Some people love hitting the gym. They spend hours every week working out and enjoy doing it. Other people, don’t. For many, especially those that lack self-confidence the idea of going to the gym and working out around others, who are much better at it, is nothing short of terrifying. Then, some people have no issue going to the gym. They are quite happy exercising in front of others, but, they find it unbearably dull. Running for 30 minutes on a treadmill or lifting the same weights all of the time bores them to tears. They struggle to stick to a routine that doesn’t excite them and so give up.

If you fall into either of these groups, you may want to forgo the gym and instead find something that you enjoy. Finding an exercise that you enjoy and look forward to doing will make you much more likely to stick to it and to give it your all. Here are some fun ways to keep fit.

Surfing

Surfing can be excellent exercise. You’re burning calories and working your muscles by carrying your board. You get a little cardio workout running into the waves or paddling out in the sea, and you use your core muscles by balancing on the board. You don’t need to be super fit or in shape to get started as it’s not an intense workout. But, over time you will build core strength which will help you’re your posture, make you less likely to have back trouble as you get older and help boost your overall fitness.

It’s also incredibly good fun. If you’ve never surfed before, there are some fantastic beginner’s spots around the country, all offering lessons and equipment hire. Kit yourself out at Billabong clothing online and make sure you get a wetsuit, especially if you don’t fancy waiting for summer to hit the sea.

Dancing

Dancing is one of those great exercises you don’t realize you are doing. Whether you are dancing in a club on a Friday night or spinning your kids around the kitchen, if you are moving, you are exercising. The most vigorously you dance, the more calories you burn. Energetic dance could burn off around 300 calories in 30 minutes, which is about the same as a fast run and more than 30 minutes of swimming.

Shopping

Gone are the days where only women loved to shop. Today, fashion-conscious men enjoy wandering around the shops, trying on new outfits and searching for bargains. A day of flat-out shopping will burn around 1500 calories, give your legs and arms a great workout and leave you with satisfyingly tired feet.

So, if you’ll have some extra Christmas weight to burn, get offline and do your sales shopping in brick and mortar stores.

Running

Running can be boring. Many of us struggle to motivate ourselves to keep going when we’re running on a treadmill with nothing but ourselves in a mirror to look at. But, running outdoors can be much more interesting. Run in a park or along a new route, download a podcast or audiobook that you’ve wanted to listen to and enjoy yourself. Set yourself goals, enjoy the scenery and make the most of getting some time to yourself.

Because running is such a repetitive exercise, your muscles can quickly get used to it. To keep it interesting and continue to get the best results, you need to keep pushing yourself. Introduce hills, interval sprints or keep changing your route to keep things fresh.

Team Sports

Team sports, unless we are good at them, tend to be something we leave behind when we finish school. But, they can be excellent exercise, good fun and a fantastic way to get out there and meet new people.

Think about the sports that you liked when you were younger and look to see if there are any adult teams you could join at nearby sports centers or gyms. If you don’t feel confident enough to join an organized team, get some friends and family members together in your local park and start your own. As long as it’s regular, it will help to keep you fit.

There are many ways that you can have fun exercising. You just need to think about what you enjoy and keep moving.

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Why deadlift?

1. It’s functional. You pick stuff up and put stuff down every day. Sometimes that stuff is heavy. Not only will deadlifting help you in those endeavors, but it will also help make sure you are doing those tasks in the safest way possible.

2. It builds overall strength and mass. The deadlift works the following muscles: back, glutes, legs, forearms, calves, shoulders and traps. Another important, and often overlooked, element of the deadlift is the effect it has on grip strength. With all those muscles engaged, the deadlift adds mass like no other lift. If you want a powerful overall build, you should deadlift.

3. It works your cardiovascular system. While the deadlift isn’t a substitute for hill sprints or time on an Airdyne, it does help your cardio. Don’t think it’s true? Do a set of heavy deadlifts and see if you aren’t gasping for air by the time you reach failure.

4. It’s good for core and stability. If you are using proper technique, the deadlift will help your posture and increase your core strength.

5. It’s a great gauge of overall strength.

6. Jon Pall Sigmarsson

How?

Okay, now you know why you should deadlift, but before you just walk up to a loaded bar and start pumping out reps, it’s important to know how to perform the lift correctly.

1. The first thing you want to do when you approach the loaded bar is set your stance. Your feet should be shoulder width apart and the bar should be across the middle of your feet.

2. Now that your stance is set and the bar is in the proper position, do not move the bar. Do not roll the bar forward or backward, keep the bar right where it is, across the middle of your feet.

3. Lean over and grab the bar with an overhand (both palms facing you) grip, but keep your legs straight while doing this. You can use a split grip if you want (one overhand/one underhand), but ideally, both hands should be in the same position. Your forearms should be outside your legs, just short of touching.

4. Now you’ll set your back in the proper position, which is the most important part of the lift. You’ll do this by bending your knees until your shins meet the bar. At this point, raise your chest. Doing this will put your spine in a neutral position; that is not rounded or hyperextended.

5. If the bar moves during this process or your back does not feel like it is in the correct position, start over from the first step until you feel comfortable with your stance.

6. Breath in and lift, driving your heels down at the same time. The bar should remain in contact with your legs, your core and back should stay tight, your arms should be straight, and your should squeeze your glutes once the bar hits thigh level. Do not lean back once you reach the top of the lift. Do not look up during the lift.

