Day 65.
Workout Routine:
Superset (4 sets)
- Barball Squat @ 135# x 15 reps, @ 185# x 10 reps x 3 sets
- 1-DB Biceps Curls @ 30# x 5 + 5 + 5 +5 reps x 3 sets, @ 25# x 5+5+5+5 reps
Superset (3 sets)
- Dips + 45# DB x 10 x 8 x 8 reps
- 1-DB Rear Delt Flye @ 30# x 10 + 10 reps
Friday, June 04, 2010
Tuesday, June 01, 2010
13 No BS Ways to Burn Calories and Lose Belly Fat Quick
1. Beware of sugar
It triggers the body to release insulin, which then either transplants sugar to the cells to be used as energy — or stored as fat, according to Jorge Cruise, author of "The Belly Fat Cure" (Hay House).
2. Squat
When you pick up something from the floor, keep your back straight and bend at the knees, not the waist. "This protects your back and tones your legs," says Peterson.
3. Chew gum
It burns a few calories — and it keeps you from mindlessly grazing, especially when you're cooking, says McGee.
4. Sleep better
A poor night's sleep causes people to chose less-nutritious foods, according to a study at the University of Pennsylvania. Another study showed that sleep-deprived people simply move less.
5. Walk and talk
Don't sit still when you take a phone call. At work, wear a headset.
6. Switch sides
Whether you're carrying a heavy bag on your shoulder or a child on your hip, "swapping sides every five minutes works more muscles," says Peterson.
7. Pick up the pace
Listen to fast songs, such as "Closer" by Ne-Yo, says Ruth Zukerman, co-owner of Flywheel Sports, a cycling studio in New York City. "The beat forces you to keep a calorie-burning pace, especially when walking or taking stairs."
8. Cook your own food
"It's often healthier, and by the time you've made a meal and cleaned up, you've been on your feet a half-hour more than you would have waiting for takeout," says Slayton.
9. Go on a date.
Women tend to order foods with fewer calories when dining with a man (who's not a long-term significant other), compared with when they eat with other women, according to a study conducted at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada.
10. Avoid eating lunch at your desk
If you must, have a quick bite, then go for a short walk.
11. Always carry a snack
Try nuts, low-calorie bars, or a piece of fruit. Eating frequently keeps your metabolism up (and reduces the odds that you'll wind up a victim of the vending machine).
12. Relax
Stress causes the body to release cortisol, which causes more calories to be stored as fat, especially in your abdomen.
13. Watch less television
Adults who halved their television viewing time (by using an electronic lock-out system) not only burned an extra 119 calories per day, but did so without altering what they ate.
It triggers the body to release insulin, which then either transplants sugar to the cells to be used as energy — or stored as fat, according to Jorge Cruise, author of "The Belly Fat Cure" (Hay House).
2. Squat
When you pick up something from the floor, keep your back straight and bend at the knees, not the waist. "This protects your back and tones your legs," says Peterson.
3. Chew gum
It burns a few calories — and it keeps you from mindlessly grazing, especially when you're cooking, says McGee.
4. Sleep better
A poor night's sleep causes people to chose less-nutritious foods, according to a study at the University of Pennsylvania. Another study showed that sleep-deprived people simply move less.
5. Walk and talk
Don't sit still when you take a phone call. At work, wear a headset.
6. Switch sides
Whether you're carrying a heavy bag on your shoulder or a child on your hip, "swapping sides every five minutes works more muscles," says Peterson.
7. Pick up the pace
Listen to fast songs, such as "Closer" by Ne-Yo, says Ruth Zukerman, co-owner of Flywheel Sports, a cycling studio in New York City. "The beat forces you to keep a calorie-burning pace, especially when walking or taking stairs."
8. Cook your own food
"It's often healthier, and by the time you've made a meal and cleaned up, you've been on your feet a half-hour more than you would have waiting for takeout," says Slayton.
9. Go on a date.
Women tend to order foods with fewer calories when dining with a man (who's not a long-term significant other), compared with when they eat with other women, according to a study conducted at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada.
10. Avoid eating lunch at your desk
If you must, have a quick bite, then go for a short walk.
11. Always carry a snack
Try nuts, low-calorie bars, or a piece of fruit. Eating frequently keeps your metabolism up (and reduces the odds that you'll wind up a victim of the vending machine).
12. Relax
Stress causes the body to release cortisol, which causes more calories to be stored as fat, especially in your abdomen.
13. Watch less television
Adults who halved their television viewing time (by using an electronic lock-out system) not only burned an extra 119 calories per day, but did so without altering what they ate.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Morris County Personal Trainer Carey Yang on Day 56 of Summer Beach Body Fitness Challenge
What’s hot summer-like day! 93 degrees F at 5 pm.
Feeling fantatic today working out in the gym. Tight body and popping abs to show. Ha!
Workout Routine:
Superset (3 sets)
- Half chin-up + curl up x 5 reps => Hanging leg raise (straight arm) x 5 reps
- 1-Dumbbell Biceps Curl @ 30# x 5 + 5 + 5 +5 reps
Cable Circuit (3 sets)
- Chest Flye, low to mid @ 5 x 10 reps => Horizontal @ 5 x 10 reps
- Oblique crunch down, 1-arm holding cable @ 8 x 15 + 15 reps
* Finisher, bodyweight dips x 15 reps
1-Dumbbell rear delt fly @ 20# x 12 + 12 reps x 4 sets
Feeling fantatic today working out in the gym. Tight body and popping abs to show. Ha!
Workout Routine:
Superset (3 sets)
- Half chin-up + curl up x 5 reps => Hanging leg raise (straight arm) x 5 reps
- 1-Dumbbell Biceps Curl @ 30# x 5 + 5 + 5 +5 reps
Cable Circuit (3 sets)
- Chest Flye, low to mid @ 5 x 10 reps => Horizontal @ 5 x 10 reps
- Oblique crunch down, 1-arm holding cable @ 8 x 15 + 15 reps
* Finisher, bodyweight dips x 15 reps
1-Dumbbell rear delt fly @ 20# x 12 + 12 reps x 4 sets
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Stop Your Body's Stress Hormone from Making You Fat
Mastering Cortisol: Stop Your Body's Stress Hormone from Making You Fat Around the Middle
Mastering Cortisol explains why the fat that collects around the middle of the body can't simply be blamed on eating too much or not exercising enough. The real cause is stress, which triggers an imbalance of the hormone cortisol that in turn tricks the body into creating unnecessary belly fat. It's all part of the fight-or-flight response dating back to the caveman that tells the body to store up fat in times of peril.
But the cycle can be stopped: Mastering Cortisol details specific ways to counter the cortisol with a tailor-made exercise plan that will slim the belly. Based on breakthrough genetic tests, the program also recommends specific vitamins and minerals and explains which foods will work best for the reader.
Find out more: Mastering Cortisol: Stop Your Body's Stress Hormone from Making You Fat Around the Middle
Mastering Cortisol explains why the fat that collects around the middle of the body can't simply be blamed on eating too much or not exercising enough. The real cause is stress, which triggers an imbalance of the hormone cortisol that in turn tricks the body into creating unnecessary belly fat. It's all part of the fight-or-flight response dating back to the caveman that tells the body to store up fat in times of peril.
But the cycle can be stopped: Mastering Cortisol details specific ways to counter the cortisol with a tailor-made exercise plan that will slim the belly. Based on breakthrough genetic tests, the program also recommends specific vitamins and minerals and explains which foods will work best for the reader.
Find out more: Mastering Cortisol: Stop Your Body's Stress Hormone from Making You Fat Around the Middle
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Top 4 Mistakes in Losing Arm Fat and How to Do It Right
There are many women who have given their best efforts to lose their arm fat, especially around their triceps or under their arms. With sleeveless dress being one of most women's favorite clothing, this is totally understandable.
During your research for the answer, you may have stumbled upon many potential answers. Ive looked at those advices and suggestions on this matter and I can understand why most of them wont work; if you have put some effort to try them, Im sure youll agree with me. Heres what most of them told you:
1. Focus your exercises on your arm; for example: triceps extension, diamond pushups, etc. This method won't give you the result that you want because the only way to burn fat is doing full body exercises. Why? Because you can't remove fat from certain spot on your body by train that body part only, no matter how hard you train it.
Training specific spot is not the answer for the question how to lose arm fat; it also wont do the job if your problem is tummy fat, love handles, or any other fat in specific spot on your body. Instead, you should do a full body exercises, thus get rid of your overall body fat; for women, at 16-18% body fat youll get that slender arm and sexy flat stomach.
