of wonders.

It is said that when we sleep, the body starts to rest and undergoes a process called detoxification.

It is for this reason that we should complete the recommended hours of sleep (8 hours for kids and 6 hours for adults) as it is understood that every minute is a part of the resting and detoxification process.

Completing this number of hours helps in eliminating the toxins that could hinder the normal process of metabolism.

Plus, enough sleep means a healthy brain. As they say, a tired, sleep-deprived brain is the cause of food cravings.

4. Empty Your Mind Before Going To Sleep

As the importance of sleep cannot be undermined in losing weight, you should do your best to attain the most peaceful sleep every night.

One technique to attain this is the practice of emptying your mind before going to sleep.

The steps are simple. First, sit down, relax and concentrate.

Eliminate every thought that is entering your mind whether positive or negative.

Then lie down on the bed and close your eyes.

It won’t be long when sleep comes after completing this process.

Believe me, you will have a recharged brain and good feeling the next day when you wake up.

5. Sleep At 11 O’clock In The Evening

According to the Traditional Chinese Medicine, the gallbladder becomes active between 11 P.M to 1 A.M.

During this period, migraine, dizziness, resentment, and bitterness may be felt like some of its physical and emotional symptoms.

It is therefore suggested that at this time of the night, we should sleep and regenerate as the gallbladder is being detoxified.

Remember that a healthy gallbladder means enough production of bile.

Bile, in return, is the enzyme that breaks fats.

When enough bile is secreted by a healthy gallbladder, it follows that there will be no excess fats to be stored in some parts of the body.

6. Drink Red Wine

Many success stories feature drinking red wine as one of the recipes of a successful weight loss program.

Before hitting the sack, one or two glasses of red wine are the common regimen recommended online.

With or without scientific basis, the regimen is claimed as effective.

If it worked for more than one person, then it’s worth giving a try.

Besides, red wine has a relaxing effect that could help promote good sleep which in turn, could help in losing weight.

So whether or not red wine has a direct effect on weight loss, it still pays to drink a moderate amount before sleeping.

7. Take Apple Cider

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A friend once testified that apple cider helped her lose weight.

When asked about the measurement, she mentioned that it depends upon what a person can tolerate.

In her case, there were many times when she took 2 tablespoons before going to bed.

Apple cider has many well-known benefits such as improving digestion and loss of appetite.

While it is not recommended to lose appetite every dinner, it pays to ingest apple cider as it also has the effect of reducing appetite.

Reduced appetite can make you take light dinner and avoid ingesting too much food which is not recommended before bedtime.

8. Exercise And Sweat

Exercise and sweat before you go to bed.

This is one of the techniques in sleeping early and conditioning the body to have good blood circulation.

Exercising is a well-known technique in losing weight by allowing the consumption of calories more than the average consumed during normal tasks.

Blood circulation, on the other hand, aids the muscles that use the energy by carrying oxygen that could help the latter function better.

Also, exercising can make you sweat.

Sweating can make you lose weight by shedding excess water in the body.

Sometimes, what we consider as fats are simply excess water which needs to be flushed out.

Conclusion

There is no hard and fast rule in losing weight.

Even the eight things above should not be taken as a perfect recipe for weight loss.

Study your lifestyle and modify your weight loss plan accordingly.

Make use of strategies that could help you sustain your desire to lose weight from beginning to end.

Keep in mind that consistency plays a big role in the success of your plan.

12 most creative weight-loss tips ever (that really work!)

12 most creative weight-loss tips ever (that really work!)

To be honest, we have so many people out there who are very uncomfortable with their weight.

If they sat down and opened up about the things they have tried in the name of losing weight, you’d be left speechless.

This industry is filled with crazy myths about weight loss.

The good thing is that in recent years, science has come up with so many ways and strategies that have been proven to work effectively.

The following is an outline of the 12 most creative weight-loss tips ever that (really work!).

1. Drink clean water preferably before meals

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Drinking water improves metabolism with rates of up to 30% within a very short period of about 1.5 hours.

This, of course, bring along burning off lots of calories that contribute to weight loss.

