Pushups!?

Check out this great article, written by Greg Everett

"One of the things in my life that continually mystifies me is how something as simple and pure as the push-up has become so confusing and impossible for so many people. This is like the exercise equivalent of every adult in the world suddenly forgetting how to walk (yet still wanting to do the triple jump).
This very issue is what caused me to add planks into every day of our introductory class series. I was embarrassed by the inability of people in the gym to do excellent push-ups and decided that the most pro-active approach I could take would be to train them from day one how to do it rather than trying to re-engineer them later down the line when they’re uninterested and just think I’m being a dick about it.

The priorities for the push-up as I see them are, in order: correct and rigid posture, including head position; range of motion; elbow orientation; resistance.
First and foremost, if someone can’t hold his or her body tightly in a straight line from ankle to shoulder, they’re unable to do proper push-ups. You can kick and squirm and fight this idea all you want, but you can’t escape it. You should be able to visually draw a straight line from the ankle, through the hip and through the shoulder at any point in the push-up, and the head and neck should remain in a neutral position—dipping the chin to the floor isn’t getting you to the bottom of the movement.

This rigid alignment should never change throughout the exercise. Don’t push your shoulders up and then later bring your hips up to meet them. This isn’t a push-up and it looks inappropriate.

Next is the range of motion. This shouldn’t have to be specified after saying “push-up” but there seems to be some confusion surrounding it. At the top, the elbows should be completely extended and the shoulder blades protracted. At the bottom, the chest should be in light contact with the floor (That is, the chest has reached and touched the floor but is not supported by it). Again, in both of these positions and everywhere in between, the body should be straight and rigid.

This full range of motion in my opinion should take precedence over the degree of resistance. That is, if you can’t complete a push-up to full depth from the toes, you need to modify it somehow, such as moving to the knees or elevating your hands. Remember when on your knees, you still need to maintain a rigid straight body—the knees simply replace your ankles in this case. The hands can be elevated on a wall, but the wall gets in the way of the face—you’re better off moving the hands to a plyo box or bench so the head can travel without obstruction and make the correct posture possible.

I encourage clients who can do a few standard push-ups to begin workouts with them and move to the knees when needed to maintain the range of motion. This can be difficult on the ego, especially for men, but the benefits are worth any potential embarrassment. No one loads a weight on the bar and benches it halfway down because it’s too heavy (well… excepting board pressing and the like); they start with a weight they can move through the entire range of motion and build up from there. Why the push-up (and pull-up for that matter) are viewed differently, I don’t know. Presumably because high-volume push-ups are commonplace in both bodyweight training and fitness testing, and we've all discovered we can do a lot more by doing a lot less.

I prefer the upper arms to be within about 45 degrees from the sides of the body. This allows the shoulder to move through that full range of motion more easily and naturally. Moving the hands wider and bringing the elbows farther from the sides will usually make push-ups easier for people, but it also limits depth for most people and starts tearing up the shoulders pretty quickly.

The push-up is one of those things that when done well doesn’t draw much attention—it’s not a flashy feat of athleticism. However, in my opinion, how one performs a push-up is indicative of that individual’s athletic foundation, and possibly more importantly, how committed one is to excellence in movement and performance. Sloppy push-ups suggest to me a superficial interest in athleticism and a degree of laziness. Put a little attention and effort into the simple things and it will pay returns in the more complicated and interesting ones."


You can check out the original article here.

Perfect Body Building Workouts

Here are the perfect body building workouts that are essential for your upper body. It is very important to be aware of your body condition and your capability of workouts. To achieve your desired muscle you have to drive yourself to new limits.

There are five important muscles to be considered when working out your upper body. We can get stared rite now with several different exercise workouts for each of the muscles.

These workouts will allow you to toggle between regular workouts from time to time. Let´s get started now.

You on no account want to lift the same muscle workout two days in a line. It is great if you split it up by lifting your back and chest one day and biceps, triceps and shoulders on the next day.

Exercises like flat bench press, flat bench dumbbell flyes, incline bench press, decline bench press workouts and much more can be done for your chest.

You have to be very careful and pay more attention when you start workout for your back. A small mistake can lead you with a back injury and keep you out for weeks.

