Cricket is the world’s second most popular sport, right behind soccer. It has 2.5 billion followers, and the numbers are growing. It’s popular in many countries and people and little kids often play it for recreational purposes. When it comes to small children, the best age to start their training is when they’re 5-7 years old. Nothing professional, just the simple, basic moves and rules.
Replacing bike tyres is something most riders will go through at least once in their life. While it may seem like a straightforward aspect of maintaining your bike, there are a lot of small details to pay attention to. Tyres marked 28-inches are in fact less than 27-inches in diameter, and tyres marked 28×1.5 and 29 1/2 are two different sizes. So how do you know which tyres are best suited for your bike? Buying exact replacements can be the simplest thing to do, but sometimes, those aren’t readily available. Or, you might want something different.
If you’ve never been camping, we recommend going as soon as possible. It’s a fantastic adventure you can share with your friends and family. Sleeping out in the wild and feeling mother nature’s calming effect is something every human should experience at least once in their life. To make things easier, always make a list of all the things you’ll need for the trip, starting with the essentials.
Building muscle mass is no easy feat. It takes time, dedication, and the right approach. Some people have it easier than others, with great genetics that allow them to pack on muscle with ease. But for the majority of people, reaching their muscle-building potential requires hard work in and out of the gym.
Whether you’re riding on some of the awesome Aussie high hill roads or on the Great Ocean Road, there’s nothing better than cruising on your motorcycle in riding season. While riding season means warmer weather, many riders think it’s a good idea to go low in terms of riding equipment.
The bench press is considered the king of exercises. It’s a time tested and proven exercise that has been at the forefront of fitness for hundreds of years. One of the first things a weightlifter will ask you when you tell them you’re also lifting is probably: “How much do you bench, bro?” and your answer will probably be the deciding factor in how much they respect you. Of course, most people will overexaggerate, and many will ask you jokingly. Even if you aren’t a gym bro, you can still get a ton of benefits from benching. It’s an effective exercise, and contrary to what many people think, you don’t have to bench 100kg for it to be effective. That being said, here are a few major benefits of flat weight bench pressing, and a few variations of the classic flat bench press you can do to build muscle.
What’s a Bench Press?
Source: swolverine.com
Before I talk about the benefits of bench pressing, let’s lay down what bench pressing actually is. It’s a simple, yet difficult exercise that is done by laying on a flat weight bench. It’s one of the three exercises that powerlifters do, alongside the deadlift and squats. You lie on your back and push weight vertically from your chest up until your arms are fully extended. Most of the time, it’s done using barbells to hold plate weights, but dumbbells can also be used. The reason barbells are recommended is because they can hold more weight and are more stable, helping you keep form. The great thing about benches is, you can get the entire setup at home without breaking the bank. All you need is a flat bench, a barbell, and as many weighted plates as you can lift.
Benefits of Bench Pressing
Upper Body Strength
The biggest benefit of bench pressing is gaining upper body strength. In fact, it’s the go-to exercise for people who want to work on their chest and their triceps. The chest contains multiple muscle groups, and bench pressing can target them all, as long as you know which exercises to do. The difference between the different exercises when bench pressing is mainly in how you hold the bar, and where. Having an adjustable bench that you can recline, for instance, opens up even more possibilities for different exercises.
On top of that, the bench can also hit shoulder muscle groups, the lateral and anterior deltoids, to be exact. These muscles surround your shoulders, and by exercising them, you can get bigger and broader shoulders.
As aforementioned, you can work out your triceps. The triceps consist of medial, lateral and long triceps, and by holding the bar with a narrower grip, you can easily target all of them.
Last but not least, bench pressing is great for strengthening your core. This is due to the fact that it takes a lot of core power to bench press heavy loads, and that includes flexing your abs.
Joint Strength
Source: bodybuilding.com
Another benefit of bench pressing is that it helps preserve the health of your cartilage. As we get older, the cartilage between our joints wears down and deteriorates. As a result, we experience joint pain, limited joint motion and osteoarthritis. While the main cause of all these things is old age, they also have to do with lack of motion. Think of your cartilage like a sponge with water in it. The fluid nourishes the cartilage and keeps it healthy, and it needs to be replaced regularly to keep things in proper working order. So, the fluid needs to be squeezed out every now and then, and replaced with new, more nutrient-rich fluid. The only way to squeeze out the old fluid is by exercising, and the bench press is one of the best exercises for doing that in joints used when bench pressing.
Feel and Look Better
The two main reasons people work out are so that they can feel better and look better. Exercising makes your brain produce more serotonin, which is an essential chemical in your brain that improves your mood, and sleeping/waking cycle. Of course, having muscles can greatly improve your confidence and the compliments that come with them even more so. Going to the gym a few times a week can do wonders for your social life, as you’ll get to interact with a lot of people, if you want to, of course. If you aren’t too keen on going to the gym, you can put together a home gym in your garage by buying a few different machines and equipment. While buying gym equipment may seem expensive at first, think about all the money you’ll save on gym memberships and gas. You’ll get to work out alone in the comfort of your own home, at any time of day you prefer. No more excuses as to why you can’t hit the gym today!
Cycling has picked up considerably in the past few years, urged on from the onslaught of the global pandemic, and now by the skyrocketing fuel prices. Though few people will forsake their cars, bikes have moved from the realm of recreation, and become viable commuting alternatives. There are more cyclists on the streets than ever before. And more kids coming back to bikes.
Playing tennis is a joy, and there’s little more frustrating than running into issues with your tennis racquet that messes with your game. There are so many different types of racquets out there, each with its advantages and disadvantages. Particularly if you’ve been playing for a while, odds are you’ve run into some sort of issue with your existing racquet.
Racquets are the essential tools of any tennis player. So it goes without saying, that your racquet should be in perfect working condition at all times. But in case you haven’t noticed, that isn’t always the case. If you’re like most tennis players, you’ll experience a racquet problem every few months. The good news is that most issues are easy to fix as long as you know exactly what you’re looking for.
Here’s a guide on how to identify and resolve racquet issues.
People have long sought relief from their busy lives in retreats that bring them closer to nature. Two popular pursuits of this pastime, overlanding, and off-grid camping, have gained significant traction in the recent years. Although in Australia, camping in the presence of a plethora of crawlies and dangerous animals can make you feel a bit uneasy.
Regular exercise has been shown to have many health benefits, both physically and mentally. It may even help you live longer. There are many types of physical activity, including swimming, running, jogging, walking, and dancing, to name a few.