According to a study that was done a few years ago, drinking clean water before meals (about half a liter) helped to control the number of consumed calories which led to a weight loss of up to 44%.

2. Take eggs especially for breakfast

A study done by a recognized American university states that replacing the common grain-based cereals or rather, foods for breakfast helps you take a reduced amount of calories in the next 36 hours.

This as well helps you to lose a lot of weight and more body fat.

If eggs aren’t your thing, any other food with quality protein can do the trick in equal measures.

3. Drink black coffee.

Most people don’t realize the health benefits that come with coffee.

It contains large amounts of antioxidants that have very crucial health benefits.

Black coffee increases rates of metabolism by about 10%.

This increases the burning of fats by around 10-29%.

However, this works best when it’s taken with very little or no sugar.

It’s also recommended that you don’t add any other high-calorie substances.

High levels of sugars and calories will instead negate the benefits the coffee will have brought, and of course weight loss will be a past tense to you.

4. Drinking green tea works!

Green tea is one of the most underrated solutions to the puzzle of weight-loss.

Just like black coffee, green tea can also help you lose a great deal of weight.

It contains minimal levels of caffeine but on the other side, it contains very powerful antioxidants known as catechins.

These two, (caffeine and catechins), work hand in hand to enhance and fasten the fat burning process.

Researchers have proven that it can either be taken as a beverage or an extract supplement of green tea and the end results is something you’ll really love.

5. Practice intermittent fasting.

It’s really obvious that if you don’t eat, the chances of losing weight will increase.

However, intermittent fasting doesn’t really mean you quit eating.

It simply means rotating between short periods of meals and fasting.

This restricts a lot of calorie intake which in turn leads to continuous weight loss.

Muscle mass loss is associated with diets with low-calorie content.

This means by fasting, this is controlled and you will lose a considerable amount of fats.

However, this tip isn’t an easy one to apply. You have to be really committed.

6. Cut down your added sugar intake.

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Sugar is really sweet, to be honest.

But what most people don’t know is that it’s actually one of the most detrimental ingredients in the modern day diet.

It’s a fact that people consume a lot of this nowadays.

Based on science, high levels of sugar intake are directly linked to obesity.

Moving away from weight issues, it also brings along diabetes and increased risks of heart diseases.

It is therefore really simple.

If you want to lose some weight, be careful about the added sugar content of what you take.

7. Eat using smaller plates

This is a more psychological tip and it actually works for very many people.

By using smaller plates, you get to reduce the amounts of food you take which means you get to consume fewer calories.

Generally, this has been known to work for overweight and obese people so if you’re really willing to lose weight, it will really count.

8. Take less refined carbohydrates

A few examples of these refined carbohydrates are grains and sugar, whose fibrous as well as nutritious components have been stripped off.

A good typical example of these is white bread.

Refined carbohydrates increase levels of blood sugar which of course brings about the thought of hunger.

This is the reason why these refined carbs have a direct relationship with obesity.

Avoid refined carbs, lose more weight!

9. Spicy foods help in weight loss.

Spices such as chili peppers have this substance called capsaicin.

This compound has been known as a metabolism booster and is very good at cutting down appetite.

This has actually helped a lot of people in weight-loss.

10. Do some aerobic exercise

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Cardio helps in burning calories as well as improving your state of physical as well as mental health.

This is actually the best tip to follow especially if you look forward to cutting some belly fat.

I highly recommend this tip for we all know belly fat can actually lead to serious metabolic diseases.

11. Take more fibers

Viscous fibers have been known to increase satiety.

This will be of great help to you as it will make it easy for you to control your own weight over a long period of time.

Fiber is highly recommended for overweight people.

12. Chew your food slowly.

Psychology shows that when you chew slowly, it helps you eat a few calories which increase the release of hormones that contribute to weight loss.

Chewing thoroughly can also help.

Science and research show that calorie intake in a meal is reduced when one chews slowly.

Conclusion

The list would be endless if I was to continue.

There are hundreds of ways that can help you lose some weight.

Going through the above “12 most creative weight-loss tips ever” will have given you a head start.