Most people make these common mistakes when they want a flat stomach!
Just spent a week reading about the latest diet crazes where they all recommend cutting calories or fasting. So I decided to join a slimming club where I saw different people that seemed to be wasting their time and effort. They were allowed to continue to eat certain junk food. This sounded appealing at first but the members of the slimming club didn’t look the way I aspired to look like so I was left confused and worried.
And that's really sad. After all, almost everyone goes on a diet to get a flat stomach, but almost everyone never achieves his or her goals!
In fact, most people make the same common mistakes.
Mistake #1 - Routinely getting weighed
The biggest mistakes a dieter can make is setting their minds to reaching a number on the weighing scales every week or in some crazy cases every day! This repetitive behaviour is heavy on the mind making the participant feel incarcerated. It’s common for them to just focus on numbers without considering health & fitness or the quality of the food they are eating. This behaviour leads to frustration and unnecessary pressure.
Tip: The above system is nothing more than a marketing tool to help sell a diet; it has no benefit whatsoever. Getting weighed regularly doesn’t tell you if you are losing fat or which area of the body is changing shape. The best way to measure progress is using the mirror and/or to take tape measurements around the bum, hips, thigh, waist, chest and arms.
Mistake #2 - Counting calories
Ha! I wish it were as easy as just that. Eating X amount of calories will make you look like so and so. If this was true how come over 90% of dieters never achieve permanent results on calorie controlled diets? I will tell you why, it is because the quality of calories and which food groups these calories come from are missing from the picture. The most valuable piece of information a dieter needs always seems to be conveniently missing so not to upset the recurring revenue stream.
Tip: A basic understanding of food groups needs to be learned for best results, don’t worry because it is simple and quick to learn. There are 3 main food groups, Carbohydrates, Protein and Fat. Once you learn which type of foods comes from each food group it is easy to lose weight and fat. This is because you can begin to use ratios for your meals. The benefits of ratios are to monitor the amounts of carbohydrates you need versus protein to lose weight and fat. Calorie controlled diets fail to recognise this important step, that is why you see overweight people unable to lose weight and fat on low calorie diets.
Most people make these common mistakes when they want a flat stomach!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Thursday, September 30, 2010
HOW TO BE A BODY TRANSFORMATION WINNER
Are you playing Russian roulette at the gym?
All different kinds of success and achievements are born out of a goal. Goals are behind the worlds leading business tycoons and winning sports teams, and without a goal you are playing Russian roulette with your fat loss efforts. Success stories that happen by chance are few and far between. Every one of us needs a plan and needs to follow directions in order to get to where we want to go. This is regardless of whether the goal is for fat loss or other personal reasons.
The best fat loss transformations of the year don’t become slim and lean by accident. It starts with a goal. There’s no doubt that this sounds overwhelming at first to the overweight and out of shape person, but by breaking down the desire to become slim into little achievable goals it is easier to achieve each little step one at a time until the goal is achieved.
All it takes is a goal, not having a goal is one of the biggest mistakes anyone can make when embarking on any kind of diet. You have to be specific in order to get the best value from your time and effort. There has to be a reason for wanting to get in shape and change, the reason is your number one motivational tool that you can continuously refer to and remind yourself where you want to end up. By writing it down you can carry it around with you and use it to your advantage when the going gets tough.
Think about it for a few moments, what do you really want? A six-pack? Better health? Lose overall weight? Look great naked? Lose flabby body fat? Get rid of man boobs? Look younger? Feel fitter? Look more attractive? Feel confident? Live longer?
Whatever you want to achieve and change write it down and don’t forget to state the reasons why you want it. This is a powerful tool that can help you more than you realise. Once you have a goal in front of you all you will need to do is plan the steps required to reach it. Keep the steps as simple as possible or you will be more likely to fail. Remember you don’t need luck on your side because you are in control of what you want and what you get.
Are you playing Russian roulette at the gym?
All different kinds of success and achievements are born out of a goal. Goals are behind the worlds leading business tycoons and winning sports teams, and without a goal you are playing Russian roulette with your fat loss efforts. Success stories that happen by chance are few and far between. Every one of us needs a plan and needs to follow directions in order to get to where we want to go. This is regardless of whether the goal is for fat loss or other personal reasons.
The best fat loss transformations of the year don’t become slim and lean by accident. It starts with a goal. There’s no doubt that this sounds overwhelming at first to the overweight and out of shape person, but by breaking down the desire to become slim into little achievable goals it is easier to achieve each little step one at a time until the goal is achieved.
