Fitness

Cardiovascular Health Exercise As A Fountain Of Youth

Published by superadmin on May 25, 2025 | Leave a response

No matter what exercise you do, it benefits your cardiovascular health. Some provide more benefits than others do. At Revolution Training in Stamford, CT, we believe that boxing is an excellent way to build strength, as it improves your cardiovascular system. The increased circulation from the ever-changing pace of each round sends nutrient-dense and oxygen-laden blood throughout your body to make you look and feel years younger. Once you start training, you’ll feel like you drank from the Fountain of Youth.

Your heart is a muscle, and you need to work it to strengthen it.

Like any muscle, your heart can weaken if you don’t exercise it. You exercise it by doing cardio, which gets your heart pumping. Like a car engine, sometimes you must blow out the carbon and take it into high. In this case, cardiovascular exercise helps reduce plaque buildup, improves heart function, lowers blood pressure, and reduces the risk of heart disease.

You’ll lose weight, have more energy, and look and feel years younger.

You’ll not only build energy from regularly doing cardio, but you’ll also shed excess weight. That makes doing everything far easier. You’ll feel a surge of energy that you either never had or haven’t had for a while. The increased circulation will reflect in your complexion and skin. It takes years off your appearance, just as weight loss often does. You’ll feel younger and have a bounce in your step, making you look like you have your own Fountain of Youth.

What’s the best cardiovascular exercise to do?

We encourage people to be active. Do things that require taking more steps than normal. Do you remember the iconic scene from Rocky where he ran up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art? That’s excellent cardio. HIIT—high-intensity interval training—is another good form of cardio. It’s not a particular exercise but a way of doing any exercise. You alternate between high-intensity and a recovery pace. It’s much like boxing. Sometimes, you’re moving fast for a short period and then alternate it with a recovery pace, then back to fast-paced action.

When you do cardio, you’ll burn plenty of calories. That helps you lose weight. Losing weight can lower your blood pressure and reduce the risk of diabetes, some types of cancer, stroke, or heart disease.
Get extra cardio in by walking to lunch. If you live close enough and the weather permits, bike to work. Park further from the store and walk. You’ll be amazed at how every extra step you take improves your conditioning.
Besides the footwork, throwing punches also boosts cardio fitness. Punching improves heart function because it increases your heart rate. It promotes endurance and circulation. It can lower the risk of heart disease.
Speaking of fancy footwork to build endurance, what about dancing? Dancing moves help with boxing to develop balance, coordination, timing, and fluidity. It also helps boost cardiovascular health.

For more information, contact us today at Revolution Training

Posted in Fitness, Nutrition

The Mind-Body Connection How Mental Health Affects Fitness

Published by superadmin on April 25, 2025 | Leave a response

Healthcare providers in Stamford, CT often note how the mind-body connection between mental health and fitness in patients is frequently quite obvious. Your gut microbiome plays a role in your mental health. So does physical activity. Studies indicate an imbalance of specific microbes may play a role in diseases such as schizophrenia and depression. Other studies show that consistent physical activity, such as walking, can improve depression and anxiety. Laughing more even plays a role in good health.

Psychological stress can lead to illness.

Stress kills. If you undergo an extended period of stress, you may end up ill. Headaches, digestive issues, and, in some cases, autoimmune problems can occur during stressful times. It affects sleep. Lack of sleep leads to hormonal imbalances that cause you to eat more, which may lead to weight gain and obesity. It can contribute to heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, a weakened immune system, and stroke. Learning to control stress can help keep you fitter.

Some mental health issues may lead to physical health problems.

Several studies identify the link between mental and physical health. One study showed that people with an upbeat attitude have a lower risk of strokes and heart attacks. Chronic diseases such as asthma, cancer, diabetes, arthritis, and cardiovascular disease show a link to depression. Other studies found a link between schizophrenia and an increased risk of respiratory and heart disease. The mortality rate of people with heart disease and cancer is higher among people with mental health conditions.

Your attitude can determine your fitness level.

You don’t automatically get regular exercise. You have to decide to do it. You don’t automatically eat junk food, smoke, or abuse illegal substances. You choose to do those things. Your mental attitude determines your actions. You’ll take care of your body if you believe you deserve it. If you live with hopelessness, guilt, depression, or other mental handicap, you won’t and instead follow a path of destructive behavior.

