Caden Mayfield, Author at Club 24 Fitness

Benefits of Dumbbells

on January 24, 2020 by Caden Mayfield

There are so many great benefits of using dumbbells that there is no way we can list them all. Here are 5 amazing benefits of adding dumbbells to your gym or workout routine.

Greater Stabilization – This forces your muscles to use more muscle fibers to stabilize the load which in turn makes the lift more effective in producing overall strength and power gains.
Unilateral Training – Everyone has a weak side and bilateral training allows your dominate side to compensate. Since dumbbell training trains limbs unilaterally it can help you strengthen both sides equally with no compensation from your stronger side creating a better balance of strength.
Variety – Variations in your routine is highly necessary to keep you from getting into a rut and losing focus. Let’s face it, barbell exercises are awesome but can be somewhat limiting compared to the greater number of dumbbell exercises you can perform.
Safety – Some exercises performed with dumbbells can be much safer if something goes wrong. If you lose your balance at some point it’s much safer to drop a pair of dumbbells than risk being crushed by a barbell.
Cost – If you workout out of your home, dumbbells are an excellent low cost option for both strength and metabolic training. Because of the variety of movements that dumbbells offer they are great addition to your home gym with a low cost and they take up very little space especially if you opt for adjustable dumbbells.

Fun Fact: In a letter to his son, Benjamin Franklin once wrote “I live temperately, drink no wine, and use daily the exercise of the dumbbell.”

Burn Calories With Battle Ropes

on January 5, 2020 by Caden Mayfield

One of my favorite ways to burn calories and build muscle at the gym is with Battle Ropes. This may be one of the most unknown and underutilized pieces of equipment in the gym. Which is great in a way because they are almost always available and your gonna get a killer burn. On average you can burn up to 10 calories per minute during a Battle Ropes session. Here is a great Battle Ropes workout to get your heart pumping and your muscles burning.

Perform each movement for 30 seconds followed by 30 seconds of rest before moving onto the next movement. After completing all 6 movements, rest for 2 minutes than repeat. Complete 4 rounds of all 6 movements.

Alternating Wave – Stand with your feet a little more than shoulder width apart and bend your knees into an athletic position with chest up and shoulders slightly back. Alternate movements up and down with your arms causing the ropes to make a wave pattern down both ropes.
Double Arm Slams – Holding the ropes with both hands, bring both ropes above your head then with both arms slam them to the ground creating a wave pattern down both ropes.
Alternating Wave Lunges – This is the same movement as the alternating wave with an added lunge movement. As you perform an alternating wave movement lung laterally (right to left) at the same time.
Burpee Slams – This is more difficult version of the double arm slams. This time, jump as you raise your hands above your head and slam the ropes as you land. Perform 3 jump slams then a burpee and repeat.
Circles – Standing in the same athletic position as the alternating wave, hold both ropes and perform arm circles rotating outwards with both arms for 15 seconds, then switch to inward circles for 15 seconds.
Jacks – Hold both ends of the ropes and take a couple steps towards the anchor so you have some slack. While holding a rope in each hand perform standard jumping jacks.

Give this Battle Ropes workout a try and let us know what you think!

Don’t have access to Battle Ropes? Try out a Club 24 near you with a free 7 Day fit pass. We have Battle Ropes available at all locations.

Sleep vs exercise

on May 20, 2019 by Caden Mayfield

Have you ever wondered whether you should get that extra hour of sleep or whether you should get up to go to the gym at 4:00 am? Me neither…. Well, just kidding. But it is important to re-think how you look at sleep and how much you are actually getting. Researchers have found that for most individuals sleep decreased as exercise duration increased, which led to the conclusion that exercise and sleep compete with each other for time for most.

“Losing minor amounts of sleep due to exercise should be fine, as sleep itself benefits from exercise—shorter time needed to fall asleep, more efficient sleep,” said principal investigator Mathias Basner, MD, PhD, associate professor of sleep and chronobiology in psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Basner recommends that fitness professionals talk with clients about how much sleep they’re getting and notes that the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society suggest adults get at least 7 hours of sleep per 24 hours on a regular basis to promote health.

“The goal should really be to find a balance that allows regular exercise and sufficient sleep,” says Basner. “For morning types, it may make more sense to exercise in the morning, while the opposite is true for evening types. As with everything in life, there is a golden middle. Excessive exercise or sleep are very likely unhealthy behaviors.”

original article found here.

Change your diet, improve your life.

on May 14, 2019 by Caden Mayfield

According to a study released by Lancet, globally 1 in 5 deaths (11 million deaths) were associated with poor diet in 2017. Cardiovascular disease being the biggest contributor to the deaths, cancers and type 2 diabetes being other contributing factors.
Largest consumption factors seen in foods not eaten such as, nuts and seeds, milk, not enough fruits and whole grains. All the while, sugary drinks, processed meat and sodium were eaten too much and too often.
Across all 15 dietary factors more deaths were associated with not eating enough healthy foods.
Out of all 195 countries, the proportion of diet-related deaths was highest in Uzbekistan, and lowest in Israel. The UK ranked 23rd, the United States 43rd, China 140th, and India 118th.

While we all aren’t perfect in our dietary habits, changing just a few items that we consume can make all the difference to our overall health.

How old are you?

on May 6, 2019 by Caden Mayfield

In an article posted by the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, it is said that physiological age (Age Based on Exercise Stress Testing or A-BEST Score) is the best indicator or predictor of death than chronological age. What does that even mean? Based on this study, heart performance scores with lower physiological scores than chronological ages were people who were likely to live longer than their peers in their same age group. In comparison, those who scored a higher physiological score than their chronological age, didn’t out live their peers.

Out of 126,356 study participants, the average age was 53.5 years and 59% were men. “More than half of patients aged 50-60 years — 55% of men and 57% of women — were physiologically younger according to A-BEST. After an average follow-up of 8.7 years, 9,929 (8%) participants had died. As expected, the individual components of A-BEST were each associated with mortality.”

Isn’t it funny that common saying seems to hold some truth, “It’s not how old you are, it’s how old you feel.”

How insane is that? Your lifespan can be extended as long as you put in work to strengthen your cardiovascular system. So whether you’re 20 or 60, exercise can help you enjoy life to the fullest and can possibly extend it too! If that isn’t motivation to get into the gym, I don’t know what is.

Link to the article can be found here!

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