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Floor Standing Punching Bags Offer Fabulous Fitness

Keeping your exercise varied is an excellent way to make sure that you don’t get bored or burned out with your routine. Exercising in a home gym can be very time effective but also has the potential to be a little bit more monotonous and limited than working out in at a gym. One piece of exercise equipment that I have found to be very beneficial, useful, and flexible is a floor standing punching bag.

I prefer the floor standing punching bags over ceiling hung bags for a couple of reasons. First, you can put them anywhere and they are easy to move around and store. Ceiling hung bags require that you have a solid beam to and a large dedicated space. Next, free standing varieties have more flexibility. You are able to more easily raise or lower the bag and which allows you to have a more varied workout.

Punching bag workouts can be very taxing and strenuous and they build fantastic cardio. They also happen to give you a fabulous upper body workout. Many cardio programs focus on the lower body which is fine but incorporating the upper body is very beneficial as well. Hitting a bag for 2 minutes will give you a new appreciation for what boxers and MMA fighters do on a regular basis.

Many people when confronted with a bag are not sure how to proceed. I know I was a little confused at first. Coming from a more traditional endurance type workout bag training required that I shift gear. What you must realize is that punching bag training is more like sprinting than jogging. It is also much more cerebral than simply repeatedly hitting a bag.

It can help to have some traditional fight training but it is certainly not essential. What is important is that you make the differentiation between different punches and kicks. There are jabs, hooks, upper cuts, elbows along with many more punches and just as many if not more different types of kicks. Spend some time learning the finer points of the different maneuvers and practice each punch or kick.

When you have developed a good understanding of the different techniques for each kick and punch it is time to start putting them together. Combinations are key to any fighting technique and also the key to successful punching bag training. Start with two punch combos and repeat until you are comfortable with your technique and flow. Focus one improving each shot, small improvements in placement and body mechanics are the difference between throwing knockout punches and duds.

Once you have mastered simple combinations start working on more complex combos and putting some of them together. At this point you may want to start timing yourself or finishing a set number of combos before a short breather. People will often hit the bag for 2 – 3 minutes followed by a 30 second rest, then repeat.

When you are starting out flow is more important than power. Hit slowly and methodically and focus intently on small adjustments and getting the move exactly right. As you progress start increasing speed and power. Keep in mind that a hit that is properly placed can be very powerful without you expending a tremendous amount of energy. Think about it like hitting a golf ball or tennis ball. Expertly controlled shot that are properly placed do not need to be that hard to be effective. As soon as you start swinging your heart out you loose your effectiveness.

The only other required equipment for punching bag training is a good pair of sparring gloves. You may think yourself tough but if you spend longer than a few minutes on a bag you will shred your knuckles and be out of the game for at least a couple of days. A good pair of sparring gloves will protect your knuckles and your wrist and can be had for less than $30.

Punching bag training is a great way to mix up your training and a fabulous way to get out aggression. If you are looking for something different this is a great option that will push your physical endurance and help train your mental dexterity. Punching bag training is also a lot of fun and highly addictive.

Elliptical Trainers for Weight Loss

There is all sorts of exercise equipment out there and much of it makes outrageous claims, but the elliptical trainer continues to be a winner. If you have never used an elliptical trainer you are missing out it is a very effective piece of equipment and can whip you into shape in no time flat. There are numerous reasons to use an elliptical trainer instead of some other type of fitness equipment. I will run over my favorite here and hopefully dispel any myths or answer any questions you might have.

The most common reason that people sight for using an elliptical trainer is that it is easier on your joints. There is very little if any impact and virtually no jarring motion. The motion on an elliptical trainer is smooth and fluid and will not leave your joints and back sore after a workout.

An elliptical machine unlike many other pieces of exercise equipment will give you a full body work out. Take for instance a treadmill, you may be moving your arms while you run but you are not getting much if any resistance training for your arms. An elliptical on the other hand forces you to use your arms and legs. The motion is more similar to cross country skiing, which has been shown to be one of the highest calorie burning exercises in existence. So if you want to maximize your returns and minimize your time in the gym hop on an elliptical.

