Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Burn Calories by Walking

Do you want to lose weight? Are you overweight or obese and want to lose weight the easy and healthiest way? Or do you just want to get fit and healthy so you can have a nice body and complexion? If you do, then walking is one of the best way to lose weight and burn calories!
Walking is one of the best way to burn calories and stay healthy because:
1. Walking increases and activates your cardiovascular system!
When you walk, you are activating your cardiovascular system. That is, you are making your heart work. Walking activates your cardiovascular system because when you walk, you are activating and stimulating every muscle and joint in your body. Because you are activating and stimulating every muscle and joint in your body, your heart has to pump harder and also your arteries and veins have to be nice and clean to distribute the blood around your body. So the more you walk, the more you are increasing your cardiovascular system which in turns require a lot of energy to be burnt for your heart to pump your heart around!
2. Increases your lung capacity
When you walk, you walk upright. The optimum and most efficient oxygen absorption to your lungs is when your body is most upright. If you combined that when you are stimulating your cardiovascular system at the same time when you are walking, you are making your lungs stronger and efficient. Hence, walking increases your lung capacity.
3. Walking stimulates all the biggest muscles in your body efficiently
When you walk, your body stimulates the biggest muscles in your body. That is, it stimulates your leg thigh muscles. Exercising this big muscle will help you burn the most energy in your body. Hence, if you walk more, you are exercising this muscle which increases energy demand on your body. This will make you burn more calories in your body!
Tito King is an Author living in Sydney, Australia. He is interested in reading and creating websites. His latest website is about lawyer and finding the best australia lawyer on the web today.

Burn Calories on a Treadmill - 3 Ways to Burn More Calories on a Treadmill

Treadmills are the number one exercise machines both for ease of use and for calories burned.
According to a study done by the Medical College of Wisconsin and the VA Medical Center in Milwaukee, calories burned on the treadmill for 60 minutes averaged 865 - 705. This beat out the stair machine, rowing machine, stationary cycle or even cross country ski machine.
But how do you get the MOST calorie bang for your buck? How do you superboost that calorie burn, especially if you don't have a lot of time to work out?
I asked this question of several personal trainers that write for our website and here's what they came up with.
These 3 easy tips will boost your calorie burn while on your treadmill AND possibly even after your workout!
#1) Walk Uphill
By using your treadmill incline, you are forcing the larger groups of muscles to work, thus burning more calories. You can often double or even triple the amount of calories you normally burn by walking on an incline.
Don't want to walk on an incline for 20 minutes straight?
Another way to burn calories on your treadmill is by doing incline intervals: walking on a steep incline for 1 - 2 minutes, then walking on a normal incline for 5 minutes (while you catch your breath) and then repeating.
Incline intervals are a powerful way to challenge your body: you don't allow your body to get used to the same workout routine and the same repetitive muscle motion. So the number of calories burned rises and stays high - even after your workout.
#2) Don't Grip the Handrails
If you've been to many gyms, you've probably seen your fair share of people grasping onto the front or side handrails as they walk.
While it's fine to touch them for balance, you shouldn't have to hold on. That actually burns less calories since your legs aren't doing the work by themselves - they're getting help from the treadmill frame.
Instead of holding on to the handrails, try lowering your intensity until you don't need to hold onto the handrails for support. Then, to build more calorie burning power into your workout swing your arms or carry 2 pound handweights to get a total body workout. Overall, you'll be burning more calories this way than holding onto the handrails for support.
#3) Build in Speed Intervals
Just like incline intervals, this challenges your body to not only work harder while on your treadmill, but the higher calorie burn will continue after your workout.
Walk (or run) at your normal pace for 3 minutes and then do 30 -60 seconds at a faster pace (so that you're breathing heavily by the end of the interval). Then slow it down to your usual pace again for another 3 minutes.
You'll definitely feel the difference after your workout!
(Of course never push yourself so hard that you feel pain. If you ever do feel pain, slow your pace down right away and talk to a medical professional)
So there are 3 tips to help you burn calories on a treadmill and keep your calorie burn high post workout. It's recommended that before starting any exercise program, you should consult your doctor. Remember that everyone is different. Don't compare yourself to anyone else but instead listen to your body and do what you can.
Before you know it, you'll have reached your fitness and weight loss goals!
Kathryn ONeill writes for Best Treadmill Reviews [http://www.treadmillreview.net] a site offering the latest treadmill brand reviews, product ratings and money saving tips.
For 3 ways to get new workouts for your treadmill see the Treadmill Workouts [http://www.treadmillreview.net/Treadmill-Workouts.html] page.
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