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| The Body and Machine Section is the place to hang out and grab pertinent information for everything from motorcycle maintenance to fitness to very cool stuff to know about! |
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Circuit Training
by Sara Liberte
Recently Diane my spin Instructor added circuit training to the end of our spin class; in the last few weeks I have really noticed a difference.
Circuit training is a really great way to combine cardio and strength training. Circuit training comes in really handy if your short on time, you can blast through an awesome workout in less than 20 minutes, and trust me you’ll get a good work out in. Diane sets us up in groups of 2, and we have a list of 8 exercises to run through. We perform each exercise for 40 seconds and then move on to the next, completing the entire circuit twice. If your going to try this on your own at the gym or at home make sure you do about 5-10 minutes of a cardio warm up first; treadmill, bike etc.
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How It Works
Circuit training combines 8-10 exercises that are completed one right after the other, with little or no rest in between. Perform each exercise for a specified time (40 seconds or more), rest for no more than 30 seconds before moving on to the next exercise. Once you complete all exercises, that’s considered one circuit. The total number of circuits you complete is up to you. For beginners, start with 30 seconds per exercise and increase the time as you get stronger. Another way to progress is to shorten your rest in between exercises and circuits.
To start, use the following for choosing your exercises:
1. Pick exercises to work each muscle group.
2. Include exercises for agility and endurance
3. Don't forget to work on your speed too.
Once you have decided on a few different exercises, write them down on a piece of paper, so you have a list to follow, this will help keep your focus.
Some of the exercises we do in my class are:
- ball squat with bicep curl. Place a stabilizer ball between your lower back and the wall, hold 3-10 pound weights in each hand. Squat down and on the way back up do a bicep curl with the weight. Concentrate on the movement make each rep count.
- Push Ups. I’m pretty sure you know the routine on this great exercise. Remember to keep your head in line with your neck.
- Bent Over Rows. Knees slightly bent grab a weight bar hands extended down by your knees and pull the weight in towards your stomach, you should feel your back muscles working.
- Tricep extension. This can be done several different ways, take a weight, arms extended straight up over head, bend only at the elbow and lower the weight down towards your head, extend back up.
- Pilates roll up. One of my favorite exercises. Lay down arms extended back over your head. lift your arms, neck and roll up vertebrae by vertebrae touch the toes and slowly roll back down to starting position vertebrae by vertebrae. This is a great massage for your back as well as working your core.
- Spinal Extensions. Get down on all fours extend one leg and opposite arm, reach for a moment and then switch.
Regardless of your goals, circuit training can be a great workout simply because of the variety. Running on a treadmill for 30 minutes or doing the same old machines can get boring over time. If you find you're losing interest in your routine or you've hit a plateau, think about circuit training. In the few weeks that we have been doing circuit training at the end of spin class I have noticed a big difference.
For more info visit the Fitness Magazine site.
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Closet Organization
by Julie Colizoli
To some, this may sound like a distant dream. To me, it’s a way of life. Yes, I admit it. I am one of those people who feel unsettled if I leave the house without making my bed. I need things to be neat, clean and organized. No, I don’t have any obsessive compulsive disorders like washing my hands 100 times per day. I just like things in their place. If you don’t follow in my tidy footsteps, here are some ideas to help you get your closet in tip-top shape!
First Step? Purge!
Take a good hard look at everything in your closet and decide what you should get rid of. You probably already know which clothes I’m talking about, the out of style clothes that you’ve had since high school, the clothes that don’t fit from 10 pounds ago and the clothes that are damaged beyond repair. Get rid of ‘em! Take them to the Goodwill, sell them on eBay (you’d be surprised what people will buy!), or toss them in the trash if they are tragic enough. Don’t forget to throw away the shoes that are no longer comfortable or are worn out too! Think about your wardrobe as a tool in life. What does it say about you? When going through your closet get rid of the clothes that don’t speak the language of the life you are currently trying to lead. |
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Now Let’s Organize!
After the purge, you’ll have much more room in your closet for the remaining clothes that you will wear on a regular basis. At this point, I suggest grouping these clothes in a way that you find most beneficial to you. I can offer suggestions, but let me first start by telling you how my closet is organized as an example. View the photos as I take you on a tour of my closet!
