- Drink plenty of water throughout the day
- Consume nonfat/lowfat dairy foods
- Never skip meals (eat every 3 hours)
- Do NOT drastically reduce your daily caloric intake (NEVER eat less than 1200 kcals daily)
- Eat more high-fiber foods and complex carbs to stave off hunger
- Eat less starchy carbs (e.g., white rice and pasta)
- Eat high-protein snacks such as nuts, egg whites, beens, and cheese to control hunger
- Eat plenty of veggies
- Avoid sodas and high-calorie drinks
- Reduce red meat consumption to less than 3 times per week
- Trim visible fat from meat, poultry and fish
- Eat white meat from chicken and turkey and remove the skin
- Avoid bologna, salami and other high-fat, high-sodium luncheon meats
- Eat s-l-o-w-l-y
- Consume up to 2 cups of coffee per day
- Exercise daily
- Perform weight training 2-4 days per week
- Perform cardio exercise 3-5 days per week
- Vigorous resistance training will maintain or even increase your muscle mass
- Reduce fat intake to under 25% of your total caloric intake
- Reduce consumption of sweets such as cakes, cookies and candy
- Reduce consumption of high-fat snacks such as chips and ice cream
- Replace desserts with fresh fruit
- Practice portion control
- Eat fresh foods
- Broil, boil, poach, or bake foods instead of frying
- Use oils, butter, cream cheese, and sour cream sparingly
- Avoid heavy sauces on foods
- Use lowfat versions of mayonnaise and salad dressings
- Eat foods that have less than 2 grams of fat per 100 calories
- Eat lowfat protein foods at every meal
- Do not eat out daily and avoid eating fast foods
- Start a meal with some soup, salad or fruit
- Choose less calorically-dense foods (ie. less calories per gram)
- Perform high-intensity exercise (e.g., cardio intervals, bodybuilding)
Foods eaten more than one hour before your workout should consist of primarily slow-burning, low-glycemic complex carbs (e.g., oatmeal, whole-wheat bread) while foods eaten less than one hour of your workout should consist of fast-burning, high-glycemic refined carbs (e.g., fruit juice, energy bar, sports drink).The following are examples of recommended foods that provide sufficient energy to fuel a workout:- Apple
- Banana
- Black beans
- Brown rice
- Grapefruit
- Lentils
- Oatmeal
- Orange
- Quinoa
- Raisins
- Sweet potato
- Wheat germ
- Whole-rye bread
- Whole-wheat bread
- Whole-wheat bagel
- Whole-wheat pasta
- Whole-wheat tortilla
Foods eaten after your workout should consist of primarily fast-burning, high-glycemic carbohydrates:
- Angel food cake
- Baked potato
- Cantaloupe
- Chocolate milk
- Couscous
- Cream of wheat
- Gatorade
- Granola
- Lemonade
- Muffin
- Orange juice
- Popcorn
- Rice cakes
- Rice krispies
- Watermelon
- White bagel
- White bread
- White rice
Finally, be sure to consume adequate water before, during and after your workout.
A general rule is to drink at least one-half your bodyweight in fluid ounces daily (i.e. BW = 160 lbs amounts to at least 80 oz or 10 cups of liquid).
FACT: No supplements are tested by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to verify product claims since the supplement industry is not regulated by the FDA.Despite this, there are particular supplements which have a worthy track record in exhibiting consistent positive results. The following are some recommended supplements, potential benefits, research findings, side effects, legal status, and recommended periods to ingest:- Multivitamin-- provides 100% of recommended dietary intake; benefits shown; no side effects when taken as recommended on the label; legal to use; take with food
- Branch-chain amino acids (BCAAs)-- delays fatigue, boosts growth hormone levels, enhances protein synthesis, preserves muscle mass; benefits shown; no known side effects; legal to use; take before and immediately after workouts
- Glutamine-- enhances immunity, reduces cortisol levels, enhances protein synthesis, boosts growth hormone levels; benefits shown; no known side effects; legal to use; take before and immediately after workouts
- Creatine-- improves strength and power, increases muscle mass, increases protein synthesis; benefits shown; no known side effects; legal to use; take before and immediately after workouts
- Casein protein-- preserves muscle mass, provides satiety; benefits shown; no known side effects; legal to use; take as a snack, within one hour after workouts and before bedtime
- Whey protein-- preserves muscle mass; benefits shown; no known side effects; legal to use; take upon waking up as well as within one hour before and after workouts
- Fish oil-- maintains flexible joints, prevents inflammation; benefits shown; no known side effects; legal to use; take with food (should contain at least 1g of DHA and EPA)
- Caffeine-- increases muscle contractility, improves aerobic endurance and fat metabolism, delays fatigue, increases alertness and focus; consistent benefits shown; mild stimulatory effects; legal to use; take after breakfast and within one hour before workouts.
