Gymrats - Sharing Tips/information

[BodyBlitz]

This is a thread dedicated to gymrats in this forum.
Feel free to share information/articles and even your own experience regarding fitness, keeping healthy, etc.

[BodyBlitz]

Eat everything in moderation - a silly excuse to have a crap diet.

Every now and then, someone will mention this phase, "Just eat everything in moderation and have a balance diet and you'll be fine."
To me, this phase means you can cheat yourself to eat crap and justify it with the word moderation.

Truth is, there is no moderation and a balance diet if you compare that to standards of what many people tell you because of one thing - your body.

Different people's body metabolizes nutrients different and metabolism is reliant on genetics, age and the a person's nutrition background.

A good example would be this -

Jane, a size 4 and Mary, a size 6, both of them are the same height.
however, Jane is (Ectomoph) skinny and Mary(Endomorph) harbor a high body fat percentage. Both of them work the same job, have everything in common and have the same level of physical activity.

Jane can eat all the chocolate, tid bits she want yet not get fat, Mary does the same and becomes fatter - i'm sure you've met many Jane's in your life.
So in this example and with many real experience of such people, the notion of moderation holds no ground and it has different standards to different people.

Not that i'm saying eating crap can or will be justified but i'm saying everyone can afford as much as they're body can handle and as i've mentioned earlier, it all within your genetics, physical activity levels and your past nutrition history.

Some people are able to metabolize simple sugars extremely fast and they require a higher about of carbs and caloric requirement then most people - they're naturally skinny, small frame and lanky body. Compared to the other group of people - They're naturally fatter, wider frame and stout body.

A good way to know if you can handle carbs is to have a high carb meal - lots of rice/sweets/chocolate and see after 2 hours if you crash. (you'd be suprised that almost everyone cannot handle this amount yet eat it through out the day)

If we fail this test, then is our moderation really moderation? Is our balance, really balanced? Where is the standard rule to benchmark it?

What you may think is a balance diet for yourself may not be balance to what your body can handle or requires. So why kid yourself and justify eating everything in moderation(crap and more crap) is alright.

Unless you have low body fat - Ladies >20%, Guys >15%, you can justify it as cheat meals not that I'm encouraging it but if you're already at this level, you'll already watching your nutrition closely and working out at least 3-5 times a week.

So end of the day, if you want to eat crap. Go ahead, if you can't afford it, you'd get fatter and fatter but justifying it as eating everything in moderation, you're only deluding yourself so stop whining about being the state that you're in and take some responsibility.

[BodyBlitz]

A new year a new start, but how are we going about our fitness resolutions?

Many of us have great plans, great ideas and even great drive however most of the time we lose steam halfway and then going to a process of what i call "mid goal crisis."

What is Mid Goal Crisis?

It is a point where everything doesn't make sense anymore, the food that you eat doesn't taste like food but spongy things that you put in your mouth to chew, your work out doesn't make sense anymore.

Then the big question pops up, " Why am i doing this for?"

This where the devil and angel will sit by your shoulders and give tempt you while you struggle with your fight.

I have had this so many times, even now as i speak i wonder why do i even bother sometimes.

However like any problem, there is always a solution. And that solution is very simple because all i takes is sometime to be committed to what you're doing.

This is where accountability comes into play and this is what we have to do to keep up the good fight!

I used to think that logs were useless; well in some ways they are if you keep them to yourself. But i tried to log my food, my progress and my work out in a general fitness forum and what i learnt is that people were actually keeping tabs on what i was doing.

Initially I didn't like it because this was a personal log and i felt abit violated with some critique and comments that was against me. However i learn that they didn't had any malicious intent but just to give me suggestions that they thought would work better.

Some are good, some were okay and some i couldn't agree but end of the day i've learn from different input that my work outs could be better and i could finesse my program.

So if you're on a fitness journey, a log is a must.

Heres a sample of my log -
Quote:

week 7 Day 5

Wt - 88.5kg (woot - chocolate FTW!)