2. Doing regular cardio exercises a few times per week while keep your heart rate in target heart rate zone. This mean that youll doing steady pace cardio, probably on a treadmill or stationary bike, about three to four times a week while watching TV. This is misleading method that most people do; it will only consume your time on long, boring, and fruitless exercises.
I know you must have tried this; its one of the mainstreams believes anyway. Furthermore, this is why most of them fail. Your body is not meant for steady pace exercise; itll simply keep up by adjusting itself with your regular exercise by slowing its metabolic rate. When that time comes, your regular exercises will have less and less result; it may even produce no result at all
The best exercise to lose arm fat or any fat burning effort in general is high intensity interval training. This mean that instead of steady pace exercise, you must keep changing the intensity of your exercises; this will make your body unable to adjust itself, thus result in fast metabolic rate and fat burning.
For example: sprint for 1 minute, jog for 1-2 minutes, sprint again for 1 minute, and so on. You can also apply this on swimming, biking, and any other cardio exercises.
3. Doing strength training; indeed, you should do this, but do not focus to train one specific spot such as arm or tummy, remember that your ultimate goal is to achieve ideal body fat.
Doing strength training; indeed, you should do this, but do not focus to train one specific spot such as arm or tummy, remember that your ultimate goal is to achieve ideal body fat. You can do this with dumbbell or barbells, but using your bodyweight is okay too. Some good bodyweight exercises: bodyweight squat, decline pushups, and bodyweight inverted rows.
Note that women won't get bulky from doing strength training; they just dont have enough testosterone for that.
4. You'll also going to find that in order to lose arm fat, you'll need healthy eating habit; this one is also true. The golden rule should be avoiding fast food at any cost and choose unprocessed foods instead. Also remember to avoid liquid calories such as soda and alcohol; instead, increase fruit and vegetables intakes.
So, how to lose arm fat? High intensity interval training, strength training, and proper nutrition are the key ingredient; not only to burn fat in specific spot, but to achieve ideal body fat and get rid of all those excess fat from your body.
During your research for the answer, you may have stumbled upon many potential answers. Ive looked at those advices and suggestions on this matter and I can understand why most of them wont work; if you have put some effort to try them, Im sure youll agree with me. Heres what most of them told you:
1. Focus your exercises on your arm; for example: triceps extension, diamond pushups, etc. This method won't give you the result that you want because the only way to burn fat is doing full body exercises. Why? Because you can't remove fat from certain spot on your body by train that body part only, no matter how hard you train it.
Training specific spot is not the answer for the question how to lose arm fat; it also wont do the job if your problem is tummy fat, love handles, or any other fat in specific spot on your body. Instead, you should do a full body exercises, thus get rid of your overall body fat; for women, at 16-18% body fat youll get that slender arm and sexy flat stomach.
2. Doing regular cardio exercises a few times per week while keep your heart rate in target heart rate zone. This mean that youll doing steady pace cardio, probably on a treadmill or stationary bike, about three to four times a week while watching TV. This is misleading method that most people do; it will only consume your time on long, boring, and fruitless exercises.
I know you must have tried this; its one of the mainstreams believes anyway. Furthermore, this is why most of them fail. Your body is not meant for steady pace exercise; itll simply keep up by adjusting itself with your regular exercise by slowing its metabolic rate. When that time comes, your regular exercises will have less and less result; it may even produce no result at all
The best exercise to lose arm fat or any fat burning effort in general is high intensity interval training. This mean that instead of steady pace exercise, you must keep changing the intensity of your exercises; this will make your body unable to adjust itself, thus result in fast metabolic rate and fat burning.
For example: sprint for 1 minute, jog for 1-2 minutes, sprint again for 1 minute, and so on. You can also apply this on swimming, biking, and any other cardio exercises.
3. Doing strength training; indeed, you should do this, but do not focus to train one specific spot such as arm or tummy, remember that your ultimate goal is to achieve ideal body fat.
Doing strength training; indeed, you should do this, but do not focus to train one specific spot such as arm or tummy, remember that your ultimate goal is to achieve ideal body fat. You can do this with dumbbell or barbells, but using your bodyweight is okay too. Some good bodyweight exercises: bodyweight squat, decline pushups, and bodyweight inverted rows.
Note that women won't get bulky from doing strength training; they just dont have enough testosterone for that.
4. You'll also going to find that in order to lose arm fat, you'll need healthy eating habit; this one is also true. The golden rule should be avoiding fast food at any cost and choose unprocessed foods instead. Also remember to avoid liquid calories such as soda and alcohol; instead, increase fruit and vegetables intakes.
So, how to lose arm fat? High intensity interval training, strength training, and proper nutrition are the key ingredient; not only to burn fat in specific spot, but to achieve ideal body fat and get rid of all those excess fat from your body.
Sunday, May 09, 2010
Denville Personal Trainer Carey Yang on Day 39 of Summer Beach Body Fitness Challenge
Happy Mother’s Day too all moms!
Make special pancake with strawberry.
Workout Routine:
Superset ( 3 sets)
- 30-deg Incline Dumbbell Press, @ 60/60# x 10 reps
- Bulgarian Split Squat w/ 1-DB40# Overhead Hold x 10 + 10 reps
Escalating Interval Training on Treadmill Running
@ 3.5 mph pace, 1 min
@ 5.0 mph pace, 1 min
@ 5.5 mph pace, 1 min
@ 6.0 mph pace, 1 min
Repeat above for 3 times.
Make special pancake with strawberry.
Workout Routine:
Superset ( 3 sets)
- 30-deg Incline Dumbbell Press, @ 60/60# x 10 reps
- Bulgarian Split Squat w/ 1-DB40# Overhead Hold x 10 + 10 reps
Escalating Interval Training on Treadmill Running
@ 3.5 mph pace, 1 min
@ 5.0 mph pace, 1 min
@ 5.5 mph pace, 1 min
@ 6.0 mph pace, 1 min
Repeat above for 3 times.
Your Hormones, Your Weight - How They Link Together
Hormones control everything in your body from stress lives to immune response. Research shows that hormonal imbalance could lead to breast cancer, short-term memory loss as well as what you eat, why you eat it and what happens to the your body after you eat it.
According to Dr. Robert Greene, M.D. that there are at least 40 chemicals in our bodies influencing our appetite and what we eat. "The good news is that we're developing strategies to shift hormone signals to help people avoid weight gain as well as lose weight," Dr. Greene said.
In the fitness and weight-loss industry, we have established the basic equation of calories in, calories out. In a recent study by Dr. Michael Aziz, M.D. in his The Perfect 10 Diet book, your hormone level and stability is at least as important as, if not more important than, calorie counting.
Calorie counting is important, but is not everything. Two people of the same size can eat the exactly same foods, but have totally different results. It's important to stabilize your body's insulin level. When insulin is secreted in higher amounts, you feel hungrier. Then you eat more. Your willpower would succumb to your hungry need.
In an another diet book Change Your Brain, Change Your Body by neuroscientist Daniel Amen, he recommends optimizing hormone levels via daily exercise, balancing insulin, sleeping well and reducing stress.
"Serotonin affects mood and appetite and needs proper estrogen levels to be optimal," said Amen. "Low testosterone is linked to memory loss and belly fat."
So your hormones are running at a very sophisticated manner to keep your body and brain function properly.
Each of us is born with different genetic and metabolic profile. Eating according to our body type may hold the key to unlocking fat burning hormones.
A proven prescription is a balanced endocrine approach that control insulin with emphasis in lean protein, high fiber and lower carb.
According to Dr. Robert Greene, M.D. that there are at least 40 chemicals in our bodies influencing our appetite and what we eat. "The good news is that we're developing strategies to shift hormone signals to help people avoid weight gain as well as lose weight," Dr. Greene said.
In the fitness and weight-loss industry, we have established the basic equation of calories in, calories out. In a recent study by Dr. Michael Aziz, M.D. in his The Perfect 10 Diet book, your hormone level and stability is at least as important as, if not more important than, calorie counting.
Calorie counting is important, but is not everything. Two people of the same size can eat the exactly same foods, but have totally different results. It's important to stabilize your body's insulin level. When insulin is secreted in higher amounts, you feel hungrier. Then you eat more. Your willpower would succumb to your hungry need.
In an another diet book Change Your Brain, Change Your Body by neuroscientist Daniel Amen, he recommends optimizing hormone levels via daily exercise, balancing insulin, sleeping well and reducing stress.
"Serotonin affects mood and appetite and needs proper estrogen levels to be optimal," said Amen. "Low testosterone is linked to memory loss and belly fat."
So your hormones are running at a very sophisticated manner to keep your body and brain function properly.
Each of us is born with different genetic and metabolic profile. Eating according to our body type may hold the key to unlocking fat burning hormones.
