Home workout - part 2

You don't need fancy equipment to get an all over workout at home

It's often said that home is where the heart is. But for some of us, it's where the heart is best looked after. You don't need a stationary bike or gym membership to improve your heart health and 

overall fitness. Two weeks ago we unveiled the first part of our home workout series, and today you can add part two. Do this workout for a couple of weeks and then mix and match these exercises with the first home workout. You can also do the home workouts in conjunction with the workouts for gym and outdoors that we've featured in previous weeks. For best results, try to do three strength circuit workouts each week.

Home workout - part 1

Who says you need to set foot outside your home to get a good workout?

You are more likely to exercise when you have lots of options, and you will have less room for excuses.

This compact workout is designed to do inside your own home and can be used in different ways.

If you don't have a trainer or a gym membership, and prefer not to train outdoors, then this could be your main workout. If you are a gym-goer or often train at the park, use this program as your plan B. It's perfect for those rainy winter days or when time is limited and your regular routine is not possible.

Have a go at deep water running

Throw yourself in the deep end for a different form of training.

What is deep water running?

Deep-water running involves every major muscle group and is equivalent to cross-country skiing, making it a major kilojoule burner. Depending on your effort and intensity, you can blaze your way through 2500kJ in a solid, hour-long session.

It's called deep-water running for a reason. Shallow water just won't cut it, so head to your nearest Olympic-sized pool for information on class times. You can also practise in the deep end of your own pool, but it's advisable to get some professional tips on correct technique first. People with bad backs find deep water a godsend. Maintain the vertical position of deep-water running: the horizontal orientation of swimming doesn't hold the same benefits for bad backs.

4 things you should do now for a toned summer body

You know what they say: summer bodies are made in winter

There’s no doubting this has been a pretty cold winter already. The mornings have been freezing, as have the nights. It’s so easy to hit the snooze button on our alarms, to eat lots of warm comfort foods and let our training take a back seat to lazing on the lounge under a blanket. The problem with that is before we know it spring is upon us and we’ve stacked on way too much flab to fit into last year’s swimmers. So how do you make sure that doesn’t happen?

Count down to spring

Let’s face it, goals are much easier to nail when we have a deadline. Set yourself up a calendar or space where you can count down the number of days until the first day of spring. If you can actually see the days ticking down, it will spur you on to plan your meals and get your training done.

The best tips for training at home

Winter is fast approaching! That always makes getting up out of your warm bed challenging, especially as it also gets darker and darker each morning. If you still want to get your workout in but don’t want to venture outside into the cold, here’s a few tips for training at home.

Set Your Alarm Out of Reach

This may sound cruel, but it works. Set your alarm on your phone or however you do it, but make sure you actually have to get out of bed to turn it off. Once you’re up, you’re more likely to do your training.

Have Your Kit Sorted

It’s amazing how much difference it can make to your attitude knowing you’d have to scour through your wardrobe and pull out all your training equipment before you even start! Have all your kit ready the night before and you’ll be far more inclined to train and less to go looking for an excuse to sleep in.

Top belly busters for blokes

Have those after-work beers caught up to you? Beat the belly with these top tips.

The human body is programmed to protect its current weight, even if this is an extra-large belly. Here's how to outsmart your primitive biology.

Exercise every day

Exercise is essential for losing your belly. It helps you burn more fat while keeping your muscles intact.

The human body was designed to move, yet we have done our level best to engineer movement out of our lives. Cars, sedentary jobs, technology and the quest for convenience have all made it easier to do very little.

If you want to be active, you usually have to plan to make it happen. Aim for a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise (such as brisk walking, cycling or swimming) on five days each week.

Best all-body workout

Fancy a challenge? Try the Spartan 300 workout.

I'm not usually a sensationalist, but today we're showcasing one of the world's best all-body workouts: the Spartan 300. It challenges you every time you attempt it.

What is Spartan training? In its simplest form, Spartan training is 30 reps of 10 exercises, which can be done in any order you like. Your objective is to get through the 300 reps (10 sets of 30) as quickly as you can. So pick one of the exercises pictured, do as many reps as you can and then move on to another.

