New blog that I post from

I currently have a new blog that I post from.  This blog is a blog that will remain permanent for my postings.  I already have several post on there, including a couple of reviews.  Here is the link to my new blog.

Soovie Films

Flight of Shadows review

Flight of Shadows, what a book.  I'm not even a religious person, and if you can get past the Christian parts of the book, the actual story is great.  Even if you enter the series in the middle, one book will make you want to go back and read the beginning.  The chapters are short and easy to read.

The characters are dynamic, and well placed.  Each character has their own personality.  The most interesting being perhaps the main character herself.  Forced to hide by the government, and always on the move.  Not trusting anyone and having a special value to the government of a post war aftermath.  This is an inspiring book for anyone who wants to write.  Books don't have to be long, or overwhelming, they just have to be easy to read.  I'd recommend this book to anyone who enjoys post aftermath type settings.

Why are regular pushups lame?

Everyone knows how to do a basic push-up, after all, we learned that in school.  Nowadays, they are trying to take that away from our kids, it's no wonder they are failing in school.  So, what about those push-ups we learned how to do in school?  Why are they so lame?

I'll give you a hint, it has a lot to do with grip.  That's right, grip is essential in doing a push-up and quite frankly, in today's modern time, we need something a bit more.

What do I mean by something a bit more?  Remember that hint I gave you earlier?  Grip.  That's what we need nowadays and here's why.  Gripping adds much more to your workout than a regular flat palm push-up does.  Why is this?  By gripping something such as a raised bar, you are activating more muscles in the arms and chest, thus giving you a fuller workout.

These extra muscles are important, because while we are working some muscles in the body during a standard push-up, we are neglecting others.  Yeah, you could to individual workout after workout to activate those muscles, but why?  What's the point?  The only thing you are doing there is wearing yourself out, and that's not the goal here.  The goal is to build muscle where we need it the most and to give us more strength.

By activating these gripping muscles you can actually lift more, thus building your strength even further.  What's recommended?  I personally enjoy doing push-ups on a slightly raised bar.  You can use slightly raised parallel bars, but there isn't much room for adjusting your arms, which is why I stick with one bar.  Using one slightly raised bar, you are off the ground enough to give yourself a slight incline, and thus allowing for even more muscles to be activated.  This bar allows you to grip something without worrying about injuring yourself.

So, go out and quit being standard.  Go out of your comfort zone.  Be Bold, Be Adventurous, Be Frugal.

Tips for Losing Weight

There are an awful lot of people who want to lose weight, yet many people simple don't know how.  Well, no worries, it's not as complex as one might think.  How is this possible?  Well, it's not rocket science, that's how.

On to the weight loss tips.  Our first contestant, building muscle.  A simple yet flexible workout is all you need to build muscle, and you don't even need weights to do it?  Why?  For the longest time, many men have been working out without weights.  That means, they used their own body weight.  And for a number of years, the worlds strongest man used only body mass.  So, add some extra protein in your diet, but take it easy on the supplements.  If you have to have a supplement, then grab a good protein drink that doesn't have any artificial sweeteners in it.  I'm against artificial sweeteners, especially if you are working out.

Next up, we have cardio.  Cardio is great for losing that extra poundage, but be for warned, Cardio won't work alone.  Here's why, you won't burn a thousand calories working out during a Cardio session.  But you will burn extra calories to take off the edge.  There are several websites that you can use to calculate how many calories a certain exercise burns per hour, or per half hour, or per how ever many minutes you want.  I'll provide the link below the post.  Also I'll provide an example.

The absolute best thing you can do for yourself is to boost your metabolism.  That's right, boosting your metabolism will get your body in gear burning those unused calories.  So, how does one boost their metabolism?  Simple, increase the amount of meals you eat.  Eating smaller meals, more frequently, say 2-3 hours a part, will greatly increase your metabolism.  The key here is to not go hungry, and by not going hungry, you are burning calories.

Now, let me retrace something I mentioned above.  Cardio won't work alone.  I say this, because the average person doesn't have the endurance to make cardio alone work.  Cardio can work alone, as you will see in the section below.

On a side note, in order to lose 1 pound of fat, you must burn 3,500 calories more than what you take in.  It would not be advised to attempt this all in one day.  That would be foolish.  Marathon runners eat a lot of food, a lot more than you or I do.  Swimmers are the same way.  They need that extra food to keep the body going during long days of training.


