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When you hear the term "Outdoor Living" what is the first thing that pops into your mind; picnic tables, plastic mismatched chairs and the smell of burgers cooking on the hibachi. For many living outdoors confines them and their thoughts to a small patio area with a couple of old plants and their college patio furniture. In today's world outdoor living means pushing out the walls and extending the living space to include the outdoors way beyond the patio.

As the real estate market fluctuates, homeowners look to remodel their homes and include projects to create outdoor livings spaces for optimum comfort and pleasure. With billions spent on remodeling in the US alone after upgrading the kitchen and bathrooms, upgrading the outside of a home comes in third on the project list. By taking advantage of your backyard and extending the living and entertaining areas, not only increases living space, but also helps raise the property value.

It is amazing how many things used indoors now can also be used outdoors as well!

Components for Creating an Outdoor Living environment:

The Outdoor kitchen - this type of cooking appliance can be a simple BBQ to a complete built in gas bar-b-que including the sink for clean up and refrigerator for the cold beer and beverages.

Patio Furniture - the focal point of many outdoor patio areas is the furniture. Outdoor dining tables and chairs cover the range of simple inexpensive plastic chairs and tables to metal and teak outdoor dining furniture. The selection and price range is wide as I have been looking for some sling style chairs for my patio.

heating - as you move northward the use of your outside area can be reduced from cooler temperatures. However, outdoor fireplaces, firepits and patio heaters can solve the cool issue and extend our outdoor season later into the fall or crank it spring earlier in the year. light adds a wonderful ambiance and it does not need to only come from a fire the use of landscape lighting can do the trick.

Covering the Patio - the blazing summer sun can turn a fun outdoor party into a place everyone wants to get away from. A partially covered area where the cooking and dining areas are located creates a wonderful shaded retreat from the boiling sun and unexpected weather which can pop up. Decks are also a popular way to dress up a patio along with adding interesting stones, rocks, planters and flowers to create drama.

Remember these items are basics to get a list started, personal style, budget and family needs must also come into play. The only true design limits or restriction is the wallet and imagination. The above items get you started, adding a pool, waterfall and landscaped areas only add to the overall outdoor living space making it more inviting. projects do not need to happen all at once but build over time. The true benefit is that whatever and however you choose fits you and your living style.

Extend your landscape using outdoor landscaping lights Join Thomas Fryd as he shares his 25 plus years of experience in the world of plants and landscape at www.Plant-Care.com where you get practical professional advice on landscaping and houseplant care.

Despite their importance to a wide range of athletic and sporting activities, the hip flexors are the most neglected major muscle group in strength training. It is very rare to find training programs that include hip flexor exercises. By contrast there is usually a great deal of emphasis on exercises for the leg extensors.

There are some obvious reasons for this comparative neglect. The principal muscles involved in hip flexion are the psoas and the iliacus, collectively known as the iliopsoas. Because they are relatively deep-seated rather than surface muscles they may have been overlooked by bodybuilders who have traditionally been the major innovators in strength training. Secondly, there are no obvious ways to adequately exercise them with free weights. Finally, these muscles do not have the obvious functional importance of their extensor counterparts. Yet, as antagonists, both hip and knee flexors perform a vital role in controlling the rate of descent and ascent in leg extension exercises such as the squat.

There is no corresponding problem of underdevelopment with the muscles responsible for knee joint flexion, the hamstring group. Because they cross two joints they are active in both leg extension and leg flexion. They act to flex the knee joint and also to extend the hip joint. Therefore they tend to be strengthened by complex leg extension exercises. Also hamstrings can be developed and strengthened through the use of the leg curl apparatus.

Strong hip flexors provide an advantage in a wide range of sports and athletic activities. In sprinting high knee lift is associated with increased stride length and therefore considerable attention is given to exercising the hip flexors. However, they are usually not exercised against resistance and consequently there is unlikely to be any appreciable strength increase.

Hip flexor strength is directly relevant to a range of activities in football. kicking a ball is a complex coordinated action involving simultaneous knee extension and hip flexion, so developing a more powerful kick requires exercises applicable to these muscle groups. Strong hip flexors can also be very advantageous in the tackle situation in american football and both rugby union and rugby league where a player is attempting to take further steps forward with an opposing player clinging to his legs.

In addition those players in american football and rugby who have massively developed quadriceps and gluteus muscles are often unable to generate rapid knee lift and hence tend to shuffle around the field. Having stronger flexors would significantly improve their mobility.

It is commonly asserted that marked strength disparity between hip extensors and hip flexors may be a contributing factor in hamstring injuries in footballers. It is interesting to speculate on whether hip extensor/flexor imbalance might also be associated with the relatively high incidence of groin injuries.

Other sports where increased iliopsoas strength would appear to offer benefits include cycling, rowing and mountain climbing, in particular when scaling rock faces.

The problem in developing hip flexor strength has been the lack of appropriate exercises. Two that have traditionally been used for this muscle group are incline sit-ups and hanging leg raises, but in both cases the resistance is basically provided by the exerciser's own body weight. As a consequence these exercises can make only a very limited contribution to actually strengthening the flexors.

Until now the only weighted resistance equipment employed for this purpose has been the multi-hip type machine. When using this multi-function apparatus for hip flexion the exerciser pushes with the lower thigh against a padded roller which swings in an arc. One difficulty with this apparatus is that the position of the hip joint is not fixed and thus it is difficult to maintain correct form when using heavy weights or lifting the thigh above the horizontal.