A proven prescription is a balanced endocrine approach that control insulin with emphasis in lean protein, high fiber and lower carb.
Thursday, May 06, 2010
Fitness Expert Carey Yang Interviewed on Middle-Aged Women Exercise and Weight Management
Yang is the Founder and Master Trainer of Beyond Fitness Solutions in Denville, New Jersey.
A recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on middle-aged women’s weight challenges has hit the news headline.
According to the 13-year study on 34,079 middle-aged women, they gained an average of almost 6 pounds during the study.
The findings suggest that at least an hour of moderate activity a day is needed for older women to avoid weight gain who aren’t dieting.
Yang was quoted that you don’t have to go to gym every day. Other activities such as walking, hiking or golf also help burn calories.
“This is a wake-up for many middle-aged woemn to start taking charge of their health,” Yang said.
“Hormonal changes in menopause and pregnancy are already two strikes against women,” Yang said. “But you’re not out yet – if you set realistic goals based on your personal needs and lifestyle, it’s not impossible to avoid weight gain.”
Yang offers the following tips for combating weight gain by taking one baby step at a time before you get frustrated, burntout and quit.
1. Know where you are. You got to know your numbers – weigh, body mass index (BMI), body fat, and waist measurement. User-friendly calculators can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing. If you are not sure, find a fitness trainer in the gym and hire one to your home for consultation.
2. Exercise. The study refers to an hour of moderate exercise. It doesn’t mean you have to gym every day or run on treadmill or bike. Other activites such as walking, hiking, golfing all help 300 to 400 calories. If you increase the activity level and intensity, you can even burn more calories by running, aerobics or swimming.
3. Watch your calories. The truth is that you can’t outtrain a bad diet. You can train all day, every day, but eat all night and more than you can burn off, you will gain weight.
4. Portion control. Most people are overweight for one simple reason: They eat too much. You have to learn what a serving size is. It varies depending on the type of food, form and measuring unit. You’ll find calorie counting isn’t that hard. It may be tough at first, but in time you’ll find that you don’t have to be stuffed to be satisfied. The American Dietetic Association offers good advice at http://www.eatright.org/.
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Can You Lose 25 Pounds in 25 Days?
Did you know that even if you have 20 POUNDS to lose right now, you can still be in KILLER shape for summer just 25 days from today?
My buddy Joel Marion is giving you the BLUEPRINT with his new 25-day rapid fat loss system, the Xtreme Fat Loss Diet.
BUT, the price is going up TONIGHT, and the $30 OFF special coming to an end.
http://bit.ly/9wjcq8 <------- LAST Chance to Save $30
The question you have to ask yourself is simple: Do you want to lose up to 25 LEGIT pounds in just 25 days? If so, you're not going to find a more strategic, faster solution than this program.
It's founded on SCIENCE.
It's based on STRATEGY.
No gimmicks. No BS. Just results
http://bit.ly/9wjcq8 <------- LAST Chance to Save $30
Oh, and if it doesn't work for you? YOU GET YOUR MONEY BACK. Your results are GUARANTEED, or you get a refund.
Look your best just 25 days from now. Look HOT on the beach. Be comfortable being "sexy" this summer (and KNOW that you are).
This is your LAST chance to get in at $30 OFF, and frankly, your last chance to decide what kind of body you want to be showcasing this summer.
Go now:
http://bit.ly/9wjcq8 <------- LAST Chance.
My buddy Joel Marion is giving you the BLUEPRINT with his new 25-day rapid fat loss system, the Xtreme Fat Loss Diet.
BUT, the price is going up TONIGHT, and the $30 OFF special coming to an end.
http://bit.ly/9wjcq8 <------- LAST Chance to Save $30
The question you have to ask yourself is simple: Do you want to lose up to 25 LEGIT pounds in just 25 days? If so, you're not going to find a more strategic, faster solution than this program.
It's founded on SCIENCE.
It's based on STRATEGY.
No gimmicks. No BS. Just results
http://bit.ly/9wjcq8 <------- LAST Chance to Save $30
Oh, and if it doesn't work for you? YOU GET YOUR MONEY BACK. Your results are GUARANTEED, or you get a refund.
Look your best just 25 days from now. Look HOT on the beach. Be comfortable being "sexy" this summer (and KNOW that you are).
This is your LAST chance to get in at $30 OFF, and frankly, your last chance to decide what kind of body you want to be showcasing this summer.
Go now:
http://bit.ly/9wjcq8 <------- LAST Chance.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
New Jersey Fitness Expert Carey Yang Day 21 of Summer Beach Body Fitness Challenge
Day 21.
Workout Routine:
Dumbbell Biceps Curls
@ 35# x 8+6, @ 30# x 8+6, @ 25# x 10+8 x 3 sets
Superset (3 sets)
- Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise @ 25/25# x 10 reps
- Alternating Dumbbell Front Raise @ 25# x 6+6 reps
Cybex Machine Shoulder Press Superset (3 sets)
- Single-Arm Shoulder Press @ 50# x 5+5+5+5
- Two-Arm Shoulder Press @ 110# x 10
Workout Routine:
Dumbbell Biceps Curls
@ 35# x 8+6, @ 30# x 8+6, @ 25# x 10+8 x 3 sets
Superset (3 sets)
- Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise @ 25/25# x 10 reps
- Alternating Dumbbell Front Raise @ 25# x 6+6 reps
Cybex Machine Shoulder Press Superset (3 sets)
- Single-Arm Shoulder Press @ 50# x 5+5+5+5
- Two-Arm Shoulder Press @ 110# x 10
A Must Read for Stress, Emotional Eating and Weight Gain
Check out this amazing book that will help all of you who are over-worked, overwhelmed, running on empty, with little time for yourselves.
In "Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s Soul: 7 Keys to Nurture Yourself While Caring for Others", Hueina Su presents personal stories, practical tools and personalized action steps that are universal in their application and great for professional healthcare workers, moms, an adult caring for a parent, teachers.
You will learn how to "Stop, Drop & Roll" out of a state of perpetual overwhelm and burnout, create lasting inner peace despite chaos, fast track to calm when your life is spinning out of control, and take time for YOU without guilt. Give yourself (and your loved ones) the gift of Intensive Self-Care.
This is a must read for anyone who is taking care of others and needs some tender loving care for themselves. If you have ever felt stressed, overwhelmed, no time for you, or feeling selfish & guilty about taking time for yourself, then this book is a must read for YOU!!
It makes a perfect Mother's Day gift too! And when you buy it on April 22, you will also receive dozens of bonus gifts from many leading experts. http://www.intensiveselfcarebook.com/.
You will learn how to "Stop, Drop & Roll" out of a state of perpetual overwhelm and burnout, create lasting inner peace despite chaos, fast track to calm when your life is spinning out of control, and take time for YOU without guilt. Give yourself (and your loved ones) the gift of Intensive Self-Care.
This is a must read for anyone who is taking care of others and needs some tender loving care for themselves. If you have ever felt stressed, overwhelmed, no time for you, or feeling selfish & guilty about taking time for yourself, then this book is a must read for YOU!!
It makes a perfect Mother's Day gift too! And when you buy it on April 22, you will also receive dozens of bonus gifts from many leading experts. http://www.intensiveselfcarebook.com/.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Increase Your Workout Intensity Without Joint Pain
Many overweight people start to work out to lose weight with good intention. As a certified personal trainer, I also encourage my clients to pick up intensity but slowly. Progressive overloading is the key to permanent weight loss, fitness and body transformation.
However, far too many increase intensity either lifting weight or running on the treadmill too much too soon. They end up with joint pains on their shoulders and knees.
Although high-intensity exercise increases total caloric burn for that specific workout, remember that weight loss is a mathematical "calorie in and calorie out" equation. You have to burn more calories than you put in your body. So eat a healthy, clean diet and try to burn at least 1,500 calories a week. That is the minimum recommended number of calories you should burn to improve health according the American College of Sports Medicine. For weight loss, you should increase your caloric burn up to 2,000 to 3,000 calories a week.
Be careful following your friends through a high-impact, high-intensity workout if you are feeling pain in your joints. Some people's joints are more prone to a painful inflammation response, so do what you can do and modify your program based on your personal goals and abilities.
However, far too many increase intensity either lifting weight or running on the treadmill too much too soon. They end up with joint pains on their shoulders and knees.
Although high-intensity exercise increases total caloric burn for that specific workout, remember that weight loss is a mathematical "calorie in and calorie out" equation. You have to burn more calories than you put in your body. So eat a healthy, clean diet and try to burn at least 1,500 calories a week. That is the minimum recommended number of calories you should burn to improve health according the American College of Sports Medicine. For weight loss, you should increase your caloric burn up to 2,000 to 3,000 calories a week.