Elliptical trainers offer more variation. This is because of the upper and lower body aspect of the training but also because you can reverse the movement pattern on your lower body. This may feel a little strange at first but your body will quickly adapt to the new movement. This will allow you to target different muscles, keep you body guessing, and reduce boredom. Try this on a treadmill and see what happens.

Elliptical trainers are for the most part fairly quiet. Contrast this with many other machines that are motor driven and you have a big difference. The reason that this is important is because many people listen to music or watch TV while on exercise equipment. If you are trying to hear over the whine and pound of a treadmill you may have to turn your earphone volume up to a level that could cause hearing damage.

If you are considering buying an elliptical the maintenance on them is much lower than on many other types of fitness equipment. Elliptical machines are really pretty simple and as long as you keep them properly lubricated there isn’t much else to worry about. This means that you will have to spend much less time worrying about trying to fix a broken piece of equipment.

Exercise equipment such as an exercise bike supports your weight while you are doing the exercise. This severely reduces the caloric burn of an exercise. Sure it makes it easier but any time you are supporting your weight you are burning more calories. Elliptical trainers make it virtually impossible to lean or slouch while on the machine. This means that in addition to getting maximum calorie burn from doing a full body workout you will also get maximum burn from supporting your own body weight.

Elliptical trainers are very popular among the home gym crowd and if you decide that you ever want to sell your elliptical trainer there is always a second hand market. Because maintenance cost are low and there is not a motor involved you are more likely to get a higher price for resale.

Because you have dedicated handles for the arm portion of the workout you will usually have a heart rate monitor built into the machine. Having a heart rate monitor will allow you to get the most out of your workout. If you have never gotten used to exercising with heart rate monitor you will need to determine your target heart rate. Once you know this you can increase or decrease your work load to stay within your target and achieve the maximum amount of fat burning.

There are many more reasons to use an elliptical trainer. Doctors will often prescribe exercise on an elliptical long before other types of self supported exercise. So if you really want to get in shape and take the extra weight off an elliptical is the way to do it.

Exercise Bike

One of the most common pieces of exercise equipment that fighters use to cut weight is nothing more than a simple exercise bike. And, if anyone knows about loosing a couple of pounds it is a fighter. These guys, and some gals, have to loose weight fast to make weight, and sometimes lots of weight. They don’t always do it in the safest most healthy manner, and they are not looking to keep the weight off, they just need to make weight for a fight, but many people find themselves in similar situations. They may want to drop 10 pounds before going to the beach this weekend. Follow the advice of the pros, it it possible it just takes a lot of work.

One of the reasons that exercise bikes work so well is because they allow you to work for a long time without being as draining as other exercise equipment that requires you to support your body weight. You can hit an exercise bike hard and make your heart rate skyrocket or you can ease off and take your time and have an active recovery.

There are a number of different types of exercise bikes. One that is growing in popularity if the spinning bike, which is modeled after a road bike. It has a more aggressive down in the drops configuration and a friction crank that allows you to control the intensity. You can go from virtually effortless spinning to a leg cramping level of near impossibility. The spinning exercise bike is often used in a class setting but can also be good for solo training.

The recumbent bike is also a common type of exercise bike. It has an actual set with a back support and requires that your feet be out in front. These bikes are more comfortable to sit on for longer periods of time and usually have computerized programs for you to follow.

A word of caution on a exercise bikes is that you need to make sure you adjust the set correctly or you are not getting the full muscular benefit from the exercise. You need to make sure that your leg is nearly straight, with just a slight bend, at the bottom of your stroke. You don’t want your leg to hyper extend, but you want to make sure that your leg goes through a full range of motion.

If you are going to use an exercise bike make sure that you are not doing it because it is easy. Because you are not supporting your body weight it is easy to think that you are getting a workout when you are really barely exceeding your resting heart rate. Vary the intensity and find something to hold your attention besides the countdown clock.

An exercise bike can be a great way to warm up, cool down or get a great cardio workout. Out of all of the different types of cardio exercise equipment and exercise bike is probably the least likely to cause aches and pains after the workout.