Pull-ups and chin-ups, though not very easy for the beginner exerciser, work several group muscles at once. Performing chin-ups and pull-ups requires a simple, sturdy bar that you can either use in the gym or in your home. You can even be creative as to what can act as a pull-up or chin-up bar. For example, you can use sturdy tree branches, patio beams, jungle gym bars or clothes line bars.

A variety of methods of performing the pull-up and chin-up exercises exist, and the way you do these exercises depends on your individual strength and preferences. For example, you can build up gradually to full chin-ups and pull-ups by using the help of chairs or other people when first starting out.

Pull-ups versus Chin-ups – The Difference

It’s easy to get confused by these two names for nearly the same exercise that uses an overhead bar. The basic difference, however, lies in the way you grab the bar to perform the pull-up or chin-up exercise. With pull-ups, you grab the overhead bar with your palms facing away from you. Chin-up exercises require you to grip the bar with your palms facing toward you. With pull-ups, you’re working your back muscles more while chin-ups work your biceps more. Many beginners find that chin-ups are easier to do than pull-ups.

Wide-Grip and Close-Grip Pull-ups

There are two variations of pull-up exercises that make a major difference in the muscle groups you’re trying to work. With wide-group pull-ups, you emphasize your back muscles instead of your biceps. On the other hand, close-grip pull-ups emphasize strengthening your lower back muscles. Both of these can be performed with a typical overhead bar for regular pull-ups.

To practice wide-grip pull-ups, stand facing the pull-up bar as you would for a regular pull-up. However, spread your arms out about twice your shoulder width and reach up to grab the bar. Pull-up just a little, allowing yourself to hang from the bar with your arms straight.

When you’re ready, pull up so that your chest reaches the bar and your chin surpasses it. When performing wide-grip pull-ups, the best technique would be to focus on keeping your back and body straight without swinging or swaying to complete the pull-up.

To practice close-grip pull-ups, only separate your hands by about 6-8 inches versus the twice-shoulder-width-length you used for wide-grip pull-up exercises. Repeat the close-grip pull up as in the same manner as the wide-grips, focusing on contracting your lat muscles throughout the repetition.

Gorilla Chin-ups

The gorilla chin-up technique is also known as the gorilla crunch. This chin-up exercise emphasizes strengthening your abdominals as well as bicep muscles in your upper arms. Starting out with a gorilla crunch or gorilla chin-up exercise is the exact same way for a regular chin-up.

With this exercise, separate your hands about 12 inches from each other. As you grasp the bar, raise yourself off the ground and start pulling up, bend your knees until they reach a 90-degree angle. Continue pulling up and, as you do, bring your knees as close to your chest as possible. When you’ve pulled yourself up so that your nose is almost to the chin-up bar and your knees are to your chest, you have completed the gorilla crunch and can begin lowering yourself and returning to the starting position.

Pulldown Exercises

Pulldown exercises simulate the actual pull-up and strengthen many of the same back muscle groups as actual pull-ups. These are easier exercises which can be used if you can’t quite perform a pull-up or chin-up yet or want some extra practice or strengthening before you do full-on pull-ups. However, pulldowns have to be done in a gym or on a home pulldown exercise machine as it requires much more than a simple bar.

With pulldowns you sit on the pulldown machine with your knees beneath the kneepads, which act as resistance. When you’re on the pulldown machine, you grasp the bars with a shoulder-width grip with your palms facing toward you as you would with a chin-up. With your arms straightened and grasping the pulldown bar, you pull the bar downward until it practically reaches your chest. After the bar is pulled down to your chest, let is slowly rise back up to the starting position.

Negative Pull-ups

Two other pull-up exercises, which can be of real use to beginners and those just starting out developing their shoulder, back and arm muscle groups is negative pull-ups and assisted pull-ups. Both of these pull-up variations give you additional help so that you can work yourself up to a regular pull-up or chin-up.

Negative pull-ups require you to find a chair or stool to reach the pull-up bar. Position the stool or chair just behind you as you would be standing facing the pull-up bar. Stand on the stool and reach out and grab the pull-out bar like you would with a regular chin-up.

Your body will probably be at a slight angle and your chin should be just above the bar. Allow your body to pull up slightly on the bar and lower yourself down, focusing on letting your body hang for just a bit when you’re lowered. This can help strengthen your back and arm bicep muscles and get your body used to supporting its weight when you’re ready to do a regular pull-up or chin-up.

Strength-training Pull-up Exercises

There are lots of variations on the regular pull-up that you can do to increase resistance and develop your muscles. For starters, you can find regular resistance bands that attach to your pull-up bar, which can help develop your muscles further. Or, you can invest in some ankle or waist bands.

One pull-up variation that provides more resistance is the one-arm chin-up. As you work into a chin-up, you start pulling up with one arm on the bar, but then grab that wrist with your free hand and assist with the chin-up.