Women's weight session

Strong is the new sexy so grab your weights and get those muscles pumping

This workout is designed for men but will give women the same killer results.

Workout options

Strong is the new sexy so grab your weights and get those muscles pumping in this workout designed for men that will give women the same killer results 

I've included broad reps and sets options for the exercises. Here's how to choose what's best for you:

Sets: Start with the lowest option and build up, increasing every couple of weeks as the body gets stronger.

Why not try stair running to get fit?

Conquer the stairs Rocky-style to boost power and shred calories

"Take the stairs instead of the lift" is one of those fitness cliches beloved of weight-loss programs, right up there with "get off the bus a few stops earlier". But how many of us actually do it? Well, for the next few weeks, I will. I work on the 11th floor of an office block and, like most of my high-heeled colleagues, rely on the lifts to get me there. But in an effort to upgrade my fitness, I intend to start shunning the lift queues and taking the stairs.

In preparation I contact Australian stair-running champion Suzy Walsham, who has claimed three victories in the annual Empire State Building Run-Up. The 35-year-old Suzy can fly up the 86 floors of the iconic New York landmark in under 13 minutes, so I figure she'll have some tips for tackling my comparatively puny 11 storeys. "Stair running is a fantastic workout because it's very intense but doesn't take a long time," explains Suzy. "Plus you can tailor your workout to your fitness levels."

Training secrets from the experts

Preparing for a big run? Get the trainers' top tips for optimal performance on the big day.

Need that extra edge to get you over the finish line? We asked some of Australia's best coaches and running athletes to reveal their top training secrets to get you primed for your best performance yet.

1. Don't skip the warm up

Gordon Campbell, Can Too Head Coach and marathon runner, says too many runners make the mistake of either not warming up properly or doing static stretches (holding a stretch) before a run. "This not only lowers your performance but can also lead to injury."

"Start with an easy paced jogging warm up for 10 minutes followed by some dynamic exercises like legs swings, high knee running, heal to glute running and walking lunges," he says.

The benefits of a bike

From boosting the quality of the environment to fattening your wallet, cycling is a guaranteed life improver.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), transport costs make up 16 per cent of the average family's budget.

If you earn around the Australian average wage (about $60,000 a year), you'll work one day a week to pay for your car.

What's more, according to the ABS more than 1.35 million Australians drive their cars less than five kms to work each day.

Commuting by bike means you not only save money on car costs or public transport, but also on gym fees. In fact, countries such as Denmark and Holland, where cycling is common, have been less impacted by obesity rates.

Tone up with free weights - part two

Increase the challenge with this week's routine using free weights.

Over the last month, we've showcased 12 of the best body-weight and free-weight exercises you can do. You can use these weekly routines as standalone workouts, but why not mix and match the exercises to create your own unique training regime? You'll keep things interesting and, most importantly, you'll keep your body working harder than ever. It's this variety that will give you great results. The weights should always be heavy enough to give you a challenge.

Today's program:

Today's workout is designed to be performed in supersets. Rather than six separate exercises, group them into three groups of two. Keep rotating through two exercises until you've completed the desired sets. For example, do a set of dumbbell cleans, then a set of dumbbell presses, back and forth until you've finished your reps. Once completed, move to exercise three and four and so on.

Tone up with free weights - part one

Free weights are the best way to tone up and lose fat.

Free weights aren't the product of an over-generous sports shop owner. They are weights, usually dumbbells or barbells, that are not attached to any machines and, when lifted, rely solely on the person lifting them for their stability. They allow for more natural movements, they require more muscles to work and they allow for far more variety than a single-plane machine weight. Yes, it's slightly old-school, but there is no better form of weight training.

Putting the program together

Today's workout is designed to be performed in supersets. Rather than six separate exercises, group them into three groups of two. Keep rotating through two exercises until you've completed the sets. When you've finished exercise one and two, move to exercise three and four and so on.

7 ways to use your gym

Here’s how to stop wasting your cash and make the most of your membership

There are many Australians who hand over their dollars to a gym chain every month, but only go twice a year: once to renew their membership and the day after that for a workout. 

Here are a few ideas to ensure you get maximum value for money from your membership and the health benefits you are paying for.

