6 Pack Abs 5 Cool Abs Exercises and A Video

Morning,

6 pack abs in 2010 how's that going so far? Well if your not getting the results your looking for I have something here that will help.

Craig Ballantyne of the Turbulence Training program is here with his 5 favorite 6 pack abs exercises. This is not your typical ab exercise nonsense (you know endless crunches etc). This article should open your eyes to how you can get 6 pack abs. Your approach to ab exercises should change forever.

Take it away Craig.

In the last week I've been asked three times on Facebook for my top 3 oblique exercises...so today I'm going to give you my top 5.

Is that okay if I give you 5 cool  abs exercises instead of 3? Oh, and  none of them involve useless pain-in-the-neck crunches.


Here they are...

1) Cross-Body Mountain Climbers

One of my favorite abs exercises in general, this provides an intense contraction in those muscles that show up on the beach running down into your swimsuit. These are eye-catching muscles...as you can see in my "so famous it's infamous" abs photo on my site.

2) Kettlebell or Dumbbell Renegade Rows

It doesn't matter if you use a kettlebell or flat/hexagonal dumbbells for this one, the renegade row requires an intense ab contraction to maintain proper form.

Both of these abs exercises are hard to describe but you can get them on DVD and do them with me here:

=> Turbulence Training For Abs

3) Spiderman Pushups & Spiderman Climb Pushups

In the past 5 years I've made these two exercises extremely popular in the fitness world, and even though they are a push-up, they still both work your obliques extra hard.

4) High Rep DB Rows

Another "non-abs exercise", but high-rep dumbbell rows done with perfect form and a challenging weight will give you tremendous soreness the next day.

I should mention that all top trainers now understand that the purpose of your abs is NOT to violently twist and crunch your torso, but instead to hold it straight and stable, RESISTING the rotation that "out of touch" trainers are telling you to do.

So with these exercises, not only are you getting a set of amazing abs and obliques, but you're also saving your back and neck from the pain that comes with crunches and situps.

5) Stability Ball Cross-Body Mountain Climbers

Finally, an advanced version of the regular cross-body mountain climber. This adds more upper body work but still does a number on your obliques and your six pack abs. This is another one you'll need to do with me on video.

Here is a video from Craig doing one of his begginner 6 minute abs superset workout.



Turbulence Training For Abs

Honorable Mentions:

a) Planks, Stability Ball Planks, & Side Planks

Not exciting but quite effective...& if you think these are "too easy", you ain't doin' them right. Research shows side planks to be more effective for your obliques than many traditional crunches.


b) Hanging leg raises & Chin-ups+Knee-ups

These are advanced movements, but they work your "lower abs"...and your lower abs are, as Dr. McGill explains, really just where your obliques insert onto the iliac crest...so that's why these are great oblique exercises as well.

c) Stability Ball Jackknives & Stability Ball Jackknife Rotations

These are similar to the cross-body mountain climber variations, although both legs move up together.

Again, words just can't do these exercises justice, and unfortunately I can't fly to everyone's house to take you through a workout.

That's why I've put together all of my favorite ab exercises, for both beginners and advanced in my complete Turbulence Training for Abs DVD program.

It's like having me in your home training you in person...and going through each and every rep of every exercise together.

And as part of my 35th Birthday Month, I'm celebrating by knocking another $35 off the price...or you can take advantage of the $35 payment plan here:

=> Turbulence Training For Abs

Your abs will thank you for it. To your lean sexy summer abs,

5 Tips To A Flat Stomach And Rock Hard Abs

I want to give you 5 weird tips you might not know when it comes to getting a flat stomach and firm abs.



#1 - The best interval training work-to-rest ratio for losing belly fat might be 1-to-1.5.

In an Australian study, researchers found that doing intervals for 8 seconds followed by 12 seconds of rest resulted in significantly more belly fat burning than long slow cardio.

Now I know that 8 seconds on and 12 seconds off sounds a little annoying (just try doing that on a machine), but the good news is that these researchers found that going for 24 seconds followed by a 36 second rest works just as well for boosting fat burning hormones.

#2 - Dr. Chris Mohr's #1 weird diet tip is...

I just finished up a 2-part fat loss nutrition interview with Dr. Mohr and he told me that his simple, yet slightly weird #1 diet tip for fat loss is...

"Get almost all of your carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables."

I really liked that tip because I've been telling people this for years, and it's part of the Fat Loss Foundation you'll discover as part of the Simple Nutrition manual in the TT Abs package here:

====> Turbulence Training For Abs

Oh, and here's my weird blender drink recipe I mentioned earlier...

The Supercharged Strawberry-Banana blender drink:

1 ripe banana, frozen strawberries, spinach, flax oil (trust me, you can't taste the spinach OR the flax seed oil), cashew butter, chocolate vegetarian protein powder, and almond milk.

It was one of the best recipes I've made in a while.

#3 - You need to be able to do a Plank exercise for 2 minutes.

Dr. Stuart McGill, the world's leading expert on low back health, says in his book that a person with fit abs should be able to do a plank exercise for 2 minutes straight.

If you can't do the plank for 2 minutes, then you need to lose belly fat and you need to get a program that works your abs properly.

The best program for you is the follow-along Turbulence Training for Abs DVDs here:

=====> Turbulence Training For Abs

(You'll also get the Simple Nutrition Manual & DVD as a bonus and you'll save big bucks on the DVDs until Wednesday night.)

#4 - New research shows that supersets training burns more calories than traditional straight set resistance training.

And that's exactly what you'll get in every Turbulence Training workout, including the TT for Abs DVDS.

The TT programs save you time (getting you done in half the time of a traditional resistance workout) while helping you burn more fat.

#5 - To see your abs, a man will need to be close to 10% fat and a woman will need to be at about 16% fat.

Of course, the more muscle you have, the easier it will be too see your abs, so you'll still be able to see a 4-pack on muscular guys when they have 12-13% fat.

But the bottom line is that you need to use the Simple Nutrition plan combined with the Turbulence Training for Abs workouts to burn belly fat to see your sexy abs.

BONUS Tip - A great way to work your abs harder than normal planks  is the Stability Ball Plank.

Research reported in Men's Health magazine reported this exercise to be 30% harder on your abs than a regular plank.

And last Friday I used an interesting technique with this exercise that caused my abs to be sore for days. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.

Kettlebell Six Pack Abs Exercises

I have a guest post and video from awhile back Kettlebell Six Pack Abs Exercises. Thanks to Chris Lopez of The Kettlebell Revolution for this. Enjoy


Earlier this weekend, the six of us - my 4 kids, my wife (who’s due with #5 very soon) and myself - went up north to the Muskoka region of Ontario and stayed at a beautiful hotel with the rest of our extended family for the long weekend.


It was literally breathtaking up there and it was nice to get away from the city, disconnect, enjoy the fresh air - the air really was different - and admire the colors of the changing leaves. With baby #5 due within a couple of weeks, this was our last hurrah as “The Lopez Family 6″ and our last extended weekend of normalcy before we make the adjustment to being a family of 7 (!!!!).

We just wrapped up Thanksgiving here in Canada…and I mean that literally because I just finished wrapping the last piece of leftover turkey with some aluminum foil. In addition to the turkey, I had the luxury of finding space in our fridge for the candied yams, stuffing, lots of steamed asparagus (nobody seems to eat them except me) and some leftover pumpkin pie (note to self: go to the grocery store to pick-up more whip cream to finish that sucker off).

