Latest Abdominals Articles And Blog Posts!

Excess Abdominal Fat is Not Only Ugly, but Extremely Dangerous to Your Health - This is More Than a Vanity Issue!!!

2008-07-01T09:26:00.000-07:00

Excess Abdominal Fat is Not Only Ugly, but Extremely Dangerous to Your Health - This is More Than a Vanity Issue!
by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer

Did you know that the vast majority of people in this day and age have excess abdominal fat? The first thing that most people think of is that their extra abdominal fat is simply ugly, is covering up their abs from being visible, and makes them self conscious about showing off their body.

However, what most people don't realize is that excess abdominal fat in particular, is not only ugly, but is also a dangerous risk factor to your health. Scientific research has clearly determined that although it is unhealthy in general to have excess body fat throughout your body, it is also particularly dangerous to have excess abdominal fat.

There are two types of fat that you have in your abdominal area. The first type that covers up your abs from being visible is called subcutaneous fat and lies directly beneath the skin and on top of the abdominal muscles.

The second type of fat that you have in your abdominal area is called visceral fat, and that... Click Here To Read More...

Saturated Fat - Deadly Food Demon or Healthy Part of a Natural Diet?

2008-05-07T03:47:00.000-07:00

You've been told for decades that saturated fat will kill you. Even medical and health professionals have believed this was a "fact". However, did you know that this "fact" has never been proven? In this article, you'll learn why saturated fat may actually have some surprising benefits.

I've written many times in the last couple years about the mistaken beliefs in society about saturated fat and the false perception in the media and with MOST health and medical professionals that saturated fat is bad for you.

If you've seen in some of my articles, I've even showed you why saturated fat can even be GOOD for you in some cases, despite every health & fitness professional in the world just accepting the false belief that it is unhealthy for you.

I have to say I was pleasantly surprised to FINALLY see a big name publisher have some guts to publish an article about why everyone in the world may be wrong about their beliefs about saturated fat and it's health effects.

I received my new issue of Men's Health magazine recently, and they had a really detailed 6-page article in there about the faulty research in the past about saturated fat, and some new emerging research that is showing why it may actually be more good for you than you would have ever conceived.

I have to give them credit... the article was very well researched and laid out in an easy to understand format to summarize where the studies in the past have gone wrong, and why recent studies are showing that everyone may have been wrong for the last 5 decades about saturated fat.

I'd highly suggest you read the entire article if you can. If not, I am going to try to give you a quick synopsis of the findings here since it was a long article...

First of all, did you realize that although doctors, nutritionists, dietitians, fitness professionals, and the media all have told you that it's a FACT that saturated fats are bad for you, this "FACT" has actually never been proven!

It's actually not a "fact" at all. It was a hypothesis! This goes all the way back to a flawed research study from the 1950's where a scientist named Ancel Keys published a paper that laid the blame on dietary fat intake for the increasing heart disease phenomenon around the world.

However, there were major flaws to his study. For one, in his conclusions he only used data from a small portion of the countries where data was available on fat consumption versus heart disease death rate. When researches have gone back in and looked at the data from all of the countries where data was available, there actually was no link between fat consumption and heart disease deaths. So his conclusions were false in reality.

Second, his blaming of fat intake for heart disease was only one factor that was considered. There was no consideration of other factors such as smoking rates, stress factors, sugar and refined carbohydrate intake, exercise frequency, and other lifestyle factors.

Basically, his conclusions which blamed heart disease deaths on fat intake were really just a shot in the dark about what a possible cause may have been, even though all of those other factors I just mentioned, plus many others, may be the more prominent cause.

Unfortunately, Keys study has been cited for over 5 decades now as "fact" that saturated fat is bad for you. As you can see, there certainly is nothing factual about it.

Since that time, numerous other studies have been conducted trying to link saturated fat intake to heart disease. The majority of these studies have failed to correlate ANY risk at all from saturated fat. A couple of them made feeble attempts at linking saturated fat to heart disease, however, it was later shown that the data was flawed in those studies as well.

Do we actually have evidence that saturated fat may in fact be good for you instead?

Well, let's consider a few examples...

Did you know that there are several well known tribes in Africa... the Masai, Samburu, and Fulani tribes... where their diet consists mostly of raw whole milk, large quantities of red meat, and cows blood? Despite their very high saturated fat intake, they display extremely low body fat levels, and heart disease to natives of the tribe is virtually non-existent.

Now most critics of this example will say that it has to be related to superior genetics... however this is not true, as when they studied tribesman who had moved out of their native lands and started eating more modern day diets, their blood chemistry skyrocketed with heart disease risk factors.

This is true of certain pacific island countries inhabitants as well. Several studies have shown that certain pacific island nations had VERY high intakes of total fat as well as saturated fat from tropical fats such as palm, coconut, and cocoa. Despite very high intakes of saturated fat and total fat, these island natives were typically very lean and heart disease was virtually non-existent.

However, when researchers followed up with islanders that had moved away from their native island and adopted a typical western diet, the heart disease factors were through the roof.

