Weight Loss

Ketogenic Diet

2009-05-03T11:05:00.000-07:00

The ketogenic diet is the basic idea behind the atkins diet. The primary principle which drives this diet is the idea of consuming fat more than carbohydrates for your primary source of energy. The intended result of this concept is to trick your body into consuming fat for your primary energy source instead of carbs.

The intention of this diet is to consume fat in a ratio of 4(fat):1(protein and carbs). Now, the problem here is an issue of getting enough protein. A possible increase in the consumption of protein in this diet would probably increase the benefit of said diet. All said, the ketogenic diet has been seen to garner decent weight loss results.

Before jumping headlong into this diet, be mindful that you need healthy fats, and need to focus much more on the quality of your foods. The use of a keto diet is not for everyone either. It is important to remember that everyone responds to this differently. Be mindful of the possibility of a drop in energy or, for some, a possible increase in energy.

The keto diet is just another method for weight loss, however, it does have some inherent risks. Not the least of which is an increase in cholestoral due to the significant increase in consumption in the amount of fat and a reduction in the amount of protein and carbohydrates you are consuming.

Crossfit

2009-04-30T10:53:00.000-07:00

The crossfit workout is a burgeoning new workout program designed to provide users with a wide spectrum of fitness capabilities. Crossfit is the brian child of Greg Glassman, an ex-gymnast. The overarching theme of crossfit aims to achieve a sort of jack-of-all-trades approach to fitness and performance.

The way the crossfit program works is to produce an exercise program for the day, which crossfit trainee's then go out and accomplish. These workouts are called "workouts of the day" of W.O.D.s. The program doesn't focus upon diet or nutrision, solely upon the exercise portion of one's fitness. To find the W.O.D. you go to the crossfit website.

As stated in testosterone muscle's coverage of crossfit, the primary argument against crossfit is the method of attaining a liscence to coach it. In which you merely pay $1000 for a class 1 liscence, $500 for a class 2, and $250 for a subsequent liscence level. In paying for the liscence you also recieve weekend classes for the liscence level you hope to attain. Problematically, there is no test at the end of the program (6).

For many people crossfit is a good way to enhance their fitness. There is also the idea that in crossfit, the W.O.D.s are scaleable, meaning they are applicable to anyone of any fitness level. The workouts scale by speed of exercise, length of breaks, and weights used. Look into it if the program interests you, however, be careful, as some of the W.O.D.s are challengeing for the newcomer.

300 Workout

2009-04-28T22:31:00.000-07:00

Ever since the movie "300" the hype has brought the idea of a "300 Workout" to the forefront of marketed workouts. While the ACTUAL workout was one of intensity and merit, it is not the one posted all over the web.

Mark Twight is the man responsible for training the "spartans" for their movie. He, however, did not provide them with the workout found peppered all over the internet, he gave them a strict regimen (including diet) geared towards each individual separately. You can find what he has to say about his training of the spartans on his gym website .

While Mr. Twight has proven his prowess in developing a program for people, his original effrts have been manipulated into the workout often posted by people who don't realize the true scope of his program. An article on webmd talks in depth about the program. In short, one of the experts (William J. Kraemer), an exercise physiologist with a PhD explained that the 300 workout often advertised is, in fact, dangerous.

Mr. Twight is quoted explaining, in this article, that the often advertised "300 Workout" is merely a graduation test for the men who went through his program for this movie. So yes, while we all want to look like the spartans in this movie, it will take more than this purported "300 workout" to attain the look the spartans had after their training.

Sexy Arms

2009-04-27T21:09:00.000-07:00

So you guys want nice bicep muscles? We all do, but understand that the bicep only makes up about one third of your arm size. Even if you only mean to get some nice looking arms, don't forget that you still need to give some attention to those triceps. While we all may want a nicely peaked and shaped bicep, In searching for killer guns, we must also approach the tricep.

But first, the bicep. There are several techniques for developing those "killer" guns, or some well shaped arms. One technique used frequently is called 21's. This technique involves doing the full range of motion of an exercise (often a biceps exercise) for seven reps, another seven reps of one half of the range of motion, then another seven reps for the other half of the range of motion. Try implementing this with a biceps exercise. An exercise to try this with is the standard barbell curl (found to be the best for developing overall bicep mass in Jim Stoppani and Joe Weubben's article "50 Best Bodybuilding Advances of the Past 50 Years" in "Muscle and Fitness" magazine.)

