The Truth About Abs by Mike Geary-Review

The Truth About Abs by Mike Geary-Review

Welcome to my Truth About Abs by Mike Geary Review. In this review we will cover the author, the contents of the eBook and who would benefit from using the program.

The Truth About six Pack Abs by Mike Geary

The Truth About six Pack Abs by Mike Geary

I will cover the good points and the bad point of this Truth About Six Pack Abs eBook which I have bought and do use!

Just so we’re clear please understand this is a review and if you want to go straight to the site then please click the link below

Click here to go straight to the Truth About Abs by Mike Geary site.

The Truth About Abs Review of Mike Geary

Who Is Mike Geary?

Mike Geary is a personal trainer and a nutritionist. He writes for Ezine articles and has produced this eBook which is rated as number 1 by Clickbank.

The Truth About Abs explains 5 important facts you need to understand before you can achieve great abs. There is a link for men or women. This is really useful as it is difficult to get female specific advice about female six pack abs.

Mike offers a free fat loss bonus eBook to get you started  before you buy his course. He also has testimonials from normal people of all ages and sizes who have used his techniques to achieve their goals.

The eBook The Truth About Abs

The Truth About Abs eBook begins with the abdominal muscles and the different abdominal muscle groups. This will help you understand how to work specific areas and develop your abdominal muscles, working towards giving you your sought after six pack. It is  important to understand what muscles you are working and how they protect your lower back muscles especially if you’re new to working your core area.

The main area of the eBook on The Truth About Abs illustrates abs exercises. They are easy to follow whether you are a beginner or a seasoned trainer. Many of these ab workouts you can perform at home, this is handy if need to fit your training into 30 – 45 minutes a day.

There are also clear photos to show you what to do.

Mike Geary also gives you a 72 meal planner guide within the eBook so it’s easy to plan your meals and get organised.

Click here to go to the Truth About Abs Website

Mike Geary also shows you what cardio training you need to perform to lose the fat around your belly and work your core abdominal area. Cardio training is another important area of your overall programme and Mike Geary shows you how to perform the right cardio exercise.

The Truth About Abs by Mike Geary

The Truth About Abs by Mike Geary

The eBook Truth About Abs has a nutrition area and gives advice around eating habits.

The Good Points

  • The Book covers everything you need to know about what to eat and gives a meal planner guide
  • There is a list of bad exercises to aoind and why
  • He covers posture so you will remain injury free
  • There are clear pictures showing men and women doing the exercises
  • Mike covers metabolic rate for both men and women
  • There are fill workout programs to follow

The Bad Points

  • The Ebook is quite long 149 pages
  • You will have to take action
  • If you don’t want to have to change your diet and exercise this is not for you

Who is The Truth About Abs by Mike Geary For?

Well this is what I like about The Truth About Abs programme. There are testimonials throughout the eBook from normal people of all shapes and sizes. We all look at men and women with beautifully sculptured abdominal muscles and think oh I could never do that. Many people just want a flat stomach rather than a ripped six pack and this is ideal for them as well. For those who have started programmes and already understand the principles the Truth About Abs eBook will help you achieve their goals.

The Truth About Abs Reveiw Summary

This is for anyone. The exercises will generally take 40 – 45 minutes 2 to 3 times a week.

There is also a money back guarantee but the Truth About Abs is, in my opinion, value for money and worth purchasing if you want to move towards your goal.

Click here to go to the Truth About Abs website

Truth About Abs by Mike Geary

Truth About Abs by Mike Geary

Truth About Abs by Mike Geary

What Is Turbulence Training?

What Is Turbulence Training

Here is my honest Craig Ballantyne Turbulence Training Review. I have been using Trubulence Training for some time now and in answer to Does Turbulence Training Work, I can tell you it does. When I first purchased the Turbulence Training eBook I wasn’t sure what to expect but was pleasantly suprised.

So what is Turbulence Training? It’s a form of training designed to burn fat quicker by completing high intensity exercises. It’s a combination of both weight training and cardio which allows the body  to not just burn fat quciker but also to burn fat over a longer period of time

Turbulence Training by Craig Ballantyne, is a new way to train and get the abs or figure you desire. It’s simple and proven to burn fat quicker than other training methods. The Turbulence Training program shows you the best fat loss exercises and the best cardio fat burning exercises.

Before I begin please let me be clear, this is a review of Turbulence Training by Craig Ballantyne, if you want to view the product please click the link below

Click here to go to Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training.


Who Is Craig Ballantyne?

TTcb_absCraig writes articles for Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Oxygen and Shape magazines. These are all popular fitness and health magazines.

Craig’s experience dates back to the mid-nineties. He has worked at both the gym and the research lab and has actually led research trials in the following areas:

  • sport supplements.
  • strength training.
  • cardiovascular training.

The eBook

The Turbulence Training eBook concentrates on workouts and fitness routines where you have about 45 minutes spare twice a week. You don’t need to have loads of kit as Craig shows you how to burn fat using a bench, dumbbells and an exercise ball. The abdominal workouts are a mixture of strength training and cardio training. Craig goes into detail about turbulence training and how it works concentrating on speeding up your metabolism so you lose the fat whilst eating, sleeping and working. So all you food lovers can lose weight as well. With the Turbulence Training eBook program you will be able to see how long it will take for you to lose your belly fat.

