Tag Archive for: lean muscle workouts

,

3 Simple Tricks To Get Rid Of Cellulite For Good

3 Simple Tricks To Get Rid Of Cellulite For Good

Most women have the misfortune of developing cellulite at some point in their lives. A woman’s body is genetically prone to the development of these unsightly, lumpy deposits of fat beneath the skin. Exercise alone does little to alleviate cellulite, and requires continuous dedication to maintain results. Once the exercise is discontinued, the cellulite will come right back. However, there are a few ways to go about decreasing the dimpling appearance of cellulite, which do not involve hours at the gym, expensive creams or liposuction. Here are 3 tips to get rid of cellulite that will actually work.

improve circulation1) Improve Circulation

Few people realize that cellulite is directly related to blood circulation. When cellulite is deposited as small fat pockets underneath the skin, those areas no longer receive proper blood flow. This allows for toxins to begin accumulating in the body.

Proper circulation is essential for everything from cardiovascular health to the growth of hair and fingernails. To work on improving the circulation, make sure to move every day. This is not referring to vigorous training sessions at the gym in at attempt to rid the body of cellulite, but rather good old fashioned exercise. Get the blood moving and heart pumping by adding daily walking, jogging, cycling, or any other physical activity. Deep breathing exercises are also beneficial and will get the blood flowing. Thirty minutes of vigorous cardiovascular activity three times per week is recommended for purposes of improving circulation and helping to get rid of cellulite.

Aside from working on improving circulation from the inside, you can also target areas of cellulite where you see it occurring. Rubbing, massaging, brushing, or scrubbing the cellulite can be done for a period of fifteen minutes using a skin stimulator or medium bristle brush. This combats cellulite by increasing the flow of blood to that area, and skin should appear a healthy pink color when finished. By stimulating the areas of cellulite in this manner, it allows the blood vessels on the surface to help clear any clogged or damaged tissues and allow toxins to be released, this improving the appearance of cellulite.

L-Arginine_Now_Foods2) Proper Nutrition

The second of the 3 tips to get rid of cellulite is proper nutrition, knowing what to eat and what not to eat to help reduce cellulite. Some foods we eat can actually contribute to the formation of cellulite, while others help prevent or remove it. Nutrition plays a role in how our blood forms and circulates through the body. If certain foods act to thicken the blood, this will hamper proper circulation. Therefore, it is important to includes healthy foods that naturally thin the blood and keep it flowing freely.

Important foods to include in your diet to help combat cellulite include Omega-3 fatty acids found in flax seeds and fish, and blood thinning foods such as cayenne pepper, ginger, and garlic .Foods such as nuts, oatmeal,green vegetables, and dairy products contain L-Arginine, a natural vasodilator that improves circulation. Eating these foods will help the body eliminate accumulations of cellulite.

Omega3_in_fish3) Reduce Fluid Retention

Chronic fluid retention is another factor that contributes to cellulite development. You can help reduce fluid retention and improve the appearance of cellulite by eating foods rich in antioxidants, flavonoids, and phytonutrients, high in protein, and Omega-3. Avoiding trans fats and saturated fats, sugar, and unnecessary chemical exposure or medications will help in the battle against cellulite.

If you are interested in learning more about cellulite and what you can do to get rid of it, for more information, check out cellulitefactor.com.

 

/by

Vid: Ability to Sit and Rise from the Floor Can Predict Mortality Risk

From Science Daily – Science News:

[weaver_youtube id=MCQ2WA2T2oA sd=0 percent=100 ratio=.5625 center=1 rel=0 https=0 privacy=0 showinfo=0]

Dec. 13, 2012 — A simple screening test of musculo-skeletal fitness has proved remarkably predictive of all-cause mortality in a study of more than 2000 middle-aged and older men and women. The study, performed in Brazil by Dr Claudio Gil Araújo and colleagues at the Clinimex — Exercise Medicine Clinic in Rio de Janeiro, is reported today in the European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention.

