When getting rid of ankle scar tissue is your aim, not only massage is necessary to break it down and flush it out. Stretching and stretching targeted toward this goal can also be of great assistance. Understanding what scar tissue is important to understanding why we don’t want it to stick around too long.

When your body is injured, it responds by sending fluids to the area (in addition to excess bleeding in the area). These fluids temporarily protect the joint from further injury. Your body then quickly starts repairing the area with ankle scar tissue, aimed at providing a short-term solution to getting you back on your feet. This ankle scar tissue however, is inferior to the original ligament which it replaces. It is weaker, less flexible, and can cause the surrounding tissues to deform, thus making you susceptible to re-injury. Thanks scar tissue for helping us out in the short-term, but get out ASAP.

The longer the ankle scar tissue lingers, the more settled it becomes, making the joint stiff and inflexible. So, as soon as you are on the road to recovery (after your 48 hours of RICE) you should begin stretching the area. Yes, rest is important, but ‘rest’ doesn’t mean you have to completely be a loaf for a couple of months until you have not pain at all. Rehabilitation is not easy, but if you take it slowly, it can make a world of difference in your recovery time and the condition of your ankle down the road.

In the beginning, rehabilitation aimed at breaking down ankle scar tissue can be very simple. Flex your ankle back and forth. Move it around in circles. Draw the ABCs seems to be a favorite one for physical therapists. All of these are simple, yet effective exercises which can test and improve the flexibility of the joint. As you work your way up, and are able to stand on the injured area, isometric exercises can help strengthen the area. Isometric exercises are exercises which you don’t actually need to move. Sitting on a chair with your foot against a wall, push with the ball or heel of you foot. This can help you work up the amount of pressure you are able to place on the joint. As your condition improves, you will be able to push you ankle in more directions.

As ankle scar tissue breaks down and range of motion exercises (drawing pictures in the air I mentioned before) become easier, you’ll be able to combine them with massage, using your hand to stretch your ankle in different directions. When you are able to stand and move around, walking will be an easy way to strengthen and stretch the area. You’ll be able to see noticeable improvement every day as long as you keep walking. Find some stairs and walk up and down them. This exercise will keep you busy for a while! Stairs took me a long time conquer, and for some reason, walking down is more difficult than walking up! The ninety degree ankle on the stair is also good for pushing against and gradually gaining back full flexibility. An old towel or rag can be used to increase ankle flexibility. Grab the towel with two hands and hook it around your injured area. Pull slightly and you’ll be able to feel a stretch in your ankle. Using this method is great because even just sitting on the floor you can stretch your ankle in many directions.

Eventually you can work up to more difficult and complicated strength training exercises such as standing on one foot, lunges, jogging, running, and eventually jumping and weights (if you have them). One of the more difficult things for me to do was jumping and sharp turns. For a long time, even though I could run without a problem, sharp turns in more explosive-running sports such as basketball or tennis caused still caused me pain. Running in figure eights or jumping exercises can help this.

These exercises are just some ideas to get you started on you rehabilitation and getting rid of ankle scar tissue. Remember, that the longer ankle scar tissue hangs around the more difficult it will be to get rid of it in the long run. Some people have surgery three or four times if their ankle scar tissue is bad enough, so start your rehab routine soon!

By now most people know that swimming is an excellent source of exercise. Being in the water limits the level of impact on joints and muscles, therefore protecting them from many injuries related to land-bound sports. Also, while running focuses its attention on the lower body and weight lifting focuses on the upper body, swimming allows for a comprehensive whole body work-out. But did you know that swimming can also make you a better singer?

Being a quality singer takes more than just a beautiful voice and an accurate ear for tonality. In order to carry out those long flowing phrases found in everything from pop to opera, a healthy lung capacity is essential. Exercise in general will increase the amount of air taken into the lungs, but swimming in particular can make a big impact. The reason is air capacity is cut by approximately 75% during water exercise because of the water’s pressure on your body. This is not limited to just swimming, but also includes underwater aerobics, aquatic therapy, weight lifting and other water-based exercise routines. With regular workouts lasting a reasonable amount of time (no, five minutes is not going to cut it), the body’s compensation for the lack of lung capacity underwater will in turn increase capacity on dry land.

Not only does increasing lung capacity benefit singers, but so does swimming’s ability to strengthen the core muscles. There isn’t much of an advantage to having a ton of air in your lungs if it expels too quickly. Controlling exhalation is crucial to a moving vocal performance. It is the abdominal muscles that manage the flow of air being expelled at any given moment, so with a toned core, the breath can be stretched out over a longer period of time.

