Back Day!!

When you get in the gym, it is common you want to hit the most showy muscles often. You hit your chest, your arms and abs. These are the front region of your upper half of the body. But if you really want a better looking and distinguishing  physique, you've got to build big and wide back.

So skipping your back day, I don't think is tiny bit close to wise.

Before we begin the workout, it is very important to learn the anatomy to get the best out of the back day. We need to learn how the muscles work, how they move and so on.





Latissimus Dorsi(Simply known as Lats):
There are two sets of lats that runs from the front side of humerus, comes down attaches to your scapula all the way to lower thoracic spine. These sets of muscles work together to assist the rotation of upper limb.

Trapezius(Simply known as traps):
You've got your upper traps that run from your skull and come down and attach your shoulder. Next is your middle traps and lies in upper middle back area. And the last one is the lower traps that runs on your lower middle back area. The upper traps elevates the scapula and rotate it during movement of arm. The middle traps work with Rhomboids and assist in retracting the scapula whereas the lower trap full the scapula inferiorly.

Rhomboids
These muscles lie underneath the middle taps. Rhomboids can be classified as Rhomboid minor and Rhomboid major.  The Rhomboids along with the traps helps in retracting and rotating scapula.

Goodness of Chicken

The earlier blog was really 'chicken obsessed'. Here, I am going to talk about the health benefits of chicken.

Chicken is the meat item that has high nutritional value. It has high protein content, minerals and vital vitamins. According to USCD , 100gm of chicken contains 18g protein, 15gm fat, 11mg calcium, 20 mg magnesium, 147mg phosphorus, 149mg potassium, 70mg sodium. Besides, it contains vitamins like vitamin C, riboflavin, thiamin, vitamin B6&12, vitamin A,E,D and K.

The health benefits of chicken are:

-Body building
Each ounce of chicken have about 7gm of protein. Protein is very important for growth and development of body. Protein is made up of amino acid that helps in building muscle fibre.  The daily requirement of protein is about 1gm for 1kg body weight. This is the reason why most of body builders never miss chicken in their diet.

-Source of vitamins :
Chicken is the rich source of water soluble vitamins B and C and also non soluble vitamins like A, D, E and K.  The vitamins are necessary in breaking down carbohydrates and releasing energy, blood clotting, formation of RBC and so on.  Vitamin D helps in  calcium absorption, Vitamin A helps in building eye sight.

-Source of minerals:
Chicken contains minerals like calcium, potassium, phosphorus.  Calcium and phosphorus helps in growth and development of bone and teeth. They help in development of cell membrane.  These minerals helps in strengthening the body immunity. They as well regulate the digestive system.

Hello Chicketerians!!

Pak Pak Pak Pakauuu!!🐔(Hello in chicken style)

Have you ever, in your life, thought that what would you do if there were no chickens left? Thought as in deep kind of.... If so; congratulations, you are a chicketerian. 

If you ask me to define what Chicketerian  is, there wouldn't be any better way than 'Veggies is to vegetarians, Chicken is to chicketerians'.  

Yes, I am a checketerian. Chicken is love, chicken is life. I don't know how will I survive without chicken(Well practically I would but still....) And I'm pretty sure, I'm not the only one.

Talking about fish, I only prefer grilled or fried. Pork, barbecued. Buff, momos. Mutton nayy! But chicken; I enjoy eating all varieties of chicken and if you ask my favorite, I would say them all. Vegans, ya'll really missing out something in the beautiful world of us and chicken. Seriously!!

Chicken is the most common type of poultry in the world. It is believed that chickens were first(some hundred years back) domesticated in India for cock fighting. But later it was done for meat and eggs. 

There are many different varieties of chicken like curry, roast, stuffed, grilled and so on. Personally, I love the taste of chicken. Like the taste, chicken have good nutritional values. Chicken is rich in protein. According to USCD , 100gm of chicken contains 18g protein, 15gm fat, 11mg calcium, 20 mg magnesium, 147mg phosphorus, 149mg potassium, 70mg sodium. Besides, it contains vitamins like vitamin C, riboflavin, thiamin, vitamin B6&12, vitamin A,E,D and K.