Total Sleep - 7.5 hours

Meal 1 - Nasi Lemak - 1 cup rice, 1 chicken wing, 1 egg and sambal + 2 half boiled egg and 1 Ice kopi si less sugar

Meal 2 - 4 Half boiled eggs + 1 Ice kopi si less sugar

Work out -

Power Cleans warm up
3 x 3 Power cleans practice - 50kg

Circuit Rodeo

Circuit A -
10 x swings - 20kg hex plate
10 x Push ups
10 x Abwheel
6 x Chin ups (2 sets using band - last set ******* shag do half **** reps)
12 x Air Squat(didn't do - missed it out)

Total time - 6:35

Circuit B -
10 x Deadlift - 50kg
6 x push press 20kg ea hand( 1st set do two hand, 2&3 one hand)
10 x Reverse Crunches
6 x Incline Rows
5 x Pistol Box Squat( did 10 x Air squat)

Total time - 10:35

Finisher - Leg matrix - 24 Squat/24 Lunges/24 Jump Squat/24 Jump Lunges

Total time - 3:41

Total metcon work out - 17:10

Killed myself 3 times today, the killer was Leg matrix - My legs became numb from lactic.

Isolations supersets -

3 x 10 (cable sternum pull downs 120 lbs + curls 60lbs)
3 x 10 (Lat Sternum pull downs 90kg? + Preach DB curls 12.5kg)
2 x 10 ( Cable Xover - 65lbs + Front Lat Raise 10kg)
2 x 10 ( Bench Dip + Supine Hack squat calves raises 100kg) - Machine sucks, alot of pressure on my knees
1 x 20 ( Supine hack squat calve raises 100kg)

Meal 3 - Fish soup - 40g Fried fish + 20g Veges + 1 Iced Kopi Si less sugar.

Meal 4 - 1/2 Spring Chicken + 8 Fried Dumpling

Meal 5 - Fish soup - 40g Fried fish + 20g Veges + 1 Iced Teh Si less sugar.

PM Supplementation - 1.6g CLA + 2 caps Yohimbe + 40g? fish oil( lazy to take a spoon, down it into throat)


As you can see i try to be as detailed as possible, this way i know where I went wrong when i didn't get to my goals.

Accountability to yourself or to the people who will oversee your fitness progress with good intention is a great way to be more responsible in your choices - especially with food.

In your mind, you're going to think, " i'm sure the guys will give me hell for this, i think i should reconsider." With that thought your temptations to cheat on your meal has been immediately crushed. So it'll be easier to go along your way to get to your goals.

How to get started?

If you're not part of a forums of fitness junkies, its okay. But if you are then starting a log within a subforum of training logs or a place where there is high traffic would be great because that way you know you're up for scrutiny.

If you're not part of such forum, then start a blog and pass it your close friends and family and love ones. In all of this part, you cannot be shy about your body an stop because if you are then you're just hiding in your shell and do not wish to progress.
In actual fact, you should feel good that you're doing something about it rather then whiners who just whine.

Moving past the comfort level is not just about pushing your physical limitation but also mental. This will prepare you to be more responsible should you fall of the bandwagon when your actions are not accountable for your results.

I call it a slap on the wrist.

If you don't have a training buddy or buddies, get one. It is the single most important thing to do if you don't have the drive.

You're accountable for your buddy to turn up as you don't want to leave him or her in a lurch. However choosing training buddies is a iffy thing, do not choose someone who has weaker mental drive than yourself if you are not very strong.

This is because you'd be discouraged by the negative thoughts this person has. Get someone who you know is a fitness nut who will see you through all the way.

What if i can't do both - I have no time to blog, have no friends with drive or have no motivation myself?

Engage in a personal trainer, choose a personal trainer whom you think would fit your personality.

This is important because this will result in your progress.

There are many personal trainers out there, and there are good ones and bad ones.

Good ones will be concern about your progress, diet and will keep hounding you about your progress because they care about you. They will go through all lengths to see that you're doing it right and getting what you need to be done.
Bad ones will just get the hour through and try to slack off.

I personally believe that one who genuinely cares about your progress will see you through your results because you will motivated to continue even if he doesn't have the real know hows.

