http://www.articletrader.com/ Articles at ArticleTrader en-us http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/shaky-jello-legs-while-skiing-or-rock-hard-fit-legs.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/shaky-jello-legs-while-skiing-or-rock-hard-fit-legs.html Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Every time I see a website recommending a fitness routine for skiers or read an article about ski fitness in a skiing magazine I'm often shocked when I see some of the horrendous exercises that are recommended! Isn't the goal of an effective ski fitness conditioning routine to reduce your risk of injury while also building strength and endurance in your legs, back, and core?

Yes, of course that's the goal... don't we all want to eat up the slopes all day long, avoid the "jello legs" that might cut our day of skiing short, and also prevent those dreaded injuries that might even cut our season short.

The major problem I have seen with typical exercise routines that are being recommended for skiers are that they not only use ineffective exercises that do not carry over that well to skiing, but also may even be increasing your chances for injuries. For example, if you have seen exercise routines that recommend leg presses, leg extensions, and leg curls, please run away as fast as you can! Those types of exercises will only set you up for injury, and they are not even that effective for training your legs for skiing (poor carry over to skiing movements).

The same can be said if you see publications that recommend smith machine squats or any smith machine exercises for that matter... they should all be avoided as smith machine movements follow unnatural movement patterns (not bio-mechanically correct) that can create excess stress on the back and possible injuries there or in your knees.

How about those wall squats (aka "wall sits") that everyone recommends? Well, although almost every skiing exercise program in existance seems to recommend this exercise, I don't find it to be optimal for skiers. I will say that it is a step in the right direction compared to the machine exercises that I mentioned in the previous paragraphs. However, wall sits are still not a truly effective exercise that carries over directly to strength and endurance throughout the entire range of motion for the legs during skiing. This exercise can be mildly effective since even an isometric exercise held for endurance in one joint angle will still carry over to a slightly wider range of motion, but I actually have at more than 10-15 other exercises that are MUCH more effective than wall sits.

One of the other big problems that I have found with traditional skier exercise programs are that they often neglect achieving a proper joint strength balance (proper strength ratios between hamstrings, quadriceps, etc). Although skiing typically works your quadriceps harder than your hamstrings and glutes, it is still extremely important for injury prevention to maintain proper strength ratios between all of the muscle groups of the lower body and also make sure the small stabilizer muscles around the joints are properly strengthened. This is yet another major factor that is lacking in most ski conditioning fitness routines.

You'll see in the site below that I recommend about a dozen or more extremely effective exercises if you truly want rock solid legs that will last all day long on the slopes and even reduce your risk of injury.

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If you've ever had jello legs while skiing and want to learn to ski stronger while also reducing injuries, go to the following site for these innovative Skiing Fitness Programs, Ski Workouts and learn the best way to get the strongest legs of your life this ski season.

Michael Geary is a Certified Nutrition Specialist & Certified Personal Trainer and the Author of the internationally popular extremem skiing fitness book for people that are serious about their ski season and want to ski long and strong - Avalanche Ski Training, Your Guide to Carving Down the Mountain with the Power of an Avalanche.

Another site to be sure to check out is how to lose fat and get flat abs & discover how to lose your stomach fat without boring cardiovascular exercise routines or lame diets.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/health/men-and-women-why-workout-differently.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/men-and-women-why-workout-differently.html Wed, 25 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500
One example of this exercise insanity that we see at every gym... Many women think they need to do 20, 30, or even 40 reps per set of most exercises with little 3-lb barbie dumbbells, because if they actually lifted heavier dumbbells, they falsely believe they will "bulk up".

Another example... Many guys think they need to do 1-rep max lifts regularly to build muscle. This is simply not true... overall training volume (reps x sets x weight lifted x intensity level) and a caloric surplus is what building muscle is all about... not necessarily 1-rep max lifting... although I am certainly not saying there isn't a time and place for 1-rep maxing.

Now here's one of my biggest frustrations over the years... Typically when I was training lots of women and I would show them the workout that I wanted to take them through... they would say something such as... "I don't want to do those exercises. That looks like a man's workout!"

And they would go back to their little tiny 3-lb dumbbells and boring monotonous cardio workouts and keep getting NO RESULTS at all for months or even years.

However, the females I trained that were open-minded enough to trust me that if they used heavier weights they would not "bulk up" (as long as their caloric intake was in the correct range), always got excellent results.

