Best Fitness Blog

... By Karli Taylor

One of the newer buzzwords in the fitness clothing industry is “compression”. From socks to swimsuits, compression gear is slowing taking over the shelves. Recently, there have been many different claims made by various companies about the advantages of this type of clothing- some of which have more validity than others. Let’s take a look at the two real benefits of these tight fitting clothing garments.

Regulating body temperature: The main difference between these tight fitting garments and regular clothing is their ability to efficiently remove perspiration from the skin. This is achieved by the use of moisture wicking fabrics and the garments tight fitting nature. Unlike other breathable garments, you won’t get perspiration collecting on the skin. This means that in hot climates your bodies cooling system continues to work efficiently and that in the cold you are not wearing wet clothing therefore will stay warmer.

Reduction in excess muscle movement: Compression clothing prevents your muscles from shaking or vibrating upon impact. Every time you move, your muscles move too. When they do small tears appear within the muscle tissue. By reducing the rate at which this damage takes place we are able to work for longer and experience less pain following training. The principle behind stopping body shake is old and probably the best example is the wearing of sports bras by woman. Now with the elastic properties of compression garments we are able to provide the same sort of support for the rest of your body. This is the reason that your garments must be firm fitting and appropriate for your sport or activity.

You will find other claims surrounding compression clothing. Some companies claim that it increases blood flow to the muscles. Some claim that it will increase the power output of your muscles or increase your stamina. None of these claims have been studied thoroughly enough for me to confidently support them, so I’ll leave the jury out for now.

... by Karli Taylor

First and foremost, there is a distinct difference between our abs and our core. Our "abs", or what we refer to as our abs is actually one muscle- our rectus abdominus muscle. It is one small part of the whole area between our rib cage and our pelvis that we know as our "core". I will delve into that at a later date, but for now let’s talk about that six-pack, washboard or whatever other name you may have for it.

This may be the area of the body where we as fitness enthusiast make the most mistakes in training. Let’s go through a few basic ground rules for training our abs -

• More is not better! Your rectus abdominus is made up of fast twitch muscle fibers. So what you say? Well that means that it responds best to low reps- yup LOW REPS- like 8-10 at a time. So much for those devices that allow you to do 100 crunches without straining your neck...POINTLESS. Your best bet is to do 3 or 4 sets of 8-12 crunches for your 6 pack. That's it. You can train your deeper core muscles after these surface ones are tired- but that’s a whole discussion in itself!
• Abdominal training should always come LAST. Some people think that you should train your abs first while they are "fresh" in order to get the best results. It’s ok if that’s the only thing you are training that day, but if you are doing another body part- do that first. Your abs provide structural support for other exercises. If you tire them out, you will not be able to perform your best and may hurt yourself in the process.
• You CANNOT spot reduce. If you have excess fat in your abdomen, you can't just train your abs! This excess fat will burn off more efficiently if you train your whole body and add some intense cardio- BUT
• Diet is the key. No matter what you are doing in the gym, the only way to really get definition in your middle is by watching what you put in your mouth. Eating smaller meals often throughout the day will help turn your keg into a 6 pack!

I know that I have thrown a lot of info at you, and you may have some questions. Feel free to ask away!