Adrenaline Rush Fitness

Advanced Workouts For Not Only Abs and Core, but Full Body

rac — Wed, 26 May 2010 13:46:54 +0000

I received a question today from a Sergeant who was looking for high intensity workouts with some work for abs, core, and full body to take his team of 30+ soldiers to a new level of fitness in preparation for their PT testing.

He basically said that the men had reached a plateau in their training and needed something really high intensity to take them to the next level.

My response is below…Keep in mind that this workout I gave him uses bodyweight-only exercises, however, it is VERY intense and for people looking for advanced fitness levels.

With that said, keep in mind that if you’re not yet at an advanced level, you can still use this by simply using the basic format of the workout, and just do less of whatever exercises you struggle with, or choose an easier alternate exercise that’s similar.

Here goes…

“Hi J****. To get your soldiers to that next level in their workouts, we’re going to keep the intensity super high here and use the whole body. Keep rest periods short, and use full-body multijoint movements as much as possible.

I’ll give you a killer workout idea below that not only incorporates abs and entire core, but the entire body as well in an intense fashion. Not sure what (if any) equip you have available, so I’ll give you a great workout that’s bodyweight based. Here’s an example to take your men through:

Start with a 2-3 min warmup of light jogging, jumping jacks, or jump rope.

Then, move through these exercises in circuit fashion, one right after the other with only 10 seconds rest between each (repeat the circuit 3-5 times for a killer total body workout):

1. bodyweight squats – 12 reps

2. plyo pushups (clapping) – 10 reps

3. walking lunges up 6 steps and back 6 steps

4. floor mountain climbers for 30 seconds

5. lunge jumps – 6 reps to each side

6. lying leg thrusts (abs) on floor – 12 reps

7. squat jumps – 8 reps

8. side plank hold 30 seconds one side, then 30 sec opposite side

Rest 2 min after each circuit; repeat circuit 3-5x

If that doesn’t get them through the plateau and ready for the next PT test, nothing will!

If you want to check out a site that has over 5,000 workouts for every goal imaginable, check this out: Thousands of Workouts

Also, grab a free report on the truth about losing body fat and abs workouts at Ab Workout Secrets, Abdominal Exercises

For you cardio nuts out there, discover a much better way to workout at Better than Cardio Workouts

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Energy Drinks – Do They Give You Energy or Just a Fat Gut?

rac — Mon, 17 May 2010 05:38:55 +0000

I receive a ton of questions about all of these new “energy” drinks that have hit the market over the last few years. They seem to be all the rage, especially with the youth, and they promise you the world with outrageous claims of all of the super energy that you are going to have, and how you’ll be crushing the competition in your sport, and so on.

So a couple questions arise:

Are these “energy” drinks really any good for you?

Do they actually increase your energy?

Do they really have some sort of magical energy formula?

Will they help you lose weight?

First of all, let’s look at what most of these energy drinks are usually made of. Most of them are simply carbonated water loaded with gut-fattening high fructose corn syrup, caffeine, the amino acid taurine, and a few random B-vitamins thrown in for show to trick you into thinking there’s something healthy about these concoctions.

Let’s start with the high fructose corn syrup. Well, here we’ve got empty calories that will go straight to your belly fat, and that are actually even WORSE for you than plain old refined sugar.

Ok, so you say that they have low-sugar or sugar-free varieties as an alternative to the HFCS-laden energy drinks. Yes, but now you have the problem of the harmful chemicals in the artificial sweeteners.

Another problem with artificial sweeteners is that there are some researchers that believe artificial sweetener use leads people to inadvertently consume more calories and gain more weight in the long run. I won’t go into the details on that because that would fill up an entire discussion by itself. Just trust me that artificial sweeteners and artificial chemicals in food in general, are all bad news for your body!

What about the caffeine? Well, first of all, caffeine in itself doesn’t provide “energy”. Technically, the only substances that actually provide energy are calories (from carbs, protein, and fat).

However, caffeine can be an aid for livening or waking some people up, by means of stimulating the central nervous system. Keep in mind though, if you’re a regular coffee drinker, you’re probably addicted to caffeine and probably wouldn’t receive too much benefit from the caffeine in an energy drink anyway.