7. Reset by reversing the above step. Do not round your back while lowering the bar and do not loosen your grip until the bar is resting on the ground.

8. Do not drop the bar or bounce the weights between reps.

Dangers and Mistakes

1. If you round or flex your back, you will set yourself up for injury. If you’re unsure you have achieved a proper lifting technique, make a video of your stance. Remember, keep a neutral spine during the entire lift.

2. The reason you don’t bounce the bar is that you don’t want to use the momentum of the bar to power your reps.

3. If you look up during the lift, you can also strain your back. Keep your head in line with your back.

4. Do not use your arms during the lift other than to hold the bar. If you have bent elbows at any time of the lift, you risk injury.

5. Don’t start heavy. Make sure you are comfortable with your stance and technique before you begin moving heavy weights.

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But wait I hear you pleading, what happens when one of my earbuds falls out? The best use case for many of these first wireless buds (I just trademarked that name for a buddy action flick starring Keanu and the hologram of Tupac) is in action sports, exercising, or running. Basically, the best times to use these limited battery earbuds is when you are moving around a lot, possibly at high speeds. It’s only natural to think that you’re going to lose one of your earbuds and be stuck with terrible terrible mono sound.

Well that’s exactly the usecase ELWN decided to solve once and for all with their Fit earbuds. Their kickstarter just funded in the first day, and it’s easy to see why. Not only do you get two sexy little buds (I’m not trademarking that movie name, it’s all yours…), plus an additional battery strap called an Infinity Band, but you also get a whole variety of ear tips, hooks, and loops with 180 different combinations to ensure, in their words, “the most customizable truly wireless ear buds.”

If you’re still here and reading, I’m sure your question now is, “but do they work?” Sir, they do indeed. In fact, I’m listening to them now as I write this. Pairing is simple and straightforward (just read the package!), sound quality is good, my custom fit was excellent, and battery life is very respectable 3 hours. When you’ve exhausted that, just plug in the Infinity Band external battery/cord for up to 6.5 hours of running and jumping around.

I doubt I would use these around the office or house, but exercising, rolling around on my bike, or even ignoring other humans on the bus are all great uses for the ELWN earbuds. There have been plenty of wireless earbuds companies to come out this year, but ELWN has really impressed us with their design, fit and finish, and customizability. If you buy wireless earbuds this year, it should be the ELWN Fit. Welcome to the new hotness and real freedom.

The post The Problem with Wireless Earbuds is Finally Solved appeared first on FactoryTwoFour.

As a student, start-up founder, part time employee, and triathlete, I decided to give a product that touted itself as “a holistic morning beverage to boost performance” a go: I was not disappointed. After enjoying a bottle in place of my typical banana-and-eggs breakfast, I felt focused and energized for the day ahead – so much so I set a new dead-lift PR of 405 lbs. and didn’t fall asleep during my New-Venture Finance class – both firsts!

I took a closer look at the product, and found that with 30g of hydrolyzed protein, your body is quickly being supplied with key nutritional building-blocks allowing you to tackle your day straight out the gate. The protein blend Vivid Coffee uses, namely hydrolyzed protein, is much finer and simpler than typical protein products, and can therefore be more quickly absorbed by the body, helping truly “boost” you through your morning. Whens the last time you actually got the nutrients in the morning you needed?

Whats more, the dark cold-brew coffee from Salt Lake City, UT is nearly PH neutral, designed to minimize any loss of nutrients when bonding with the protein, and minimizing acidity that could result in an upset stomach. So far so good, right? But I had doubts that it was truly “pure,” how could there still be a hint of sweetness? So I researched on: Rather than using milk or creamer, Vivid uses coconut milk due to the medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) not found in dairy products. Not only is this a natural way of sweetening the beverage, it also helps jump-start your metabolism, and help you feel full.

With its mellow but smooth taste, this is definitely a beverage I will be adding to my morning routine to quickly help me prepare body and mind for the day ahead, and tackle whatever I decide to.

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The first thing I notice about the RockGuards II is the unique look on the pads. They definitely grab your eyes with the enlarged ROCKTAPE name and miscellaneous wording. Aside from that, they are very sleek, lightweight, with minimal bulk. You can wear them over tights, long socks, or just wear them by themselves (as I did). The RockGuards II fit securely as they are equipped with foot straps to prevent them from moving up your leg. The 2” zippers at the ankles make it easy to put the shin skins on and fasten them as well. The fit is pristine, as they quickly feel like second skin.

The RockGuards II can be used for numerous training styles such as CrossFit, bodybuilding, and power lifting. I train with a bodybuilding approach, so I utilized the shins kins for my deadlifts. Even with my warm up sets, I immediately noticed the benefits. The bar moves extremely close to the shins, and it may even graze them while performing the lift. Having the RockGuards II really allowed me to focus on the exercise and muscle engagement, rather than worrying about the bar possibly cheese grading my skin. Rock Tape really capitalized on the padding by using a versatile synthetic rubber, neoprene, and there is 5mm of it to protect your shins.

I am fully confident that the RockGuards II will be a great addition to your fitness regimen, whether you are doing deadlifts, or climbing/sliding up and down a rope. If you want your shins protected, go with Rock Tape’s RockGuards II.

Daniel Kim is a NPC men’s physique competitor as well as a WBFFmen’s fitness model.

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