Triceps Day!!

There is this huge misconception among people that for a big, flashy and pumped up arms, you only need to work on your biceps. Bullshit!! Triceps play greater role here. Yes you heard that right. TRICEPS!!

Tricep is a long muscle located in the back side of upper arm. It extends from shoulder to elbow. It is made up of 3 sets of muscles; lateral head, medial head and long head. The long head arises from a shallow depression of scapula. It gives the horse shoe shape of tricep. The major function of tricep is that it helps in movement of arms. The movement of arm relies on contraction/relaxation of biceps and triceps muscle.

Lying Barbell Tricep Extension



Lying tricep extension is an important workout for bigger volume triceps. Hit 3 sets of tricep extension(1st set with 12reps followed by 10 and 8 reps) as soon as you warm up. Let me remind you, you've got to increase the weight you are hitting by each set for good result.

Following are the steps for proper lying tricep extension:

- Lie down on a bench and hold the curl bar with palms facing forward. The curl bar is to be handled in its inner handle.
- Extend the arms upright.
- Slowly bring down the bar downwards in a semi circular motion.
- Once the bar is down, take a small pause and again lift it upright through the same path.
- While you are curling, make sure your upper arms remain close and intact and  keep your elbows in.

The Power House- EGG

What strikes your mind when you hear 'eggs'?? The brownish/reddish oval thing, inside containing white and yellow parts? Well that, my friend, is an unfertilized egg provided my mother hen/ mother duck :D And yes we sure are going to discuss about these very eggs here.

But the literal definition comes alongside the term fertilization during the process of reproduction. An egg is an organic vessel containing the zygote that develops into an embryo.

The eggs we get from market are the unfertilized ones. These eggs are considered as power house because they are loaded with high nutrients, some of which are rare in our normal diet. 

Eggs whites are the extremely rich in  low-calorie protein. Besides, the white part of eggs have very lower carbs but  higher minerals and vitamins.  It consists of vitamins A, E, B12 and B2 where as it is packed with minerals like zinc, iron,  phosphorus.

The health benefits of eggs are:

- Muscle building:
Every bodybuilder incorporate egg in their daily diet plan. It is because the egg whites are highly proteinitious with very low fat. It helps in growth and development of muscles.

-Source of vitamins:
Eggs are considered as the rich source of vitamins. It consists of Vitamin B2, Vitamin B12, Vitamin A and Vitamin E.

-Raise HDL level:
Egg consists of harmless cholesterol(good cholesterol) that helps in increasing HDL(High Density Lipoprotein). Higher the level of HDL, lower the risk pf many diseases.

- Good for eye:
Eggs consist of antioxidants like Lutien and Zeaxanthin that helps in development of retina.

Biceps Day!!

Chances are, the very first time you entered the gym, you went through the arms workout. Its obvious because everybody wants a great looking arms as they are the most visible part of our body. Whatever be the goal, the concern is are you really getting most out of your arms training?

To get the best out of it, it is very important to learn about the arm muscle anatomy, how they work, how they move and so on.

So here is a brief on the anatomy of the arm muscles(talking only about biceps here!):

Biceps is the double headed muscle that lies in between the shoulder and the elbow in the anterior portion. Biceps is basically formed up of two sets of muscles they are Biceps brachii and Brachialis.

Brachii is located at the frontal part of the upper arm between shoulder and elbow. It assists the elbow motion( mostly curling motion).

Brachialis is a small muscle located over the lower portion of the upper arm that connect the bottom half of the bicep to the forearm. It helps in elbow flexion.

Barbell Curl




Hit the 3 sets of barbell curl( 1st set 12 reps, 2nd set 10 reps, 3rd set 8 reps) in the beginning of the biceps day. Barbell curl enhances the growth of biceps.

