Even though morning cardio has been embraced by bodybuilders as a "tried and true" fat loss technique, there is definitely not a unanimous agreement about its effectiveness, especially in the scientific community. Most competitive bodybuilders are die-hard advocates of doing cardio first thing in the morning before eating their first meal. They believe it will cause them to mobilize more stored body fat and increase their metabolic rate all day long. There’s quite a bit of scientific literature supporting the a.m. fasted cardio theory, but generally, the exercise physiologists and scientists tend not to buy it. They subscribe to the energy balance hypothesis, which states; as long as you burn more calories than you consume in each 24 hour period, then the time of day you burn them doesn’t matter, nor does whether you burn them from fat or carbohydrate.

This workout is a great place to begin to develop your aerobic fitness and to train your body to burn fat during your workouts. This workout emphasizes lower levels of intensity to achieve maximum fat burning. A benefit of doing this workout is that you will begin to build a base of aerobic fitness and endurance which will enable you to take on more challenging workouts in the future. If you have not participated in a regular exercise program before, this is an ideal place to start.

ERGONOMIC ADVANCEMENTS IN TREADMILLS Walking and running are two of the most popular forms of exercise today. Consequently, the treadmill has become the most popular piece of fitness equipment. The Fitness Product Council and American Sports Data, Inc. stated that in 1987, 4.4 million Americans exercised on treadmills either at home or in a gym. By 1997, the number of treadmill exercisers increased to 32.9 million. With the massive increase in treadmill use as a form of exercise came an increase in concern regarding treadmill safety, proper running and walking form and injury prevention. According to an article in Runner's World, some of the advantages of exercising on a treadmill are comfort, safety, injury prevention, and a place to work on improving form.

Killer Cardio WorkOuts: We asked four pros to describe their toughest cardio programs. See how yours measures up by Kathleen Engel ANNA LEVEL - miramar, florida When I need to shock my body into burning that extra bit of fat close to a competition, I pull on my weighted vest (which fits like a glove and forces me to take deeper, more concentrated breaths) and head for the Step-mill. I alternate single-stepping for two minutes at a fast pace with two minutes at a slower pace, climbing two steps at a time and doing a kickback with each step. It's so intense, 25 minutes is all I need. Even then, I have to build up my endurance over a four-week period. The first week, I start with 4 pounds in the vest, and I add a pound each week, up to 7 pounds by the fourth week. Let me tell you, it's tougher than Spinning! Some days, I just don't want to do it. I keep saying, "Two more minutes, two more minutes," and pretty soon, I'm done.

Creating a New Year's Resolution can be a great idea, especially if you are resolving to get healthier (weight loss and exercise are the top resolutions made). But if you don't have an action plan it may be doomed before it ever gets started. Unfortunately, the majority of individuals who make a new year's resolution end up breaking it. By February, nearly half have already failed. The following shows how many of these resolutions are maintained as time goes on: - past the first week: 75% - past 2 weeks: 71% - after one month: 64% - after 6 months: 46% (1) But don't let those stats convince you to plop down on your couch with a bag of chips. People who explicitly make resolutions are 10 times more likely to attain their goals than people who don't explicitly make resolutions. (1) So, if you want to lose weight or just get more fit in 2007, then resolving to do so may be beneficial to you. Just make sure you have an action plan that helps ensure your success.

Benefits of Concentric and Eccentric Strength Training What’s the Difference between Concentric and Eccentric Training? Concentric training is most easily thought of as the muscle contraction when a weight is lifted. The muscle fibers shorten while contracting to lift the load as in the upward movement of a bicep curl. An eccentric muscle action is when the muscle fibers lengthen to lower a load, as in the downward movement of a bicep curl. While the fibers are lengthening, they’re also contracting to return the weight to the start position in a controlled manner. Eccentric muscle actions are common in strength training with free weights, body weight exercise, and non-hydraulic exercise machines.

Nike+ SportBand Works Without iPod The Next Innovation in Nike+ Offers a New Way to Connect to the World’s Largest Running Club and Lets You Track Your Results to Train for Better Performance in Any Situation

Exceed Expectations with the Innovative 95T Treadmills At Life Fitness we stand at the forefront of innovation, constantly elevating the user experience. The Elevation Series 95T Treadmills are where style meets substance with a sophisticated design that sets your facility apart and provides users with a full set of features to keep them motivated, embodies our total commitment to creating exceptional exercise equipment that excites and inspires users. Everything about the 95T Treadmills from the DX3™ Belt and Deck System and Flexdeck™ technology to the open sightlines to the Activity Zone that places the most-used controls at the user’s fingertips, is designed to deliver the ultimate cardio experience.

Life Fitness today announced plans to deliver the Life Fitness Cardio Exercise Equipment & Nike + iPod Experience on all of its iPod-compatible Elevation Series treadmills, elliptical cross-trainers and Lifecycle Exercise Bikes. Later this year, Nike + iPod users will be able to simply plug their iPod nano into the equipment at the start of their workout to record their results. Users can then connect their iPod nano with their computer to upload their workout data to nikeplus.com.