Lunchtime workouts bulid everyday fitness

Workout during a weekday lunch-break? It sounds too hard. Not only is it a mad rush to get changed but coming back to the office all hot and sweaty and having to shower before settling back into work for the afternoon seems like it would take all the fun out of the exercise.

But there are easy ways to build fitness into your weekday life, says personal trainer Lee-Anne Wann.

A workout doesn't have to take long - Lee-Anne says 45 minutes is ample. And if 45 minutes is too much, there are still lots of ways to get the maximum impact in a shorter timeframe. Lee-Anne says the key principles are to work as much of your body as possible, burning as many calories and as much fat as you can in the time you have. This can be done by working the big muscles, such as the thighs, chest and back.

"Bigger muscles require more calories, so you burn more fat. And when you work big muscles, you work the smaller muscles at the same time."

Lee-Anne also recommends switching between exercises which work the upper and the lower body. Moving from squats to shoulder presses, for example, flushes the blood around the body, forcing it to work harder.

For the really time-poor, she suggests a 20-minute interval training session.

Either on a cardio machine, or running, go as hard as you can for one minute, then more slowly for one minute. Alternating like this for 20 minutes will burn a lot of calories. Twenty minutes is the maximum length of time that kind of session will be effective. The work is out of the fat-burning zone, but boosts the metabolism so much that extra calories are burnt for anywhere between 12 to 20 hours afterwards.

Lee-Anne warns that it is not a good idea to do such an intense workout late in the day, because it will prompt too much of an energy burst. The increased calorie-burning also stops when you go to sleep.

Keep in mind that doing anything is better than doing nothing. And accumulated exercise is as effective as working out in one hit, so an option is to aim for a 10-minute walk before work, another at lunchtime and a third after work.

As well as being good for your fitness and fat-burning, working out at lunchtime gets rid of the afternoon crash. "It will stop you wanting junk food at 3pm," says Lee-Anne.

Working it out

Burning calories doesn't have to be sweaty work. Check the list below:

* 30 mins weight training: 100 calories*

* 30 mins skipping: 370 calories

* 30 mins boxing: 450 calories

* 30 mins food shopping: 130 calories

* 30 mins standing: 72 calories

* 30 mins walking upstairs: 450 calories

* Sounds low compared to standing still for half an hour doesn't it? Lee-Anne says this is because 30 minutes of weight training is broken up into bits, with rests in between. Standing requires unbroken effort by many muscle groups.

By Susan Edmunds

10 cheap ways to eat healthy foods

Ramen noodles may be cheap, but they sure don’t offer much in the way of nutrition. In fact, it seems that all the affordable foods in the grocery store are pretty bad for you. However, there are ways to maintain a healthy diet for less. It takes some commitment and a little creative cooking, but the 10 tips below should help you out.

1.Stretch Your Meat – If you are indeed a carnivore, then you know how expensive meat can be. However, you can stretch your poultry and beef out by using healthy fillers like tofu and grains.

2.Make a Shopping List – By planning meals ahead of time and sticking to a shopping list, you will avoid any unnecessary (and unhealthy) impulse purchases.

3.Avoid Processed Foods – Starting with raw materials is not only cheaper, it will cut many preservatives and additives out of your diet. This can only improve your mental and physical well-being.

4.Drink Only Water – Your soda/coffee/juice/alcohol dependency isn’t doing your wallet or your body any favors. Water is the only liquid you will ever need to drink. So, put a filter on your tap and drink without guilt.

5.Buy In-Season Produce – A seasonal produce chart may help you do determine what will be cheapest at the store right now. Buying your favorite fruits and vegetables during the off-season can really cost you some major dough.

6.Shop at the Farmer’s Market – Are you paying gouged prices at your local health food store when you could be getting your food direct from local growers? Check out the local farmer’s market before heading to the grocery store.

7.Know Your Healthy, Cheap Staples – These include oatmeal, beans and rice. Foods that are filling, inexpensive and healthy should always be readily stocked in the kitchen.

8.Start a Vegetable Garden – Growing your own food is not only a cheap alternative, but also it offers many physical and mental benefits. Gardening is great exercise and helps to reduce stress, so there are many reasons to take up the hobby.

9.Avoid the Drive-Thru – When trying to save money and your life, the drive-thru can be your worst enemy. Dollar menus exist, but they are usually filled with deep-fried horrors. If you can find a 99 cent baked potato, however, knock yourself out.

10.Clip Coupons – This is an obvious way to save some money on food. However, be sure to only save coupons for healthy foods, no matter how much those Oreos are marked down.