In fact, did you know that although saturated fat intake does increase your LDL bad cholesterol, it actually increases your HDL good cholesterol even further, hence improving your overall cholesterol ratio, which has been proven to be more important that just total cholesterol level (actually total cholesterol is an almost useless number... inflammation is the REAL problem, but that's a whole different topic).

Another fact worth noting in favor of saturated fat...

Saturated fat is comprised of various different types... the 3 most prevalent types are stearic acid, palmitic acid, and lauric acid.

Stearic acid is found in animal fat and cocoa in higher levels. Research continues to show that stearic acid has no negative impacts on heart disease risks. If anything, it's either neutral or beneficial. In fact, your liver breaks down stearic acid into a monounsaturated fat called oleic acid, which is the same type of fat that makes up most of heart-healthy olive oil. Bet you didn't know that!

Lauric acid is beneficial as well. Not only has it been shown to increase your HDL good cholesterol levels significantly, but it is also lacking in most Americans diet and has even been shown to have some powerful immune-boosting effects potentially. It is even being studied currently in HIV/AIDS research to help improve immune function in patients.

Tropical oils such as coconut and palm are the best sources of beneficial lauric acid.

Palmitic acid is the other main component of saturated fat and has also been shown to increase HDL good cholesterol to the same, if not greater extent than LDL bad cholesterol, thereby making it either neutral or beneficial, but certainly not bad for you.

So, if all of these researchers have tried so hard over the years to point the finger at saturated fat, but have continued to fail to show a correlation between saturated fat and heart disease risk, what are the REAL culprits for heart disease?

Well, here are the real causes of heart disease risk:

Trans fats (artificially hydrogenated oils)
Heavily refined vegetable oils such as soy, cottonseed, corn oil, etc. (inflammatory inside the body, and typically throw the omega-6/omega-3 balance out of whack)
Too much refined sugar in the diet (including high fructose corn syrup)
Too much refined starches such as white bread, low fiber cereals, etc
Smoking
Stressful lifestyle
Lack of exercise
Other lifestyle factors

So why does it seem that so many attempts over the years have tried to lay the blame on saturated fat... Do you think it might have anything to do with the muli-billion dollar vegetable oil industry, which has taken over for cooking oils for what used to be mostly animal fats and tropical oils in decades past...

Hmm... do multi-billion dollar industries really have an influence on the way data is portrayed to the public? I think you know the answer to that! And don't even get me started on the cholesterol meds industry! Again, I digress.

I hope this article has opened your eyes about the truth about saturated fat and how you've been misled over the years.

The true FACT is that saturated fat is a neutral substance in your body, and even beneficial at times, not a deadly risk factor for disease. The REAL risk factors are what I listed above.

Keep in mind that this does NOT mean that eating 5 pounds of bacon for breakfast every morning is good for you, and you should only eat foods high in saturated fats. Rather, you still need a to strike a balance for optimal health... this means fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, healthy meats, eggs, and small amounts of whole or sprouted grains.

Again, animals raised in an unhealthy manner are not good for you... this is the case with most commercially raised meat and grain fed meat. On the other hand, wild game meats, grass fed meats, free range chickens and eggs (preferably organic) are healthy animals, and therefore the meat is generally healthy for us with better omega-3 to omega-6 ratios than standard commercial meats.

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!

Is Your Post Workout Meal the Most Important Meal of the Day?

2008-04-25T00:31:00.000-07:00

I am sure you have heard previously that your post-workout meal is actually the most important meal of your day (aside from breakfast of course).

I would have to agree with that assertion for the most part because refueling your body with the right combo of nutrients is so vastly important to repairing your muscles from the breakdown of a workout, and keeping your metabolic rate sky high.

Here's some recent research on post-workout meals:

"A recent 12-week study says that those who failed to consume a post workout meal immediately after their workouts suffered a lower metabolism, loss of fat free mass, and had clear indications of muscle loss - while their counterparts (those who consumed a post workout recovery meal) significantly lost more fat, increased lean muscle, improved their metabolism, and increased dynamic strength."

I have noticed that many people are confused as to what actually makes a good post-workout meal. A couple common questions I receive about post workout meals:

1. Aren't post-workout meals only important for muscle building? Do they matter at all for fat loss goals?

2. Is it best to use one of the fancy post-workout drinks or shakes that you see in the magazines or is a whole food meal better? What's the best combo of carbs to protein to fat in a good post workout meal?

3. How soon after a workout is best to have my post workout meal?

Answers:

1. Post-workout meals are actually vitally important for BOTH muscle building and losing body fat!

Always remember that one of the most important considerations of long term body fat loss and maintaining a lean body for life is raising your overall metabolic rate by building and maintaining adequate lean muscle mass throughout your entire body.

By consuming a good post workout meal after every workout, you assist your body in repairing and building lean muscle throughout your whole body. The more lean muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate (even when resting)... hence, you lose fat easier and faster, and it is MUCH easier to stay lean in the long term.