The eBook covers different exercises and you can start as a beginner or enter an advanced program. The Turbulence Training eBook includes nutritional advice from Dr Chris Mohr Ph.D and a 21 Healthy Habit Eating Plan. Each exercise comes with a MP3 audio and all the exercises are detailed with clear explanations and photos.

The nutrition section comes with meal plans and ways to change your ingredients to fight fat whilst maintaining a good tasty, healthy selection of menus. This helps you to understand how to eat the right things and train in the shortest amount of time to get great results.

Click here to go to Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training

The Good Points About Turbulence Training

  • You don’t just get the one eBook you get several for an all round fitness/nutrition program
  • The exercises start at a beginner level and move up as you get fitter
  • The pictures are easy to follow and match the descriptions of the workout
  • The cardio is not long and boring and I do the workouts on my push bike on the way home to save time
  • There are workouts included for when you are on holiday
  • Each session is broken into small manageable chunks so you don’t get bored
  • The programs change so you don’t get bored with the same exercises
  • The nutrition program allows you to plan for each meal

The Bad Points About Turbulence Training

  • This is not a quick fix
  • If you want to sit at home watching TV and not do any exercise to get fit this is not for you.
  • If you don’t think you will need to change your diet this is not for you


Who Is Turbulence Training For?

The Turbulence Training workout is suitable for everyone. There are testimonials from all sorts of people on the actual site and the good thing is there are a variety of programs aimed at beginners, intermediate and advanced.

Women – there is a great program and free ebook to assist you decide whether this is for you or not. Click here to go straight to the info for women

Men – there is a program designed specifically for men with free ebooks. Click here to go straight to the info for men.

If you have lots of time to train then this might not be the best program for you but if you work and want maximum results with minimum time then this is ideal. It’s not for those who love loads of kit, boring programs and monotonous workouts.

Craig features on his website and it’s clear this program has worked for him!.

Does Turbulence Training Work?

I personally have lost weight, toned up and become stronger so yes it does work if you give it a go and do it properly

Summary

Craig Ballantyne is a respected professional who has been involved in the study of fat loss and strength training programs. He has developed a system which works and offers this to all levels with easy to follow guides and instructions. He offers nutritional advice from an expert and an 8 week money back guarantee.

All in all you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Click here to go to Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training

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Core Muscles

Understanding How Your Core Muscles Work

Core muscles are the muscles around your stomach area which work to keep you upright. We all have them and some of us want to show them to the world. But let’s look at each of our core muscles individually and see what they actually do.

muscles

Rectus Abdominis

The rectus abdominis is a key muscle where posture is concerned. When completing a move like the crunch the rectus abdomini flexes the lumbar spine. The rectus abdominis also assists with breathing and assists in keeping the internal organs intact.

External Oblique

The external obliques are the pair of abdominal muscles that lie next to the internal obliques. They run in an inverted V from the bottom of the ribs to the front of the pelvis. When you perform an excercise like the twist, the external oblique muscles will be the ones working the hardest.

Internal Olique

The Internal Obliques are underneath the external obliques. They run from the pelvis to the ribs. When you perform a crunch the internal obliques are the muscles which pull your spine forward. They are also the muscles most utilised in a twist movement. Due to their position they contribute more towards stabilizing the pelvis and spine.

Transverse Abdominis

The Transversus Abdomnius is the deepest of the abdominal wall muscles. It is the most important muscle group for stabilizing and supporting the lower back. It’s only real purpose is to stabilise the lower back and when you move it is the first muscle to be activated. If you suffer from lower back pain it usually means you have a problem with this area making your spine less stable.

So each one of our core muscles has a role to play and it’s important we train and look after them properly.

Best Fat Burning Exercise

Best Fat Burning Exercise Info

Today’s article is all about Fat Burning and I came across this article from Turbulence Training author Craig Ballantyne. As you will already know if you have visited my site before I use Craig’s products and have had some great success. I am always looking at ways I can burn fat quicker.

You see there are ways the body will actually burn fat quicker as long as you perform the right exercise and the best fat burning exercise. For years I just performed long slow cardio sessions whereby  my heart rate would pretty much stay the same and nothing about my physique would change. Don’t get me wrong I was fit but couldn’t seem to shift the access weight. I needed to find the best fat burning cardio exercise and discovered Interval Training.

Interval training is where you train hard for shorter periods but it boosts the metabolism of your body so you burn fat faster and more effectively. I always like to research new programs and personally believe Turbulence Training is in the top fat burning workouts as it provides weight training and interval training programs which when combined together will naturally burn more body fat quicker.

Examples of interval training programs are say for example you like running you would warm up for 10 minutes and then run as hard as you could for 30 seconds, then run/jog for 90 seconds and start again repeating 3-5 times and more as you get fitter.

Another great fat burning exercise is to use a static or road bike and do exactly the same, you can vary the times and speed depending on the distance you want to cover. I cycle to work so I incorporate this sort of training on the way home from work this helps with my daily fat burning routine.

I don’t know about you but once I’m home I struggle to get back out especially if it’s been a long hard day.

So below is an article from Craig which I think will help you to and is one of the best fat burning exercise I’ve read recently.

If you are new to this sort of training then don’t be put off by the terms, I’ll give you a brief translation here;

TT = Turbulence Training

DB = Dumbells

KM = Kettle Bells

I hope you fidn the below information useful to use in your next workout session

5 Cool Fat Burning Workout Tips

By Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Click Here For The Turbulence Training Trial Offer

If you want to squeeze even more fat burning results out of the
already amazing Turbulence Training workouts, here are 5 cool workout
tips that will super-charge your fat burning success.

