It seems yoga stretching and poses isn't only just about developing the flexibility of a rubber band.
You can use stretching to help build muscles and give the muscular lean look like a hot Hollywood model and lose arm fat along the way.
Really? Well I'll explain the association of stretching that builds a firm arm that will convince you to consider changing how you workout.
During weight training there are two things which you can help your arms develop that hard toned look rather than having the softer shape even though you may have a lot of strength.
Do you go to the gym and see girls or guys who workout and who are obviously strong but are still bulky or flabby?
Well there are two things going on with this shape;
Their body fat is too high so it hides all that muscle or
They are lean but they haven't found the way to achieve a hard or firm looking body.
You can not spot reduce fat on your body, you will have to lose weight all over.
The way to fix this is to:
LOWER YOUR BODY FAT
Unless you have low body fat (approximately males 10% or females15%) getting firm arms and even to see your abs is impossible.
Cardio isn't going to fix this quickly it will help but it's your nutrition that needs tweaking.
This the most important issue before you go anywhere near a gym.
KEEP IT SIMPLE
Don't worry about all those silly celebrity diets at the best it will only work for a short time.
For the long term health and weight loss make nutrition your priority.
Eat Breakfast, lunch and dinner add in 2 extra smaller meals. keep the portions a bit smaller than you are used to.
There is a time delay between when your stomach is full and the brain receives the message.
So don't eat till you are feeling full.
Eat whole natural unprocessed foods, minimize sugar and drink lots of water.
Any other type of information you find on the Internet is really a waste of your time and money.
There are some strategies that can help like intermittent fasting or calorie cycling but in the end keep to clean foods for MOST of the time.
You will start to lose body fat by doing this and the arm fat is one of the first places you will start to lose (a male loses fat last on his gut, a female loses fat last on her thighs and buttocks).
LIFT WEIGHTS
If your diet is under control then you need to build muscle by lifting weights as heavy as you can for a larger volume. This will harden the muscles.
Some people call it "getting the pump".
Feel it for yourself! When you get the pump (blood gorging into the muscle fibers) feel how hard it becomes.
Now at this point ask "well where is the stretching"?
THIS IS WHERE THE YOGA MAGIC COMES IN!
To help develop lean muscle size there are two things that will help you.
1. GTO (Golgi Tendon Organs)
Strength through yogic stretching is directly related to your Golgi Tendon Reflex threshold.
The GTOs are nerve endings within your tendons that deactivate or shuts down your muscles when you try to lift weights which are too heavy.
Regular stretching gives your muscles the ability to fire more efficiently without shutting down in response to stretched tendons.
The best way to lift heavy is to do 1-3 warm up sets which is sending internal signals to the body to get ready... then "HIT IT" lift your heaviest on the 3-5 sets and watch your records increase.
For firm arms do bicep curls, tricep extensions and lot of dips.
But stretch between sets.
2. FASCIA STRETCHING
Fascia is a membrane the covers the muscle, it helps hold it in place.
If you stretch this at the right time you help give the muscle room to grow.
The right time is immediately after your last set on that muscle group and under a partial load.
Former eastern block coaches trained their power lifters this way and achieved great results.
Both these type of stretching will help you with the chance of developing lean muscles.
Developing lean muscles makes your body more metabolic so it burns more fat and help you lose arm fat.
Heavy lifting and stretching will give you that hardened Hollywood model body look.
Learn more about stretching your GTO by visiting how does Yoga help Muscle Building [http://zenmyfitness.com/2010/05/yoga-muscle-building/].
Learn more about how to do Fascia Stretching Routines [http://zenmyfitness.com/2010/08/fascia-stretching-routines-an-incredibly-effective-muscle-growth-tip/].
I'm interested in finding and providing helpful information on healthy balanced fitness.
Please feel free to visit my holistic blog called ZenMyFitness.com where it combines Zen, Yoga, Body Building and Nutrition.
Thanks for taking the time to read this.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Raymond_Ho