Triathlons: Why or Why Not Train for Them?

Signing up for a Triathlon is not for everyone. After all, if it was easy then everyone would do it.

The Triathlon isn't just for people looking lose weight or tone up, or just to maintain your current fitness level. Training for a triathlon is definitely designed towards the more athletic people out there, but for those with the speed and fortitude to train for it can provide multiple benefits.

#1. It’ll Give You Motivation to Work Out

The beauty of signing up for a triathlon is it will give you set goals in three areas of training. You’ll be motivated to master three types of fitness training, which gives you variety in your workouts and will give you set lengths of time and specific distances to cover.

#2. It’ll Force You to Cross Train

It’s easy to get into a fitness rut, which can wear out certain parts of your body. Some exercises (especially running) is especially hard on your joints, so it’s good to mix up your routine and get a balance of different exercises going on at once.

Training for a triathlon is perfect because:

Running is hard on your body, but is a fabulous calorie burner, tones your legs and core, and helps build bone density (which will prevent osteoporosis).

Swimming is easy on your joints, but is a good calorie burner and works your upper body, which is neglected by a lot of sports. You have to build up your upper body strength.

Biking is easy on your joints, but is a great cardio-vascular workout and tones your legs. The trick to cycling is developing a smooth circular rhythm with your legs.

#3. It’ll Deliver an Extraordinary Sense of Accomplishment

If you’ve never competed in a race before then you don’t know what an amazing experience it is to participate in a challenging sport with a large group of like-minded individuals. There is a huge sense of comraderie amongst athletes. You will find yourself propelled by the collective energy of the group, cheered on by strangers in the crowd, and inspired by the people of various ages and body shapes who are doing the same race you are. When you cross the finish line, you’ll celebrate the knowledge that you set a goal and met it.

Regardless of whether you won it or not.

Choosing a Triathlon You Can Handle

Before you get intimidated by my earlier comments, take a look at the many different levels of triathlons available. You’ll find just about every fitness level possible, from sprint triathlons to Ironmen. Triathlons aimed at novices usually feature a 250-meter swim, a 10-mile bike ride, and anywhere from a 2-mile to 5K run.

It is strongly recommended that you consult a physician before embarking on Triathlon training. You should also talk to a personal trainer to determine which length triathlon will work best for you. A personal training can also give you tips on how to best train for the big race.

Question: I keep losing weight due to stress?

Q

"iv broke up with my boyfriend and it seems every time we row and break up weight falls off me :(. i don't have much of an appetite because im upset but im still making myself eat, but the weight will still fall off so im guessing its through stress. i love to exercise and i feel happier after a workout but i feel like im wasting away so i don't want to go burning too many calories. anyone got any good advice to help me feel better?" - P.

A

Most people who are overweight would consider that to be a blessing in disguise.

Nevertheless here is some helpful advice:

1. Stop stressing over lost boyfriends. They're a dime a dozen as you will eventually discover.

#2. Focus on your routine and hanging out with friends after break ups. You will eat socially and follow your natural habits when doing that.

#3. Were you going out to eat a lot while you were dating? You were probably eating fattening foods on the dates. Most restaurant foods are pretty fattening. That might explain your "Lost Boyfriend Yo-yo Diet".

#4. Don't date anyone for awhile and wait for your weight to stabilize.

#5. Get a hobby/sport or take up a cause, perhaps something stressful in a different way, and watch what happens to your diet. You will feel less stressed about idiot boyfriends and more worried about global warming (or whatever the cause is that you pick).

#6. Learn to cook. Nothing packs on the pounds like perfecting your pancake recipe. (I can't believe I am advising someone on weight gain... so please try to make more healthy pancakes, okay?)

#7. Don't forget to exercise! Go jogging every morning and eat a big breakfast afterwards.

Question: Left Leg lagging behind?

Q

"I have always just done running, jogging, cycling etc on legs. While working out upper body. Now I am trying to gain mass on my legs. I'm 77kg and I can do 15 single leg squats on my right leg with an additional 20kg. I don't have the balance to do the added weight with my left leg, I just tip over. Help?" - Joe.

A

This is actually normal.

Everyone has dominant arms, eyes and legs. Even dominant ears that you hear better out of.

BUT if you really want to try and correct the problem there is a solution.