1) Use the TRIPLE set method

Try the triple shoulder set (rear-delt, side raise, and front
raise), or db incline curls, standing curls, and hammer curls, or
db 1-arm tricep extension, db lying 2-arm ext, close grip pushup.

2) Do the Superset Switch-up

If you are doing supersets, switch to doing all the exercises in a
circuit. you’ll use lighter weights (slightly), but possibly get
your workout done faster. A great change of pace without
sacrificing results.

3) Use the Russian secret of “Iso pauses”

Great for increasing the difficulty of many exercises, from pushups
to squats to pullups. So you could stop halfway down the pushup and
hold for 3-5 seconds to make it harder. Or hold the top of the
pullup for 2 seconds. That can make a huge difference in response
from exercises you are using regularly.

4) Add beach-body sculpting shoulder and arm exercises to the end of
your TT Workouts

A lot of tt readers who have a little extra time for more workouts
want to add in a bit more arm or shoulder training. Here’s an awesome
tri-set to top off your beach body:

A) 1-Arm DB Shoulder Presses – 8 reps
B) DB Lying Triceps Extensions – 10 reps
C) DB Incline Curls – 12 reps
Rest 1 minute and repeat two more times for maximum results.

5) Before the workout, do KB swings or intervals

I don’t like to do this a lot, but here’s a little trick we can use
to make our workouts seem harder in terms of conditioning. Instead
of leaving all of the intervals to the end, we’ll do half of the
interval training or kettlebell swings at the start of the workout
to increase breathing and heart rate. This will make the rest of
the workout feel harder, but you might have to drop your strength
levels. So use sparingly.

For more fat burning workout supersets, circuits, and intervals, try
the Turbulence Training program for 21 days here:

Click here for the Turbulence Training Trial Offer

You should if you’re doing these properly find them quite intensive but not time consuming. That’s another reason I use TT as I like to be able to fit everything into my day and still see results. I now use the tip especially around holding the push of life for the 2 seconds before releasing and this has increased my strength. I also make sure when training with free weights that I count the move so it will be 1 second up and 3 seconds down before repeating.

For example in a bicep curl I’ll curl up for 1 second and then slowly down to maximise the exercise.

I hope you have found these best fat burning exercise tip useful. Please leave any useful comments but no spam as I actually want people to find these posts useful.

Nicky

Sculpt a Better Body with Proper Post-Workout Nutrition

Ideas for healthy post-workout shakes to help build muscle and enhance fat loss

by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer

As you’ve probably heard before, your post-workout meal may very well be your most important meal of the day.

The reason is that when you’re finished with an intense workout, you’re entering a catabolic state where your muscle glycogen is depleted and increased cortisol levels are beginning to excessively break down muscle tissue. These conditions are not good and the only way to reverse this catabolic state (and promote an anabolic state) is to consume a quickly digestible post-workout meal (can be a shake or smoothie) as soon as you can after training.

The goal is to choose a meal with easily digestible quick carbs to replenish muscle glycogen as well as quickly digestible protein to provide the amino acids needed to jump start muscular repair.  The surge of carbohydrates and amino acids from this quickly digested meal promotes an insulin spike from the pancreas, which shuttles nutrients into the muscle cells.

The post-workout meal should generally contain between 300-500 calories to get the best response. For example, a 120-lb female may only need a 300-calorie meal, whereas a 200-lb male may need a 500-calorie post-workout meal. Your post-workout meal should also contain anywhere from a 2:1 ratio of carbs:protein to a 4:1 ratio of carbs:protein. While most of your other daily meals should contain a source of healthy fats, keep the fat content of your post-workout meal to a bare minimum, since fat slows the absorption of the meal, which is the opposite of what you want after a workout.

When choosing what to make for your post-workout meal, the first thing to realize is that you DON’T need any of these expensive post-workout supplement formulations that all of the fancy ads you see everywhere will tell you that you absolutely NEED!  I tend to prefer to make my own post-workout shakes from natural ingredients instead of using a commercial mixture, since many of them are low quality.

However, one that I’ve found that I particularly like (and from a brand that I trust) is at this page:  http://natural.getprograde.com/workout — they have just the right ratio of carbs to protein and use quality ingredients.

For the shakes that I make myself, here are some things to keep in mind if you try it…

A good source of quickly digestible natural carbs such as frozen bananas, pineapples, honey, or organic maple syrup are perfect to elicit an insulin response that will promote muscle glycogen replenishment and a general anabolic (muscle building) effect. The more you can assist the muscle repair process, the more you increase your metabolic rate and can help your fat loss as well.

The best source of quickly digestible protein is a quality non-denatured whey protein isolate and/or some fat-free or low-fat yogurt. Here are a couple ideas for delicious post-workout smoothies that will kick start your recovery process:

Chocolate Banana – blend together 1 cup water, ½ cup skim milk, one and a half frozen bananas, 2 tbsp organic maple syrup, and 30 grams chocolate whey protein powder – 38 g prot, 72 g carb, 0.5 g fat, 440 calories.

Pineapple Vanilla – blend together 1 cup water, ½ cup vanilla yogurt, one cup frozen pineapples, 2 tbsp honey (preferably raw), and 30 grams vanilla whey protein powder – 35 g prot, 71 g carb, 0.5 g fat, 425 calories.

