workouts Archives - Amazing Health Advances

Pre-Workout Smoothie Recipe

The AHA! Team — Fri, 18 Apr 2025 05:37:11 +0000

Recipe by: Katie Schloer via Nutrition Facts – Pre-Workout Smoothie Recipe Recipe by: Katie Schloer Who doesn’t love a good smoothie? This one is especially antioxidant packed and holds a beautiful color that is irresistible! Cherries, blueberries, and watermelon may play a role in reducing muscle soreness, likely thanks to their anti-inflammatory phytonutrients. Watermelon also has the beneficial amino acid l-citrulline. Beets and greens contain nitrates, which may help improve athletic performance by reducing oxygen needs. Nitrates can have profound effects on the power plants within all of our cells, reducing our oxygen needs during exercise so we can bust out the same amount of work with less oxygen. COURSE: Breakfast, Drinks, Snack DIFFICULTY: Moderate SERVINGS: 4 Ingredients ▢2 cups frozen cooked beets* ▢2 cups frozen watermelon ▢2 cups frozen berries ▢2 cups frozen cherries ▢8 medjool dates ▢1 teaspoon amla (optional) ▢3-6 cups water Instructions Combine all the ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend for 30 seconds. If it is too thick, add more water. Drink up and have a great workout! Notes *To cook the beets, thoroughly scrub them, then cut into one inch cubes. Place the beets on a silicone mat or parchment paper and bake them at 400°F (200°C) for about one hour. Allow the beets to cool then place them on a baking sheet and stick them in the freezer. Once frozen, transfer to a freezer safe container and keep them in the freezer for whenever you need a pre-workout boost! To read the original article click here.

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20 Exercise Hacks to Sneak More Fitness into Your Day