As a matter of fact, some of the leanest females I have trained over the years were the ones that actually trained with the heaviest weights. I had a few female athletes that could deadlift 175 lbs and they were VERY lean, and NOT overly-muscular. In fact, they had very feminine, but lean sexy bodies.

They lifted very HEAVY weights in relation to their body size and yet they NEVER bulked up.

Another example is that almost every female I ever trained thought they couldn't use more than 5 or 8 lb dumbbells for an overhead dumbbell press or a dumbbell chest press. However, when they were open-minded enough to actually try to train their body under heavier resistance (and thereby create a REAL stimulis for change), most women were almost always able to press 20 or 30-lb dumbbells instead of the 5 or 8 pounders they were used to using.

My point I'd like to make in this article is for us all to please stop with the insanity of thinking that we all need to train so radically different from the opposite sex, but rather realize that we are all HUMAN BEINGS. I don't care if you're a man or a woman... the laws of exercise physiology will always show that variations of squats, lunges, deadlifts, presses, and rows are some of the best exercises for human beings, regardless of gender.

And this applies whether your goal is fat loss or muscle building!

Yes, even if your goal is just fat loss and not muscle building, you still need to train your body under progressively heavier resistance (relative to your current strength) to stimulate your body to actually want to change over time.

*Note - when I say "train heavy", I mean heavy resistance in relation to your individual strength level. For example, a heavy resistance in a particular exercise such as a deadlift or squat may be 300 lbs for one person, and only 70 lbs for another person. All that matters is if the weight that you use is challenging for you.

Now I will concede that I use slightly different styles of training whether the goal is fat loss or muscle building (notice I said different styles, not different exercises), but the bigger factor is actually your caloric balance...

Creating a caloric deficit for fat loss or creating a caloric surplus for muscle gain, while still training intensely for either goal.

So I say let's all stop training like men or training like women, and let's all start training like human beings in order to get RESULTS! See below for some of the most effective training routines known to man for fat loss and muscle building.

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Learn 5 important things that you need to know about losing belly fat at The Best Ab Workouts Won't Burn Off Stomach Fat

Another article you might enjoy can be found at Why Energy Drinks Can Make You Fatter

Learn how to do the most effective Exercise Programs for Skiing, Ski Workouts

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/health/low-carb-high-carb-no-carbs-good-carbs-bad-carbs-the-truth.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/low-carb-high-carb-no-carbs-good-carbs-bad-carbs-the-truth.html Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500
First, I'd like to state that I do not believe in extremely "low carb" diets. It's simply just not a healthy way to eat, and almost nobody can stick to a super low carb diet for life. However, with that said, I do believe that one of the significant reasons that most individuals struggle to ever lose any weight is that they consume way too much processed refined carbs such as rice, pasta, bagels, bread, cereal, muffins, soda, juice, candy, crackers, and other processed junk that is not part of the natural human diet.

If you are consuming excess quantities of any of these types of refined processed carbs (even if you exercise regularly and vigorously), it is nearly impossible to lose any significant body fat over time. Nasty blood sugar swings and insulin surges (which can stimulate body fat deposition) are only one negative effect of overeating refined carbs... Eating too many carbohydrates also significantly increases your cravings and appetite making it harder to control caloric intake.

Even carb sources that most people think are "healthy" are really just excess calories that do not really contain significant nutrition density... and many types of breads, crackers, and cereals claim to be "whole grain" (made with whole grains does not mean 100% whole grain) through clever marketing although in reality, the first ingredient in them is refined flour, which just spikes blood sugar and stimulates an insulin release. After years of consuming excessive processed carbs, it becomes harder and harder for insulin to do its job and continue dealing with all of that blood sugar, and insulin resistance and eventual type II diabetes can occur in many people.

My opinion on this confusing topic of carb intake is that the majority of individuals struggling to lose weight would finally start to see some weight loss results by focusing on these types of changes to their diet:

1. Reduction in overall grain-based food types in the diet (rice, pasta, cereal, crackers, cakes, cookies, 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 choosing grain for most of your carb intake, try getting the majority of your carbs from veggies, sweet potatoes (or yams), and a variety of berries & 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 choose to eat grains at all, focus on the most nutrient dense and fiber-rich portions of grains... the bran and the germ. This means that the healthiest ideas are to substitute oat bran for oatmeal, and use wheat germ & rice bran by adding these to your soup, salad, yogurt, cottage cheese, shakes, etc. This way you get all of the most nutritious parts of the grain without all of the excess calories and starches.

