Cannabidiol (CBD) oil is an alternative medicinal product for chronic pain and anxiety relief. One of its main components is organic hemp, which is a non-psychoactive derivative of marijuana. As it does not contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) that give cannabis smokers the typical feeling of high, it can be sold and used commercially.
Why Should I Add Push Ups to My Workout?
When it comes to toning the upper body without limits, no exercise works better than push ups. Unlike lifting weights and performing plyometric workouts, they don’t require expensive fitness equipment, can be performed almost anywhere, and the best part, they’re easy! Relatively speaking, of course.
Benefits of Performing Push-ups Regularly
– Increases muscle density
As you age, your muscle density reduces and alters how your body converts fat into energy. Push ups work well to increase and maintain the muscles of your upper body. This exercise tones your shoulders, chest, triceps, abs, and to a smaller extent the back, biceps, and legs.
– Enhances muscles stability and balance
Doing push ups every day improve the reaction time of your muscle fibers. During push ups, the fibers consistently react to keep your body balanced. This reaction enables these fibers to react faster when stimulated increasing your speed and balance. Read the rest of this entry »
What IS beta alanine?
Beta alanine is a non-essential amino acid. This means that it’s produced by our body (in the liver) and it isn’t therefore essential to include it in our diet. However, weight lifters and body builders can, and do, benefit from taking it in supplement form to top up the levels naturally present in their bodies. It’s also naturally present in high protein foods such as meat and fish.
How does beta alanine work?
Most amino acids are the building blocks of protein, which helps give us a lean body. However, beta alanine does not help towards building protein, instead, along with histidine it is converted into carnosine which the body uses to increase stamina, improve strength and help build muscle. So, for more stamina, strength and muscle building, more beta alanine and therefore more carnosine is advantageous.
As we exercise, lactic acid builds up in our muscles, causing the pH to lower, in turn causing fatigue and the eventual end of our workout. Carnosine helps eliminate lactic acid and other by-products of intense physical exercise, and regulates the pH of the muscles allowing us to work out for longer. It also helps reduce post exercise recovery time, allowing for more rewarding workouts in quicker succession. Read the rest of this entry »
If you are an athlete like most others, you never feel like you’ve maximized your potential, no matter your skill level. That is basically true for all athletes in all sports, including basketball. More practice means more skill, which in turn means better performance.
Probably you work hard practicing indoors and outdoors, shooting hoops at all angles and distances. With your basketball in-hand you probably travel great distances to play and practice with other skilled athletes who can help you improve your own skills. You’ve likely improved your ball handling skills, developed your shooting and passing ability, and you’re still working hard on the court to become a better rebounder.
But did you think about maintaining a diet plan to improve your performance by enhancing training, speeding recovery and decreasing illness?
Think about it again. Food and diet have huge impact on your body. Balanced diet is what you need to influence your health and athletic performance – including stamina and endurance. Read the rest of this entry »
Creatine is the most researched and well understood training supplement. Creatine is also one of the most widely used, and trusted, sports nutrition supplements for weight trainers wanting to maximize muscle mass.
Creatine helps increase the speed and force of muscle fibres and helps them repair more quickly and scientific studies have found that taking a regular creatine supplement increases the reserves of creatine in muscle fibres. This means that the benefits of creatine supplements could be further reaching than just being used as a sports supplement.
Catabolic muscle wastage, cachexia and sarcopenia
If you’re suffering from a catabolic wasting condition where your muscles are starting to decrease considerably in size (muscle atrophy), then creatine supplements could help you. The term ‘catabolic’ refers to the breakdown of muscle tissue, and is the opposite of the term ‘anabolic’ which means the building up of muscle tissue.
Read the rest of this entry »
Build Upper Body Muscle & Strength At Home
Pull-ups are simply one of the finest body weight exercises that can be carried out for your upper body. Pull-ups workout your core, back, arms, and shoulders working out almost every muscle in the upper body. Pull-ups can be performed virtually anywhere that you can locate a bar to cling from.
We all know about the normal pull-up; how tough they are! This exercise in itself demands great power, and if you cannot perform at least 20 standard pull-ups in a row, then I suggest you do not attempt any of these advanced pull-up versions until you can.
Read the rest of this entry »
As a follow up to last week’s introduction to Kayla Itsines’ Bikini Body Guide, here’s a sweet review of Kayla’s new app designed offer a supportive community for those trying to get off the couch and start moving. At Project Swole we’re not limited to our hardcore attitude. We care more about getting couch potatoes off their butt and excising, than we do about everyone deadlifting 700 lbs.