Besides, instead of caffeine added to some carbonated drink, I’d rather get my caffeine from a natural source like green, white, or oolong teas, which actually provide healthful antioxidants too!

Now what about that so called magical blend of taurine and B-vitamins that they load into these energy drinks? Well, big deal…you can get taurine in almost any protein source. And the vast majority of those B-vitamins are simply coming right out into the toilet in your pee. Vitamins are best obtained naturally from real food sources, not artificially added to some carbonated drink. Your body just doesn’t use fake sources of vitamins as readily as natural sources from real food.

So as you can see, in my opinion, I give all of these energy drinks a big time THUMBS DOWN! You’re better off mixing up your own homemade energy drink with some iced unsweetened green, white, and oolong teas, a little bit of 100% pure berry or pomegranate juice, and maybe a touch of a non-denatured whey protein.

Well, I hope this article cleared up some of the confusion about these energy drinks that are being so heavily marketed these days, and will help you make more informed decisions for your health.

Visit Energy Drinks to receive a free copy of the innovative ebook, Training & Nutrition Secrets for a Lean-Body, as well as your own free personalized metabolic rate calculator.

The Ultimate Muscle Meal Plan

rac — Sat, 08 May 2010 13:10:53 +0000

With this article, I just wanted to share with you one of my special muscle meal plans that I love. Surprisingly, it actually comes in the form of a salad, but it is killer!

I know the ladies will love this idea, but for all of you guys out there that think eating a salad makes you less of a man… Well, you haven’t tried my ultimate “salad on roids” yet!

Keep in mind that this salad is not low in calories. It’s not low in fat. It’s not low in carbs.

And guess what…that’s the whole point! It’s not low in anything, but it sure as hell is HIGH in everything under the sun that’s good for your body… just about every vitamin, mineral, antioxidant, and phytonutrient on the planet! And that means your body will receive all the nutrition it needs to maintain optimal hormonal balance, function at it’s highest capacity, keep your appetite satisfied for hours, and prevent any unwanted cravings.

Keep in mind that last point… when you fill your body with all of the nutrients it needs on a daily basis, you pretty much totally eliminate cravings! This happens because your body is satisfied and doesn’t need to crave any more food, because it has all of the nutrients it needs.

I’ve experienced this myself. Years ago, I used to crave sweets ALL THE TIME. But now that I eat the balanced diet that I do these days, I can’t say that I’ve had a craving in at least 5 years! No joke.

Alright, here’s the special muscle meal plan recipe:

The Ultimate Muscle Salad

approx 1-2 cups spinach leaves

approx 1-2 cups mixed leaf lettuce

shredded carrots

1/2 of a ripe avocado, diced

2 hard boiled eggs, diced (preferrably organic, cage free)

3 Tbsp chopped pecans

1/4 cup dried cranberries

top with homemade dressing made of balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, and Udo’s Choice Oil Blend (3/4 of total liquid should come from the vinegar)

Mix it all together and you’ve got one delicious and ridiculously nutritious salad. For an extra shot of antioxidants, wash it all down with some homemade iced green/white/oolong tea lightly sweetened with the natural sweetener Stevia or a little touch of raw honey.

Alright, now let’s look at the approx macronutrient breakdown:

Prot: 23 g., Carbs: 48 g., Fiber: 12 g., Fat: 45 g., Calories: 650

Now before you throw your arms up in disgust and call me crazy for recommending such a high fat, high calorie meal, keep in mind to scale back the portion sizes for your own caloric goal. The portions above are simply the portions that I use considering that my maintenance caloric intake is around 3000 calories/day. If your maintenance is 2000 calories/day, then scale back the portions accordingly.

Also, I don’t care about the high fat content of this meal… because every last gram of the fat in this meal is VERY healthy… from the pecans, the olive oil, the Udo’s oil, the fresh avocado… and yes, even the fat from the eggs is good for you!

How about the carbs? Well, out of a total of 48 grams, you’ve got 12 grams of fiber. That’s a pretty good ratio. Also, the healthy fats and protein in this meal will slow down the carbohydrate digestion, giving you a healthy glycemic response and steady controlled blood sugar.

