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| How to Get a Good Deal on Fitness Equipment Posted: 20 Oct 2011 06:17 AM PDT This is a guest post by Adam. If you are overweight, out of shape, or simply interested in being more health conscious, you may be thinking of buying some kind of fitness equipment. Unfortunately, most equipment doesn't come cheap. So, if you're looking to get a good deal on fitness equipment there are a few things you should think about before you buy. Does It Work? It seems like there is always some new kind of fitness equipment coming out that is supposed to make you lose a ridiculous amount of weight in a short period of time. You want to be wary when buying these kinds of things. Do your research. Read reviews online. Talk to friends and family, and find out what equipment worked and didn't work for them. Remember, you can't always believe the hype of infomercials and other advertisements. You are much better off listening to someone who has used a product than someone who is trying to sell a product. What Type of Equipment Is Right for You? Everyone is different. Your goal (losing weight, bulking up, building lean muscle, etc.) will determine what kind of equipment is best for you. If you are looking to burn fat, you should probably go with something like a treadmill or an elliptical–equipment that will give you a cardio workout. If you are looking to gain some muscle, you should go with something a little more weight oriented. It is important to figure out what your personal goals are so that you don't waste money purchasing equipment that can't give you the results you desire. Do You Have to Have It? Before you go and spend a fortune on workout equipment, make sure that you really have to have it. There are exercises that you can do without equipment that could produce the same results. So check things out–talk to a trainer or someone you know that has lost weight. See if they have any advice, and if they think you need specialized equipment to achieve your goals. Shop Around It's never really a good idea to go to only one store or look at one website. You should always look around to see what kinds of deals different companies are offering. While you are at the store, you may want to ask a sales associate if they know if there are going to be any sales coming soon. It can be upsetting to make a big purchase and then see it on sale just a week or two later. Consumer reports can also allow you to easily compare the different products that are on the market to find what you are looking for. Finally, don't forget to visit comparison shopping sites, such as Google Shopping or Pricegrabber. These sites can show you which stores carry a product and how much they charge for it. Garage Sales and Thrift Stores There are a lot of places to find used fitness equipment, namely garage sales and thrift stores. Many people lose their motivation after buying fitness equipment. When this happens, they will often sell the lightly used equipment for a very good price. You may also be able to find deals at pawn shops and other stores that sell used merchandise. Shop Online While shopping, you should definitely check out Craigslist, auction sites and other sites where people sell their own merchandise. Craigslist is a good place to look because there is a variety of equipment. When looking at thrift stores you usually won't have much of a selection. Craigslist, on the other hand, has a lot of people selling a lot of different things. It's convenient too–you don't have to go to 10 different stores hoping to find what you are looking for. It's all right there on your computer screen. Other online marketplaces, such as Amazon.com, also provide good prices and often offer free shipping and other coupons or promotions. Visit my sponsors: 1) DreamHost – Web Hosting used by johnisfit.com  Post from: John Is Fit - Personal Weight Loss Blog      |
| What to Do When All You Can Think of is FOOD! Posted: 20 Oct 2011 05:18 AM PDT This is a guest post by Jocelyn Anne. I think we've all been in this place at some point in our lives. You can think one thing and one thing only: FOOD. When is the next meal? What will I make for the next meal! When can I snack again? Oh man, I'm staaaaaaaaarving. You wake up feeling hungry; you feel hungry all day in spite of eating even more than normal, and you go to bed hungry and disgusted with yourself for having eaten more than you intended to. It's a pretty miserable place to be in. Sometimes these phases are triggered by overly limiting calories for a significant period of time, sometimes they can come on the coat tails of a major stress, and sometimes you just won't have any logical reason whatsoever. All you know is you're miserable and want it to just go away. Right? Right. If you've tried everything you can think of, to no avail, let me suggest something you likely haven't tried: the one-food-plan. Someone else probably does this same plan and has deemed it something much fancier and more sophisticated sounding, but I'm for anything basic that just works, and that's exactly what this plan does. So, here's what you do: you pick one food that has a balance of both carbs and proteins and that can deliver basic nutrients to you over a period of days. Pick a food you can eat because you like it relatively well, but not a food you love. Number one, chances are if you love this food at the beginning of this, you aren't going to love it at the end, and I'd hate to see you lose a food you love! Second, if you really love it that much, you might crave it enough that this plan will never work. Here's what I mean: cake and pizza are not good options. Things that are good options are basic, bland staples like: oatmeal (plain!), buckwheat pancakes, yogurt, etc. If you want, you can also consider combining two foods into one "item," like an egg on toast. This gives you more nutrients, all your protein and carbs, plus some fat. But just remember, there's no dressing anything up to make it taste "better." This includes salt, cream, milk, syrup, sugar (even calorie-free sweetener), etc. The goal is that you develop distaste for the food, because as you do, you'll come back in tune with when you are truly hungry and when you just think you are. By day 5, when you are starving, you will eat a bowl of oatmeal. But by day 5 when you are not hungry, you won't be able to stomach thinking about a bowl of oatmeal. The problem with our mind and overeating often comes from simple over-stimulation. We get so excited about new foods as we realize that we could have that caramel apple! And this chicken fillet! And that cheesy burrito too! And, oh, we've never even heard of those new pretzel crackers, when can we have those!? And somehow, in some way, our mind starts to register this excitement and desire as "hunger." When you suddenly take away that immense variety and your mind realizes that it can have all it wants of one food, but that one food is all there is, you will be amazed at how quickly your appetite starts to fade out. I recommend doing this for a week and seeing how you feel. I can nearly guarantee that you'll gain control over your appetite again. If not, stretch it out to seven days. Never go overboard on this plan, or you'll go back to "normal" eating and find yourself coming out of an overly deprived state and right back where you were. If 7 days doesn't cut it, this plan isn't for you. But, I'm pretty sure that won't be the case. It's not a miracle diet plan; it's simply a way for you to get in tune with hunger. When is it legitimate, and when is not? It will be miserable to go through, yes, but so is always being hungry. So, next time you find yourself starving all day, every day, for no good reason, give the one-food-plan a try and see what it can do for you! Visit my sponsors: 1) DreamHost – Web Hosting used by johnisfit.com  Post from: John Is Fit - Personal Weight Loss Blog    |
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