When looking to lose body fat, keep in mind that post-workout meals should have the opposite characteristics of all of your other meals throughout each day. While post-workout meals should have quick high glycemic index carbs and quickly digested proteins, all of your other meals throughout the day should be comprised of low glycemic index, slowly digested carbs and slow release proteins.

These are powerful strategies towards developing a lean muscular body with a low body fat percentage.  Another great thing about post-workout meals is that you can satisfy even the worst sweet tooth, since this is the one time of the day where you can get away with eating extra sugars without adding to your gut. Instead, it all goes straight to the muscles! But ONLY if your workout was super-high intensity and involved resistance training for large portions of the body.  If all you did was some low intensity cardio, forget about doing this type of post-workout shake.

Enjoy!

A more detailed and comprehensive nutritional analysis with more of these various powerful dietary strategies are found in our best-selling #1 rated fitness ebook in the world, The Truth About Six Pack Abs.

Do You Really Need “Cardio” Workouts?

Are cardio workouts or weight training more effective for losing fat…

by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer

In this article, I have an intriguing discussion about cardio workouts, which will hopefully get you thinking differently, and trying new things.

lose body fat with weight trainingYou may know I’ve been called the anti-cardio guy before, but this week I’m back posing the question to you… Do you really need cardio training to get lean and in great shape? By the way, you’ll see in a minute that I’m not really “anti-cardio”, just “anti traditional cardio”.

Most fitness buffs, weekend warriors, or anyone trying to get in shape or lose body fat, consider it a fact that they need “cardio” exercise to accomplish these goals. They would never even question it.

However, I’m not only questioning it, I’m going to refute it! In fact, you may be surprised to know that some of the leanest and meanest people I know (men and women), NEVER do any type of normal or traditional cardio. And I’ve spent over 15 years working out in various gyms, and hanging out with athletes of all sorts, so I’ve seen it all.

I will say that there can be a place for low-moderate level cardio for really overweight or deconditioned people, but even in those cases, there can be more effective methods.

But what exactly is “cardio”?

Most people would consider cardio to be pumping away mindlessly on a treadmill, riding a stationary bike, or coasting on an elliptical machine, while watching the TV screen at their state of the art gym. This is what I call “traditional cardio”. Hmmm, no wonder the majority of people get bored with their workouts and give up after a couple months without seeing results.

But if you look closer, “cardio” exercise can be considered any type of exercise or activity that strengthens the cardiovascular system. I’m not going to get into anything technical like increasing your VO2 max or anything like that. To keep it simple, if it gets your heart pumpin, and gets you huffin and puffin, it’s cardio. I don’t care if you’re holding dumbbells or a barbell and everyone calls it a weight training exercise…it’s still conditioning your heart.

Let’s take a look at a couple examples. Take a barbell (or dumbbell, or kettlebell) clean & press for example, which involves lifting a barbell from the floor up to shoulders, then push pressing overhead. And listen up ladies, because even though this is usually seen as a manly exercise, it doesn’t matter if you’re not lifting 250 lbs; if 45 lbs is challenging to you, then you will still benefit just as much.

At first glance, most people think of the barbell C&P only as a weight training exercise or strength exercise. However, I challenge you to do a hard set of around 10-15 reps on the C&P. If you used a challenging enough weight, what you’ll find is that your heart rate is probably up to about 80-90% of your recommended max, and you are huffing and puffing like you just ran a 100-meter sprint (which by the way, sprinting kicks the crap out of jogging any day if you want the easiest way to lose the flab).

Try the same thing for a set of 20 reps of one-arm snatches or swings with each arm with a kettlebell or dumbbell, and tell me your legs aren’t burning, heart racing, and you’re gasping for breath. How about trying 5 minutes straight of bodyweight squats, lunges, and pushups with very little rest. Again, notice your heart pounding, sweat pouring off of you, and chest heaving for breaths!

Try and tell me you’re not conditioning your heart with this style of training! Conventional thinking says that these are weight training or strength training exercises. However, they are fullfilling your cardio workout needs as well (saving you time!).

Not only do you save time, but you strengthen and condition almost every muscle in your entire body with these full body exercises if you do them with enough intensity…something that can’t be said for that boring stationary bike ride or treadmill jaunt while reading or watching TV.

Reading or watching TV while you workout is a joke!

Seriously, if you can read or watch TV while doing any exercise, you’re not concentrating enough on what you’re doing, plus you’re probably not working out hard enough to see any real results.

program for losing body fatI challenge you to give the “traditional cardio” a rest for a month or two, and start training the way I explain in my internationally-selling Truth about Six pack Abs Program, and see how you start getting leaner, more defined, and your six pack starting to show through what used to be stubborn stomach fat deposits.


The Importance of Physical Variability in Cardio Exercise

Your Cardio Workouts may not be helping you unless you incorporate a high range of heart rate shifts in your training

By Mike Geary – Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist

Are you a cardio junkie? Everyone seems to think that “cardio” is the best way to get in shape and lose body fat.  I’m going to show you with this article why I disagree!

It is quite common to hear fitness pros, doctors, and other health professionals prescribe low to moderate intensity aerobic training (cardio) to people who are trying to prevent heart disease or lose weight. Most often, the recommendations go something like this:

“Perform 30-60 minutes of steady pace cardio 3-5 times/week maintaining your heart rate at a moderate level”

Before you just give in to this popular belief and become the “hamster on the wheel” doing endless hours of boring cardio exercise, I’d like you to consider some recent scientific research that indicates that steady pace endurance cardio work may not be all it’s cracked up to be.