What’s that one do?

The enemy of a dedicated gym program is routine. Keep things fresh by trying a new piece of equipment each week.

10 reasons to run

Want to lose weight, improve your mood and increase your lifespan? These are just some of the reasons you should take up running.

Whether you gently jog a few kilometres a week or you are a race regular, pounding the pavement is a wise move. Running can be daunting at first, but you will start to feel the mental and physical benefits within a matter of weeks.

"Start slowly and add a bit on every week," says Annie Crawford, founder of Can Too, a non-profit group that coaches runners and raises funds for Cure Cancer Australia. "You shouldn't increase your distance by more than 10 per cent every couple of weeks. Believe in yourself and be patient until you learn to love it – because you will."

Still not sure if running is for you? Here are 10 great reasons to lace up your running shoes and hit the open road…

10 tips to get you up and running in the morning

There's no better way to start the day than waking up with a run

Exercising early is beneficial, but if you’re not a morning person, motivation can prove elusive. We asked Matt Crowe, Managing Director of Sydney’s Odyssey Health Club & Spa and a qualified running coach, personal trainer and dedicated marathon enthusiast, for his top 10 tips to get you running soon after you rise.

1. The 5-minute rule

Whenever you feel reluctant or tired, make a deal with yourself: just do 5 minutes.“If I don’t feel better [after 5 minutes], I will just walk or go home,” he says.Chances are you’ll keep going, but it’s not the end of the world if you don’t – there’s always tomorrow. 

How to lose fat in 10 minutes

No time to exercise? Not with this workout which only takes 10 minutes to blast fat! Celebrity trainer and founder of the 6 Weeks to Sexy exercise program, Blake Worrall Thompson shows you how

To get the best results that can be achieved in 10 minutes, you need to work at the highest intensity level. This workout comprises of 5 exercises, back-to-back and is conducted in this sequence as you begin with a leg exercise, followed by upper body exercise working your triceps, skipping for cardio, a back exercise and an ab exercise. You will do 45 seconds of continual work (as intense as possible) and 15 seconds recovery and then move on to the next exercise. For a 10 minute workout, you will repeat this twice. 

High intensity interval training

Scientists have devised a short but extreme exercise program guaranteed to whip you into shape in less time. But if you’re not so fit, get the medical all-clear first.

High intensity interval training (HIIT) is all the rage in the fitness industry – and now research has claimed that this kind of maximum capacity exercise routine can get great fitness and health results in as little as seven minutes a few times a week.

Exercise scientist Chris Jordan, at the Human Performance Institute in Florida, the US, has developed what he readily admits is a pretty full-on interval circuit workout that uses nothing more than your own body weight, a chair, the floor and a wall. But his research shows that just seven minutes of pain – he describes the circuit as “unpleasant” – gets the job done. “We now know from research that you can attain great fitness benefits in a very short amount of time,” Jordan says. 

Five fitness myths busted

We look at some of the most common fitness myths and find the facts

From exercising on an empty stomach to shunning carbs when the sun goes down, we expose the myths that might be hindering your fitness goals.

Myth 1: Cardio burns more fat than lifting weights

Fact: You need to build muscle to burn the fat 

Every 1.5kg of muscle you add to your frame boosts your metabolism by 6 to 8 per cent and burns up to 400 extra kilojoules a day. "You end up burning more energy post-exercise because the more muscle mass you have, the more energy it takes to keep you alive," explains exercise scientist and nutritionist Liz Dene. So do we amp up the cardio or reach for the weights? "You have to do a combination of both," Dene notes. "Doing a mix of resistance training and interval training will burn the greatest amount of energy." For a fat-busting workout, try a circuit-training routine that combines sprint intervals with a series of weight-bearing exercises like medicine ball squats, push-ups and boxing with light weights.

Simple diet tricks

Try these simple nutritional tips and watch the weight fall off and stay off.

After many years of studying all things diet and weight loss, there are certain facts about food and nutrition that I often simply assume everyone else knows. Just in case you have missed a couple of them along the way, here are the top tricks of the trade that dietitians and nutritionists swear by.