- Note: Caffeine is technically not a supplement but rather a drug and is therefore FDA-regulated when in products such as coffees and teas. It is NOT regulated when in pill form (e.g., green tea extract) and sold as a supplement.
The answer: There is no secret! The reality is you can train your abs every single day for up to 150 reps per set for three sets or more and take as many thermogenic supplements in existence along with some fad diet and still not acquire the elusive "six-pack" abs. Why is this the case? As long as your bodyfat level stays above 10% you will not be able to see abdominal definition.
Yes folks, the solution is simply dependent on your body composition--namely how much bodyfat you have. Spot reduction is a myth and performing seemingly endless ab exercises in the pitiful hope of reducing the size of your belly will ultimately end in miserable failure. You cannot target fat loss from specific areas of your body by simply doing any exercise you can imagine. You cannot control which areas of your body you want to burn fat. Fat burning is a holistic process meaning that overall bodyfat must decrease in order for defined abs to appear. You can stimulate abdominal muscle strength but you cannot burn bodyfat. So at best, you can strengthen your abs by doing crunches but you will not see them. It is just not possible as your body does not work like that.
You do have "six-pack" abs but their appearance cannot be seen since there is a layer of fat just underneath your skin called subcutaneous fat that is obscuring your ab definition. So having said all this, how do you go about getting those "six-pack" abs that you desire? The answer is simple but apparently not easy to do for most people: eat a healthy low-fat diet and perform regular weight-resistant and cardiovascular exercise. Your focus should be on eating six to eight small meals per day (e.g., eat every two to three hours) while gradually decreasing your caloric intake per week. The foods that you eat should be relatively high in protein and fiber and low in refined carbs and saturated fat. In addition, you should drink plenty of water (e.g., about one-half of your bodyweight in ounces) throughout your day. Read my blog on tips on how to lose bodyfat for additional things you can do to facilitate the appearance of those almighty "six-pack" abs.
In order to put on lean body mass (e.g., muscle mass) you need to ensure your testosterone and growth hormone levels are optimal. You can push heavy weights ad nauseam but it will, for the most part, be wasted effort unless your hormone levels are at optimal levels. Here are some tips to follow and abide by in order to allow your body to be in the most anabolic state to put on muscle mass:- Perform compound exercises (i.e., multi-joint movements)
Examples include barbell squats, deadlifts, barbell rows, shoulder military presses and bench presses. These exercises promote a surge of testosterone and growth hormone release and therefore are highly anabolic in nature. That is, exercises like squats really promote muscular growth to occur.- Perform each set to near failure
"Listen" to your body and do as many reps as you possibly can with a weight that causes fatigue between 8 to 12 repetitions. That burning sensation you feel is the trigger mechanism to release more testosterone and growth hormone throughout your body. You can count reps to track your progress relative to your rep range goal but don't stop the exercise just because you've reached the high number in the range (e.g., 12 reps). Keep going! You need to strive to perform as many reps as you can so as to shock your muscles into getting stronger and larger. If you're not doing leg exercises, particularly compound leg exercises (e.g., squats and stiff-leg deadlifts), you're wrong. Leg training encourages more testosterone and growth hormone release which facilitates more muscle mass gain. Enough said. Be sure to note what time you begin your workouts so that you can track your workout durations. You should not spend more than 1.5 hours in the gym doing weight training plus cardio. Try to get your weight training done within one hour and then do some cardio (e.g., stairstepper, treadmill, bike, rower, etc.). The weight training portion of your workout should consist of no more than 3 sets per exercise. The cardio portion of your workout does not have to be a marathon session and can be abbreviated down to 30 minutes or less by doing interval training. You can burn just as much or even more calories by alternating high- and low-intensities (e.g., 10 METS for 1 minute alternating with 7 METS for 2 minutes). Weight training and cardio frequency should be limited to no more than 4 days per week. You should track the parameters (e.g., sets, reps, loads, rest periods) of each and every workout in order to periodically increase the intensity of each training session (e.g., boost the loading or increase the reps). This is how progression is accomplished. The discipline needed to do this will pay off in the end as your body will respond favorably to the increased stresses you place upon it by getting stronger and more muscular. EFAs are essential fatty acids found in animal products (e.g., fish, chicken, eggs, dairy products), vegetables (e.g., avocados, sweet potatoes), nuts (e.g., walnuts, almonds, peanuts), and unsaturated oils (e.g., fish, canola, soybean, vegetable oils). EFAs are needed in your diet to regulate your steroid hormone levels (e.g., testosterone) and transport fat-soluble vitamins (e.g., A, D, E, K).- Restrict alcohol consumption
More than moderate daily intake of alcohol (i.e., greater than two 6 oz glasses of wine for men and one 6 oz glass of wine for women) can actually decrease testosterone levels and may even promote the release of estrogen--not an ideal scenario for putting on muscle mass. You should strive to get at least 7 hours or more of sleep per night. Steroid hormone levels (e.g., testosterone and growth hormone) are most elevated in the mornings in conjunction with a good, restful night's sleep. These hormones are essential for muscle recovery to take place. In addition, you need to get enough sleep to keep you mentally sharp in the gym so you can be totally focused on your workout. Remember, you tear down your muscles inside the gym with heavy, intense training but your muscles grow outside the gym with good nutrition: In order to gain muscle mass (e.g., one pound per week) it is absolutely necessary to increase your daily food intake each and every week to get in enough calories to grow. The easiest way to begin doing this is to simply increase portion sizes for the foods you currently eat. It is better to gradually increase caloric intake to allow the body to adjust accordingly. Eventually you will need to introduce new foods into your diet in order to further increase your caloric intake. How much: The recommendation varies from 15 to 18 calories per pound bodyweight. To ensure you're eating enough calories be sure to eat about every 3 hours. Doing this will maintain your blood sugar levels as well as stoke your metabolic rate so that your body does not go into "starvation" mode--hoarding whatever calories it gets and storing them as fat! Instead, by eating regularly throughout the day, you will be "feeding" your hungry muscles. The building blocks of muscle tissue consist of amino acids found in protein. These molecules are essential to enhance muscle growth while reducing catabolism (i.e., this process shortens recovery time). Examples of high-quality protein foods include eggs, lean chicken and turkey, fish, and cottage cheese.How much: The recommendation varies from 1.5 to 2 g per pound bodyweight. Muscles store carbs in the form of glycogen, the primary fuel source during workouts. Getting enough glycogen stored into the muscle tissue is essential to allow water to be pulled into your muscle tissue, enhancing membrane stretching and muscle growth. Examples of high-quality carb foods include oatmeal, blueberries, bananas, broccoli, spinach, sweet potatoes, and brown rice.How much: The recommendation varies from 2.5 to 3 g per pound bodyweight. You should eat mostly unsaturated fats (e.g., seafood, nuts, peanut butter, olive oil) and some saturated fats (e.g., chicken, eggs, dairy products). The unsaturated fats enhance muscle and joint recovery while the saturated fats keep your testosterone levels elevated to enhance muscle growth. Examples of high-quality fats include olive oil, fish oil, nuts, and avocados.How much: The recommendation is 0.5 g per pound of bodyweight. The recommended macronutrient ratio of carbs: protein: fats to gain muscle mass is 65: 25: 10. Thus, 65% of your caloric intake should be carbs, 25% caloric intake should be protein, and 10% caloric intake should be fats. You should begin adding supplements to your diet only after you have managed your macronutrient intake. Start with a good comprehensive multivitamin/multimineral and a high-quality whey protein powder. Additional supplements to be added include creatine powder, branamino acids (BCAAs), glutamine powder, and ch-chain fish oil.