First, realize that our bodies are designed to perform physical activity in bursts of exertion followed by recovery, or stop-and-go movement instead of steady state movement. Recent research is suggesting that physical variability is one of the most important aspects to consider in your training.

This tendency can be seen throughout nature as most animals demonstrate stop-and-go motion instead of steady state motion. In fact, humans are the only creatures in nature that attempt to do “endurance” type physical activities. Most competitive sports (with the exception of endurance running or cycling) are also based on stop-and-go movement or short bursts of exertion followed by recovery.

To examine an example of the different effects of endurance or steady state training versus stop-and-go training, consider the physiques of marathoners versus sprinters. Most sprinters carry a physique that is very lean, muscular, and powerful looking, while the typical dedicated marathoner is more often emaciated and sickly looking. Now which would you rather resemble?

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  • Discover the top 12 fat burning foods you didn’t know
  • Exercises that burn more fat than cardio
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Another factor to keep in mind regarding the benefits of physical variability is the internal effect of various forms of exercise on our body. Scientists have known that excessive steady state endurance exercise (different for everyone, but sometimes defined as greater than 60 minutes per session most days of the week) increases free radical production in the body, can degenerate joints, reduces immune function, causes muscle wasting, and can cause a pro-inflammatory response in the body that can potentially lead to chronic diseases.

Highly variable cyclic training

On the other hand, highly variable cyclic training has been linked to increased anti-oxidant production in the body and an anti-inflammatory response, a more efficient nitric oxide response (which can encourage a healthy cardiovascular system), and an increased metabolic rate response (which can assist with weight loss). Furthermore, steady state endurance training only trains the heart at one specific heart rate range and doesn’t train it to respond to various every day stressors.

On the other hand, highly variable cyclic training teaches the heart to respond to and recover from a variety of demands making it less likely to fail when you need it.  Think about it this way… Exercise that trains your heart to rapidly increase and rapidly decrease will make your heart more capable of handling everyday stress. Stress can cause your blood pressure and heart rate to increase rapidly. Steady state jogging and other endurance training does not train your heart to be able to handle rapid changes in heart rate or blood pressure.

The important aspect of variable cyclic training that makes it superior over steady state cardio exercise is the recovery period in between bursts of exertion. That recovery period is crucially important for the body to elicit a healthy response to an exercise stimulus. Another benefit of variable cyclic training is that it is much more interesting and has lower drop-out rates than long boring steady state cardio programs.

To summarize, some of the potential benefits of variable cyclic training compared to steady state endurance training are as follows: improved cardiovascular health, increased anti-oxidant protection, improved immune function, reduced risk for joint wear and tear, increased muscularity (versus decreased muscularity with endurance training), increased residual metabolic rate following exercise, and an increased capacity for the heart to handle life’s every day stressors.

Sports Workouts and Sprinting

There are many ways you can reap the benefits of stop-and-go or variable intensity physical training. Most competitive sports such as football, basketball, volleyball, racquetball, tennis, hockey, etc. are naturally comprised of highly variable stop-and-go motion which trains the heart through a higher range than just steady walking or jogging.

Doing swimming workouts in a variable intensity fashion may also be more beneficial than just swimming for a long duration at the same speed.  Same goes for bicycling — that is why mountain biking, which involves extreme ups and downs at various intensity levels may also be more beneficial than just a long flat steady pace bike ride.

One of the absolute most effective forms of variable intensity training to really reduce body fat and bring out serious muscular definition is performing wind sprints.  Wind sprints can be done by sprinting at near max speed for 10-30 seconds, and then taking 60 seconds to walk for recovery before your next sprint. 6-12 total sprint intervals is usually a very challenging workout for most people.

In addition, weight training naturally incorporates short bursts of exertion followed by recovery periods. High intensity interval training (varying between high and low intensity intervals on any piece of cardio equipment) is yet another training method that utilizes exertion and recovery periods. For example, an interval training session on the treadmill could look something like this:

Warm-up for 3-4 minutes at a fast walk or light jog

Interval 1 – run at 8.0 mi/hr for 1 minute
Interval 2 – walk at 4.0 mi/hr for 1.5 minutes
Interval 3 – run at 10.0 mi/hr for 1 minute
Interval 4 – walk at 4.0 mi/hr for 1.5 minutes

Repeat those 4 intervals 4 times for a very intense 20-minute workout.

Also, don’t overlook other great ways to incorporate variable intensity cardio training by using a jump rope, a rowing machine, or even outdoor hill running.

The take-away message from this article is to try to train your body at highly variable intensity rates for the majority of your workouts to get the most beneficial response in terms of heart health, fat loss, and muscle maintenance.

Full-body strategically-designed resistance training programs along with high intensity cardiovascular training programs guaranteed to strip off body fat when combined with a healthy diet are included in my book The Truth About Six Pack Abs. If you’re serious about getting lean for good, this book is a must-read.

The Top Fat Loss Secrets for Flat Six-Pack Abs and a Lean

Stomach

an interview by Geovanni Derice with Mike Geary – Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer

I had the pleasure of being interviewed recently by a fitness professional from NYC, Certified Personal Trainer, Geovanni Derice. The interview is below and I think you’re going to like it… I reveal some of the hardest hitting strategies for getting rid of that stubborn stomach fat to uncover those flat six pack abs that everyone wants.