Just like “American” Thanksgiving - that’s what us Canadians call it - there’s always an overabundance of food and dessert available to us. Sometimes, it’s a matter of us recognizing when we’ve had enough, whether we’re full or not, and to call it quits. Whether you call it will power or just knowing “thyself”, this is a key component to getting those 6-pack-abs that we’re all after.

One of the biggest mistakes is doing too much of NOTHING in the gym.

Do we need to jog on the treadmill everyday for 30 minutes?

Do we need to do front raises, lateral raises and reverse flies to “hit” every head of our shoulder muscles?

Do we need to spend an hour training one body part?

No. We need to focus on using our time doing things of HIGH IMPACT that will get us the most results in the least amount of time. We need to be doing the exercises that will give us the most bang for our buck.

When it comes to ab training, crunches and sit-ups need to take a back seat. There is no place for these exercises in our busy lives.

That’s why we train with kettlebells.

Because working with KBs allows us to cut through the fluff of the “regular” gym-culture training. We’ve chosen to by-pass the weekend certified trainers. To choose to eat real food instead of the potions that they serve at the juice bar. And to stop doing bicep curls in the squat rack.

Here’s a video that I filmed with Craig Ballantyne a few weeks ago showing you the best Bang-For-Your-Buck kettlebell ab exercises…



For More Kettlebell Workouts <= Click Here

Six Pack Abs What They Are And How They Work

Six Pack Abs What Where How?


If you ask most men and women what one of thier main fitness goal is, it would be to have lean, flat rock hard six pack abs – it looks just like a washboard, and it’s something most people strive to have, but few know how to get them. Six pack abs are muscles that go from your chest to your pelvic region.

The muscle runs flat and there are some tendons that crisscross over the muscle, which make it all separate and appear as a washboard effect. The muscle helps with any movement in your body that’s associated with your core, so it pays to strengthen the muscle for more than just aesthetic reasons.

You also have oblique muscles that are both external and internal and attached to your ribs. The external ones are diagonal in your body and the internal ones appear at a right angle to them. They’re there to provide extra support for your body.

The abdominis is another muscle hiding under the layers of belly fat that you may currently be fighting. It helps support the abdominal wall and helps with your core strength.

Knowing what your ab muscles are helps you to train them more efficiently. You can first work on burning the layers of fat off of your torso so that your ab muscles have the potential to show up. By using workouts made up of total body fat burning exercises (Squats, Deadlifts, Rows, Pullups, Clean and Press etc.) focusing your efforts on more effective full body exercises that stimulate a much greater fat-burning and muscle building hormonal response, burn more calories, stimulate the metabolism to a higher extent, and also indirectly work the abs to a decent degree anyway, is what will have that extra body fat off quick. plus you might be surprised how much work your core and abs get by using these total body fat burning exercises.

After losing your extra body fat then you can start doing some ab specific exercises in your workouts for defining your abs so that you will have that six pack abs look. Start with simple exercises like reverse crunches, rollouts etc, but don't over do it twice a week is plenty remember what I said about the ab work you get from the total body fat burning exercises? Over time, you’ll see your abs become stronger and you won’t be afraid to take off your shirt and let others see those six pack abs you’ve worked so hard to achieve.

Six Pack Abs Problems And Fixes

1) Common Abs Problem #1 - You have belly fat covering your abs

Solution: Interval training has been shown to help research subjects
lose belly fat. You could almost say it causes spot reduction,
because that's where you'll lose belly fat first with intervals.

In the new TT for Abs DVDs, you'll be able to do your interval
training following along with me.

2)Common Abs Problem #2 - You still have a lower belly pooch

Solution: Eat more fruits and vegetables. You may even want to
replace calories from grains in your diet with almonds or other raw
nuts.

Fruits, vegetables, and raw nuts are all associated with weight loss
and are the foundation of the new Simple Nutrition program that
you'll get with the TT for Abs DVDs.

3) Common Abs Problem #3 - You have no lower abs

Solution: Unconventional exercises like Stability Ball Jackknives,
side planks, and even planks can help you work your lower abs better
and safer than traditional crunches.

4) Common Abs Problem #4 - You're struggling to get sexy abs

Solution: This one will surprise you, but you better believe it.
If you are lean and you've been doing your abs, but they just aren't
right, my old friend Brad Pilon suggests you just need to get a tan.

Seriously, you'll be shocked by how a tan can bring out your muscle
definition all over your body.

5) Common Abs Problem #5 - You can't keep a tight tummy

Solution: Make sure you brace your abs in every exercise you do,
from traditional planks to bodyweight squats, chin-ups, pushups,
and even chest presses. By tightening your abs all the time, you'll
be able to keep a tight tummy all the time.

6) Common Abs Problem #6 - You don't have obliques (or those sweet
lower ab lines that run into your waistband like I do)

Solution: Well, of course you need low body fat to see your abs, but
to help you build obliques and sexy diagonal lines that run into
your waistline, I suggest trying my favorite oblique move, the
Cross-Body Mountain Climber. I'll show you a few versions in the TT
for Abs DVDs.

7) Common Abs Problem #7 - You just don't have abs

Solution: Again, we need to get rid of belly fat, but if you need to
"pop out" your abs, an exercise like the Stability Ball Rollout will
help you build up your abs.

Fast Track Fat Burning Workout Burn Stomach Fat

A Fast Track Fat Burning Workout To Flatten Your Abs

Imagine looking in the mirror in a few short weeks and you have not only lost__?__lbs of fat(fill in the blank) but you now have that six pack abs look!

Here is a fast track fat burning workout(no marathon aerobic workouts here). What you will need is 1 kettlebell and your bodyweight that's it.

Most of us tend to store fat, at least partially, in our abdominal area. This is one of the most stubborn places to lose fat from. But in trying to flatten your abs have you taken the best and fastest approach?

Are you using total body exercises in your fat burning workouts? Yeah I didn't think so.


Rule#1 If you want to flatten your abs, firm your butt, gain lean muscle, whatever, the most effective and efficient way is with total body fat burning exercises! Hands down.

What I am going to share with you here is not only the fast track approach to fat burning and to flatten your abs, but how to shape and tone your entire body.

Here are 3 total body fat burning exercises you can easily do at home to help flatten your abs and burn fat fast.

1) Mountain Climbers

Start in push-up position. Brace your abs bring on knee towards your chest. Return the knee to the starting position and repeat for the other knee. Do this in a swift tempo as though you are running.

2) Burpees

Stand up in a normal position. squat down. Put your hands on the floor and throw your feet back so you are in the push-up position. Do a push-up(if your conditioning allows) return to starting position. Yeah you got it the old squat thrust from high school.

3) Kettlebell Swing (No kettlebell? Get one or use a dumbbell)

Stand up straight with your feet just slightly wider than your shoulders while holding one kettlebell(we are doing a two handed kettlebell swing). Flex at the hips as you swing the kettlebell between your legs. Then quickly and explosively flex your butt and swing the kettlebell up to chest level. Perform the kettlebell swing for about 10 reps.

After you have finished with the kettlebell Swing, rest for about 20 to 30 seconds(adjust your rest times to your conditioning level). Then start again and do the whole fat burning circuit as many times as you can in 15 minutes.

Do this circuit of total body fat burning exercises 2-3 times a week. On off days from your weight training workouts. You are weight training aren't you? No! Start!

Make this a regular workout and in a short amount of time(along with a healthy eating plan) and that six pack abs look will be yours.