One way to improve your mental and physical health is through controlled breathing and meditation. Controlled breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system and deactivates the autonomic nervous system responsible for the fight-or-flight reaction.
Mental conditions like eating disorders and self-destructive behavior take their toll on the body. They affect fitness when left unchecked and may lead to chronic health conditions and death.
Not all physical problems occur because of poor mental health. However, in many cases, dealing with the issue with a more positive attitude can help improve the potential for relief.
You can test it by focusing on an emotion-filled scenario where you are angry or scared. You’ll notice your breathing and heart rate increase. Switch mentally to a relaxing scene and feel the difference.

For more information, contact us today at Revolution Training

Posted in Fitness, Mindset, Nutrition

Try Exercise To Fight Depression

Published by superadmin on April 10, 2025 | Leave a response

Depression can occur from many causes. It might be rooted in a personal loss, whether a loved one, job, or relationship. In some cases, depression is purely physical and occurs due to health issues. Once you go to your healthcare professional to rule out a physical illness, consider ways to deal with the depression. In most cases, exercise can help. That doesn’t mean it is a substitute for severe depression. You should seek professional help for that. Mental health professionals often suggest exercise as an adjunct therapy. It works better than many medications without any side effects.

Exercising improves circulation.

Exercising boosts circulation. It causes you to breathe deeper, providing even more oxygen. The oxygen and nutrient-laden blood goes to all parts of the body. It causes an increase in blood flow to the brain to provide more nutrients and oxygen necessary for the brain to function at its best. It helps improve cognitive functioning, memory, brain health, and the growth of new brain cells and neural pathways.

The new neural pathways and brain plasticity can help rewire the brain.

All types of exercise can help rewire the brain, but the best ones require learning new moves, such as dancing. Using new twists to well-known forms of exercise helps. If you walk for exercise, focusing on turning it into a HIIT—high-intensity interval training—workout helps. You can use it for any exercise. It’s alternating between peak performance for a short period and a recovery pace for the same time or longer. Focusing on the exercise diverts thoughts of depression.

Exercise, particularly intense exercise, increases the neurotransmitters GABA and glutamate.

The increased production of these two neurotransmitters improves mood. They can eliminate mild depression and reduce the symptoms of severe depression. Intense exercise has also proven beneficial for people with other disorders like bipolar disorders and schizophrenia. It boosts BDNF, a protein that regulates mood, adding to the changes already discussed.

Exercise boosts the number and variety of beneficial microbes in the gut that affect your emotions. Your gut microbes produce waste and enzymes that trigger a brain reaction that can improve your mood.
Exercise can help you burn off the hormones of stress. Stress can cause depression. Exercise also causes the body to release hormones that make you feel good and at ease.
Exercise improves your posture. You’ll look more confident and walk taller when you exercise. That confident posture makes people treat you with more respect, which causes you to feel more in charge and less depressed.
You don’t have to exercise for hours every day to reap benefits. Just 150 to 300 minutes of mild exercise a week can help. Take opportunities to increase your activity if you don’t want a formal exercise program. Take the stairs instead of the elevator and find ways to walk more.

For more information, contact us today at Revolution Training

Posted in Fitness, Mindset, Nutrition

Effective Ab Workouts For A Strong Core

Published by superadmin on March 25, 2025 | Leave a response

Boxing is more than just throwing punches and hoping they’ll effectively land. It’s a total body sport. We do more than teach you how to help others build strength at Revolution Training in Stamford, CT. We promote peak fitness both mentally and physically. Having a strong core is vital to maintain balance and stability. Studies show it improves athletic performance. We provide the best ab workouts to achieve that goal based on your needs, fitness level, and goals.

Build your abs using equipment or your body’s weight.

You don’t need fancy machines to build strong abs. You need perseverance and grit. It takes a lot of work, but you can do it with bodyweight workouts. Some old favorites are sit-ups, leg lifts, and push-ups. If you’re familiar with push-ups that work your entire upper body, consider the plank. You can do a high plank or low plank. A high plank looks like the up position in a push-up, but you push up and hold, attempting to pull in your stomach as you do. The low plank is similar, but your body weight is on your toes and forearms, not the palms of your hands and toes.

Keep on punching or swinging.

When doing a punching workout, you’re doing more than building strength and practicing jabs. You’re also working your abs. If you have access to kettlebells, they provide all types of fitness exercises: cardio, strength, flexibility, and balance. Because the center of gravity is offset, your core has to work harder to remain stable. If you want one kettlebell exercise that builds core strength fast, consider Turkish get-ups.

A stability ball or medicine ball builds strong abs.