#1. When exercising do DOUBLE whatever you are doing on the left leg compared to the right. So if doing single leg squats do 15 on your right leg and 30 on your left. If you are falling over use a wall or friend for support.

#2. Whenever you get the chance to do something with one leg over the other, use the left leg in your daily routine. This will require some memory to do so.

#3. Do yoga to improve your overall strength and balance.

#4. Attach a small leg weight to your left ankle and wear it 8 hours each day for a week. After the week is over do a series of strength and balance tests to see improvement.

#5. Consult a professional bodybuilder who has encountered the same problem and find out how they fixed it. Always handy for extra advice.

Exercises for Preventing Dance Injuries

There is actually quite a few "Exercises for Preventing Dance Injuries"... And this blog post will only cover a few of them.

For a more complete list I recommend reading the book "Conditioning with Imagery for Dancers" by Donna Krasnow + Jordana Deveau.

Now understanding of course that this book is written for dancers (ballet, etc) it does have a fair amount of dancing jargon and lingo in it. But that doesn't mean the book isn't useful for other things too. Yoga, aerobics, gymnastics and preventing general sports injuries by increasing strength and flexibility in joints.

Within the book the chapters are broken down into parts covering everything from warm up, legwork, flexibility, "Developpe and Rond de Jambe", turnout, extensions, strength and stretches. Plus of course the introduction and appendix.

The good news is that even though I don't know what "Developpe and Rond de Jambe" is, the book is highly illustrated with multiple photos on every page. Not kidding. The book is 158 pages long and has (I am estimating) about 400 photographs in it showing all the poses. The images shown here is just a tiny sampling of what is inside the book.

That said, trying to review this book accurately is a bit like trying to review the bible or bhagavad gita. Nevertheless I will try to summarize ONE section of the book.

WARM-UP.

90% of the exercises in this book takes place on your back so you will probably want a yoga mat if your floor is dirty. "Warm-Up" begins with a Neutral Pelvis Lesson:

"Start by lying on the back (supine) with the arms and legs extended, arms at the sides of the body. Focus on allowing the breath to be natural and the body segments to lie easefully with as little tension as possible. While inhaling, imagine the breath filling the body, and sense how it releases tension in the muscles on the exhale. Image the pubic bone directly above the tailbone (coccyx), and the back of the head, rib cage, and sacrum heavy and in contact with the floor. there will be spaces under the neck (cervical spine) and low back (lumbar spine), due to the natural curves of the spine. This organization of the pelvis is neutral pelvis in the supine position."

Easy to understand and you probably just learned some new words for various body parts. It helps that the authors used both the layman's terminology and technical jargon.

In the following paragraphs on Parallel Legs Sliding, Side to Side Rolling and 3 more warm-up exercises the authors are very detailed about exactly how to do each exercise so that anyone with a firm grasp of English will understand it even if they aren't experts at the lingo.

On the sides of the paragraphs there are also helpful tips for how to visualize what you are doing so you understand it more perfectly. (Kudos on the attention to detail!)

The end result in the book is a series of very pricise exercises designed to increase flexibility and muscles in various areas of the body, especially those which dancers often develop injuries. If I was a professional ballet dancer I would consider this book and its exercises to be a regular part of my exercise routine.

I will be posting more exercise book reviews in the future. Please subscribe / follow this blog and return for more. :)

The 8 Benefits of Lemon Water in your Diet

There are lots of so-called "miracle" detox/weight loss/energy supplements and strategies out there. But very few of them are as cheap, easy to use and commonplace as the ordinary lemon.

I am not going to try to convince you that lemon water is the ultimate solution for all of your health and wellness desires and needs. It isn't and neither is anything else. There is no one shot "miracle fruit" and anyone trying to sell you "snake oil" is in the wrong century.

However, for such a simple solution, lemon water does have some amazing benefits. Best of all, it's natural and really inexpensive to try and test it out.

