Fitness Through Full Body Workouts
Starting a new workout program can be a daunting task. How is one supposed to know where to begin? Well, let's look at full body workouts as a solution.
It's a good idea to know your limits before beginning a workout program. It's important to ease yourself back into exercise, instead of jumping in at full speed. Also, your body is a good judge of when to back off; if you feel pain, take it easy.
Make sure that you prepare your body for the workout by eating a healthy snack or meal replacement shake and plenty of water (and again after the workout). This will give you energy for the workout and help with your recovery afterwards. Obviously, consuming big meals here would be counterproductive.
It's OK to work out two or three days in a row, because we're going for fat loss, not body building. Me, I like to workout for two days, then take a day off. For those who want to build muscle, you should lift heavy and take a day of rest after each full body workout.
With a full body workout, you're working your four major muscle groups (chest, back, core, and legs). Every time you work out, start and end with a different muscle group. For instance, if you start with chest, and then move on to back, core and legs, next time start with back, and then end with chest.
You'll also be working the smaller muscles that support your major muscle groups. After you work a major muscle, follow up with the supporting muscle. For example, when you work out your back, do your barbell curls after your back workout.
To start, make sure that you're hydrated and have performed an adequate warm-up. For each exercise (except core), perform three sets of ten repetitions. Rest thirty seconds between sets, and one minute between different exercises.
For your chest workout, do the triceps push-down or dips exercise after either the bench press or dumbbell press. When doing your back workout, do alternate dumbbell curls or standing barbell curls after either the seated cable row or pull-ups. When doing your core workout, do the plank after either crunches or leg raises. When doing your legs workout, do either standing or seated calf raises after squats or leg presses.
Full body workouts are a great fitness tool. Combined with a lower calorie (balanced) diet, you should see results in no time. Remember that fitness and fat loss are not an end result; they're a lifestyle, so start the new you today!
David Stevens writes advice on how to lose 30 pounds and other ways to promote fat loss.