Exercises like bent over rowing, lat machine pull down, dead lifts, shrugs and hyperextensions has to be consider for building muscles on your back.

You are now ready to lift with your shoulder, biceps and triceps workouts can be done to the next day. For your shoulders exercises like shrugs, a seated dumbbell press, side lateral raises and alternate front dumbbell raises are the best exercise.

For your biceps you can workouts exercises like barbell curls, alternate dumbbell curls, incline dumbbell curls and preacher curls. A preacher curl engages you lifting a barbell on a preacher bench.

Finally triceps is the last part of your upper body building workouts. Exercises like standing cable press downs, triceps bench dips, overhead rope extensions and one arm dumbbell extensions can be the most appropriate workouts for your triceps.

It is very essential that you be aware on how to do all these body building workouts before you attempt to start.

Poor workouts will not only put off you from muscle building, but it can lead you to a bad injury that keeps you away from exercises for weeks

Fitness Plan

Many people are full of motivation when the start a fitness program. Generally they will join a gym and have a fitness program written by a personal trainer and get locked into long term contracts. In this article i will explain easier ways to develop a fitness program that you can follow at home, at the gym. Fitness programs don’t need to be difficult. A fitness program should be fun, and something that you want to do long term if you want to lose weight and stay healthy long term.

Tip 1. Buddy Up
When starting a fitness program people can often get discouraged as they have generally not been exercising for some time. The first few workouts can be very difficult until your body gets used to exercising again. Having a friend by your side can make it fun and you can both encourage each other. People who exercise long term usually do as they make it social and fun.

Tip 2. Choose a sport or activity you enjoy
If you don’t like running, then don’t run. Choose something that you like doing. I have clients that like rock climbing, however he doesn’t have time to get out and climb very often. I took him to a indoor rock climbing centre and now he goes once a week as part if his routine. It gives him one strength session. The other two we made a home workout which consists of an 45 min walk with his wife and then push ups, sit ups, back dishes, lunges, squats and some light stretching. It doesn’t cost much money as he is on a tight budget and it is something that will be maintained long term.

Tip 3. Go Online
If you are wanting a structured fitness program try an online fitness program. With these you can get a tailored fitness program to suit your goals and they won’t cost you the consultancy fees of a personal trainer.

Tip 4. Start slow, finish strong
When you first start a fitness program don’t be too aggressive. Often people are full of enthusiasm and they work themselves to hard in the first two weeks. Remember that following you new fitness program is going to be part of your new lifestyle and you will be enjoying your new lifestyle for a long time. Take it easy and build up over time.

Nitric Oxide

There are many benefits to taking a Nitric Oxide supplement. Nitric Oxide (NO) is a naturally occuring gas that is present in many living things, including you and me. It has been recently shown to help dramatically in the area of body building. Here are just a few helpful effects of using NO as a weight lifting supplement:


• It maximizes fat burning process.
• It maximizes full body recovery.
• It helps improving muscularity.
• It boosts your load capacity.
• It helps build insane muscle.

In regards to those facts, I would like to post a review for a free-trial Nitric Oxide supplement I have used, and loved the affects of.




Xtreme NO is a muscle and performance enhancing supplement. It is made to deliver oxygen and nutrients to muscles, which keeps them pumped and withstand the stress of weight lifting.

How does Xtreme NO work?

Xtreme NO increases Nitric Oxide production which is a free form gas that is naturally produced in the body. It is the key element in producing muscle. Why? Read below.

NO is important in all of the bodies functions, such as protecting the immune system, regulating blood flow, preventing erectile disfuntion, metabalism and transmitting messages between cells.
It is such an important part of life that Science magazine named NO the molecule of the year in 1992 and 1998.

Xtreme NO supplements increases blood flow to the muscles allowing muscle to absorb more nutrients which results in muscles becoming larger when subjected to the stress of lifting weights. Increase Blood flow also keeps muscles pumped after training
Healthy nitric oxide production is critical in muscle production.
Promotes Muscle hypertrophy which makes muscles larger and promotes greater power.
Positively effects the growth of muscle.
The Benefits of Arginine- Xtreme NO has a blend of Arginine, which is the key element in the body producing enough NO to get ripped. Learn more about Arginine below.

