Archives for August 2012

Be Fit Post: The 2012 Olympic Games are over, but if you are still on your Olympic high and are wanting to get your body free of pain and feeling the gold – get moving!  You don’t need an Olympic Stadiumto get a great workout. These no equipment exercises will help you build muscle and burn calories.  The fitter your body, the better you can handle and adapt to stresses – even injuries like a low back strain, neck pain or headaches will be less frequent if your body is higher, faster, and stronger!  Try each exercise below for one minute and you’ll be glad you added just 5 minutes of strength to your day!
1 Squats. Squats are the best exercise for building muscles in your legs, glutes, quads, hamstring and calves. Keeping your torso straight, bend at the knees slowly.
2 Lunges. Like squats, lunges exercise the muscles in your legs.  Stand with one leg forward and one leg back. Bend your knees lowering your body into a lunge position.
3 Push-ups. Push-ups are a great workout for the upper body.  Keep you feet together and parallel to each other. Tuck your toes under your feet. Keeping you back straight, push up for 8 to 10 reps. Increase reps as you gain strength.
4 Bent Knee Crunches. This exercise strengthens your abdominal muscles. Lie on your back with your knees bent. Put you hands behind you head and pull your elbows back. Exhale as you slowly curl your torso toward your thighs until your upper back is off the floor. Hold for a count of three, adding more as you get stronger. Inhale as you lower yourself down to the floor.
5 V-Ups. This is another great ab exercise. Sit on the floor with your knees bent in front of you and feet flat. Lean back on your arms with your palms on the floor behind you. Slowly lift both feet off the floor so you form a V. Hold for 10 to 15 seconds. Extend your arms and hold for another 10 to 15 seconds.