Wave Station Express Dispensing Blender

Okay, let me state first that this is not endorsed in any way. A couple of months ago, I decided I was tired of flavorless protein shakes, or flavored ones where I couldn't pronounce the ingredients and contained a ridiculous number of calories. 

So as usual, I went on Amazon (Yes, this is the answer to all my problems. Or is it the reason for my problems? Hmmm...). I initially thought I could just buy a regular blender and just maybe add a little flavor to some of the bland protein shakes. But in my search, I found this magical - but very affordable - product: The Wave Station Express Dispensing Blender by Hamilton Beach.

Let me tell you some positive things about it:

• It has 4 speeds and a pulse setting, including the Regular speed, Juicer, Smoothie, and Milkshake. This means you can use it for all sorts of things!
• It has a dispenser (like a little tap), so you can blend, dispense, and not create a whole mess.
• It looks cute :)
• The power is actually pretty good, which I did not expect. It crushes ice well (if you want to make a smoothie), but also blends anything from carrots to bananas very well.
• You get a 3 year warranty
• It is dishwasher safe
• If you don't want the dispenser, they also provide a cap option to just close off that space. Isn't that thoughtful?

What's the negative, you ask? Well, they are very few:

• It doesn't look super-professional. The base is made of plastic so it isn't super-glossy.
• The dispenser can be difficult to clean if you are not using a dishwasher. 
• It is not a particularly small blender so it does take up some space.
• The blender top does not fit tightly, so if you do decide not to use the dispenser, make sure you hold on to the top as you pour.

You should totally get it if you are looking for an easy way to get your fruit and veggies in, or make a great protein shake. Here is it on Amazon and on Walmart.

Cheers Eights & Weights!

Standing Oblique Twist

Last week, we talked about the standing oblique twist and described how to do it. Check out that post here: Crunch-Free Ab Exercises. This week, I thought I'd show you. The twist is great for your core because you're twisting side to side. But make sure you keep your core tight as you move. The punch also help work out your shoulders and the back of your arms so make sure you hit hard!

Cheers Eights & Weights!

The Top 3 Fitness Mistakes Women Make

Original article by Joe Dowdell in Shape Magazine

To get the best results, investigating what you're not doing is just as important as what you are doing at the gym. Here are the three most common mistakes that hold women back:
 

Too Much Emphasis on Aerobic Activities and Not Enough on Strength Training
Most women fail to realize the value of strength training. And when I say strength training, I don't mean 20-30 repetitions using 3-lb dumbbells. I’m talking about lifting challenging loads like 8-12 repetitions maximum (RM). What does that mean? Repetition maximum refers to the maximum number of repetitions that you can perform with a given load while still maintaining excellent form. In the above example of 8-12 RM, the last perfect repetition should fall within the 8-12 rep range. If you are not able to perform 8 reps with a given resistance, use a slightly lighter weight that allows you to do so. On the other hand, if you can perform more than 12 reps with the resistance, then I suggest increasing the load a little.

Strength training, especially at higher intensities, promotes something called excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC). Sometimes referred to as "afterburn," EPOC is basically an increased rate of oxygen intake following strenuous activity. During the post-workout recovery process, excess oxygen is used to facilitate all of the processes that restore your body back to its resting state and to help it adapt to the exercise (stress) just performed. The "afterburn" also fuels your metabolism to return your body temperature and heart rate back to its pre-exercise state. Some research shows that this increase in resting metabolic rate can last up to 72 hours after your workout is over, with 24-48 hours being more the norm. Higher metabolic rate means more calories burned, so if changing body composition is your goal, this is key to success.

It’s also important to remember that lean muscle tissue is very metabolically active (it burns calories at rest). The more lean muscle tissue you have relative to your overall body composition, the greater your potential to burn more calories. While cardiovascular training, especially steady-state cardio, burns calories during the exercise session itself, it does very little to promote the process of EPOC.
 

Program Hopping
What exactly is program hopping? In a nutshell, it looks something like this: A woman will go to a bootcamp class on Monday, a spinning class on Tuesday, a barre class on Wednesday, a yoga class on Thursday, a Pilates mat class on Friday, and then finish off her week with a hip hop bootylicious sculpt class on Saturday (OK so I made that class up). The bottom line is that too many class-loving women, despite all of their efforts to exercise, never look any differently aesthetically. In fact, sometimes they look worse.

There is nothing wrong with adding a little variety to your training program, you just need to be smart about it. Try performing the same total-body strength training routine on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. On Tuesday, mix in a spin class, try a boxing or kickboxing class on Thursday, and schedule in your favorite yoga class on Saturday. Try this schedule out for a month. I guarantee you’ll be happier with the results, and if not, change your schedule slightly until you find what works best (but still isn't your class-hopping frenzy).
 

Not Enough Protein in Your Diet
Research shows that 10 percent of women don't even get the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of 46 grams of protein per day. To optimize your body composition, you should aim to double that amount. One study from the University of Illinois found that when women doubled their protein intake (twice the RDA for protein), they lost more body fat and experienced a greater improvement in body composition than those who followed a lower-protein diet. Another study from Purdue University found that women report being less hungry throughout the day when eating a high-protein diet. It's tough to find a reputable study that doesn’t support women eating more protein. Aim to include a protein source (eggs, chicken, fish, lean beef, Greek yogurt, etc.) in every meal and snack.