Alright, so you’re probably also wondering why there isn’t a larger amount of protein. After all, protein is all the rage with bodybuilders, right. Well, actually 23 grams isn’t too shabby, especially considering 14 grams of that comes from the highly bioavailable protein from the hard boiled eggs. Also consider that this meal has a whole lot of healthy fats, which increases the utilization of your protein. This happens because your body does not need to use your protein for energy, and can instead use it for muscle building or maintenance, and all of the other various functions that amino acids are needed for in the body.

Overall, with this meal plan, you’ve got a great mix of healthy fats, good fibrous carbs, quality protein, and a huge diversity of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other trace nutrients.

Follow this link for more ideas on killer fat loss and muscle building programs.

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Killer Outdoor Workouts in 20 Minutes or Less

rac — Tue, 04 May 2010 04:42:19 +0000

I’ve got just a quick tip today to help get you started on your summer beach body. With summer right around the corner here in the US, the weather is starting to warm up and people are flocking outside after being cooped up all winter.

Now that it’s getting nice outside, why not take some of your workouts outdoors, instead of the stuffy old gym? Your workouts also don’t have to be long drawn-out 2-hour events in order to get a great metabolism boosting, muscle sculpting workout.

Here’s an idea for an outdoor workout that literally takes me 10-20 minutes, but has me drenched in sweat and pumped up by the end…

There’s a little playground and a softball field at the end of my road. So on a nice day, if I decide I just want to get a real quick outdoor workout in, I run over to the field, spend a couple minutes limbering up, and then… depending on how I feel, do about 10-20 minutes of the following exercises with almost no rest in between:

-50, 75, or 100-yard wind sprints

-hill sprints (if you have a hill nearby)

-pushup variations

-walking lunge variations

-bodyweight squat variations

-box jump, squat jump, or lunge jump variations

-pullups on the playground monkey bars

-mountain climbers on ground

Sometimes I’ll rotate through all of these exercises and sometimes I’ll just pick a couple of them and just keep alternating. Whatever I choose, I keep the rest periods very short (10-30 seconds at most) so that the intensity stays as high as possible. This really maximizes the fat burning hormonal response and metabolism boosting response you get from these workouts, given the brief duration of the workout.

Believe me, if you do this at a high speed clip, you’ll get a killer workout in as little as 10-20 minutes, and then you can get back home and get on with your life.

Even if you’re not in super shape right now, you can just take it at a little lower intensity to ease yourself into it. It’s worth it! Working out in the outdoors and breathing in the fresh air definitely has a stimulating effect, and some studies I’ve seen have indicated that you possibly burn more calories exercising outdoors compared to indoors. So give it a try!

Visit Killer Outdoor Workouts to receive a free copy of the innovative ebook, Training & Nutrition Insider Secrets for a Lean-Body, as well as your own free personalized metabolic rate calculator.

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What is the Best Ab Workout for Belly Fat Loss?

rac — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 20:32:43 +0000

The answer to the age-old question of “What is the best ab workout for losing stomach fat?” is…

None! Ab workouts alone don’t create enough of a metabolic response in your body to create fat loss.

As a trainer, nutrition specialist, and fitness professional, I often get asked what the best types of exercises and workouts are for losing stubborn stomach fat in order to bring out visible six pack abs. The problem is that most people with excess stomach fat looking to try to uncover their abs are searching for some “miracle abdominal workout” that is going to slash the fat off their abs in no time.

The thing is… they are going about the problem entirely the wrong way! The truth is that you don’t lose stomach fat by doing ab workouts.

The problem is that focusing most of your time and effort on abdominal exercises and abs workouts to try to flatten your stomach and bring out 6-pack abs is simply wasting your time from doing the correct workout programs that will acutally reduce your body fat for good.

If I were to choose an answer as to what the best exercises are for losing belly fat, my answer would include full body exercises such as the following:

various forms of squats, lunges, deadlifts, clean & presses, snatches, swings, presses and pulls, mountain climbers, sprinting, etc.