Calories Burned Calculator

Other Fitness Calculators including metric
Get out there and be sporty.

Activity	Calories burned
Sleeping	63
Reading	72
Talking on phone	72
Writing	72
Sitting / resting	72
Standing	81
Sex - foreplay	99
Card playing	108
Playing board games	108
Studying	126
Driving	144
Touring/Traveling	144
Packing Suitcase	144
Washing dishes	153
Ironing	153
Shopping	162
Billiards	171
Brush teeth	171
Football - playing catch	171
Croquet	171
Horseback riding - walking	171
Tailoring, Cutting	180
Push stroller with child	180
Putting away Groceries	180
Hairstyling	180
Cooking	180
Walking 2 mph	189
Hatha yoga	189
Playing Piano	189
Housework	198
Frisbee playing	207
Surfing	207
Bowling	207
Dancing - ballroom slow	207
Fishing	207
Loading/Unloading a car	216
Playing guitar	216
Archery	234
Golf - cart	234
Snowmobiling	234
Volleyball - recreation	234
Weight lifting - general	234
Lifting weights - general	234
Pilates Beginner	252
Carrying an Infant	252
Hang Gliding	252
Carpentry/Workshop	252
Weaving cloth	252
Paddleboat	270
Walk / run play with kids	270
Raking lawn	270
Coaching - team sports	270
Table tennis	270
Water Aerobics	270
Bicycling - leisure	270
Stretching	270
Showering	288
Sex - intercourse	288
Elder care, Disabled adult	288
Tennis - doubles	288
Walking 3 mph	297
Mowing - push	297
Volleyball - competitive	297
Washing car	306
Calisthenics / exercise - moderate	306
Situps / crunches - moderate	306
Basketball - shooting baskets	306
Jumping jacks - moderate	306
Badminton	306
Mopping	306
Canoeing 2 mph	306
Farming/Feeding livestock	324
Hunting	342
Cricket	342
Painting House	342
Skating - moderate	342
Softball or baseball	342
Skateboarding	342
Kayaking	342
Pushups - moderate	342
Ashtanga yoga	351
Pilates Intermediate	351
Power yoga	351
Walking 4 mph	351
Hopscotch/Dodge ball	360
Using Crutches	360
Snorkeling	360
Cleaning Gutters	360
Garden	369
Dancing - fast ballroom	378
Construction/Remodeling	396
Dancing - aerobic, ballet, modern	405
Boxing - punching bag	405
Horse grooming	405
Fencing	405
Hiking	405
Skiing - water	405
Chop Wood	414
Tennis - singles	414
Aerobics - low impact	414
Golf - carry clubs	414
Swimming - moderate	414
Lifting weights - vigorous	414
Shovel Snow	414
Weight lifting - vigorous	414
Pilates Advanced	432
Horseback riding - trotting	441
Rearranging Furniture	450
Sledding, toboganning	468
Step aerobics - low impact	477
Racquetball casual	477
Stair Step Machine	477
Basketball - officiating	477
Bikram / hot yoga	477
Rowing machine - moderate	477
Aerobics - high impact	477
Soccer casual	477
Jogging	477
Stationary bicycle / spinning - moderate	477
Backpacking	504
Repelling	549
Situps / crunches - vigorous	549
Horseback riding - galloping	549
Hockey	549
Walking - up stairs	549
Calisthenics / exercise - vigorous	549
Jumping jacks - vigorous	549
Basketball 1/2 court	558
Bicycling / biking - mountain	576
Pushups - vigorous	576
Running 5 mph	576
Frisbee, Ultimate	576
Lacrosse	576
Rowing machine - vigorous	594
Skiing - downhill	594
Football - touch	594
Bicycling / cycling 12-14 mph	594
Vinyasa yoga	594
Skating - vigorous	621
Canoeing 4 mph	630
Football - full contact	657
Ski machine	657
Swimming - vigorous	666
Racquetball competitive	684
Rope jumping	684
Soccer competitive	684
Judo - martial arts	684
Running 6 mph	684
Bicycling / cycling 14-16 mph	720
Step aerobics - high impact	720
Rugby	720
Basketball full court	747
Rock climbing	747
Skiing - cross country	774
Elliptical trainer	774
Stationary bicycle / spinning - vigorous	774
Running 7 mph	783
Boxing - in ring	819
Handball	819
Running 8 mph	918
Running 10 mph	1,224
Running 12 mph	1,521