Posts Tagged ‘lose fat’
Thursday, August 9th, 2012
Whether you’re trying to lose those 20 pounds or just looking to fit into your old jeans, steering clear of weight loss mistake is of upmost importance for long term success. Let’s face it, we all make the odd mistake—and when it comes to burning the flab, it’s all too easy.
Without further ado, here are the 3 most common weight loss mistakes and how to avoid them.
Mistake 1: the Fat Burning Zone
Though when exercising at lower intensity level, the body relies heavily on fat as the main source of energy than when doing high intensity exercise, the total calorie burn at the end of the training will be lower, thus leading to more weight loss plateaus and setbacks.
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Tags: Diet, fat loss, fitness, lose fat, lose weight, mistakes, nutrition, running, weight loss
Posted in Diet, Fitness Tips, Nutrition Tip | No Comments »
Friday, June 29th, 2012
Any physical activity makes you expend more energy and as a result, if you are an active person, you will burn fat. Normally, the body will transform carbohydrates into energy. However, fat is used as fuel for metabolism and movement.
You could also use thermogenic foods and supplements, such as caffeine and hot peppers, to facilitate faster results, but diet and high intensity exercise are the two top ways to lose weight fast.
Weight Training and Burning Fat
Aside from a sensible diet, your fat loss program should include physical activities such as weight training and conditioning drills. However, the training sessions should implement an appropriate fat loss strategy for optimal results. Training with heavier weights and fewer reps has shown in numerous studies to preserve muscle mass on a low calorie diet, increase strength, stimulate fat burning, and elevate metabolism.
It is a common myth that we should train with low weight and high reps when trying to lose fat – that strategy is just a prescription for strength and muscle loss.
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Tags: burn fat, cardio, fat loss, intensity, intervals, lose fat, lose weight, weight lifting, weight loss, Weight Training
Posted in Conditioning, Fitness Tips, Weight Training | No Comments »
Tuesday, June 12th, 2012
How to Eat Properly When Running to Lose Weight
Aside from getting out there and running some serious interval sprints, losing weight is a matter of calories in versus calories out.
When it comes to the burning side, running is one of the best training programs out there for burning the extra pounds and keeping them off for good. Not only that, running is cardiovascular exercise per excellence, thus doing it a regular basis will boost your endurance levels, help you ward off heart related problems, and get you in the best shape of your life.
Nonetheless, backing up your running program with a proper diet is the surest way for permanent weight loss results. For that, here are the diet guidelines you’ll need to lose the weight without sacrificing performance and energy for the workout.
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Tags: cardio, Conditioning, fat loss, lose fat, lose weight, run, running, sprinting, sprints, weight loss
Posted in Conditioning, Diet | No Comments »
Friday, May 11th, 2012
Here is a great plyometric exercise that you probably never do. It can be used in HIIT training or any other kind of conditioning workout. You can even use it at the end of a leg workout to really kill those wheels.
How to use this single exercise for a 20-25 minute HIIT workout:
- Lie on your belly, on the floor, jump up to a standing position, then immediately jump up onto a box. Very simple.
- Do 5 sets of 5 reps with 30-45 seconds rest between sets. Execute the reps as fast as possible with good form.
- Take 3 minutes to rest and do some ab work – maybe some fold-ups or something.
- Do another 5 sets of 5 reps.
- Finish up with 3 more minutes of abs.
Stretch for 3-5 minutes.
HIIT workout complete!
Watch the Prone to Box Jumps video below.
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Tags: fat loss, jumping, jumps, legs, lose fat, lose weight, plyometrics, plyos, weight loss
Posted in Conditioning, HIIT Routines, Videos | 2 Comments »
Sunday, May 6th, 2012
If you want a debriefing on my most recent stance on endurance cardio versus high intensity intervals, check out this post:
High Intensity Intervals are Far Superior to Endurance Cardio
Once you understand how useful HIIT training is for fat loss, read about the following routines that you can use to burn fat and get in awesome cardiovascular shape.
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Tags: cardio, cardiovascular, Conditioning, fat loss, fitness, lose fat, lose weight, routines, training, weight loss, Workout Routines
Posted in Conditioning, HIIT Routines, Workout Routines | 1 Comment »
Saturday, April 28th, 2012
How to Build a Ripped Midsection
Frustrated? Tired? Upset? Ready for change? If you’re answering all of these questions with a loud YES from your living room, then you are in good company. And that’s why I keep writing these pieces, honestly — there’s a lot of frustration going on.