Be careful following your friends through a high-impact, high-intensity workout if you are feeling pain in your joints. Some people's joints are more prone to a painful inflammation response, so do what you can do and modify your program based on your personal goals and abilities.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Morris County Personal Trainer Carey Yang Day 13 of Beach Ready Body Fitness Challenge
A busy day training clients, good for a break for myself in a different way.
Bodyweight Circuit Training (3 sets)
- Y Squat x 20 reps
- Jumping Lunges x 20 reps
- Pushups x 30 reps
- Pullup (neutral grip) + leg raise x 5 – 10 reps
- Mountain Climbers x 30 reps
Bodyweight Circuit Training (3 sets)
- Y Squat x 20 reps
- Jumping Lunges x 20 reps
- Pushups x 30 reps
- Pullup (neutral grip) + leg raise x 5 – 10 reps
- Mountain Climbers x 30 reps
Monday, April 05, 2010
New Jersey Fitness Expert Announces 90 Day Fitness Challenge to A Beach Ready Body
Lack of motivation is one of the most cited challenges I heard over and over again when consulting my fitness training prospects,” says Carey Yang, Founder and Master Trainer of Denville, NJ-based Beyond Fitness Solutions, LLC.
“Sometimes, a dream vacation could be the motivation to ‘get kicked in the butt’ in order to get in shape,” Yang says. “This time I’m going to kick my own butt and get in top shape before vacation in Hawaii. I’m already lean and fit. But I’m going to get my beach-ready body for photoshoot just like every summer or even better.”
“As the leading in-home personal fitness trainer and boot camp instructor, I walk the talk and want to set a good example for my clients and for myself. So I’m announcing my own 90 day fitness challenge before my summer vacation in Hawaii.” Yang says.
Accountability means doing whatever you promise yourself to do for your personal reasons. Yang will post his daily workout, nutrition, challenges and journals through his website, blog and social media network. All is welcome to follow him in the following 90 days via:
http://www.beyondfitnesssolutions.com/beyondfitness
http://www.facebook.com/carey.yang
http://www.youtube.com/careyforfitness
http://www.twitter.com/careyyang
Yang says his 90 Day Fitnes Challenge is also an open invitation to everyone creating his own challenge.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
New Study Shows Middle-Aged Women Need to Exercise One Hour Every Day To Avoid Weight Gain
According to a study just published in Journal of the American Medical Association, middle-aged American women need to exercise in a moderate intensity an hour a day, every single day, just to avoid weight gain.
The study followed 34,079 women over 13 years. In that time, they gained an average of about 6 pounds each. Don't let the word “average” fool you into thinking that a handful of really heavy women skewed the average. Some 87 percent of the women gained weight.
An hour a day, every single day?! Is this even a possible goal to set and reach?
The answer is Yes. But take one baby step at a time before you get frustrated, burnt out and quit.
The study followed 34,079 women over 13 years. In that time, they gained an average of about 6 pounds each. Don't let the word “average” fool you into thinking that a handful of really heavy women skewed the average. Some 87 percent of the women gained weight.
An hour a day, every single day?! Is this even a possible goal to set and reach?
The answer is Yes. But take one baby step at a time before you get frustrated, burnt out and quit.
- Know where you are. You got to know your numbers - weigh, body mass index (BMI), body fat, and waist measurement. User-friendly calculators can be found www.cdc.gov/healthy weight/assessing. If you are not sure, find a fitness trainer in the gym and hire one to your home for consultation.
- Exercise. The study refers to an hour of moderate exercise. It doesn't mean you have to gym every day or run on treadmill or bike. Other activites such as walking, hiking, golfing all help 300 to 400 calories. If you increase the activity level and intensity, you can even burn more calories by running, aerobics or swimming.
- Watch your calories. The truth is that you can't outtrain a bad diet. You can train all day, every day, but eat all night and more than you can burn off, you will gain weight.
- Portion control. Most people are overweight for one simple reason: They eat too much. You have to learn what a serving size is. It varies depending on the type of food, form and measuring unit. You'll find calorie counting isn't that hard. It may be tough at first, but in time you'll find that you don't have to be stuffed to be satisfied. The American Dietetic Association offers good advice at http://www.eatright.org/.
Monday, March 22, 2010
How to Incorporate Efficient Superset Workout Routine in Your Fitness Training Program
As a personal trainer helping many busy people from all walks of life to lose weight, build muscle and get in shape, the most common problem is time - - lack of time or not enough time.
The truth is that if you ask the general public to exercise 5 days a week, one hour each time (just from government agency or other medical research institutions) to stay healthy, you're really ask for frustrations.
Many people can't even find good time block to exercise twice a week, not to mention 5 times or more. Even they do, they either don't know what to do or just read papers or watch TV while on the bike for 30 minutes.
Superset is an excellent, efficient and effective resistance training protocol to incorporate into your fitness training program.
You basically work two different exercises or muscle groups back to back with little or no rest. You only rest after completing the two exercises.
Superset workout has a metabloic, anabolic and nervous system advantages in getting you in shape faster in less time.
Here are 3 superset workout routines for you to give it a try.
Superset Workout Routine #1 (Opposing Muscle Groups)
Dumbbell Rows + Dumbbell Chest Press
Superset Workout Routine #2 (Related Muscle Groups)
Dumbbell Shoulder Press + Dumbbell Lateral Raise
Superset Workout Routine #3 (Unrelated Muscle Groups)
Barbell Squat + Dumbbell Biceps Curls
The truth is that if you ask the general public to exercise 5 days a week, one hour each time (just from government agency or other medical research institutions) to stay healthy, you're really ask for frustrations.
Many people can't even find good time block to exercise twice a week, not to mention 5 times or more. Even they do, they either don't know what to do or just read papers or watch TV while on the bike for 30 minutes.
Superset is an excellent, efficient and effective resistance training protocol to incorporate into your fitness training program.
You basically work two different exercises or muscle groups back to back with little or no rest. You only rest after completing the two exercises.
Superset workout has a metabloic, anabolic and nervous system advantages in getting you in shape faster in less time.
Here are 3 superset workout routines for you to give it a try.
Superset Workout Routine #1 (Opposing Muscle Groups)
Dumbbell Rows + Dumbbell Chest Press
Superset Workout Routine #2 (Related Muscle Groups)
Dumbbell Shoulder Press + Dumbbell Lateral Raise
Superset Workout Routine #3 (Unrelated Muscle Groups)
Barbell Squat + Dumbbell Biceps Curls
Friday, March 12, 2010
Workout Routine to Tone Your Arms, Butt and Thighs
Here is a workout routine to help you tone your arms, butt and thighs. Enjoy the sweat and joy!
Follow the exercise the sequence. Perform the workout routine in a circuit training fashion. Take a water break of 2 minutes after each set or circuit. Repeat for a total of 3 to 5 sets or circuits.
1. Dumbbell Squat and Biceps Curl x 12 rep
2. Dumbell Lunges and Shoulder Press x 12 reps each side
3. Band Low Rows and Wrist Rotation x 12 reps
4. Back Kick and Punch x 12 reps each side
5. Dumbbell Deadlift and Triceps Kick x 12 reps
Follow the exercise the sequence. Perform the workout routine in a circuit training fashion. Take a water break of 2 minutes after each set or circuit. Repeat for a total of 3 to 5 sets or circuits.
1. Dumbbell Squat and Biceps Curl x 12 rep
2. Dumbell Lunges and Shoulder Press x 12 reps each side
3. Band Low Rows and Wrist Rotation x 12 reps
4. Back Kick and Punch x 12 reps each side
5. Dumbbell Deadlift and Triceps Kick x 12 reps
Saturday, March 06, 2010
Happy Client Praises Morris County Personal Trainer Carey Yang
Happy Client Praises Morris County Personal Trainer Carey Yang
I started working out with Carey a few weeks ago. I wanted to gain muscle, flexibility and work on my posture. I never thought that I would enjoy doing exercises but I look forward to our sessions. Carey is very knowledgeable about the mechanics of the body and uses this knowledge to make each exercise the most effective it can be, and by making sure that it is done properly, reaping the maximum benefit from
the exercise. We do different exercises each time and it is never boring or repetitive, a problem that in the past, would have made me not want to exercise. He targets the areas that I needed the most, while still working the core with each exercise. I would highly recommend him as a trainer and am looking forward to becoming a stronger person through his guidance. I will continue to train with him and to recommend him to my friends who are tired of the whole “gym” thing.
