Why You Should Try Body-Weight Exercises
http://www.fitnessrepublic.com/fitness/exercises/10-abs-exercises-to-burn-fat.html
I have never much fancied bulk on a man; instead it is a lean and strong body that wins my personal appreciation and attention. Never one for the Schwarzenegger-s of the world, I have never really associated strength with the size of a muscle. This could well be because I saw just how strong, fit and active my granddad was at 90; he could still comfortably walk miles across town and was more than happy to do his own grocery shopping. But grandpa never really indulged in body building exploits in all his life; instead a steady dose of running, skipping and a good old traditional workout were his keys to a happy mind, heart and body. Enter the 21st century and everyone seems to have caught up with the advice and secrets my grandpa and his contemporaries were testaments to. A healthy body was not about paper thin diets and hours spent at the gym; it was simply about balanced diets and sensible and wholesome exercising. They didn’t exercise to look good, they exercised because it was a healthy way to be; they didn’t need machines and extensive gadgets to monitor their workout, life itself was the perfect stage to tone their body up on. No you and I do not live the active and bare lifestyle our grandparents participated in, but we can adopt the wisdom of their being, body and workout routines. And this is why body weight exercises are blowing holes in elaborate machines to take our exercise routine back to its very basics. Body weight exercises do not rely on gadgets or paraphernalia to make your workout routine. Instead it lets the weight of your own body and nature’s friendly ally ‘gravity’ create the perfect settings for your exercises. Simple postures and movements thus translate into a rigorous workout that can be done anywhere and everywhere, without having to lug any equipment with you. Think of a gymnast performing on the pommel horse or rings; if you look closely you will see just how well developed their bodies and its strength are without necessarily translating into exaggerated muscle bulk. The key here is in having to support and control your own body weight while you move gracefully through the air- offering a far more challenging and exhaustive workout than many of the sophisticated machines and weights we tend to turn to.
But back here on land, just how are body weight exercises good for you? Body weight exercises work your whole body or a number of muscle groups together, rather than targeting a single muscle. This may not let you specifically sculpt a part of your body, but it does mean a much stronger body much faster. Since there is no equipment of fittings involved you can move from one exercise to another much faster, letting you burn more calories in a shorter time period. What’s more these can combine cardio and strength training into a singular workout that boosts metabolism, burns fat and melts inches like a boss. Since it works more than just your abs, body weight exercises improve core strength significantly, enhancing and training all 29 muscles that make up the human core. But more than just improving the strength, fitness and shape of your body, body weight exercises also enhance your flexibility, balance and co-ordination. Add to that its amazing versatility and you can conjure up a body weight routine that matches perfectly with your shape, type, age, agendas and issues. And it can all cost you next to nothing! The true gift of body-weight exercises is just how naturally they come to you, being an instinctive extension of our body and its movements. So whether under the strict watch of a fitness specialist or by yourself at home, make sure to bring your weight and a touch of gravity to your workouts.