- Stand straight with your chest out and hold the barbell with shoulder wide grip such that the palm faces forward.
- Curl the barbell  upward and forward keeping your upper arm steady.(make sure that only your upper arm is moving).
- Squeeze the biceps as much as possible when you are curling.(make sure the bar is at shoulder level)
- Slowly bring the bar back to its starting position.

Well i forgot to mention earlier,  increase the weight you are lifting in each set. make sure the final 8 reps set is heavier than the initial 12 reps set.

Watermelon- Beat the heat!!

One thing I love about summer isssssss Watermelon!!!! Beside the heat, its the watermelon seeds that bothers me during summer. For me, the secret behind 'beat the summer heat' is refreshing watermelon.

Watermelons are tender, warm season fruits. They can be grown anywhere given the temperature is warm. This sweet tasting juicy reddish fruits is composed of above 90% of water.  This the reason that watermelons help to combat the scorching sun and provide refreshment.

Watermelons are rich in vitamins, minerals and organic compounds. The vitamin components comprises of vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin B6. The minerals such as calcium, magnesium and large amount of potassium are present in them. Besides, the very important fiber, protein, thiamine, niacin and a wide variety of carotenoids can be found in a watermelon.



The health benefits of watermelon are:

- Hydration
Since watermelon is composed of above 90% of water, it keeps the body hydrated.

- Prevent muscle soreness
Watermelon helps to reduce muscle soreness and improve recovery time in athletes because of presence of amino acid L-citrulline.

- Prevent Heart Strokes:
The magnesium and potassium components of watermelon helps in reduction of blood pressure and body temperature.  This definitely helps in preventing the serious heart strokes.

Leg Day!!

Ever been taunted of 'Chicken Legs'?  Nightmare eh?? Thats what happens if you are too lazy to hit the legs. My suggestion-  Make leg your best day!!

Before I begin lets go slightly through legs anatomy.

It comprises of 3 set of strong muscle fiber:

-Quads
There are 3 sets of quads(Rectus Femoris, Vastus Laterallis, vastus Mediallis).  These muscle sets extends all the way from hip to the knee wrapping the femur from the front. their basic function is for extension and flexion when hip is extended.

-Hamstrings
Hamstrings exists as a group of semitendinosus, semimembranosus, bicep femoris muscles.  These extends from buttocks to the knee in the back side of the thigh. It assists in movement of knee and hips.

-Calves
Calves are the group of two sets of muscles fiber namely gastrocnemius, soleus. They are located in the back portion of the lower leg. They are the diamond shaped muscle people refer to as. They assists the movement of ankle.

Barbell Squat



-Hold the barbell up in your traps with chest out and head facing forward.
-Keep distance between your legs.
- Bend your upper body downwards keeping your lower legs(below knee) still. You can as well move your knees forward. Anyways, the goal is to keep the torso as upright as possible.
- Make sure when you are down, the body weight is on the front of the heel.
- Take the reverse for upward motion.

Why Oats??

Doesn't sound interesting but Oatmeal is one of the healthiest foods for you. It is very healthy breakfast option to gain the strength and energy to survive the hectic morning schedule.

Oats are cereal grain that can be grown even in very difficult  soil condition where other crops are unable to prosper.  Though it is not very popular for it taste or state, it is highly nutritious fiber grain.

Oats are the rich source of fiber which helps in muscle building.  Oats also contain beta- glucan which is a lipid lowering agent. Besides, oats contain a wide range of nutrients like fiber, vitamin E, fatty acids, etc and minerals like manganese, molybdenum, phosphorus,  copper etc.


Some of the amazing benefits of oats are:

-Prevent constipation
Oats are the rich source of soluble and insoluble fibers. Fibers are responsible for effective bowel movements that ultimately prevents constipation.

-Lowers Cholesterol level
Oats is popular for beta- glucan that plays very important role in maintaining the cholesterol level of the body.  Once the cholesterol level is maintained, it minimizes the risk of heart strokes, blood clots etc.

-Energy production
Oats are highly enriched with magnesium which is key to energy production. The high level of magnesium nourish the body's proper use of insulin and glucose.