The AHA! Team — Fri, 28 Mar 2025 05:19:10 +0000

Kissairis Munoz via Dr. Axe – Are you one of the millions of Americans who makes a New Year’s resolution to exercise more and then watch as the best of intentions falls to the wayside? If so, you’re not alone … but it doesn’t have to be this way if you take advantage of exercise hacks. While the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) advises adults to get at least 150 minutes a week of moderate to intense aerobic activity (or about 20 to 30 minutes a day) plus two days of muscle-strengthening activity, the CDC has estimated that up to nearly 80 percent of Americans don’t meet these recommendations. Luckily, there’s a silver lining. A study in The Lancet found that just 15 minutes of exercise a week is enough to reduce mortality and increase life expectancy. 20 Exercise Hacks to Sneak More Fitness into Your Day Of course, adding more exercise to your routine when possible is even better, but let’s face it: While we can’t always carve out time in our busy schedules for a full-on workout session, each of us can find, at a minimum, those 15 minutes a week … and often several times a week. Still dreading the idea of hitting the gym? Below are some excellent exercise hacks to sneak more exercise into your day. These exercise hacks will have you and your family getting active in no time, even while traveling or strapped for time. Effective exercise hacks 1. Add interval workouts Maximize your time and burn more calories with burst training. This method combines short bouts of high-intensity interval training exercise with recovery phases, helping you burn fat faster while improving cardiovascular fitness. 2. Explore your own town Chances are there are quite a few low-cost fitness activities where you live, and they don’t have to feel like work! Explore local hiking trails. Take a walk in a neighborhood you haven’t spent much time in. Try area pools. See what fun fitness activities your community center might be hosting. 3. Switch up your commute The average American may spend up to 38 hours a year commuting to work. Why not make your commute work for you? If you work in a city where you take public transportation to work, consider getting off the train or bus a stop early and walking a few extra minutes. After a few days, you won’t even notice the distance. Are you lucky enough to live within walking or biking distance to work at least a few days a week? Trade your subway pass for comfy shoes, and hit the pavement! Commuting by bicycle to work, separately from biking during leisure hours, has been linked to a reduction in cardiovascular disease and mortality risk. If driving is inevitable, try parking several blocks away or as far away from the entrance as you can in the parking lot. 4. Have walking meetings Let’s face it: Meetings can be long, tedious and oftentimes unproductive. Give your team a breath of fresh air (literally) by instituting walking meetings. Take a brisk walk while you have weekly catchups or go over project logistics. You might even find new solutions to old problems. A 2014 study found that walking while talking can increase creativity by as much as 60 percent. 5. Walk the dog Instead of delegating walking the family pet to your children, start and end your day by taking Fido on a brisk stroll. Walking your dog can burn some extra calories, and walking as little as 10 minutes a day can help with longevity. Even better? Head to the dog park, and toss a ball around, too. 6. Meet friends for workouts You might be planning on squeezing in a workout, but then a friend you haven’t seen in a while invites you for happy hour. Instead of choosing between a social life and fitness, combine the two. Meet friends for a fitness class or jog around the neighborhood instead of brunch or drinks. Not only will you get in quality time and a workout, but your wallet will thank you, too! 7. Take the stairs Firm up your glutes and increase your heart rate throughout the day by nixing elevators and escalators and taking the stairs instead. Whether at the office or the shopping mall, you’ll be surprised by how quickly those extra flights of stairs add up throughout the day. 8. Get moving throughout the day When most of us are obligated to be at our offices from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (or longer!), we have to make the most of our situations. Instead of writing a co-worker an email or picking up the phone, walk to that person’s office and chat face to face. Take a walk at lunchtime instead of eating at your computer. These exercise hacks and their short distances really do add up to quite a few extra steps a week. 9. Keep the car in the garage Running errands around town? Save on gas, and walk or take a bike ride short distances instead. 10. Do vacations a different way Stepping out of your daily routine doesn’t mean your workout plan has to fall to pieces. Skip the big-bus city tours, and explore a new city by taking a walking tour instead. Seek out hotels with gyms or partnerships with local fitness centers as well, or plan a vacation around an activity you’ve been interested in. If you’ve been wanting to run a 10K, sign up for one in a city you’re excited to visit. Have you been wanting to work on your arm balances? Seek out a yoga retreat. 11. Schedule workouts Scheduling things with a date and time, instead of tacking it on to a never-ending to-do list, is a more effective way of tackling projects. Schedule workouts, and set an alarm for them the same way you would a meeting or dinner date. 12. Get the kids involved One reason people often think they don’t have time for exercise is because they can’t get away from the children long enough to get a workout in. Why not bring them along?! Have your kids do a modified version of a HIIT workout DVD with you. Take them to the park to shoot hoops or play soccer. Beat the heat, and go swimming together in the summertime. Not only will you spend precious time with your children, but they’ll also learn what a healthy lifestyle looks like. 13. Use social media to your advantage Facebook is good for more than seeing what your old high school classmates are doing. Use your social networks to hold yourself accountable. You’ll be more likely to get up for that early morning run if you posted about it the night before. You can also use it to recruit friends to join you on your fitness journey, whether through physical activity in real life or just cheering each other on. 14. Get fit while you watch TV Instead of curling up on the couch with snacks while you clear out your DVR, use the time to squeeze in some exercise hacks. Bodyweight exercises like jumping jacks, high knees, planks, pushups, crunches and more can all be done with zero equipment. Add some weights for even more of a burn. 15. Track your progress If you’re someone who works best with visuals, investing in a pedometer might be for you. It’ll track your steps, show your day-to-day progress and encourage you to sneak in a few extra steps a day. 16. Make exercising fun Turning exercise into a daily habit is difficult if you’re not having fun. Find the activities that you enjoy, and don’t worry about what’s “trendy” or not. Whether it’s Pilates, skiing, running, hiking, swimming or something totally different, choosing workouts that you actually like makes all the difference. It doesn’t feel like exercise when you’re having a great time. 17. Try something new Don’t limit yourself to just those exercise hacks that you’re familiar with. Try a new workout class, or join your friend in that crazy color race. While every workout might not be your favorite, you just might find something different you like, and it’ll keep your muscles guessing. 18. Keep it cheap Working out doesn’t have to be expensive. Workout DVDs and YouTube videos are great ways to add variety to your fitness routine and usually require little to no equipment. From Pilates to cardio workouts to strength training, you can find a video or channel that fits your interests. 19. Set a goal When you’re working toward something in particular, it’s easier to stay motivated. Have you wanted to start logging more miles? Sign up for a local race to ensure you hit the track. Do you want to build up to arm balances in your yoga practice? Commit to spending a few minutes a day doing pushups to build strength. It’ll feel that much sweeter when you reach your goal, and then set a new one! 20. Use an app for that Is there anything smartphones can’t do? Put yours to work with a fitness tracker. Use interval timer alarms to get in short exercise bouts throughout the day, download apps with dedicated workouts or clock miles as you go for a run. Adding a little more exercise to your daily lifestyle doesn’t have to be a chore or boring. With these 20 exercise hacks, you’ll feel fitter and reach the recommended amount of weekly exercise in no time! To read the original article click here.

