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 Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 4:33 pm
 All of us here are trying gain ourselves a healthy lifestyle. And as much of a drastic difference just a change in diet can do for us, there's something else we must do to truly become fit, and that is one simple word. Exercise. Some of us here may not have the privilege of access to a gym membership or equipment at home, and often that fact is the reason why some of us may put off a healthy lifestyle, simply because they do not desire any of these. Well you can quit your worrying about investing with those nasty fees for now, because I am about to show you all how you can exercise easily for free with results just as good and maybe even better than you would with expensive equipment! Scroll right down to the next post to get started on learning how to get in shape! 
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 4:44 pm
Walking is pretty much the easiest kind of exercise anyone can do. Unless you are an extreme couch potato,
chances are you walk everyday.
There are plenty of ways you can add walking into your exercise routine. And it's extremely easy. First off, I'll
start by introducing some little tips you can add to your daily life to visibly bring walking into your exercise routine.
Tip #1
If it's close, walk there. Don't drive.
These days, gas prices are sky-rocketing so walking to places that are near to your home is actually what
many people are doing. Have a friend that lives a few blocks down? Don't drive! Walk there. The summer heat
can be brutal, but when you wear the correct attire, it can be no problem.
■ If you are walking in the sun, wear loose clothing so that you get some air flow up in your shirt and such
as you step, not a tight fitting tee that will lock in all your heat and moisture.
■ Always bring a small water bottle with you, just incase you get a little thirsty. The worst thing to do is
walk when you are dehydrated.
■ Pace yourself. Don't rush to where you are going because something special is happening at
such and such time. Walk at a constant speed, one that your body is comfortable with walking at. If you
speed walk your way there, half way through the distance you'll be out of breath and sweating, and the last
thing you ever want to do is show up at your destination smelling like you rolled out of a dumpster!
Tip #2
Give yourself more tasks.
Don't know what I'm trying to say? Picture this.
In most cases, everyone needs to run down to the driveway with their garbage can and recycle bin.
Well instead of struggling to carry the two at the same time, carry one down and then walk back up to
grab the other. Not only does it give you an extra lap down the driveway, but it also reduces the strain on
yourself that you would have been causing by carrying both of them.
Another trick I personally use is to run down the garbage can when you know there is trash inside
that needs to be taken out. It'll give you an extra exercise by carrying it all down to the road.
You can also walk down your driveway to get the mail and newspaper, instead of waiting for someone
else to. And if you really want to step it up, you can just bring one piece of mail in at a time. Sure you
may look crazy to your neighbors and family, but who gives? It's exercise!
Tip #3
Walk at a faster pace.
I know I said before to not speed walk your way somewhere, but this isn't a tip on how to run in the Olympics.
What I mean by this, is to step up your walking pace a bit. I know some of you probably go places and when you
"take your time" you drag your feet and walk so slow a turtle could pass you up. I just mean to start
stepping it up a notch. Try to walk a little faster then your normal pace, if you continue to do this, I guarantee
by the time you actually remember to walk faster, you'll realize your "practice" turned into a habit and
you will have already increased your speed. Not only do you get to places faster, but you are also working
your legs more than they are used to, resulting in more calories burned and more fitness!
The Exercise
Now that I have put aside a few times, which I'm sure will be added to as time moves on, I'd like to get
to the actual "exercise" part of this section. Now the most obvious thought when you think about walking for
exercise is to walk around your block, or down to the park. Or some of you may think about walking
on a treadmill. Well, the point of this thread is to teach you all how to exercise without equipment or
leaving the house! So what if I told you that you could walk, at home, without even leaving your room?
What if you could exercise like this and still watch your favorite television shows? Well you can!
By clicking right here you can watch a video, instructed by a trainer, on how to "walk in place". Of course,
it'd seem obvious on how to walk in place, but she also teaches you moves you can perform while walking
to actually work your body so much, that it'll believe you are walking one mile! One mile in only about
fifteen minutes! That's fifteen minutes you can spend watching a television show or playing a video game.
You can do everything you love while performing it! Except eating... I wouldn't recommend that. It
might get a little messy.
There are plenty of other videos out there if you just search for them, but this one I have found to be the
easiest and the best part, it's free!
(Thank you to powerranger pink for posting this link in your journal!)
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 4:46 pm
Besides walking, there are plenty of exercises you can do that will help strengthen your body and
boost your energy and fitness levels. From jumping jacks to sit ups, and even the dreaded push up,
there's plenty in this category to choose from when it comes to getting healthy!
All below information has been taken with permission from eHow and Wiki.
Exercise #1
The Proper Sit Up
Doing sit-ups is a quick way to get stronger abdominal muscles. However, they must be done properly to
avoid any possibility of injury to your spine and the neck and head muscles. In addition, sit-ups
are about using the abdominal region (the abs). Therefore, close attention must be paid to ensuring that
you are not compensating by using other parts of your body to perform as sit-up, as this will diminish
the effectiveness of the sit-up and may cause injury to your body. It is not as harsh as it sounds - always,
always focus on the abs and you are most of the way there.