Have you heard of the latest Sweat with Kayla app by Kayla Itsines? If you haven’t, then you should read this to learn how it may help you!
The market is saturated with fitness programs each claiming that they are the end all be all of fitness. Many of them are very similar, offering variations on the same exercise moves and advice. So it makes sense to be skeptical when you come across yet another workout app, but the Sweat with Kayla Itsines app really is something different. Read the rest of this entry »
Who is Kayla Itsines and what is her BBG workout program all about? Read on to learn more about the Kayla Itsines workout!
With over 5.7 million followers on Instagram and an active and enthusiastic community of fitness-minded women across social media and around the world, you have probably heard of her Bikini Body Guide workout program.
Kayla is a certified personal trainer hailing from Australia and has created the largest exercise community for women in the world, and it’s easy to see why.
The Kayla Itsines workout BBG program makes it easy for any woman, of any fitness level, to reach her goals and achieve the bikini body she has been dreaming of. Read the rest of this entry »
The Basic Fundamentals Of Losing Weight And Keeping It Off
Over the years, more and more consumers have discovered the paramount importance of losing weight and getting into shape. An abundance of health complications can be directly linked to obesity. This includes diabetes, asthma, and high blood pressure. Unfortunately, losing weight can seem hopeless for a large quantity of the population. It is undeniably much more difficult than the majority of people will ever know and keeping the weight off can be even more difficult. Below, you will discover the fundamentals of losing weight and keeping it off for good.
Calories In vs Calories Burned
First and foremost, it is pertinent to follow the basics. The concept of losing weight is actually very simple. Individuals only need to consume less calories than they burn each and every day. By following this basic formula, you’ll eventually lose weight. Unfortunately, putting this simple plan into action can be very difficult. Hunger, lack of control, and other factors can get in the way and lead the individual astray. Read the rest of this entry »
What actually are Superfoods?
When we mention the term “Superfoods” it is not uncommon for there to be a sense of confusion among most people. This is not really surprising either. While consuming nutrient dense foods is an ancient practice, the concept is basically lost in our fast-paced and convenience focused culture. Only recently has there been mainstream attention and research towards the importance of introducing this kind of nutrition back into the human diet.
The term “Superfood” refers to any nutrient-dense food that is widely considered to be beneficial towards our health and overall well-being. The term is a relatively new one, having only generated popularity in the last 20 years or so. However, the idea is simple. Foods that have a wide-ranging nutritional profile that includes; micro & macro-nutrients, phytochemicals, phytopigments, antioxidants, vitamin and trace minerals.
Most “superfoods” are plant based covering everything from fruits, vegetables, sea-vegetables, grains, nuts, grasses and herbs. There are even many all-in-one type of green superfood supplement powders. There are also some superfoods that are derived from fish as well. While most “superfood” products will have different ingredients and ratios of such, for the most part they will typically include all the same stuff.
What can Green Superfoods do for you?
There are so many benefits from regularly consuming foods considered to be “superfoods”. Whether you are consuming a green drink in the morning, or eating dense salads at lunch, or ending your day with a chia-seed pudding. By including any, or all of these foods into your diet most people will agree that you will see and feel great results.
The increase in foods rich in antioxidants like beta-carotene will add great regenerative and overall health benefits to your body. This plays an important role regardless if you are a young child, an athlete, a middle-aged parent, or an old timer. The ability to fight off illness and increase recovery time is crucial to living longer, and staying healthy and fit along the way.
“Superfoods” can offer a host of essential vitamins and minerals like B1, B2, B6, B12, folic acid, potassium, calcium, iron, phosphorus and magnesium. There are ingredients that are otherwise quite uncommon in a typical diet today. On average most Americans are lacking in essential vitamins and minerals that help our body maintain itself, and the vitamins we do take are usually in the form of capsules or sugary pills that do not always absorb into the body sufficiently to have an impact.
Greens, which make up the majority of the “superfood” category, are extremely important to the body. Not only do they provide fiber, but they are also alkaline forming. By maintaining a balanced ph level in the body, research has shown that it will help prevent the formation of many health related issues, including cancer. Read the rest of this entry »
Generally speaking, bodybuilders and certain athletes find themselves going through two training and dieting phases each year: bulking and cutting. For bodybuilders, bulking is a joyous time of the year as they get to basically eat a selection of nice tasting foods, which whilst being healthy for the most part, still are made up of slightly unhealthier choices, with plenty of cheat meals thrown in for good measure.
When bulking, the idea is to build up a calorie surplus so that you basically consume more calories than you’re able to burn off.