I look down at a body in progress and I think about everyone else doing the same. Are we on track? Are we falling off the mark? It just depends on your goals. But if you’re dreaming of abs, dreaming of a nicely sculpted body from top to bottom, then you need this guide too.
I know that it’s time to think differently about the way we work out, but in order to start down that path, you have to know what you’re up against.
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Tags: abdominals, abs, fat loss, fitness, lose fat, lose weight, midsection, myths, six pack, weight loss
Posted in Bodybuilding Myths, Diet, Fitness Tips | No Comments »
Wednesday, October 19th, 2011
Transitioning from bulking to cutting can be complicated. Most often, the transition is done improperly and we end up either losing precious muscle mass during a cut or gaining too much fat during a bulk. I’ve been there and so have you, don’t kid yourself.
When switching from cut to bulk, we might overestimate the rate at which we can gain muscle, which results from a lack of knowledge about the human physiological response to dieting. Some inexperienced bodybuilders might make an immediate switch from a strict diet to free eating, which results in the immediate reversal of any recent diet progress.
Of course strategies will differ dependent on the individual, but the basic concept should remain the same. You will have to accept that your first couple attempts at bulking will result in either very little muscle gain or unnecessary fat gain. It is all a matter of trial and error.
Let’s examine a couple different diet transition strategies.
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Tags: bodybuilding, bulking, cutting, Diet, dieting, eating, fat loss, lean mass, lose fat, lose weight, nutrition, weight loss
Posted in Bodybuilding, Diet, Nutrition Tip | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, October 11th, 2011
How to Drop Weight If You Are Tired of Restrictive Diets
If you’ve had trouble following your current diet plan, you might do well with a diet that is tracked on a weekly basis.
It’s hard to follow a strict diet plan every day. The demands of most popular diets require users to keep a log of everything they consume and keep constant track of calories – and many times, people fail at their diets because they don’t fee like they’re able to keep up with all the details. Constantly monitoring caloric intake is simply too tedious for most individuals.
Strict Diets Often End in Failure
Here’s an illustration: An article published in the International Journal of Obesity in 2007 shared the results of a study of several diet plans with strict calorie tracking requirements. The study gathered 311 overweight females and randomly placed each of them on either the Atkins Diet, the Zone Diet, the Ornish Diet, or the LEARN Diet.
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Tags: Diet, dieting, eat stop eat, ESE, fast, fasting, fat loss, IF, intermittent fasting, lose fat, lose weight, nutrition, weight loss
Posted in Diet, Intermittent Fasting, Nutrition Tip, Product Reviews | 4 Comments »
Tuesday, September 27th, 2011
Stay Motivated Using Apps Like Watch Me Change
Motivation. It’s the silent workout partner that every successful diet or muscle building program must have to succeed.
When you build a workout plan you probably spend a lot of time deciding what supplements to take and what routines will do you the most good. It is just as important to build a motivation plan to help you power through the plateaus and lulls that are part of reaching fitness goals.
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Tags: build muscle, Diet, fat loss, fitness, gain muscle, lose fat, lose weight, Motivation, progress, Watch Me Change, weight loss
Posted in Exercise Equipment, Motivation | 5 Comments »
Wednesday, September 21st, 2011
HIRT and Swolen is a High Intensity Resistance Training routine that you can use to either burn fat, build muscle, or maybe even both. It is a circuit of compound exercises performed back-to-back-to-back without rest (sometimes called a giant set), followed by a taxing abdominal superset.
You can use HIRT and Swolen twice a week with light weight in addition to your standard workout routine, if you are looking to get ripped. If your only goal is to build muscle, then use more weight and opt for 90 seconds rest between sets, but be careful not to overtrain if you are still performing your standard workout routine.
Prescription:
- 5 sets
- 5 reps per set
- no rest during the set, that means no rest between exercise and no rest between reps
- 1 rep means you have to complete each of the exercises back-to-back-to-back once
- Level 1: 90 seconds rest between sets
- Level 2: 60 seconds rest between sets
- Level 3: 30 seconds rest between sets
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Tags: circuit training, Conditioning, fat loss, fitness, hirt, lose fat, lose weight, Olympic lifts, resistance training, weight loss
Posted in Conditioning, HIRT Routines, Weight Training, Workout Routines | 13 Comments »
Tuesday, September 20th, 2011
I still have 8 of these babies to give away to YOU for free!
1 winner will be chosen every Friday from 9/23/11 – 11/11/11!
Update!
That’s right, I gave away a dozen or so of these DVDs back before it ever came out. Now, 6 months later, everyone loves the DVD and I seem to have uncovered another 8 copies! They don’t do anyone any good sitting around my computer, so instead of selling them, I’m going to give them away.