…
Commenting on the results, the investigators said that a high score in the sitting-rising test might “reflect the capacity to successfully perform a wide range of activities of daily living, such as bending over to pick up a newspaper or a pair of glasses from under a table.”

…

Offering an explanation for the close correlation between the test scores and survival, Dr Araújo said: “It is well known that aerobic fitness is strongly related to survival, but our study also shows that maintaining high levels of body flexibility, muscle strength, power-to-body weight ratio and co-ordination are not only good for performing daily activities but have a favourable influence on life expectancy.

See the whole article here

 

/1 Comment/by
, , ,

How to Make a Power Breakfast Burrito!

1. Start with a fresh green pepper, red pepper, white onion and this salsa.

Green pepper, red pepper, onion

2. We’ll use low sodium turkey breast, 3 eggs per burrito, and refried beans.

3. Pam instead of oil. Spray an unheated pan for one second, then heat it up under medium heat.

4. While the pan is heating up, chop up the vegetable triad nice and chunky. Test the pan by sprinkling some water on it with your fingers. If it sizzles, it’s ready. Toss the vegetables in.

5. Raise the heat a bit and let them cook for around 3 minutes, then toss in the chopped turkey. Toss it around so it’s all mixed up. Let it cook around 3 minutes.

6. Scramble the eggs in a bowl, give your pan another one second spray, and pour the eggs in. Lower the heat back to medium and stir often.

7. Heat up another large, flat pan and when it’s ready (use the sprinkle test) place your large tortilla in it. Check it after one minute to make sure it’s not getting toasty. It should be warm, but soft so that it doesn’t crack like a tostada. Flip once.

8. Microwave around this much beans for one minute or use up another pan, but microwaving is easier.

 

9. Make sure the eggs and turkey are cooked well, then it’s ready to be wrapped!

 

10. Place the tortilla on a large plate and spread the warm, soft beans on one half of the tortilla.

 

11. Add your beautiful mixture.

 

12. Add the salsa.

 

13. Fold, tuck, and roll.

You may want to place it on the warm pan again while you prepare the garnishing.

 

14. Finish off your masterpiece with some colorful garnishings!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

/by

Work your hamstrings at the park!

You’re already good at working your quads with bodyweight exercises. Squat jumps, lunge jumps, bulgarian single leg squat, pistols, step jumps.

And you know how to work the upper body with no weights as well: If you’re at the park, you can do pullups on the monkey bars, dips on the hand rails, pushups with feet on step, body rows on monkey bars with feet on the ladder, flies on rails with feet suspended.

But how about the neglected hamstrings? What about them?!

Here’s a workout you can do in between your quad exercises to get you all wobbly-legged and sore the next day.

park workout, hamstrings  park workout, hamstrings

My daughter Devan demonstrates the Monkey Bar Leg Curls. She is a pretty fit 13 year old. She does cheer, dancing, and track. And after a rest/pause set of 3×10 she laughed and said, “Whoa dad. I really feel them in my legs!” I love that little girl! {single tear}

Notice her superior form! See how she keeps her arms straight! With this exercise, curl your legs, not your arms. If you bend your arms you’d be doing body rows which are damn good, but this is not that.

See how she curls her body? This is also working her abs a bit, similar to knee lifts or as I prefer to call them, “body curls”. But the emphasis is on her hamstrings. They are working hard to curl the legs and pull her body up.

Hold it at the top for 1 Mississippi, then come down SLOWLY! Like I’ve said many times on this site: Don’t just drop like a sack of—brown rice! Take 3 seconds to return to the bottom position. Then a quick 1 second lift.

Get it?

Do 10 reps, then rest while hanging in the bottom position for a count of 10, and do another set of 10 (or as many reps ’til failure). Rest another 10 seconds while hanging and do it one more time. Then come down and do a jumping or upper body exercise. Or you can rest 45 seconds instead of doing an in-between exercise.
3 rest/pause sets is one super set.
Do 3 of those sets for a total of 9.

We good?