4. If you are used to eating large amounts of carbs what you can do to replace that usual food volume is to try replacing those calories with additional healthy fats such as avocados, nuts, seeds, nut butters as well as healthy protein sources such as grass-fed raw dairy and grass fed meat, whole free-range organic eggs, etc. Healthy fats and proteins are important to help satisfy your appetite, control proper blood sugar and hormonal levels, and help you to finally gain control of your weight.

With all of that said about healthy carbs and bad carbs, here is one of my favorite carb sources that packs a nice punch of fiber as well as contains a decent amount of antioxidants, vitamins & minerals...

It is sweet potatoes (and/or yams). I like to slice them into thin strips and sautee them with a few tablespoons of water in a pan for about 5 minutes for a quick healthy carb source for lunch or dinner (baking is a great way to cook them as well, but time consuming at over an hour). I like to finish the sweet potatoes off with a touch of grass-fed organic butter and some cinnamon and you have got yourself a delicous and healthy carb side dish... Enjoy!

Other great carb sources I prefer are quinoa, high fiber brown rice, oat bran, any and all berries and other high fiber fruits, and any and all vegetables.

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I have a ton more interesting articles for you at the following pages. First, check out this informative article about abdominal fat dangers at Why abdominal fat is the most dangerous body fat to your health

Another article you might enjoy can be found at The Best Abdominal Exercises that aren't really ab exercises

Another interesting article that may help you out is Does procrastination stop you from getting in shape?

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/health/how-to-choose-healthier-foods-at-the-grocery-store.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/how-to-choose-healthier-foods-at-the-grocery-store.html Sat, 01 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0600
One of the things I noticed over and over that really disturbed me was that I saw several examples of healthy foods in their natural state, but I saw counterfeit overly processed versions of these original foods claiming that they were healthier than the natural version...

However, in reality, all of these counterfeit 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.

I wonder if these companies are really clueless enough about nutrition that they legitimately think their products are healthier than the natural version? Hmm.

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 nothing but two ingredients... peanuts and salt. And they don't add much salt so it's not a high sodium product.

However, this fake 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 newsletter.

Basically, this product was 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 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. 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 loaded with highly processed and deadly trans fats, yet it had the nerve to claim it was "better than butter".

Heck NO!

Even low quality butter is better for you than any margarine. 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 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 high in polyunsaturated oils 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.

You can find dozens more articles about all of these controversial topics at my website below. Enjoy!

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Learn more about the truth about nutrition & training, and grab a free metabolism boosting report at Workouts for abdominal fat loss & six pack abs

Mike Geary is a Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer, and author of the internationally best-selling book, The Truth about Six Pack Abs, with tens of thousands of readers in over 150 countries. To all skiers, start training your legs and core to handle anything at Best Ski Workouts for Leg Endurance, Skier Fitness

Also visit our site for super fast result-producing exercises at Home Fat Loss Workouts with Dumbbells and Bodyweight

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/health/the-healthiest-type-of-meat-you-can-eat.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/the-healthiest-type-of-meat-you-can-eat.html Sun, 23 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0600
However, I bet you didn't know that there is a "land meat" that has similar omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acid ratios as is found in wild salmon and other fatty fish. Yep, you heard me right! In fact, this "land meat" not only contains similar or even higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids as wild fatty fish, but without the possible negative compounds such as heavy metals (mercury, etc) and PCBs that can be found in fish many times.

I have talked about this type of meat before and how it is one of the healthiest types of meat that you can possibly eat. What I'm referring to is grass-fed beef and other grass-fed ruminant animal meats such as bison, buffalo, lamb, and venison.

Now I know that a lot of well-meaning, but misinformed people will try to convince you that meat is not good for you... and to be honest I partially agree with them when referring to your typical factory farm-raised meat where the animals are fattened up with huge quantities of soy and grains that are not their natural diet and given unhealthy doses of hormones, antibiotics, etc.

However, when animals are healthy and are allowed to eat the diet they were meant to eat naturally, the meat is not bad for us and is actually a very healthy food.

Let us take beef for example... When cattle are fed mostly soy and grain based diets, the fat composition of their meat becomes higher in inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids and lower in beneficial omega-3 fatty acids.