Ever hear that singers make good scuba divers? A singer will use much less of the air tank compared to a non-singer because they are used to controlling the exhalations with their abdominal muscles – muscles that are strengthened through a regular aqua aerobic routine, whether in the ocean, pool, or even a swim spa.

The advantages to a regular swim workout are endless. There is no wonder that so many athletes have hydrotherapy pools in their gyms to work through their collective injuries. However, for athletes it is the weightlessness of the water that offers the benefits for a low impact workout, but for a singer the opposite applies. It is the weight of the water that strengthens and expands the lungs ability to take in air, and that same weight offers resistance in building a core that can keep the air in. So whether you want to be a point guard in the NBA or the next Andrea Bocelli, put on that bathing suit and get in the water.

Exercise should be about having fun moving your body in the way it was designed to move. It seems that exercise has become a negative word is today’s society. Too many times have I been lecturing to a group of students or adults and when I mention exercise they cringe. This should be exciting if I recall in grade school we couldn’t wait to go outside for recess it was our favorite part of the day. Now we work, work, work, go home and do more work, then sit down on the couch. We have taken the activity out of our day. Even in schools they are cutting back on physical education at a time when the country is at its worst in terms of disease and sickness related to sedentary lifestyles.

Group Exercise

Group exercise is a fantastic way to get together and have some grown up recess time. Make sure you do your research in your local newspaper, visit the parks and recreation website, or pop in at your local YMCA to get an idea of the classes and times they offer them. Make sure that you chose a class that meet two to three times a week. If you a beginner to fitness make sure the class is not too advanced you can work your way up. The last thing you want to do is take a class that is very difficult and get discouraged. Show up a few minutes before class or hang back a few minutes after class and introduce yourself to the instructor, many times the instructors are also fitness trainers that can give you some great advice one on one.

Be Consistent

The key is to not quit, one way to help when you feel like you are falling off the wagon is to have friends to hold you accountable for your goals. Make friends in the class and make a pact to stay in touch with each other to make sure no one gets left behind. Sometimes things come up; family, work, and sickness happen but don’t use these things as repeated excuses. If you do happen to miss a class, make it your business to do a makeup day using another class or going out and doing some exercise on your own. If you are consistent with your exercise and workout program you will get the results.

Con: Monotony

Some group fitness classes like cycling and step aerobics can get a little monotonous doing the same exercises and motions day in and day out won’t challenge your body after a long time. You need variety in your workout program, mix it up a little bit. If the instructor in your class isn’t changing the routine enough try another class or move onto something with more difficulty. At some point you may experience a plateau with your weight loss it may be that your workout program has gone stale. Get help from one of the personal trainers or switch up your classes to get your body recruiting different muscle groups by using different exercise modalities.

There are many options out there to choose from when we are looking for group exercise programs for weight loss. Make it your goal to try something out of your norm pick up a dance exercise class or a fitness boot camp to add some real fun to your overall wellness program. Don’t forget that you have to be conscious of your nutrition if you are serious about weight loss with group exercise programs.

Visit us at http://www.screenfitness.com to read more about how you can lose weight with proper exercise prescription and quality nutrition choices. After all being healthy should be fun; you should be happy making good lifestyle choices.

If you haven’t spent any time training with a stability ball, then you’re missing out on an effective and fun way to increase core strength, balance, and body awareness. There are more than enough exercises on the ball that are sports specific in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

The unstable surface of the balance ball puts a greater amount of stress on the core muscles and makes them work harder to stay balanced. Essentially you’re correcting muscle imbalances by using different muscles of the mid-section (abdominal, stability, and back) in a diverse way.

The stability ball is nothing more than an anti-burst plastic ball that expands when you fill it with air. To reach the correct density: less air is not as challenging while more air makes it harder to balance on. Choose a ball that accommodates your height. How do you know if it is the right size? Use the chart or sit on the ball with both feet on the floor. In this position, your hips and knees should form a 90-degree angle.

55 cm = 4’11” – 5’4″

65 cm = 5’5″ – 5’11”

75 cm = 6’0″ – 6′ 7″

The stability ball provides many more benefits besides an awesome core workout; it will help to strengthen weak muscles and in turn will give a break to the overused ones while opening up the range of motion in the knees and hips. It is a great way to train movement and pressure if you don’t have a drill partner.

Exercises:

Plank

This exercise performed on the work out ball will build a strong abdomen and back. Start with feet on floor and your elbows on the ball to begin the position. Keep your back straight and focus on contracting the stomach muscles. Work your way up to holding the position for one minute.