Below I have listed six easy to understand and perform steps that will get your exercising and recieving
the most out of your workout!
Step One. Lie down on the floor. Have your knees bent and the balls of your feet and heels placed
flat on the ground.
Step Two. Place your hands on opposing shoulders, so that your arms are cross over your chest.
This allows you a central raising point.
Step Three. Tighten your abdominal muscles gently by gently drawing in your belly button to
your spine.
Step Four. Keeping your heels on the ground and your toes flat to the ground, slowly and gently lift
your head first, followed by your shoulder blades. Focus your eyes on your bent knees, all the while
gently contracting the abdominal muscles. Pull up from the floor about half way.
Step Five. Hold the position for a second. Slowly bring the torso back to the floor but try to keep
it slightly elevated off the ground. This means not to place your back flat to the ground but to keep a slight,
yet relaxed, arch.
Step Six. Repeat steps 3-5 for the remainder of the exercise. Only do two to three if you are a
beginner and slowly build up the amount over time, as your strength increases.
Smart Tip!
Personally, I have developed a strategy to gain up to over 150 sit ups. How, you ask? I set a goal for myself.
As the above steps list, if you are just a beginner, you may want to start at a low amount, such as four or
five. Every day you perform a set of sit ups, try to increase the amount by one or two. Such as, on
Monday you can start by doing five sit ups, Tuesday your goal can be to do ten. Wednesday, you can
aim to do fifteen. And so on...
By doing this, you will easily teach your body how to adjust to the amount of sit ups you are performing,
so you don't wake up with horrible cramps the next morning by over-working yourself. Got it?
Good! Now let's go on to the next workout.
Exercise #2
The Jumping Jack
Alright, so we all have probably done jumping jacks when we were younger. I know my elementary
school sure did make us perform them a lot. But how many of you actually think to do them for an
exercise now a days? I know I sure don't! I totally forget about them.
Jumping jacks are a great exercise for strengthening your entire body. They help build bone and burn fat;
they are a great cardiovascular exercise if you perform enough of them. Children love jumping jacks because
they are easy and fun to perform. Follow these steps to perform jumping jacks.
Step One Start with your feet a couple inches apart and hands at your sides. Keep your back straight.
Step Two Bend your knees slightly, then jump up and bring both feet out to your sides. Land on the balls
of your feet before your heels touch the ground. Your feet should be 2 to 3 feet apart.
Step Three Keep your arms straight and bring them up your sides in an arc over your head. Touch or
clap your hands together. Perform this move simultaneously to Step 2.
Step Four Bend your knees slightly and jump, bringing your feet back to starting position. Simultaneously,
keep your arms straight and bring them back to their starting position, hands at your sides.
Step Five Do as many jumping jacks as you feel are necessary. It is best to start with just a few
exercises to avoid sore muscles, but you can later add more for greater cardiovascular benefit.
Smart Tip!
To make this exercise go by quicker, and boost the amount of jumping jacks you perform, try playing some
up-beat music as you do this exercise. You'll subconsciously try to keep up with the beat and you'll be so
tuned into the music, you'll only notice you are tired out by the time the music stops.
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 4:56 pm
Exercise #3
The Dreaded Push Up
Push-ups aren't just for buff army trainees; they are a great upper body, no-cost exercise. If you're just
looking to tone up or gain strength but not too much mass, push-ups are a great exercise. The best thing is
you don't have to go to the gym to do them, you can do them at home!
Here's the proper way to do push-ups anywhere.
Step One Lie chest-down with your hands at shoulder level, palms flat on the floor and slightly more
than shoulder-width apart, your feet together and parallel to each other.
Step Two Look forward rather than down at the floor. The first contact you make with the floor with
any part of the face should be your chin, not your nose.
Step Three Keep your legs straight and your toes tucked under your feet.
Step Four Straighten your arms as you push your body up off the floor. Keep your palms fixed at
the same position and keep your body straight. Try not to bend or arch your upper or lower back as you
push up.
Step Five Exhale as your arms straighten out.
Step Six Pause for a moment.
Step Seven Lower your body slowly towards the floor. Bend your arms and keep your palms in
a fixed position. Keep your body straight and feet together.
Step Eight Lower your body until chest touches the floor. Try not to bend your back. Keep your knees
off the floor, and inhale as you bend your arms.
Step Nine Pause for a moment. Begin straightening your arms for a second push-up. Exhale as
you raise your body.
Smart Tip!
When performing a push up, it may be helpful to not think about actually doing the push up. Keep your mind
elsewhere and about other thoughts while still concentrating on keeping your body straight. But try to tune
out the soreness you feel, you may get an extra push up or two out of it.
Also follow as the smart tip for sit ups recommended, start at a low amount and gradually work your
way up to performing a higher amount. Just because you can do ten regular push ups, I don't advise
you to jump right into doing one handed or clapping ones, you may hurt yourself.