All you have to do is follow the simple qualifying instructions, and you could win a copy too. All previous entries are null and void, so lets restart this campaign and give some DVDs away for free.
I’m sure plenty of you will enjoy working out at home in your living room instead of dragging your butt to the gym. Actually the Jillian workout would be great for anyone looking to take a day off from weight training, and it would be perfect for anyone who regularly works out at home, especially those who use DVD workouts.
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Tags: celebrity, dvd, fat loss, giveaway, Jillian Michaels, lose fat, lose weight, Ripped in 30, weight loss
Posted in Celebrity, Conditioning, Motivation, Product Reviews, Social Networking, Workout Routines | 143 Comments »
Wednesday, August 31st, 2011
I don’t have the time or patience to write a new article today or for the past week, so here are a couple links you can read with decent info about recent medical advances that might help keep you healthier. These new gadgets range from stem cells that can rebuild damaged heart tissue, to intestinal liners that restrict the absorption of excess calories, to bacteria that will keep you from ever getting tooth decay. As you read this great news, just imagine the kinds of devices and genetic tools we’ll have in just 10 more years.
5 Medical Innovations That Will Build Muscle or Burn Fat
5 Medical Advances That Sound too Good to be True
Also, I’m sorry I haven’t been answering questions lately or posting any good new content. As always I have many great plans in the works, but life is just taking precedence over maintaining a blog right now. Hoping to get back at it full time really soon.
Tags: build muscle, exercise, fat loss, fitness, gain muscle, health, healthy, lose fat, lose weight, muscle gains, news, tips, weight loss
Posted in Healthy Lifestyle, Medical, News of the Day | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, August 10th, 2011
A couple days ago I posted the first 5 reasons you are not losing weight. Here are 5 more reasons you are not losing weight. Check out the first article if you missed it: 10 Reasons You Are Not Losing Weight Part 1
Peep these second 5 five items in my list of 10 possible ways you could be sabotaging your diet.
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Tags: build muscle, Diet, dieting, fat loss, food, gain muscle, lose fat, lose weight, meal planning, meals, muscle gain, nutrition, sabotage, weight loss
Posted in Diet, Healthy Lifestyle, Nutrition Tip | 3 Comments »
Monday, August 8th, 2011
A Simple Diet Reminder
Everyone likes a good diet post once in a while. Something to remind us about those small dietary habits that ultimately sabotage our efforts to look good naked. This is one of those posts.
You want to drop a couple dozen stubborn pounds of fat. You know what to do and how to do it. You figure in about 2 months you can complete your transformation by eating healthy foods but fewer calories, and adding an extra hour of exercise each week. On paper and in your brain it all makes sense. But how’s that working for you?
Typical Diet Progress
Let me guess. After two months of eating fruits and veggies, and hitting the treadmill with fierce dedication, you step on the scale and find that you’ve lost a whopping… 2 pounds. What could possibly have happened? Would could have gone wrong?
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Tags: Diet, dieting, fat loss, food, lose fat, lose weight, meal planning, meals, nutrition, sabotage, weight loss
Posted in Diet, Healthy Lifestyle, Nutrition Tip | 3 Comments »
Monday, August 1st, 2011
How to Effectively Combine HIIT Sessions with Endurance Cardio
Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please: walking or jogging for hours on the treadmill, peddling for hours on the stationary bike, climbing a mountain on the StairMaster, and plodding away on the elliptical trainer is NOT the best way to burn calories!
We’ve seen a hundred studies telling us that high intensity interval training (HIIT) burns more calories and fat, speeds up your metabolism, and is less catabolic than hours of endurance cardio. HIIT can also be far less boring, will actually help you build more muscle tissue, and increases your resting metabolic rate.
HIIT: Twenty minutes of HIIT cardio improves your VO2 max, burns a ton of calories, increases your metabolism, and maintains or builds muscle tissue all at once.
vs.
Endurance Cardio: Sixty minutes of endurance cardio is not only boring as hell, it also increases cortisol, burns muscle tissue (protein) for energy, and halts protein synthesis.
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Tags: cardio, cardiovascular, endurance, exercise, fat loss, hiit, lifting, lose fat, training, Weight Training, weightlifting, workout
Posted in Conditioning, Fitness Tips, HIIT Routines | 11 Comments »
Thursday, July 14th, 2011
Why You Can’t Stay Lean When You Get Off Your Structured Diet
We have all heard of The Atkins diet, The Warrior Diet, The Paleo Diet and every other nutritional plan that promises to burn fat, build muscle, and allow you to achieve your physique related goals with minimal effort.