Soon, I’ll post my complete PARK WORKOUT that I love so damn much. Whole body, baby!

/by

Nutrition for HIIT!

High Intensity Interval Training is an effective, highly popular form of cardio and fat-burning exercise where you push yourself to the max for short bursts and then recover before repeating. Super effective for super fast results!

It is basically the opposite of steady-pace cardio like long distance running or cycling. You perform intervals of high intensity sprints or bursts of all-out energy where you give 100% maximum effort, and then you take it all the way down to a slow, calm “active recovery” interval and repeat.

tuck_Jump

Try the 10in30 “12 Minute HIIT”!
(click on pic)

This has been proven to be a highly effective form of cardio that will help build muscle and burn fat at a much faster rate than its steady-pace alternative. However, like its name implies, it is high intensity so you can actually end up losing muscle mass if you don’t have proper nutrition. NOOOOOOOOOOO! This is bad for both men and women.

Therefore, don’t just do your HIIT workout and call it a day! Even if you do see results without proper nutrition, your results can plateau faster, you can get tired and over worked, and your results will be far better if you fill your body with the nutrients it needs at the right time surrounding your workout.

To ensure that you are not depleting your hard earned muscle, here are some tips on what you should consume to get the most out of your HIIT:

espresso

1. Caffeine
Half hour before you workout, have a cup of coffee or other source of around 100 mg of caffeine. A typical cup of coffee contains 100mg. Or you can have a Red Bull (80 mg), or do like I do; green tea fat burning pills with a whopping 150 mg of caffeine. It takes 20 minutes for your body to absorb most nutrients so at .5 hr you should be up and ready to start your work out.

If you can’t have caffeine for medical reasons, then a simple carb like a fruit juice or sports drink like Gatorade (with sugar, not the splenda version) will help energize you, sans caffeine.

 

xtend, bcaa, bcaa's

2. BCAA’s
Branched Chain Amino Acids are important for muscle recovery and to prevent your muscle from being used as energy. You worked hard to build the muscle you have, so don’t let it get eaten up by your body when it’s desperate for energy. This is called a “catabolic” state. Bad.

Start drinking a serving of BCAA’s around 15 minutes before you start working out and continue drinking throughout your workout. I highly recommend Xtend as it also contains electrolytes which will ensure you don’t get dehydrated and start cramping up. And it has glutamine and vitamin b6 too!

 

torrent

3. Protein and simple carbs
These must be consumed immediately upon finishing your HIIT workout.

Drinking your protein is far better than eating some meat or other solid since time is of the essence after a tough workout and liquids get absorbed by your body much faster than solids.

You can have a whey protein shake but you’ll still need some simple carbs since most whey protein powders don’t come with carbs (they use splenda or other non caloric sweeteners). Having some white bread product with your protein shake will suffice, or you can drink a cup (8 oz) grape juice right before your protein shake. Simple carbs such as sugars help deliver the protein and other nutrients to your muscles by raising your insulin levels.

Some say that it’s not necessary to consume protein after a workout and give examples like prisoners with restricted diets and no access to supplements that still manage to get buffed. Your body might be able to adapt and do the best it can with what its given, but I would rather do the most I can for my body while I can control it.

chocolate milk, proteinMy all-time favorite supplement is Universal Nutrition’s Torrent, post workout shake. It has everything you need; protein, simple carbs, amino acids and even creatine. If you can buy this, go for it. The convenience alone will be worth it let alone the awesome taste!

If you’d rather keep your supplements expenses low, a really cheap and tasty treat that has been proven to work is your very common chocolate milk. It has protein and simple carbs through the sugars it provides for the chocolate. Consume an 8 ounce serving of it and you’ll get 8g protein and 26g simple carbs.

So that’s pretty much the basics of what you should consume before, during and after your high intensity workout. The only other supplement that will ensure your body is functioning at its best and you recover quickly is a multi-vitamin. It doesn’t revolve around your workout but you should take one every morning or per dosage on the bottle.