2. Are whole foods or supplement shakes best? This can actually be done either way, but I am going to show you some guidelines why some post-workout shakes are better than others and some whole foods are better than others. Either way, it can work.

First, keep in mind that your goal throughout the majority of each day is eating small whole food meals frequently that digest slowly with high fiber and a controlled glycemic response (blood sugar). These normal daily meals should also contain healthy fats and slowly digested proteins to maintain a steady supply of amino acids.

When it comes to post-workout meals, you can just about use the exact opposite strategy of your normal meals. With post-workout meals, you actually want a faster digesting carb source to stimulate an insulin response. This helps to push nutrients and glycogen back into your muscle cells for repair. Remember, this is not just important for building muscle, but also for losing fat.

So while I always preach high fiber for most of your meals, with post-workout meals, you actually want lower fiber, higher GI carbohydrates, and quickly digesting protein as well to kick start muscle repair.

Another consideration to keep in mind... while I always preach healthy fats at most of your meals... with the post workout meal, you actually want almost all carbohydrates and protein, and very little fat. Fat in the post workout meal just slows the absorption and glycemic response which is not what you want at this key time.

What about the best ratios of carbohydrates and protein?

I have reviewed dozens of studies on this subject and most seem to agree that a ratio of approx 2 to 1 carbs to protein is optimal. This seems to be the best combo to maximize muscle repair to boost that metabolic rate for long term body fat loss.

I usually make my post-workout shakes using a frozen banana, whey protein, water, and some real maple syrup (not the cheap high fructose corn syrup based maple syrups at most stores) and aim for about a 2:1 ratio of carbohydrates to protein in the shake.

If you want to make things a little simpler, one of the best post-workout shakes that I've found that is already mixed in a 2:1 carb:protein ratio is Prograde's Varsity Post-Workout mix. You can find it at the bottom of this page.

3. How soon should you eat (or drink) your post-workout meal once your done working out?

As soon as you can after your workout (the sooner the better)!

Studies have shown that the sooner you consume your post workout meal following your intense workout, the better your muscle recovery will be, and a higher quantity of the carbohydrates ingested will be used for muscle glycogen replenishment instead of other uses.

The first thing I do when I get back from the gym is make my post workout shake, and this is about 10 min after finishing my workout.

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!

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

2008-04-09T09:45:00.000-07:00

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 delicious and healthy carbohydrate side dish!

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!

Avoid Junk Food or Eat Healthier Junk Foods?

2008-03-29T19:42:00.000-07:00

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 coffee, 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!

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!

Why Choosing Healthy Food at the Grocery Store Can Be Tricky

2008-03-15T09:45:00.000-07:00

I was at the grocery store (super-market) yesterday and had to shake my head at all of the clever deceptive food labeling that's everywhere. In every aisle, I saw tons of products claiming all sorts of things that are supposedly "healthy", but are not in reality. This is food marketing deception at its worst.

One of the things I noticed that really disturbed me was that I saw multiple examples of healthy foods in their natural state, while also noticing counterfeit overly processed versions of these original foods claiming that they were healthier than the natural version.

However, in reality, all of these fake versions were actually MUCH worse for you than the original... and they still have the balls to claim that their overly processed "junkified" versions are better.

The sad thing is that millions of people fall for this deceptive food marketing every day. Here are a couple examples I noticed:

Example #1: Product claiming to be "Better than peanut butter"

This product is ridiculous! I can't believe anyone would ever believe that this processed junk is better for them than natural minimally processed peanut butter.

First of all, if you buy a good natural organic peanut butter, it is usually very simply only two ingredients... peanuts and salt. And they do not add much salt so it is not a high sodium product.

However, this counterfeit peanut butter which claimed it was "better than peanut butter" (trying to seem healthier than natural peanut butter based on its label claims) had a list of processed junk in it you wouldn't believe. First of all, they strip all of the natural healthy fats out of the peanuts so that it is a "low fat" product. Alright, now you have just taken away one of the healthiest parts of the peanut butter... the appetite satisfying healthy fats that you need to control cravings and manage more stable blood sugar levels in your body.

To make things worse, the healthy fats were replaced with 2 different types of sugar-based syrups as well as additional dehydrated cane juice (aka SUGAR), in addition to added refined starches (in case you didn't get enough blood-sugar spiking refined carbs yet).

This product has taken something as simple and natural as peanut butter, and turned it into what should really be called some sort of processed junk candy. Yet, they claim that it is healthier for you than peanut butter. And somehow they get away with deceiving the masses like this on their label. Do not be their fool!

Example #2: Product claiming to be "better than eggs".

I won't get as detailed on this one because I recently went into good detail on this entire topic in another ezine issue.

Basically, this product is just egg whites with a bunch of added chemical colorings, flavorings, and other nonsense, including artificially added vitamins.

Again, this product has essentially ruined a good thing by removing the healthiest part... the YOLKS! And yes, the yolks ARE the healthiest part of the egg. Anybody that tells you different does not understand much about real nutrition. The important thing to look for in quality whole eggs are cage-free and organic.