GD: Welcome Mike to our 4-ever-Toned Fitness Journal. For those who do not know you, please tell us a few things about yourself and how you can help our readers with their fitness and health.

MG: Thanks for having me, Geo. Well, to go back a little, I have been heavily involved in fitness and sports for about 17 years now, ever since I was a teenager. Being involved in sports in high school got me interested in strength training and conditioning.

At that point, once I started feeling more energetic, getting stronger, and looking better, I was instantly hooked for life. I’m 33 now and still addicted to the way living a healthy and fit lifestyle makes me feel energetic, confident, strong, and youthful on a daily basis.

I decided earlier in my 20’s that I wanted to make the commitment to help other people experience the excitement of being fit and getting in the best shape of their lives, especially since we’ve reached an epidemic of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, depression, etc. That’s why I became a fitness professional. It just gives me so much satisfaction to help others, who have struggled for years to get in good shape, and show them that it can be done, and it can be fun in the process.

I’ve expanded over the years from just reaching local individuals with personal training, into being able to help people all over the globe achieve their fitness goals with the reach of the internet. I only hope that my passion for fitness inspires people to take action and improve how they look and feel for life.

GD: Now Mike, there’s so many things out there as to what works and what does not work… if you had to pick 3 things that work time and time again to get flat lean abs, what would they be?

MG: The first and most important thing to get control of in order to lose your belly fat and get flat abs is cleaning up your diet. Exercise is important, but your diet is king when it comes to losing body fat so that you can see your abs.

There’s so much confusion these days about what a healthy diet that promotes fat loss really is… after all, we are bombarded by conflicting messages in the media about what is healthy and what is not, and you have all of these gimmicky diet books about low carb, low fat, high protein, vegetarian, fasting, atkins, south beach, liquid diets, and hundreds more. There’s so much conflicting info, that the average consumer doesn’t even know where to start when it comes to eating for fat loss.

The second thing that works time and time again, is to focus on the intensity of your workouts and focus on working the body as a whole in order to get the best metabolic response to lose that stubborn stomach fat.

In order to really get lean, the workouts should have a high intensity, with short rest periods, working the largest muscle groups of the body, instead of trying to isolate specific small muscles like the biceps, triceps, or calves.

For the third thing, let’s talk about actually training the abs specifically. When it comes to training the abs, if you want real results, I always recommend forgetting about the crunches and situps for the most part. They are ok for someone that is really deconditioned, but most people that already have some training under their belt need a much better stimulus for their abs than crunches. Crunches are one of the abs exercises that actually provide the least amount of resistance, and remember that resistance is what develops and tones the muscles.

I provide a ton of great abs exercises in my book, but one of THE highest resistance exercises for the abs, is hanging leg raises (but NOT the way you see most people at the gym doing them). The key to doing these and actually working the hell out of your abs is to curl your pelvis up as you raise your legs. Almost nobody ever does this right. To be honest, the majority of people cannot do this at first, but I provide some strategies in my book as to how to progress to doing these correctly.

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GD: What are people doing wrong when it comes to developing the coveted “6 pack abs”?

MG: Well Geo, I know this sounds funny to most people, but the MAIN thing that people are doing wrong to get those flat 6-pack abs is… are you ready for this?

They spend entirely too much time focusing on training their abs! WAY too much time spent on abs exercises. Sounds crazy, but it’s true.

Remember, having a flat and visible six pack of abs is all about getting down to a low body fat percentage. In order to do that, your workouts must focus on stimulating a fat burning hormonal environment in your body, and increasing your metabolic rate. That just does not happen when you focus too much time training a small muscle group like the abs.

Instead, you must use the majority of your time focusing on training the largest muscle groups of the body like the legs, back, and chest. That’s what stimulates your metabolism and the fat burning hormones that will get you truly lean and sporting a flat sixxer!

GD: Which exercises are the top exercises that people need to do if they are to get maximum defintion with their midsection?

MG: When it comes to developing the abs themselves, I again refer to any kinds of hanging abs exercises, as well as some good floor abs exercises like lying leg thrusts (all described and illustrated in my book).

However, maximum definition in the abs and midsection comes from losing bodyfat, and the most effective exercises featured in my program for that goal are various forms of swings and snatches (unique dumbbell or kettlebell exercises that almost nobody ever does in normal gyms), squats, deadlifts, lunges, step-ups, clean & presses, mountain climbers, sprinting, and other full body exercises and calisthenics. If you want great looking flat abs, focus on those instead of focusing so much on training the abs directly!

GD: When it comes to diet Mike, people really have tried millions of ways to get one thing… and that is fat loss. What recommendations have you used to successfully help your clients lose body fat and keep it off?

MG: I have included a fully comprehensive discussion of this topic in my book, which accounts for almost half of the book, but I’ll try to make some nice simple generalizations to get people started on the right path immediately. The most important thing is that your diet is as natural and unprocessed as possible. It almost always comes back to the overprocessing of food that makes it unhealthy, and makes it totally wreck your metabolism and hormone balance in your body.

For example, why eat refined grains, when you can eat whole grains (even better are sprouted grains, as I usually recommend limiting grain foods overall for best results).