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Are Morning Workouts Best for Burning Fat? Study Provides Answers

The AHA! Team — Wed, 27 Nov 2024 06:21:36 +0000

Joe Boland via Dr. Axe – If you’re like a lot of people out there, you probably wonder what the optimal time of day for exercise is. The answer depends on many factors, but if you’re looking to burn fat, new research suggests morning workouts may be your best bet. Study: Workout Time and Burning Fat Researchers from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and the University of Copenhagen in Denmark sought to determine how working out at different times of day affected post-exercise metabolism and fat-burning (aka the afterburn effect). They did this by examining physical activity in mice at various times of day. Why mice? Because, as described in an accompanying press release on the study, “mice and humans share many basic physiological functions, and mice are a well-established model for human physiology and metabolism.” Ultimately, researchers wanted to find out the optimal time of day to exercise in order to amp up fat-burning. They did this by studying the adipose tissue in the mice after two sessions of high-intensity exercise — one performed at an early active phase (equivalent of late morning in humans) and one at early rest phases (equivalent of late evening in humans). They found that “physical activity at an early active phase increased the expression of genes involved in the breakdown of adipose tissue, thermogenesis (heat production) and mitochondria in the adipose tissue, indicating a higher metabolic rate. These effects were observed only in mice that exercised in the early active phase and were independent of food intake.” A higher metabolic rate, of course, helps burn fat more than lower a metabolic rate, meaning morning workouts may help amp up your ability to burn fat. ”Our results suggest that late-morning exercise could be more effective than late evening exercise in terms of boosting the metabolism and the burning of fat, and if this is the case, they could prove of value to people who are overweight,” said professor Juleen R. Zierath from the Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery and the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at the Karolinska Institutet in the release. Zierath added: “The right timing seems to be important to the body’s energy balance and to improving the health benefits of exercise, but more studies are needed to draw any reliable conclusions about the relevance of our findings to humans.” Other Fat-Burning Tips While this is promising research and could encourage people to exercise early in the day, the truth is exercise at any time of day is beneficial. In fact, starting a fitness routine that works for you and your schedule is important. If that means working out in the afternoon, evening or night fits into your life better than morning, you should get your workouts in then instead. If burning fat is your ultimate goal, here are some ways to enhance your ability to lose belly fat and fat in other areas: Take advantage of natural metabolism boosters, such as getting plenty of sleep and rest, trying high-intensity interval training (HIIT), lifting weights, and avoiding inflammatory foods. Work out on an empty stomach. Add natural fat burners to your routine, such as conjugated linoleic acid, green coffee beans, grapefruit essential oil, green tea and other herbal teas, protein supplements and foods, and probiotic foods and supplements. Consume more fat-burning foods, such as high-fiber foods, apple cider vinegar, bone broth and many more. Incorporate more fat-burning workouts, including Tabata, HIIT, barre, CrossFit, spinning/cycling, cross-country skiing, sprinting, elliptical exercises, burst training, rowing and swimming. Playing sports like football, basketball, soccer and volleyball also is great for burning fat. Eat a healthy diet, and avoid unhealthy, processed foods. To read the original article click here.

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