Karen G., Denville, NJ
I started working out with Carey a few weeks ago. I wanted to gain muscle, flexibility and work on my posture. I never thought that I would enjoy doing exercises but I look forward to our sessions. Carey is very knowledgeable about the mechanics of the body and uses this knowledge to make each exercise the most effective it can be, and by making sure that it is done properly, reaping the maximum benefit from
the exercise. We do different exercises each time and it is never boring or repetitive, a problem that in the past, would have made me not want to exercise. He targets the areas that I needed the most, while still working the core with each exercise. I would highly recommend him as a trainer and am looking forward to becoming a stronger person through his guidance. I will continue to train with him and to recommend him to my friends who are tired of the whole “gym” thing.
Karen G., Denville, NJ
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Client Success Story for Morris County Personal Trainer Carey Yang
I have received an email from one of my private training clients. Mary shares her success story after training with me for just 2 months. Her words are powerful and inspirational to share with the world.
"I have been working out on my own for over 15 years. In the past, I have joined aerobics classes, spin classes, step classes, etc. but have never been able to achieve the results I was looking for. For the last 8 weeks, my husband and I have been working out with Carey. Carey’s knowledge and guidance is extremely helpful. With his help, I have been able to achieve results that I was not able to do on my own. He keeps changing up the routines so we don’t get bored with what we are doing. He always has something new up his sleeve, and his knowledge of the muscle structure of the body is impressive. I suffer from tendonitis and Carey showed me ways I could continue to work out without irritating my elbow. My tendonitis is almost 100% gone. Each week, Carey knows how far to push us to continue our progress but not overdo it. I am very happy with the results I am achieving, and look forward to continuing our workout program with Carey." -- Mary M., Succasunna, NJ
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Lose the Last 10 Pounds of Body Fat Forever
Confessions of A Fat Loss Enthusiast
It’s pretty teriffying to think how short our attention spans have become because of those text messages, tweets, status updates etc. Nowadays we all look for shortcuts, the easy and quick fix. And when it comes to weight loss, it gets worse because the market today is riddled with millions of ‘fast solutions’.
I’m telling you this because almost everyone I talk about fat loss related topics is pretty confused. They are even unsure about what is that they want from losing the weight. If you don’t understand your own motivation, how are you supposed to maintain your will power?
Aren’t you tired of spinning your wheels already? Do you want to be in bad shape for the rest of your life?
Actually, I’m so sure about my basic motivation. For me, keeping the weight off is a necessity, not a luxury.
That means I NEED to keep the weight off, not I WANT to keep the weight off. It’s a ‘need’ issue. I need to uncover my best physique because I hate it when I dislike what I see in the mirror. Yes, the mirror is more important than the scale for some people and it’s ok! Let me tell you what is not ok. It’s not ok if…
You hate taking your shirt off in front of people in places like your local pool or on the beach.
You don’t even bother wearing make-up as you feel ‘what’s the use’.
You feel like you are trapped into ‘what the hell I’m doing’ kind of exercises.
You are becoming extremely discouraged and depressed and feel like giving up.
I have to confess… My number one motivation is to look hot. If you have decided to lose weight due to health concerns, I truly respect you. But most of the time, it is the case that people want to lose weight for the purposes of getting a partner.
This is obviously a fairly basic motivation and not the bad motivator that some may claim. It is a fact that you are more likely to attract more potential partners the closer you are to the stereotype of physical beauty.
Let’s say you’ve found your love already and been having a great relationship… Don’t you sometimes wonder how to keep your spouse interested and happy?
Of all the reasons for weight loss my favourite has to be revenge. Let me explain: A man leaves a woman and runs off with a girl several pounds lighter. There is simply no better revenge then to turn up in his local bar several months later looking like the bomb.
Look at all those topics being discussed for years: How to lose weight quickly, how to burn stubborn fat, how to gain muscle, how to lose man boobs, how to get rid of baby weight…
You see, as well as the host of popular topics being discussed in the ‘weight loss’ media, the old favorites are still there. Some may sound dramatic but the point is that you need to let your subconscious know you’re serious about getting fit and keeping the weight off.
First of all, do what people like me, some of my friends and John Romaniello did. Confess to yourself what your number one fat loss motivation is.
If you are sure about your motivations and certain that you NEED to get rid of those extra pounds, take action right now! Click below and get a chance to grab a copy of John Romaniello’s Final Phase Fat Loss program.
It’s pretty teriffying to think how short our attention spans have become because of those text messages, tweets, status updates etc. Nowadays we all look for shortcuts, the easy and quick fix. And when it comes to weight loss, it gets worse because the market today is riddled with millions of ‘fast solutions’.
I’m telling you this because almost everyone I talk about fat loss related topics is pretty confused. They are even unsure about what is that they want from losing the weight. If you don’t understand your own motivation, how are you supposed to maintain your will power?
Aren’t you tired of spinning your wheels already? Do you want to be in bad shape for the rest of your life?
Actually, I’m so sure about my basic motivation. For me, keeping the weight off is a necessity, not a luxury.
That means I NEED to keep the weight off, not I WANT to keep the weight off. It’s a ‘need’ issue. I need to uncover my best physique because I hate it when I dislike what I see in the mirror. Yes, the mirror is more important than the scale for some people and it’s ok! Let me tell you what is not ok. It’s not ok if…
You hate taking your shirt off in front of people in places like your local pool or on the beach.
You don’t even bother wearing make-up as you feel ‘what’s the use’.
You feel like you are trapped into ‘what the hell I’m doing’ kind of exercises.
You are becoming extremely discouraged and depressed and feel like giving up.
I have to confess… My number one motivation is to look hot. If you have decided to lose weight due to health concerns, I truly respect you. But most of the time, it is the case that people want to lose weight for the purposes of getting a partner.
This is obviously a fairly basic motivation and not the bad motivator that some may claim. It is a fact that you are more likely to attract more potential partners the closer you are to the stereotype of physical beauty.
Let’s say you’ve found your love already and been having a great relationship… Don’t you sometimes wonder how to keep your spouse interested and happy?
Of all the reasons for weight loss my favourite has to be revenge. Let me explain: A man leaves a woman and runs off with a girl several pounds lighter. There is simply no better revenge then to turn up in his local bar several months later looking like the bomb.
Look at all those topics being discussed for years: How to lose weight quickly, how to burn stubborn fat, how to gain muscle, how to lose man boobs, how to get rid of baby weight…
You see, as well as the host of popular topics being discussed in the ‘weight loss’ media, the old favorites are still there. Some may sound dramatic but the point is that you need to let your subconscious know you’re serious about getting fit and keeping the weight off.
First of all, do what people like me, some of my friends and John Romaniello did. Confess to yourself what your number one fat loss motivation is.
If you are sure about your motivations and certain that you NEED to get rid of those extra pounds, take action right now! Click below and get a chance to grab a copy of John Romaniello’s Final Phase Fat Loss program.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Fight Bad Hormones with Fat Burning Hormones
In my last post, we’ve established that there are three specific hormones that cause the three most common types of regional fat storage.
As a quick recap:
1. Estrogen - the female sex hormone responsible for lower body fat storage patterns.
2. Insulin - Or rather, insulin resistance; this nasty little dude heavily influences fat storage in the love handle and lower back area.
3. Cortisol - the appropriately dubbed stress hormone is part of the reason you’ve got more flab than ab.
Those are your enemies.
Now, I want to talk to you about how you can actually increase the production of other hormones that offset the above "bad" hormones--through the manipulation of training methods.
Estrogen vs. Testosterone
Now that we’ve established (again, with apologies to the ladies) that estrogen is the main reason lower body fat storage occurs, we need to know how to work around that.
Well, how else would you combat estrogen but with testosterone? In all honesty, when if comes to fat loss and muscle gain, testosterone good, estrogen bad.
It’s for that reason that professional athletes, bodybuilders and the juicers down at the Jersey Shore use illicit steroids that are derivatives of testosterone.
Of course, that’s not an option for us--and certainly not desirable. Instead, we are going to increase testosterone levels naturally, through training. Not only will this increase the net fat-burning effect of all exercises, but more appropriate to our purposes here, it will also facilitate in getting rid of lower body fat.
I should mention something here to alleviate any concerns: it is NOT possible to produce a detrimental amount of testosterone through training. So ladies, you don’t have to worry about any masculinizing effects.
Instead, training produces what we would term a ‘high’ amount of testosterone from a physiological perspective, relative to what your body normally produces. For the guys, this means that such training will help you put on a bit more muscle--just not steroid muscle.
Insulin Resistance vs. IGF-1
As I mentioned in the video above, insulin resistance is combatted very nicely by a hormones called IGF-1, or Insulin-like Growth Factor one.
Producing extra IGF-1 via training will help you (and me!) improve insulin sensitivity and begin to rid ourselves of love handle and lower back fat.
