Seven signs that you're sweating your way to max results

By Katie McDonald Neitz

Few things in life — besides chocolate and sex — provide instant gratification. But you can add exercise to that A-list if you know what to look for. These seven signs mean you're well on your way to incinerating fat and maximizing your strength and endurance. It may take a few weeks before you sport spandex at the gym, but it's possible to know within 24 hours of a workout if you're exercising smart. Just look for these telltale clues. (To prevent injury, check out "When Your Workout Isn't Working" to make sure you're feeling your exercise in all the right places.)

Sign No. 1 You feel like Rocky.
No, you're not slurring your words (that would be a bad sign) — you simply feel strong. What used to be a 30-minute treadmill death march now whizzes by, and you can do a pullup for the first time since, well, ever. Need numerical proof of improvement? Rate your level of "perceived exertion" — how challenging the workout feels — using a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 means you don't have enough breath to hold a conversation, suggests Bill Sonnemaker, C.S.C.S., director of strength and conditioning at Catalyst Fitness in Kennesaw, Georgia. If you're training properly, that number should go down every few weeks. When you dip below a 5, it's time to up the intensity. Postworkout, jot it all down in an exercise log. Our pick: The New York Road Runners' 2007 Running & Fitness Log ($15, Amazon).

 

Too busy to stick to your 3-day-a-week routine? No sweat. When it comes to staying fit, doing a little can mean a whole lot.

By Selene Yeager

When your schedule is overloaded like a sherpa on Everest, there are days, weeks, even months when you make it to the gym as often as the paparazzi spot TomKat's offspring. But luckily, that doesn't mean you're destined to morph into Kirstie Alley before she met Jenny Craig. In fact, U.S. military studies show you can stop the skid toward mush by doing just one- to two-thirds the exercise you usually do. "Women make the mistake of thinking, 'If I can't do my full routine, why bother?'" says Wayne Westcott, Ph.D., C.S.C.S., fitness research director at the South Shore YMCA in Quincy, Massachusetts. "But just one workout a week will maintain your strength. And if you exercise at the same or greater intensity, you can keep your fitness while doing much less than usual." Just how long will this kind of bare-minimum workout keep you in decent shape? If you can devote about 20 minutes to exercise once a week, you can preserve fitness for up to 2 months — plenty of time, we hope, for whatever's clogging your schedule to ease up. Until then, here's precisely the least you need to do to keep your endurance, strength, and flexibility intact.



Endurance
Expert Rec
The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) prescribes 20 to 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity (brisk walking, running, or a cardio-intensive class) on most days of the week to keep your heart and lungs pumping like champs. To keep your pounds in check, the USDA recommends 60 to 90 minutes.

 

Visit our Forums.

 

by Liz Neporent, MA

ivillage.com 

Who needs machines when dumbells do the trick? You don't -- if you use this step-by-step routine with your favorite free weights!

General Guidelines
Aim for 8 to 15 repetitions per set using a moderately heavy weight; you should feel as if you've pushed yourself hard by the time you complete the last rep of each set. Do 1 to 3 sets of each exercise and rest 30 to 60 seconds between sets to give your muscles plenty of time to recover (unless otherwise noted).

One-arm Dumbbell Row
(Back, shoulders, biceps)

1. Stand to the right of your weight bench and hold a dumbbell in your right hand with your palm facing in. Pull your abdominals in and bend forward from your hips so that your back is naturally arched and roughly parallel with the floor and your knees are slightly bent. Place your left hand on top of the bench for support and let your right arm hang down. (You may see this exercise performed with your left knee up on the bench, but that variation can increase pressure on your back and make you tilt your body to one side.) Tilt your chin toward your chest so that your neck is in line with the rest of your spine.
2. Pull your right arm up until your elbow is pointing to the ceiling and your hand brushes against your waist. Lower the weight slowly back down.

Dumbbell Chest Press
(Chest, shoulders, triceps)

Which fitness video should I buy?
ivilliage.co.uk

Davina or Lorraine? Yoga or cardio? Choosing an exercise video can be as daunting as deciding on a holiday - it's gonna cost you, and you want to get as much out of it as possible. Don't worry, though, we're here to help