The answer is simple and it doesn't involve those "high-energy" drinks you find almost anywhere nowadays! Besides engaging in regular bouts (i.e., at least 3 days/wk) of exercise such as weight lifting, walking, running, swimming, etc., good nutrition habits are the key to maintaining and even increasing one's energy level. Eating healthy foods (e.g., fruits, vegetables) may boost serotonin levels and make you feel good and relaxed.The following foods may make you feel stressed, nervous and tired and should therefore be limited in your diet:- Sugary, processed foods (e.g., cakes, doughnuts, cookies, high-sugar drinks) -- relatively high intake of simple sugars may cause dramatic fluctuations in blood sugar and energy levels (the resulting "sugar high" and crash that follows), increase total cholesterol, increase inflammation, and promote fat storage
- High-salt foods (e.g., hot dogs, chips) -- may increase blood pressure levels and sap energy levels
- High-caffeinated foods (e.g., sodas, espresso) -- may cause fluctuations in energy levels, reduce calcium and magnesium absorption which could increase stress levels
- High-saturated fatty foods (e.g., high-fat meats, butter, cheese) -- may slow the rate of digestion and promote tiredness and exhaustion
- Alcohol -- may affect the liver's ability to metabolize and process nutrients in foods and reduce energy levels
- Preservatives (i.e., most processed foods) -- may negatively impact digestion and absorption of nutrients in the body and may promote lethargy
The following foods may boost your mood, make you feel calm but energized and should therefore be increased in your diet:- Tryptophan-containing foods (e.g., oats, cashews, wheat, yams, spinach) -- releases serotonin levels which may boost your mood and decrease cholesterol levels
- Potassium and vitamin B foods (e.g., legumes, walnuts, peanuts, almonds, bananas, avocados, beans, chicken, turkey, fish, broccoli, brown rice) -- may reduce blood pressure levels and increase energy levels
- Whole-grain foods (e.g., whole-wheat bread and pasta) -- relatively high-complex carb foods slow digestion rates (increasing satiety), decrease bad cholesterol levels, and enhance serotonin release
- Fruits and vegetables (e.g., peppers, broccoli) -- these foods are relatively high in antioxidants and therefore reduce free radical damage and inflammation within the body
- Magnesium-rich foods (e.g., almonds, nuts) -- may strengthen adrenal gland function
- Zinc-rich foods (e.g., nuts, beans) -- may enhance serotonin release
- Omega-3 foods (e.g., walnuts, fish, tuna, sardines) -- may reduce blood pressure levels, increase good cholesterol, reduce inflammation, and increase insulin sensitivity
This is an easy question with a simple answer: eat less food and drink more water. Ice-cold water is highly recommended since the body needs to warm the cold water (thus enhancing the body's metabolic rate) prior to digestion throughout the day. The key part here is to drink more water.
If you drink more water, you will eat less food. It's that simple. How can this be? The more you drink (especially between meals and snacks), the more satiated you'll feel and therefore the less food you'll consume. The less food you eat, the less your caloric intake. As your caloric intake decreases, and all other things being considered (i.e., unchanged activity level), you will lose bodyweight. So how much water should you drink? You should drink at least half of your bodyweight in ounces of water per day. Thus, a person weighing 160 lbs should drink at least 80 oz or 10 cups of water daily. But the more water you drink the better! By the way, drinking your calories (e.g., soda, fruit juices, energy drinks, etc.) in place or in addition to food is a sure-fire way to gain weight rather than lose it. Liquid calories can surely add up throughout the day so lose the soda! You should also consider eating fibrous foods from grains (e.g., brown rice, whole-grain bread, whole-grain cereal), vegetables (e.g., broccoli, carrots, beans, sweet potatoes), and fruit (e.g., apples, berries, prunes). Eating foods high in fiber stabilizes blood sugar levels, reduces insulin resistance, reduces appetite, blocks fat absorption, and most importantly (in the context of this reading) reduces bodyweight.
Another easy way to lose bodyweight is to take hourly breaks when sitting and stand up, step away from the computer or desk, and walk about for a few minutes each hour. This act alone may trim your waistline and more importantly lessen your risk of metabolic diseases plaguing American society today (e.g., heart disease, obesity). According to a recent study in the European Heart Journal (Jan 2011), reducing sedentary behavior by taking small breaks and standing and/or walking can reduce stomach fat. The bottom line is any little bit of movement throughout your day adds up!
Another very important consideration is getting adequate sleep every night! What constitutes adequate sleep? Strive to get at least 7 hours of restful pillow time each and every night. Human growth hormone (HGH) levels fluctuate throughout the night when you're asleep but the level increases particularly upon waking up. Increased HGH levels, along with testosterone, affect your metabolic rate. As these hormones increase metabolism is stoked and the fat-burning process is accelerated. Thus, your body becomes more efficient at burning bodyfat when it gets optimum sleep. Optimum sleep for most people varies between 7 to 9 hours per night. Sweet dreams!eams!