This is primarily how muscle mass is grown. Whilst bulking however, it is important bodybuilders still keep an eye on their daily macros because if they consume too many calories, not only will they build muscle, they’ll also find themselves gaining a fair amount of fat in the process, and that is not ideal.
The second phase, they find themselves in, is one which is enjoyable, yet difficult and stressful at the same time – cutting, or fitness cutting as it is sometimes referred to as. At Project Swole we like to refer to this cutting phrase as a shred, as in Project Shred.
The idea behind fitness cutting is that they attempt to lose as much fat as possible, whilst maintaining or building as much lean muscle mass as possible. When fitness cutting, a bodybuilder’s primary goal is to become as lean, defined, vascular, and shredded as possible. If these sound like your goals, take a look at our handy fitness cutting guide outlining everything you need to know. Read the rest of this entry »
For years athletes, movie stars, and gym rats have been falling in love with performance enhancing products to get stronger, faster, or bigger. Bodybuilders in particular love the kinds of results that these products provide them with but there are some serious drawbacks to prohormones, which usually forces people to turn to real anabolic steroids.
Most people who want to build serious muscle mass often resort to using such oral or injectable steroid products as testosterone, trenbolone, anadrol, anavar, winstrol etc. If you’re interested cycling these types of substances, you’re going to want to finish this article. Going into a cycle without proper knowledge wastes money, time, and can make you really sick.
Please note that all of the products discussed in this article and more, can be found at one of the better online resourced based on online reviews and word of mouth. The SteroidsFax anabolic steroid website is one of the best places to get these products, but be careful as most steroids are not legal in many countries. Check your country’s laws and postal restrictions to find out more.
Read the rest of this entry »
Why is protein so important?
Protein is an essential building block to the body, as it helps create strong muscles, bones and even blood. Athletes and those who exercise hard are among those who are at high-risk to be protein deficient.
Your body may be sending you signals that you aren’t getting enough protein, but you may be interpreting these signals as something else. Take a look at the following examples of symptoms that can be misinterpreted as another issue in the body.
Are Your Muscles a Pain?
Many people believe in the old adage, “no pain no gain.” However, sore muscles may
be a sign that you are protein deficient. Because muscles use Amino Acids as their building structure and Amino Acids come from protein, if you aren’t getting enough your muscles may feel sore and weak. Lack of protein can also cause flab to appear where you once had muscles, because your body may be using those muscle as protein for the body. If you are feeling sore muscles or even joints, take an inventory of your protein intake. Adding a bit of protein with a nutritional supplement like Advocare may help those sore muscles disappear.
You might have been doing fitness exercises you think are effective in achieving your fitness goals. The truth is that they might do the opposite. It is time to straighten up the facts and reject the myths that could have impeded your goal all these years.
It is indeed surprising to see that the facts that we were made to believe were true, are in fact pure myths. Therefore, you need to start changing your diet and exercise plans now. In case you wonder why you still don’t achieve your fitness goals despite everything that you have done, then this could be the main reason. You are doing your exercise routines the wrong way or you are eating the wrong types of foods. You need to plan your meals better the next time around and understand the science behind every exercise routine before doing it.
Summer is the perfect time to get out of the house to enjoy some fresh air and exercise. Fitness is a lifelong investment that starts in childhood. Developing healthy fitness habits early promotes healthy behaviors, improves self-esteem and facilitates wellness throughout life.
Always remember that parents are the best role model for both inspiring an active fitness lifestyle, and also for promoting safety as a top priority in sports and recreation. The best thing parents can do for their kids, is to stay happy, healthy, and active.
Children as young as two benefit from fitness activities. Toddlers like to explore and they play to learn more about their world. They prefer unstructured play such as running, swinging, climbing, kicking a ball, and playing in the sand box. Toddlers also enjoy interacting with peers to improve socialization skills.
How to avoid dreaded muscle cramps!
A muscle cramp can be a serious buzzkill when you are dialed in on a workout. Or worse, they can be an unwanted and painful wake up call in the middle of the night. So how can you prevent these awful knots in your muscles from occurring? While proper hydration and sleep are important factors, your nutrition habits can have a huge impact on preventing cramps.
Foods rich in potassium, sodium, magnesium, Vitamin D, and calcium help your muscles function properly and prevent muscle cramps. Potassium is an electrolyte that your body sweats out when you exercise. Lack of potassium is one of the leading causes of muscle cramping. Those taking diuretic supplements have higher tendencies for potassium deficiencies and should be especially aware of their intake efforts.
