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24 Hour Fitness: A Trendsetter Of Fitness

November 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By Gary Holdon

I have been to a few fitness centers during my life. As a foreigner from a small country I had become familiar with a standard that is not precisely overwhelming, but have given me decent training tools, exercise equipment and fitness coaching good enough for me. When I entered the USA a few years ago I couldn’t stop exercising, so I had to find a fitness center or a gym there as well. A few blocks from where I lived there was something called 24 Hour Fitness and I didn’t hesitate entering their door. Once inside I suddenly realized that I had never been spoiled with such outstanding workout facilities, until now. I couldn’t believe it; this was just marvelous!

There are lot of different fitness clubs that a person can go to in order to get in shape. Some of these gyms are single-unit clubs or small chains, while others are veritable giants of the fitness industry. One of these chains that would likely fit into the ‘giant’ category is 24 Hour Fitness. 24 Hour Fitness is a large health club and gym that started as a single health club and has grown into one of the world’s largest privately-held and operated fitness chains in the world.

24 Hour Fitness was established in 1983 as a single club. It has grown to a company with more than 16,000 employees that has a presence in four countries. 24 Hour Fitness has it’s headquarter San Ramon, California and currently has around 3 million members. Over the coming five years, 24 Hour Fitness plans to expand to have over 1000 locations all over the world.

One reason this club has been so successful is told by the name; they offer their members the ability to use their facilities 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This convenience factor has been a big drive to help them expand their member base. Because of this fact, many other chains are now following them by expanding their hours of operation to try to meet this convenience factor for their customers.

Since the establishment in 1983, 24 Hour Fitness has gained public reputation for accomplishments that are outside of the fitness chain norm. In 2004, the 24 Hour Fitness company became the sponsor for the U.S. Olympic team and in the same year they worked with NBC to develop a television show called “The Biggest Loser”. This show revolved around helping people to use workout and diet to lose substantial amounts of weight. Contestants competed in teams to lose the most pounds overall.

Like many big companies, 24 Hour Fitness has not been lacking in their share of troubles alongside their success. In February of 2005, a lawsuit was filed against the company that alleged they were conducting illegal business activities. The specific illegalities cited were that the fitness club continued to charge members after their contracts expired or were cancelled and that they did not use proper font formatting for their contracts.

Near the end of 2006, 24 Hour Fitness company settled the class-action lawsuit. They granted all complainants their choice of either about $30 in cash each or a free 30 day pass to the club.

Even with 24 Hour Fitness being in the middle of a lawsuit that was filed against them in 2006, alleging that the company continued to take money out of their customer’s checking accounts as well as bill credit cards after the contract expired after being notified by the customer, it doesn’t change the fact that this fitness chain has set a new standard for what I consider as high quality training facility, and I have yet to see a gym or fitness center better than 24 hour fitness in any respect.

About the Author: Gary Holdon is a writer and internet publisher. Read his popular weight loss and fitness articles at http://www.11-weight-loss.net/

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Choosing The Best Elliptical Trainer For Your ...

November 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By George Thompson

One reality about ellipticals: there’s no such thing as a “best” elliptical trainer that will please everybody. This means that you can’t rely on the recommendation of a magazine or friend when choosing the one that will suit you and your body. You need to conduct your own investigation before selecting an elliptical machine. Here are some points to consider before making this expensive decision.

Do you truly need your own elliptical machine?

Before you take action, think about your exercising pattern and your concerns. Do you really and truly need your own elliptical machine? They cannot train every muscle and, as the vast majority are expensive, sometimes they clearly aren’t the most cost-effective antidote to a flabby body or weak muscles.

Further, if you plan to use it only once a week it can be a foolish waste of money to buy one for your home.

Periodically working out in a gym might be cheaper and more suitable than investing in your own elliptical.

If you are positive that you really truly crave an elliptical machine, learn precisely what you hope to accomplish with this kind of exercise before you even begin taking a look at elliptical reports. Generally, this kind of exercise will help you in getting fit and staying fit as well as support you in losing a few pounds. However, it may not make you substantially stronger or build any particular muscles or area of the body.

How frequently are you going to use your elliptical trainer?

When acquiring the best elliptical machine, the most crucial consideration is the amount of time you will spend using it. This issue influences your final option the most, so don’t even try to fool yourself. When we investigate fitness machines, we often overestimate our tenacity as well as our commitment to actually using them. As a result we tend to end up with a too-pricey machine when what we truly required was a low-priced, pre-owned elliptical machine useful only for only a thousand hours or so of working time.

Choosing the best model and manufacturer:

When you know how much time you will spend on the elliptical machine, you’ll have fewer problems deciding upon the best elliptical model for you. Generally speaking, unless you are absolutely, positively certain that you will consistently exercise strenuously, the less expensive and more “ordinary” models are definitely are the best. There is no need to spend a huge sum of money on a top-of-the-line machine with every possible accessory unless you’re prepared for serious workouts.

Elliptical machines with a multitude of options aren’t as rewarding as you might suppose. If you plan to only do everyday, ordinary exercises, you won’t need a large variety of specialized options anyway, thus there is no reason to max out your credit card with unnecessary obligation.

If you decide to to use your elliptical machine for merely an hour each week, for example, buying a pre-owned elliptical with just a few hundred hours of use left on it can be a superb idea. You won’t be able to use most of the options in such a brief exercise period anyway.

