RIO Fitness Chicago® Exercise & Nutrition Blog

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Next time you exercise bring these three friends.

1) WATER (80-120oz/day). Sweating during exercise makes you dehydrate. This makes you tired faster and less likley to finish with intensity which is the key to body fat loss. Drinking H2O also helps prevent overeating, because that "hungry" feeling you often feel, is not always for food, it can be your body telling you you're dehydrated.

2) WATCH. Having a watch on while you exercise helps you monitor how long your sets & rest periods are. This helps you cut down on the wasted time you spend in the gym or wherever you exercise and give you more time to live & enjoy your life!

3) HEART RATE MONITOR. Heart rate sensors/calorie counters on cardio machines are inaccurate. The machines calculate heart rate by how fast (revolutions) the machine is going & by a preset math equation. You do not enter any of your specific stats (gender, age, height, body fat %, BMI) except age & weight into the machine. Age, gender, and body fat % being what really determines calories burned. Plus with all of the electronical interference in the gym (TVs, cell phones, ipods, computers) the sensors are off even more. With a HR monitor you enter all those stats in when you turn on the watch, so you always know you have an accurate reading of your heart rate, if you're in your "heart rate fat burning zones" or if you're burning more energy (glycogen) than fat. The HR monitor, we here at RIO Fitness Chicago recommend is called Polar (www.PolarUSA.com).