8 Benefits of Lemon Water

1. Lemon water will assist weight loss. It is a no-calorie drink. With it's presence of pectin fiber, hunger can be controlled while offering the body a flavorful drink that provides many other benefits for the body.
2. A good source of citric acid, potassium, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium
3. Helps dissolve uric acid, which causes inflammation in the joints
4. Assists digestion and elimination
5. Naturally strengthens the liver
6. Has antibacterial properties and Vitamin C. Great for colds and flues
7. Lowers blood pressure
8. Reduces symptoms of asthma and allergies

How to Use Lemon Water

Lemons are best at room temperature. The thinner the skin, the more the juice. Roll the lemon a few times on the counter to break up the fruit inside.

After juicing the lemon they store in the fridge for about a week.

Tips when using Lemon Water

1. If using the peel (zesting the lemon) buy organic or scrub. Pesticides (and who knows what else) can be absorbed into the peel.
2. In any case, it's probably not a good idea to keep the peel in the glass all day.

Tada! How hard is that?

How to Trick Yourself into Eating Healthy

You should already know some of these tips. Some of them are pretty well known.

#1. Eat before you go out so you aren't starving later.

#2. Sample your faves instead of pigging out.

#3. Split dessert with a friend or lover.

But I also want to share a few reverse psychology tricks that will help you eat healthier.

If you go through a long period of eating healthy foods you will start to want the junk food simply because you want a break and want something sweet. Part of it is simply wanting something that you can't have because it is Forbidden Fruit.

There are three solutions to the dealing forbidden sweets and junk food however:

1. Eat junk food more often.

This really seems counter-intuitive but this strategy works for a lot of people because indulging regularly takes away the need to gorge on a grand scale when your willpower completely collapses. And after enough time goes by, where you're fighting between a controlled and crazy appetite, something has to give. It's usually willpower. So what you do is have small amounts, small measured amounts, just to take the edge off.

2. Don't think of it as junk food.

Another tip is to stop thinking about food as good and bad. People always want what they can't have. Although it would be a stretch to ever try to convince yourself that celery sticks are the new chocolate bars it's easy to pull some reverse psychology on your psyche and convince your brain that the chocolate is not all that it's cracked up to be and opting for the real food is just as satisfying, if not more.

3. Focus on Socialization

You're at a party/holiday gathering to be with your friends and family so do just that. The food isn't the main reason why you're visiting. Catch up on stories, reminisce about the past and enjoy the company of loved ones that you don't normally see all in the same room at once. If you forget the food is there then it is time well spent.

Use these tips to change the way you think about eating and keep your balanced diet on track!

New Logos for Cardio Trek

Updated the logos and site navigation.

Books + Exercise: Why Research is your Friend

Learn to hit the books once in awhile and you will reap the benefits!

If you have been participating in a certain exercise for a while now (eg. yoga, martial arts, running, archery, boxing, etc.), consider heightening your understanding of its history or inner-workings to find more fulfillment within the practice and to even improve the physical aspect of the activity itself.

Some examples of this include:

Runners - Learn the history of marathons. It's fascinating.
Dancers - Take music theory lessons. Learn rhythms and melodies.
Cyclists - Learn how to fix/tune up your bike or even build one from scratch.
Martial Arts - Learn the history of your and other disciplines.
Weight Lifters - Teach yourself about anatomy and psysiology.
Yoga - Learn the benefits of each posture, the history of yoga and the different disciplines of yoga (breathing, meditation, and so forth).

Deepening an activity with some history and theory will turn a simple exercise from a hobby into a lifestyle.

Sample Books if you are into Archery: 'Precision Archery' is a great practical advice book about everything from equipment maintenance to cross-training exercises to proper form. 'Zen Bow Zen Arrow' gets more into the mental discipline of archery, but is also great for motivation to get you out on the archery range and practicing regularly.

Why Crazy Crash Diets Don't Work

You've probably noticed in the past how quite a few fad diets out there are based on the concept of a "crash diet". Meaning you go on the crash diet for a few weeks, lose weight, and then go back to your normal routine.

That is the theory at least.

The reality however is that it creates people on Yo-yo Diets wherein their weight goes up and down constantly, often gaining more weight each time the end a crash diet... and ultimately ending up being fatter than when they started.

There is a lot of articles available by diet industry professionals who are constantly promoting their weird diets. Its nothing new. People have been doing this for decades. And it keeps adding to the confusion and misinformation within the industry.