These types of full body exercises would encompass a much higher percentage of the workouts I would design instead of abs exercises directly targeting the midsection. The way you combine those full body exercises into a strategic workout that maximizes your metabolism is also very important.

Don’t get me wrong… I do recommend a certain amount of exercises that directly target the abs and core, but these are only a small fraction of the programs I design for my clients as your time is better spent focusing on the full body exercises that stimulate the greatest hormonal and metabolic changes within the body. In addition, a side-effect of working out using mostly full body multi-joint combo exercises are that you indirectly work your entire midsection even though you are not specifically targeting the abs.

Keep in mind that the most important factor for losing belly fat to see your abs is actually in the nutrition arena. No matter how hard you workout, if your diet is full of junk, then your abdominals will be covered with ugly fat. Nutrition is without a doubt the “king of getting a six pack”.

So let’s clear this up for good…

Stop wasting so much of your time focusing on situps, crunches, leg raises, and all those silly worthless “ab contraptions” in your efforts to try to develop 6-pack abs. Instead focus on high intensity full body lifts using combination multi-joint exercises all strategically combined into highly effective fat loss workouts. Couple that with a healthy diet full of natural unprocessed whole foods as close to their natural state as possible, and those elusive six-pack abdominals will yours in no time!

Check out below for more of my key strategies for getting flat sexy 6-pack abs for life.

Learn more about my secret strategies for losing stubborn stomach fat at the internet’s authority for Getting Flat Six Pack Abs

For more workout and diet articles for fast fat loss, see Abs Diet and Training Articles for Fat Loss

For those super busy parents and business people needing fast but effective fat loss programs, go to Fast 4-Minute Fat Loss Workouts

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Barbell, Kettlebell, and Dumbbell Complexes

rac — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 10:05:02 +0000

If you’ve been looking for a different training technique to break out of a rut, eliminate the boredom, and bring on new results, “complexes” may be just what you’ve been looking for. If you’ve never heard of “complexes” before, the basic concept is that instead of repeating the same exercise for multiple reps to complete a “set”, you sequence one rep of several different exercises right after one another and repeat the sequence several times to complete a “set”. No, this is NOT circuit training…it’s much different. It’s basically like performing a routine, instead of just mindlessly performing a typical “set”. This type of training is excellent to work a huge amount of musculature in a short amount of time, and definitely takes your workouts to a whole new level of intensity. The conditioning aspect of this type of training is amazing, as you’ll find yourself huffing and puffing after repeating a sequence a mere two or three times. If I had to venture a guess, I’d have to say that this type of training probably elicits a good growth hormone response as well, due to the large amount of full body work completed in a given time period. But that’s just my guess.

I like to incorporate about 5 exercises into my complexes. Any more than that and you might start to forget what’s next in the sequence. Here’s an example of a killer barbell complex that really gets me fired up:

Example Barbell Complex

1. high pull from floor (explosive deadlift right into upright row in one motion);

2. barbell back to thighs, then hang clean (explosively pull bar from knees and “catch” the bar at shoulders);

3. barbell back to floor, then clean & jerk;

4. barbell back to thighs, bend over, then bent over row;

5. barbell back to thighs, then finish with Romanian deadlift

Use a weight that you can still handle for your weakest lift of the bunch, but keep it heavy enough to challenge you. Try to repeat the sequence 2-3 times without resting… That’s 1 set. You could progress over time on this routine by increasing the amount of times you repeat the sequence in each set, or by adding sets on subsequent workouts before eventually increasing the weight. For example, say you completed the above complex with 155-lbs for 3 sequences per set for 3 sets in today’s workout. Next time you perform the workout, try to do 155 lbs for 3 sequences per set for 4 sets. Once you successfully complete 5 sets with 155, increase the weight 5 or 10 lbs next time, and drop back to 3 sets. This is a great way to make improvements over time, while cycling your training volume.