Most people don't realize that almost all of the quality nutrition of an egg is found in the yolks. The majority of the vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and trace nutrients are found in the yolks, not the whites. Even the protein in the whites isn't as high quality in terms of bioavailability without the amino acid profile of the yolk that complements the amino acid profile of the whites.

And no, the cholesterol in eggs is not bad for you... it actually raises your good cholesterol more than bad cholesterol improving your overall profile. And the fats in whole eggs are balanced and healthy for you as well.

Bottom line... whole eggs are healthier than egg whites. It's not even a close comparison. The label claims are just another example of food marketing deception.

Example #3: A product claiming to be "better than butter".

This was essentially crappy margarine which is loaded with highly processed and deadly trans fats, yet it had the nerve to claim it was "better than butter".

Don't fall for it!

Even low quality butter is better for you than any margarine on the market. One problem with butter are the pesticides and hormones frequently found within from improperly raised cows.

For this reason, it's always a good choice to go with organic butter, and if you can find grass-fed butter, then I would even say it can be healthy for you. Grass-fed butter is higher in the natural form of beneficial conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). In fact, adding a little butter to your steamed vegetables helps your body to absorb more of the vitamins and minerals in the veggies.

Also, due to the content of stable saturated fats in butter, this makes butter one of the best oils to cook with. Oils that are high in polyunsaturated fats such as soy, corn, safflower (and even flax) are the worst to cook with due to the highly unstable nature of their chemistry. I have a fully comprehensive article on which oils are healthiest for cooking and which are not based on their chemistry.

Another point... the saturated fat in butter is NOT bad for you. We've already beaten a dead horse with that topic in previous articles, but again, more detailed articles about that topic are found at my site.

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!

5 Reasons Why Elliptical Machines and Treadmills are Useless Exercises

2008-03-11T05:44:00.000-07:00

I know that all of the elliptical and treadmill worshipers are probably fuming at me now after that article headline, but the fact is, ellipticals and treadmills are one of the least effective methods of working out in existence. With this article, I'll show you how to get a much more effective fat-burning workout without wasting time mindlessly exercising on a boring elliptical machine or treadmill.

Now first let me state that if you really honestly enjoy your elliptical machine workouts and treadmill exercise routines, then I give you my blessing to keep doing what you love. The reason is that even though ellipticals and treadmills are relatively ineffective compared to other types of exercises, whatever you actually enjoy doing the most is going to benefit you most in the long run because you will be more likely to stick with it more consistently.

However, don't say that I didn't warn you that you might be wasting your time with all these boring mindless cardio machine workouts.

I've talked about this previously with my ezine subscribers... I actually do not believe in cardio machines as a good form of working out at all. This might surprise you coming from a fitness nut such as myself, but I don't think I've personally used an exercise bike, treadmill, elliptical, or any other cardio machine for at least 8 years or more.

In fact, I don't even use cardio machines anymore for warm-ups before my workouts. I actually think it's a much more effective warm-up to do dumbbell and/or kettlebell swings, snatches, clean & presses, etc, mixed with bodyweight exercises as a great full-body warm-up before working out.

Why do I think cardio machines are so awful? Well, here's 5 reasons:

1) Treadmills and ellipticals are just a very ineffective way to workout compared to other options. Why should you do treadmill or elliptical workouts when you can get better results by doing more interesting forms of training that actually stimulate a fat-burning hormonal response and stimulate your metabolism to a greater extent.

2) Elliptical machines and treadmills are insanely expensive and a waste of money for people that work out at home... there are so many better things for home workouts you could have spent your money on rather than wasting it on an elliptical machine, treadmill, or exercise bike.

You'll see plenty of ideas below for better home workouts if you don't like going to a gym to work out.

3) I have seen several studies that indicated results that treadmill running may be less effective than outdoor running for various reasons such as stride abnormalities on treadmills vs natural running, slightly less caloric burn compared to outdoor running, and so on.

(although I never recommend just "jogging" anyway... variable intensity walking/running or sprinting are much more effective, training your heart rate in a much wider range instead of the same heart rate range the whole time).

4) Steady state exercise (that doesn't require concentration on what you're doing) while watching tv or reading a newspaper or magazine creates a mind/body disconnect resulting in extremely poor results compared to exercise that requires focused attention.

5) Elliptical and treadmill workouts are just mind-numbingly boring!