Working out with stability balls helps your muscles grow stronger, much in the same way that working with kettlebells does. If you’re exercising with a stability ball, like sit-ups, your core muscles have to work harder to help you maintain balance. Medicine balls force the muscles to work harder and engage multiple muscle groups during exercise. It has added weight you can use to improve the effectiveness of other abdominal exercises like medicine ball crunches.

Protect your back as you build your abs when you do a bridge. A bridge works your core muscles and glutes. Lay on your back with your arms to your side, knees bent, and feet flat on the floor. Lift your body until it forms a straight line from your knees to your shoulders.
Ride a bicycle or do bicycle exercises. The action of your feet on the pedals works your abs. You don’t have to be on a bike to get the same workout. Do the bicycle calisthenic if you can’t ride.
Everyone loves a challenge, so challenge yourself to do burpees. If you’re in great shape and burpees are easy, look for ways to increase the difficulty or increase the number of reps until failure.
Walking lunges work the legs, but they also work core muscles. Your body continuously works to maintain balance. Twist your upper body as you lunge forward to make it even more difficult.

For more information, contact us today at Revolution Training

Posted in Fitness, Mindset

Importance Of Warm-Up And Cool-Down Exercises

Published by superadmin on March 10, 2025 | Leave a response

If you’re working with a trainer, you often do a short session of warm-up exercises and follow your workout with cool-down ones. Each type of exercise serves a different purpose and can help prevent injury and boost your performance. Each one uses different stretches or movements and serves a different purpose. You’re warming your muscles, as the name implies, during warm-up exercises. You’re cooling your body and slowing your heart rate on cool-down ones.

When you do warm-up exercises, you warm more than just your extremities.

If you’ve ever jumped out of bed and felt a little woozy, you’ve experienced what happens when your body isn’t ready for the task. Going from sedate and unchallenged to far more intense movements requires many changes. Your heart has to beat harder and faster, more blood needs to pump to the extremities, and your muscles need to become looser and more flexible. Warm-up exercises do all those things. It gradually increases your heart rate and improves circulation. It slowly warms the muscles so they’re more flexible and less likely to be injured by a sudden, forceful movement.

Cool down workouts help prevent muscle soreness and fainting.

If you stop your exercise abruptly, the blood can pool in your limbs. That reduces the blood sent to the brain. The result can be dizziness or fainting. Cool-down exercises prevent that and more. It slowly reduces circulation, removing lactic acid while helping the muscles relax. It can help prevent DOMS—delayed onset muscle soreness—that causes intense pain. Studies indicate that cool-down exercises after an intense workout reduce the potential for DOMS.

You’ll reduce pain and improve recovery when you do warm-up and cool-down exercises.

When you go from no activity to intense activity, your body requires an increased amount of oxygen or lactic acid builds. It takes a while for your body to increase the oxygen supply. When you have an increase of lactic acid in the blood, it changes the pH balance. Your body has to work harder. Often, it can cause you to quit sooner. Keeping your circulation slightly higher as you slow your heart rate maintains a slightly higher heart rate. That higher rate allows the body to remove lactic acid and diminishes pain.

Dynamic stretches are best for warm-up exercises. Dynamic stretches include movements that you’ll do during your workout. Static stretches, such as toe-touching, are best for cool-down exercises.
You can use the cool-down stretching time to increase your range of motion. The muscles are warmed and flexible. Doing static stretches that improve the range of motion at that time provides maximum benefit.
Warm-up exercises do more than increase your heart rate and improve circulation. They improve your reaction time and focus. These exercises get the muscles to work together and increase coordination, making you more agile.
When you do cool-down exercises, your mind remains focused on your workout or physical performance. It provides time to review your errors or find ways to improve by making changes.

For more information, contact us today at Revolution Training

Posted in Fitness, Mindset

Throw Away Your Pain Pills

Published by superadmin on February 25, 2025 | Leave a response

Whether you’ve gone a few rounds in the ring, did too much physical activity the day before, or have a condition like arthritis that can cause pain, you often find yourself reaching for pain pills to soothe the burning pain. Not all people in Stamford, CT, do that. Some look for natural pain relief that may have dangerous side effects. They use natural methods to deal with pain that provide relief and other benefits.

What type of pain do you have?

Is the pain chronic or acute? If it’s chronic, do you know the cause? If you have chronic pain from arthritis or back issues, exercise can help. Do you have muscle pain triggered by exercise or an awkward movement? Many of these pain types can be helped with exercise and other natural techniques, such as hot and cold compresses, a massage, regular exercise, a healthy diet, or a recovery workout. If it’s abdominal or chest pain unrelated to bloating, see a healthcare professional.