Lets not forget those triceps though. In the same article, the best exercise for overall tricep mass was found to be the Dip. Try supersetting (performing another exercise without any rest directly after the first set of this exercise) these with another tricep exercise such as close grip bench press or tricep pushdowns. After performing the first set of two tricep exercises take a break then repeat this method till all sets are done.

Remeber either of these principles may be applied to triceps, biceps or any other muscle; these were merely examples. Mix it up, try different techniques and find what works best for your genetics. Keep in mind some general rep ranges for developing the size you want for your arms. The typical rep range as found in Jim and Joe's article to be best for size development is 8 to 12 reps per given set.

Muscle

2009-04-26T14:42:00.000-07:00

What is the purpose of all your hard work for weight loss or muscle gain? To show off a sexy body anyone could be proud of. Part of this equation is building up all that muscle under what may be undesired fat.

Every workout works or attempts to work your muscles. There are three types of muscles, of which two concern us achieving fitness. Skeletal (muscle attached by a bone or tendon) and cardiac muscle (muscle found in the heart). Improving your performance in using these muscles is your primary goal, and will lead to a better looking healthier you.

Each muscle has an origin and insertion point. The origin is the part of the muscle attached to a bone that doesn't move, the insertion of a muscle is the point of the muscle attached to the bone the muscle moves. Electrical impulses facilitate contraction of a muscle. Muscle cells produce ATP for energy, ATP is created through a process which used glycogen as a fuel. While skeletal muscle relies primarily on localized stores of fat, cardiac muscle can use any of the macronutrients (protein, carb or fat) for energy.

Muscles are worked in predominantly two different ways, Aerobically (without oxygen) or Anaerobically (short bursts of higher intensity). Aerobic activity is your standard cardio run, and stimulates the "slow-twitch" fibers in your muscles. Anaerobic activity is your weight lifting and HIIT, which works your "fast-twitch" muscle fibers, and relies upon ATP and oxygen more that aerobic activity. A proper balance of working both fast and slow twitch muscle fibers is important in encompassing physical fitness.

Some science knowledge of what you are doing is an important part of fitness. Knowing your tools for achieving your goals is a benefit few try to take advantage of. Begin taking advantage of it now, and focus your routine around these basic facts about your muscles. For example, rotate the use of fast and slow twitch fibers throughout the week.

High Intensity Interval Training

2009-04-25T12:58:00.000-07:00

High Intensity Interval Training or HIIT is a cardio technique gaining popularity in the fitness community for it's more dynamic approach to cardio, and it's quicker and effective weight loss capabilities.

The workout involves intervals of sprinting and walking or jogging. The sprinting intervals are a set time (often twenty seconds) and are broken up by a set time of walking or jogging. Often people increase the amount of sprinting intervals from week to week in order to establish tangible cardio gains. It is important to understand that, given the increased intensity of the workout recovery should become a concern of the user.

This technique provides a quicker, performance enhancing way to lose fat. The exercise is often used by athletes who need quick bursts of energy, as well as some strong conditioning, to train. A primary benefit of HIIT is that it increases your metabolism for longer than a lower intensity jog, optimizing your time and fat loss. Explore the benefits of HIIT yourself, and see increased gains in your fat loss and/or cardio.

Creatine

2009-04-24T10:54:00.000-07:00

Creatine is used often by bodybuilders and athletes. Often sold in powder or pill form, creatine is one of the more popular supplements. The effects of creatine are purported to increase muscle mass, strength and recovery potential.

Creatine is an organic acid naturally found within the body. The primary source of creatine is, coincidentaly the most common source of protein, meat. Creatine is scientifically found to aid in providing energy for the muscles, specifically the skeletal muscle.

Creatine became widely used in 1992. Creatine does aid muscle hypertrophy (size increases) to an extent. It is found to stimulate activity of satallite cells which are involved in muscle hypertrophy. A study done recently concluded the possibility that creatine inhibited fat loss (I personally take creatine and am lossing weight). Creatine was found to have increased one round max in bench, and total body mass in the experimental group, whereas the placebo group did not experience the same results in the same study.

Cardio Technique

2009-04-23T09:14:00.000-07:00

Shadow boxing is an excellent form of exercise you can perform to develop core strength, agility and also gain some conditioning. As silly as the technique may look, it has benefits far and above just practicing boxing technique (although that remains it's primary purpose).

Shadow boxing is used by many athletes in combat sports, or not as a brilliant addition to their workout. It's ability to develop agility and serve as a conditioning exercise is extremely beneficial. It also serves as a way to improve balance, and work out many parts of the body at once. It serves as a good addition to diet to help you lose that fat.

