Tips to improve, and get the most out of, your home workout.

While researching for this Blog I came across theses two other articles by Matt James Young in 'ezinearticles.com', and again these are simple sound suggestions to aid your training programme, before even setting foot in a gym (http://EzineArticles.com/8551697 and http://EzineArticles.com/8551688). From the beauty and comfort of your own home, have a read and put these into action, today!

Water is your best friend!
Drinking water is the best way to replace the fluids you lose when working out, especially if you sweat a lot. You need to take a lot of water on board before, during and after your workout to keep your body hydrated and working to your maximum performance! However if you want to mix it up a bit and experiment how about trying some coconut water. It's chock-full of cramp-preventing potassium (15 times that of most sports drinks) and has less than 50 calories per cup. Try 8 ounces before or during your run to stay pain-free. Also why not try milk or chocolate milk after your workout! The calcium and protein in the chocolate milk is an excellent way to help your muscles recover after a tough home workout. Drink a cup within 30 minutes of finishing a long run, when muscles are most receptive.

Fuel up!
Grab a banana or any other snack before you hit the gym, and in the long run it may actually help you slice off more calories. Try and aim for 100 to 200 calories to nibble on: Yogurt, a piece of fruit, peanut butter and crackers, or half an energy bar are all excellent choices. Also if your home workout includes weight training then as pre workout fuel try some high protein snacks such as peanuts, eggs, meat or protein bars. Also the best thing after a tough, intense muscle building workout is to have a protein shake which is an awesome way to make the most out of your workout. However If you don't have accesses to a protein shake have some chicken, beef, pork or any sort of meat along with some salad and rice.

Pump up the music for extra motivation!
Having music pumping out the speakers or through your headphones can be one of the most powerful motivators that can fuel you through the toughest workout. Make a workout playlist to get you in the mood, whether it's some party songs for running or some pump up songs for a hard home workout weight training session. No matter what it is, crank up the volume and get in the mood for working out hard. Also if you are in a gym with a bunch of friends as well they can be a great motivation to push extra hard and to squeeze out them few extra reps.

Trick Your Body
Your body is able to quickly adapt to the number of repetitions you perform. This is why changing the amount of repetitions you perform on a weekly basis will help to improve the effectiveness of your workout. You need to keep changing and challenging your body if you want to see real gains and improvements, otherwise your muscles will adapt to your workout and you will be making no were near as much gains as you would be if you were to change it up a bit. So for an example

• Week 1: Do 3 sets of 20 repetitions at 40 percent of your maximum repetition.
• Week 2: Do 3 sets of 15 repetitions at 55 percent of your maximum repetition.
• Week 3: Do 4 sets of 10 repetitions at 70 percent of your maximum repetition.

By doing this you are able to keeping challenging you muscles so they don't adapt to the same workout as you are mixing it up a little.

Mix up your cardio
The best way to keep consistently challenging your body is to keep it guessing as to what is coming next. Cardio is the easiest which applies to this. For example you can create interval sets like jogging up a hill or incline for a couple minutes, then sprint on a straight, flat surface for 20 seconds. Anything you choose to do will help to improve your fitness level and will help to burn the calories a lot more.

Just be sure that you're always keeping your heart rate at your training threshold at 85 percent of your maximum. To calculate your maximum heart rate, if you're a woman, subtract your age from 220. If you're a man, subtract your age from 226. That number is your maximum heart rate in beats per minute. Anything lower and you will be wasting your time. You need to keep the tempo up to see the most effective results and quicker.

All about feeling good
Do you ever get excited when you buy a new pair of shoes and you can't wait to wear them? Yeah well I do and I also get a lot more excited to hit the gym if I am rocking a new outfit. Investing in stylish, comfortable clothes and killer kicks can really amp up the enthusiasm. So what if you're there to show off your hot, new gear. You're still working out and at the end of the day that's all that matters!

WhyWeight - don't hesitate, participate before it's too late!

-Steve, at WhyWeight-