Now I’m going to show you a great kettlebell complex that really kicks my butt. I’ve been training with kettlebells for a little over a year now, and can definitely say that they’ve dramatically improved my strength, body composition, and overall physical capabilities. If you’re not familiar with kettlebells, they are an old eastern European training secret that has just started to take the US by storm over the last few years. Many elite athletes are using kettlebells as their preferred training tool for serious results. Learn more info and pick up one of your own body-hardening kettlebells at Take your body to a New Level. I’d recommend just starting off with one bell and learn all of the single kettlebell drills first, before delving into the double-bell drills. Just one kettlebell coupled with some bodyweight exercises can literally be enough to comprise your own home gym, without any other equipment necessary. Or you can just incorporate kettlebell training into your normal training routine once or twice a week to shake up your routine and stimulate new results.

Example Kettlebell Complex

1. one arm swing

2. one arm snatch, keep the bell over head;

3. one arm overhead squat;

4. bell back down to bottom, then one arm split snatch;

5. bell back down to bottom, then one arm clean & press

As with the barbell complex, repeat the sequence (without rest) 2-3 times with each arm. That’s one set…and one hell of a killer set at that! Try increasing from 3 to 4 to 5 sets on subsequent workouts with a given weight before increasing your sequence reps. If you’re not drenched in sweat with your heart beating out of your chest after that complex, you either went too light, or you are a mutant freak!

Alright, since most people will have easier access to dumbbells instead of kettlebells, now I’ll show you how to compile a good dumbbell complex.

Example Dumbbell Complex

1. upright row with each arm separately, then both together;

2. front lunge with one leg, then the other;

3. back lunge with one leg, then the other;

4. curl to overhead press;

5. keep dumbbells at shoulders and squat

Again, the same type of sequencing and progressions work great with the dumbbell complexes. I think a great strategy is to alternate barbell complexes on one day with kettlebell or dumbbell complexes on alternative training days. For example, you could do barbell complexes Monday, K-bell or D-bell complexes Wednesday, and back to barbell complexes on Friday. Maybe hit some sprints and bodyweight drills on Saturday; then Monday would be K-bell or D-bell complexes again, Wednesday would be barbells again, and so on. Give this program a try for a month (if you dare), and you will be one hardened individual!

For more killer full body training routines and a fully comprehensive nutritional analysis for developing the body you’ve always wanted, check out : Take your body to a New Level

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5 Tricks to Eat Healthier at Restaurants

rac — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 04:13:23 +0000

Dining out is a big part of most people’s lives. Maybe you have to eat out frequently because you entertain clients at restaurants. Perhaps you don’t even like eating out. Regardless, if you want to keep a nice fit body, restaurant meals will give you a huge obstacle to overcome. In fact, eating out at restaurants is one of the biggest reasons why so many people fatten up while traveling.

Below, I’ll give you a few very simple tricks you can use to eat healthier and stay lean even while dining out at restaurants…

The 3 most important things to avoid that are everywhere at restaurants are:

deep fried foods (anything battered that got a scorching bath of trans fats)
refined starchy foods
any sodas, juices, or other sugary foods (except whole fruits, which are great)

If you can skip these major culprits, this eliminates the major food sources that do the worst damage in our food supply – trans fats, refined vegetable oils, refined starchy carbohydrates, and processed sugars.

This means you should try to skip the table bread, skip the french fries that come with every single sandwich on every menu known to man, and reduce all of the heaping portions of pasta and rice that are often loaded on the plates as well.

Instead, try to order just meat with side vegetables, and a salad, asking for the vegetables or salad as a substitute for the typical french fries, pasta, or rice, that most restaurant meals usually come with.

Almost every restaurant I have ever been to will always allow me to substitute vegetables or a side salad for the french fries or chips that almost always come with burgers or sandwiches.

On a side note, it always amazes me how many people scrutinize me because I substitute veggies for fries by telling me that I am “not living” because I refuse to eat french fries… are you kidding me! If that’s your idea of “living it up”, you need to get some better hobbies!

Ironically, these are also the first people to complain that they are overweight and have “tried everything”, yet can not lose weight, no matter what. I am not sure why so many people think that eating french fries equals “living it up”… hey, I am all for moderation with many things, but if there are 2 things that should be totally removed from everyone’s diet because these foods are simply that dangerous… it is sodas and fries!