Crunch

Doing a crunch on the stability ball takes the legs out of the equation and makes the abdominal muscles do most of the work. Position the ball under the lower back and cross your arms over the chest. Curl up and contract your abs. lower back down to the start position and repeat for the desired repetitions.

Ball walk

Develop core strength and balance while learning how to use the balance ball. Sit on the ball and slowly walk both feet forward as your back slides down onto the ball. Once your head and shoulders are supported on the ball, walk all the way back until you’re in the seated position.

Push ups

There are two ways to perform this exercise, with hands on the floor or you can make it harder by placing your hands on the ball for support. As with the standard push up, you will be raising and lowering your upper body with a push motion. What makes this different, the balance ball turns it into a whole body workout because of the instability of the surface.

The stability ball is an effective, fun, and inexpensive way to get a good workout. The functionality of this piece of exercise equipment makes it useable by individuals of any fitness level. Incorporate the balance ball into your workouts to take advantage of one of the best ways to strengthen the core muscles and increase stability.

What do you think about Monta Ellis’ Dunk over Leandro Barbosa? Right, the guy got hops. But did you know that the 23-year old Golden State Warrior was the worst athlete in the 2005 NBA Draft?

The 6’3”-shooting guard finished 70th in the pre-draft camp. He was the worst ranked guard in camp at either position! His strength, vertical jump and lateral quickness were all on the low end of the scale. He also recorded an average 31-inch vertical.

For comparison only: Verticals of other guards in this camp: 38-inch (Chris Paul) who finished 16th and 35-inch by Deron Williams who finished 10th. In case you wonder who ranked first: The well-known ( 😉 ) Joey Graham came out on top.

Now, we all wonder how the 177 lbs- High Schooler could transform into a spectacular athlete who can get his shot at will and dunks anything and everything that is remotely close to the basket, despite only being 6’3”. There can only be one answer: WORK! It’s all about your effort to make it happen.

In case of increasing your vertical it’s about your workout, about the right exercises.

Now everybody knows about Calf Raises, Lunges, Squats and the Jump Rope. And actually all these exercises work! Weight training and plyometrics are also effective, but – It’s more about the how to do these exercises, how many times, in what combination and when to take a break for your muscles to regenerate, than what to do.

For this reason there are vertical programs. Mostly you get a concrete workout plan. And if you stick to it, it’s realistic to increase your vertical 10-15 inches in 3-4 months.

One common misconception for the people with the back conditions like scoliosis is they must avoid any kind of physical activity. In reality, some exercises will help to relieve this pain linked with the condition and that is characterized by abnormal and sideways curve in spine. Scoliosis patients must avoid some movements, which will worsen their condition and pain.

The high impact exercise needs both your feet to get lifted off the ground at the same time. Some examples will include jumping, running, and jump rope. The high impact activities or exercises do strengthen your bones and develop more power, endurance, agility as well as coordination than the low impact conduct, but keep these for later program once your curve has improved below twenty degrees, and when you have fallen in the routine with your exercise program.

When doing these exercises mentioned, if any deformity gets visually worse, then these exercises must be avoided immediately. Avoid any type of he back bending exercises like “Prone Cobra” position done in yoga. These might cause severe stress on your spine and might worsen your problem.

Some Exercises to Look at

Weight Lifting

Suppose you are suffering from scoliosis, curve in the spine might have pulled your muscles in back and move in various ways. It means the traditional weight lifting exercises will cause more hurt and put pressure on your back, especially if you are using heavy weights.

Yoga Back Bends

According to Scroth Method site, some yoga postures will cause pain by putting dangerous pressure on back of somebody with scoliosis. And this includes any pose where you have to bend backwards, like the cobra, you lie on your stomach and curve your back for lifting the chest off the floor.

Wheel is one more posture to get avoided, says Scroth Method website. And this pose involves lying on your back and pushing it up on feet and hands so you are bent in the U shape. It is recommended that you speak to your physician prior to starting any type of yoga and advising your yoga mentor of your state so you will be able to sit out on the harmful positions.

Squats and Lunges

Exercises, which work on your lower body will place pressure on the injured back. It is the case with lunges, standing squats, and hamstring curls. These exercises want you to tight and work on your spine and targeted muscle group. You need to avoid any lower body work out that causes you back pain and ask your expert for variations that you can do when sitting and lying down to decrease the pressure on spine.

Shoulder stand

Head in a shoulder stand position is bent sharply forward that overstretches your neck muscles. It will support forward head position and cervical kyphosis. Furthermore, your whole body weight lies on shoulders, and will enormously increase the rib hump formation.

Twisting Exercises

Central segment, rib hump, is engorged when it rotates backwards in to the existing curvature, no matter whether the rotation is on right or left side.

