For weight loss you want to work at 60% to 70% of your heart rate max (HRM). Your hear rate max is the maximum amount of times your heart can beat in a minutes. To determine that number use the standard formula of subtracting your age from 220. Then take that number and multiply it by .60 and you have 60% of your heart rate max. Follow the same steps except replace .60 with .70 and you will come us with 70% of your heart rate max. Stay between these two numbers on your heart rate monitor and you are on the straight and narrow path to weight loss. (For example someone who is 30 years old. 220-30=190 190 x .60= 116 190 x .70 = 134. A 30 year old must stay between 116 and 134 HRM for a weight loss workout) Over these percentages of your HRM your body tells your fat burning hormones (epinephrine, nor epinephrine and growth hormones) to shut down so it can use their energy, along with all other available energy, to your respiratory system to maintain your pace.

Working above 70% of your heart rate max over an extended period of time, like your whole 45 minute run, may allow you to burn more calories but less of those calories will be from fat. In the end you don’t just want to burn calories, you want to burn fat calories for lasting weight loss. When your body can’t use your fat stores to burn the next place it turns is to lean muscle stores, which is the last thing you want. Lean muscle is what keeps your metabolism up and running allowing you to keep off the extra pounds.

For efficient and effective weight loss we want our calories to come from our fat stores not our lean muscle store. Working over 70% HRM may be beneficial speed training but it’s just not an efficient way to loose weight. Despite popular opinion of “more is better” and “faster is the best”, slowing down is a faster route to loosing weight. Don’t misquote me you will burn calories no matter how fast or slow you run but for weight loss you want to burn as many calories from fat as you can.

Lastly and probably most importantly when trying to loose weight weather it’s 5 pounds or 50 pounds. Now isn’t the time to multi-task. Pick one goal and stick to it. Don’t practice for a 5K to loose weight. You’d do yourself and your recorded time a favor if you loose the weight first then start a race prep running schedule. ( To be detailed in the next article) At 60% to 70% of your HRM you may not be running at your fastest pace or pushing your personal best time. In fact you may even have to slow down to a speed walking pace. And that’s okay because you will arrive at your weight loss goal a lot faster if you slowed down.

Treadmills are easy to use and they are not that expensive especially the lower end models. The use of a treadmill will help you lose weight and body fat. A non-physical benefit of a treadmill can be that they don’t take up a lot of space. Oh there are some that could use a whole room but if space is the issue then you can find manual treadmills that are powered by your movement only that fold. Really do some research and talk to professionals about which one might be appropriate.

It is best to compare different models. What kind of features are you looking for on your treadmill? Here are some things to look at when you are comparing various models. It can be overwhelming because all you really want is to work out. The type of motor is important as it can affect the size of your machine. The belt trackers are the most important things to look at.

It is the placement of the running belt and the type of movement of the belt as you work out. You want a belt that moves smoothly over the rollers as opposed to being jerky. Did you ever see a check out belt in the market that starts and jumps and then starts and jumps again? If the movement on your treadmill is like that there can be more impact on your joints than necessary and injury can result.

The length and width of the belt is something else to look at. A belt that is not long enough can cause you to ‘run-off’ the end of the belt. A belt that is too narrow will not necessarily support your stance. Try out the machine if possible or one very much like it if at all possible.

The type of incline and the percentage of the incline will affect your workout and the impact on your joints. Many treadmills have adjustable inclines so that as you progress you can increase the slant to where you are walking like you would on a steep hill. The speed, how fast the belt moves, should be adjustable as well. What is the minimum and maximum speed? Knowing this will help you plan your workout and make it more effective.

One of the features you should look for on your treadmill monitor console is a heart rate monitor. You can make your workout more beneficial if you know your resting heart rate and your target heart rate is the highest number you reach to get maximum benefits from your work out. The console should also display your speed, your time and the distance you have covered.

It is imperative that you learn to properly run your treadmill before attempting to use it. The control panel should be easy to read. Can the control panel be used without the software program? You do not want a noisy treadmill. While there will be some noise, you don’t want the noise to be overwhelming.

Is the noise level acceptable for you? How thick is the belt? A thin belt could wear over time so you would want a belt that is thick enough to last for a long time. Some belts will begin to stretch. In order to help make your treadmill last be sure you regularly check that the belt hasn’t stretched or cracked anywhere. Make sure the monitor is functioning properly.

Other things to consider are how heavy the machine is. Some delivery companies will only bring it to your door, it’s then up to you to get it in the house and set it up. How it looks is important because if you don’t like how it looks in your home you will be less likely to use it. Will it be easy to store when not in use? Most likely it will occupy the same space when it’s not in use so you may want to consider (before you bring it home) if this will be acceptable.

Your treadmill should be placed away from walls to prevent injury from falls. It should be about eight feet away from any ledge, wall, or windows. All wires and the power supply should be out of the way of walking areas or taped down to prevent someone from tripping when getting on or off your treadmill.

Here are a few tips on using your new treadmill. Before you get on the belt straddle the belt and make sure it is set at the proper speed. Keep your eyes forward as your eyes will follow your feet. Be sure to stay in the center of the belt to prevent some slips and falls.

Fortunately, pain isn’t always a definite sign of tissue damage; instead it can be protective pain that is coming from entities called myofascial trigger points.

Pain from trigger points can feel like its coming from knee joint or patellae, while it’s actually coming from contraction knots in the quadriceps muscles.

What makes things quite enigmatic is that these knots can sometimes reside high in quadriceps muscles, far from where the actual pain symptom is felt.

It’s not uncommon for knee pain to be solely or partially muscular. It’s also common for doctors to overlook trigger points as a possible pain cause, because at this point there is no imaging equipment in use, which could verify their existence.