Insulin resistance is very common, particular in people who were previously overweight; so if you have lost some fat and you’re now struggling to lose a bit more, and that fat happens to be in your love handles, I’m willing to bet you’re suffering from some degree of insulin resistance.
In order to get rid of that fat, we have to do fat burning workouts (obviously) and increase insulin sensitivity to the greatest degree that we can through the training effect. To that end, we need to employ what I call Dynamic Training.
Dynamic training is pretty much the over-arching concept of how I design fat loss training programs--it consists of using fast-paced movements to teach the body how to move more efficiently such as combination movements, like the squat-to-press or "thruster" I demonstrated below.
Because this style of training is extremely expensive in terms of energy (Calorie) demand, by and large dynamic training is excellent as a general fat loss modality.
Perhaps more importantly, however, is the fact that utilizing these types exercises and setting them up in a non-competing circuit fashion under the dynamic training umbrella is an incredible way to produce IGF-1--and that is one of the most effective methods to mitigate insulin sensitivity.
Cortisol vs. Growth Hormone
We have touched on cortisol a bit, so I won’t rehash that too much. Suffice it to say that the higher your cortisol levels are, the more fat you’re going to be storing on your belly. Given that fact, it stands to reason that if you store fat primarily in the abdominal region, you’re a victim of high cortisol.
Never fear, though: Growth Hormone is here.
Also known as the “fountain of youth”, growth hormone is the single most effective compound your body can produce to affect both fat loss and muscle gain. The more you produce, the faster you’ll lose fat and build muscle. It’s just as simple as that. Now, in addition to that awesome little fact, growth hormone is going to whoop cortisol’s ass and help you burn belly fat.
Also, you’ve probably heard that one of the ways to reduce your cortisol levels is to get more sleep. That’s something you hear on nearly all the medical TV shows. What you don’t hear is the reason.
You see, sleeping is one of the main ways by which your body produces growth hormone. Or, saying it another way, while you're asleep is your body’s primary opportunity to produce growth hormone.
And, as I stated previously, growth hormone is one of the main hormones that reduces the effects of cortisol.
Sleep more and you’ll produce more GH. Produce more GH and you’ll have less cortisol. Therefore, sleeping more results in lower cortisol levels. Got it?
Of course, I’m not suggesting you can just sleep your way past a fat loss plateau; although getting more sleep does help. I’m merely illustrating the relationship between cortisol and growth hormone.
Which leads us to the production of growth hormone as it relates to training.
While nearly all forms of exercise produce both growth hormone and cortisol, some types are better than others. Cortisol, as I mentioned in the previous article, is produced heavily in long duration cardio sessions--so let’s not do that.
Instead, we’re going to utilize a style of training that produces more growth hormone.
To do that, we’re going to employ a training method known as Lactic Acid Training.
In order to get to the growth hormone, you must first produce lactic acid.
Lactic acid, by way of a definition, is a byproduct of the chemical reactions that take place during exercise. This substance is wildly irritating to the nerves, and your body responds.
Think of lactic acid as sort of a type of oil igniting fires as it flows through you--your body will call the fire department to put those fires out.
And your body will do that by dousing them with soothing, cooling growth hormone.
Okay, maybe I’m being a little simplistic with my metaphor, but it gives you a general idea.
In any event, we must structure training to produce the most lactic acid possible. And, because lactic acid is primarily produce in the concentric (positive) phase of anaerobic exercise, we extend that period, and decrease the eccentric period.
What that means is that we lift the weight very very slowly, and lower it very very quickly so that we can have a fast turn around.
As an example, if you’re doing a squat, you’ll descend to the bottom the squat very quickly (drop down fast, but still controlling the weight somewhat) and then lift the weight sloooowly, oh so sloooowly--over a period of 4-6 seconds.
This will create tremendous amounts of lactic acid, which will intern send GH production into overdrive. I must mention that training in this way necessitates the use of lighter weights than you normally would on any given exercise. Therefore, if you’re interested in lactic acid training, I suggest you reduce the weight you’d use on any exercise by about 30% in order to be both safe and effective.
With traditional training methods, you’d lift the weight pretty quickly and lower it slowly. Here, we’re doing the opposite, in order to produce the most lactic acid possible, which will then lead to a corresponding increase in the production of growth hormone.
This will result in not only reducing cortisol, but also reducing cortisol related fat storage in your belly. On top of it all, it’s great for fat loss in general!
As a quick recap:
1. Estrogen - the female sex hormone responsible for lower body fat storage patterns.
2. Insulin - Or rather, insulin resistance; this nasty little dude heavily influences fat storage in the love handle and lower back area.
3. Cortisol - the appropriately dubbed stress hormone is part of the reason you’ve got more flab than ab.
Those are your enemies.
Now, I want to talk to you about how you can actually increase the production of other hormones that offset the above "bad" hormones--through the manipulation of training methods.
Estrogen vs. Testosterone
Now that we’ve established (again, with apologies to the ladies) that estrogen is the main reason lower body fat storage occurs, we need to know how to work around that.
Well, how else would you combat estrogen but with testosterone? In all honesty, when if comes to fat loss and muscle gain, testosterone good, estrogen bad.
It’s for that reason that professional athletes, bodybuilders and the juicers down at the Jersey Shore use illicit steroids that are derivatives of testosterone.
Of course, that’s not an option for us--and certainly not desirable. Instead, we are going to increase testosterone levels naturally, through training. Not only will this increase the net fat-burning effect of all exercises, but more appropriate to our purposes here, it will also facilitate in getting rid of lower body fat.
I should mention something here to alleviate any concerns: it is NOT possible to produce a detrimental amount of testosterone through training. So ladies, you don’t have to worry about any masculinizing effects.
Instead, training produces what we would term a ‘high’ amount of testosterone from a physiological perspective, relative to what your body normally produces. For the guys, this means that such training will help you put on a bit more muscle--just not steroid muscle.
Insulin Resistance vs. IGF-1
As I mentioned in the video above, insulin resistance is combatted very nicely by a hormones called IGF-1, or Insulin-like Growth Factor one.
Producing extra IGF-1 via training will help you (and me!) improve insulin sensitivity and begin to rid ourselves of love handle and lower back fat.
Insulin resistance is very common, particular in people who were previously overweight; so if you have lost some fat and you’re now struggling to lose a bit more, and that fat happens to be in your love handles, I’m willing to bet you’re suffering from some degree of insulin resistance.
In order to get rid of that fat, we have to do fat burning workouts (obviously) and increase insulin sensitivity to the greatest degree that we can through the training effect. To that end, we need to employ what I call Dynamic Training.
Dynamic training is pretty much the over-arching concept of how I design fat loss training programs--it consists of using fast-paced movements to teach the body how to move more efficiently such as combination movements, like the squat-to-press or "thruster" I demonstrated below.
Because this style of training is extremely expensive in terms of energy (Calorie) demand, by and large dynamic training is excellent as a general fat loss modality.
Perhaps more importantly, however, is the fact that utilizing these types exercises and setting them up in a non-competing circuit fashion under the dynamic training umbrella is an incredible way to produce IGF-1--and that is one of the most effective methods to mitigate insulin sensitivity.
Cortisol vs. Growth Hormone
We have touched on cortisol a bit, so I won’t rehash that too much. Suffice it to say that the higher your cortisol levels are, the more fat you’re going to be storing on your belly. Given that fact, it stands to reason that if you store fat primarily in the abdominal region, you’re a victim of high cortisol.
Never fear, though: Growth Hormone is here.
Also known as the “fountain of youth”, growth hormone is the single most effective compound your body can produce to affect both fat loss and muscle gain. The more you produce, the faster you’ll lose fat and build muscle. It’s just as simple as that. Now, in addition to that awesome little fact, growth hormone is going to whoop cortisol’s ass and help you burn belly fat.
Also, you’ve probably heard that one of the ways to reduce your cortisol levels is to get more sleep. That’s something you hear on nearly all the medical TV shows. What you don’t hear is the reason.
You see, sleeping is one of the main ways by which your body produces growth hormone. Or, saying it another way, while you're asleep is your body’s primary opportunity to produce growth hormone.
And, as I stated previously, growth hormone is one of the main hormones that reduces the effects of cortisol.
Sleep more and you’ll produce more GH. Produce more GH and you’ll have less cortisol. Therefore, sleeping more results in lower cortisol levels. Got it?
Of course, I’m not suggesting you can just sleep your way past a fat loss plateau; although getting more sleep does help. I’m merely illustrating the relationship between cortisol and growth hormone.
Which leads us to the production of growth hormone as it relates to training.