Switch from lite to low-fat milk

While lite milk contains significantly less fat than full-cream milk - just four grams of fat compared with 10 grams in a glass of full-cream milk - switching to a low- or no-fat option will again significantly reduce your fat intake. In general, low-fat milks have less than one gram of total fat per glass, which means you will significantly reduce your intake of both total and saturated fat. Over the course of a year, this can really add up.

Exercise may not be helping you lose weight

According to one expert, your workouts aren't doing much for your waistline.

Exercising to lose weight is a waste of time and the only way to shed those unwanted kilos is to eat less. After years of studying kilojoule tables, Sydney exercise specialist John Glynn says it would take seven hours of walking every day for a week to lose just one kilogram and only then if the person ate no "bad" food the entire seven days.

That's distressing news for those who hit the gym or pound the pavement to squeeze into that little black dress for a special occasion. His findings are backed by research, but what has the medical profession concerned is that people might interpret his claims as a green light to stop exercising altogether.

Targeting fat burn

Can you control where you lose weight?

(Q) I'm a 57-year-old male and throughout my life I've maintained above average fitness. Over recent years however, I've found it increasingly difficult to maintain a flat stomach. I go to the gym three days a week and I train three days a week for competitions such as canoe racing.

Aerobically my endurance is fine, but how do I reduce the excess weight around my midsection? The 4 minute fat burning program sounds great but does it specifically target this area?

(A) This question comes down to the principle of spot reduction. You can't control where you lose body fat. You can row and it might come off your chest; you can run and it may come off your back; you can swim, and it comes off your backside. Your body has a specific hierarchy of where it wants to lose fat from and no matter what you do, fat loss occurs from where the body chooses.

5 reasons to hit the gym

Get motivated and say goodbye to excuses.

body+soul's Donna Duggan takes a look at five of the best reasons to get yourself out of the house and into the gym.

1. Staying active really does beat the middle-age spread

People who keep up an active lifestyle into middle-age gain fewer kilograms over time, a US study has found. "It's the maintenance of the physical activity that's the important thing," says Dr Arlene Hankinson, of Northwestern University in Chicago. "It's not so much about achieving some dramatically high activity level, it's about maintaining a level of daily physical activity over time."

Eat your way to beautiful skin

Repair your skin from the inside with this dietary guide to complexion perfection.

Normal, healthy, balanced skin doesn’t always just happen naturally. However, a holistic approach that combines skincare with a complexion-appropriate diet can help. Identify your skin type, then follow this guide.

Dry skin

Dry skin is characterised by little or no oil flow on the skin’s surface, which can also be reflected deeper within the skin’s layers. People with dry skin can experience tightness and are prone to chapped lips and crepiness. They are also more likely to succumb to seasonal sensitivities because of a lack of internal moisture and a compromised lipid barrier, which allows what moisture there is to escape.

Gutbusters: 5 ways to lose your belly

The following combination of training, activities and sport will help you lose the fat around your gut

1. Whole body weight training

Why?

For centuries men have been lifting heavy things up off the ground and pressing them over their heads. The Clean and Press (pictured) is an Olympic event as it’s seen as the truest test of strength. Use good technique, start light and build the weight as your strength and technique improves. 

10 easy ways to burn calories

If the gym is not your thing there are numerous other ways to burn calories.

If you're out and about during your day, you're burning more calories than you probably realise. "Engaging in regular incidental activities that use an extra 30-50 calories per hour can burn 360 to 600 extra calories over a 12 hour day – as much as a gym workout," says Allan Borushek, dietitian and author of Allan Borushek's Calorie, Fat & Carbohydrate Counter (www.calorieking.com.au). "Just standing instead of sitting can burn an extra 60 calories per hour."

Here are 10 simple ways to burn calories as you go about your daily life.

1. Take the stairs

If you have the choice of taking the lift or stairs, go for the latter. Spending five minutes a day walking up stairs burns 227 calories in a week. Crank it up to a jog and you'll smash 425 calories, or the equivalent of two slices of ham and pineapple pizza.

3 exercise and fat myths

Sharni Wilson-Smith of EFM health clubs (www.efm.net.au) busts three common exercise and fat myths.