Sodium is another important electrolyte your body needs for optimum performance. While too much sodium can be a problem, most people forget to make sure they have enough when exercising. You lose it quickly when you sweat and need to make sure you’re replenishing these levels or you may experience harsh side effects like nausea and vomiting.
Read the rest of this entry »
Getting to the Olympic podium isn’t easy – but these athletes will give you the inspiration you need to achieve your athletic or fitness goals.
Athletic Edge Sports Medicine in Toronto created this interactive web page by pulling data from the Olympic website and the individual Wikipedia pages for these athletes. The infographic takes a look at the youngest and oldest ages of summer Olympic gold winners.
The infographic covers everything from the Olympic 100M and golf to fencing and beach volleyball. Another neat feature of this web page is it’s interactive set up: Clicking on an athlete will show you the year they competed in and their country. Origin countries and olympic dates across the world from Bulgaria in 1976 to Italy in 1912 to Canada in 1904 are covered.
Two athletes that stand out are Marjorie Gestring and George Seymour Lyon. Gestring is the youngest to win at age 13 in 1932 for the United States, her oldest counterpart being Chantelle Newbery who won at age 27 in 2004 for Australia. Lyon won a gold medal in golf at age 46 in 1904 for Canada, his youngest counterpart being Warren Kenneth Wood who won at age 17 in 1904 for the United States.
These athletes didn’t let their age define their athletic goals – and neither should you. Check out the infographic below for some inspiration:
Read the rest of this entry »
It is pretty much widely accepted that to truly build a solid and lean physique, one must make sure they are receiving an adequate amount of protein in their diet. While a solid diet with meals rich in protein, fats, carbs and fiber is important many athletes and lifters choose to add a protein supplement following a workout, like one of these top 5 protein supplements here. For decades now, whey protein has been a mainstay choice of fitness professionals.
Whey is a by-product of cheese making, which is then dried and made into a powdered form. Typically being from cow’s milk, it contains 20% protein. By comparison human milk contains 40% protein. Whey is a huge source of branched chain amino acids, or BCAA’s, which stimulate protein synthesis in the body. It is for this reason that whey protein is so successful at building lean muscle mass.
After intense training and our bodies have burned up all our fuel is when our muscles need protein the most. By supplementing with a liquid protein source, like whey protein, you are ensuring that you will feed those broken down muscles, rather than them start to feed on themselves. Being in liquid form allows for greater absorption. And whey protein specifically is synthesized over a longer period of time, allowing your muscles to be fed for hours. Whey protein can be taken in four different forms: concentrate, isolate, hydrolysate, & casein. While each has its own benefits, they are all none-the-less extremely beneficial to building the physique you desire.
By: Sara Jane Adkins
Admit it.
You felt the same way I did at some point in your life.
As a woman who is extremely active (I do crossfit four times a week), I rebelled for the longest time against adding more protein to my diet.
The majority of the advertisements that I saw for protein powder featured guys that looked like Arnold Schwarzenegger in his heyday.
And while I would not mind my husband sporting those round shoulders, there was no way I wanted my physique to resemble anything remotely close to that.
My misconception of the effect that protein has on the body is very common among many women.
Protein is a crucial nutrient for the body. In fact, it accounts for 20 percent of our body weight, and helps in the synthesis of hormones, enzymes and vital cellular structures.
Protein also assists with fluid balance and the building of antibodies that protect against infection and other harmful viruses. In short, if we do not supply our bodies with the proper amount of protein, we cannot survive.
That is why it is so important to understand the crucial role that protein plays in maintaining overall health, especially since many women limit their protein consumption because of the myths associated with it.
Some women fear that high-protein diets may cause them to look too “bulky,” can compromise bone health or may be taxing on the kidneys. However, these assumptions are nothing more than myths that should be set straight for a variety of reasons.
How to Burn Fat Quickly and Efficiently
Burning fat can be tough, there’s so many things you have to keep track of if you want to do it effectively. There’s calories to count, workouts to perform and even macronutrients to balance.
But there are ways to make things easier. Simple additions you can incorporate into your lifestyle to start seeing faster results.
< Here at Project Swole we show you the simplest ways to burn fat faster by following these simple methods. If you’re struggling to lose those stubborn extra pounds, this is the article you need to read:
1. Drinking Green Tea
When cutting fat, people think a lot more about what they eat, rather than what they drink – and that’s a big problem. Sodas, beer, and even fruit tea can contain huge amounts of calories, and can easily go against all that hard word you’ve been putting into your diet.
So what’s the solution? Green Tea. One of the better beverages for fat loss, Green tea is full of antioxidants, contains next to no calories, and it accelerates fat loss.