-Control blood sugar level
The complex carbohydrate and high fiber slower down the conversion of complex food to sugar component and beta- glucan delays the fall in blood sugar level before the mean and rise after a meal.

Chest Day

Of all the days, I love chest day the most. I personally  feel chest's workout is more fun than others. Doesn't mean that you  only hit chest hard and skip the rest.

Before beginning with the workout, let us first go thoroughly through chest anatomy.

Human chest is composed of two sets of muscle fibers; pectoralis major and pectoralis minor. These muscle start at the clavicle and insert at the sternum and he armpit area. The chest functions with contraction and relaxation of these muscles. The main function of chest is to assist the arm motion.

Barbell Bench Press


I thought about some really good tips to share with you guys about bench press because bench press is one of the popular exercise for hitting chest. Bench press is a must workout for monster chest.

- Lie down on a flat bench keeping an arc on the back.
- Grab the barbel just outside your shoulders.
- As you perform the movement, bring the barbell down all the way to your sternum(middle chest)
- Now while you press the bar up, push through your arm and feet so its more than your arms going up and down and then push through your core.
- While you are pressing; from the starting position, breath in and begin coming down slowly until the bar touches your chest.
- Take a slight pause and push out the bar breathing out slowly.

Try three sets of barbell bench press, first with 12 repetitions, 2nd 10 reps and 3rd with 8 reps in the beginning of chest work out. This sure helps in significant growth of the major pectoralis ultimately giving you huge chests!!

Fruit of the Angels- Papaya

Papaya, my favorite, once considered exotic, they are now available in the market throughout the year. Columbus must have loved it dearly; that must be the reason he called papaya 'Fruit of Angels'.  Deliciously sweet with a vibrant color, papaya is one of the popular fruits all around the world.

Papaya grow in tropical climate. They are oval or pear- shaped fruits weighing about 1-2 pounds. Their flesh is rich orange color and is heavenly soft, butter- like consistency with a musky taste. The core of papaya is an empty cavity surrounded by black round seeds encased in gelatinous-like  substance. 

Besides the taste, papaya is has very high nutritional value.  Basically, the fruit contains an enzyme called papin that has greater role in protein digestion. It is considered that ripe papayas have higher concentration of papin than that of unripe papayas. Besides papin, papaya is rich source of antioxidant nutrients such as vitamin C, B, carotenes, pantothenic acid and minerals like copper, potassium, magnesium etc. 

 

Some of the health related benefits of papaya are:
- Promote Digestive health
The nutrients of papaya are very helpful in prevention of colon cancer. Papaya stimulates in production of digestion enzymes.

-Boost Immune System
Papaya's carotenes triggers the production of Vitamin C and A in body that are responsible to strengthen the body immunity agains antigens.

-Asthma Prevention
Beta-carotene contents of papaya lowers the risk of developing asthma in people who consume papaya.

-Skin
Papaya promotes faster wound healing and  prevent infection in burned areas.  Papin enzymes are considered very good for the skin.

Running and Jogging

Running and jogging, both are the forms of aerobic exercise. Well, there has always been a misconception regarding 'aerobics'. The misconception is that, people consider aerobics is nothing but substitute of Zumba or dance.

The term 'aerobic' simple means something requiring oxygen. Aerobics therefore is a form of physical exercise that produces energy by combining oxygen with body fat.

Aerobics cannot be termed as substitute for Zumba or  say any other form of dance. These are one of the many forms of aerobics just like swimming, cycling, running, boxing and......

To the topic; running and jogging are two similar yet different forms of aerobics. The major difference between the two is the intensity. Running is more intense and fast than jogging. It requires more energy than jogging.

Running is an inexpensive exercise you can do anywhere; treadmill, parks, hills wherever you want. Since running is more intense than walking and jogging, it burns fat at  greater rate. It roughly takes an hour for a walker to burn same amount of fat that a runner burns in about 30 minutes.

Jogging is running at slower pace. If you are a beginner, I suggest you to start with jogging.