Take a look at the typical difference this simple substitution makes between choosing smart and doing what most people do…

Most people will eat a meal out such as this:

Burger or sandwich or burger
chips or fries
soda or other sweetened drink (and no, diet sodas are NOT healthy!)

A MUCH smarter alternative if you care about your body and health is this simple change:

Burger or Sandwich
Salad or veggies
unsweetened iced tea or water (no diet drinks — unless you like to drink poison!)

These 2 simple substitutions save at least 400 – 900 calories every time you dine out (depending on drink refills and fries portion sizes)… AND you are cutting out the most harmful foods to your body as well by avoiding the evil trans fats and high fructose corn syrup from the fries and soft drinks.

Another side note: a little-known way to eat full portions of pasta, rice, and breads and actually get away with it without packing on the body fat is to make sure to schedule a high intensity full body resistance training workout (can be free weights or body weight training) before your scheduled meal time.

Sometimes it may be hard to fit the workout into your schedule right before the meal, but if you can, the meal can be your “post-workout meal”. After a high intensity resistance training workout, your body can handle a higher amount of carbs than normal to help replenish the muscle glycogen depletion you had during the intense workout.

A typical moderate intensity cardio workout will NOT cut it for this… it must be high intensity resistance training workout to deplete enough muscle glycogen to handle restaurant portions of carbs.

I hope these dining tips help you choose smarter and healthier for a leaner body next time you eat out.

Check out these unique fat loss & healthy diet tips.

Another article you may enjoy on the topic of food is located at Unhealthy cooking oils.

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Supplement Spotlight: USP Labs Jack3d – Pre Workout Drink (Rated 9.1 out of 10)

admin — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 09:48:22 +0000

Want to boost your workout? Check this supplement out that rated 9.1 on bodyuilding.com. It’s a pre-workout supplement. I reccomend trying this type of supplement if you haven’t before.

—

Jack3d, Never Have A Bad Workout Again!

Like having tons of energy, strength, stamina and endurance for your workouts? Who doesn’t? There’s nothing like the right combination of compounds taken pre-workout to deliver consistently mind-blowing workouts to help you achieve your goals. After all, if your workouts suck, you can all but forget about making killer progress anytime soon.

USPLabs Jack3d gives you the mad aggressive desire and ability to lift more weight, pump out more reps and have crazy lasting energy, along with sick muscle-engorging pumps. Jack3d is easily the most intense pre-workout product you will ever want to use again. The amount of energy and focus is perfect, pumps and vascularity will be out of control, but most importantly you will feel great throughout your entire workout. No crash, no bloat, no headaches, no blow workouts.

Jack3d Formula Breakdown

Geranium (1,3-Dimethylamylamine or Methylhexamine)

This plant contains a powerful compound. It produces sympathomimetic effects in the body, resulting in strong Central Nervous System (CNS) stimulation, allowing for improved strength output, focus, alertness and mood.

Side benefits may include fat loss due to potential appetite suppression, as well as through increased work capacity and the possibility of increased norepinephrine release.

Schizandrol A

Schizadra increases physical force. In essence, it is able to provide a stimulating effect to the body and mind.

Methylxanthines (Caffeine)

Both of these compounds belong to the family of methylxanthine compounds. They are both able to stimulate the CNS, while also stimulating contractility of skeletal muscle directly and this may partially be due to the release of catecholamines such as norepinephrine. Caffeine also has the benefit of fighting fatigue and drowsiness; enhancing the flow of thoughts; increasing alertness and improving intellectual efforts along with producing euphoria or a sense of well-being in some cases. Just as these methylxanthines can increase the effectiveness of compounds, it is thought that it may do the same for the unique compound found in Geranium.

Beta-Alanine

Carnosine is an extremely important dipeptide that is generally present in rather high concentrations in skeletal muscle, though it is also found in nervous tissue and other excitable tissues as well. It is so important because it acts as a buffer of sorts, preventing the increase of acidity or Hydrogen ion accumulation in skeletal muscle; something which is thought to contribute to the fatiguing of muscles.

Furthermore, by increasing carnosine levels, power output can be increased as well. In short, you are able to improve your power output, while also delaying fatigue; you can lift more explosively and for longer periods.

