Qi Gong: Chinese Alternative to Aerobics

According to the Department of Health and Human Services, seventy percent of diseases are preventable, yet most people have no idea of how to do this. Western-style aerobic exercises or workouts at the gym are not enough to be truly well. Most exercises focus on building muscles or endurance but Qi Gong (Chi Kung) focuses on the whole body, physical, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. The benefits of Qi Gong are so many that it has been made part of the Chinese national health care system and is practiced by millions of people across the world.

Qi Gong can be used for health reasons, for self-cultivation, to enhance vitality and develop internal force, to promote youthfulness and longevity and to expand the mind and intellect. During personal practice, slow and graceful movements combined with relaxed breathing and mental concentration is used to balance and increase a person's life force or energy (qi). The benefits of exercise increase massively when breathing techniques and focused intention are added to physical movement. Thus it is an excellent way to keep fit and lose weight. It can be completely tailored to your abilities from dynamic, intricate workouts and sequences to simple non-strenuous movements and meditation. Depending on how it is practiced, it can be invigorating or very relaxing. It gives an overall sense of well-being and improves coordination and balance and builds self-esteem and confidence. Also, because the movements require coordination between right and left limbs, it balances the right and left sides of the brain. The movements combined with breathing techniques encourage efficient use of oxygen for digestion and metabolism balancing.

Qi Gong is part of Traditional Chinese Medicine and is accepted as a complementary treatment option. The practitioner transforms their 'chi' energy into healing energy and addresses the root cause of illness and disease, treating the patient as a whole. Qi Gong improves blood circulation and enhances the body's immune function as well as aiding in the regeneration and regulation of the nervous, digestive, lymphatic and circulatory/cardiovascular systems and the body's internal organs. It is used as a preventative and curative method and can be used for general health maintenance, physical rehabilitation, bone density and balance, cancer treatment, arthritis, back pains, diabetes, hypertension and stress. While not scientifically proven, research on thousands of patients has suggested that Qi Gong lowers blood pressure, pulse rates, metabolic rates and oxygen demand. It also seems to trigger the body's relaxation response by reducing the level of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that controls neurological activity. An ancient history, devout following and amazing case studies is proof enough without the science!

This article was submitted by Anthony Monteith. Anthony is a recognised Chi Kung/Qi Gong instructor with http://www.elementalchikung.ie/. He has been practising various forms of energy work for 20 years, and has recently started a college training course in Dublin, Waterford and Galway. He is also a qualified master practitioner of Tuina and Acupuncture.

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Zumba Shoes - How To Select A Good Pair

Highly influenced by Latin culture, the Zumba was founded in Columbia by a fitness instructor. He took the steps from meringue and salsa, modified them, combined them and created a whole new dance spontaneously to the beat of Latin music.

The zumba was then taken over to the United States of America where it was nurtured and transformed into a great popular workout that has become the interest of many. To do the zumba the right way, you need the proper shoes. So here are some simple tips on how to pick the right pair of shoes for your
zumba workout.

Before anything else, you should know that you should stay away from all sports shoes, the basic running shoes included. They're great for the gym and other forms of workout but a big no-no when it comes to dance.

This is so because they're solid, tough and has firm soles which can cause great injury since zumba is a light and flexible work out that requires much movement. The best of all shoes to use would be cross trainers or shoes made specifically for dancing. Even ballet shoes would work because there are no threads on it.

Your zumba shoes should be lightweight without any grips whatsoever on the soles. This is because the zumba has various moves, a lot which requires you to turn, twirl and pivot around and you would need to be able to do this without your feet sticking on the floor. They should be able to bend comfortably with your feet so as to not cause injury.

Besides that, when picking out a pair of shoes for zumba, you need to pay attention to the type of soles in the shoe. It's important that you pick a pair that has got shock absorbing soles to cushion your feet as you jump and bounce around. You want your shoes to take the fall, not your feet.

Besides that, for added comfort and protection you can also buy a gel insole to insert into your shoe. The gel insole can be bought from any fitness shop, pharmacy or shoe shop. It's affordable and gives you that extra comfort which is very important if you plan on dancing away for a long time.

When shopping for your pair of shoes, don't walk into the first store and grab the first thing that fits. You should check out various stores and compare quality, prices, type, flexibility and so on. Try on various shoes and walk in them for a little bit to see what they feel like. You need to be comfortable in your shoes.

As you go hunting for your shoes, be sure to wear a good pair of socks not only for hygiene purposes but also so that you'd be able to tell how well the shoe fits with your socks. If you find a good pair that you like, don't just stop at one pair but buy two instead. This will give you the chance to alternate between the two pairs so that they will break in at the same time and the less usage will allow it to last longer.

Check out the Zumba Exhilarate Discount Code blog for the latest Zumba discounts and deals. Selina Foos is a health fitness trainer and freak. Her free time is mostly use to keep track of fitness deals online.

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Why Cardio Can Make You Stay Fat

Do you follow all the rules in order to lose weight? Do you perform some quality cardio exercises more hours than you are required to do it to burn calories? Do you always make sure you are in the "fat-burning" zone?

If you are living this kind of lifestyle, you are in big trouble!

Why Is Cardio Exercise Making You Fat?

Here is one scary trend that others fail to see - people are trying to spend many hours in treadmills or bikes but in the end, they gain more weight rather that lose some. So, what else can you do if you are not seeing any results by walking and running daily? On the other hand, why is that when you reduce the amount of cardio slimming down is just so easy?

This is because you need to do too many cardio exercises in order to lose fat.

You Just Cannot Beat Your Programming

Cardio exercise can guarantee you results in a short period but the effect can also be shortlived as wellCardio exercise is a kind of exercise that requires many repetitions. It is easy for our body to adjust to this kind of exercise. It does not really matter how much effort you put into doing the exercise, what matters is what your body does with it.The only way to lose more fat from cardio is to do more amounts of cardio.Aside from it not being practical, it may also have negative effects on you.Doing repetitive cardio exercise can result to fats being stored in your hormonal system. It is known that it is easy for your body to store some fats in times of crisis. Spending many hours on cardio each day has the same effect as well. In nature, you would only be on the move for a period of time. If you had a threat to your survival: to your food source, your safety, or your shelter.

How to Shed Fat and Keep It Off

Doing a functional fitness routine with squats, lunges, bends, pulls, pushes or twists will be a great help.Make this routine a daily habit for you and mix different routines or add more fat loss motivation to what you are doing.Do not eliminate cardio - it will be to your advantage if you are training your anaerobic fitness system ( a routine that will be great both for your metabolism and muscle growth) and aerobic (which is good for your heart and overall health but not good enough for fat loss). Some cardio training can be a great combination to your weight and functional training like interval training, which is great for weight loss and exercise. For instance, set aside some time to run for 20 minutes then jog or walk for recovery. This and other variations of interval training should be done in order for your training to become effective. You can do this by changing the time of the routine or gaps between the routine and the recovery and so on.

You can do 20 minutes cardio each week 2-3 times just like what I do - which are all interval based. I combine it with 30-45 minutes weight training 3-4 times each week. If you do this, you can get lean fast!

Remember -

Life is now. Do not waste yours on the treadmill.

Oh - and Press play.

Check out my blog Body Incredible for fat loss, nutrition and for motivational tips. And if you'd like to learn what it really takes to be in exceptional shape as a busy woman, visit Woman Incredible

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