A second variation which requires no bands or extra weight is often called the “static hang.” With this type of chin-up, you perform a regular chin-up, but then release one of your hands from the bar and allow your body to hang for about 30 to 45 seconds. After you hang for this amount of time, switch arms and hang from the other arm for the same amount of time.

There are certainly many variations on the regular pull-up exercises you perform either in the gym or on your own home workout equipment. Pull-ups and chin ups should be a part of your regular workout, however, no matter which other types of exercises you engage in. As these exercises force your body to lift its own weight, your back and arm muscles are strengthened.

With the many variations of pull-ups and chin-ups that exist to either make it slightly easier, if you’re a beginner, or more difficult, if you’re a regular exerciser, pull-ups and chin-ups make a good complement to your workout routine.

Technorati Tags: chin ups, grow muscle, pull ups

I see loads of people in the gym desperately trying to isolate a particular muscle either using a machine or some contraption and free weights, so why isn’t this practice good when you are trying to lose belly fat naturally? The general idea is that the body functions best and responds better to exercise when large areas of the body assist each other in completing a complex movement. This is often refered to as the kinetic chain. It stands to reason that if you are trying to lose body fat that you ought to pick exercises that use many muscle groups and not just one. There are however, far more compelling reasons.

When you are performing single joint exercises you are creating a body comprised up of parts that don’t work together as a cohesive unit, this can lead to various joint problems including tendonitis. Alternatively if you want a fully functional, lean and muscular body that stays free from injuries you need to move away from isolating single muscles in your routines, and start focusing on multi-joint complex exercises for your fat loss training routines.

If you are focused on how well your body is functioning as a whole you will begin to see real visible differences, let’s analyse the physiques of world class athletes again, such as top sprinters or football players. These guys definately Do Not isolate muscle groups, their coaches wouldn’t let them. Is that the body shape that you want?

A key benefit of the complex movement over muscle isolation is that you simply burn more fat. You not only burn more calories at each workout but your metabolic rate will skyrocket stimulating the muscle building hormones and burning even more fat. This is the way to lose belly fat naturally. Just as man has done for thousands of years, certainly before we started to go to gyms!!

Top exercises such as Squats, Step ups, clean and press, lunges and dead lifts are all multi joint complex exercises that work loads of muscles and burn masses of FAT, they also create mega strong and injury resistant joints. All of these fantastic and effective exercises can be done at home if you wish using body weight and a pair of dumbells, there is no need to buy an expensive gym membership. Combine these exercises with some very simple abs exercises, sprints and stair work and the body of your dreams is just around the corner. More info and loads of great articles at Bodyfitworld.com

Technorati Tags: burn more fat, fat loss training routines, this is the way to lose belly fat naturally, what exercises burn most fat

     Could a change of something, then make it still better ?                         Yes, it is the change of your environment.

     This has a very simple physiological effect. Your mental feelings are directly connected with your daily environment, as it appears only to you. But it accumulates and keeps you there, because you are in middle of it, every minute of your life.

     If you are smart, then you plan a vacation just to take off, and you disappear for the time you can afford it, where running, swimming, skiing, surfing, tennis, or any other exercise, are available and the sun shines bright … and you may come back from there as a new person. And your health and body feelings must be spectacular !

     We don’t know, where you would like to go to, but we can help you with your Travel and Hotel and so on.There is a Travel WebSite, which will give you everything you need for your well-thought arrangements.

     Make your decision now, find a decent spot you like to visit, take the time off and pack your luggage.  Don’t forget your vitamins, proteins, minerals, whatever you take normally, and lots of suntan oil. Maybe something against mosquitos and some salt and potassium pills, because you will sweat a lot.

     Now, let’s get you out of here and to somewhere - asap !

Please, send us a nice post card !

Technorati Tags: hotel, travel, vacation

Here are the benefits:

- It will improve your health. Blood is deivered more efficiently.. You will gain self confidence as you develop your fighting skill. This is a very good from of self-defense.

- It will make your arms and legs stronger. You can move quicker and think better.

- It will release the anger inside you. As the internal pressure is released from your heart, you will experience a feeling of lightness, something that you will always appreciate each time you hit the punching bag.

- It will give you emotional balance and inner strength. You will feel more relaxed and highly   self motivated. Stress is also being release and so you will experience a genuine peace of   mind.

You loose weight in this process. As you throw those punches and move around  you are burning the excess fat from your body.

In conclusion, you can expect both physical and internal benefits. Loosing weight can be expected within the first five days of your boxing program. Peace of mind and relaxation I think is the most rewarding among its benefits. Let us not forget the improvement on our health and a stronger body. Last but not the least; you will develop a skill on self defense that you can keep for the rest of your life.