I quote this from Michael Boyle - " Nobody cares how much you know, if they don't know how much you care," and has made this my personal philosophy to my clients and myself.

The new year has started, its time to be responsible and welcome the new year to achieve your fitness goal.

[BodyBlitz]

I just don't understand women sometimes, or maybe some modern woman.

Most of them wish to be seen as physically weak but socially and financially strong. Why do they have the need to even harbor that kind of thought when they're not weak at all?!

In Singapore, they had the Samsui woman toiling the lands in the past, they worked the construction site and put their bodies to the extreme.



Now you tell a girl to carry a 5kg bag and they'll say its too heavy. Ask them out on an outdoor adventure and they'll say the weather is too hot and they don't like to sweat.

Seriously?! And they complain they're getting fatter because of lack of exercise and loads of junk food?

All of my female clients came to me with an open mind, they didn't mind doing what i told them to do and didn't complain that I pushed them too hard, made them lift too heavy etc..

They were real troopers but they weren't exactly that young.

I'd share with you one good example whom I'm very proud of her achievements -

Client A was a real joy to work with, she had trained in the past but due to post natal fat storage, she was mentally battered from trying everything from caloric reduction to lots of aerobics but nothing worked.

She thought she was a little stronger than average but she never knew she had the potential to push her own boundaries. After training with me for 6 months, losing (104kg - 86kg )18kgs of fat at the age of late 40s, she's pushing new PRs she never could even think of.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7IovU5EOIY
This her doing 40kg Suitcase Deadlift

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYqetMZl4Z0
This is her doing her first few chins ups

So with this fine example in mind, being a mother and being busy in her own professional career, i don't know why women should think they're innately physically weak. Anyone can do it, even ladies if they shed their mindset and actually get something done by going to the gym and actually lifting weights.

So women who are reading this and worrying about un-necessary details about getting too bulky, which is the best regime to follow.. i have only one phase for you - head into a gym and "Just do it."

[BodyBlitz]

Your Workout Sucks. Like totally...!

Face it, you've been trying hard for so long and done everything conventional just to try to lose that bit of weight you've gain to no avail.
For some strange reasons, you choose to continue doing what you use to do and still disappoint yourself.

I've seen so many people come to the gym and most of them have not a clue what to do, do the same thing day in and day out and yet, when i see them 6 months later, they're still the same.

I'll give you a run down of the usual fan fare of routine that most of the people i've observed do. This goes on with most gyms I go to -

For the woman folk -

Woman walks in with brand new pair of runners, filled with gusto and a resolution to lose that fat she gained over the months.

Pops on a treadmill/elliptical trainer/Stepper/Bike and starts doing her thing.
On the tread mill, she vegetates to the television watching the news with a leisurely stroll. On the bike/stepper, she'll whip out a magazine and start reading.

after 30 mins of doing that, she walks around nonchalantly picking and choosing what kind of machines she fancies - and most of the time its the one where its for the abs.

I see the same woman coming in to the gym 3 or 4 times a week doing the same thing like clockwork! The funny thing is that after 2 months she still looked the same and on the 3rd month she disappeared.

Now lets see for guys -

Guy walks in with his singlet and his pot belly protruding. Has gloves on, a weight belt all fired up to attack the iron.

First thing he does is pick up a dumb bell and start curling, then move on to the smith machine and start benching. Then he does more curling, some tricep kick back and more curling.

He'll then proceed to a sit up bench or a swiss ball and do some crunches.
When he's done, he'll hope on the treadmill and give it go for 30 mins.

I see him coming in for 3/4 times a week, doing the same thing like clockwork. He's not getting muscular, he still has his potbelly and nothing has changed.

If i were to ask him what's his goal was, he'd tell me that it was to lose weight and gain muscles.

If you're routine is anything like these people, face it... your work out sucks, i don't have to be a rocket scientist or the world's best coach/trainer to understand that what you're doing is not working at all!

Humans are creatures of strength and power, they do not thrive on long distance work - just compare the physique of Sprinters vs Marathon runners.