Remember total body fat burning exercises like I have just showed you are the fast track to get that six pack abs look.

Dieting Rules For That Six Pack Abs Look

The Healthy Eating Rules toget that six pack abs look. You know what I mean that lean, strong, energetic, fit and healthy body you have always wanted. This is where it all starts(and sometimes ends) with your nutrition.


"There is no better time than now. The time to live is now. The time to dream is now. The time to imagine and forget the past is now. The time to shine is now. The time to bleed, sweat, and determine yourself for the things you want most is now."

What are your main Fat loss objectives?

1) Thunder thighs

2) Stomach Fat

3) Love Handles

4) Man Boobs

5) Flabby Arm Fat

6) All of the above

More than likely your problem is how to burn body fat. Yes most people have particular areas (as in the above list) but it comes down to a total body fat loss, weight loss and building lean muscle.

If you know anything about losing weight it is this you can't spot reduce. That is if stomach fat is your main problem doing hundreds of Ab crunches will not reduce your stomach fat. Focusing on specific Ab exercises is only helpful after you lose that layer of fat covering your Ab's.

Here's the deal!! It is only by losing overall body fat that you will then be able to see your Ab's and the overall musculature that you've been hiding.

So What are the keys to Fat Burning?

1) Diet and when I say Diet (actually diet is a poor choice of a word for this ) what I really want you to think of is eating clean and healthy.

First Let me let you in on a little secret

You don't have to have the absolute perfect diet. Yes you need to kick the junk food habit (my weakness is peanut M&M's) but you know what? I still allow myself to indulge in them from time to time.

Stay away from the fast food joints they are killers. It is a matter of developing a clean eating plan, planning out your meals a few days ahead of time helps a lot.

Portion control is usually the biggie. I am sure you have heard the best meal plan for losing fat is eating 5-6 meals a day. The key to this is your eating smaller portions spread out through the day.

You can essentially eat breakfast ( eat the bulk of your carbs early in the day) lunch and dinner but inbetween have 2-3 snacks a day. Snacks consisting of fruit, vegetables, nuts, whole grain products, non fat milk products.

Some benefits of snacking:

1) Healthy snacks provide fiber and nutrients your body needs.

2) You can curb the feeling of hunger or starvation right before a meal, which prevents overeating. Snacking may help you eat smaller portions and reduce your calorie intake.

Here is some calorie numbers for some healthy snacks:

Banana 1 medium banana - 118g Calories: 105

Apple 6.5oz Calories: 96

Raw Almonds 20 almonds Calories: 139

3) Though individual calorie needs vary, your body needs fewer calories as you age.

4) Eating smaller meals more often may help you stay on track.

Eating clean is a matter of determination and motivation if you want that thinner body there are certain sacrifices you must make. I can tell you that once you get into the habit and seeing that lean athletic body in the mirror everyday you will wonder why you didn't do this sooner.

5) Stick to your nutrition plan 90% of the time using the 90% Compliance guidelines.

How does this work?

Well, let's say you are on a 2000 calorie per day diet. To hit 90% compliance, that means 1800 calories must come from fruits, veggies, nuts, and protein, leaving you 200 calories "to play with".

You can either have a 200 calorie treat each day, or save up 200 calories for 3-4 days straight and have a 600-800 calorie reward meal every 3-4 days.

There is no time like the present

Right Now Set The Date Lose the Weight

Just picture this for a moment: In 30 short days from now you look in the mirror and there it is - Or actually there it isn't. It's You with 8-10 lbs less body fat. Close your eyes right now see it and focus on it. Imagine how you will feel with what you have accomplished.

Go to my new website for more articles and tips How To Get That Six Pack Abs Look
Oh and save your money for those new and smaller clothes you are going to need to buy.

Get Six Pack-Abs with Kettlebell Workouts

Get Six Pack-Abs with Kettlebell Workouts


For years fitness “experts” have been telling us to do endless crunches and sit ups to get great six pack abs abs.

Combine that with the latest low fat diet and hours upon hours of slow boring cardio and - BANG! Instant Six Pack Abs, right?

Did you ever consider that your kettlebell workouts might be the best at getting you those six pack abs?

It’s amazing how, if you say something over and over and over again, people - even the most well-informed and educated people - will believe it as the truth.

But as Turbulence Training Kettlebell Revolutionists we know better, right?

So when I get asked, almost on a daily basis, how to lose fat and get six-pack-abs, my answer seems to confuse the “general population”…

1. Perform full-body exercises.

2. Train your abs the way they were meant to be trained (by forcing them to stabilize your torso, not move it or rotate it).

3. Use some form of interval training instead of long boring cardio.

AND THE MOST IMPORTANT RULE OF ALL…

4. Eat REAL, clean food focusing on fruits & vegetables, lean protein and healthy fats limiting grains and refined carbs to a minimum.

That about sums it up how to get six pack abs in a nutshell and it doesn’t get any simpler than that.

When it comes to kettlebell workouts, getting those six-pack abs is easy if you follow the rules above.

And one of the best kettlebell exercises to get those six pack abs is the Turkish Get-Up or TGU.

Simply put, TGUs involve you laying on the ground holding a Kettlebell vertical with one arm and then performing a series of movements to get you standing upright.

It sounds simple enough, but rest assured, if you use a heavy enough kettlebell and use proper technique, it’s as hard a kettlebell or any other exercise as they come. And it will challenge you like no other Kettlebell exercise out there.

There are 2 variations on how to perform the TGU. Take a look at the video below and see which variation suits your abilities best.

.

Remember, we do kettlebell workouts to simplify our lives and to give us an alternative to going to the gym and wasting the precious time it takes for us to drive, park, change, etc, etc. Time that can be spent doing more meaningful and impactful things - like spending time with our families & friends.

The truth about training to get six pack abs and a low % body fat is that our results aren’t so much dependant on what we do IN THE GYM, but what we do the other 23.5 hours in the day.

Are we getting enough sleep?

Are we able to handle our stress levels? (Notice how I said, “handle” and not “eliminate” stress. Fact is that stress is a part of life and it’s next to impossible to completely eliminate stress. Learning how to properly handle stress is more realistic.)

Are we eating whole, natural foods?

Don’t get me wrong, exercise plays a vital role in getting lean. After all, it’s still just a matter or calories in vs. calories out - of EAT LESS, MOVE MORE.

But if you’re doing kettlebell workouts and training at least 3 times per week, then, from an exercise standpoint, you’re on the right track!

Thanks to Chris Lopez of the Turbulence Training Kettlebell Revolution for this great tip to get six pack abs with kettlebell workouts.

Done For You Fat Loss Meal Plans Do You Need Them?

Are Meal Plans Really What You Need? That's the purpose of this article I have for you it's from my buddy Nick Nilsson of Metabolism Surge.

Some food for thought if your on the fence either way about the Done For You Fat Loss Meal Plans Iv'e been telling you about.

And I have to say, it IS an excellent product. The meal plans
have been created by people who know EXACTLY what they're
doing when it comes to food prep and nutrition. I have no
hesitation recommending this product for people who are
looking for meal plans and a way systematize their nutrition
for optimum results.

Learning by doing is, quite honestly, one of the best ways to
learn good nutrition.

So if you've ever found yourself confused about what to eat
for best results, THIS is a program you should get, especially
while it's being launched at HALF the regular price (47 bucks
instead of 97 bucks). This is only going until Friday at
midnight, so grab it now if you think you might want it.