Of course continuing your exercise program is essential (i.e., aerobic and weight training), but the foods you eat is also extremely important. If you want to maintain your bodyweight after losing those dreaded pounds, you need to eat more foods that are relatively high in protein and low on the glycemic index (e.g.,chicken,eggs, fish, nuts).
The glycemic index is a measure of how quickly carbohydrates are broken down, affecting blood sugar levels. High-glycemic foods are assigned a value of 70 and above (e.g., white bread, baked potato, white pasta, white rice) whereas low-glycemic foods are given a value below 55 (e.g., whole-wheat bread, sweet potato, whole-wheat pasta, brown rice). A recent study (New England Journal of Medicine, 2010) in which the participants (N = 773) were randomly assigned to one of five diet plans has determined that the low-carb, high-protein, moderate-fat diet plan (i.e., 40% carbs, 30% protein, 30% fat) was easier for one group of the participants to adhere to for a longer period of time (i.e., 26 weeks) compared to other diet plans. The diet followed was relatively high in protein, low in sugar, high in fiber (increases satiety), with restrictions on portion sizes but not particularly on calories consumed.
Being able to maintain one's bodyweight after having lost poundage is usually the hardest part. A high-protein, low-sugar diet is easy to follow and practical for long-term durations. Stop the madness of trying out the latest trendy diet plan with the pitiful belief that you will lose weight! There is nothing magical about any diet plan out there in the world. The best diet is the one in which you eat the foods you enjoy and is consistent in total daily calories. It is the diet plan that you can follow indefinitely without sacrifice. Start by eating a hearty breakfast high in fiber, complex carbs and protein (protein taken within 30 minutes of waking up can reduce satiety so that you'll eat less Calories later). Eat some food every 2 to 3 hours to maintain blood sugar levels. Avoid a heavy dinner, especially before going to bed. These tips are not hard to employ, especially if you write down the foods you eat. The very act of writing down the foods you eat will get you to carefully consider whether you should put that doughnut, candy bar, or soda into your gullet.gullet.
This is an excellent question. Most people don't have the inclination nor the desire to invest a lot of time and money planning and making meals every three hours. What I've learned as a personal trainer is that any sense of inconvenience related to performing a task (e.g., preparing and eating 6 meals per day) will almost certainly doom the accomplishment of it. Fret no more! Here are my 2 easy convenient steps to guide you on your journey to eating every two to three hours (heck, anybody, even poor, harried college students can follow this):
- Step 1 -- Buy the food:
- Frozen veggies (e.g., spinach, broccoli, edamame, etc.)
- Fresh fruit (e.g., bananas, apples, avocados, raisins, plums, oranges, grapefruit, etc.)
- Milk and/or soy drink
- Orange juice
- Canned tuna, salmon and/or sardines
- Canned beans of every variety (e.g., pinto, black, navy, kidney, garbanzo, etc.)
- Old-fashioned oatmeal
- Eggs
- Cheese (e.g., Swiss, Monterey Jack, etc.)
- Cottage cheese
- Protein powder supplement
- Mixed nuts
- Step 2 -- Eat the food (minimal preparation needed):
- Meal 1
- Milk or water (1/2 cup)
- Protein powder supplement (1 scoop)
- Meal 2:
- Old-fashioned oatmeal (1/2 cup)
- Eggs (2)
- Fresh fruit
- Milk (1 cup)
- Orange juice (1 cup)
- Meal 3:
- Canned tuna, salmon and/or sardines (1 can)
- Frozen veggies (1/2 cup)
- Meal 4:
- Milk or water (1/2 cup)
- Protein powder supplement (1 scoop)
- Fresh fruit
- Meal 5:
- Eggs (2)
- Cheese (1-inch cube)
- Beans (1/2 cup)
- Frozen veggie (1/2 cup)
- Meal 6:
- Cottage cheese (1/2 cup)
- Nuts (1 handful)
Note: The fresh fruit, canned tuna and/or canned beans can be transported, stored and eaten anytime during the day for a filling snack.
Remember this: Eat to live, not live to eat!
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