Why eat refined sugar, when you can get natural sources of sugar from a high nutrient whole food like fruit. Why eat highly processed, refined, and hydrogenated vegetable oils (these are THE worst thing in the modern diet), when you can eat natural sources of healthy fats like nuts, avocados, fish, eggs, coconut milk, organically raised meat, and so forth.

The point is to not fall for some gimmick like extremely low carbs (although I do believe in a fairly reduced carb intake as that is a big problem for most people), low fat, super high protein, or any other combination that has you focusing on one macronutrient vs. another.

Your body needs all macronutrients to thrive and obtain a variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, etc. Trying to cut an entire food group out just works against what your body needs. I get into much more detail on this vitally important topic towards losing body fat (especially that stubborn stomach fat) for life in my book.

GD: Thank you very much Mike for sharing with us all of this great information.

program for lean flat absWell, I hope you enjoyed this interview and plucked several nuggets of info to get you motivated and started on showing off your flat abs shortly. If you don’t already own a copy, be sure to pick up a copy of my Truth about Six Pack Abs book and discover the entire system I’ve developed for ridding yourself of that extra ab fat for good!



The Reason Your Abdominal Workouts Stop Working…

By David Grisaffi
www.flattenyourabs.net

Did you know that your body can adapt to an exercise program in as few as 4-5 workouts or less?

It’s true – it’s a scientific fact.

What exactly does this mean? Well, it’s quite simple:

You develop muscle and strength (abs included) as an adaptive response to a specific stimulus (a workout or exercise routine).

You “ask” your body to perform a certain exercise or workload, and if it hasn’t been asked to perform this type of work before, your body says to itself, “what the heck is this??? We’ve never had to do THIS before. We’d better prepare ourselves for the next time this happens by adapting and getting stronger and adding some more muscle.”

And that, in a nutshell, is how muscles develop: Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands (also known as the S.A.I.D. Principle)

Once the adaptation has taken place, your body is prepared to handle it the next time. And so if you repeat that same exercise again, in the same volume and intensity, since you have already adapted… guess what…

NO FURTHER MUSCLE DEVELOPMENT TAKES PLACE!

At this point, you’re just doing maintenance.

To continue to develop the muscles further, you must impose another, NEW stimulus which will again cause another adaptive response

It makes perfect sense, right?

So my questions to you are:

(1) How often do you change your workout programs?
(2) When you change your workouts, to you advance (use progression) to the next higher level of difficulty?’
(3) Are you satisfied with maintaining your abs and waistline the way they look right now, or do you want to take them to another level?”

If you haven’t been changing your workouts often, or if you have been changing them but you’re not sure if you’re using progression properly, and if you’re NOT satisfied with maintaining your abs the way they look now, then here’s what you need to do:

You must keep “surprising” your body with new, and progressively more challenging workouts.

I can’t emphasize this enough. You must change your workouts regularly. The more advanced you are (the longer you’ve been training), the more often you must change your workouts and continue to challenge yourself.

Until now, the trouble has been that most people don’t know how to progressively increase the difficulty of their workouts. Most people also don’t know very many exercises.

If you survey 100 people about their ab exercise programs, 95% of them will tell you that they do crunches, leg raises sit ups and maybe some ab machines as their primary exercises.

Yes, a few people have started catching on to core training and swiss balls, but even they don’t realize there are DOZENS more exercises you can do for core and on the ball.

The solution is twofold:

1. Exercise variety (you need a “menu” of exercises to choose from)
2. Progression (including progressive overload)

The reason I created my program Firm & Flatten Your Abs was to help provide both of these two variables which will ensure that you get the ab development you want.

Firm and Flatten Your abs contains 7 levels of ab exercise workout programs, each a little more difficult than the one before. After that, the possible combinations are endless.

Firm and Flatten Your Abs also contains nearly 50 ab and core conditioning exercises – and I can assure you – you have probably never even seen most of these unless you are a fitness professional by trade.

Here’s the best part of all:

Not long ago I launched the 2nd edition of the Abs ebook.

The Firm And Flatten Your abs ebook has increased in size from 60 to 180 pages and includes more information, more questions answered, more photographs, and more exercises than ever before.

The program comes with an ironclad 8 week, money back guarantee which is more than enough time for you to try these exercises and see for yourself how much of a difference they really make in helping you carve out a rock hard midsection and strong core.

When you have this many exercises to choose from, you not only can keep making steady progress, you can also keep your workouts fresh and interesting and say goodbye to boring sit up and crunch routines.

Again, I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to vary your workouts and have the ability to progressively advance your exercises in degree of difficulty if you want to keep getting better and better results in your abdominal development. You now have the tool to do just that right at your fingertips.

To get your copy of the new 2nd edition of Flatten your abs, with 7 levels of exercises and nearly 50 abdominal and core exercises, visit

http://www.flattenyourabs.net


Sincerely,

David Grisaffi
Author, Firm And Flatten Your Abs


About The Author

David Grisaffi majored in physical education and is a certified high performance exercise kinesiologist with the prestigious CHEK institute. David holds a total of 6 certifications, he is a high school wrestling and baseball coach as well as an independent trainer and strength coach, known especially for his work with professional boxers and golfers. David is the author of Firm And Flatten Your Abs an online best seller which teaches you how to lose body fat and develop “six pack abs’ while improving strength, function and athletic power at the same time. You can contact David or learn more about his programs at www.FlattenYourAbs.net



How To Lose Weight With Walking

By David Grisaffi
www.flattenyourabs.net

Three universal goals nearly all of us share are: (1) to live longer, (2) to live free of illness and (3) to control our weight. Amazingly, walking lets us achieve all three. In fact, walking may be your best medicine for slowing the aging process, reducing your chances of illness and slashing your body fat. For anyone out of shape or not athletically-inclined, walking is the no-stress, no-sweat answer to lifelong conditioning. All you need is a good pair of shoes, a little time, some common sense, a few guidelines from a fitness professional and you’re ready to go.