Creatine Monohydrate

While we may negate the increase in Hydrogen ion levels in skeletal muscle by increasing carnosine levels, we still must overcome one more obstacle in order to allow us to prevent fatigue while working out. In this case, we must use a compound which can ultimately increase the adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels in muscle. ATP, as we all know, is a high energy nucleotide which acts as the major energy carrying molecule in our bodies.

Consequently, muscle fatigue is also related to energy loss in skeletal muscle, specifically, ATP being converted to adenosine diphosphate (ADP). In effect, one phosphate group is lost and must be replenished in order for the muscle cell to continue on working.

By supplementing with creatine, we are able to increase the levels of phosphocreatine in muscle. Phosphocreatine is a high energy buffering compound which is able to donate a phosphate group to ADP, allowing the formation of ATP once again.

In short, we can prevent or reduce fatigue from occurring by increasing phosphocreatine levels, which in turn will allow for the regeneration of ATP from ADP leading to greatly reducing physical and muscular exhaustion.

Avoid Junk Food or Eat Healthier Junk Foods?

rac — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 04:29:17 +0000

As a fitness professional, I’m always amazed (and puzzled) with the conflict people seem to have with losing weight, yet they refuse to stop eating junk food. An interesting thing I have noticed over my many years helping people to lose weight is that almost every single person that has told me that they are “attempting” to lose weight, almost always has their house filled with all sorts of junk food instead of whole unprocessed natural food.

It is not uncommon for people to tell me that they are trying really hard to lose weight, but I will still notice boxes of apple jacks and fruity pebbles on their counters, cakes, candies, and chips in their cupboard, and sodas or syrupy juices in their refrigerator.

So the question that always stumps me is that if all of these people honestly wanted to lose weight so bad, why in the world do most people still have their houses filled with junk foods instead of healthy food?

Interestingly, the answer usually is that they do not want to give up their favorite foods because they think that eating this junk food allows them to “live a little”… if you ask me, it sounds more like dying a little with each bite!

My take on it is that eating junk foods has nothing at all to do with enjoying your life… In reality, when you give up junk foods you actually enjoy life more because you feel better and are more energetic every day. In addition, getting into better shape by not eating junk food can obviously help improve the way your body looks (and therefore increases your confidence), thereby making you enjoy life even more.

One thing that many people fail to realize is that eating healthy does not have to mean eating bland and boring food. Instead, when you learn to enjoy natural unprocessed food and start exploring all of the varieties of natural food that this planet has to offer us, you learn that you can enjoy the natural flavors of real foods more than overly processed aggressive tastes that are so common with excessively sweet and salty junk food.

An example of this is that the other day I wanted an unsweetened iced tea while out on the road, but all that the store had available was these bottles of heavily sweetened iced tea. Well, I have not bought a fully sweetened iced tea in probably at least a few years now… I have actually gotten used to drinking unsweetened iced tea and have learned to appreciate the natural taste of tea without needing sugar or other sweeteners.

Whe I drank this bottled sweet tea, I almost gagged because it was so syrupy sweet, it was absolutely nasty.

A similar example… I used to need a lot of sugar in coffee, but after a slowly reducing the amount of sugar I would use in coffe, I can now actually drink black coffee and enjoy the natural flavor of it without needing sweeteners (although I rarely drink coffee).

These are just a couple examples of how once you start appreciating the natural flavors of real food, you find that you no longer need the super-aggressive salty, sugary, or artificial flavors that have been ingrained in us by the food companies and all of the junk food they push on us.

My belief is that everyone should actually enjoy what they eat, and can do it without eating overly processed junk food… Actually, people are often surprised to hear that a lot of the foods that they think are junk food, I have healthy alternatives that they never thought of.

A few examples:

Junk food: a chocolate candy bar, a chocolate donut, or a piece of chocolate cake

Healthier alternative: a couple pieces of extra-dark chocolate (greater than 70-75% cocoa content only)… this is higher in fiber and much less sugar than milk chocolate or even dark chocolates that are less than 70% cocoa content

Junk food: Deep fried and breaded chicken fingers and fries on the side (loads of nasty trans fats)

Healthier alternative: grilled chicken breast strips with peanut dipping sauce and vegetables on the side

Junk food: a cheap fast-food burger on a processed refined white bun

Healthier alternative: A grass-fed burger (higher in CLA and omega-3 fats) with raw grass-fed cheese on a sprouted grain roll

How about that for eating healthier yet still very tasty foods!