Since the term “dunk” was born in 1936 millions of basketball players tried to add this “move” to their repertoire or at least to learn it. Back then the New York Times journalist Arthur Daley watched some basketball players of the McPherson Oilers bringing the ball above the basket and throwing it through the rim. He compared this motion with dunking a cookie in your coffee and the most popular move in basketball was born.

Since then there has been an incredible evolution of the “move” called dunk. Julius Erving, Michael Jordan, Vince Carter – they all took the dunk to the next level. Last year TJ Fontenette, aka The Air Up There from the streetball crew called AND1

became the first man to complete a 720-degree dunk – that’s two complete rotations in the air!

So nowadays every kid wants to dunk long before he can even make a layup. But why is the dunk so popular? Let’s ask Vince Carter, arguably the best dunker in the world:

“Because most of the people who watch or play basketball in their spare time can’t do that stuff. But they want it. A lot of guys have a killer crossover, everyone can deliver a behind the back pass and hit from halfcourt. But how many people can throw down a 360?”

It is simple – once you can dunk you never want to loose the feeling you get rising up in the air, throwing the ball through the rim, the nylon or the chain net, hanging at the rim and looking down on your embarrassed opponent who seconds ago was trying to block you…

“Dunking the ball is better than sex!” – Shawn Kemp, one of the best dunkers in NBA history

This comparison gives you a roughly idea what kind of feeling it is to dunk. Ok, but now let’s have a look why the most people who play basketball and want to dunk actually don’t make it.

The most popular excuse goes like this: “I’m just too small!” And this one is definitely wrong. Why? Because if you’re over 5’7″ – that’s the height of the smallest NBA slam dunk champion Spud Webb – and have no chronic health problems (knees, ankles, back) you definitely can learn to dunk!

So, if it’s not the height, what’s the secret about dunking? Why do so many people, even guys who play basketball regular actually fail learning to dunk?

Because the only thing they think about is how to increase vertical jump. They simply disregard that there are some basic but decisive principles that determine your success and besides the concrete exercises you have to be aware of:

1. Discipline. You have to work constantly on your jumping ability. Without discipline you won’t reach your goals and will loose your motivation.

2. Motivation. Wanting to dunk is just not enough! Face it: Every basketball player wants to dunk. You gotta have the right motivation. Dunking the basketball has to be a real goal for you – and an important one.

3. Workout plan. Write down a concrete workout plan and stick to it. For example: week one: losing extra pounds, running, stretching; week two : Squats/Jumps, Calf Raises/Jumps, Jump Rope aso.

4. Concrete Goals. You must have some concrete goals. For example: Gaining some inches in your vertical every week. Just check and note your progress. You also can concentrate on touching the rim with one hand first, then with both hands.

5. Patience. A lot of people think that they can learn to dunk in two weeks or less. That’s rubbish! Just notice the progress you make every week, your highlights (maybe you already can dunk with a tennis ball?) and the motivation will last.

P.S. If you take the whole thing seriously you will have serious results!

Exercise is very important in everybody’s health. It gives us a lot of benefits that diet can not give. It controls our weight, prevents certain health condition, improves mood, boosts energy, and promotes better sleep. However, some people neglect exercise because they do not like going out for a jog, or it is tiring for them to go to the gym. But now, we can bring the gym into your homes by purchasing gym equipments from the stores. One of the best exercise equipments today are the Weider Pro Exercise Machines.

Below are some of the Weider Pro Exercise Machines available in the market today.

– Pro Fury is recommended for functional training which gives you total-body results. It has a new arc design, a 4-roll leg developer, removal and adjustable bench, 100 pounds cast weight stack, two high pulleys, two middle pulleys, and two low pulleys. What’s good about this equipment is that it can be used by multiple people.

– Weider Pro 1120 Home Gym is a strength trainer which helps build muscles completely. It has an 81 pounds weights, high and low pulleys, padded butterfly arms, preacher curl, padded leg developer, and chest press exercise chart.

– Pro 3750 Home Gym is a machine that gives you a full body workout. It has 212 lbs of dual weights, leg press station, ab and leg developer, high and low pulley with lat bar, butterfly arms, and chest press.

– Pro 4300 is another machine used for strength training. It has a 125 pounds weight stack, bushings and bearings, and six different body sculpting stations.

– Pro 4950 is another version of the Weider Pro 4300. It gives up to 375 pounds of muscle-sculpting resistance, seven workout stations including the expandable chest fly station, leg press, 4-rolled leg developer, and a low pulley station.

– Pro 230 Bench is a compact and flexible bench. It has a multi-position dumbbell bench, slant board, backrest, and a 4-rolled leg lockdown.

