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Wriggle 'Em, Jiggle 'Em: Fun with All Your Fingers and Toes

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Whether you're stuck behind a desk, tied up in rush hour traffic, or sitting in your favorite chair watching TV, any time is a good time to give your body a healthy stretch. Why don't you start with your fingers and your toes? Wiggle them, jiggle them, stretch them 'round - your joints will thank you more than you can know. Release that tension and say goodbye to accumulated stress by starting with these simple stretches.

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Swim, Swam, Swum: Your Health Has Just Begun

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If you are just starting out on your path toward weight loss and renewed health, swimming is one of best exercises for you. Because it is a non-weight bearing activity-meaning you aren't placing stress of your body weight on your muscles and joints-you can exercise more safely and for longer periods of time. Swimming is an excellent exercise to build cardiovascular strength, burn calories, and establish whole-body conditioning. If there is a pool nearby, swim as often as you can. And, if nothing else, a cool dip in a pool is a wonderful stress reliever.

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If You Can Sit, You Can Stand. If You Can Stand, You Can Walk

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If one day you want to revel in your achievements, you need to revolutionize your life - from your diet, to exercise, to your daily habits. For example, if you sit at a desk for a living, get up every half an hour and take a lap around floor of your office. If you stand for a living, shift your weight back and forth between legs, walk about, stretch out. Because movement is key to getting your body in shape, take every opportunity you can to do a little moving and shaking!

Providing your body with materials it needs to build muscle is only one piece of puzzle. A weight training program designed to give body a reason to add some muscle will be very important to achieving your goals. Your workout routines should concentrate on compound weight lifting exercises (those that involve multiple muscle groups like squat or bench press) with weights that allow you to do 6 to 12 reps per set. Higher rep ranges will tone your muscles but may not sufficiently signal body into muscle growth. Try to either increase amount of weight lifted or reps completed with each workout.

Don't go overboard with your workouts. Two or three one-hour workouts per week done with intensity should do trick. Too often those that have trouble gaining weight (hardgainers) spend too much time in gym. This can be counterproductive in two ways. First, it means you are burning off a lot of calories that could otherwise be used to build muscle and, second, you can over-train your muscles by working them too hard, basically making them unresponsive.

If you are looking for some company in your quest to gain weight, venture into bodybuilding community. There you will find many people also seeking ways to put on lean muscle mass. You will also find many products marketed to help you gain weight. Be very cautious when looking at these products. Gaining weight may not be as in demand as losing weight but it is still big business and there are a lot of companies out there looking to take your money. While some of these products can help, others aren't necessary.

With a little motivation, a weight gain diet and a solid weight training program in place you will have all you need to achieve your gain weight goals. Better yet, you will never again have to ask that question that gets all those funny looks aimed back at you.