Precor and Life Fitness elliptical trainers are the most most popular elliptical machines, but there are several other brands that are of equally high quality. However, surprisingly enough, the manufacturer and the model itself play a lesser role. There are two features that are much more pertinent:

1. The elliptical’s mass: it is wiser to buy a less expensive and lesser quality machine that is the right size for your body than a costly elliptical trainer that doesn’t fit properly.

2. The quantity of hours it has been used thus far: if you choose a pre-owned machine you need to know that the hours of use more accurately determine the endurance and amount of maintenance your elliptical trainer will require than does the actual age of the machine.

Honest answers to these questions will enable you to decide upon the best elliptical trainer for your situation.

About the Author: To choose the best elliptical trainer for your situation – even deciding if it’s necessary to purchase one at all – requires honest answers to some basic questions.
Best Elliptical Trainer

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Calories Burned On An Elliptical Trainer

November 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By Kathryn O’Neill

If you’re trying to choose between an elliptical trainer and another piece of exercise equipment like a treadmill or an exercise bike, one of the most popular questions is

‘How many calories can I burn with an elliptical trainer?’

You want to get the most bang for your exercise buck – that’s understandable. Here are some calories burned estimates for elliptical workouts – and several tips to burn more calories with your elliptical trainer!

General Estimates of Calories Burned with An Elliptical Trainer:

- 150 pound woman, 30 minutes of elliptical exercise: 387 calories

- 180 pound man, 30 minutes of elliptical exercise: 464 – 500 calories

- 120 pound woman, 30 minutes of elliptical exercise: 310 calories

General Estimates of Calories Burned (According To Elliptical Manufacturers)

- Elliptical manufacturers claim you can burn up to 720 calories an hour with an elliptical workout.

Factors that dictate how many calories you burn include:

>> Workout Duration

>> Interval Training

>> Elliptical Tension Settings

>> Body Composition (Muscle to Fat Ratio)

>> State of Cardiovascular system (regular exerciser or new to exercise)

>> Weight

>> Sex

>> Upper Body Arm Usage

Here are several tips to increase your calorie burn with your elliptical trainer:

- Build in Intervals

Most elliptical trainers offer incline and or tension that you can increase or decrease while workout out. Try building in 30 second incline intervals every couple of minutes to your workout.

This will not only push your body further and burn more calories during your workout – but it can also elevate your calorie burn for up to 24 hours after your workout.

- Use Upper Body Arms

Many ellipticals offer you upper body arm bars that you can use to build your arms muscles into your workout. More muscles worked = more calories burned. If there are no upper body arms, grab a couple of 2 – 5 pounds handweights and swing your arms while striding.

- Take Advantage of the Forward and Backward Directions

Using more muscles (and one you may not have used before) also ups your calorie burn, even after your workout. So take advantage of the fact that most ellipticals allow you to go forward and backward. Switch up your routine every few minutes to up your calorie burn.

- Break up your Workout

Experts are now telling us that 2 mini-workouts may even be better than 1 long workout as far as calories burned. Why?

Any exercise will temporarily rev up your metabolism – so if you can do 15 – 20 minutes in the morning, and 15 – 20 minutes in the afternoon, your metabolism will stay charged up for a longer time. (If you can’t do this, don’t worry – remember that a 30 minute workout will still burn more calories than a 15 minute workout!)

So there are some tips to skyrocket your calorie burn on your elliptical. Good luck and have fun blasting those calories!

About the Author: Kathryn O’Neill is the chief editor for Elliptical Trainer Reviews (http://www.ellipticaltrainerreview.com) For more buying tips, elliptical brand reviews, and best buys visit: http://www.EllipticalTrainerReview.com

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Benefits Of Strength Training

November 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By Ken Bendor

The benefits of a good strength training program are almost endless. Less disease, happiness and most importantly, showing off your muscles at the beach.

Strength training should be part of everyone’s routine. Even if you are low on time, strength training, according to the ACSM (American College of Sports Medicine), only needs to be done 2-3 times per week with each session lasting no more than one hour. For 2-3 hours per week, huge benefits can be realized.

Regular strength training will:

**help you in day to day activities around the house and in your yard. It will keep you independent which is especially important in the older population. Imagine not being able to lift a 5 pound bag of flour or take the garbage out by yourself.

**lower the risk of osteoporosis, hypertension and diabetes.

**help you avoid lower back pain.

**increase bone density which is important for post menopausal women.

**increase muscle mass which burns more calories throughout the day than an equal amount of fat.

Even with all these benefits, many people are reluctant to start training with weights. Concerns include injury, incorrect form and for women; not wanting to grow muscles and look like a man.

When beginning your strength training program, the risk of getting hurt can be greatly reduced by starting out with machines rather than free weights. As you become more comfortable with the machines, slowly learn to use free weights. If you want to stick with the machines, know that they will give you the same benifits as free weights. As for the concern that women will look like men, it won’t happen without the help of steroids, which you shouldn’t even consider using.

Sometimes when we think of being healthy, we think of eating and running. While these are important, strength training should never be left out. Strength training provides benefits to your health that cannot be found with any other mode of exercise and shouldn’t be forgotten.

About the Author: Ken Bendor is a Senior at Florida State University studying Exercise Science and Dietetics. He started http://StraightHealth.com to try and spread easy to understand and accurate information on health and fitness.
http://straighthealth.com

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