So what are some good alternatives to elliptical machine and treadmill workouts? Some of my favorites are:

Outdoor wind sprint workouts - This is the ultimate workout for a rock hard lean body... just look at the powerful yet super-lean and ripped bodies of world class sprinters, and compare that to the withering weakling physiques of typical marathoners... what would you rather look like?
Jumping rope - incredible mind/body connection and actually fun (you can try speed jumping, crossover jumps, and double jumps once you get good at it)
Kettlebell workouts - nothing will get your heart pounding and sweat pouring like high rep kettlebell swings and/or snatches (or clean & presses)! These can be done with dumbbells too, but I prefer kettlebells as they have a better "feel" to them and the unbalanced nature of KBs makes you work harder)
Bodyweight exercises - mountain climbers, bodyweight squats, push-ups, jumping drills, lunges, bear crawls, plank holds, and so on.
The good old fashioned rowing machine - I don't really lump this in as a "cardio" machine per se like elliptical machines and treadmills... Rather, I think the rowing machine is actually a great full body workout that actually uses real resistance)
Hill sprinting - running as hard up a hill as possible, followed by walking down and repeating as many times as you can for a full workout (yet another classic drill for a rock hard lean body)
Shadow boxing... a killer workout, but if you are shy, this is best done at home since you will get some crazy looks doing this at a typical gym!
Swimming sprints - a more muscle toning workout compared with steady pace distance swimming... I actually love the upper body pump I get from sprint swimming (instead of swimming slow and steady, with sprint swimming, you swim as fast as you can exerting as much force as you can for 1 lap. Then rest for 15-20 seconds before doing another swim sprint).
Heavy bag punching/kicking workouts, speed bag, rebounding bag... all are tremendous workouts and much more fun than boring cardio machines (requires an very intense mind/body connection which increases results).

I hope this article gives you lots of ideas you can use to go out right away and bring some more variety into your workouts instead of relying on the same old dull elliptical machine and treadmill workout routines. Have fun!

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!

5 Tricks to Eat Healthier at Restaurants

2008-01-31T08:31:00.000-08:00

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.

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!

My Top 55 Hard Body Foods

2008-01-11T12:31:00.000-08:00

In most of my newsletters, I like to provide a healthy snack or meal recipe that not only is delicious, but also helps to get you closer to that hard-body appearance that everyone is looking for. In this article, I'd like to give you healthy food ideas in a different way. This time, I figured I'd just give you some ideas of what I stock my fridge and cabinets with. Remember, if you don't have junk around the house, you're less likely to eat junk. If all you have is healthy food around the house, you're forced to make smart choices. Basically, it all starts with making smart choices and avoiding temptations when you make your grocery store trip. Now these are just some of my personal preferences, but perhaps they will give you some good ideas that you'll enjoy.

Alright, so let's start with the fridge. Each week, I try to make sure I'm loaded up with lots of varieties of fresh vegetables. During the growing season, I only get local produce, but obviously in winter, I have to resort to the produce at the grocery store. Most of the time, I make sure I have plenty of vegetables like zucchini, onions, fresh mushrooms, spinach, broccoli, red peppers, etc. to use in my morning eggs. I also like to dice up some lean chicken or turkey sausage into the eggs, along with some swiss, jack, or goat cheeses. Coconut milk is another staple in my fridge. I like to use it to mix in with smoothies, oatmeal, or yogurt for a rich, creamy taste. Not only does coconut milk add a rich, creamy taste to lots of dishes, but it's also full of healthy saturated fats. Yeah, you heard me...I said healthy saturated fats! Healthy saturated fats like medium chain triglycerides, specifically an MCT called lauric acid.

Back to the fridge, some other staples:

• Cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, and yogurt - I like to mix cottage or ricotta cheese and yogurt together with chopped nuts and berries for a great mid-morning or mid-afternoon meal.

• Chopped walnuts, pecans, almonds - delicious and great sources of healthy fats.

• Whole flax seeds - I grind these in a mini coffee grinder and add to yogurt or salads. Always grind them fresh because the omega-3 polyunsaturated fats are highly unstable and prone to oxidation, creating high levels of free radicals in pre-ground flax.

• Eggs - one of natures richest sources of nutrients (and remember, they increase your GOOD cholesterol).

• Nut butters - Plain old peanut butter has gotten a little old for me, so I get creative and mix together almond butter with sesame seed butter, or even cashew butter with macadamia butter...delicious and unbeatable nutrition!

• Salsa - I try to get creative and try some of the exotic varieties of salsas.

• Butter - don't believe the naysayers; butter adds great flavor to anything and can be part of a healthy diet (just keep the quantity small because it is calorie dense...and NEVER use margarine, unless you want to assure yourself a heart attack).

• Avocados - love them...plus a great source of healthy fats, fiber, and other nutrients. Try adding them to wraps, salads, or sandwiches.

• Whole grain wraps and whole grain bread (look for wraps and bread with at least 3-4 grams of fiber per 20 grams of total carbs).

• Rice bran and wheat germ - these may sound way too healthy for some, but they actually add a nice little nutty, crunchy taste to yogurt or smoothies, or can be added when baking muffins or breads to add nutrients and fiber.

• Leaf lettuce and spinach along with shredded carrots - for salads with dinner.

• Home-made salad dressing - using balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, and Udo's Choice oil blend. This is much better than store bought salad dressing which mostly use highly refined soybean oil (full of inflammation-causing free radicals).

Some of the staples in the freezer:

• Frozen fish - I like to try a couple different kinds of fish each week. There are so many varieties out there, you never have to get bored.