Some people in the industry (reporters...) will even misquote experts on purpose, just to push their own agenda. eg. An expert says cardio is good for losing weight and weightlifting is good for toning up muscles. Completely accurate. But the reporter instead writes that weightlifting is good for both... Which isn't wholly true or untrue. Yes, you could lose weight via weightlifting, but you would need to do a lot of repetitions and most people are not doing that. Ergo, the reporter is stretching the truth and misquoting the expert just because they want to push their own agenda.

Thus it becomes more important than ever to stress the old hallmarks of weight loss: Exercise and a Balanced Diet.

The problem however is that so many people are too lazy to exercise, and love instant gratification too much (junk food/fast food/processed foods) to eat a balanced diet. Toss in people binging on too much food and you have a recipe for gaining weight in a hurry.

It stands to logic then that the only true tried and tested method for losing weight is a balanced (and stable) diet combined with regular exercise. It really comes down to just doing cardio and proper nutrition.

It's not hard even. It's not complex either. It's just common sense. Eat sensible, smaller portions. Stop eating when you are full and don't deprive yourself. Eat junk food on special occasions but don't make a constant habit of it. Eat vegetables, fruits, whole grains and lean proteins. Avoid fried fatty foods.

It really is just simple science and math: Cut down on calories intake. Increase calorie usage. Result: Weight loss.

However some idiotic and self-proclaimed fitness pros are complicating and muddying the waters by spreading misinformation just so they can sell their book or DVD promoting their crazy Crash Diet... and hoping to become the newest diet fad so they can make a fortune.

The tried, tested and true "cardio and a balanced diet" won't sell any books because it sounds too normal, boring and like hard work.

But seriously, it works.

Burning Calories via Household Chores

You are burning calories while you're doing household chores and the numbers can really add up. In fact, some household chores burn just as many calories as a gym workout does.

Here's how some of your household chores stack up in terms of burning calories.

Yard Work

Yard work offers some of the most labor intensive household chores. Tasks like digging and raking the leaves not only burn a lot of calories but can help tone muscles in your arms and legs. Here are some statistics:

30 minutes of digging in your yard will burn about 315 calories, the same amount burned by 45 minutes of bicycling on flat terrain. Digging tones the muscles of your calves, thighs, arms and shoulders. If you do it vigorously enough and continue the activity for 20 minutes or more, you can raise your heart rate and strengthen your cardiovascular system.
Washing your car works your arms and abdominals. For every 30 minutes of car washing, you'll burn 143 calories.
Weeding for 30 minutes burns 115 calories, the same amount you'd burn in 15 minutes of weight training. Weeding tones your thighs and buttocks. Just be careful to bend with your legs while keeping your spine straight, or you could hurt your back.
Raking leaves for 30 minutes burns 225 calories. The resistance offered by the leaves makes this chore a type of weight training. Raking leaves tones all the major muscle groups in your body.

Indoor Chores

Chores you do inside the house also help to burn calories. Here's how many calories are burned in the course of performing your daily tasks:

Scrubbing the bath for 30 minutes burns 200 calories. Removing that stubborn soap scum from your tiles is a great way to tone the muscles of your arms and shoulders.
Carrying shopping bags for 30 minutes burns 190 calories, and maybe more if the bags are particularly heavy. Distribute the weight evenly on each hand, or swap back and forth at regular intervals. Carrying too much weight on one side won't just overdevelop those muscles, it could injure your spine.
Making beds for 30 minutes burns 130 calories, the same number you'd use if you jogged on a treadmill or on flat terrain for 15 minutes.
Cleaning windows for 30 minutes burns 125 calories, the same number used in 20 minutes of power yoga (about one-third the length of a typical power yoga class).
Loading the dishwasher for 30 minutes burns 105 calories, which is less than the 160 calories burned when washing them by hand.
Vacuuming for 30 minutes burns about 90 calories, the same amount you'd burn in 15 minutes of kick boxing.
Dusting for 30 minutes burns about 50 calories.
Ironing for 30 minutes burns about 70 calories and tones the muscles of the upper body. Stand up straight at the ironing board and press down firmly. Switch hands periodically so you don't overdevelop one arm.

Other Calorie Burners

Here are some other activities that burn surprising amounts of calories:

Climbing stairs for 30 minutes burns about 285 calories.
Painting and decorating your home burns about 160 calories.
Showering and toweling off for 30 minutes burns about 70 calories.