I hope that what you get out of this article is that there is more to life than eating junk food, and eating junk does not necessarily mean that you’re “living a little” as so many people say. Instead, I feel the opposite is true.

Eat healthier and discover the natural flavors of real foods (not processed) and you’ll soon discover that you no longer need junk food. Enjoy!

Understanding Good Carbohydrates Vs Bad Carbs and Choosing Healthy for Weight Loss

rac — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 20:07:47 +0000

There has been so much confusion about the topic of good carbohydrates and bad carbohydrates in recent years… I wanted to help clear up some of that confusion for you and set you on a clearer path to lifelong fat loss success and healthier eating.

First of all, although I am not a “low carb” believer (I certainly don’t think extremely low carbohydrate diets are healthy), I do believe that one of the main reasons that the vast majority of people struggle to ever lose weight is that they are over-consuming processed refined carbohydrates such as pasta, bagels, breads, cereals, rice, muffins, sodas, juices, candies, crackers, etc.

It is exceedingly hard to lose weight if you are over-consuming any of these types of refined processed carbohydrates (even if you work out extremely hard). In addition to causing big blood sugar swings and insulin surges that stimulate direct body fat storage, eating too many carbohydrates also increases your cravings and overall appetite.

Even carbohydrate sources that most people think are “healthy” really are just excess calories that do not really contain significant nutrient density… and many types of breads and cereals claim to be “whole grain” through clever marketing although in reality, the first ingredient in them is refined flour, which is just going to spike your blood sugar and create an insulin surge. After years of eating excess processed carbohydrates, it becomes harder and harder for insulin to do it’s job and continue handling all of this blood sugar, and insulin resistance and eventual type 2 diabetes can occur in many people.

My opinion on this is that the majority of people struggling to lose weight would get much better results by following these types of guidelines:

1. Reduce overall grain-based foods in your diet (pasta, cereal, crackers, rice, etc) and focus more of your diet on healthy free range, grass-fed meats and eggs, raw grass-fed dairy, and a whole lot of vegetables.

2. Instead of grains for most of your carbohydrate intake, try getting most of your carbs from veggies, sweet potatoes, and a variety of berries and whole fruits (NOT fruit juices, which remove the beneficial fiber as well as other important nutrients in the fruit)

3. If you are going to get any grains at all, focus on the most nutrient dense and fibrous portions of the grain… the bran and the germ. This means that the healthiest ideas are using oat bran instead of oat meal, and using wheat germ and rice bran by adding them to your salads, yogurt, cottage cheese, soups, smoothies, etc. This way you get all of the most nutrient dense parts of the grains without all of the excess starches and calories.

4. To replace the void if you are accustomed to consuming large quantities of cereals, bread, pasta, and other carbohydrate sources… try filling that void with additional healthy fats such as avocados, guacamole, nuts, seeds, nut butters as well as healthy proteins such as grass-fed raw dairy and grass fed meats, whole free-range organic eggs, etc. Healthy fats and protein sources go a long way to satisfying your appetite, controlling proper blood sugar and hormone levels, and helping you to make real progress on weight loss for life.

With all of that said, here’s one of my favorite carbohydrate sources that is high in fiber as well as contains a high density of antioxidants, fiber, vitamins, and minerals… it is yams and/or sweet potatoes. Try slicing them into thin slivers and sauteeing them with a few tablespoons of water in a pan for about 5 minutes for a quicker healthy carb (instead of baking them for over an hour). Finish them off with a touch of grass-fed organic butter and some cinnamon and you’ve got a delicous and healthy carbohydrate side dish!

For more unique exercise and diet techniques for losing your stubborn stomach fat, go to Workouts & Diet Tips for Losing Belly Fat Fast.

Discover how to do fast and furious workouts at home by using our Four Minute Bodyweight & Dumbbell Home Workouts.