The multi-vitamin along with the 3 supplements listed above will allow your body to perform at its maximum and get the full benefit of your workouts! Let me know if you begin taking these supplements and how you feel after a few weeks, ok?

CHEERS!

/by

Blast your legs. Blast your buttocks.

barbell squat

barbell squatWomen: if you’re getting bored of your current workout and and not seeing results TRY THIS ON FOR SIZE.

This will get your leg and butt muscles so sore you’ll be walking funny for days! That’s a good thing. Means you did something right and didn’t waste your time. Also means that when your muscles are repaired, they’ll turn into nice, “seck-sy” curves! Do this workout once a week if you mostly do plyometrics type of exercises which are also really good. Also, you should not do any legs exercise the next day, and probably not even the 2nd day after doing this workout except for running. Your newly beat-up muscles need time to recover. You can jump ’til your heart’s content in 3 days.

1. Barbell Squat. Video (as shown in the picture at top) Squats aren’t only for men. Squats do wonders for women too. They’ll give women a nice, sexy, firm butt and upper legs besides strengthening the upper body and core. You need to tighten your abs to avoid topping over backwards and your back muscles to avoid leaning forward. To keep from falling to the sides, your obliques are engaged as well. And men, you probably know that building the leg muscles raises your testosterone levels and greatly helps increase your muscle mass in the rest of your body. So you see? Squats totally rule!

Be sure to go all the way down—we’re not doing some sorry-ass half squats! This will help build your entire upper leg muscles, including the hamstrings in the back and they’re great for building you a nice butt!

If you don’t have access to a squat rack, choose a weight that you can easily shoulder press over your head when done. We’re not going for super heavy squats, especially if you don’t have a rack to safely put the barbell back down. Again, this whole plan concentrates on high reps and speed.

Proper form: Tighten your upper back and rear delts (shoulders) and flex them inward toward your spine. Place the barbell on your back so that the the barbell rests on your upper back muscles, NOT your neck bone. It should be a bit low on your back and your hands are only there to support your back. It should feel very light on your hands since nearly all of the weight will be on your back.

If you have to pause before getting to 12 reps, it’s ok. Stop and hold the weight on your upper back for around 10 seconds. Then continue ’til you do all 12. If you absolutely cannot get to 12 reps for 3 sets, you’re lifting way too heavy. Lighten up She-Ra, Princess of Power!

Reps: 12
Sets: 3
Rest: 1.5 minute
Pace: go up in a fast, explosive 1 to 1.5 seconds, and without pausing at the top come back down in 3 seconds

2. Leg Curl/Extension Superset. Extension Video. Curl Video.
Don’t just throw the weight up. It’s ok to do that (use momentum) toward the later reps, but try to pause & hold at the top for a second.
Reps: 18 of each, back to back. Rest when both are done, then do the remaining sets. Should be heavy enough that it burns when getting to 18. If not, adjust accordingly.
Sets: 3
Rest: 30 seconds (one muscle is already resting while the other is working)

 

deadlift
3. Romanian Deadlifts. Video. (keep legs slightly closer than the chick in the pic above) Grab a pretty heavy barbell and stand in front of it with your legs slightly bent. Stick your butt way out, arch your back, bend down and pick it up without bending your arms at all. Straighten your torso to a sanding position with the bar hanging just below your waist. Back down slowly.
Reps: 12
Sets: 3
Rest: 1 minute

BARBELL LUNGE
4. Barbell Walking Lunges. Video. Use a barbell that’s light enough that you can press over your head easily when done.
Reps: 12 steps. Count each step (6 steps left, 6 steps right)
Sets: 3
Rest: 1 minute
If space is limited, try to get three groups of 4 steps before u-turning.

DONE!
Proper workout nutrition is important!
Be sure to drink a protein drink IMMEDIATELY after finishing. You should also have some simple carbs at this time, so some white bread product, fruit juice, or simple sugar will help. Since this workout is pretty intense, drink a Gatorade with sugar while working out. (the simple carbs will help your workout) The Gatorade with splenda won’t give you the energy. Also have a half cup of coffee .5 hr before starting.

