When people think of fitness and fat they usually don't think of these things correctly. Especially the fat part of the equation. You can have your weight just about perfect for your height, but that doesn't mean you are fit and not fat. It is the fat content of your weight that decides that. You might have 20% body fat and less muscle. This means you are overweight. I will tell you how cross training can reverse those numbers.
Now, some fat is needed for your body. It protects vital organs, insulation for you when it is cold out, and can be burned by your body for energy when needed. So, a bit of fat is good. An excess amount of fat is very bad and can lead to many problems. Excess fat has been linked to diabetes (along with a bad diet), gout, high blood pressure, gallbladder issues, and worst of all, coronary artery disease and clogged arteries. This will lead to a major heart attack down the road.
One way to avoid excess fat is with a good diet, of course. Plenty of raw fruits and lean meats, such as chicken, turkey, fish, and lower fat content beef. You need the calories, in your diet, to burn for energy. As you get older you need a lesser amount of calories to function unless you are cross training or working out a lot. A rule of thumb is for every 3500 calories you take in, unless you burn it off, is worth a pound of fat. A Big Mac is almost a thousand calories. It won't take long to go way past 3500.
The only way to keep those pounds off is either to eat like a bird or exercise and workout to burn them. The more exercise, the more you can eat what you like. Exercise does not have to be this hard, painful, and sweaty experience. If you workout this way, you will not keep it up. It won't be fun and you will quit.
The answer to this exercise issue is cross training. It help keep exercise time fresh and not boring. It keeps you interested and having fun. You add some cross training exercises to your normal workout to keep it a bit diverse and fresh. If you are a lifter, cross training will help save on your muscles and possible muscle damage or injury by having you do something different and fun besides lifting weights.
The 3 most common cross training activities that people choose are swimming,brisk walking or jogging, and bicycling. I choose bike riding because I enjoy it, I can cover and see a lot of new territory, and it is low impact on the knee joints. To start, whatever one or ones you choose, you start at a certain distance and then extend that out as you get in better shape.
Cross training, like cardio training, builds up your endurance, your lungs, works your heart and makes it stronger, keeps the cholesterol out of your arteries, and it burns tons of calories.
After I ride, I treat myself to an ice cream or a couple of beers. I don't worry about the calories. Here are the 3 main benefits of cross training:
1. Increases your endurance,beneficial to your heart and lungs and arteries. It is also said that it increases your relaxation level lowering blood pressure too.
2. The muscles you do use depending on the form of cross training you do, strengthens them also. Gives you more definition of your muscles and helps you to lose fat and get leaner.
3. All the different methods of cross training are very low impact on your joints. They will cause very little if any aches, pains, or injuries.
In conclusion,cross training has so many benefits and no drawbacks at all. I incorporated it into my exercise routine and enjoy it quite a bit. I think you would also.
Thanks For Reading,
Scott
I hope you include cross training in your mens fitness workouts.
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Thanks,
Scott
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