From ballgames to backyard barbecues, warm weather brings many activities that can lead to more eating and less exercise. Life is not a dress rehearsal, and for most of us, giving up a day of picnicking on beach or a sunny morning on golf course for dank artificial cool of local health club, presents no real choice.

So go ahead, bring kids to park, spend weekend at shore, do whatever it is your heart desires while sun sits high in sky.

Exercise and summer fun can go hand and hand –achieving a sort-of two bird with one stone effect. And by following a few simple suggestions, you can turn your day at shore into fun and fitness.

Walk It Off

Instead of just lying on beach all day, take a walk along shoreline. The extra effort that it takes to walk briskly on soft, sandy surface will contribute to overall fat burning effect. While vacationing at your favorite summer getaway, steer clear of cars and cabs, and walk wherever and whenever possible. On a recent trip to Las Vegas, I logged in an average of 6 miles every day (as measured by a pedometer) simply by walking to and from various hotels, restaurants and casinos all day.

Undoubtedly, this helped balance out all-you-can-eat buffet food.

Play Don’t Lay

Get off that beach blanket and join in fun –play some volleyball, toss around a frisbee, go for a swim, or bodysurf. Just don’t lie there for 4 hours roasting in sun. If picnicking with friends or family members, organize or join in a softball game, play horseshoes, or take a hike in woods. Get in middle of whatever happens to be going on.

Today things have surely changed! The popularity of weight training has soared. We’ve discovered that if not taken to an extreme, lifting weights, or “strength training” is one of healthiest, most fat burning and body transforming fitness systems you can apply.

This article is not about bashing cardio, as aerobic exercise is a useful adjunct in fight against fat, but in a slower, more drawn out format. But it is about breaking down barriers that prevent many more individuals from sharing in benefits of most phenomenal approach to health, fitness, and weight loss known to man (and woman) –strength training.

In this new millenium, most fitness experts and exercise physiologists agree, a properly executed strength or weight lifting routine can do following:

Lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, stabilize blood sugar

Increase bone density, strength, endurance, speed and flexibility

Reduce risk of heart disease and certain types of cancer

Induce weight loss, tone muscles and create a more youthful appearance

Increase strength, endurance and agility

This list goes on. And while you’re deciding if strength training is right for you, here’s a tidbit of information that may encourage you to partake – 20 or 30 minutes, two to four times per week. That’s time it takes to do ALL of exercises necessary to share in above benefits, including transformation of your entire body. But there are guidelines that need to be followed to keep your program not only effective but also safe. An early njury will sideline you before you get a chance to see any real results.

The 5 Golden Rules of Strength Training

Rule One: Apply Perfect Form

Strict adherence to perfect form is absolutely crucial with any strength or weight lifting program. Be sure you get instruction from a reliable source (book, tape or trainer) and follow it to letter. Always move slowly through your full range of motion with every exercise, and don’t allow speed and / or momentum to help you complete a lift in a haphazard or jerky manner.

Stay in control of movement as you go through it smoothly and deliberately, utilizing proper breathing techniques. Be aware of speed and tempo. The part of lift where you move resistance against gravity is defined as positive phase, and when lowered with gravity term negative phase is used. Keep negative phase (a slow count of four) twice as long as positive (a slow count of two). You can opt to move even more slowly (up to twice as long on both phases), as a way to intensify set without adding resistance.

Rule Two: Proper Intensity

Applying right amount of intensity to every set will speed progress, including muscle development and fat loss. Regardless of how much resistance you’re working against, or how many sets and repetitions you do (see rule number three), ALWAYS work to some level of muscle fatigue. Muscle fatigue is defined as point in set when you experience some local discomfort or slight pain in targeted muscle group.

You needn’t take “no pain no gain” philosophy to extreme, but you do need to feel a substantial burn to get real results. Lactic acid is byproduct of anaerobic exercise, and it’s what causes that burning sensation in your muscles when you near end of a set. Don’t sacrifice perfect form or attempt to lift or go beyond a resistance level you can safely handle just to get that lactic acid burn.

Quite to contrary, adherence to perfect form will bring upon muscle fatigue and associated burn much faster, and with a reduced risk of injury or mishap.

As mentioned in rule one, slowing speed and tempo is another way to increase intensity when you don’t have option of creating additional assistance. This works well with exercises that utilize body weight only.

Rule Three: Control Weight, Sets, Reps