Different Types of Treadmills For Exercise

Walking, jogging or running can be a very fun way to do exercise, but for many who live in urban and crowded areas, going out armed with water bottle, portable music player, towel, running shoes and lots of energy sometimes can't be an option, hoping that the weather keeps holding. But alas, it happens more often that not, that it is not possible at all to exercise outdoors.

A good alternative is to get a treadmill, but the offer out in the market can be overwhelming, and for someone who is new to them, it can be a real challenge to choose the right one, since they all look the same, but there are many different models and types out there, literally hundreds of brands and models, all of them competing among themselves to gain more fans, offering diverse functions, materials, colors, tactile screens or even cardiac monitors for those who are also worried about their health.

The range varies from the budge, home designed manual treadmills to the big commercial ones, intended to be used in gyms or doctor practices.

The simplest ones have no motor, those designed for homes with little available space, since they can be folded to be stored under the bed or inside a cabinet. They are usually one of the cheapest kind of treadmills found in the market, but unfortunately, the durability of this kind of treadmill is rather limited and if they are used too roughly, they may tend to break down after a couple of months. These are recommended for the causal user, and not for somebody planning to use it every day for many hours each time. These are perfect for people who are just beginning and want to try out before deciding to go to the next step in home-training.

There are treadmills intended for home use equipped with a motor, and they can also be found in a multitude of models and with more or less functions programmed in them. They are built in a more stable frame, but they are also bulkier and use up more space, since very few of these can be stored away.

If the user is serious about exercising, these kinds of treadmills have different programs for more specific ends, copied from those used professionally in gyms: cardiovascular training, condition training, or simple weight loss. Whether these built in functions will work for everyone, depends on the user.

For those who are planning to use it constantly, maybe the best option could be a commercial treadmill. There are simple, yet robust and equipped with a high-powered motor, and those with tactile screens, media players and cardiovascular monitors. It all depends on the particular use intended for it, and of course, the budget available.

The price and quality of the treadmill can vary and the person interested in buying one for his/her personal use, should first consider how often will be using it and what kind of training is planning to do. Depending on the quality and the price, will also depend the guarantee offered by the vendor, which can vary from model to model and it should be a detail to consider before finally buying a treadmill.

from ezinearticles.com

Obese People Lose Weight at High Altitudes

Here's a possible future diet tip: Move to a mountaintop.

In a recent study, obese individuals who spent time at a mountain facility at high altitudes lost weight without going on a diet. And they kept the pounds off for at least four weeks once they returned to normal altitudes.

The researchers suspect part of the weight loss can be attributed to the thin air, which may have decreased participants' appetites and increased their metabolism, meaning they burned more calories sans a workout. While at high altitudes, the obese subjects also showed an increase in levels of leptin, a hormone that when present can make one feel full.

But don't head for the hills just yet - these findings are very preliminary and were only tested in a small sample of people. Further research is needed to confirm the weight-loss effect, and understand why it may occur.

The study is detailed in the Feb. 4 issue of the journal Obesity.

Mountain Living

Previous research has found that people tend to lose weight at high altitudes. But most of these studies were done in athletes and hikers who engaged in lots of physical activity.

But would the same effect hold true for obese subjects who were relatively sedentary?

To find out, Dr. Florian Lippl, of Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich, Germany, and his colleagues enrolled 20 obese male participants, with an average weight of 230 pounds (105 kg). They monitored the subjects for one week at low altitudes, looking at what they ate, and how much they walked. Then, the participants spent two weeks in an air-conditioned research facility, located on a mountain at about 8,700 feet (2,650 m) above sea level.

The participants had no restrictions in what they could eat, but they weren't allowed to exercise rigorously. After their stay, the subjects were brought down to normal altitude, and followed up for four weeks.

On average, the participants lost about 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg) while at altitude, Lippl said. This decrease might not seem like much, but it was statistically significant compared with the starting weight.

The researchers think some of the loss can be explained by the fact that the subjects naturally ate less on the mountain, cutting back by 734 calories per day on average.

But a change in diet alone couldn't account for all of the weight loss. The researchers think some of the decrease had to do with a bump in metabolism. On average, the participants' metabolism increased, meaning their bodies burned more calories at rest, without requiring extra movement.

The Hunger Hormone

In the case of this study, there may be a physiological reason why the participants ate less.

The researchers measured levels of a hormone called leptin, which plays a role in controlling appetite. An increase in your leptin levels means you feel full, while a decrease makes you hungry. Since the obese subjects showed a general increase in there leptin levels at altitude, the researchers say this "hunger hormone" could have been a factor.

Though Lippl and colleagues aren't sure why leptin levels increased on the mountain, they speculate the thin air may have something to do with it. Studies have shown that when human cells are put in a low-oxygen environment (similar to the air at high altitude) they produce more leptin.

Holidays in the Mountains

Interestingly, the participants maintained their reduced weight after they had returned to normal altitude and stayed there for four weeks, a finding the researchers did not expect.

But the subjects walked a little bit more, which may have helped keep off the pounds. The researchers aren't sure about the cause of this extra activity, but they think it may be related to the high altitude "training effect," the performance boost athletes experience when they train at high altitudes and race closer to sea level, Lippl told LiveScience.

Without the stress of the low-oxygen, mountain environment, the obese patients may have felt fitter, and were able to exert themselves more, Lippl said.

So could future diet regimes involve skiing vacations?

"With a little humor, I tell my patients now, if they want to take holidays, they should think of mountain holidays [rather] than spending their holidays at the sea," Lippl said.

But in seriousness, Lippl says, the study is really a starting point for further research. He plans to do another study involving more participants over a longer period of time to see if mountain stays can help promote long lasting weight loss.

source: www.foxnews.com

Get a Better Workout by Hitting the Stairs

Every day my sixth-floor walk-up reminds me that I could be in better shape. I hit the gym every morning and do a few endurance events a year, but I’m always out of breath when I reach the top of the stairs.

It’s not only humbling, but it’s also annoying. How can I run a 5K at a seven-minute-mile pace and not make it to the top of the stairs without panting?

Here’s why: Unlike running, stair climbing has a vertical element. This upwards movements makes your lower body muscles—quads, hamstrings, and glutes—work harder to lift your body weight against gravity. Common activities such as running, swimming, and biking get your heart rate up, but none of them have the vertical element. Most of your daily activities move you forward instead of up, which is why our bodies aren’t used to fighting gravity.

And for a 130-pound woman, simply walking up stairs burns only 60 calories less than jogging at 6 mph for the same amount of time. Not to mention the added bonus of tightening up your lower half.

So, it’s not surprising that stair-running events have begun to sprout up worldwide in all sorts of historic settings. There’s the Go Vertical Chicago climb in Chicago, the CN Tower climb in Toronto, and my personal favorite, the Empire State Building Run-Up.

I’ve done a lot of crazy things in my life—namely, swimming in the Hudson River—but running 86 flights of stairs seems slightly insane. Or is it?

A 2000 study found that for sedentary women, even a few minutes of daily stair climbing can improve cardiovascular health by reducing heart rate, oxygen uptake, and blood lactate, and improving good cholesterol. If climbing stairs six times a day (like the women in the study did) had that effect, then maybe the key to bumping up my workouts lies in taking a few more trips up and down my stairs.

Now that I’m set to run the NYC Half Marathon at the end of March, I’m looking for anything that will help me beat my last half marathon time of 1:42. And I think the way to do that lies in finishing my runs with a race up to the top of the stairs. Because if I can beat gravity, they I can surely beat my former time.

source: health.com