They make big promises, sound good in practice, but fail to deliver. Even if you do reach your goal, after you discontinue the diet, the fat piles right back on and you are back where you started.
What a waste of time.
Why does this happen?
It’s really simple. The proverb “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime” comes to mind…
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Tags: atkins, Diet, dieting, fat loss, food, lose fat, lose weight, meal planning, meals, tips, weight loss
Posted in Diet, Healthy Lifestyle | 4 Comments »
Thursday, June 30th, 2011
Should Bodybuilders Restrict Their Intake of Dietary Fat?
We all know sugar is bad. It is fun to eat but it is bad for your body. It belongs on the bodybuilding blacklist, I’ve got no qualms there. We all know protein is good for bodybuilding. That is a simple and obvious discussion. But what about fat?
Possibly left over from the 1980’s war on fat, a common myth is that fat calories have no place in a healthy diet, let alone a bodybuilding diet. Around that time fat was demonized and carbohydrates were praised. The myth still lingers, but isn’t it time to let that battle go?
The Myth
A bodybuilding diet consists of lean meats like turkey, chicken, fish, egg whites, and fat free dairy products. Bodybuilding newbies learn this practice almost immediately. We must keep calories low, so we must keep fat consumption low.
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Tags: bodybuilding, build muscle, Diet, dieting, fat, fat loss, food, gain muscle, lose fat, lose weight, meal planning, meals, muscle gain, myth, myths, saturated fat, weight loss
Posted in Bodybuilding Myths | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, June 28th, 2011
Should Bodybuilders Do Cardio After Weight Training?
Spend some time in a corporate gym and you will see hundreds of bodybuilders lifting moderately heavy weight for sets of 10-15 reps, then you’ll see them hop on a StairMaster or elliptical machine for about 20-30 minutes of moderate intensity endurance cardio. There are many reasons for this behavior, the most common being that weight training is just a hell of a lot more fun than cardio.
Apparently the weights-first-cardio-second protocol is considered the most effective way for bodybuilders to build muscle and lose fat at the same time. But is it?
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Tags: bodybuilding, cardio, cardiovascular, Diet, endurance, exercise, fat loss, hiit, lifting, lose fat, myth, myths, training, Weight Training, weightlifting, workout
Posted in Bodybuilding Myths | 9 Comments »
Monday, June 27th, 2011
Can Bodybuilders Build Muscle and Lose Fat at the Same Time?
There are the hard-gainers, the obese slackers, the off-season bodybuilders, the weekend warriors, the overweight housewives, and a million other kinds of aspiring athletes. Everyone has a goal. Some goals are simply to lose weight, while others are mainly to build muscle, but for most people fat loss goes along with muscle gain for a variety of reasons – everything from general health, building a beach body, sports performance, competition prep, and even to combat aging.
The most popular fitness newbie belief is that you can gain muscle and lose fat at the same time. Every personal trainer in the world then tries to convince the newbie that he or she simply can’t try to accomplish both goals at the same time. Why? Because gaining muscle and losing fat seem to be mutually exclusive.
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Tags: bodybuilding, build muscle, Diet, dieting, fat loss, food, gain muscle, lose fat, lose weight, meal planning, meals, muscle gain, myth, myths, weight loss
Posted in Bodybuilding Myths | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, May 25th, 2011
5 Ways to Improve Your Chances of Sticking to a Strict Diet
Your research is complete. You have a blank food log ready to go. You know exactly how many carbs, proteins, fats, and calories to eat each day. You even have an alarm set to go off every 3 hours to remind you to eat a snack or drink a protein shake. You’ve got anywhere from 10-20 weeks to reach your target body fat, but you know full well that cheating can be disastrous.
You know from experience that after 2 weeks your body is going to demand that you feed it some of your favorite tasty treats. But this time is going to be different. This time you are going to stick it out. So how are you going to stick to your diet for the required time? How are you going to hit your goals?
It is far from impossible. In fact thousands of bodybuilders do it every day, and you can too.
Here are 5 strategies to help you stay disciplined on a strict diet.
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Tags: bodybuilding, cheat meals, Diet, dieting, eating, fat loss, food, lose fat, lose weight, meal planning, meals, nutrition, tips, weight loss
Posted in Bodybuilding, Diet, Intermittent Fasting, Nutrition Tip | 6 Comments »
Whether you’re trying to lose those 20 pounds or just looking to fit into your old jeans, steering clear of weight loss mistake is of upmost importance for long term success. Let’s face it, we all make the odd mistake—and when it comes to burning the flab, it’s all too easy.