Challenge your exercise and fat beliefs and make the commitment to long-term health.

Myth 1: “I don’t lift weights − I don’t want to look like a body builder”

My most hated fitness myth is that weight training will give women big muscles − it just isn’t true. Women don’t have the physiology to build big muscles without dedicated and extreme diet and strength work. Conversely, correct strength training improves posture and tone, increases metabolism and self-confidence, allows for faster recovery from childbirth, and reduces the risk of diabetes and osteoporosis.

Low carb/high protein diets

They may get results but are high-protein/low card diets good for you?

Do you shriek at the sight of pasta and bread, but are passionate about protein? Chances are, you have embarked on a popular yet controversial low-carb, high-protein diet that helps you shed weight fast. But new research has found that Atkins-style diets can lead to clogged arteries and may increase the risk of heart disease and stroke.The Harvard Medical School professor who launched the study has even ditched his own low-carb, high-protein lifestyle after initial findings.

Dr Anthony Rosenzweig began the research with a team of scientists after a colleague criticised him about his eating habits. While such diets help people shed weight fast, they have been dogged by concerns about the dangers of eating too much fat, which lead to heart disease and kidney problems.

10 powerful reasons to eat more bananas

Why you don't want to miss out on this number one superfood

Banana lovers are divided in two: those who prefer to nosh on the almost green type and those who don’t mind a bit of black speckle. Whatever the preference, there are some very good reasons why people are going bananas (did you see what we did there?) for this yellow jacket fruit. From better health, more energy to even improving the way you look and feel, keep reading for 10 reasons you should be eating more bananas today.

Improves digestion

There’s a reason bananas are the most consumed fruit in the world, and high in dietary fibre is just one of them. Fibre can help restore normal bowel function (if you’ve had a sore tum), and is also a great source of natural laxative if you need to get things moving again.

How to wake up younger

Make the most of your downtime with skincare that works while you sleep

With the festive season now in full swing, chances are the number of hours you’re logging under the doona are dwindling. That’s bad news not just for your energy levels but also for your skin. 

“A lack of sleep will impact on every organ of the body, and as skin is our only visible organ, often tiredness shows up here first,” Richard Parker, founder, CEO and head of R&D of Rationale, explains. Cue the dull complexion, dark under-eye circles, blemishes and dryness. But what’s happening below the surface? 

10 foods to eat for better skin

Sherine Youssef talks you through how to nourish your skin with the right foods.

It seems as if a new superfood is “discovered” every other week, and while expert opinion may differ on what makes the list, we know there can be significant health benefits to adding these potent foods to our diet. So what about applying them to our skin?

Skin health clinician Amy Erbacher says that by ingesting as well as applying certain superfood ingredients, we can give skin its best chance at absorbing nutrients and maintaining a healthy texture.

“We have to nurture and protect our skin’s texture,” she explains. 

“Take dehydrated skin – it loses water topically, so to replenish and stop that happening, we can apply certain topical ingredients to help prevent water loss and drink the recommended amount of water.”

Workouts to boost your metabolism

Metabolism is a term that is thrown around all the time, but rarely understood. Chances are you know if it's fast, it's good, but not really much else. To put it plainly: your metabolism is the amount of energy (ie: food) your body burns to maintain vital functions. The speed at which this happens is something called your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). If you've been blessed with good genetics you have a naturally fast BMR, but if not, you have to work a little to get there. The good news is exercise is the number one way to boost your BMR, and depending on the workout, some sessions have shown to keep it firing for four to six hours afterwards. This means your body burns food at amazing speed (allowing you to eat more), and also transforms stubborn fat into lean muscle. Even better, you'll be injected with a huge dose of energy and vitality.

Here are two 30-minute workouts to get your metabolism firing fast.

Burn fat in four minutes

A workout that gives you the benefits of a one-hour run in just four minutes? Bring it on!

When something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. But I may have found an exception: a simple workout that gives you the same fitness benefits as a one-hour run, in four minutes. And no, this isn't a dodgy late-night infomercial. It's called Tabata protocol and it's a type of high-intensity interval training, named after Dr Izumi Tabata, who developed it in 1996.