On the other hand, when cattle are allowed to graze freely and eat mostly grass instead of grains and soy, their meat becomes higher in omega-3 fatty acids and lower in omega-6 fatty acids. In addition, grass-fed beef also contains much higher levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which has shown some potential benefits in studies for losing body fat and gaining lean muscle mass over time.

A similar comparison can be made between wild salmon and farm raised salmon. Wild salmon is a much healthier option for you than farm raised salmon and has higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids because the wild salmon eat what they are supposed to eat naturally and instinctively. On the other hand, farm raised salmon are fattened up un-naturally with grain and soy based food pellets which negatively changes the salmon's fat ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids.

The problem is that it is VERY hard to find healthy grass fed meats in typical grocery stores. In fact, even at health food stores, you might find some "organic" meats (which is at least a little better than standard), but it is often hard to find any real grass-fed meats.

Well, about two weeks ago, I did some searching and found a great website that sells all kinds of varieties of grassfed beef and other healthy grassfed meats. They have everything you could ever want... grassfed burgers, filet mignon & any other quality beef cuts, grass-fed buffalo, grassfed cheeses, and even free-range chicken and turkey!

And better yet, they deliver it right to your house with no shipping costs either... and I actually found that the prices were pretty comparable to what I usually pay at the grocery store anyway.

I'll tell you what... I was like a kid in a candy store when I found this site. I placed my order for all kinds of goodies on a friday, I got a shipping notification email that Monday, and my delivery came right to my door the very next day in a sealed cooler... I couldn't believe the service I got from this company.

Wouldn't it give you peace of mind to know that you and your family are eating meat that is actually good for you instead of the mass produced junk at most grocery stores? I know I'm getting most of my meat from them from now on, and choosing grassfed options whenever I can in the future.

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You most likely won't be able to find grass-fed meats at your normal grocery store, so here is a site that delivers high quality grass-fed meat right to your doorstep - Healthy Grass Fed Beef Online

For a free fat loss report detailing why you struggle with stubborn stomach fat, go to the following abdominals site Best Exercise for the Abs, How to Burn Stomach Fat

For more info on grassfed meats, see Grass Fed Meat, Grass Fed Beef and Bison

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/health/saturated-fat-is-not-the-enemy-you-have-been-led-to-believe.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/saturated-fat-is-not-the-enemy-you-have-been-led-to-believe.html Mon, 26 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0600
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's bad 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.

I received my new issue of Men's Health magazine over the weekend, and they have a huge 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 believe.

I've got to give them credit... the article was VERY well researched and put together beautifully 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'm going to try to give you a quick summary of the findings here since it was a long article...

First of all, did you realize that although doctors, nutritionists, 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 guy named Ancel Keys published a paper that laid the blame on dietary fat intake for the increasing heart disease phenomenon.

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 vs heart disease death rate. When researches have gone back in and looked at the data from all of the countries, there actually was no link between fat consumption and heart disease deaths. So his conclusions were actually false.

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 intake, exercise frequency, or 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 bigger 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 in those studies, the data was flawed as well.

Do we actually have evidence that saturated fat may actually 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, tons 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-existant.

Now most critics of this example will say that it must be related to superior genetics... however this is false, 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 super-high intakes of saturated fat, these island natives were typically very lean and heart disease was virtually non-existant.

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 common 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 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 meats.

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Grab an innovative free report on fat burning strategies and abs secrets at How to Burn Tummy Fat Fast for Flat Abs

If you're a skinny person looking to build muscle fast go to How to Gain Muscle

For those looking for great workouts you can do at home without equipment, check out Home Fat Loss Workouts and Dumbbell Exercises

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/how-to-lose-belly-fat-faster-with-these-diet-strategies.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/how-to-lose-belly-fat-faster-with-these-diet-strategies.html Sat, 25 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0500
CB: Let's turn to nutrition. What is your fat loss nutrition philosophy?

MG: I could talk about nutrition for hours and it's such a controversial subject, so I'll keep this brief...

It doesn't have to be as complicated as the "diet gurus" make it out to be. It can be a lot simpler...

1. whole, unprocessed organic foods, as close to their natural state as possible
2. High nutrient density food choices instead of nutrient deficient processed foods
3. Fruits and vegetables (lots of vegetables) as your main source of carbohydrates instead of so much reliance on grains as is so prominent in our food supply these days
4. Moderate amounts of high quality protein at each meal
5. High fiber intake to help appetite control and glycemic control (maintaining more balanced blood sugar)
6. Don't neglect healthy fat intake from nuts, seeds, organic eggs, wild fish or fish oil, virgin coconut oil and olive oils, avocados, etc (helps appetite control and hormonal balance)

Once you gain control over the aspects listed above, everything else usually works itself out in your diet... you no longer crave sweets or junk food because your body finally has all of the nutrients it needs. Another important thing that this style of eating does is that it tends to bring people naturally back to the proper amount of calories they need each day without having to attempt to count calories or anything like that.