For now, only way to find out if trigger point are part of the pain equation, is manually palpating and searching for them from the muscles. There are not many doctors who do this, or know how to do this, or think that it’s even beneficial to do this.

Fortunately finding and treating trigger points is quite easy, and you don’t need an expert to do it for you.

You just find tender spots which refer pain to your knee when pressed, from those muscles that are reported to be involved in knee pains.

Usually, even a few days of self-massage to those points, can make them stop referring pain to your knee area. And make it evident that they where indeed behind the pain.

Finding and massaging trigger points in the quadriceps and calf muscles, and the small muscles behind the knee( Plantaris & popliteus), should give you good results.

With that said, let’s talk about running and its benefits.

The wonderful thing about running/jogging is that I can be done just about anywhere in the world. All you really need is a good pair of running shoes and some determination.

Running is a great stress outlet and it promotes weight loss and fitness all at the same time. You are probably wondering why it’s not a part of everyone’s everyday life. That is the purpose of this article, to encourage running as a means of physical and mental health.

The challenge of getting out there and pushing yourself is the kicker for most people. When you decide to give it a try you’ll quickly see how enjoyable it really is. Every time you finish a run you’ll feel a great sense of accomplishment, this is because you’ve pushed yourself to your limits and you know what you’ve done is good for you.

The mental work out I refer to is the mental training and control it takes to make each stride and to push yourself. When you become tired your mind starts thinking of other things you’d rather be doing that are less strenuous. You tell yourself not to listen and to focus more. So you focus on your breathing and your form. You are training your mind not to give in. When you are focused before you know it you’ve conquered your run for another day. It’s a great sense of accomplishment!

I recommend having 3 or so different places to run, the variety will keep it interesting and more fun. The distance you cover is totally up to you, run distances you feel comfortable with. When you feel that you are ready to add more length to your sessions, then do so, in small increments.

Always remember to stretch out before you begin running, this will prevent injury and ensure your muscles are ready for the work ahead. You should be stretching for at least 4 to 5 minutes before starting. Don’t forget that running uses more than just your legs, so stretch everything, not just your legs. If it’s cold out, it’s a good idea to stretch more than regularly and to go for a quick warm-up walk.

Drinking water will keep you hydrated and help you go the distance. I like to drink 3 tall glasses of water before I go for a run and roughly the same amount immediately after I finish the run. You can even take water with you and drink it while running, keep in mind that you’ll need something to hold the water unless you don’t mind having the bottle/container in your hand.

Some key elements to think about and remember while on your run are good pace and proper form. These 2 factors will hugely affect your ability “keep going”. If you push yourself to much off the get go, you won’t have any energy left for the middle or end of your run. If you ever get the feeling that you NEED to stop, DON’T!. What I recommend is, slowing down your pace to almost walking speed, but keep the running form. Soon enough you’ll have your breath back and you can pick up the pace again. The importance of form is related to efficient use of your energy. You should try to keep your back reasonably straight, to keep from hunching over; this also helps in proper respiration. Also don’t move your arms excessively, this is a common mistake and it’s easily fixed. Try to keep your arms reasonably limber and if you move them while taking strides, try to move them in a forward-to-backward motion. Moving your arms side to side causes you to waste energy, keep your momentum going in the direction you want – forward.

When you’re finished, make sure you cool down properly. This will keep away muscle cramps and it’s all around easier on your body. Walk for a few minutes and remember to stretch well when you’re done. And remember you can never have too much water after a long run!

See you out there!

The problem is most people don’t know where to begin and usually do it wrong.

In this article I am going to show you an effective way to start a running or jogging program without killing yourself.

The first mistake people make when they begin a running or jogging program is that they run too fast. This will leave you out of breath and spent in about 5 or 10 minutes. When this happens people generally think to themselves that anyone who runs is crazy or likes punishing themselves.

This simply is not true. Once I found out how to run properly, I was able to run a few miles with ease and comfort.

I had been running for about a month and was up to two miles. But at the end of these two miles, I felt as if I was going to keel over and die. My legs hurt. My lungs hurt. Everything felt wrong.

I thought I would just keep running these two miles until it became easier, but it never did. It got harder, if anything.

Then I heard about a guy named Stu Mittleman. This guy had run from San Diego to New York in 56 days. Basically Stu ran two marathons a day for 56 days. So I bought his book called Slow Burn and it completely changed any negative feelings I had about running.

The first thing I did was bought a heart rate monitor. This cost around 100 dollars and was the best purchase I have ever made. It allowed me to monitor my heart rate and stay at a comfortable running level, even while running up hills.

What I did, was started running at 50 to 70% of my maximum heart rate. At first, I felt like I was going too slow and not getting a good workout. But within a week, I was able to run 4 miles without any problems. The best thing was that after the four miles, I felt incredible. Instead of feeling like I was going to die before, I actually felt better.

To find your targeted heart rate zone, do the following:

Subtract your age from 220. Then multiply this by .50 and .70 and that will give you your targeted zone.

Example: Age 28

220-28 = 192

192 x .50 = 96

192 x .70 = 134

By this example, if you are 28, then you should be running in the heart rate zone of 96 to 134. To make it easier to remember, just round it up to 100-135.

If you are running in this zone, you will probably be very comfortable and be able to run a good distance.

You see, the problem people usually face is that they start off running too fast. You just need to slow down. It isn’t necessarily how hard you run, but that you are moving as much as possible, as often as possible.

Once you begin to add mileage, you will get in better shape and be running faster anyways. You just won’t be working any harder. Your body will adapt, and you will begin to move more efficiently, without more effort.

This program worked perfect for me, and has turned me into a runner for life. I hope it does the same for you.