Exercise #4
The Invisible Jump Rope
Due to this being a no-cost, do at home exercise thread, I figured the invisible jump rope exercise
would be a perfect addition. No paying for a jump rope, no annoying thump sound as it hits the
floor. All you need is a set of legs and arms and you are good to go!
Step One Start by finding an open space in your home, to test to make sure you have enough
room, stand with your feet firmly on the ground, placed closely together. Outstretch your arms to your
sides so they are pointing straight out. Slowly move yourself in a circle to be sure nothing is in your
location with the possibility of being touched.
Step Two After doing the above step, and hopefully moving if there wasn't proper space, return
to your starting position. Firmly rest your feet upon the ground and let your arms hand loosely by your sides.
Step Three Raise your arms up so that your hands are at about hip level. Now ball your fists together
as if they are holding the jump rope handle.
Step Four Now act as if you are swinging the jump rope forward by moving your arms in a circular
motion. When the invisible jump rope approaches your feet, slightly bend at your knees.
Step Five When it "touches", bounce up off the balls of your feet, all while still circling your hands
around like your are moving the rope.
Step Six Land back down on the floor on the balls of your feet and slightly bend your knees again.
Now repeat Steps Three to Six until you feel you have completed enough.
Smart Tip!
Like the jumping jacks, it is recommended that you play up-beat music to this exercise as well. It'll keep
you moving fast and definitely adds fun to the exercise, rather than just performing it in dead silence.
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 4:59 pm
Exercise #5
The Proper Squat
Squats are one of the most maligned of all exercises. Remembered by ex-football players as their least
favorite machine to work on in the weight room and feared by most other because it looks like the squatter
will blow out their knee at any second. However, this is a great exercise to build up your legs and glutes. Read
on to learn how to do squats.
Step One Stand in front of a mirror, in front of a chair. Bend your knees and hips and begin lowering
your butt down like you're going to sit in the chair.
Step TwoLower just a few inches, then come back up. Now do it again, but keep your eye on your
lower legs. Your knees should never extend over the edge of your toes, try to keep your shins
perpendicular to the floor.
Step Three Do this ten times, take a thirty second break, and then repeat once more.
Smart Tip!
Once you have gotten the hang of this exercise, try removing the chair and attempt to squat down even
lower. Remember to always keep your back straight to avoid spinal injuries. A good way to do so is
by looking straight ahead of yourself, not up at the ceiling or to the side.
Exercise #6
Glute Bridges
A great exercise that trains balance and body stability while strengthening and tightening the muscles in
the buttocks, lower back and upper thighs.
Read below for steps on how to perform.
Step One Start on your back with your feet shoulder width apart and your knees bent.
Step Two Bridge up with your hips extending upwards as high as you can, stretching the hip flexors
and contracting the buttocks at the top.
Step Three Hold position for 1-3 seconds, lower your body back down to the starting position and repeat.
A short video on how it should look.
Smart Tip!
Always make sure that your feet and hands are locked in the same position to avoid using them to
help with the exercise. Hands and feet should always remain flat against the ground.
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 5:05 pm
Reserved for more exercises.
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 5:06 pm
 Why buy weights when you can easily use your own household items to help tone those muscles? You can simply use books, cans or even marshmellows. Just follow the steps below to start your no-cost, weight lifting exercise! The ExerciseStep One Begin by finding two objects that weigh generally the same amount. Things that work best are canned soups and books, but you may use whatever you find is suitable. Step Two Find an free space in your home where you have a fairly good amount of space to move around. Begin by placing your feet together and firmly against the floor. Hold each item (or weight) in your hands, and let them hang loosely by your side. Be sure to check that your spine is straight to avoid any sort of back injury. Step Three Lift your arms to about hip level. Outstretch them infront of you as if you are holding a tray of food from below. Be sure that your hands are turned to that your palms are facing the cieling. Step Four Slowly lift your hands up towards your chest. As you asend, you should begin to feel tension within your upper arms. Slowly return them back to their position in front of you. Step Five Repeat the above steps ten times, take a thirty second break, and then repeat the entire process over again. Smart Tip!When exercising with weights, always remember that speed is the least of your worries. The faster you lift, the less of a result you receive. When using weights you get more of a benefit the slower and longer you draw out a lift. And be sure to stop or take a break when feeling sore to avoid pulling any muscles. 
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 5:09 pm
 Have an exercise suggestion for the thread? Go ahead and post it here or private message it to my account and I will be glad to post it up for you! Just remember that this thread is solely based on exercises that do not require equiptment or high costs. 
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 8:33 pm
Done! I really hope this helps anyone who was looking for exercises they could use to tie in with their lifestyle!
I know I certainly learned quite a few new things!
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Posted: Sun Aug 10, 2008 9:01 pm
 It's been stickyfied. Which isn't a word..><;
Cravez or me will move this to the exercise subforum when it is made.
& this post will be deleted once it's moved biggrin 
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