• Frozen berries - during the local growing season, I only get fresh berries, but during the other 10 months of the year, I always keep a supply of frozen blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, cherries, etc. to add to high fiber cereal, oatmeal, cottage cheese, yogurt, or smoothies

• Frozen veggies - again, when the growing season is over and I can no longer get local fresh produce, frozen veggies are the best option, since they often have higher nutrient contents compared to the fresh produce that has been shipped thousands of miles, sitting around for weeks before making it to your dinner table.

• Frozen chicken breasts - very convenient to nuke up for a quick addition to wraps or chicken sandwiches for quick meals.

• Frozen buffalo, ostrich, venison, and other "exotic" lean meats - Yeah, I know...I'm weird, but I can tell you that these are some of the healthiest meats around, and if you're serious about a lean healthy body, these types of meats are much better for you than the mass produced, hormone-pumped beef and pork that's sold at most grocery stores.

Alright, now the staples in my cabinets:

• Oat bran and steel cut oats - higher fiber than those little packs of instant oats.

• Cans of coconut milk - to be transferred to a container in the fridge after opening.

• Various antioxidant rich teas - green, oolong, white, rooibos are some of the best.

• Stevia - a natural non-caloric sweetener, which is an excellent alternative to the nasty chemical-laden artificial sweeteners like aspartame, saccharine, and sucralose.

• Organic maple syrup - none of that high fructose corn syrup Aunt Jemima crap...only real maple syrup can be considered real food. The only time I really use this (because of the high sugar load) is added to my post-workout smoothies to sweeten things up and also elicit an insulin surge to push nutrients into your muscles.

• Raw honey - better than processed honey...higher quantities of beneficial nutrients and enzymes. Honey has even been proven in studies to improve glucose metabolism (how you process carbs). I use a teaspoon or so every morning in my teas.

• Whole wheat or whole grain spelt pasta - much higher fiber than normal pastas

• Brown rice and other higher fiber rice - NEVER white rice

• Cans of black or kidney beans - I like to add a couple scoops to my Mexican wraps for the fiber and high nutrition content. Also, beans are surprisingly one of the best sources of youth promoting antioxidants!

• Tomato sauces - delicious, and as I'm sure you've heard a million times, they are a great source of lycopene. Just watch out for the brands that are loaded with nasty high fructose corn syrup.

• Dark chocolate (as dark as possible) - This is one of my treats that satisfies my sweet tooth, plus provides loads of antioxidants at the same time. It's still calorie dense, so I keep it to just a couple squares; but that is enough to do the trick, so I don't feel like I need to go out and get cake and ice cream to satisfy my dessert urges.

• Organic unsweetened cocoa powder - I like to mix this into my smoothies for an extra jolt of antioxidants or make my own low-sugar hot cocoa by mixing cocoa powder into hot milk with stevia and a couple melted dark chocolate chunks.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this special look into my favorite lean body meals and how I stock my cabinets and fridge. Your tastes are probably quite different than mine, but hopefully this gave you some good ideas you can use next time you're at the grocery store looking to stock up a healthy and delicious pile of groceries.

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!

Excess Abdominal Fat - a Serious Danger Beyond Vanity Issues

2007-12-29T16:48:00.000-08:00

There are two types of fat that you have in your abdominal area. The first type that covers up your abs from being visible is called subcutaneous fat and lies directly beneath the skin and on top of the abdominal muscles.

The second type of fat that you have in your abdominal area is called visceral fat, and that lies deeper in the abdomen beneath your muscle and surrounding your organs. Visceral fat also plays a role in giving certain men that "beer belly" appearance where their abdomen protrudes excessively but at the same time, also feels sort of hard if you push on it.

Both subcutaneous fat and visceral fat in the abdominal area are serious health risk factors, but science has shown that having excessive visceral fat is even more dangerous than subcutaneous fat. Both of them greatly increase the risk your risk of developing heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, sleep apnea, various forms of cancer, and other degenerative diseases.

Part of the reason visceral fat is particularly dangerous is that it apparently releases more inflammatory molecules into your system on a consistent basis.

If you care about the quality of your life and your loved ones, reducing your abdominal fat should be one of your TOP priorities! There's just no way around it. Besides, a side effect of finally getting rid of all of that excessive ugly abdominal fat is that your stomach will flatten out, and if you lose enough stomach fat, you will be able to visibly see those sexy six pack abs that everyone wants.

So what gets rid of extra abdominal fat? Is there actually a REAL solution beyond all of the gimmicks and hype that you see in ads and on commercials for "miracle" fat loss products?

The first thing you must understand is that there is absolutely NO quick fix solution. There are no pills or supplements of any sort that will help you lose your abdominal fat faster. Also, none of the gimmicky ab rockers, rollers, or ab belts will help get rid of abdominal fat either. You can't spot reduce your stomach fat by using any of these worthless contraptions. It simply doesn't work that way.

The ONLY solution to consistently lose your abdominal fat and keep it off for good is to combine a sound nutritious diet full of unprocessed natural foods with a properly designed strategic exercise program that stimulates the necessary hormonal and metabolic response within your body. Both your food intake as well as your training program are important if you are to get this right.

