5 Exercises That Aren't Worth Your Time

"Any exercise is better than no exercise" is an urban legend that most of us have mistaken for truth. The fact is that some common exercises are completely ineffective and not worth doing. Plus, many of them aren't all that fun to do either. If you've been torturing yourself with waste-of-time workouts, give yourself a much-needed break. These are five exercises that simply are not worth your time.

Crunches

Many people with muffin tops folding over their jeans have bought into the myth that doing hundreds of crunches will tighten their tummy. After all, it makes your stomach muscles burn like crazy, so it must be doing something. However, crunches are perhaps the most overrated form of exercise that actually do very little for your figure. If you want to lose the fat, you need to do cardio to burn the calories. And if you want muscle tone and definition, activities like swimming, dancing, and tennis are better for you. Not only are they safer and less likely to cause back and neck problems, but they more effectively work your core as well. Crunches don't do a lot because they isolate your abs instead of working your core as a whole. Crunches are a waste of time - swap them out for something else.

Running Stairs

First of all, you need to find a large stairwell for it to be effective. It's not worth finding one because running stairs is hard on your lower body and is terrible for your back and knees. Plus, you get the same benefits from normal running.

The Superman

This is the move where you lay flat on your tummy and lift your arms and legs off the ground. Any benefits that this move promises are of microscopic proportions since the range of motion is so small. You are more likely to throw out your back than accomplish anything meaningful with this move.

Wall-Sits

This exercise from purgatory should be removed from your workout regiment. They won't help you lose weight, and the muscular gains are miniscule. The only thing this move is good for is time-outs for naughty kids.

Seated Leg Extensions

Your knees were never meant to handle the strain of raising heavy weights around your ankles. The risk of injuring your knees with this exercise is so high that it is simply not worth doing. If you want to strengthen your legs, lunges and squats are better and safer choices.
Not all exercises are created equal. Some are downright dangerous. If you want a workout that is safe and effective, nothing beats good old-fashioned walking or jogging. If you want a little more muscle resistance, you could try swimming or biking. As a basic rule-of-thumb, natural movements are generally safe while clumsy, forced movements can cause more problems than they are worth. The problem with these five exercises is that they are so commonly used that people automatically assume that they are good. When it comes to your health, don't buy into urban legends. Do what is right for your body.

This post was written by Brian S., writer for the National Council on Strength and Fitness. As a graduate from Rollins College, Brian's resourceful nature and diverse interests make him an excellent writer.

A Fitness Routine Geared Specifically For Women Who Want A Great Body Fast

By Chris Tan

A fitness routine geared specifically for women is an
excellent way to lose weight and gain a healthier you.
However, it is important to remember that with any fitness
regimen, hard work and dedication are needed for success.

The women of today live a hustle and bustle lifestyle that
leaves them no time for anything extra. For this reason,
time is the number complaint as to why women fail at
exercise routines. In addition, it places an emphasis on the
quick fix of diet pills and teas which can be harmful and
generally don't work. To achieve the much desired 'quick
result" women need to adopt specific exercise routines.

High Intensity Workouts.

Intensity is the key when it comes to fitness trainings.
Whether you are doing cardio exercise or weight training
exercises, you have to know that the higher intensity of
your workout, the more calories you will be burning. For
example, a person who jogs for 5 days a week will be losing
less calories and fats as compared to one who runs for 3
days a week. That is how much a difference intensity levels
can make.

For maximum intensity levels, do short bursts of exercises.
For example, do sets of sprints and then rest instead of
long distance jogging. Long distance jogging will not
increase your heart rate as much as sprinting does. With
high intensity workouts, you will no longer need hours of
exercise to see results.

Training with Weights.

Training with weights is the best way to increase your
metabolism. In weight training, the heavier the weights and
the more lifting you do, the more your metabolism increases.
In addition, the higher intensity of your weight training
will increase your metabolism for twenty-four hours.

The best workout is a combination of both cardio and weight
training. All of this may seem daunting and sound like hard
work, but you will be rewarded with changes in your body
every week.

Eat a Healthy Diet.

Proteins, carbohydrates and fats ingested by the body
determine the way your body will look. Adopting a healthy
diet is another great step to achieving your fitness goals.

To see results quickly, implement a strict healthy diet into
your fitness routine. Here are some suggestions.

Eating foods high in protein rather than carbohydrates is
the best way to see results. Proteins allow your body to
feel full for longer while carbohydrates create excess
energy that the body will store, thus creating fat.

Eating small meals several times a day is another great way
to boost your metabolism. This little trick makes your body
think you're eating more food, thus it will work harder. It
is for this reason that starvation diets do not work. When
the body is starved, the metabolism does not have to work as
hard to store energy for later use.

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How Body Type Can Affect Your Body Building Success

By Kyle Peters

Bodybuilding can be a difficult sport at the best of times
but one way to improve your chances of success is to know
your body type. Knowing this will tell you how you are going
to respond to the weight training and exercise program and
allow any modifications necessary to increase your success.
Often it can be just a simple process of looking in a mirror
and studying your features to determine your type.

If you are tall and skinny then this would often mean you
would be classified in the group known as endomorphs. These
are classically hard gainers and if you fall into this group
and have already started a training program you will know
that no matter what you do, it is difficult to put on any
weight or muscle.

The major advantage of being in this group is that although
you may find it difficult to put on muscle it will also be
difficult to put on fat. What this means to you is that when
you do put on muscle mass it will be without a gain in fat
tissue which will leave you looking very ripped. In fact you
would not have to put on as much muscle to look bigger and
toned as you will have superb definition.

The next group are typically shorter, squat, heavier and are
naturally more muscular. These are commonly known as the
mesomorphs. Often they will claim to be able to put on
muscle just by looking at a set of weights!

For those with a mesomorphic physique then usually a less
intense workout program is required. The biggest hurdle to
face though is the issue of fat gain. As well as muscle,
these types can also easily put on fat. It is vital to
increase the proportion of protein intake in the daily
calories to try and overcome this.

The ideal amount of daily intake of protein for endomorphs
is around 2g per kilogram of body weight. It is also
important to increase general calorie intake to stimulate an
anabolic state.

Excellent gains can be achieved by both body types but those
with ectomorphic bodies will have to work harder in the gym
to stimulate muscle growth and will also have to increase
calorie intake. With mesomorphs it is important to be
careful about increasing fat levels and often, many will
find they end up cycling between bulking up and losing fat.

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