CB: How do you address "lifestyle" with your clients to help them lose fat?

MG: One of the most important things I try to instill in my clients is that this has to become part of their lifestyle if it is ever going to work long-term. They need to make their health and fitness a priority in their life, and they must enjoy it...whether it's because they actually enjoy the actual exercise and healthy eating, or because they enjoy the feeling of strength or energy or confidence that it gives them.

CB: Give us some of your unique fat loss stories. For example, have you ever made one small change to a client's program that helped them get through a plateau? Or has a client ever responded to one form of training that surprised you? Stuff like that...

MG: I had one client a couple years ago... a guy in his early 30's...a classic case in reality. He'd been doing the same routine for years... about an hour of cardio 5 days/week while reading the newspaper, and then he'd finish it off with a few weight machines.

He finally came to me because his body was actually getting worse despite his long workouts. I asked him to put his trust in me, and asked if he'd be willing to try something drastically different...

I asked if he would fully give up his cardio for 6 weeks and follow one of my free weight training routines instead. I actually insisted that he didn't do any cardio at all during this experimental 6 weeks of change... only weights would be allowed. This was hard for him at first as he was so accustomed to just doing all of this boring cardio because it was easy. But easy workouts don't create a better body!

The results were incredible... I think his strength improved about 30-40 lbs on almost all of his lifts during that 6 weeks while simulataneously losing about 15 lbs of body weight, and his beer belly shrunk down considerably to the point where he had to go out and buy some new pants with smaller waists.

Another story... As far as clients getting new results from just a small tweak...

A few people that have been stuck at a fat loss plateau have come to me and I gave them a simple nutrition trick to try. This simple change was to start basing their last full meal of the day around just meats with lots of veggies and salad... basically, no starches with dinner, just meat and veggies.

As simple as that sounds, I've seen many people break their fat loss plateau just by implementing that into their diet. So many people think that their meals need to be based on starch like pasta or rice, but I think it's so much easier to lose fat when your meals are based around meat and vegetables instead of starch.

I could go on, but I hope that gives some useful ideas for now to help break through that fat loss plateau.

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Go to the following site and grab a free report about body fat loss and why you struggle with stubborn belly fat at Best Ways to Reduce Belly Fat & Love Handles Fast

Did you ever think that you could possibly get an intense workout in only 4 minutes a day? See for yourself at... Four-Minute Home Workouts, Dumbbell Exercise, Bodyweight Exercises

If you want to tone up the butt, hips, and thighs, see the following article How to do the Best Buttock Exercises

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/are-protein-bars-disgusting.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/are-protein-bars-disgusting.html Wed, 18 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0500
1. Most protein bars are marketed as "health foods" but to be completely honest, many of them are just candy bars in disguise, loaded with sugars and processed fats. I have even found several brands of bars that were loaded with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).

Shockingly, in my travels, I have also found several protein bars that contained trans fats from artificial hydrogenated oils! How can anything labeled as a health food contain the deadliest food additive ever invented? This is not only dishonest to market something containing artificial trans fat and high fructose corn syrup as "health foods", but it is also immoral!

2. Many protein bars taste like cardboard or chalk. Some protein bars are just loaded with so many chemicals and stuffed with so much overly-processed protein, they forgot to make them taste good (this is the opposite of the protein bars that are simply glorified candy bars).

3. Many protein bars try too hard to be "low carb" and hence are loaded with highly processed sugar alcohols. A lot of people frequently experience diarrhea and excess gassy problems from all of these sugar alcohols. Embarrassing moments anyone?

4. Many protein bars have a chemical list that is a mile long with stabilizers, fillers, and preservatives! What happened to making these "health foods"? Once again... for some of these protein bars or energy bars, there is not a whole lot healthy going on.

I'm excited to say that my good friends at Prograde Nutrition have made the perfect snack bars called Prograde Cravers.

These bars are brand new as of a couple weeks ago and have already been labeled as the "Best Tasting Bars on the Planet... and 100% Organic too!"