Which body would you prefer?

Isolation or single joint exercises(e.g bicep curls) are useless for fat loss, they are only done to sculpt a certain body part to shape it's fullness - that is if you have the 80% of the muscles mass and looking at the last 20% to finesse the look.

Ladies are brainwashed by mainstream media to think that isolation exercises too would be a spot reduction tool. This is a blatant lie and sorry to burst your bubble ladies, there is no such thing as spot reduction unless you're going for liposuction.

For your info, sit ups are only good for giving your back aches as it hurts your lower back and i've yet to see anyone who lose those love handles by sit ups alone.

Men are so obsessed with working out their beach body parts ( arms/chest/abs) that they have not stop to think why would a girl check out a man with big arms and chest but with a pot belly!

Compound movement or multi-joint exercises (e.g Squats) are the ones you should be doing. It involves more muscles, burns more calories and its more functional.

My gym work outs are under 45 mins if i'm training for fat-loss, at the end of the work out i'm lying on the floor in a pool of my own sweat, breathing my lungs out and all my energy siphoned away.

I no have time nor energy to read a magazine because i'm busying pushing my limits and trying to keep the intensiveness up. I have no time to chat and socialize with people around me because i'm concentrating on the clock and trying to beat my personal record timing and fight through the fatigue.

As Charles Poliquin aptly puts, "if you're spending more than 1 hour in the gym - you're not training, you're making friends."

It all this make sense to you, then its not too late to change.

Here is a simple routine for beginners -

3 sets of 9 repetitions

A1 Deadlifts - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8YJ_tfLPJQ
A2 Bench Press - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-Wa12jgloE

B1 Squat - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Brl9XEe_XRA
B2 Band assisted Chin up - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGBi2tNBPtQ

C1 Lunges - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RILcUZ-lsSs
C2 Dumbbell Rows - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mP8zWhydlA

Back to back, no rest. After finishing the pair, rest 30 seconds repeat.
After you finish your 3 sets of pairs(supersets), rest 1 min and continue the next pair..so on and so forth.

Rest 2 mins then proceed on to doing High Intensity Interval Training -

What is HIIT ?

HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training.

How do i do HIIT?

As it is, its Interval training -
Usually perform in sets 30 seconds, 1 min or 2 mins max.

To cite an example - Bike intervals, we're using a 1:1 Work/Rest ratio within a 1 min range.

So for 30s, you go all out sprint like you're being chased by a dog who's gonna bite you, when 30 seconds is up then move on cruise for 30s which means just slowly cycle.

So when you rest is up, that is 1 set.

Which work/rest ratio should i use?

Novice - 15s/45s 1/3:2/3
Beginner - 30s/30s 1:1
Intermediate - 1min/1min 1:1
advance - 20s/10s 2:1
Expert - Distance within time/ rest half the work time - e.g 300m wtihin 1 min/ 30 seconds rest.

The key is to progress slowly and try to push yourself abit above the limit -
Start with 3 sets of novice timing, if you're confident slowly push yourself to 4 then 5.
After that upgrade yourself 1 level up.

If you feel you're ready for the next level, then skip a level however you need to complete 3 full sets to stay there if not down grade a level.

Ideas for HIIT - Air Squats/Burpees/Spin bike

3 times a week 1 hour per work out would be suffice.

On your other 2 days on weekends, you can go on your jogs for active recovery.

You also need to understand that losing fat is 80% diet/ 20% training.
So watch your diet strictly, you cannot out train a crappy diet period.

[jpatokal]

Gym rats or gym rates?

If rates, my membership's expiring soon, and here's what I was offered today when I went asking around:

True Fitness (Raffles Place, ex-Planet Fitness)
$58.88+GST/month for 3-year contract
$69.99+GST/month for 2-year contract
$99.99+GST/month for 1-year contract

California Fitness (Raffles Place)
$50/month net for 3-year contract
$60/month net for 21-month contract
$86/month net for 1-year contract

Both for single-gym, all-hours, non-refundable, non-transferable contracts, including all starting, admin etc bullcrap fees.