Arginine is a crucial Amino Acid keeps the keep the liver, joints, and muscles healthy.
For the body to produce NO, it has to break down the amino acid Arginine
To increase NO levels, you have to increase intake of Arginine. The more Arginine your body has to break down, the higher levels of NO your body will produce.
Arginine inhibits growth hormone production.
Facilitates the increase of muscle mass, and reduces body fat.
Xtreme NO uses a blend of L-arginine compounds that are released into the system over time keeping oxygen pumping through your veins for hours
Facilitates the increase of muscle mass, and reduces body fat.Xtreme NO uses a blend of L-arginine compounds that are released into the system over time keeping oxygen pumping through your veins for hours.
So, does Xtreme NO work? Yes! The difference between Xtreme NO and similar products is its extended release formula. The blend of l-arginine is designed for the body to absorb it more effectively and the compounds are stacked for extended release causing perpetual pumps.

Xtreme NO is a product based on Science, not on hype. It helps your body what it does naturally-produce Nitric Oxide. Nitric Oxide is vital to produce huge ripped muscles. Without it, muscles can be damaged and you will not get the results that you want. Unlike other NO supplements, the blend of L Arginine compounds will get you the results you want, faster.

If you would like to try the free-trial offer of Xtreme NO, Click Here

Simple body building tips

Currently, quite a few individuals are profoundly anxious about their own health, as well as the value of possessing a good looking physique.

For this reason, you'll spot fitness center parking lots are routinely full of autos driven by people searching for these types of benefits.

Strengthening Your Muscle Tissue

The goal of a significant percentage of those people is to acquire muscle mass, an effort which calls for a lot of perseverance and self-control.

If you're among them, be aware that your physical structure will absolutely not get terrifically shaped and chiseled right away, nor are there riskless, lawful supplements that just bulk you up.

Although bodybuilding can certainly be difficult and monotonous, there are particular procedures and secrets that may assist you to reduce the total duration normally expected to achieve the appearance you have constantly sought.

Guidelines for Building Up Muscle Mass Successfully

The first thing you need to be aware of is to work your larger groups of muscles right away.

Far too many beginners imprudently commit an unwarranted amount of time perfecting their minor groups of muscles, such as the triceps, stomach muscles, and calves.

Although these muscles clearly require your attention, they will grow more substantially more efficiently if you focus on the bigger muscle groups first, such as your chest and back area.

Consider it in this way - once you work on your more substantial muscles, the smaller ones naturally will immediately be pressed to engage also.

Be Discerning in Choosing Your Weights

Next, if one of your bodybuilding targets is bigger size, you need to use heavier iron, staying at approximately 10 or 12 repetitions for every set.

In case you look at pro weight lifters, you are going to note nearly all lift heavier weights yet they do not perform many reps. Follow their lead.

Their success results due to the fact with heavier weights, you put greater pressure on each muscle. And, with additional stress comes greater muscle mass over time.

Here's a rule of thumb you can use for guidance on the amount of weight to use. If you have the ability to do more than about 15 reps per set, that means the weights are too lightweight. And if you cannot execute the round with 10 reps, they are too heavy.

When the weight is too heavy, you may be unable to effectively perform the lift.

Thus the balance is if by the end of the reps the muscle stress is difficult yet you are able to still lift the weights to get through a round, you are going in the right direction.

The Incredible Impact of Ordinary Breaks

Resting is also a significant element of building muscle mass. In reality, this is actually when your physique primarily responds to your routines and when you will essentially gain the muscles.

Many find that hard to accept. Despite that, whenever you earnestly push your muscles, you're in fact "hurting" them.

However the "hurt" makes for good results due to the fact when you snooze, your body automatically commences the "restoration" activity, making your muscle mass both stronger and larger.

Consequently either take a few days off between your muscle building workout program, or give your attention to various muscles during your outings to the gym

Be fit!

Hello everyone! I created this blog as a fitness guide, as well as just a random place to post fitness information. I hope to write a good few articles about body building, proper nutrition, and anything else that has to do with fitness! I love working out and staying fit, but sometimes it is hard to find the right source of information. Well I know many people have that same problem, so I hope to help you all by bringing great articles here!