Exercising boosts the production of natural pain relievers.

If you’re in pain, usually, the only thing you want to do is lay on the couch. Rest is important but so is circulation. If it’s a severe muscle strain, take it easy. Stay hydrated, rest, ice the area, use compression or elevate the area if necessary. If the pain isn’t too bad, increase your circulation and help the area heal with active recovery. Walking and pool exercises are two active recovery exercises. Don’t do any intense workouts.

Is arthritis or joint pain your problem?

Exercise helps the muscles and the joints. If you have arthritis, exercise helps by boosting lymphatic flow and increasing synovial fluid flow to lubricate the joints. The increased lymphatic flow reduces inflammation. Exercise triggers the release of natural pain killers that also bring relief. It helps arthritis in the long view by strengthening muscles and ligaments that relieve pressure and more wear and tear on the joints.

Is your back making your life miserable? Doing exercises that stretch the muscles and strengthen them can help relieve back pain. Rolling your shoulders and neck exercises can relieve headaches.
Eat anti-inflammatories foods like fatty fish, berries, avocado, and broccoli. They can help reduce inflammation and pain. Avoid food with added sugar and highly processed food that can cause inflammation.
Drink more water, especially if the pain is in your joints. Mild dehydration can cause joint pain due to low synovial fluid. Rehydration increases your body’s fluids, which helps reduce the pain by creating a buffer.
One study followed 121 people with arthritis for a week and found cold showers helped reduce pain and improve sleep. Other studies show hot showers help relax muscles and improve sleep.

For more information, contact us today at Revolution Training

Posted in Fitness, Nutrition

Do You Have A Custom Workout

Published by superadmin on February 10, 2025 | Leave a response

It is unusual to find two people with the same needs, goals, and fitness level. It’s why a customized exercise program is vital for progressing toward a goal. A custom workout considers all aspects of the person. If they want to lose 50 pounds and have never exercised, their workout will be different than someone with the same goal who has spent hours in the gym exercising. People have different habits, needs, preferences, and goals. It makes sense to address those issues.

You won’t get bored or feel lost when your workout is designed for you.

Have you ever been in an exercise class where everyone else seems to know what to do, and you’re still trying to figure out what a push-up position is? Maybe your problem is the opposite. You’ve been doing burpees and one-handed push-ups forever and have to sit through a class teaching the push-up position. Both are classic examples of people whose programs don’t match their fitness level. Neither person is getting the maximum benefit from their exercise time.

If your goal is to build muscle, but all you do is cardio, there’s a problem.

Your workout program should match your goal. If you want to build muscles, doing excess cardio will thwart your progress. Even though cardio is a necessary part of everyone’s program, you can overdo it if your goal is weight loss. Cardio burns hundreds of calories but doesn’t discriminate where they get those calories. They come from both fat and muscle tissue. Muscle tissue requires more calories to maintain than fat tissue, so the more you have, the easier it is to lose weight. Too much cardio and too little strength-building can make weight loss even harder.

If you have physical limitations, your workout should address the issue.

If you have knee pain, understanding the cause is vital to choosing the best exercise. It might come from lifestyle issues, like standing all day. You can strengthen the muscles by doing wall squats. If it’s from an injury, do bodyweight squats, but only squat as deep as you can without pain. Pain from inflammation, like arthritis pain, benefits from water exercises. You can modify the form, such as knee-bent push-ups instead of regular ones, or the intensity of the workout.

When you have a customized workout, remember it was created for one point in time. The more you exercise, the more fit you’ll become. You should adjust your workout for your new fitness level.
You’ll progress faster when you have a personalized custom workout. You are building weaker muscles that need help and are not continuously creating an imbalance. You’re addressing your goal as you continue to aid your entire body.
Having a trainer helps. Trainers can help you identify your fitness needs and establish your fitness level. They create customized workouts and track them. Trainers also provide motivation and help you keep focused on your goal.
Exercise is only part of a fitness plan. To make improvements faster, you have to eat healthier. If you’re trying to lose weight, you need to eat fewer calories. If building muscles is your goal, you need extra protein.

For more information, contact us today at Revolution Training

Posted in Fitness, Nutrition

What You Do When You Don’t Feel Like Working Out

Published by superadmin on January 25, 2025 | Leave a response

At one time or another, most people don’t feel like working out. It often happens early, before you see any results, although even seasoned veterans have those times. The difference is that people with more experience usually have techniques to get them going. Setting a big goal and breaking it down into smaller goals you track weekly is one way to boost your enthusiasm. You may not see any difference in your body in the first few weeks, but you’ll see your success on paper. It turns fitness into more of a game.