– Pro 250 Bench is convenient to use and very effective. It has adjustable weights, multi-position backrest, 4-roll leg developer, and vinyl seats.

– Pro 265 Bench offers total-body fitness. It has telescoping uprights, multi-position bench with a 90-degree range and removable lat tower, rolled preacher pad, and a 6-roll leg developer.

Depending on what suits the type of exercise you’re following, you should try these equipments for a more effective workout.

How to get skinny thighs is a question many people struggle with nearly all their lives. It's a tough problem area for most, but Asian Women have easy methods they've used for years to get those skinny thin legs and we're going to talk about one of them today.

Get Skinny Thighs – How To Get Thin Legs Fast

1. You'll need to exercise, but we do not want to get thick muscular legs by doing it wrong …

Many Women make the mistake of treating their legs like any other part of their body, believing that endless leg-press exercises with weights or machines at the gym is going to "tone" or "shape" their legs.

Doing those routines will definitely shape your legs, but unless you want legs like the Incredible Hulk, you need to find another way!

Asian Women practice two main techniques to get skinny thighs and not build up thick leg muscles. The first revolves around simple walking. Walking has a host of benefits that Asian Women benefit from that I've talked about previously in articles, but one area we have not covered specifically is how they change their walking method to match their goal.

For thin legs, Asian Women add a twist to their normal movement while walking: They walk on the front pad of their foot, without their heel touching the ground.

This can be done in running shoes, tennis shoes, or really any shoe that has no heel, basically it's almost as if you're walking while standing on your tippy toes reaching for something off a tall shelf. Only instead of a full extension your heel is only a centimeter or half an inch off the ground with each step. So low in fact that someone watching you could not tell you're walking with a different technique than the normal heel-toe step.

It takes some practice, but when you're doing it during your normal walks (you are walking are not you, haha) you'll find that first your calf muscle begins to get a nice slim shape, but more importantly your powerful thigh muscles will begin to reduce in size while being toned. Essentially it's like doing hundreds of repetitions on a weight machine that has almost no weight on it … perfect for not building size but refining and toning a thinner thigh!

2. There are many secrets like these that Asian Women do naturally to keep their skinny bodies throughout their lives, using dozens of easy tips, tricks, and methods available to get the body of your dreams.

Instead of killing yourself at the gym or starving your body, both of which can actually hurt your ability to burn fat and get skinny …

We all know this scenario, you are totally focused on your weight loss goal, you have your gear, you’ve done your stretches and then it starts to rain! So what do you do? After all you have committed yourself to leading a healthier lifestyle and can’t quit now. Thankfully there are ways to burn fat indoors.

Every day with, with every action you get a little bit closer to achieving your weight loss goal. Just because the weather isn’t very accommodating doesn’t mean that you can give up just yet! Indoor exercise may not always be comfortable, but it is practical when you don’t want to give up on a goal.

After all, if you have a real weight goal, no excuse is going to get in your way even if the weather isn’t playing fair.

TV exercise

Let’s face it, people spent a lot of time in front of the TV. I know because I was one of those people! Try increasing your efficiency and kill two birds with one stone by getting your fat burning exercise done while watching your favourite TV programs. You can even play a dedicate exercise DVD.

Window shopping

Did you know that walking is one of the best forms of exercise? And that is simply because it doesn’t put as much strain on the body as traditional forms of exercise. So when the weather outside is nasty, take a stroll through the mall and do a bit of window shopping. You can even get your friends involved by starting a ‘mall walking club’.

Dancing

As long as you are going to be moving anyway you might as well be learning a new skill, like dancing. There are many different types of dancing; all of them are effective in burning fat. Even the slowest types of ball room dancing will burn plenty of calories!

Anything new at the gym

Gyms are always testing out new equipment, so why don’t you try mastering one of them when the weather is messing with your exercise routine! You can even rediscover some of your old favourites or sign up for workout classes.

Indoor facilities

There are many ways to burn fat without being outside like swimming a few laps in an indoor pool or running a couple of miles on the treadmill! One of the best ways to lose weight is to pick up an indoor sport like action soccer or action netball.

Lifting weights

Heck, if you wanted to burn fat you don’t even need to step foot outside! You can always use small hand weights and resistance bands right inside your house to burn fat. Lifting weights to build muscle can be very useful in burning fat, simply because muscle helps burn fat.

Indoor exercise may not always be ideal, but does keep you active and on track to reach your weight loss goals. But once again don’t forget have at least one rest day to allow your body to recover! And if the weather turns nasty and you where due to go outside exercising, you can always swap that exercise day for a rest day!