Anybody got better deals lately? I paid $42/mo for my previous 27-month deal at Cali (Novena), so prices have crept up... and drop me PM if I can refer you to Cali and get a few extra months for free

[BodyBlitz]

Where do you live?

If its around toa payoh, you can go to SAFRA energyone.

Spacious gym, alot of equipments and free weights.
Not crowded at all unlike these globogyms.

2 power racks, many barbells and plates.
Dumbbells up to 25kg.

i think for term is $70 a month even during peak hours unlike all those gyms you've mentioned.

If you're doing olympic lifts - snatches/clean and jerks, they have ample space for you plus the attendants are not anal like clubfitt.

[jpatokal]

Where do you live?
If its around toa payoh, you can go to SAFRA energyone.

Interesting! That would've been useful to know back when I lived in Novena... and they've got outlets in Mt Faber, Yishun and Tampines as well.
http://www3.safra.sg/page.aspx?pageid=96

i think for term is $70 a month even during peak hours unlike all those gyms you've mentioned.

Full rates here:
http://www3.safra.sg/page.aspx?pageid=99

$70/month all hours, $40/month off-peak (7 AM to 5 PM Mon-Fri). Limited to Singaporean/PR only, but no need to be a SAFRA member.

[BodyBlitz]

Yep.
I went to most of the places and i can give you a simple review.

Tampines - Spacious but only 1 squat rack. Good selection of dumb bells. Not that crowded.

Mount Faber - Small space for free weights, 1 power rack. Best selections of dumbbells but limited plates. Gets really crowded during peak hours.

Yishun - Small space for free weights, no power rack/squat rack. Good selection of dumbbells. Has a nice dance studio attached to do your other stuff - yoga/pilates. Gets a little crowded during peak hours.

Toa payoh - Very spacious with an indoor track, has a nice dressing room where you can even take a nap of on the couch. 2 power racks - seldom used.
extensive amount of dumbbells, a lot of plates. Doesn't get crowded at all even during peak hours. Best gym in Singapore so far.

[BodyBlitz]

After a nice workout, i'd love a good finisher if the gym doesn't have equipment for HIIT.

Here is a sample of what you can do for a finisher -
Leg Matrix

24 Squat
24 Lunges
24 Jump Squat
24 Jump Lunges

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XN4fBC1uobE

I do it all the time and it still kicked my butt...

[BodyBlitz]

I write this with a renewed interest in my profession and my own achievements in my fitness milestone. I don't profess to know all the answers, however many revelation has struck me like little bouts of epiphanies.

I remember myself, 6 months ago, always sticking to what i think was right and always a straight shooter and will not flinch or budge a bit. Then as i journeyed along and learn new things and interacting with many people/clients/forumers and learning of their past experience, suddenly i felt a need to reinvent myself.

Which brings me to my first point, there are no absolutes, you are never right always and there is no shame in admitting that you've been wrong.

I've made alot of training mistakes and goal setting expectation that sometimes i feel i'm too pressurized by my own ambition that i implode under my own weight.

I set numbers that i cannot reach; that only sounded nice on paper but hardly ever achievable, tried to chase after too many goals that i was running around in circles - but honestly i believed at that point of time it was achievable, honestly!

Which brings me to the second point, its good to make mistakes and over think things and then fail and then realize the mistakes that you've done.

I've thought it through and i feel lucky i was over ambitious rather than under. Its always easier to tame a over zealous horse than to try to push a lazy one to work. I'm not saying that i'm not lazy at times but at least i tried and failed and learned something.

My client today was speaking to my other client regarding training, she said something that suddenly zapped a bolt of renewed confidence - "As long as you try again, and keep at it, just don't give up. Louis tells me this all the time."

I think i said it, but i honestly forgotten when i did. I felt good, and somehow it felt like my philosophy - "Never stop trying even if you failed", has been ingrained in my clients unconsciously.

Which brings me to another point of this post, re-evaluate - contemplate - consolidate on your success, failures and things you've learned so far.