 

Let me know how it went in the comments and ask if you have questions. Good luck and HAPPY LIMPING.

_____________________

/by

Ladies, “skinny” is a bad word.

jamie baird

Would you call her "skinny"? She too buff for ya?

We often hear people compliment others, usually girls, by saying, “Wow, look at you; you’re so skinny!” or something similar. While their intentions are good, hopefully they are referring to her lack of fat instead of what “skinny” really means.

The difference between skinny and fat

For technical purposes, or as technical as I can get on this here fitness forum, “skinny” refers to a lack of mass, or more specifically, lack of firm muscle.

On the other hand, when you say someone is “fat”, you’re clearly describing their excess body fat, not the excess lean muscle they have; duh. That part is easy.

So, you see, skinny is NOT the opposite of fat. Describing someone as “skinny” refers to the lack of muscle one has, and describing someone as “fat” specifically talks about body fat.

Therefore, you can be skinny AND fat at the same time; the worse way to be. This is when you have too much fat on your person, while not having enough muscle to give your body a decent shape, not to mention the functional purpose of muscles.

That’s why “losing weight” is not specific enough. You can’t just lose overall weight without considering how much fat you lost (good) and how much of that was muscle (bad). You want to keep as much muscle as you can, because as it has been said many times on here and pretty much everywhere else; muscle burns fat.

Having muscle on your body requires energy to maintain it, thus burning fat in order to keep the useful muscle you just earned. And it’s obvious that pretty much all men want to build and keep muscle, but not all women are aware that building muscle makes them loose fat. Muscle also gives the body a much better body composition and therefore, a sexy physique.

Who’s skinny, who’s fat, who’s hot?

skinny legs

skinny fat

fitness model

Picture one: Skinny legs. She does not have much fat as you can see from her firm legs and abs, but neither does she have much muscle. Not terribly bad, and great for fashion (although I don’t know why) but you can do much better. And men; what do you think, hot or not?

Picture two: Skinny fat. This is what I described earlier. Does not necessarily have a big barrel of a stomach nor does she resemble an elephant. However, her fat percentage is quite high, and her muscle is super low. She is technically obese. Sexy, isn’t she!

Picture three: Low fat, high muscle without looking like a manly buff chick. Amanda Carrier is a Maxim and fitness model. She works out. And not just by running around, which is ok for burning fat, but to get a strong, lean, sexy body like this you must hit the weights. This is meant for women since, like I said before, men already know they should hit the weights.

saggy butt

^ Sorry, but I had to post this so that you see another example of skinny fat, from a “reverse perspective”.

Saggy butt syndrome. Again, she does not have thunder thighs or a giant, space-hogging bean bag of a body, but neither does she have enough muscle—at least on her butt—to make it attractive. And some of you might give me crap about how, “We’re all different. Not everyone likes what YOU like.” or “Maybe some men like that!” Well good luck with your saggy butt and your saggy-butt loving man. Looks like you scored. I wish you well.

For the rest of you, lifting weights will give you a strong, sexy body and firm behind that will own the Vegas pool or beach next summer. Or for that matter; this winter in Mexico! F*ck cold weather!

For a firm behind:

woman squatting

Squat with heavy weight using a barbell on your shoulders so you don’t have to rely on your hands to grip such heavy weight. It should be heavy enough that you can barely get to 12. You can use heavier weight if you have a squat rack as pictured above so you can just walk up to it and put the barbell down right from your shoulders. If no rack, then use a weight that’s light enough that you can easily press it above your head when you’re done with the squats.

Press your shoulder blades together, arch your back, stick your butt out and go all the way down so your butt touches your ankles. This will give you a really good stretch in the quadriceps, hamstrings, and buttocks muscles which will get them to grow into firm sexy curves. Do a set of 12 reps, rest for 1 to 2 minutes, and repeat twice for a total of 3 sets.

Then do step-ups or lunges, again with a barbell on the shoulders. 3 sets of 12.