They are not protein bars per se, but rather "snack bars" containing 100% organic and nutrient-dense ingredients to satisfy not only your hunger and taste buds, but also your body's nutritional needs.

Cravers are only 180 calories too, so they are perfect for a quick on-the-go snack in the mid-morning or mid-afternoon to satisfy your appetite and keep your blood sugar stable until your next meal... a nice convenient snack to bring with you to work every day, on road trips, or on vacation, and help you avoid the junk-food snacks that are everywhere you look.

Cravers are also loaded with healthy fats from all-natural ingredients, so I was happy to see this. Also, they are made with 100% organic dark chocolate coating, rich in antioxidants, and making them even more delicious.

Prograde Cravers were released a couple weeks ago at a conference of fitness professionals, trainers, and nutritionists, and they were so popular that they have already sold out of their entire initial inventory.

Check out more info about the delicious and 100% Organic Prograde Cravers below.

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Go to http://natural.getprograde.com/cravers and learn why Cravers were called the best tasting snack bars in the world at a recent fitness industry event.

Stop fighting the wrong battle with your excess belly fat. Instead learn the real secrets to getting rid of stubborn body fat for good at Exercises for Abs and Fat Burning Workouts

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/stealth-exercises-that-hit-the-abdominals-hard.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/stealth-exercises-that-hit-the-abdominals-hard.html Fri, 13 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0500
I am going to show you an example today of one of my favorite abdominal workouts that does not include any direct "abdominal exercises" at all. It's in a tri-set format (similar to a super-set but alternating between 3 exercises, similar to a mini-circuit).

Here it is:

1a. Mountain Climbers on Floor
1b. Front Squats with Barbell
1c. Renegade Dumbbell Rows

A good repetition scheme to use with this could be 3-4 sets of 8 reps for each exercise, or more sets for less repetitions, such as 5 sets of 5 reps of each exercise. Mountain climbers can be done for a time interval (such as 20-30 seconds) instead of for reps.

Mountain climbers are done by starting in a pushup position and then shuffling your feet in and out so that your knees are moving in under your chest and then back out to starting position. It sort of resembles climbing a mountain but flat on the floor. If you want an advanced version, you can also shuffle your hands 8-10 inches forward and backward in addition to the leg movements. This really makes it a full body exercise and MUCH more difficult than standard mountain climbers.

Front squats are performed similar to back squats, however using the barbell in front of your body on the front of your shoulders instead of resting on the upper back as in back squats. You stabilize the barbell on your shoulders by crossing your arms and pushing your fists into the bar against your shoulders while keeping your elbows out in front of the body. This takes a little practice at first, so you will want to seek a professional trainer at your gym to help you with the form. Front squats require extreme stabilization strength from the abs due to the barbell weight being shifted to the front of the body instead of the back. Even though this is mostly a leg exercise, you'll feel this one in the abdominals big time!

Renegade dumbbell rows are performed starting in a pushup position with the hands on two dumbbells. You then row 1 dumbbell up while stabilizing your body with the other arm. Bring the dumbbell back to the ground and alternate the rowing arm while stabilizing with the opposite arm. This stabilizing effect during these types of rows creates incredible work for your entire midsection core area. Trust me... you'll feel it in the abdominals!

After finishing each exercise, rest about 30 seconds before starting the next exercise in the sequence. Rest about 1-2 minutes after completing each "tri-set" before repeating the sequence.

This will give you one of the best abdominal workouts you've ever had without even doing any direct abdominal exercises. You'll see what I mean after you try it!

See below to grab a free metabolism-boosting special report.

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Grab a free fat loss special report for six pack abs at Fat Loss Workouts & Diet Tips to Burn Belly Fat

Looking for great butt and thigh exercises? Go see this site at Quick Four-Minute Bodyweight & Dumbbell Home Workouts

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/what-are-the-best-post-workout-meals.html http://www.articletrader.com/health/fitness/what-are-the-best-post-workout-meals.html Wed, 27 Jun 2007 00:00:00 -0500
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.

From 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 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.

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To find out more secrets about proper post workout shakes, go to http://natural.getprograde.com/varsity

If you are tired of living with your fat belly, stop with the failed diets and bogus ab gadgets and find out the real fat loss truth at Losing Body Fat for a Flat Belly

If you are a busy professional looking for good home workouts that actually work, go to Dumbbell & Bodyweight Home Workouts

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]>