I started out without a single clue what fitness was, i read, tried everything and learned slowly. I re-evaluated my program when i didn't see results, i contemplated in finessing what i was doing and i consolidate on what really worked well for me.

When i was thinking about this things, Mike Boyle's lecture in Functional Strength Coach 1, suddenly popped in my head, I remembered he said something like this - "Are you progressing or regressing."

Those words never left my head and I'm lucky again to be exposed to such a brilliant surrogate mentor even if its through a DVD. It helped shaped most of my career as of now and much success that I've gain with the progress of my clients.

So putting everything in perspective, I've thought of a fool proof plan to actually get things done - Smart goal setting and managing self expectation.

- Who are you?
- What is your goal?

1. Who are you? - Are you a full time athlete or a recreational gym rat?

Most times we are so indulge in our goals that we leave out the foresight of what is really important in our lives - our families, our wives and our friends who have been with us in happy and sad times.

The last thing you want to do is to sacrifice time spent with them because you are too hardcore for their everyday lives and expectation.

Seriously, we have a life - live it. Its too short to be fussing that they eat bad, don't exercise and don't understand what you are trying to achieve.
Spending time doesn't mean eating crap, eating out doesn't mean missing a gym session, we are free to make choices and with that empowerment we can still eat clean, get a work out down and have a life! Yes, a life finally...

We can plan before hand and get things done, make appropriate choice when eating out, its not to hard; that is what the brain is for.

If you say its too hard because you have a competition coming up, your job is a pro athlete then i'd fully understand.

2. What is your goal? - The fundamental reason for your existence in the gym, if not stay home and don't waste your time.

Goal setting is great, putting numbers to it is better but sometimes LIFE, yes its a variable gets in the way. Most gym rats love absolutes and tangible differences, which is great if you are lifting, eating and sleeping iron everyday, 24/7.

Goals are great but putting sizable numbers is extremely hard and have comes to acknowledge over time. We have to acknowledge that its a journey, we will never have the perfect program and even more so without a coach with experience, so with that missing part, we're putting a questionable end to our goals already, that is unless you have 20 years of lifting experience working with top coaches but sadly most of us don't have such privileges.

So what is the most effective way to go about doing this goal setting?

1. Set a time frame with an absolute date.
2. Go Heavy, Go Hard, Go Home.

1. Set a time frame with an absolute date -

The best solution would be training for a time period of 8 weeks.
8 weeks is a sizable amount of time to evaluate your program/diet design, after 8 weeks you can contemplate to tweak it and then start over consolidating what works and didn't work.

Keep a log, record down everything for this 8 weeks and review, simple as pie.

2. Go Heavy, Go Hard, Go Home -

Set 1 goal within the 8 weeks, do whatever you can to achieve your goal. Explore supplements, try a different diet, experiment with whatever you want just to achieve your goals but don't cheat yourself. Make mistakes, make lots of them...just don't injure yourself.

The trick is to not set an absolute number to disappoint yourself, for 8 weeks you'll try every and any way to reach what you think is an improvement and see how far you can progress.

Compare that to your previous 8 weeks stats and review, if you succeed ask yourself why and build on it, if you fail - tough luck; but don't give up, try it again till you get something right and then move on to another goal.


The new year beckons, new training resolutions made, so whats your goal? I've learnt something, have you?

With this I leave you with this favorite anecdotal advice on life/training and everything else which Mike Boyle has brought up -

Quote:
A philosophy professor stood before his class and had some items in front of him.

When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks, rocks about 2" in diameter.

He then asked the students if the jar was full? They agreed that it was.

So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else.

He then asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous - yes.

The professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and proceeded to pour their entire contents into the jar - effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The rocks are the important things - your family, your partner, your health, and your children - Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter, like your job, your house, and your car.

The sand is everything else. The small stuff."

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out dancing. There will always be time to go to work, give a dinner party and fix the disposal.

"Take care of the rocks first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented.

The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of beers."
http://www.tobp.com/humor/bigrocks.shtml

[BodyBlitz]

Belly Fat Doubles Death Risk
Belly fat is in the news again, big time.