Heck, you don't even have to follow the meal plans exactly -
it's a great to way to just grab some random, healthy meals,
too (with all the nutritional info all laid out, as well as
proper portion sizes).

I definitely don't mean to come across like I'm down on meal
plans...I think they absolutely have their place in training
programs.

It's the same deal with actual workout schedules...I tell
people to follow a pre-written program from an expert so you
learn how to train properly before you starting mucking around
with things yourself...chances are, if you don't know how to
put together a program properly, you're not going to get the
best results.

Same thing with nutrition...if you don't know how to put
together a nutrition plan (even if your plan is a very general
one), you'll benefit tremendously by learning exactly how to
do it from an expert.

Okay, off that soapbox and onto another one...

So ARE meal plans necessary for fat loss?

And without further ado, the answer is yes...and no!

Allow me to explain...

Following meal plans is one of those things that you either
love or hate. You either feel like you HAVE to do it in order
to get results or you feel like there's NO WAY you'll ever be
caught dead doing it. It's rare you find somebody who sits on
the middle ground in this one.

As most people know, in order to lose fat, you've got to have
a caloric deficit, taking in fewer calories than you burn on
a daily basis. No surprises there.

Now here's the thing...in order to consistently achieve that
caloric deficit and lose fat, you must be AWARE of your calorie
intake.

I believe the REAL question we should be asking here should not
be "Is meal planning necessary?" but "Is calorie-AWARENESS
necessary?"

So if, in order to be aware of how many calories you're taking
in, you need to specifically PLAN and COUNT them (by weighing
food and referencing food charts), then THAT will be what you
have to do to get results.

And that is totally fine!

But if you've already GOT a good awareness of how many calories
you're eating in a day and you know what you need to eat (or
not eat) in order to achieve that caloric deficit, then meal
planning is NOT necessary for you.
The key here, again, is awareness.

You see, the big problem with not following meal plans arises
when a person THINKS they're aware of their caloric intake but
they really are NOT.

It's a fact that most people dramatically under-report their
caloric intake when they are asked to estimate how much they
eat in a day. When they keep a food diary and have to write
down every little thing that goes in their mouth, in some
cases their TRUE caloric intake nearly DOUBLES.

So even if you don't want to follow a meal plan, it may be
time for a quick compromise. It's a temporary calorie count/reality
check!

If you're not losing fat right now and you feel like you're
not really eating much, here's something you can try in order
to test your "caloric awareness":

First, write down how many calories you THINK you're eating
every day.

Now for the next full week, write down everything you eat.
And I do mean EVERYTHING. Every little taste and every little
snack. EVERYTHING. Just write down foods and portion sizes -
don't try and look up how many calories each thing has and
don't suddenly change your diet because you want to make
yourself look good - just keep doing what you've been doing.

At the end of the week, go to a food chart and research
everything you ate. Add it up and divide by 7. This will
give you your average daily caloric intake.

If you're within a few hundred calories of your original
estimation, congratulations! You've got good "calorie awareness!"

But if you're off by a significant margin, this will give you
some VERY useful feedback on what you need to do to get fat
loss rolling again.

So there's a vote FOR meal plans...let's look at the other
side of the coin.

And I'll be blunt here...the calorie counts in meal plans,
no matter how careful you are, are simply NOT 100% accurate.

Think of it this way...no two pieces of food are alike. When
you buy a steak at the grocery store, they don't charge you
per steak, they charge by the pound. And even when they charge
by the pound, two steaks of the same cut can have DRAMATICALLY
different composition - one could be lean and one could be fatty!

But if you look at a calorie chart, you'll see "3 oz sirloin
steak - 100 calories"...or something to that effect.

So even if you weigh and chart every single piece of food you
put in your mouth, you're STILL going to be off by a fair
margin. That's just a fact.

And while how MUCH you eat has an impact on fat loss, WHEN
you eat it and what foods you eat together makes a HUGE impact
on your results. "Calories are calories" is true only up to
a point.

For example, if you eat a big meal after a workout, most of
that will get used for recovery purposes. But if you eat that
same big meal late at night, nowhere near a workout, a good
portion of that will just be stored as fat.

Another example is eating sugary carbs with fatty foods - the
insulin response you get from sugary foods will jam that fat
right into your fat cells with very little trouble!

So now that you have absolutely no idea WHAT the heck to do
now, here's my step-by-step solution...

1. If you like to follow meal plans and it gets you results...
keep it up!

2. If you like to follow meal plans but you're NOT getting
results, either eat less or make sure you're writing down
EVERYTHING you're eating AND are being as accurate as possible
with your charting (and get some good meal plans, for crying
out loud).

3. If you DON'T like to follow meal plans and you ARE getting
results...keep it up! Meal plans are NOT necessary if you're
aware of how many calories you're taking in AND you're
getting results.

4. If you DON'T like to follow meal plans and you're NOT getting
results, it's time to take one week to count your calories
and improve your caloric awareness. It's only a week and
it'll give you a MUCH better idea of what you're actually
taking in. This will pay off BIG in the long run because
once you get a feel for your TRUE intake, you can very easily
keep yourself honest and ADJUST on the fly.
To my mind, the bottom line is results. If you're NOT losing
fat, then you're not getting the results you want...simple as
that. Your approach should be focused on doing what you need
to do to get those results.

Developing your caloric awareness is the key to long-term
success with fat loss. And if you have to follow meal plans
to do it, then that's what you've gotta do!

If that's the case for you, then go grab the meal plans right
now, because they're excellent and their relatively cheap
right now (especially considering the amount of work that's
gone into putting these together).

Thanks Again to Nick for this look at meal plans and will they work for you. If you are still on the fence here is the link to Done for You Fat Loss Meal Plans and some more info.

Hope this helps. I do endorse the Done for you meal plan system very highly. But this is something you have to decide for yourself - Will I Follow It And Get The Full Benefit. Talk to you soon Joe

There is this really funny you tube video up with two of my fellow fitness experts that had a "Pizza VS Cardio Contest!"

They wanted to put the famous saying: "You Can't Out-Train A Bad Diet"
to the ultimate test.

The video hammers home an invaluable nutrition lesson...

So one fitness expert jumps on the treadmill and cranks it up to the absolute maximum speed with a slight incline (without falling off) and starts sprinting.

While he's busting his butt at 11.0 MPH, killing himself to lose fat, the other fitness expert is standing beside him consuming a box of pizza.

After about 3 minutes, the guy eating has consumed 800 calories (half a pizza) and the guy sprinting has burned 42 calories!

Moral of the story - you CAN NOT out train a bad diet.

========================

Here’s What You Can Do…
========================

Stop following a diet period.

Use these MEAL PLANS instead.
Done For You Fat Loss Meal Plans

Compare any other diet book or diet method to simply following a “designed-for-you” meal plan that eliminates 100% of the guess work and you’ll come out on top 100% of the time - GUARANTEED.

How do I know this?

Because the best meal plan is based on BALANCE and VARIETY which is exactly catered to your physiological make up. You can’t get more personalized than that!

And the best part is, all you do is plug in a few basic measurements to determine which plan to follow and you begin your VERY NEXT MEAL today.

It’s critical that you put your meal plan into action TODAY - not tomorrow, not next week or next month.
I love these plans because they are SO EASY to implement your very next meal and continue until you have developed the habits necessary to see results so that you stay motivated and finally perfect your body and health.