Would you be interested in a free report on weight loss? You can get it from this link:

http://healthytips4us.com/exercise.php

Technorati Tags: benefits from boxing, boxing fitness program, develop skill on martial arts, loose weight, speed and stamina

If you are one of those women who are desperately trying to lose weight, forget about starving yourself to lose a few pounds. Instead of going into that infamous starvation diet, try getting into a home fitness exercise program and stick with that program. To get you started in the right direction, here are some tips for you.

Drawing Up Your Home Fitness Exercise Program

You need to be scientific in your approach to a home fitness exercise program. You cannot just do some exercise at random. Although most types of home fitness exercises are good for the body, not all of them can really give you that nice shapely look. To get that nice shapely look, you need to target areas in your body when you do some exercise. This means that you need to know which parts of your body desperate need to shed off a few extra pounds and concentrate in that area. For instance, if you are packing a lot of extra weight around your tummy and hips, you need to come up with a home fitness exercise program that targets those areas.

Stick To Your Program

You need to stick your home fitness exercise program if you want to see some results. No, you cannot stop after doing exercises for a couple of weeks. Giving up too soon will only make matters worst for you. To help you stick to your exercise program, find an exercise buddy who can workout with you. Your spouse or you best friend will fit into this category. Working out with someone can be a lot of fun and you get to do some socializing while you try to shed off a few pounds. Just make sure that that person is also committed to the home fitness exercise program that you have or else that person will be the first to quite when the going gets rough.

Go here for more about home gym ideas and fitness training tips.

Technorati Tags: exercise, fitness training tips, home fitness exercise, home fitness gym, home fitness machine, home gym Ideas

A simple home fitness exercise program will only take a few minutes to perform. According to experts, 15-20 minutes exercise daily will already make a lot of difference. If you are really serious about shedding off those extra pounds, you need to make little adjustments in your daily schedule. For instance, if you want to exercise before you leave for work, just set your alarm clock about 20 minutes earlier than your usual wake up time. With that 20 minutes head start, you can already do a lot of things. Besides, doing exercise in the morning can help you stay awake and active for most parts of the day. Moreover, according to experts, doing some exercises early in the morning will help improve your blood circulation to your brain so you will most likely be in top mental condition when you get to the office.

On the other hand, if you are not a morning person and you do not like the idea of starting your day with a home fitness exercise routine, you can do your workout after you get home from work. No, you are not too tired to workout after office hours. Unless your work involves manual activities, you will still have a lot of energies to spare for a home fitness exercise routine when you get home. Besides, doing some home fitness exercise routine a couple of hours before bed time will help you sleep better later on. Exercise is a very good stress buster and it helps you unwind after a very busy day at the office.

Go here for more about home gym ideas and fitness training tips.

Technorati Tags: exercise, fitness training tips, home fitness exercise, home fitness gym, home fitness machine, home fitness workout, home gym Ideas

Setting Up Your Home Fitness Gym

Setting up your own home fitness gym can be quite a challenge especially if you have limited space at home and you have limited budget. However, the good news is that with proper planning, you can get things organized at home in no time. For starters, take a closer look into your home. Take note of the amount of space that you can spare for your home fitness gym. No, you do not have to devote an entire room for your home fitness gym. You can just set aside a small space in the living room or somewhere else in the house as for your home fitness gym equipments.

To save space, buy home fitness equipments that are easy to store. There are plenty of exercise equipments that can be folded and stowed inside closets when not in use. These portable exercise equipments are very handy especially if you have limited space at home. These easy to store home fitness gym equipments are also idea if you have kids at home. Kids are naturally curious and they have the tendency to try new things. If you kids see some new gym equipment around the house, they may be tempted to give these things a try on their own. Storing your fitness equipments inside the closet after use can reduce the likelihood of accidents involving children and gym equipments at home.

How Much Money Should You Invest In Your Home Fitness Gym?

There are really no clear cut rules as to how much money you should spend on your home fitness gym equipments. Just remember to spend only what you can afford to. Set a budget, stick to that budget and things will be just fine.

Go here for more about home gym ideas and fitness training tips.

Technorati Tags: exercise, fitness training tips, home fitness exercise, home fitness gym, home fitness machine, home gym Ideas

Consuming the right kind of foods before your tone your abs workout will help tremendously in sending those stomach fats away. Therefore, don’t believe in what they say about being able to afford eating whatever you like just as long as you are doing the right abdominal exercises.

All people have great potential to tone up abs but this is only so when you reduce the fats collected in your abs through the years. Pumping yourself hard by doing fast sit-ups, crunches, leg raises, and other body twisting exercises wouldn’t be so effective if you don’t at least reduce the fat layers and take extra care with what you consume.