Squats, step-ups and lunges will not only help your lower body, but will also do tremendous good for your core/abs, help kill fat, and tone up your muscles all over your body! No one will call you “skinny”, let alone “fat”, but will most likely refer to you as “hot” or the more formal, “effing hot”.

Lesson:

Ladies, don’t be afraid of lifting heavy! It can only do your body good, and you can ease up if you feel you’re getting too muscular. BTW, you won’t suddenly look like a bodybuilding competitor by accident, don’t kid yourself. It would require a deliberate effort to get really lean and build a ton of muscle, especially because of the low testosterone levels in women. In fact, think about it; it’s kind of insulting to the true body building women—saying that you might get like them without really trying to.

 

 

/by
, , ,

Fri, Oct 22: 2 weeks of cardio

2 weeks of cardio

Today, is the two week mark of doing regular cardio. For the last two months, I hardly did any cardio while I was on the 10 in 30 plan as prescribed. I had done cardio once a week. Now, in the last two weeks, I have done cardio 11 times in 14 days.  I mostly did HIIT in different forms:

  • Constant speed jog, around 20 minutes
  • Constant speed jog, around 20 minutes
  • HIIT on Spinning bike, adjusting the intensity and/or speed every minute for ten minutes
  • Two sets of the high jumps and heavy-bag kick boxing, around 10 minutes
  • Step Mill on Fat Burner Plus setting for 12 minutes
  • Outdoor running including 3 all out ‘run-like-a-zombie-is-chasing-you’ sprints followed by a few ‘so-you-can-actually-breath-again-and-not-drop-dead’ walks
  • A run followed by a sprint followed by step ups during my ‘park workout’
  • Spinning bike HIIT 15 min.
  • HIIT run: treadmill incline up to 18% for 15 minutes (that’s a pretty steep incline on the super incline machines)
  • Spinning bike HIIT 15 min.
  • 15 min HIIT run incline up to 18%

I will do cardio at least 3 days a week ’til I drop my fat to 9% and watch my carbohydrate intake. I’ll mostly eat carbs for breakfast only, and after my workout. Of course, I’m not perfect, so I’ll occasionally have that late night bowl of cereal or the afternoon peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

_ _ _ _ _

/by

Tag Archive for: lean muscle workouts

Bleacher Blast

Hello again. Bum here with this week’s WORKOUT OF THE WEEK: Bleacher Blast!

YAY, really stoked about this one. Did it a few days ago and it really kicked my buttocks. Haven’t sweat like that in a while, and the next few days I was really feeling sore in the glutes from the bleacher squat jumps!

Lower abs really take a hit here as well with the reverse crunches and the hip raises. Check the video out!

[weaver_youtube id=-DFYYpDvwS0 sd=0 percent=100 ratio=.5625 center=1 rel=0 https=0 privacy=0 showinfo=0]

Bleacher Blast

20 seconds of work
10 seconds of rest

1. Quick feet, quick hands

2. Box Crunches

3. Bleacher Jumps

4. Reverse Crunches

5. Quick feet, quick hands

6. Vertical Hip Raises

7. Push Ups

8. Squatting Bleacher Jumps

REPEAT!
3-6 SETS!

The first one, “Quick Feet, Quick Hands” is really supposed to be a bit quicker than that. See the note in the video. Mainly, by using a lower step you can go faster like twice as fast as me in the video making it more of a cardio workout. I went with a higher step so it’s a bit more challenging, works the lower abs a bit more, but doesn’t make your heart work as hard as if you were going faster. So, try both and see which you like more.

For the exercise number 6, Vertical Hip Raises, do not bend your knees. Keep them as straight as you can. You are NOT pumping with your legs, because that would make it a pointless exercise. You would be lifting your hips by pulling with your legs and there is no workout there. Keep them straight, push up on the platform with your hands, and concentrate on flexing your lower abs to lift your hips. Mind/muscle connection.

Leave any questions below! CHEERS! : )

– BUM

 

/0 Comments/by