Do you consider yourself to be in good shape? Do you have an exercise routine that you maintain regularly? Then how come you feel like you’ve been run over by a truck if you go mountain biking with friends for the weekend?

It could be that you are in good shape for the exercise routine that you do regularly, but by doing the same workout day after day and week after week, your body is adapting to the repetitive movements you perform, and you are limiting the actual fitness conditioning you get while training. So whether it is an aerobics class that you attend regularly, running that you do 3 times a week, or a recumbent exercise bike that you ride at home, your body becomes extremely efficient at performing the same movements over and over, and your fitness level plateaus. By doing the same thing day after day, you are also setting yourself up for injury from overuse.

Cross Training is a great way to condition different muscle groups. The term cross training is used to describe the combination of two or more types of physical activity. It’s an easy way to add variety to your exercise program whether you just want to live a healthier lifestyle or you are an advanced athlete who wants a more varied training regimen.

There are a couple of approaches to cross training: (more…)

In a recent survey of Specialty Fitness Retailers, elliptical trainers (sometimes called cross trainers) continue to be the most popular selling stationary exercise machine, with treadmills coming in second place. The surging popularity of ellipticals signals that this type of exercise is not a fad and is here to stay. The number of products in this category has exploded and the quality has continued to improve over the last dozen years.

But do ellipticals really provide true “cross training” in one piece of equipment as their name implies?

Well, not exactly, but they do provide a great cardiovascular weight bearing workout, using a large number of upper and lower body muscle groups, and all with little or not impact to the joints.

There are several unique benefits to using elliptical trainers: (more…)

The American College of Sports Medicine and American Heart Association new exercise guidelines for healthy adults under age 65 (August 8, 2007): Do moderately intense cardio exercise 30 minutes per day, 5 days per week. OR Do vigorously intense cardio exercise 20 minutes per day, 3 days per week. Sprint 8 is included on all Vision Fitness cardio equipment with Deluxe or Premier consoles.

The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) has launched Exercise is Medicine™, a program designed to encourage America’s patients to incorporate physical activity and exercise into their daily routine. Exercise is Medicine™ calls on doctors to prescribe exercise to their patients.

The Keys to Exercise Video Series provides tips and best practices for a healthier, more effective workout.

This section explains a simple "talk test" to determine your ideal cardio exercise intensity to keep your cardio workout safe and comfortable, but still effective.

The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) has launched Exercise is Medicine™, a program designed to encourage America’s patients to incorporate physical activity and exercise into their daily routine. Exercise is Medicine™ calls on doctors to prescribe exercise to their patients.

The Keys to Exercise Video Series provides tips and best practices for a healthier, more effective workout. This section examines three types of aerobic exercise.

Exercise Equipment for the cardio exercise activities recommended in this video include:

• No Impact Cardio: Elliptical Trainers, Upright Exercise Bikes, Recumbent Exercise Bikes, and Indoor Cycles
• Low Impact Cardio: Walking on a Folding Treadmill
• High Impact Cardio: Running or Jogging on a Commercial Quality Treadmill

 

The use of fitness accessories to expand and enhance your cardiovascular and strength routines have never been more popular than they are today as is obvious by the number of equipment manufacturers that are getting into the fitness accessory game. Life Fitness, one of the major cardiovascular equipment manufacturers, is set to roll out Body Shape Kits this fall, which combine many of the most popular accessories sold by HealthStyles Exercise Equipment, into one all inclusive kit. Octane Fitness will combine an elliptical workout with stretch bands in the programming and design of their new ellipticals to be introduced later this Fall, to create circuit training workouts that add strength training to the traditional cardio workout. (more…)

The HealthStyles Exercise Equipment Team recently had the opportunity to attend and participate in the National Health and Fitness Business Industry Expo in Denver, Colorado. The annual event featured all of the latest fitness trends and showcased the current and future exercise equipment products that have, or will soon be available to the consumer market.

The fitness industry trends that surfaced within the Expo centered on the following: (more…)