Unfortunately, there’s more misinformation floating around today about fitness walking and weight loss than ever before. Some experts even say walking is not effective for weight loss at all and they insist that only higher intensity forms of cardio will do anything to improve your body composition. Others fitness experts believe that you should not do cardiovascular exercise every day – even walking.

There may be a little truth in each of those statements, however, walking always was and still is one of the best exercises for strengthening your bones, controlling your weight, toning the muscles in your lower body, maintaining good posture and improving your self image.

Walking uses almost every muscle in the body, it improves circulation of blood to the joints and massages the blood vessels, keeping them more elastic. Walking also helps you maintain muscle and an efficient metabolism as you get older (not to mention keeping you young “in spirit.”)

Walking is incredibly convenient too. Since you don’t need a gym or any special equipment, you can walk any place, at any time and that allows you to lose weight and get fit with little or no interruption to your busy schedule.

People who diet without exercising often get fatter with time. Although your weight may initially drop while dieting, weight loss from low calorie and especially low carb diets consists mostly of water and muscle. When the weight returns, it comes back as fat. To avoid getting fatter over time, you must increase your metabolism by exercising daily.

To get the maximum benefits of a walking program, you need make it more challenging than a leisurely “walk in the park.” Walking at a steady and brisk pace burns more fat simply because it burns more calories. Just remember to begin slowly to avoid muscle soreness, and increase your pace over time as you become more fit.

To lose weight, it’s ideal to alternate your walking sessions between high intensity and lower intensity days. For example, on one day walk for 30- 45 minutes as a steady and moderate pace. On the next day, walk at a faster pace. You could even do “road work” like the boxers do, where you break up your walk along the route with some sets of squats, lunges, bench push ups or other body weight or callisthenic exercises to make it a real cardiovascular and muscle blaster of a workout! It doesn’t have to be boring or the same thing every day. Make it fun and keep it up consistently, leading an active life-style 365 days a year.

Slow and casual walking has benefits, but you will not get as much out of walking at a very slow pace because we all have a built-in mechanical advantage for walking long distances at normal speeds.

Our bodies, via the spinal column, muscle attachments and bony structures, reserve energy in the musculoskeletal system and release it back to us without asking for additional energy output. In other words, as you walk, your spinal column keeps energy in reserve because of the way you straighten and extend your spine during normal walking.

As you step, your spine is stretched, and as you take another step, the energy reserved in the spine is used in propulsion. The spine acts very much like rubber band as your walk, harnessing this reserve energy.

To get substantial cardiovascular, muscular and weight loss benefits, this is why you must walk briskly or create extra movement patterns beyond casual, slow walking in order to optimize your walking program for weight loss and cardiovascular fitness.

Walking the right way will also improve your posture and tends to help keep you upright (because you must see where you are going). Just hold your chin up and shoulder slightly back.. Walk with your heels hitting the ground first and your feet pointed forward. Swing your arms fully and make lengthy strides.

To lose weight and achieve optimum health, exercise and diet are both necessary and interrelated. Exercising without maintaining a balanced diet is no more beneficial than dieting while remaining a couch potato.

Carbohydrates are high-octane fuel. They provide energy for movement and help raise internal body metabolism. They’re also satisfying. The key is to avoid adding high-fat and high calorie toppings to your carbohydrates. Also be sure to focus on fruits and vegetables and do not eat the majority of your carbohydrates from the starch category such as bread, pasta, rice, and potatoes. These type of carbs can create an insulin spike, which in turn feeds your fat storing system.

Fruits and vegetables are the ideal health, diet and fat loss foods for many reasons. They’re relatively low in fat and calories, high in fiber and rich in essential vitamins and minerals. The National Research Council recommends eating five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day.

Your everyday habits will determine your long term body weight and body composition. Make sure you get enough sleep, drink enough water to expel toxins, avoid processed food as much as you can, eat your fruits and veggies, eat organic when ever possible and work hard.

Just one last thought: taking a three-minute walk after each meal is worth a four pound reduction in body fat in a year’s time. Climbing two flights of stairs a day burns off half a pound of body fat in a year. On the other hand, one candy bar eaten daily will cost you 20 pounds annually.

If you enjoyed the information in this article, you will also enjoy the “David Grisaffi Walking Guide,” which is a complete walking exercise plan that comes FREE with the Firm And Flatten Your Abs program at www.flattenyourabs.net

About The Author

David Grisaffi majored in physical education and is a certified high performance exercise kinesiologist with the prestigious CHEK institute. David holds a total of 6 certifications, he is a high school wrestling and baseball coach as well as an independent trainer and strength coach, known especially for his work with professional boxers and golfers. David is the author of Firm And Flatten Your Abs an online best seller which teaches you how to lose body fat and develop “six pack abs’ while improving strength, function and athletic power at the same time. You can contact David or learn more about his programs at www.FlattenYourAbs.net