Believe it or not, there are actually healthy foods that won’t cost an arm and a leg. You should also consider the ways you indirectly save money by eating well. Being healthy means having a higher immunity and making fewer trips to the doctor, for example. Whatever the reasons for making wiser decisions in your diet, you don’t have to spend a fortune at the local health food store to do it.

Are you ready to burn up to 800 calories 30 minutes?

Do you want to work your entire body in just a handful of moves?
Would you like to see a toned, strong body and a slimmer waist in a matter of weeks?

Good, because the kettlebell will do just this and more.

Many of my Personla Training clients have already experienced the power of this iron cannonball on a handle, but I've barely scratched the surface of what this instrument of fat burning can really do... yet...

Right now, the kettlebell is the talk of Tinseltown. Current devotees include Jennifer Lopez, Penelope Cruz and Jennifer Anniston, to name but a few.

This Russian bell of iron offers every woman and man the perfect workout; high calorie burning without the fear of bulking up - Perfect! What's more, it builds power, strength and an atheltic physique.

Right now I'm using the kettlebell more and more in my own training program and I have to say that dumbbells are starting to gather dust in my workouts. What I love about the kettlebell is that it's challenging, it hits your whole body with every move and you don't need to go heavy to see good results.

Because you're moving the weight around or swinging it, the whole body has to work hard to move and stabilize it, which means a core workout that tones your midsection in record time and forces you to concentrate on each exercise.

And the best part? With a kettlebell at home you can burn an impressive number of calories and go to town on your bum and your tummy in as little as 10 minutes a day!

To find out more try my brand new MVP Boot Camp Kettlebell class for more info go to www.mvpfitness.net.

Calories in beer

The term beer belly is true. Drinking beer can added on the pounds.

Here are some calorie counts for 12 ounces of different beers:
•Sierra Nevada Pale Ale: 175
•Sam Adams Lager: 160
•Pilsner Urquell: 160
•Michelob: 155
•Guinness: 153
•Heineken: 150
•Corona: 148
•Budweiser: 145
•MGD: 143
•Stella Artois: 140
•Bud Light: 110
•Coors Light: 102
•Budweiser Select: 99
•Michelob Ultra: 96
•Amstel Light: 95
•Miller Genuine Draft Light: 64
•Anchor Steam - 153
•Bass Ale - 160
•Beck's - 140
•Budweiser - 140
•Corona Light - 105
•Guinness Draught - 126
•Guinness Stout - 153
•Miller Lite - 96
•Sierra Nevada Pale Ale - 175
•Sierra Nevada Stout - 210

By the way, the average wine has about 275-300 calories per 12 ounces. Of course, one glass of wine isn't usually 12 ounces. You might drink half as much wine as you would beer, making wine slightly lower calorie.

Mixed drinks are about the same. Gin & tonic or vodka cranberry have about 300 calories per 12 ounces. Margaritas are very bad: they might have about 750 calories!

Here's a 10 Minute Ab Workout

Having six pack abs is a goal for most. Copy and past the link below to your web browser and try this 10 minute ab workout.

http://christworkouts.homestead.com/abworkout10.html

How to gain patience in your weight loss program

Have you ever seen a baby try and walk? Babies who are trying to walk, try to do it over many weeks and months. They make a small effort, usually fail and then try again. It is only after many efforts that they eventually master the skill.

What does that have to do with confidence?

It seems to me that even though we see all around us, that anyone that developed a difficult skill took a long time to do it, we somehow kid ourselves into thinking that we can achieve a new skill overnight. We expect to learn a language in a few hours even though you took months and years to learn your own language. Part of it is advertising that promises quick results. Part of it is we have become a society obsessed with speed. But the fact is, you can't make big changes overnight. Sorry, but it's just not possible.

So when I see people who expect to be transformed overnight from un-confident to confident, I have to give them a dose of reality. It ain't gonna happen! If you are serious about developing your confidence, you are going to have to accept the reality. It won't happen immediately. You have to be patient. You have to apply yourself every day and have a firm plan for action. If you don't do this, you will never succeed.

Remember, patience is the key. As they say, a desire for instant results can be the cause of a lifetime of failure. Don't expect results too soon. If you are getting a little better every day, not only are you guaranteed to get there in the end, but the skills you develop will be much more stable and secure. You will have earned the achievement.

Resolve today to apply yourself every day to becoming confident. It's only with a commitment to day by day improvement that you will get to your goal of being an impressive socially confident individual.