If you know your reason for getting fit, it’s easier to stick with your program.

Everyone starts a fitness program for different reasons. Some want to build endurance. Others want to build muscles. There’s no right or wrong reason. You need to identify that reason and keep it in the foreground. You can put Post-It notes everywhere or create a vision board and put it where you can see it. Some people hang them on their bedroom wall so it’s the first thing they see in the morning. A vision board is a collage you create with pictures and phrases reflecting your goal.

Find a workout buddy.

You’ll have more incentive to go to the gym if someone is there to meet you. It makes exercising more fun when you’re doing it with a friend. It also pushes you to work harder. Besides holding you accountable, working out with a friend motivates you both. You cheer each other on to victory and call each other out for not pushing hard enough.

Take a picture. It lasts longer.

Creating a photo journey to fitness is both motivating and fun. Your body changes slowly. That makes it hard to notice any improvement. If you take a picture once a week and keep it in a file on your phone, you can compare your new picture with the first one to see how far you’ve come. Share your pictorial journey with a friend.

Identify the reasons you enjoy working out and focus on the positive things. If you dread going to the gym one day, think about how good you feel when you finish. Sometimes, just changing your mindset is all it takes.

Schedule your workout at the same time each day. Write it in your calendar as an appointment. Maintaining a consistent time can make it a habit. Habits are hard to break.
When you exercise, focus on each muscle movement. Notice how good it feels to control that movement. See if you can differentiate each muscle as it moves. Feeling more in control of your body helps you stick with your exercise program.
Note other things besides losing weight or gaining muscle. Track how long it takes to climb stairs or how quickly you finish mental tasks. Regular exercise not only helps your body function better, but it also helps improve your cognitive functioning.

For more information, contact us today at Revolution Training

Posted in Fitness, Mindset, Nutrition

Free And Fun Ways To Improve Your Fitness This Year

Published by superadmin on January 10, 2025 | Leave a response

Fitness may be serious business, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be fun. There are many ways to improve your health, build energy, and improve your physique in Stanford, CT. Some of those are free, which makes it even better. Traditional workouts improve specific things, like endurance, strength, and flexibility. So do fun workouts. They may focus on one area of the body, such as building upper body strength. Many of the ways to get fit that are both free and fun are total body conditioners.

Take a hike.

Walking may seem mundane compared to other strenuous activities. Still, it does provide good exercise and is especially beneficial when you do it in beautiful surroundings like Commons Park, Kosciuszko Park, or Mill River Park. We have so many walking trails in Stamford you’ll surely find a favorite. Go with friends and bring a healthy picnic lunch for after the walk. Time yourself to make it more fun. The natural setting will relax you, and a vigorous hike on uneven terrain will help you get fit faster.

Dance the night away.

You don’t have to go to a club or special celebration to dance. Pull up YouTube, turn on the music, and dance in your living room. Get the whole family involved and make memories. Pull down the shades and dance alone if you’re worried anyone will see you. Dance like nobody’s watching because they won’t be. You can focus on your footwork if you’re a boxer or flexibility stretches. It’s fun. Best of all, it’s free.

Swimming boosts total body fitness.

When you work out in the water, its resistance makes you work harder, but your body’s buoyance makes it easier on the joints. You don’t have to swim. You can exercise in the water or walk. It’s far more difficult to walk when most of your body is in water than when you’re on dry land. Play water games with the kids or do water aerobics with friends.

Shoot some hoops at Barrett Park or one of the many parks in Stamford. It’s fun, competitive, and exceptionally beneficial for building endurance, speed, and balance. Playing B-ball relieves stress.
Get a Hula Hoop and start rotating. It’s not free, but close to it if you purchase the less expensive type. Jumping rope is another inexpensive workout that builds endurance, focus, speed, and explosiveness.
Use playground equipment as your gym. Take the kids and play with them on the monkey bars or do chin-ups. Use the benches for dips or the stairs for step-ups. Put one leg on the swing seat and do a plank. Climb up the slide instead of sliding down.
Take Rover for a romp or get kitty fit by walking around with a laser pointer. Juggle tennis balls or pairs of rolled-up socks. Before you start any fitness program, always check with your healthcare professional first.

For more information, contact us today at Revolution Training

Posted in Fitness, Mindset, Nutrition