While nearly all forms of exercise produce both growth hormone and cortisol, some types are better than others. Cortisol, as I mentioned in the previous article, is produced heavily in long duration cardio sessions--so let’s not do that.
Instead, we’re going to utilize a style of training that produces more growth hormone.
To do that, we’re going to employ a training method known as Lactic Acid Training.
In order to get to the growth hormone, you must first produce lactic acid.
Lactic acid, by way of a definition, is a byproduct of the chemical reactions that take place during exercise. This substance is wildly irritating to the nerves, and your body responds.
Think of lactic acid as sort of a type of oil igniting fires as it flows through you--your body will call the fire department to put those fires out.
And your body will do that by dousing them with soothing, cooling growth hormone.
Okay, maybe I’m being a little simplistic with my metaphor, but it gives you a general idea.
In any event, we must structure training to produce the most lactic acid possible. And, because lactic acid is primarily produce in the concentric (positive) phase of anaerobic exercise, we extend that period, and decrease the eccentric period.
What that means is that we lift the weight very very slowly, and lower it very very quickly so that we can have a fast turn around.
As an example, if you’re doing a squat, you’ll descend to the bottom the squat very quickly (drop down fast, but still controlling the weight somewhat) and then lift the weight sloooowly, oh so sloooowly--over a period of 4-6 seconds.
This will create tremendous amounts of lactic acid, which will intern send GH production into overdrive. I must mention that training in this way necessitates the use of lighter weights than you normally would on any given exercise. Therefore, if you’re interested in lactic acid training, I suggest you reduce the weight you’d use on any exercise by about 30% in order to be both safe and effective.
With traditional training methods, you’d lift the weight pretty quickly and lower it slowly. Here, we’re doing the opposite, in order to produce the most lactic acid possible, which will then lead to a corresponding increase in the production of growth hormone.
This will result in not only reducing cortisol, but also reducing cortisol related fat storage in your belly. On top of it all, it’s great for fat loss in general!
Thursday, February 11, 2010
3 Bad Hormones Causing Fat Storage
In my last post, I shared with you the reasons why you aren't losing fat, particularly in the LAST few pounds. It seems that everything stops working the way it was for the FIRST few pounds.
As promised, I'm going to share with you the 3 hormones causing fat stoage. Read on.
Back Got Back: Low Body Fat Storage
One of the most common types of fat storage that we see in women is the “pear shape” –fairly thin on top but heavy on the bottom (and IN the bottom, if you know what I mean).
This is so common that we often refer to a “pear shape” as a body type. This is true to an extent, but this type of fat storage is also heavily dependent on the female sex hormone estrogen. This is one reason why you see this type of fat storage primarily in women.
High levels of estrogen are awesome for enjoying Grey’s Anatomy and makin’ babies, but terrible for fat loss, which makes it obvious that women usually have more trouble losing fat than men.
However, anyone—male or female—with high estrogen levels will have trouble losing fat, especially from the lower body. In essence, the higher your estrogen levels, the greater the likelihood you’ll store fat in your lower body; mainly in the hips and thighs.
And yes, it IS possible for men to have high estrogen levels. Unfortunately, outside of having to deal with a declined rate of fat loss and lower body fat, these guys ALSO have to deal with the ignominy of man-boobs.
On the whole, estrogen related fat storage is a pain in the ass (get it!?) but it is not completely unmanageable. You see, you can offset this phenomenon with certain types of training.
In addition to helping you lose fat stored in the lower body, these specifically designed workouts will also be great for fat loss in general. Essentially, they’re great for burning calories and for shedding lower body fat through estrogen management—combine the two and the result is rapid fat loss, with a heavy concentration on lower body fat stores.
Muffin Tops: No Love for the Love Handles
Probably my least favorite incarnation of regional fat storage is love handle and lower back fat. On top of making me fat in that immediacy, it also completely had a pretty negative effect on the way my body processes and handles insulin period.
The degree to which you ae able to process and respond to glucose (sugar) in your body is called insulin sensitivity. The higher this is, the easier and more efficiently your body utilizes carbohydrates for energy, and the less like you are to store carbs as fat.
On the other hand, insulin resistance is the opposite: you don’t deal well with carbs, and anything other than a low carb diet pretty much means you’re gonna hang on to some fat.
And, to make matters worse, as I mentioned previously, there are regional effects. It’s been shown that people who store fat in the love handles are generally very insulin resistant—and therefore it can be reasoned that insulin resistance leads to love handle and lower back fat storage.
Which means, of course, that insulin resistance makes it very hard to lose fat from that area as well.
I’m sure many of you out there who have been heavy before are experiencing much the same problems that I used to have.
The good news is that insulin resistance (and the resulting regional fatness) can be mitigated with certain types of training. For example, with careful planning and selection of exercises, you can start to whittle away at love handle and lower back fat while you increase insulin sensitivity.
The better news is that I’ve figured out a specific series of training sessions that will do just that.
The One, The Only: Belly Fat
Without question, the most common type of regional fat storage is belly fat. If this isn’t you, it’s someone you know.
Abdominal fat storage obviously has a lot to do with your diet and overall body fat level; that should be obvious but it never hurts to touch on it.
Outside of that, it’s hormones baby, hormones.
The one we’re talking about here is cortisol. This hormone has been in the media a lot the past few years, and I’ve talked about it a bit, so by now you know that cortisol is sometimes called a “stress” hormone.
Basically, that means your body will produce cortisol (and encourage belly fat storage) under conditions of nearly any type of stress—both emotional and physical. Instead, it is of far greater effect to combat cortisol through resistance training.
Now, if you’re observant, you may have noticed what seems to be a contradiction.
As I said, cortisol is also produced through physical stress. In fact, training is actually one of the primary means through which your body will produce this sneaky little hormone. Additionally, because cortisol has been linked to overtraining and has a catabolic (muscle wasting) effect, producing too much of it through training is certainly counterproductive.
It’s important to note, however, that long duration cardio and extended lifting sessions are what produce the most cortisol, and I always recommend against those.
Instead, short, intense training sessions using a particular type of training modality will help to counteract the effects of cortisol; both the muscle-wasting effect, and the cortisol related belly fat storage.
In the next post, I'm going to teach you how to fight hormones with hormones. I’ll show you how to use specific types of training to combat the nefarious three hormonal nemeses by producing hormones that offset the effects of estrogen, insulin and cortisol.
As promised, I'm going to share with you the 3 hormones causing fat stoage. Read on.
Back Got Back: Low Body Fat Storage
One of the most common types of fat storage that we see in women is the “pear shape” –fairly thin on top but heavy on the bottom (and IN the bottom, if you know what I mean).
This is so common that we often refer to a “pear shape” as a body type. This is true to an extent, but this type of fat storage is also heavily dependent on the female sex hormone estrogen. This is one reason why you see this type of fat storage primarily in women.
High levels of estrogen are awesome for enjoying Grey’s Anatomy and makin’ babies, but terrible for fat loss, which makes it obvious that women usually have more trouble losing fat than men.
However, anyone—male or female—with high estrogen levels will have trouble losing fat, especially from the lower body. In essence, the higher your estrogen levels, the greater the likelihood you’ll store fat in your lower body; mainly in the hips and thighs.
And yes, it IS possible for men to have high estrogen levels. Unfortunately, outside of having to deal with a declined rate of fat loss and lower body fat, these guys ALSO have to deal with the ignominy of man-boobs.
On the whole, estrogen related fat storage is a pain in the ass (get it!?) but it is not completely unmanageable. You see, you can offset this phenomenon with certain types of training.
In addition to helping you lose fat stored in the lower body, these specifically designed workouts will also be great for fat loss in general. Essentially, they’re great for burning calories and for shedding lower body fat through estrogen management—combine the two and the result is rapid fat loss, with a heavy concentration on lower body fat stores.
Muffin Tops: No Love for the Love Handles
Probably my least favorite incarnation of regional fat storage is love handle and lower back fat. On top of making me fat in that immediacy, it also completely had a pretty negative effect on the way my body processes and handles insulin period.
The degree to which you ae able to process and respond to glucose (sugar) in your body is called insulin sensitivity. The higher this is, the easier and more efficiently your body utilizes carbohydrates for energy, and the less like you are to store carbs as fat.
On the other hand, insulin resistance is the opposite: you don’t deal well with carbs, and anything other than a low carb diet pretty much means you’re gonna hang on to some fat.
And, to make matters worse, as I mentioned previously, there are regional effects. It’s been shown that people who store fat in the love handles are generally very insulin resistant—and therefore it can be reasoned that insulin resistance leads to love handle and lower back fat storage.
Which means, of course, that insulin resistance makes it very hard to lose fat from that area as well.
I’m sure many of you out there who have been heavy before are experiencing much the same problems that I used to have.