With the release of the MyoQuip HipneeFlex there is now a machine specifically designed to develop and strengthen the leg flexors. It exercises both hip and knee flexors simultaneously from full extension to full flexion. Because the biomechanical efficiency of these joints decreases in moving from extension to flexion, the mechanism is configured to provide decreasing resistance throughout the exercise movement and thus appropriate loading to both sets of flexors.

The absence until now of effective techniques for developing the hip flexors means that we do not really know what benefits would flow from their full development. However, given that in elite sport comparatively minor performance improvements can translate into contest supremacy, it is an area that offers great potential.

The key to losing belly fat lies in a combination of reducing calorific intake and aerobic exercise. The importance of losing belly fat cannot be over emphasized; a slimmer waistline not only looks and feels better, but has significant health benefits too.

Research has found that waist size rather than overall body weight is a key indicator of heart disease(1). Belly fat is much more dangerous than fat around the hips. So what can we do?

Consume fewer calories than you burn off and YOU WILL lose weight. Unfortunately where you lose it from first is largely dictated by your genes. This may be disheartening, especially if the weight comes off your face or bust first and you still have that belly fat to contend with. However its unlikely that you will continue to lose fat from areas that you are satisfied with without losing it from your belly.

There is little evidence to support the theory that eating certain foods will help you lose fat. A well balance diet is essential in any weight loss program. Quick fix diets often rely on cutting out certain food groups, depriving the body of essential nutrients. A diet low in fat is certainly preferable, but, for example a no fatdiet will cause the body to store any existing fat (natural defense mechanism)making any fat loss extremely difficult. Alternatively a diet high in fat and low in carbs( fuel) such as the Atkins Dietmay have serious health implications and leave you feeling exhausted. plan your meals according to your lifestyle: if you work days, make breakfast the main meal of the day. Night workers are best making their evening meal their main one. Whenever possible avoid eating a main meal 4 hours before you go to bed.

Eat wisely and incorporate healthy eating into your lifestyle; that way the weight will not only come off but more importantly, stay off.

Aerobic Exercises are great for burning fat and are therefore imperative for any weight loss program. If you prefer not to exercise alone but dont have the time, means or inclination to join a fitness class, why not organize a game of rounders/baseball or a kick-about in the local park. Your kids will love it-especially if they can beat you!

Running, cycling, swimming and brisk walking are great ways to burn fat . These activities may be easier to build into your program because you can do them on your own. Be sure not to overdo things, particularly if you are grossly overweight, of advancing years or simply havent exercised for some time. Dont take any unnecessary risks-if in doubt consult your doctor.

Toning is important at all stages of your weight loss program. Toning exercises unlike aerobic exercises can be performed by those of us with a low tolerance to exercise.. Toning is site specific. leaving you firmly in control. Strengthening the abdominal muscles will help you to hold your belly in. This will automatically make you look slimmer. Lose the fat and show off those well toned muscles.

Try out the following toning exercises and enjoy the instant gratification.

Stomach Crunches

Lie on your back with your feet as close as possible to your bum.

Place hands on chest and lift your shoulders off the floor whilst keeping lower back on the floor and the neck still to avoid straining. Hold for 5 seconds then relax. Gradually increase reps and length of holds.

Aim for tolerable discomfort

Sit-Ups

Great for the abdominals. Follow my simple guide to avoid putting pressure on the lower back.

Sitting on the floor with knees bent hook your toes (soles down) under a secure fixture such as a wall rail, ideally no more than 3inches high because youll need to keep your bum and heels firmly on the floor.

Clasp hands behind the back of the head and lean back keeping the back straight, until you can feel the abdominal muscles working, hold for 10 seconds then using the toes as a lever (this will put any pressure on the legs rather than the back) return to position 1.

Aim to increase repetitions and length of hold.

Leg Raises

I have found this exercise really affective over the years because it works on all the abdominal muscles from the stomach right down to the pelvic region. Be warned, its not for the feint hearted. You will need a watch that shows the seconds.

Lie flat on the floor or a hard surface, feet together with toes pointed.

Raise both legs together till you feel your heels are roughly 7 inches (18cm) off the floor - hold for 5 seconds.

From position 2 raise legs a further 7inches (18cm) so that the heels are roughly 14inches (36cm) off the floor hold for 5 seconds.

From position 3 raise the legs so that they are at right angles to the torso hold for 5 seconds (this will give some relief so best not to omit this stage).

Use the same stages as 2 and 3 above (omit stage 1) lowering the legs to 14 inches then 7inches holding for 5 seconds at each position.

Hold the left leg 7 inches from the floor whilst raising the right leg to 14 inches hold for 5 seconds. Hold the left leg at 7 inches from the floor and raise the right leg to right angles to the torso hold for 5 seconds.

Use the same stages as 6 and 7 above to lower the right leg to 14 inches then 7 inches from the floor holding for 5 seconds at each position ( at this stage both legs should be 7 inches from the floor) Repeat stages 6, 7 and 8 this time raising then lowering the left leg whilst keeping the right leg at 7 inches from the floor.

Both legs should now be 7 inches from the floor, hold this position for 20 seconds before returning both legs to the floor.

This exercise is particularly strenuous so dont be put off if you cant hold positions for the time suggested above. For each different position you will feel different muscles being worked on so try not to miss any stages out, if you find it to exhausting reduce the length of the holds instead.

plan your weight loss program so that it includes plenty of exercise and healthy eating, tailored specifically to your needs. Remember that losing a few inches off your waistline may add that vital few years to your life.

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