There are no rules to follow, complex formulas, expensive supplements, ridiculous macronutrient ratios that you need to concern yourself with.

Everything is already DONE-FOR-YOU and designed-for-you.

Grab your PROVEN meal plans here:

Done For You Fat Loss Meal Plans
I promise these will give you everything you need to eat right so you can implement them immediately.

P.S. Eliminate all the nutrition nonsense and stop thinking you need a “special diet” which is a complete LIE, massive nutrition conspiracy and scam.
You need to start with a simple nutritional template that is CONSTANT and COMPLETE with the CORRECT foundational nutritional principles.

Take advantage of the HALF-PRICE sale that ends in 60-hours:
Done For You Fat Loss Meal Plans

Six Pack Abs - Total Body Workouts - Effective Fat Loss

How To Have That Six Pack Abs Look - Interval Fat Loss Training And Weight Training. Using total body workouts raises your metabolism faster than any other form of exercise.

Interval Fat Loss Training, Weight Training and Total Body Workouts.

* Six Pack Abs and Fat Loss Myth * Spot Reduction

You should know by now that spot reduction is a myth. You don't get six pack abs or lose body fat by doing 1000's of crunches No amount of ab exercises or using the ab gadjets will get you that six pack abs look or serious loss of body fat.

* Six Pack Abs and Fat Loss Fact * Total Body Workouts Rule!

Using interval fat loss training, weight training doing short total body workouts and healthy eating you will burn off that unwanted body fat and get you that six pack abs look.

Interval Fat Loss Training, Weight Training using total body workouts. Efficient and Effective for losing body fat fast to get that six pack abs look.

Six pack abs and permanent body fat loss are obtained with the use of interval fat loss training and weight training using compound exercises for total body workouts.

What are compound exercises? They are exercises that use multiple muscle groups. Total Body Workouts.

*Squats
*Deadlifts
*Bench Presses
*Cleans
*Clean and Presses
*Pull-ups
*Dips
*Mountain Climbers
*Burpees

For the ultimate in lean muscle gain and body fat loss for that six pack abs look these are the exercises you should be using. You could put together a workout of 3-5 of these exercises 3 times a week and you would have an excellant weight training and interval fat loss training total body workout.

Oh and by the way these workouts shouldn't take you more than 40-45 minutes for weight training and 20 minutes for your Interval fat Loss Training. Doing them on seperate days.

By focusing more on interval fat loss training, weight training and using multi-joint compound exercises for total body workouts as opposed to single-joint muscle isolation, you not only burn a lot more calories during each workout which increases your loss of body fat, but you also increase your metabolic rate, and stimulate production of more fat burning and muscle building hormones like growth hormone and testosterone

Using compound exercises for total body workouts when doing weight training and interval fat loss training is proven to increase your metabolism which in turn is causing you to lose body fat long after your workout is over. Having lean muscle as opposed to higher levels of body fat causes body fat loss at a higher and faster rate.

Get That Six Pack Abs Look - 3 Vital Tips

Let's face it... building muscle is not the easiest thing to accomplish even despite regular hard workout schedules and trying every type of workout and supplement.

I struggled for years to gain any significant muscle mass, but over the years in my personal training business and with my own experimentation have found some important things that have helped make significant muscle gains possible even for hardgainers.

So, I'm going to give 3 important tips here so you can start building lean muscle mass faster and easier.

1. Make sure that 95% of the exercises you perform regularly in the gym are big multi-joint compound exercises. It doesn't matter if your goal is fat loss or building muscle... big multi-joint exercises should comprise 95% of the exercises you do in your workouts if you want to get lean, ripped, and powerful.

It's easiest to think of it in terms of the major movement patterns such as these (focus 95% of your workouts on these):


*upper body horizontal press (bench press, pushups, dips)

*upper body horizontal rows (1-arm dumbbell rows, seated cable rows, bent over barbell rows),

*upper body vertical pull (lat pulldowns, pullups, chinups),

*upper body vertical press (overhead dumbbell and barbell presses, barbell or kettlebell clean & presses)

*lower body squatting movements (front squats, back squats, overhead squats, bodyweight squats, etc)

*lower body deadlifting movements (regular deadlifts, sumo deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts)

*lower body single leg movements (lunges, step-ups, jump lunges, etc)

*abdominal and core exercises (these are important, but still are 2nd priority after all of the major upper body and lower body multi-joint movements... your abs and core will be worked from most major multi-joint exercises anyway)

The other 5% of your exercises can focus on single joint exercises (isolation exercises) such as bicep curls, tricep presses, calf presses, shoulder shrugs, shoulder lateral raises, pec flyes, etc, etc. However, these exercises are only accessory exercises to do after the main focus has been the multi-joint drills.

2. Train hard and intensely 3-4 days/week for 45-60 minutes per weight training workout. Keep your workouts to no longer than 60 minutes as training too much beyond this point can trigger excess catabolism. You want to stay anabolic, but you still need to train your body hard and intensely enough to trigger muscle growth.

Try a super-set style of workout program to maximize the intensity that you can train. My favorite combinations are opposing upper and lower body movement patterns that don't interfere with each other, such as squats coupled with pullups as a superset, or bench press coupled with deadlifts as a superset.

Don't underestimate the effectiveness of these types of upper/lower body supersets done with heavy weights and a high intensity. The first time in my life that I experienced significant muscle mass gains were when I started doing these types of workout combos regularly (although still mixing up my training variables).

These are mainstays of almost any effective workout program -- caloric intake can simply be adjusted whether your goal is fat burning or gaining muscle mass.

3. Eat clean with quality whole foods... REAL foods instead of highly processed over-hyped supplement powders and bars.

The quality of protein (and additional nutrition from vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants) are best assimilated by the body from real whole food such as eggs, meats, dairy (preferably raw), fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, etc. instead of from processed protein powders, chemical-laden bars, and meal replacements.

Forget about the hyped up workouts in the muscle mags that only work for pro bodybuilders or people on steroids. Forget about the over-hyped supplement "stacks" that pay the bills for almost every muscle mag... Instead, make these tips in this article part of your lifestyle, and you'll see muscle gains and a leaner, ripped body like you've never seen before!

If you want to get a lean chiseled body, check out these tips to Get That Six Pack Abs Look the right way.

Get That Six Pack Abs Look

How to build some muscle to get that six pack abs look.

Even if your goal isn't to get six pack abs you more than likely are going for the flat, fat free toned abs. For too many of us it's a dream that seems to be a never ending quest.

Keeping with our total body conditioning workouts here are 3 exercises you can easily do at home to help with that six pack abs look.

1) Mountain Climbers

Mountain Climbers should be performed in 30 seconds. How you can go about this is to lie on the floor with top push-up position. In this way, only your hands and feet are touching the floor. Then, brace your abs by flexing one of your knees and bringing it towards your chest. Return the knee to the starting position and repeat the same routine for the other knee. Do this in a swift tempo as though you are running or as though you are climbing a mountain for about 30 seconds.

2) Burpees

Stand up in a normal position as straight possible. Then slowly progress into a normal bodyweight squat. Once you reach the bottom, put your hans on the floor and throw your feet back so you are in the push-up position. Do a push-up( if your conditioning allows) return to starting position. Yeah you got it the old squat thrust from high school.

3) Kettlebell Swing

Stand up straight with your feet just slightly wider than your shoulders while holding one kettlebell(we are doing a two handed kettlebell swing). Flex at the hips as you swing the kettlebell between your legs. Then quickly and explosively flex your gluteus maximus (your largest muscles on your bottom) and swing the kettlebell up to chest level. Perform the kettlebell swing for about 10 reps.

