Working Out and Testosterone!

StrongBoard Balance Board Uriah Hall TestosteroneDon’t ask your endocrinologist, but there are easy natural ways to increase your testosterone with your StrongBoard Balance, along with diet and sleep. Testosterone is a very important hormone for your health, as it is a big influencer of mood, libido, strength, and muscle size.

Of course, many things affect testosterone levels, but if you nail down these three areas, you’ll be 90% of the way there. Like we’ve mentioned in previous blogs on sleep and diet, these two factors are the biggest influence on your physical health, and it’s no different for testosterone.

Exercise will give you a temporary boost of testosterone, but where the long term gains are achieved through consistent strength training. This type of training, along with StrongBoard, is the best way to get stronger, and build muscle mass. StrongBoard will help you increase your balance, coordination, and core stability, while also helping to prevent injury.

These additional bonuses will prevent you from missing long periods of exercise due to injury, while also helping you get a more effective workout from the added stability training. The more muscle mass you have, the higher your testosterone levels.

An additional bonus of working out is staying in shape and avoiding obesity, which significantly decrease your testosterone levels.

Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube Channel for strength training videos you can do with your StrongBoard!

Bikinis and Board Shorts: Get Your Summer Abs Ready

StrongBoard Balance Board Abs Partner Workout
Summer is a little over a month away, so if you haven’t already, now is a good time to start working on your abs. Before we get into exercises you can do to strengthen abs, it’s important to know diet trumps exercise when trying to get a six pack. While working out and strengthening ab muscles will make them larger, if you eat poorly and accumulate belly fat than it won’t matter how many ab exercises you do.

For those out there who eat whatever they want, don’t exercise, and still have a six pack, you have won the genetic lottery and don’t need to continue reading this blog.

One of the great things about StrongBoard Balance is it forces your core muscles to contract in every position. Having to balance on a surface that never stabilizes engages all those abdominals – you tone, and tighten while burning calories.

A great way to directly work on your core is through the full plank. Check out the video here:

Another great way to engage your core is the reverse plank:

Finally, we have an ab workout you can do with a partner (or by yourself):

Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube Channel for additional videos on how to engage your core!

Balancing Life and Diet

Healthy Eating
We here at StrongBoard love working out, but realize working out doesn’t do much if you eat food that isn’t good for you. We’d like to give you some tips which will help you stay on track with your dietary goals, so you can harness maximum energy, intensity, and improvement from your workouts heading into swimsuit season.

The odds are stacked against you when trying to eat healthy, which is why it’s necessary to have a plan of attack. Your best bet for eating healthy is preparing most of your meals. Eating out means you can’t always control what goes into your meal. It’s best to create meals when there are the fewest distractions, like right after waking up or before you go to bed.

If you’re trying to change your eating habits for the better, keep things simple. Start small and don’t put too much change on your plate at once or you’ll be overwhelmed and want to quit. Create opportunities for small victories, and build from there. Start by reading food labels and educating yourself on food. After eating, try to pay attention to your body. Everyone’s body is different, so being in tune with how your body reacts to certain foods is vital to making necessary changes. Last but not least, no matter what your diet is, drink lots of water. It’s recommended to drink a half gallon a day (or eight 8oz. glasses) for optimal health.

Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube Channel for great exercise videos and ideas!

Sleep and StrongBoard

Sleep

You’ve been working hard on your StrongBoard consistently, and you’ve also been eating super foods while avoiding unhealthy junk food. Yet, you still feel like you could be seeing more results. What could be in your way? If you’ve been eating right and exercising, then the answer is sleep. Sleep is the bedrock on which all health and fitness goals rest on. Sleep’s importance cannot be understated. Think of sleep, exercise and diet as three points on a circle. All are tied together, so if something changes with one, it affects the other two.

How you sleep affects the quality of your workout, and how your body recovers. Willpower is also greatly affected, so it can be much harder to resist that donut on four hours of sleep than a full night’s rest. Getting a good night’s rest will have you feeling motivated and inspired to workout instead of groggy and dreading your workout. The good thing about eating right and exercising is that it improves your ability to fall and stay asleep.

How much rest should you be getting? It varies depending on the person, but between seven to ten hours, with eight to nine hours being average. A dark, quiet, cool room is optimal. Keep exercising and eating right, you should be well on your way to a good night’s rest.

Spotlight on Nutrition: How to Sneak More Veggies into Your Diet

StrongBoard Balance Board How to Sneak More Veggies Into Your DietWe all know vegetables are paramount to a healthy diet. Not only are they full of essential vitamins and minerals, they help add volume and keep you feeling full. Here are some tips to sneak more vegetables into your nutrition plan.

1- Hide It.

Puree vegetables in a blender or food processor and add to sauces, soups, casseroles, or any other entree you can think of. Sneak in some shredded carrots, diced peppers, finely chopped greens, and cauliflower to casseroles and stews. You’ll add flavor and volume without calories. This is a great trick to get kids and picky eaters to eat more vegetables.

2- Swap it.

Ditch the crackers- sliced zucchini, peppers, celery, baby carrots, broccoli ends, and radishes make great vehicles for dips. Thick, leafy greens can be quick-roasted with some spices and olive oil to replace chips as a healthy snack. Get a Spiralizer and make “noodles” with zucchini, eggplant, squash, or cucumber. Top with your sauce and you won’t miss pasta.

3- Drink it!

Juicing is all the rage right now, and rightfully so! Starting your day or resetting your afternoon with blend of vegetables, herbs, and fruits is great for your digestive system and to ensure you’re getting your essential vitamins in just a few sips. Check out your local juicer or toss your favorite veggies (we love kale, cucumber, apple, ginger, lemon, and parsley juice!) in a juicer to make your own.