Cheers Eights & Weights!

Original article can be found on the Shape Magazine website.

 

Health Corner: Can Weight Loss Really Be Fun?

Today, we have a guest writer! We are introducing a new segment on Eights & Weights called 'Health Corner' where doctors and other health professionals will give us advice on health issues we face today, from a professional perspective. 

Dr. Chikelue Enyekwe of Enyekwe's Clinic is an experienced doctor that provides various health tips, information on medical conditions, exercise, diets, and health issues via his blog enyekwesclinic.blogspot.com. What is his mantra? Nothing tastes as good as healthy feels. Love it :)

Can Weight Loss Really Be Fun?

by Dr. Chikelue Enyekwe

 

I have come to realize that most people abandon their weight loss programs because they no longer enjoy doing them. Some people that I have had personal discussions with, even some of my own patients, always ask "Why would I continue killing myself trying to lose weight?" They would even go as far as saying that they’d rather remain overweight than get involved in any stressful weight loss program.

Developing a fun weight loss program fun is completely dependent on the types of things that turn you on. However, no matter what you do, you shouldn’t lose track of the ultimate goal, which is to shed weight. It is called ‘weight loss’ after all.

How to Introduce the Fun Factor into your Weight Loss Program

• Give yourself a target: The average human being likes competition; creating a goal and beating it. To have the competitive feeling in any weight loss program, you have to give yourself an achievable goal like “I will shed 1 kg by the end of this week”. If by the end of the week you weighed yourself and found out you were on point, you'd feel good and want to do more. But remember that your target should be something achievable, or you will get frustrated in the process.
• Participate in physical activity you love: When you are doing something you view as play, not work, you’d see that you would be doing it well and not get as tired quickly. Why would you focus on a jogging regimen when your favorite cardio exercise is cycling? Why would you eat a lettuce salad every day when cabbage is your favorite vegetable? Don’t do anything simply because everyone is doing it. Think about your personal goals.
• Talk about your weight loss with friends and family: This is very important as it boosts your morale and makes you not want to quit. Whenever you feel like calling it quits, remembering that everybody is looking up to you to achieve your goal will make you fight on. Besides, you would want to prove to them that you could actually do it.
• Find other people to lose weight with: Don’t train in isolation. Partnerships push people, and when you see others working out, it triggers your competitive spirit. Register in a gym, cook lunches  with your friends and family, or do both. Find a way to do it with other people who have the same goals as you do. 
• Make your environment comfortable: I wouldn’t have thought this was a factor until I went to visit a friend who is a physical therapist. His gym was located in a rural area, and so was mostly frequented by the middle class. One day he had this case. Some folks brought their mother to the gym to start a  weight loss program. She obviously did not want to cooperate as she thought of the whole idea as punishment, but she came just to please the kids. Handling her case was quite difficult until we realized she was into music. During her subsequent visits, we started playing her type of songs. And guess what happened? The woman now comes to the gym and starts cycling and semi-dancing without moaning or complaining. This is all to say that the clothes you wear, the house you eat in, and the environment you work out in all have an effect on your weight loss program.
• Know that there is always an alternative: Okay, so you’ve read some blog posts that say cassava is high in calories. You’ve probably even read some of these posts on Eights & Weights. And then as soon as you read it, your friend Tolu made this beautiful pounded yam and egusi soup (a Nigerian dish consisting of yams and melon seed stew) that leaves your mouth watering.  You start getting mad at the world and turning against your workout program for subjecting you to this mental torture. Instead of putting yourself through that, create your own alternative. Maybe prepare some wheat or oatmeal, which is lower in calories, as a substitute for the pounded yam, and then have a little bit of Tolu’s soup?

The key is to understand the basics of the way the body loses weight. The moment you understand that the program is about balancing calories consumed with calories burned, you’d stop seeing weight loss as torture, and instead as something worth doing and worth doing well.

For more information on Dr. Chikelue Enywkwe, visit his site at enyekwesclinic.blogspot.com, email him at dubemenyekwe@gmail.com, or follow him on the following social network links:

Facebook

Twitter

Google +

Cheers Eights & Weights!

Photo credit: Blackgirllonghair.com

Nigerian Blog Awards 2012 - Nominate!

The Nigerian Blog Awards are under way again :) Yes, that means it's time to nominate your favorite Nigerian blogs. Not just this one, but yes mostly this one...

Click on the image below for the link:

Here are a few suggestions on what you should nominate us for. Nominations close September 23rd.

Best Cause Blog: Blog about raising awareness for a particular cause, such as a medical condition or a political movement.

Best Fitness or Health Blog: Blog that focuses on healthy living, exercise, or wellness.

Best Tutorial Blog: Blog that focuses on teaching its readers through the use of step-by-step instructions.

Nigerian Blog of the Year: Best overall blog by a Nigerian or best blog with a strong focus on any aspect of Nigeria.

