The average person does cardio whenever they can fit it in their busy schedule. I would like to shed some light on the subject of the best time to do cardio and why. No matter what time of the day cardio is done energy will be expended and calories will be burned.

The best time to perform cardiovascular exercise to get the maximum results desired as far as fat burn is first thing in the morning. Doing cardio first thing, on an empty stomach, before anything is consumed, is by far the most effective way to go. Simply because when cardio is done a person is burning calories. If you do cardio after breakfast or after lunch all that is being burned is the calories from those meals. When cardio is done immediately in the morning, after sleeping 6-8 hours the body sees that there are no carbs left to burn and therefore turns to burning the stored body fat.  Stored body fat is ultimately the fat that is most desired to leave the body.

There are many theories as to when cardio and weight training should be done in the same workout. Doing 40 minutes of cardio at a moderate pace will not deplete enough energy to prevent a person from lifting well as long as proper eating habits are executed. However, if you deplete some carbohydrate stores with an initial weight training session, your body is in the fat burning mode and the cardio that follows the weight training will burn fat and calories more efficiently.

Another point to consider when choosing whether to lift or do cardio first is the lactic acid that remains in the muscles after an intense weight training session that causes soreness. Cardio after weight training can help flush residual lactic acid out of the muscles after lifting to minimize soreness. Cardio after weight training can also be considered a good cool down method to restore the body back to its resting state if done correctly.

Which ever option is chose to do cardio, the benefits are endless. Weight will be lost in any case cardio is included in. Not only that, your heart will become stronger, lung capacity will increase, and you will naturally reduce your risk for heart attack, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes. Along with all of those benefits you will get better sleep, reduce your stress level and feel better in all of your day to day activities.

When choosing which type of cardio to do remember to pick activities that you like to do. If you enjoy the outdoors running, cycling, hiking or walking are all good options. If you prefer a gym atmosphere stationary bike, treadmill, elliptical, rowing machine or stair steppers are available at most. However, if you prefer to sweat in the comfort of your own home, there are a vast array of home videos and DVDs that can do the job.

The bottom line is that it is not what you do, but how hard you work. Choose something that you can see yourself being able to do three or more times a week. Always remember to be flexible. If you change it up regularly you will avoid plateaus and boredom. Do something, you may just enjoy yourself!

Caffeine is considered the most commonly used psychoactive drug in the world. Caffeine stimulates the body by activating the sympathetic branch of the central nervous system which leads to increased heart rate, improved blood flow and blood pressure to the muscles. Approximately 80% of the world’s population consumes it on a daily basis. After ingesting caffeine it is completely absorbed within 30 to 40 minutes and its effects diminish within 3 hours. Many dispute whether caffeine is an addictive substance. Some studies have shown headache, fatigue, decreased energy and alertness and depressed mood can occur in the absence of caffeine in a regular consumer. However, the duration of the with drawl symptoms is 2 to 9 days which is such a considerable amount of time that it cannot be considered a severe with drawl. Caffeinated products are said to be consumed by habit not need and therefore do not pose any harm to society.

Understanding how our muscles work will help you target specific types of training to achieve your goals. There are different types of muscles for slow and fast movement. These different muscles use different chemical processes for strength, burst or endurance. Depending on which muscle is incorporated with your specific exercise will determine the muscle type and chemical reaction used to produce power.

Shin splints, a term often used when referring to a painful condition in the lower leg and shin region. This condition is usually caused by running, jumping or sprinting, and can be very slow to heal. Shin splints, the name often given to any pain in the front, lower part of the leg. However, true shin splints occur at the front, inside of the actual shin bone.

With the proper intake of healthy water, the right minerals and nutrients our body can overcome almost anything. The human body could possibly die after only three days without water. Bottom line, water makes up 75% of our being, we need to keep replenishing our water supply. There are many different facts out there concerning individual water intake. I would like to point out some of the most commonly discussed topics involving water and some of the misleading information as well.

As we all know as soon as April showers hit many start to deliberate how they are going to get their beach body accomplished by the time it is warm enough to hit the beach. Most hesitate when they think about putting on a swim suit and baring their body in front of their friends and family for fun activities at the local beach or when they venture out on vacation. Bottom line to achieving the beach body so many desire is the proper diet, nutrition and regular workouts.

The problem with most abdominal workouts is that there is so much time spent on working and developing the individual muscles that cannot be seen. The time spent on these exercises actually needs to be spent doing the fat burning work that will eliminate the stubborn layer of fat covering the muscles preventing them from being seen.

Flexibility is severely undervalued in the sport and athletic world. It is an extremely important component in any and every type of conditioning. Athletes stand to gain from a stretching regime no matter what sport they participate in. Flexibility or sometimes referred to as range of motion (ROM) about a joint and its surrounding muscles during movement has been noted as a way to prevent or at least reduce a risk for injury.

Endurance training is developing the energy production systems to meet the demands of an event. Food is used to make adenosine triphosphate (ATP) which supplies energy for muscular contractions. For continuous exercise ATP must be re-synthesized at the same rate it is utilized. There are four types of endurance training, aerobic, anaerobic, speed and strength.

Over the years many myths have circulated over and through out the fitness industry and through the general public as well when it comes to exercise and weight control. The sources of these myths range from magazine and websites to supplement and equipment salespeople. I would like to illuminate on some of the faulty ideas and show what they are missing in these attempts to sell products and false hopes. What they fail to realize is that everyone is different and each person has to find the right solution for their particular problem.