For a more detailed explanation and video of how to do the kettlebell swing check out Kbells The kettlebell Training Page

After you have finished with the kettlebell Swing exercise, rest for about 20 to 30 seconds. Then start with the routine of Mountain Climbers again and perform the whole circuit as many times as you can in 4 minutes.

You can perform this circuit of these 3 exercises 2-3 times a week on top of your regular workout. Make this a regular workout and in a short amount of time(along with a healthy eating plan) and soon that six pack abs look will be yours.

Remember total body tconditioning workouts like I have just showed you are the fast track to that six pack abs look.

Six Pack Abs - Secrets, Myths And How To Get Them

Six Pack Abs Myth's Tip's And Fact's


Hot six-pack abs are sought after and oft-admired, especially during the summer months. If you're on the lookout for that perfect six pack ab solution to help you get in shape for this year's beach scene or whatever reason, you might be confused to how to get started.

5 myths surrounding hot six-pack abs

Let us look at these myths and see if you've fallen for them.

Health foods are readily available in the form of bars, drinks, and a hundred other shapes and sizes. The claim here is that that health foods will help you lose your belly fat and develop six pack abs. The simple fact is that the only real health foods are the ones created by nature, not in a laboratory. If your ingredients list is more then 6 or 7 items long, and any item has more than 5 or 6 syllables, you're not a health food.

The second myth about getting Six-Pack Abs is the notion that abs exercises will burn off your belly fat. Many people think that by doing 100 crunches a day they will eliminate belly fat. Sorry, that doesn't work; you will strengthen the muscle under the fat but the reality is your belly fat will still be there.

Thirdly, everybody agrees that cardiovascular workouts are important for fat loss, but there are right ways and wrong ways for doing cardiovascular exercise.

As an example:

Instead of the marathon treadmill workout try interval training, Short intense and highly effective for burning belly fat to show those six pack abs. Intervals are the single most results producing exercise that there is for boosting your metabolism, helping you burn inches off your body, and giving you a tight, lean, strong shape.


An interval is a short period of exercise performed at a given intensity for a specific length of time. Each interval is separated from the next interval by a short rest or lighter activity.

Contrary to what many marketers want you to believe, you cannot rely exclusively on a pill to burn belly fat and get you six-pack abs. You need a combination of diet, exercise, and willpower, these are the contributing factors to lose fat, lose weight and properly support six-pack abs.

Infomercials Should Be Banned!

Last, but far from least, waste of money that is ab belts, rockers, loungers, and similar gizmos. The commercials are always so attractive as you watch the model with perfect six-pack abs flex away on the nifty-looking ab machine. The reality is that the contraption they're using has absolutely nothing to do with their perfectly chiseled stomachs and six pack ads!

3 tips to obtain hot six-pack abs

There are 3 ultimate tips for losing belly fat and getting Six Pack Abs.

First, figure out your daily energy needs, and eat properly to meet those needs, and nothing more. If you eat more than you need, losing belly fat becomes much harder.

Second, learn proper weight training and interval training. Total Body Conditioning Workouts are the key. Weight training is still the best form of exercise for raising your metabolism.

Here's how to set up your workouts:

Weight training - 3 days a week - Total Body Conditioning Workouts - Concentarting on muli joint exercises - 3-5 exercises per workout - 45 minute at most workouts.

Interval Training workouts - 2-3 days a week - again total body conditioning - 2-3 exercises - 20 minute workout time tops.

Finally, learn which methods of ab strengthening are ineffective, and avoid them. The truth is, some of the old - standbys' for ab strengthening are directly counterproductive!

Want a good ab exercise? Forget Crunches do Mountain Climbers


3 common mistakes people make trying to lose belly fat and get six-pack abs

Most of the thousands of people trying to lose belly fat and get six pack abs for themselves make the same 3 mistakes over and over. The most common of those mistakes is failing to realize that you simply cannot achieve six pack abs that will show if you do not lose the belly fat that is covering them up! This is why spot-reducing doesn't work. The correction to this mistake is to eat and train properly to lose fat while you gain lean muscle.


Second mistake: a lack of cardiovascular exercise. You do need to perform some cardio in order to burn that belly fat, but you may not realize how you should be performing cardiovascular exercise. Rather than long duration cardio, try what I suggested earlier high intensity 'interval training' that you will perform in less time but with better results.

Finally, you need to rework your workout start doing total body conditioning workouts and teach yourself why crunches and similar old-school exercises are not going to give you six pack abs. I gave you one suggestion and there are many others

Total Body Conditioning Workouts,Healthy Food Choices and a strong desire will get you to your fat loss goals so you can see those six pack abs.
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That six pack is there So How Bad Do You Want IT?

Your Six Pack Abs Quest: How's That Ab Gadget You Bought Working Out?

Despite the misleading infomercials, the perfectly chiseled fitness models in the commercials did NOT get their perfect body and six pack abs by using that “ab contraption”… they got their perfect body through REAL total body conditioning workouts and REAL nutrition strategies.

You should know by now that spot reduction is a myth. No amount of ab exercises or using the ab gadjets will get you six pack abs or serious loss of body fat. Only by total body conditioning and healthy eating will you burn off that unwanted body fat that will then allow your abs to show.


Ab belts, ab-rockers, ab-loungers, and other infomercial ab-gimmicks… they’re all a complete waste of your time and money and won’t get you six pack abs. Those marathon treadmill sessions forget them they are of some use but there is a much less time consuming way.

Six pack abs and permanent body fat loss are obtained with the use of total body conditioning with the use of compound exercises.

What are compound exercises? They are exercises that use multiple muscle groups.

*Squats
*Deadlifts
*Bench Presses
*Cleans
*Clean and Presses
*Pull-ups
*Dips

For the ultimate in lean muscle gain and to lose body fat these are the exercises you should be using. You could put together a workout of 3-5 of theses exercises 3 times a week and you would have an excellant total body conditioning workout. Oh and by the way theses workouts shouldn't take you more than 40-45 minutes.


By focusing more on multi-joint compound exercise as opposed to single-joint muscle isolation, you not only burn a lot more calories during each workout, but you also increase your metabolic rate, and stimulate production of more fat burning and muscle building hormones like growth hormone and testosterone.

Using compound exercises is proven to increase your metabolism which in turn is causing you to lose body fat long after your workout is over. Having lean muscle as opposed to higher levels of body fat causes body fat loss at a higher and faster rate.

Losing That Unwanted Body Fat means you finally having that Six Pack Abs look

Over the last 10 years, scientific research has indicated a couple of very important things to us about exercising for body fat loss. First of all, lifting heavier weights while exercising leads to a higher caloric consumption by the body in the period for about 1-2 days following the workout when compared to lifting light weights with high repetitions. So that’s why 6-8 repetitions per set is better than 12-15 reps per set when it comes to stimulating the metabolism for losing body fat permanently.

Here's a total body conditioning workout you can start using today.

1- Barbell Deadlifts Back, Legs, Abs, Delts, Grip and cardio all get worked during deadlifts - A must do exercise in your workouts.

2 - Dips no dipping bars? do them between 2 chairs. Chest, Triceps and Delts get work.

3 - Squats another must. Use a barbell. Legs, Abs, Hamstrings, Glutes and Cardio all get worked.