All it takes is a goal, not having a goal is one of the biggest mistakes anyone can make when embarking on any kind of diet. You have to be specific in order to get the best value from your time and effort. There has to be a reason for wanting to get in shape and change, the reason is your number one motivational tool that you can continuously refer to and remind yourself where you want to end up. By writing it down you can carry it around with you and use it to your advantage when the going gets tough.
Think about it for a few moments, what do you really want? A six-pack? Better health? Lose overall weight? Look great naked? Lose flabby body fat? Get rid of man boobs? Look younger? Feel fitter? Look more attractive? Feel confident? Live longer?
Whatever you want to achieve and change write it down and don’t forget to state the reasons why you want it. This is a powerful tool that can help you more than you realise. Once you have a goal in front of you all you will need to do is plan the steps required to reach it. Keep the steps as simple as possible or you will be more likely to fail. Remember you don’t need luck on your side because you are in control of what you want and what you get.
Are you playing Russian roulette at the gym?
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Exercise Tips for Fat Loss
Some of my favourite training tips guaranteed to carve you a better body with less body fat in less time!
Just because you regularly clock in at the gym doesn’t mean you are on the road to fast fat loss results. Marathon type workouts and going at it half-heartedly isn’t the way to train to look your best in the shortest amount of time.
It is time to stop guessing and livings in hope of miraculously waking up with a perfect body because it doesn’t work like that. What follows are brief excerpts of some of my favourite training tips guaranteed to carve you a better body with less body fat in less than a fraction of the time you currently spend.
Before embarking on regular exercise it is important to assess which muscles are tight and need stretching. The reason for this is because a tight muscle could compromise the technique of an exercise and over compensates other parts of the body causing overuse problems. Learning proper stretching techniques and investing time in holding the stretches in the areas you can feel stretch when you perform them will benefit your posture and help prevent injuries.
When you exercise you need to train intense but smart. This means training within your capabilities that allows a minimum of a good technique on everything you do. This mainly points to lifting a weight that is too heavy for you. Doing only part of the range of a movement or trying to force more reps than you can manage safely will probably result in quick and poorly performed repetitions. Properly performed reps are real reps; they are more demanding and achieve greater results. Poorly performed reps will take the stress away from the body part making it easier but less effective.
Exercise selection is important if you want fat loss too. Big movements are essential. The multi joint exercises works more muscles and burns more calories, whether if you want to body build, tone or reduce fat the big exercises will get you there quicker. Performed correctly they will also have the best carry over effect to functional ability to help you in work, sports and day to day tasks.
Think of exercises a bit like your diet, the more variety the better. I once learnt in a lecture that an average person eats no more than 12 different kinds of food in a typical week. Do you do the same with exercise selection by doing the same exercises week in and week out? If so, then it is time to shock your system. Train to achieve a response from your workout with the method of rotating your exercises frequently. Keep in mind there are many alternatives to the standard exercises; although you are basically doing the same movement you can change the response by using different tools and methods. You also have less chance of suffering from ‘overuse injuries’ if you regularly rotate your exercises.
To get the best results you will need to move quick between exercises without rushing the reps. The next time you are in the gym take a look around; chances are there are people lifting more weight than they are capable of lifting which will mean poorly performed fast sets of exercises. Now take a note of how long people rest in-between sets, I can bet you that the average time is a few minutes before doing the next set. It surprises me how many people on weight loss and toning programmes do this, they are resting far too long. They are taking the same amount of rest needed to achieve a 3-5-rep max. Decrease the rest time between sets for more intensity in the workout, it is normally the first variable I introduce in a programme to increase the overall intensity.
If you can’t make it to the gym don’t worry because you can achieve fat loss without any gym equipment. Have you noticed the physiques of gymnasts? You will never see overweight or out of shape gymnast, that’s because training against gravity is one of the best things you can do to look your best. The feedback I get from clients after doing bodyweight exercises is always that they are surprised how hard they are and how much effort is needed to perform them. Make sure to include gravity-based body weight exercises in your fat loss workout.
Some of my favourite training tips guaranteed to carve you a better body with less body fat in less time!
Just because you regularly clock in at the gym doesn’t mean you are on the road to fast fat loss results. Marathon type workouts and going at it half-heartedly isn’t the way to train to look your best in the shortest amount of time.
It is time to stop guessing and livings in hope of miraculously waking up with a perfect body because it doesn’t work like that. What follows are brief excerpts of some of my favourite training tips guaranteed to carve you a better body with less body fat in less than a fraction of the time you currently spend.
