Top 5 Fitness Programs That You May Actually Stick With
Will you pay for yet another
high priced gym membership, go consistently for the month of January, but
forget about it by the middle of February?
If you have made a New Year’s Resolution to lose weight don’t feel
alone, it is estimated that 12% of gym memberships are sold in the month of
January. If you haven't found much success in health clubs in the past,
it may be time to stop the insanity and try something different.
Luckily, there are other options to consider that are more exciting than working out at the health club full of outdated workout machines like this:
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu – Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, which means gentle art in Japanese, is an ancient form that was adapted by the Gracie family in Brazil. In Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) you will learn how to use leverage and balance rather than sheer strength. By this you will learn that size doesn’t matter as you will learn how to take on bigger opponents. You will also learn different joint locks and chokes which may one day help you defend against a bigger opponent. The typical class begins with stretching for a few minutes. You will then go through a few calisthenic and aerobic drills. The class will be then taught a move of the day and will then be broken up in pairs to drill that move. Finally, there will be about 30 minutes of live grappling. This is where you will learn the most in a trial by fire. It is sort of a kinetic chess and one of the only martial arts where you can spar at 100% capacity on a daily basis.
Conditioning ****
Flexibility ****
Weight Loss****
Strength ***
2
CrossFit
– CrossFit was originally
adapted by the US Navy Seals in order to do a variety of workouts that do not
require any special type of machinery. Each workout combines a
variety of movements that are to be done in either a short amount of time in
order to stress and confuse many different muscles. For instance, for one
workout routine, you may have to do 10 pull ups, 20 burpees (from a standing
position, jumping down to a push up position then jumping up and doing a
jumping jack) and 30 kettlebell swings… And that’s just the first of five
rounds! The combinations are put in place to work every muscle group as
well your strength, endurance, balance, and agility.
Conditioning ****
Flexibility ***
Weight Loss***
Strength ****
3
Krav Maga
– Krav Maga is a system of martial arts that was developed by Israel Defense
forces. Through this the participant
will work with grappling, wrestling, and striking techniques in a very safe
environment. You will also learn such
valuable techniques as weapon disarmament and how to negotiate with a potential
attacker. The drill is pretty much the
same in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as in Krav Maga (stretching, calisthenic drills,
and learning of a new move), but there is no sparring component as there is in
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, because, well, you’ll probably end up killing each
other. The cardio drills also had a
CrossFit feel where you would do a workout that combined different
components.
Conditioning ****
Flexibility ***
Weight Loss****
Strength ***
4.
5 Parkour –
Parkour is a combination of gymnastics and Ninja Warrior obstacle course
running, but it’s simply amazing. Developed by the French, Parkour is a combination of running, rolling, vaulting, and jumping. You will get great awesome cardio, upper body and core strength, and great spatial awareness as you go through the different obstacles. Parkour is as much an art form as it is a sport, and some indoor gyms have started to sprout up.
Conditioning
****
Flexibility ***
Weight Loss****
Strength ****
Kickboxing - A great workout where you are constantly moving, with kickboxing you will great coordination when you work different combinations drills on the heavy bags and focus mitts. In any typical kickboxing class you will start of with stretching, calisthenics, followed by a few rounds of cardio, and partner drills with each partner trading who is drilling and who is holding the pads. The sparring in kickboxing is not done on a frequent basis, but if so it may be with limited power.
Conditioning
****
Flexibility ***
Weight Loss****
Strength ***