Let’s begin on the left side. First you’ll see my extra hangers. This is where I put the empty hanger after I choose something to wear from anywhere in my closet. Eventually I take this bunch down to the laundry room. Next, I hang my “going out tops” or “weekend wear”. Next to these tops are my capri pants and more casual type pants followed by my sweat suits. On the shelf above are my sweatshirts and all my hats. I love hats so I have quite a few! Many of my hats are stacked inside the two hat boxes. My baseball caps are in the plastic tote. I also have a strongly scented candle on this shelf which I do not light. The top of the candle box is vented and it makes my closet smell delicious!! On the floor on the left side of my closet, I have a double drawer bin which holds all of my purses. I also keep a step stool and my iron and ironing board here.
The right side of my closet holds the majority of my clothes. This side starts with all my t-shirts arranged by colors and sleeve length, short sleeve first then long sleeve. Next are my knit tops, arranged first by sleeve length and then color. My dressy blouse type tops follow, sorted by sleeve length and color. Next are my hoodies, followed by my dress pants, skirts and finally the few dresses that I own. On the shelf above are the majority of my shoes. My shoes sit on the shelf “one toe in, one toe out”. I do this so that I can see the front of each shoe as well as the heel on each shoe. It’s nice to see the front and back of each shoe before picking which pair I want to wear. The shoes that I wear more often are on the lower shelf and toward the middle. I keep all my flip-flops and sandals in a crate on the floor of the right side of the closet. I also keep three laundry hampers on this side. I sort my dirty laundry this way! I have one for whites, one for colors and one for darks. This makes it very easy when it’s time to do laundry. Toward the back of my closet I keep my jewelry box and to the left of my jewelry box I have a belt rack. The bench in my closet doubles as a seat and storage for my jeans. Before I had a walk-in closet, I kept this bench at the foot of my bed. I hang my PJ’s and bathrobe on a hook on the back of my closet door. That’s about it! Now that I’ve shared my closet with you, here are 10 general tips that will help you get your closet organized! Good Luck!
10 Tips to Closet Organization
- Group clothes using a system that works for you: by color, office or weekend wear, or tops and bottoms.
- Group similar length clothes together to open up space under shorter garments and install double-decker rods to maximize usable space.
- Don't store clothing in dry-cleaning bags. It's best to remove these bags before you enter the house to air the dry-cleaning chemicals.
- To preserve heavy coats or tall boots out of season, stuff them with acid-free tissue. (I stuff mine with newspaper and never had a problem with this method.)
- Use shelf dividers to keep stacks of clothing from falling over;
- Put up some hooks on the inside of your closet door for items that you wear regularly, like pajamas or items that don’t really belong inside drawers such as belts, scarves and ties.
- Don’t use wire hangers, they are perfect for destroying the shape of your shirts and blouses. Use wood or plastic hangers. Invest in the same type of hangar for a uniform look. (All of the hangers in my closet match! I use Huggable Hangers®. You can get these at Target, on eBay or just do an internet search on “Huggable Hangers”.)
- When hanging clothing,
- Take shoes out of their original cardboard boxes and keep in clear containers designed to store shoes.
- Use racks or hooks for belts, hats, purses and scarves.
- If your closet space is at a premium, store out of season clothing in another part of the house.
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American Idol
I don’t watch the show all the time, but if I catch it I like to listen to the contestants. I enjoy watching them and if you ask me I think they are all winners, they all have such awesome talent. Tonight the show was different; they were doing a program Idol Gives Back.
The whole show was dedicated to raising awareness and funds to benefit six charities. Including: the Children's Defense Fund, The Global Fund, Make It Right, Malaria No More, Save The Children, U.S. Programs and the Children's Health Fund. The show had several celebrity’s talking on behalf of these 6 charity’s. The one that struck me the most was Alicia Keys, she made a statement that was just so true, “if the media gave the same amount of attention to aids as it does to celebrity Drama this problem would be solved by now”
She’s right, the attention our American public gives to these ridiculous celebrity drama instances is stupid. Instead of buying that gossip magazine at the grocery store check outline this week, donate the money to these charities. If you pay for a subscription, cancel it and send the money to help make a difference in someone’s life.
Check out a free download on Alicia’s journey to Africa here. |
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