Before embarking on regular exercise it is important to assess which muscles are tight and need stretching. The reason for this is because a tight muscle could compromise the technique of an exercise and over compensates other parts of the body causing overuse problems. Learning proper stretching techniques and investing time in holding the stretches in the areas you can feel stretch when you perform them will benefit your posture and help prevent injuries.
When you exercise you need to train intense but smart. This means training within your capabilities that allows a minimum of a good technique on everything you do. This mainly points to lifting a weight that is too heavy for you. Doing only part of the range of a movement or trying to force more reps than you can manage safely will probably result in quick and poorly performed repetitions. Properly performed reps are real reps; they are more demanding and achieve greater results. Poorly performed reps will take the stress away from the body part making it easier but less effective.
Exercise selection is important if you want fat loss too. Big movements are essential. The multi joint exercises works more muscles and burns more calories, whether if you want to body build, tone or reduce fat the big exercises will get you there quicker. Performed correctly they will also have the best carry over effect to functional ability to help you in work, sports and day to day tasks.
Think of exercises a bit like your diet, the more variety the better. I once learnt in a lecture that an average person eats no more than 12 different kinds of food in a typical week. Do you do the same with exercise selection by doing the same exercises week in and week out? If so, then it is time to shock your system. Train to achieve a response from your workout with the method of rotating your exercises frequently. Keep in mind there are many alternatives to the standard exercises; although you are basically doing the same movement you can change the response by using different tools and methods. You also have less chance of suffering from ‘overuse injuries’ if you regularly rotate your exercises.
To get the best results you will need to move quick between exercises without rushing the reps. The next time you are in the gym take a look around; chances are there are people lifting more weight than they are capable of lifting which will mean poorly performed fast sets of exercises. Now take a note of how long people rest in-between sets, I can bet you that the average time is a few minutes before doing the next set. It surprises me how many people on weight loss and toning programmes do this, they are resting far too long. They are taking the same amount of rest needed to achieve a 3-5-rep max. Decrease the rest time between sets for more intensity in the workout, it is normally the first variable I introduce in a programme to increase the overall intensity.
If you can’t make it to the gym don’t worry because you can achieve fat loss without any gym equipment. Have you noticed the physiques of gymnasts? You will never see overweight or out of shape gymnast, that’s because training against gravity is one of the best things you can do to look your best. The feedback I get from clients after doing bodyweight exercises is always that they are surprised how hard they are and how much effort is needed to perform them. Make sure to include gravity-based body weight exercises in your fat loss workout.
Some of my favourite training tips guaranteed to carve you a better body with less body fat in less time!
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Diet Advice for A Lean Six Pack
Nutrients from natural food always take a back seat with the recommendations you see in some magazines!
There’s a fine line between dieting for weight loss and building a good physique. Some bodybuilders have reverse anorexia and will compromise the quality of food just to get their desired daily calorie intake in the hope it will pack on the muscle. It’s not that easy and is one of the many misconceptions that dominate the thinking of a typical bodybuilder, especially the beginner bodybuilder.
Calories are not just calories; there are bad calories and good calories and even the good calories need to be properly balanced for best results. The same diet can have an effect on different people in different ways. Each and every one of us is unique in the ability to digest and assimilate nutrients; our individual genetic make up determines this.
Bodybuilding magazines are guilty of publishing diets with the inclusion of food supplements for building muscle and stripping the fat. Sometimes you have to look hard to see food on the list because there are so many recommended shakes and tablets for this and that. Nutrients from natural food always take a back seat with the recommendations you see in these mainstream magazines.
The bodybuilding-publishing world gets the reader to believe that certain supplements are essential and the most important aspect of a bodybuilder’s daily nutritional intake. These days there are food supplements crafted to any goal. It’s not hard to realise there is a hidden agenda to these magazines; they are all trying to sell something. If the magazine isn’t financially connected to the food supplement company that it recommends you could bet they need the advertising revenue from them to stay afloat.
The quality of nutrition will determine the speed of progress and the amount of results you achieve with bodybuilding. Lifting weights doesn’t and can’t turn a bad food into a good food. It’s impossible to reverse the effects of a bad diet with exercise. It is also impossible to cancel out the bad effects from poor nutrition by using food supplements.