Aside from the physical benefits of shadow boxing, there is the fact that it is way more entertaining that mere running. Try critiquing form while doing it, or trying to speed up your punches. Slowly add more types of footwork and punches, maybe even bobs and weaves. Slowly adding all this will give you the opportunity to vary your exercise and avoid boredom.

Improve the way you look, perform, and exercise with shadow boxing.

Abs

2009-04-22T09:18:00.000-07:00

Everyone wants killer abs, however, not many know how to get them. Getting that spectacular six pack isn't about a "tireless" workout to build the muscle. It is mostly about the all important diet.

While it is important not to neglect exercise for your abs, overdoing the exercise can lead to over training just like anything else. Regardless of this, you won't see your abs if they are covered by fat and it is proven that spot reduction of body fat is not plausible.

So how to get those abs for the girls this summer? Proper diet, as discussed in the eponymous article published on this site, is key. Yes you can do crunches till the cows come home, but you will still have that gut.

While diet is the most important factor of developing a six pack, it helps to do some exercise. Workout your abs one to two times a week, as with any other body part. This will help you develop strength and provide some minimal help with definition. Much more abs work that this and you risk jeopardizing recovery.

Workout

2009-04-21T10:31:00.000-07:00

Many people find it difficult to find an effective workout to begin with. I mentioned in my last post Rippetoe's strength routine. Mark Rippetoe is credited with developing this routine, and I intend to explain the advantages.

The routine focuses on the primary lifts used by many power lifters and bodybuilders. The advantage of this program is how many muscles the compound movements used in this program utilize. The program can increase your performance and help with fat loss while still providing the opportunity to encourage muscle gains, all dependent on the diet you follow (to gain or lose weight).

The primary lifts used are Bench Press, Military Press, Squat, Deadlift, Dips, Chin-Ups, and Barbell Rows or Cleans. The workout allows for maximum muscle recruitment with efficiency.

The minimal arm work is due to the fact that these movements allow for development of your arms regardless of direct work. Dips, Bench and Military presses all recruit your shoulders and Bench and Dips recruit your triceps. Rows and Chin-Ups are both compound movements which recruit the biceps. While any exercise which requires you to grip a bar, particularly a heavy one, will allow for some forearm development.

Exercise

2009-04-20T10:11:00.000-07:00

Once you have a proper diet lined up, it is important to review your goals. Do you just want to lose weight? Want to gain strength? etc. Lining up a good workout is an important part of getting rid of all that unwanted fat or gaining that missing muscle. Ladies, don't be afraid to workout, you won't gain obscene muscle without a monster diet and/ or steroids.

To increase performance all around, it is important to focus on developing all of your muscle groups. There was a brilliant article in the December 2007 issue of Muscle and Fitness magazine. It outlines 50 brilliant observations.

It is important to respect the fact that everyone responds to exercise differently, so what your buddy does in the gym may not work well for you. Along these same lines you need to keep in mind the aspect of recovery, everyone recovers at different rates. Keep this in mind as you develop a workout plan, because you may not see your intended results if you over train and neglect proper recovery.

As far as workout programs go, there are many possible routes to go. A widely accepted workout program, especially for beginners is Rippetoe's starting strength. There are many others, but this is a popular, proven workout.

Proper balance of diet and exercise are imperative to gain your preferred physique! So get to work, enjoy yourself, and get ready to see results!

Diet

2009-04-19T16:40:00.000-07:00

Proper diet is critical to attaining the ideal physique. If you are seeking to shed that unseemly fat, or just hope to pack on some muscle a proper diet is critical. You must focus on maintaining a deficit of calories (with weight loss) and a surplus of calories (for weight gain), while still eating enough to prevent muscle cannibalization.

If you conduct sufficient exercise you should generally intake roughly 1g of carb per pound of body weight per day if you seek to lose weight and between 2-4g of carbs per pound of body weight per day if you seek to gain weight. As far as protein intake goes, you should maintain about 1-1.5g per body weight.

In addition to healthy diet and exercise,, many people take supplements to aid them in attaining an ideal body weight. Popular supplements include creatine (which aids in recovery, strength and muscle size), and protein powder (a brilliant source of protein).

Combining these principles will put you well on your way to attaining that perfect physique, however, you still need an effective excersize regimen to really see results in your fitness goals.

Diet

2009-04-19T16:25:00.000-07:00