4 - Dumbbell or Kettlebell snatch Glutes, Hams, Back, Delts and Cardio.

Total Body conditioning short(not easy)but very effective and efficient for losing body fat gaining lean muscle for that six pack abs look.

6 Pack Abs: Are You Wasting Your Time With Cardio Workouts

Are Cardio Workouts Wasting Your Time?

A look into why typical long-duration steady-state cardio exercise routines are not the most effective way to lose body fat.

article by Mike Geary, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist


Are you wasting your time with hours and hours of boring cardio workouts each and every week? Well, you should be warned that steady-state cardio exercise is not the best way to get lean and lose fat.

Many people (including many fitness trainers and health professionals) just assume that it's a "fact" that you need cardio exercise for fat loss. The truth is that although cardio can help some people to lose fat simply from burning extra calories and living a healthier lifestyle in general, cardio is not the end-all be-all of fat loss.

In fact, there are types of workouts that can be more effective for losing fat if they are done with the right intensity and with the right types of exercises. Resistance training workouts (weights, bands, bodyweight, etc) as well as certain types of interval training workouts can produce better results if done correctly.

The joints

One problem to be aware of is that excessive cardio exercise such as long distance running can have tremendous impacts on the joints. On the other hand, shorter, but more intense styles of interval training, as well as resistance training can actually strengthen the joints when done properly (instead of wearing down the joints).

The After-burn effect

Also, same-pace cardio does not have the same metabolism-boosting effect and "afterburn" effect that resistance training workouts or interval training workouts have on your body. In studies, it has been shown that a high intensity weight training workout or interval training workout such as sprints or hill sprints can increase the metabolic rate for up to 1-2 days following the workout. This means you burn more calories AFTER the workout compared to a typical cardio routine.

This occurs because these higher intensity forms of training (such as weight training done at high intensity and interval cardio) stimulate muscle tissue to a greater degree and subsequently, the body must do more work to repair and rebuild the muscles throughout the body. This requires more energy and thus the "afterburn effect" of a raised metabolism and higher calorie burn in the 24-48 hours after the workout.

Compare this to a slower, steady-state cardio workout and the studies have shown that this afterburn effect only lasts 1-2 hours instead of 1-2 days as with the higher intensity workouts.

The Fat-Burning Hormonal Effect

Another aspect we must explore is the hormonal effect that certain types of exercise have on your body. With long duration excessive cardio exercise, you can actually go into a catabolic mode and the body starts to produce excess amounts of cortisol. This is not good and can lead to muscle loss and a reduced metabolic rate.

On the other hand, resistance training and high intensity interval training can stimulate muscle building and fat burning hormones in your body due to the stronger effort required by your full body musculature. This is yet another reason that weight training and interval workouts can create a leaner, more toned look in the body compared to focusing mostly on cardio routines.

The Skinny-Fat Appearance

Have you ever noticed someone that does a lot of cardio seemingly almost every day, yet still has that "skinny fat" appearance?

I see it all the time... basically this is where someone appears skinny in their legs, arms, chest, and back, yet has a visible gut in their belly, with excess stomach fat.

This is one of the typical results of someone that spends way too much time with cardio exercise routines instead of focusing more on resistance training and intervals


Ab Truth Are you at last ready to make a change or is it just going to be same old you next year?

6 Pack Abs In 2009 How To Flatten, Tone And Trim Your Abs

6 Pack Abs In 2009 - Today let's talk to Mike Geary of The Truth About Abs and get some tips on how to flatten, tone and reduce the fat around our waist.


Q: 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 abs, what would they be?

MG: The first and most important thing to get control of in order to 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.

Q: What are people doing wrong when it comes to developing the coveted "6 pack abs"?

MG: Well, 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!

Q: 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!

Q: 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 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. 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 low carbs, low fat, 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.

Thanks to Mike Geary for answering our questions and giving us some great information on how to have 6 pack abs in 2009.

See Also

Abtruth
it is a page I put up that gives the total review of the Truth About abs, articles by Mike and more of his insight about training and nutrition for six pack abs.

Six Pack Abs Enough With The Excuses

Stop With the Lame Excuses and Procrastination and Get Your Butt in the Gym!
by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer

How many times have you said "Oh, I'm too busy... I'll get started on my weight loss plan tomorrow", or "I'll just wait until after the holidays to start working out and getting in better shape"?

Working as a fitness professional, I hear people every single day say that they want to improve their shape... whether they want to lose weight, build some muscle, get stronger, lose the fat on their belly get six pack abs... whatever it may be.

Can you guess what happens when I say to them, "Well, if you really want it that bad, then why don't you start today... seriously, why not start working out and eating healthy today and lets make this happen now". Well, what usually happens is that they say that they'll just wait until next month because they're "too busy" right now.

Come on... Give me a break! It's nothing but LAME EXCUSE after lame excuse as to why you don't workout regularly or eat right. This becomes an endless cycle of excuses and procrastination for getting your butt in shape. Once next month comes, now you have another excuse... work has been too busy, or you're just too busy working on the house, and so on.

Consider this... Do you really think that all of the people walking around out there in great shape with their kick-ass bodies are any less busy than you? Hell no! Chances are, they are easily just as busy as you, yet THEY find the time to keep themselves healthy and in great shape.

Let's make a pact and STOP THE LAME EXCUSES FOR GOOD! Start on your goal today!

The bottom line is... If you really want it, you'll find the time. It's all about priorities and getting in the right mindset.

If you are one of these people that's always using excuses as to why you don't have time to eat right or workout, then I have bad news for you... You are NEVER going to get in good shape for the rest of your life! You are going to continue to yoyo back and forth and struggle with your fitness FOREVER!

Sorry to be so "in your face", but sometimes we all just need a wake up call. I'll even admit that although I've got my fitness pretty well handled, I've needed these wake up calls in other areas of my life where I was struggling, and I've appreciated those people that showed me the way.

So what's it going to be. The start of a new you or the same old excuses and go out and buy bigger size clothes.

SEE ALSO

Ab Truth So How about it 6 pack abs in 2009 it's never too late to start.

Six Pack Abs Are You Doing It Wrong?

Six Pack Abs: The Myths and Facts About How To Get 6 Pack Abs


Let's face it we all notice the guy or gal with the slim and trim midsection. One of if not the most important body part to people is getting six pack abs. Good looking guys and women with slim and trim abs are admired and make other people’s jaw drop. So all you have to do is hundreds of crunches and other ab exercises and then like magic you'll have six pack abs.

The Six Pack Ab Myth
Most people who begin exercise programs are going about it the wrong way.

It's not your fault there is alot of misinformation out there. seems like not all that we hear from “experts” or overhear in the public or read in the magazines is right. Maybe the reason why we are not getting those perfect abs is because we are not doing it right. I will say most workouts I see people doing is a terrible waste of your time. So we need to know the myths and what is real to get those chiseled six pack abs we want.

Six pack ab Myth 1: Abdominal muscle is different from regular muscle.

Muscle is muscle. Abdominal muscle is the same as our biceps and lats. The only difference is the location. Abdominal muscles are not resting on a bony surface, instead it is against the stomach and intestines. There is no significant difference whatsoever.

Six pack Myth 2: Strong abs means a strong back.

The key to a strong back is a balanced abdominal muscles. You can work your abs, which will help your back muscles. Total body workouts for all around strength and fitness is the key. Infomercials give the false belief that by working out just one part of your body will give your health great benefits.