First some background: A ton of stuff has been written about the difference between "apples" and "pears", apples being folks who store their fat around the middle and "pears" being those who store it on the hips butt and thighs. Fact is, all fat is not created equal. The fat stored around the butt hips and thighs- also known as subcutaneous fat since it's right below the skin- might drive you crazy and make it hard to put on your jeans, but it's not nearly as dangerous as the other kind. The fat stored around the middle- also called VAT or visceral abdominal fat- is a metabolic nightmare. Stored deep inside the abdominal walls, it is metabolically active fat that directly increases the risk for all sorts of health problems from metabolic syndrome to diabetes.

OK, now on to the study.

Researchers looked at data from almost 360,000 Europeans who had been enrolled in a larger study called the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. They followed these folks for ten years, during which 14,723 of the participants died. What they found was that men and women with the largest waists had virtually twice the risk for premature death as those with the smallest ones.

According to Tobias Pischon, MD, MPH, the lead author of the study, the single most important finding in their study was that it the distribution of body fat affected the risk of premature death. Where you store your fat is even more important than what you weigh. And this was true even when weight is normal. "There aren't many simple individual characteristics that can increase a person's risk of premature death to this extent, independent of smoking and drinking" said Pischon.

For years we nutritionists have been using a "low-tech" shorthand for insulin resistance: a 40 inch (or greater) waist for men, a 35 inch (or greater) waist for women. Interestingly, that was exactly the number that correlated with a doubled risk for death when compared with smaller waists (less than 34 inches for men, less than 28 inches for women). Each 2 inch increase in waist circumference added about 17% increased risk for mortality in men and about 13% increased mortality in women.

Earlier this year I reported research showing that these numbers (40 inch waist for men, 35 for women) also indicated an increased risk for stroke.

Bottom line: reduce your belly fat. If you're an apple, chances are you're also insulin resistant, and would benefit from a diet low in carbohydrates. In my opinion, that's the absolute best "nutritional intervention" to reduce the most dangerous kind of fat on the body (as well as the plain old garden variety "unsightly" kind).

Just remember that low-carb doesn't mean unlimited calories. The absolute best way to go is lower calorie combined with controlled carb eating. For a good calorie goal take your target weight and multiply by 10. That's a great starting point.

And remember also that you'll not only be reducing your belly fat- you'll also be reducing the risk of stroke, heart disease, diabetes, dementia, some cancers and... oh yes, just plain dying.

Seems to me those are pretty good reasons to start eating differently!

http://www.jonnybowden.com/2008/12/bell ... -risk.html

[BodyBlitz]

Many people complain that they don't have time to work out.
I disagree, all you need is 30 mins to get a great work out in and the best part is that it can be done within lunch time.

I present to you "Ass-Whoop"

Ass whoop -

3 Rounds for time -

400 m Concept 2 Rower/ or spin bike if they don't have one.
10 Single handed Thrusters
10 Push ups
10 Air squats.

I got my ass whooped to day in 7 mins, i'll give a benefit and give you 15 mins.

Still leaving you 15 mins to take a quick shower and go grab a bite for lunch.

[smayrhofer]

body blitz, are you writing a book here?

i'm fitness first member...

if any of you are too, you should really try their body pump class! I love it.. i have seen more progress from doing that 3 times a week than i have from the personal trainer I tried for a while. Mainly because I can't afford to do personal training 3 times a week. It's total body muscle work, and the level of difficult totally depends on how you set your weights.

I've been combining that with jogging 3-5 days a week, and it's working really well for me.

[BodyBlitz]

body blitz, are you writing a book here?

i'm fitness first member...

if any of you are too, you should really try their body pump class! I love it.. i have seen more progress from doing that 3 times a week than i have from the personal trainer I tried for a while. Mainly because I can't afford to do personal training 3 times a week. It's total body muscle work, and the level of difficult totally depends on how you set your weights.

I've been combining that with jogging 3-5 days a week, and it's working really well for me.

Not really, i'm just sharing information thats all.
Feel free to update your methods and use this thread too.