A daily 30 minutes of run or jog can burn 200-400 calories of your body fat. However, your weight does make difference in how much you burn. In general, heavier people burn calories at more rate than the lighter ones. Besides, the pace or intensity of your exercise also seem to matter. The more pace you run with, the more calories you burn.

Source: betterhealth.vic
             

An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away

Hello there

You all must be familiar with a popular proverb "An apple a day keeps the doctor away". Why it had to be apple? Why not potato or mango or blah!! Is it because apples scare the shit out of doctors?? What makes the fruit so special?

Well, the answer to the question is well explained by the nutritional value of apple. Apples are extremely rich in important antioxidants, flavonoids and dietary fibre.

Vitamin B  and C:
Vitamin B complex helps in maintaining the nervous system. Vitamin C is responsible in bio synthesis of collagen that helps in wound healing. It also plays a vital role in protein metabolism.

Minerals:
Apples are rich in minerals. Minerals such as calcium, potassium, phosphorus are very important in growth and development of bones. These minerals also help in maintaining the pH balance.

Dietary fibre:
The main role of fibre is to improve and maintain the digestive system. They control the blood sugar level and lowers the cholesterol level.

Source: USDA

Good Food

For having a good health and physique, food is equally as important as exercising. A balanced diet is a must and I am sure that most people reading this would probably be struggling with it. Balanced diet, as we have been learning from out childhood (but certainly not have been practicing), consists of carbohydrate, protein, fat and vitamins and minerals. I know that healthy eating might get boring at times but it is better than getting disease which cannot be undone. Food for body is like fuel for any machine. If you feed good, it functions well, but if you feed bad, it won’t function properly. So, it is very necessary to have a proper balanced for our body to love us back. 

Carbohydrates and fat gives you energy. It is suggested to get more carbs in breakfast than at night as well would not be burning them. Some of the foods that contains carbohydrate and fat are milk, fruit, bread, rice, etc. 

Your food should contain 30-35% of protein. As it is the main component of all of your body's cells, as well as your hair, skin and soft tissues, it cannot be compromised. It helps in strengthening and building of muscles. Eggs, pulses, oilseed, meat, etc. contains protein.

Vitamins and minerals are the micronutrients that help in metabolism nerve and muscle function, bone maintenance and cell production. Minerals from plant, meat and fish are important for our body. The food that contains these are milk products, green leafy vegetables, eggs, fruits and many more.

Even though we get tempted by unhealthy eating lifestyles, we should care for our body and get healthy. Until my next blog, let’s eat healthy and get one step closer on achieving our goals for better health and physique.

Beginning with...

Hello there!!

How many of you woke up today and.... and stood right in front of a mirror checking out your belly fat, getting almost motivated to workout right away??  And then you wake up the next morning checking out the same( at least in different angle this time) but, but wishing bad that you really were motivated the previous day.
Down goes the loop! Days pass by, nothing has changed; your mirror is the same except the reflection of your belly- seems a bit brighter, a bit wider.  (Reminds me of one of those teleshop's advertisements :D)

My suggestion for all of you mirror guys out there- Well first of all, stop feeling bad for yourself and EXERCISE!!! And if you are worrying whether you would need to diet and starve, chill! Eat, but healthy. You don't have to restrict yourself to diet.  Yes, healthy eating habits and proper exercises are the key to healthy lifestyle. If you want to be fit, there's no any fancy way but good food and good workout.

Regular exercise boosts your mental and physical  health and keeps your mind and body in shape.  It helps in maintaining the body energy, enhancing metabolism, stress reduction and so on. So basically working out doesn't mean just hitting gym or doing cardio and stuffs, there are different forms of exercise.
-Aerobics: Jogging, swimming, cycling etc. Helps in increasing the cardiorespiratory endurance.
-Anaerobic: Weight training(Gym). Helps in increasing the muscle strength and power.
-Flexibility and stability: Yoga, Gymnastics etc.  Enhances the range of muscle and joint movement.