Working out and exercise should not just be concerned with one part of the body. What you need is an overall total body conditioning to be healthy.

Six Pack Myth 3: You have to train your abs at least every other day.

I love it when I hear personnal trainers telling their clients to get six pack abs you need to train them everyday. You need to train your abs hard enough twice a week like any other muscle group. The key is to choose exercises that fatigue your abs, so that they actually need recovery time. Include exercises that use the abs functionality. Since abs are used to stabilize the body, holding a push up position without letting your body sag will really feel and develop your abdominal muscles.

Six Pack Myth 4: To gain results, high repetitions are required.

The key to six pack abs is the exercises you choose that are not ab specific. As far as reps go the abs are no different than any other muscle. If your aim is abdominal endurance, the more crunches you do each time, the more you can do later on. It does not strengthen the abs very much but it does eat up most of your time.

Six Pack Myth 5: Hard rock abs can be attained by doing a lot of sit-ups.

Many doctors say that sit-ups and crunches are the work exercises and perhaps should never be done. A common mistake done during crunches, is throwing the neck out. Crunches and sit-ups cause the abdominal muscles to be pulled to tight, this excessive pulling put stress on the neck or what is known as throwing the neck out. The overuse of crunch type exercises may even lead to the reduction of thoracic extension and contributes to bad posture.

Six Pack Myth 6: It takes years to get great abs.

Everyone has ab muscles, you just need to train them in the correct manner. To start with you need to get rid of the fat surrounding your abs. Healthy eating is as important as exercise for getting that set of six pack abs. For some, it would take a few weeks. For other it may be longer. Different body type develop at different rates.

Too much information out there today has us doing the wrong exercises and workouts especially when it comes to getting a trim and toned stomach. If you want to get those six pack abs continue reading at Ab Truth

How Busy Women Are Getting 6 Pack Abs

The Busy Womans Guide For Six Pack Abs

The trend of getting six-pack abs among women

Getting six-pack abs has become one of the popular choices to keep the body fit and healthy among women. This is because it does not only guarantee a fast way of improving muscle but also the body's endurance and strength as well.

Experts say that for a woman to develop six-pack abs, she must undergo workout training where the exercises are designed for total body conditioning.

Here, the woman's muscles exert force against different forms of resistance like free weights, kettlebell training and interval fat loss training which greatly aids to the development of wonderful six-pack abs as well as total body fat loss.

Strength training as the key to six-pack abs

Women who are looking forward to having six-pack abs must undergo strength training so she can endure all the physical requirements of her goal. To start with, it is ideal to do strength training exercises at least 3 times a week for at least 20 minutes or so to prepare the muscles for more rigorous physical movements.

weight training is still the best course to up your metabolism which will keep your body burning fat off long after your workout is over.

Aside from preparing your body's muscle for more extreme physical exercises, strength training can also give a woman firm muscles for a great looking physique in the future. Studies show that strength training is very important for women who are gearing towards having six-pack abs because it can increase the endurance and strength of the developed muscles that can allow women perform tasks daily with lesser exertion and effort.

This can also improve the working capacity of the muscles but also aids the body's coordination, balance, and blood circulation as well as the strength of the joint, ligaments, and bones.

Experts say that to be able to develop muscle and achieve six-pack abs through strength training, women should always make it a practice to warm up properly before she starts strength training and after she has performed some weight exercises to prepare the joints for the pending motion during the weight lifting.

Stretching is very important for beginners because it can reduce soreness after the exercises and can help prevent cramped muscles while increasing the range of your motion.

Women who are doing workouts to get six-pack abs can do common stretching exercises such as warm-ups that include flexibility and stretching exercises to keep the muscles supple, increase the joints' range of motion, heart rate and body temperature, and blood flow to muscles, enhance flexibility, and improve coordination. Cool-downs are also important to return the heart rate as well as the blood pressure to resting mode gradually. Since they are composed of slow walking and stretching, it can relax the sore muscles during and after the exercise.

After stretching, the strength-training exercises using compound exercises can help women who are into the trend of getting six-pack abs:

Squats

Deadlifts

Presses

Bench Presses

By concentrating on compound exercises you use more muscles in the body at the same time. You might also be surprised to learn how much work your ab muscles get by using compound exercises.


Getting Six Pack Abs and losing body fat is not about doing endless reps of crunches and ab specific exercises. Total body conditioning compound exercises, kettlebell training and interval fat loss training plus healthy eating is the fastest path to six pack abs.

See Also

Ab Truth for workouts, exercises and healthy eating guiges.

Six Pack Abs Total Body Workouts Use Compound Exercises

Body Part Isolation vs. Complex Movements in Strength Training


Working as a fitness professional, there is one type of question I get all the time that shows that many people are missing the big picture regarding the benefits of strength training. This popular question usually goes something like this:

“What exercise can I do to isolate my _______ (insert your muscle of choice – abs, quads, biceps, triceps, etc)?”

It doesn’t matter which muscle someone is asking about, they always seem to be asking how to ‘isolate’ it. My first response to this question is always – “Why in the world would you want to isolate it?”

The first thing I try to teach my clients is that the body does not work well in muscle isolation. Rather, it works better in movements along a kinetic chain; that is, large portions of the body assist other portions of the body in completing a complex movement. In fact, there really is no such thing as true muscle isolation. There is almost always a nearby muscle group that will assist in some way with whatever movement you are doing. However, this article compares attempting to ‘isolate’ body parts via single-joint exercises to the much more effective strategy of performing multi-joint complex movements.

When you attempt to ‘isolate’ muscles by performing single-joint exercises, you are actually creating a body that is non-functional and will be more prone to injury. Essentially, you are creating a body that is a compilation of body parts, instead of a powerful, functional unit that works together.

Now if you really want to end up hobbling around in a body bandaged up with joint problems, tendonitis, and excess body fat, then by all means, continue trying to ‘isolate’ body parts. On the other hand, if you would rather have a lean, muscular, injury-free, functional body that works as a complete powerful unit to perform complex movements (in athletics or even everyday tasks), then you need to shift your focus away from muscle isolation.

Believe me, focusing on how well your body functions will give you the side effect of a body that looks even better than it would have if you focused on muscle isolation. For example, take a look at the physiques of any NFL running backs, wide receivers, or even world class sprinters. Trust me when I say that these guys pretty much NEVER train for muscle isolation (their strength coaches wouldn’t be crazy enough to let them), yet they are absolutely ripped to shreds! Just look at guys like Maurice Green or Terrell Owens and tell me who wouldn’t want a physique like those guys.

Another benefit to moving away from the ‘muscle isolation’ mindset to a more ‘complex movement’ mindset is that you will find it much easier to lose body fat. The reason is that by focusing more on multi-joint complex movements as opposed to single-joint muscle isolation, you not only burn a lot more calories during each workout, but you also increase your metabolic rate, and stimulate production of more fat burning and muscle building hormones like growth hormone and testosterone.

Let’s look at an example. The machine leg extension is a single joint exercise that works mainly the quadriceps, can potentially cause knee joint instability in the long run, and doesn’t even burn that many calories. On the other hand, exercises like squats, lunges, step-ups, and deadlifts are all multi-joint complex movements that work hundreds of muscles in the body (including the quadriceps) as a functional unit, create more stable and strong joints in the long run (when done properly), and also burn massive quantities of calories compared to the single-joint exercises.

See Also:

Ab Truth stop wasting your time on countless reps of crunches and other ab isolation exercises. Only by total body conditioning will you get real results.