The workout

Tabata intervals involve high-intensity bursts of exercises for 20 seconds, followed by 10 seconds of rest. Continue these consecutively for four to 10 minutes.

Speed up your metabolism

A high metabolism is key to losing weight and keeping it off.

Ever wondered why the person next to you can eat chocolate all day and not put on weight, but you just have to look at a piece of mud cake and you'll put on a kilo? It's all down to metabolism. We've all heard the word a million times, but what does it mean? And how can we make sure ours is working for us, not against us?

Put simply, our metabolism runs our body the way an engine runs a car. The metabolism is the chemical and physiological processes the body uses to break down nutrients. It regulates the amount of kilojoules our bodies burn and kick-starts our energy levels. The higher your metabolism, the more cake you can eat.

We all burn energy at different rates. This explains why two people may eat the same food for one week, but one person gains weight and the other doesn't. "Someone with a slower metabolism will find it harder to lose weight and find foods like chocolate, bread, butter and junk food add to the waistline," says nutritionist Lola Berry. "Others seem to have a freakishly fast metabolism and seem to be able to get away with eating anything."

How to lose tummy fat in 1 hour a week

You can trim 3.5cm from your tummy in six weeks and it doesn’t require hours at the gym – you just need to pick up the pace. Exercise expert Dr Steve Boutcher explains how.

Interval sprinting

Interval sprinting is typically a short burst of exercise at near all-out intensity, followed by low-intensity exercise, which is repeated again and again. 

It can be applied to many types of exercise, including cycling, running, rowing, boxing and skipping. We use an eight-second sprint followed by 12 seconds of low-intensity exercise for a period of 20 minutes. 

In studies of both men and women doing one hour of interval sprinting a week, after six weeks participants had lost 3.5cm from their waist and maintained that loss after 12 weeks. Doing aerobic exercise, such as jogging or swimming, can also reduce the amount of belly fat but it takes at least five hours a week at a moderately hard intensity. 

10 ways to look 10 years younger

Shaving 10 years off your age doesn't require expensive potions or going under the knife. All it takes is a few little beauty tweaks and you're well on your way to looking younger.

1. Fix your posture

As the years creep up, our bodies creep down, and the way we hold ourselves is a strong indicator of youthfulness. Good posture not only makes you look younger, taller and slimmer, it’s also a powerful life skill – the biggest cause of disability in people aged 50 and over in Australia is lower back pain, and conditioning the muscles that hold us upright is a key preventative measure. 

Here’s a quick posture test: Stand tall, lift one knee thigh-high and balance on the other leg for as long as you can. This will straighten your back and activate the stabilising muscles from your feet, midriff and shoulders that are responsible for posture and balance. Aim to stand for at least 20 seconds on each side.

White tea vs green tea

Nutrition expert Lisa Guy weighs up the health benefits of white and green tea.

(Q) I have read white tea is better than green tea. And yet all reports recommend green tea. Can you please explain the difference?

(A) Both white and green teas come from the same tea plant, Camellia sinensis. White tea leaves are harvested at a younger age than green tea leaves. White tea is considered rare and is usually more expensive than green, as it can only be hand picked during a few days of early spring and has to be handled with such care.

Green tea involves slightly more processing compared to white tea. White tea is steamed rapidly and then dried. While green tea is partially fermented. First it's steamed, fired and then rolled. Black tea on the other hand is fully fermented. Because white and green teas are treated gently and not overly processed, they retain most of their beneficial antioxidants. Green tea is considered rich in antioxidants. However since white tea is less processed, it retains a higher amount of antioxidants, compared to green.

A guide to herbal teas

Steer clear of caffeine with these herbal brews.

Drinking herbal tea not only cuts down on your caffeine intake, but these brews also have some proven health benefits. Here is our A to Z guide of some of the most popular herbals teas around and what they can do for you.

Bergamot

The citrus fruit is known as the main ingredient in Earl Grey tea but herbal tea expert Penelope Sachs says it has some other 'hidden talents'. "In the past this oil has been used to treat mild depression and digestion problems," she says. Look for it in herbal blends rather than as a stand-alone tea.