In order for these at home abs workouts to be effective, you have to follow a properly structured nutritional program that will provide the needs of your body. When undergoing a program it is important to remember that it should not only focus on the amount of nutritional needs but also on the timing when you consume the meals. This is crucial for reducing fats away and carving out toned, firmer abdominal abs.  

To help you achieve 100% of your goal to tone your abs, here are some proven ideas which you can use as a guide to having the right nutritional program.

Low-carb, low-fat, high protein, grapefruit, liquid, soup diets and the likes may be effective in lowering your weight but also on lowering your metabolism and losing your lean muscles; thus, will be harder for your body to function properly as well as on your physical workouts. Its important to remember that your body needs all macronutrients for it to burn fats as well as function properly.

Refined sugar, refined grains are simple carbohydrates that your body doesn’t need too much. What your body needs are complex and natural carbohydrates such as brown rice, whole grains, beans, vegetables, yams, and oats among others.

Fish fats, virgin coco oil, olive oil, flax oil, natural nut butter, avocados, seeds and nuts are some of the essential and healthy fatty acids your body needs to increase its metabolism as well as assist in burning fats. It is therefore vital that you consume enough amounts of this type of food group.

Protein is what makes the main body building blocks for the muscles, so consume quality amount with each of your meal. It helps satisfy your hunger longer and burn calories while your body digests it. Make six little meals instead of the three big ones. It makes your body reduce more calories in contrast to slowing down metabolism when you don’t eat more frequently.

Drink your daily requirement of water. It is vital in eliminating wastes and toxins. And more importantly, is vital in the process of burning fats which will help to tone your abs effectively.

Technorati Tags: abdominal abs, abs muscle, at home abs, body abs, bodybuilding abs, firm abs, tone up abs, tone up stomach, tone your abs

To help you learn the best way to build muscles in your shoulders, you need to learn about the shoulders and how they work. The shoulders are one of the most flexible joints of the body but they can be unstable if your muscles are weak. The shoulder joint must be flexible enough to perform a wide range of motion but also must be strong enough for all the pushing, pulling, and lifting the body does.

There are two major muscle groups surrounding the shoulder, the rotator cuff and the deltoids. The rotator cuff is a group of small  muscles that are responsible for helping the overhead and rotational movements of the shoulder.

Because the range of motion is so great and the muscles are so small, it is likely for injuries to take place if they are not worked properly, to make them strong.

One of the best ways to build muscles and strengthen the rotator cuff are Lateral Raises.

Lateral Raises:

* While using a wide stance, hold a dumbbell in each hand with your arms straight down by your sides.
* Lift your arms out sideways, keeping a slight bend in the elbow, until your hands are level with your shoulder.
* Slowly return back to the starting position in a controlled effort.

Use three different grips when you do these, the first with the thumb pointing to the floor, the second with the thump pointing straight ahead, the third with the thumb pointing to the sky.

Another good way to build muscles in the rotator cuff is External Rotations.

External Rotations:

* Laying on your side on a bench, have your knees bent and a light dumbbell in your upper hand.
* Bend your elbow so it is at a right angle while keeping the upper arm supported on your side and the dumbbell in front of you just above the bench.
* Pull the lower arm  and dumbbell up, rotating your shoulder, so that they are even with the top side of your body.
* Return slowly to the starting position.

The delts are a group of muscles that most people think of when they want to have big shoulders. They are the big muscles that are the most visible. They also provide most of the strength to shoulder joint muscles. Lateral Raises used to work the rotator cuff are good delt exercises.

Some more good ways to build your delts, are Front Raises, Arnold Dumbbell Presses and the Upright Row.

Front Raises:

* While using a wide stance, in each hand hold a dumbbell with your arms straight down by your sides and your palms facing backwards.
* Lift your arms straight out in front of you until your hands are at shoulder level. Make sure that you don’t arch your back when trying to lift the weight.
* Return to the starting position slowly.

Arnold Dumbbell Raises:

* Hold a dumbbell in each hand in front of you at your chest with your palms facing towards you and your elbows bent.
* Raise the dumbbells upwards by straightening out the elbows.
* While raising the dumbbells rotate your shoulders so that your palms are facing outward by the time your arms are straight up.
* Slowly lower the dumbbells to the starting position, rotating your shoulders so that your palms are again facing inward.

Upright Row:

* Using a wide stance, hold a barbell near the center of the bar with your hands closer together than your shoulders and your palms facing inward.
* Pull the bar up to your chin and then lower it slowly back to the starting position.
* Make sure that you don’t arch your back or swing your body to get the bar raised.

To avoid shoulder injury, work carefully and concentrate on every movement of your shoulders muscles.

There’s a site I’ve found that has lots of great short movie clips that show you simply, how to do all types of exercise. I love it. Check out Global Health and Fitness for 2 free e-books and more!

Technorati Tags: Best way to build muscle