I've actually even seen a particular study that divided thousands of participants into a diet-only group and an exercise & diet combined group. While both groups in this study made good progress, the diet-only group lost significantly LESS abdominal fat than the diet & exercise combined group.

Now the important thing to realize is that just any old exercise program will not necessarily do the trick. The majority of people that attempt getting into a good exercise routine are NOT working out effectively enough to really stimulate the loss of stubborn abdominal fat. I see this everyday at the gym.

Most people will do your typical boring ineffective cardio routines, throw in a little outdated body-part style weight training, and pump away with some crunches and side bends, and think that they are doing something useful for reducing their abdominal fat. Then they become frustrated after weeks or months of no results and wonder where they went wrong.

Well, the good news is that I've spent over a decade researching this topic, analyzing the science, and applying it "in the trenches" with myself as well as thousands of my clients from all over the world to see what works to really stimulate abdominal fat loss. I want to help you succeed in finally getting rid of that extra abdominal fat that is not only UGLY, but also DANGEROUS.

Don't waste another day allowing that nasty abdominal fat to kill your confidence as well as contribute to your risk for MAJOR diseases.

The only reason most people fail in their fitness goals is that they have good intentions at first to adopt a new lifestyle, yet after a few weeks or months, they abandon their good intentions and slip right back into their old bad habits that gave them the excess body fat in the first place.

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!

The Ultimate Secrets to a Flat Stomach and Six Pack Abs

2007-12-24T11:52:00.000-08:00

With this article, I want to show you why you might be struggling to lose that stubborn stomach fat that is covering up your abs. These are the main reasons most people just can not seem to get those six pack abs that everyone desires. If you haven't already seen me around online somewhere, I'm the creator of one of the most popular abdominals and fat loss programs on the internet.

So in this article I want to highlight for you the main points and strategies that I use to make this program one of the most effective programs in existance for fully developing your abdominals as well as getting rid of that stubborn stomach fat that is covering them up.

Pay attention, because once you get this stuff right and start using these techniques regularly, you'll be showing off your ripped abs in no time flat, whether it's at the beach, at the pool, in the bedroom, wherever... Just think how great it's going to feel when people are complimenting you on your washboard stomach!

Alright, here's what make's The Truth about Six Pack Abs different:

1. The main focus of this program is NOT abs exercises... And, better yet, this program consistently get's better results by NOT focusing on abs exercises!

I know that sounds counterintuitive, but the fact of the matter is that abs exercises are ok, and you do need to do a certain amount of them to develop the abdominals as best as possible. But to be honest, most people that are trying to get better looking abdominals waste WAY too much time training the abs directly. What you really need to focus on is burning off the extra fat that is covering them up.

Let's get this straight right now... Abs exercises do NOT burn fat away from your abs! This can only be accomplished through a much more effective full body training routine that maximizes both your metabolic response and your hormonal response to your workouts. This is the main focus of my Truth about Six Pack Abs Program.

Now don't get me wrong. It wouldn't be an abs program if I didn't show you the most effective exercises for developing your abdominals. I also give you detailed instructions and photos on how to do them right. But like I said, the main focus of this program is the secret method that I use to compile the full body training routines and maximize your fat burning effect.

This is the main reason that this program will be much more effective for you than any other abs programs you've ever tried before. You've got my word on that.

2. This program uses none of your typical boring monotonous cardio routines.

In fact, you don't have to do any typical cardio if you don't want to! I actually recommend against it.

Seriously, almost every program out there tells you that you must do endless cardio exercise regularly to lose the body fat that is covering your abs. Most of them tell you to do 30-60 minutes of cardio exercise 3-4 days/week in addition to your strength training routines.

The truth is that this is not only unnecessary, but it can actually be counterproductive if you're really trying to get as lean as possible, as quick as possible. I go into this in much more detail in the book, but basically this all comes back to the aspects of your metabolic rate, how much lean muscle you have, the hormonal response in your body from the exercise, and the residual calorie burn in the hours and days following your workouts. And normal boring cardio routines are all wrong when it comes to maximizing these effects!

Now you're probably thinking that since I'm against typical boring cardio routines, then that must simply mean I'm a proponent of interval training. Yes, as a matter of fact, I believe interval training is MUCH better than typical cardio.

However, I also use a special exercise combination and sequencing in my Truth about Six Pack Abs Program that gets even more powerful fat loss and muscle defining results than interval training. And that's saying something, because interval training kicks butt! You'll find out how this system works inside the program.

Want proof that you don't need typical long-duration steady-pace cardio?

Well, first of all, I actually took a course recently that was devoted to scientific research into why steady-pace cardio exercise is actually not that effective at strengthening the heart. The focus of the research basically boiled down to the fact that the heart needs to be trained in a wide variety of ranges to actually be truly strengthened and ready for all the various stresses that life throws at it. Not only that, but steady-pace cardio was also proven in the research studies to be far less effective in the long term at reducing body fat stores.