No, we do not win any prizes, and neither do you. But we do win the satisfaction of knowing you love us and recognize how hard we are working to get you the tools you need to be successful in your fitness program. So if you love Eights & Weights, nominate us. We really do appreciate it :)

If you want suggestions of other blogs to nominate. Let me know and I'll be sure to share.

Cheers Eights & Weights!

Crunch-Free Ab Exercises

I don't know about you, but I pretty much hate laying there doing repetitive movement trying to get to a 100, and creating tension in my neck in the process. Don't get me wrong, crunches work if they are done as part of an overall training routine. But doing crunches every day can get boring. Thankfully, the cruch is not the only way to work your abs. So let's try some other movements.

Knee Lift Twist

Lift your knees like you're running with just high knees. Each step should see your knee coming up to your waist-level. As you lift each knee, don't lean back. Use your core to lift each knee up so it's like you are doing a crunch in the standing position. As you lift your knees, put your wrists in front of your chin and rotate your waist to the same side as the knees you are lifting. This means your elbows should be almost touching our knees.

Oblique Twist with a Reverse Hook 

Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Squeeze your wrists and fingers like you're ready to punch. Leave the left arm beside you, but move the right arm in front of your chest and parallel to the floor. At the same time, move your upper body to the left using just your waist. Punch out straight with the side of your right wrist. As you are punching, move your upper body to the right side. Switch hands and repeat on the left. See the photo below for guidance. You should definitely feel this in your obliques (the sides of your abs).

Scorpion plank 

Get into a plank position. And then bring your right knee towards your left elbow. Repeat the same motion with your left.

Pulsing plank 

Start in a plank position. Then simply start to pulse your pelvic region (small pulses), while you keep your abs tight. You'll notice how much more of a core workout you get from this.

Cheers Eights & Weights!

Photo credit: Exercise.com, Shapemag.co.za

The Battle of the Elliptical vs. the Treadmill

The question always comes up: Which form of cardio is the best? The two forms of cardio that have people riled up the most are the elliptical and the treadmill. They are probably the two most common cardio machines you would find in any gym, and they are thought to be somewhat similar in the type of motion required.

Because everyone is different, what exercise works for each person is also different. So it is key to understand what is most important to you as you determine what works. Here are a few key differences between the elliptical and the treadmill to help you decide:

Calories burned

Well, I had to start with this one! When we talk about cardio, we are usually looking for what burns the most calories in the least time, and with the least effort! Ummm... you're seeing things. I did not say that last part. 

Okay, so how does the elliptical compare to the treadmill? Of course it depends on your weight and your speed. But on average, a 150 pound person usually burns about 600 to 700 calories on the treadmill if they run for about an hour. The elliptical is also about 600 to 700 calories an hour, unless you're pushing harder and putting in more effort one way or the other. 

Effort required

Which leads to the next point. How much effort is required to burn the same number of calories on the treadmill vs. the elliptical? It looks like the elliptical takes this one. Again, unless you are pushing harder, the elliptical usually requires less effort than the treadmill to go at the same speed. Why? With the treadmill, you are lifting and dropping your whole body and so it feels harder. With the elliptical, you are pushing and pulling rather than lifting and dropping.

Impact on your joints

If you lift and drop any object consistently, there is bound to be some damage. Your body operates in the same manner. Whenever you drop your legs as you run, you put a lot of impact on your knees and ankles. And so the surface on which you run is pretty important. Treadmills and race tracks were created with materials to minimize the impact on your joints. However, there is still some impact. The elliptical on the other hand does not involve lifting and dropping and so the impact to your joints is very minimal.

Flexibility of the exercise

If you were raised by humans, you probably know how to run. It is naturally built into our genes. Thus, perfecting your run, and introducing different types of training to your runs would be more natural than trying to figure out how to mix up your training on the elliptical. On the treadmill, you can do interval training (speeding up for a short interval, and slowing down for a short interval) to burn more calories, or do power exercises like side shuffles. The treadmill is a more flexible machine if you get bored easily.

Volume of muscles reached

Running is a great overall body workout. It is difficult to compare it to anything else. If you look at any runner, their leg muscles and core muscles are usually toned. However, with the elliptical (depending on the type of elliptical), because you are using your arms as well, you end up building both your upper and lower body muscles. Can someone say "Hello upper back"? Plus, the elliptical allows you to do reverse spins, or squat as you push, which means you'd be working different muscle groups that you wouldn't ordinarily reach in a forward upright motion.

Endorphin rush

Maybe this is just me, but when I finish time on the treadmill, I feel an amazing endorphin rush that I don't get from the elliptical. That is not to say I don't get an endorphin rush from the elliptical. I do, but it's not comparable. Could it be because I sweat more? Maybe. Or because it feels like more of an accomplishment? Maybe. It may be a different feeling for you.

Given all of that, I would still pick the treadmill over the elliptical. However, there are tremendous benefits of choosing the elliptical over the treadmill, especially if you are older, have been injured before, or if you are concerned about your joints.

Which would you choose?

Cheers Eights & Weights!

Photo credit: Treadmilltips.com, ThatsFit.com