I did not start my afternoon searching for exercise tips yesterday but a video on Cracked.com just happened to lead to Yuri Elkhaim addressing exercise as mentioned in the blog post title. What a fortunate find (though creepy Internet cookies are probably at the root cause)! Anyway, if you are interested and have fifteen minutes, I recommend watching. You can click on the link below:
Yuri Elkhaim Presents Ten Blatant Workout Myths Debunked
Meanwhile, I’d like to mention some of the points. Some were no surprise, as I was fortunate as a young person to join a health club under my father’s membership. So I knew that resistance training does not automatically lead to bulk. Actually, it’s quite difficult to achieve a huge physique even for men. So ladies need not worry about turning into The Incredible Hulk. You’ll just become stronger and healthier, though please things slow to avoid injury.
Now a high protein, low carbohydrate snack shortly before
resistance training seemed logical to me. That turns out to be a wise choice.
It’s fuel for your body. But Mr. Elkhaim doesn’t insist you avoid carbs,
either, so I’ve been correct in balancing the rest of my meals accordingly.
Pure protein post workout does not seem to add any additional benefit, by the
way.
Regarding the stability ball, these do not necessarily
provide the benefits that have been touted. I’m glad. Frankly, the things make
me fearful. The risk of a falling and potentially causing serious injury has
not seemed worth the benefits of “strengthening my core”. I’ve achieved better
strength and posture just by using progressively heavier weights. Those who use
them are no fools, but they do need to think about their goals. Slouching
negates the benefits, too, by the way.
A fact I learned recently is that sitting for eight to ten hours a day is not healthy. On that note, I'm going to take over one of my cats' "trees" as a standing desk. ~grin~ Really. Check it out:
As for sit-ups, they are not going to automatically give a
person that washboard flat belly shown on television. You must get rid of fat. Even I
knew that. And weight training is going to provide a longer caloric burn rate
than aerobics. This leads to the best tip of all.
Yuri Elkhaim recommends combining aerobics with strength
training. Yes, you read that right! The key is how you exercise. Instead of
taking the recommended breaks between lift sets, rotate between machines
without pause. What does this do? It increases your heart rate for an extended
period just like jogging, cycling, or what have you.
I plan on trying that tomorrow. Wish me luck. I definitely
plan to take that idea slow. The phrase “No pain, no gain,” as Mr. Elkhaim
points out, is not wise either. We want to avoid damage and keep the momentum going.
Good health to you, dear reader! Do you have any additional
recommendations? I’d enjoy reading them in comments.