The good news is that insulin resistance (and the resulting regional fatness) can be mitigated with certain types of training. For example, with careful planning and selection of exercises, you can start to whittle away at love handle and lower back fat while you increase insulin sensitivity.
The better news is that I’ve figured out a specific series of training sessions that will do just that.
The One, The Only: Belly Fat
Without question, the most common type of regional fat storage is belly fat. If this isn’t you, it’s someone you know.
Abdominal fat storage obviously has a lot to do with your diet and overall body fat level; that should be obvious but it never hurts to touch on it.
Outside of that, it’s hormones baby, hormones.
The one we’re talking about here is cortisol. This hormone has been in the media a lot the past few years, and I’ve talked about it a bit, so by now you know that cortisol is sometimes called a “stress” hormone.
Basically, that means your body will produce cortisol (and encourage belly fat storage) under conditions of nearly any type of stress—both emotional and physical. Instead, it is of far greater effect to combat cortisol through resistance training.
Now, if you’re observant, you may have noticed what seems to be a contradiction.
As I said, cortisol is also produced through physical stress. In fact, training is actually one of the primary means through which your body will produce this sneaky little hormone. Additionally, because cortisol has been linked to overtraining and has a catabolic (muscle wasting) effect, producing too much of it through training is certainly counterproductive.
It’s important to note, however, that long duration cardio and extended lifting sessions are what produce the most cortisol, and I always recommend against those.
Instead, short, intense training sessions using a particular type of training modality will help to counteract the effects of cortisol; both the muscle-wasting effect, and the cortisol related belly fat storage.
In the next post, I'm going to teach you how to fight hormones with hormones. I’ll show you how to use specific types of training to combat the nefarious three hormonal nemeses by producing hormones that offset the effects of estrogen, insulin and cortisol.
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Why Aren't You Losing Fat?
One of my fitness colleagues John Roman is launching his final fat loss program.
There has been a discussion going around in the fitness community about fat loss.
It seems like most fat loss programs focus on one main thing: to burn fat, you have to expend more energy than you take in.
Such a focus makes sense, of course, because if there is a universal truth to fat loss, that’s it.
This is what we call “energy balance.” In order to lose fat, you have to create what we call “energy debt” or “energy deficit” –that is, eliminate the balance and instead be on the negative side of the balance scales.
That works very well for “beginning” fat, of course. However, success doesn’t last forever.
As anyone who’s ever been on a diet and exercise program of any kind can tell you, at first it’s pretty smooth sailing. Eat less, do more, lose fat.
And then it stops—and usually, stops suddenly, as those same people can also tell you.
Of course, the first instinct people have is a very natural one: to simply do more of what was bringing them success in the first place.
So they eat even less and do even more.
And…have no results.
You see, what these people fail to realize (and what most fat loss programs fail to address) is that:
After a certain point, simple energy deficit no longer covers the tab.
It becomes more about what type of deficit. Speaking generally, you actually have to eat closer to maintenance calorie levels (instead of far below) and expend more Calories through exercise.
Even then, things don’t always happen as quickly as you want.
You see, once you’ve hit a fat loss plateau—or when you’re trying to lose the last few pounds, like I was when I was dieting for the beach house—fat loss becomes a bit less about energy balance a lot more about hormones.
Some hormones, such as leptin, actually control the majority of your general fat loss efforts and all the factors thereof: appetite, satiety, “starvation mode.” However, assuming you’re eating enough and trying to create an energy deficit through training, leptin isn’t the issue.
There are other hormones which are a bit more insidious in their effects on your physique. They don’t just determine IF you gain fat—they determine where you gain it, and whether you’re able to lose it from those areas.
Those “problem” areas on your body are there for a reason.
“Problem areas” are created by your hormonal environment, and it’s your hormones that force your body to have particular fat storage patterns.
It becomes more about what type of deficit. Speaking generally, you actually have to eat closer to maintenance calorie levels (instead of far below) and expend more Calories through exercise.
Even then, things don’t always happen as quickly as you want.
We'll discuss three most common types of regional fat storage, and the hormones that cause them.
There has been a discussion going around in the fitness community about fat loss.
It seems like most fat loss programs focus on one main thing: to burn fat, you have to expend more energy than you take in.
Such a focus makes sense, of course, because if there is a universal truth to fat loss, that’s it.
This is what we call “energy balance.” In order to lose fat, you have to create what we call “energy debt” or “energy deficit” –that is, eliminate the balance and instead be on the negative side of the balance scales.
That works very well for “beginning” fat, of course. However, success doesn’t last forever.
As anyone who’s ever been on a diet and exercise program of any kind can tell you, at first it’s pretty smooth sailing. Eat less, do more, lose fat.
And then it stops—and usually, stops suddenly, as those same people can also tell you.
Of course, the first instinct people have is a very natural one: to simply do more of what was bringing them success in the first place.
So they eat even less and do even more.
And…have no results.
You see, what these people fail to realize (and what most fat loss programs fail to address) is that:
After a certain point, simple energy deficit no longer covers the tab.
It becomes more about what type of deficit. Speaking generally, you actually have to eat closer to maintenance calorie levels (instead of far below) and expend more Calories through exercise.
Even then, things don’t always happen as quickly as you want.
You see, once you’ve hit a fat loss plateau—or when you’re trying to lose the last few pounds, like I was when I was dieting for the beach house—fat loss becomes a bit less about energy balance a lot more about hormones.
Some hormones, such as leptin, actually control the majority of your general fat loss efforts and all the factors thereof: appetite, satiety, “starvation mode.” However, assuming you’re eating enough and trying to create an energy deficit through training, leptin isn’t the issue.
There are other hormones which are a bit more insidious in their effects on your physique. They don’t just determine IF you gain fat—they determine where you gain it, and whether you’re able to lose it from those areas.
Those “problem” areas on your body are there for a reason.
“Problem areas” are created by your hormonal environment, and it’s your hormones that force your body to have particular fat storage patterns.
It becomes more about what type of deficit. Speaking generally, you actually have to eat closer to maintenance calorie levels (instead of far below) and expend more Calories through exercise.
Even then, things don’t always happen as quickly as you want.
We'll discuss three most common types of regional fat storage, and the hormones that cause them.
Monday, February 08, 2010
How to Avoid the Holiday Diet Trap - Tip #6
Morris County Certified Personal Trainer Carey Yang shares his top 7 strategies to beating the holiday bulge.
Visit http://bit.ly/8hl8by to sign up for free 5-Part e-Course 'Jump-Start Your Body!' to help you burn fat, build muscle and get in great shape really fast!
Sign up for the 5-Part 'Jump-Start Your Body!' e-Course to help you burn fat, build muscle and get in shape really fast!
Visit http://bit.ly/8hl8by to sign up for free 5-Part e-Course 'Jump-Start Your Body!' to help you burn fat, build muscle and get in great shape really fast!
Sign up for the 5-Part 'Jump-Start Your Body!' e-Course to help you burn fat, build muscle and get in shape really fast!
Monday, February 01, 2010
How to Break Out of Your Fat Loss Plateau
Ever hit a "wall" in your fat loss program where your progress just seemed to come to a screeching halt?
Perhaps you're experiencing it now...
Well, good news -- scratch that, GREAT news.
Fitness model and author John Romaniello is offering a complimentary download of his new fat loss report "Why You've STOPPED Losing Body Fat...And How to Fix It" over at his website.
The download is totally F.REE:
http://careyyang.xromanx.hop.clickbank.net/ <--- *FREE* Download
I've read the report, and John really went over the top here -- more than 25 pages of pure, actionable content that will absolutely help you immediately begin losing fat FASTER.
Here's the link again:
http://careyyang.xromanx.hop.clickbank.net/ <--- *FREE* Download
Enjoy the report!
Carey
Your Dream Body Workout Xpert
P.S. There are no "strings" here. Just tap on the link above and you'll be downloading the report before you know it.
Perhaps you're experiencing it now...
Well, good news -- scratch that, GREAT news.
Fitness model and author John Romaniello is offering a complimentary download of his new fat loss report "Why You've STOPPED Losing Body Fat...And How to Fix It" over at his website.
The download is totally F.REE:
http://careyyang.xromanx.hop.clickbank.net/ <--- *FREE* Download
I've read the report, and John really went over the top here -- more than 25 pages of pure, actionable content that will absolutely help you immediately begin losing fat FASTER.
Here's the link again:
http://careyyang.xromanx.hop.clickbank.net/ <--- *FREE* Download
Enjoy the report!
Carey
Your Dream Body Workout Xpert
P.S. There are no "strings" here. Just tap on the link above and you'll be downloading the report before you know it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)