To give you a real life example... Personally, I haven't done what most people would label "cardio" in probably well over 5 years, and I'm actually leaner now and have a lower bodyfat % now than years ago when I did cardio regularly. Not only that, but my heart is in the best condition ever, as I now consistently have the resting heart rate of an elite athlete at about 50 bpm (remember that lower is better). My resting heart rate used to be in the mid to upper 60's years ago when I used to do typical cardio and strength training routines like most people do.

This improvement in both body fat % and reduced resting heart rate is the direct result of the unique training methods I used in developing the programs in The Truth about Six Pack Abs.

3. This program does NOT revolve around having to use supplements or "fat-loss" pills.

Trust me when I say that for the most part, about 95% of supplements are a complete waste of your hard earned money. I've been approached by supplement companies in the past looking for me to promote their products for them, and offering me a lot of money to do so. Well, you know what I do? I tell them to shove it! Seriously, I won't promote something to my readers that I don't honestly believe in.

The fact is, I've learned over the years through my own experience, as well as hundreds of my clients and friends experiences with supplements, that they are really just selling you the dream that their pill or powder will be some "magical" solution to your struggle with getting that lean ripped body that you've been wanting for years. In reality, most supplements do nothing at all to help you improve your body.

Don't get me wrong... I'm not totally bashing supplement companies, but like I said, about 95% of the products they promote are worthless, and won't create any noticeable changes in your body. I will admit that there can be a place for meal replacements for people that can't find the time to prepare or pack all of their real food meals. I also admit that I do think a high quality, fast digesting protein like whey protein can be useful to mix into your post-workout smoothies.

But the fact is that real food is always better for you than processed supplements (as long as you pick the right "real foods"). Anybody that tells you otherwise has either been brainwashed by all of the propaganda and super-hyped up ads that the supplement companies have spread throughout every magazine on the planet, or they have financial ties to selling supplements in some way themselves.

I have dedicated myself to not being lured into the lucrative world of selling supplements. Even though I could make a lot more money selling supplements than by selling my abs program, it's just plain against my morals to rip people off like that.

Frankly, it amazes me that most people are more willing to spend $30, $40, even $50 or more on a bottle of pills or powder than to spend $30 on a comprehensive training and nutrition guide like this Truth about Six Pack Abs program, which will set them up for life on training programs and dietary secrets that will keep them lean and ripped for life. The only thing that bottle of pills or powder is going to do is give you expensive urine! You make the choice.

4. This program does not revolve around using any fancy "ab machines" or "ab gadgets".

In case you were suckered into buying any of these worthless ab belts, loungers, rockers, or any other worthless ab gadget or machine, I have bad news... You were ripped off!

The truth is that most of these machines and gadgets are not the best way to develop the abdominal muscles. Sure, some of them may help a tiny bit with strengthening the abdominals, but they are far less effective than some of the best floor, hanging, and standing abs exercises.

Also, more importantly, virtually all of these abs machines, belts, and gadgets do absolutely nothing to burn fat off of the abdominal area!

Again, losing the fat that's covering up your abs can only be accomplished with a smart nutritional program, and a well designed progressional training program that increases your metabolism and stimulates your fat-burning hormones in your body. Achieving this is simple once you understand the secrets I reveal in the Truth about Six Pack Abs program.

5. This program does not include some sort of fad diet or gimmicky diet trend.

None of that here. I promise you won't be given any more crap about needing to eat "low-carb" or "low-fat", or low or high anything, for that matter. The nutritional secrets I reveal in this program go against all of the authors and companies out there that are trying to lure you in with another one of their gimmicks.

The fact is that they need to come up with some sort of different "angle", so that their diet program appears unique and gives the media something to talk about. That's why there's always some gimmick, like low-fat, or low-carb, or high protein, or the "colors diet", the "low glycemic index diet", the fasting diet, the cabbage diet, and so on.

Instead, I wanted to give you the truth about what it really takes to eat a nutritious diet that not only will have you burning off that stubborn belly fat, but will also have you feeling full of energy every single day. If you don't already feel energetic and alive every single day, then you are missing out, because it is an awesome feeling!

The great thing is that once you start eating balanced and healthy all the time, you virtually eliminate cravings altogether. Personally, I used to crave sweets constantly before I adopted the nutritious diet that I currently eat. Now, I can honestly say I can't remember the last craving I had. It had to be more than 5 years ago... no joke!

Not only that, but I actually enjoy everything I eat way more than I used to years ago when I ate a lot of junk. Does that mean that I never eat burgers, or pizza, or beer? Of course not... We all have a social life. In fact, there are actually very healthy ways and variations to preparing healthier burgers and healthier pizza that I occasionally use.

I hope this article has given you some insight as to where you may be going wrong with your exercise and nutrition plans in striving for those elusive abs. See below for more info on losing stubborn stomach fat and developing ripped six pack abs.

Click HERE to view the success stories of people who managed to successfully shed belly fat!