Food supplements are designed to supplement the diet and not take over it. A few of the top brands can be beneficial for convenience and nothing much more. A closer look at these supplements and you would find a list of cheap processed ingredients mixed with artificial sweeteners. My recommendation is no more than 10% of your daily diet should be from food supplements. Food from organic and free-range sources is far more superior then powdered and tablet concoctions.
Nutrients from natural food always take a back seat with the recommendations you see in some magazines!
There’s a fine line between dieting for weight loss and building a good physique. Some bodybuilders have reverse anorexia and will compromise the quality of food just to get their desired daily calorie intake in the hope it will pack on the muscle. It’s not that easy and is one of the many misconceptions that dominate the thinking of a typical bodybuilder, especially the beginner bodybuilder.
Calories are not just calories; there are bad calories and good calories and even the good calories need to be properly balanced for best results. The same diet can have an effect on different people in different ways. Each and every one of us is unique in the ability to digest and assimilate nutrients; our individual genetic make up determines this.
Bodybuilding magazines are guilty of publishing diets with the inclusion of food supplements for building muscle and stripping the fat. Sometimes you have to look hard to see food on the list because there are so many recommended shakes and tablets for this and that. Nutrients from natural food always take a back seat with the recommendations you see in these mainstream magazines.
The bodybuilding-publishing world gets the reader to believe that certain supplements are essential and the most important aspect of a bodybuilder’s daily nutritional intake. These days there are food supplements crafted to any goal. It’s not hard to realise there is a hidden agenda to these magazines; they are all trying to sell something. If the magazine isn’t financially connected to the food supplement company that it recommends you could bet they need the advertising revenue from them to stay afloat.
The quality of nutrition will determine the speed of progress and the amount of results you achieve with bodybuilding. Lifting weights doesn’t and can’t turn a bad food into a good food. It’s impossible to reverse the effects of a bad diet with exercise. It is also impossible to cancel out the bad effects from poor nutrition by using food supplements.
Food supplements are designed to supplement the diet and not take over it. A few of the top brands can be beneficial for convenience and nothing much more. A closer look at these supplements and you would find a list of cheap processed ingredients mixed with artificial sweeteners. My recommendation is no more than 10% of your daily diet should be from food supplements. Food from organic and free-range sources is far more superior then powdered and tablet concoctions.
Nutrients from natural food always take a back seat with the recommendations you see in some magazines!
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Eat & Move Like A Caveman
Eat natural & become slim - push, pull, bend, squat, lunge & twist to burn fat!
Have you seen the film Castaway starring Tom Hanks? This isn’t a film review but rather a review of how we live our lives today compared to our primitive ancestors. On the film Castaway the character played by Tom Hanks ends up stranded on a remote island for four years, having no choice but to fend for himself for survival just like a Stone Age man.
He didn’t sit around all day waiting to get fat, he was forced into doing exercise by needing to hunt for food for survival. There was no processed food, no soft drinks or limitless calories on hand. He was forced to work his body the way it was designed to by pulling, pushing, bending, twisting, squatting, lunging, throwing and even climbing his way through a typical day so he could hunt food and eat to stay alive.
This tells us a few things about our modern day existence.
1. We don’t need to do any form of exercise in order to make it through a typical day.
2. We have unlimited supplies of calories at our disposal without needing to exert our bodies for them.
3. The food choices we have are not all from nature.
4. The most convenient foods we eat today and over consume are man made. These contain added artificial concoctions, which are almost impossible to pronounce.
Compared to our ancestors we move less, eat more, have higher stress levels and eat poorer quality foods. The majority of us do very little exercise daily, sedentary lifestyles take over our day to day existence leaving our bodies under worked and over fed with the wrong fuels. Put all this together and you have an obesity problem.
Taking a leaf out of a castaway like Tom Hanks would dramatically reduce body fat in no time at all. Doing a little daily exercise and eating natural food is the quickest way to a six-pack and reduced fat on the body. But above all it is a healthier way to live your life.
Eat natural & become slim - push, pull, bend, squat, lunge & twist to burn fat!
Have you seen the film Castaway starring Tom Hanks? This isn’t a film review but rather a review of how we live our lives today compared to our primitive ancestors. On the film Castaway the character played by Tom Hanks ends up stranded on a remote island for four years, having no choice but to fend for himself for survival just like a Stone Age man.
He didn’t sit around all day waiting to get fat, he was forced into doing exercise by needing to hunt for food for survival. There was no processed food, no soft drinks or limitless calories on hand. He was forced to work his body the way it was designed to by pulling, pushing, bending, twisting, squatting, lunging, throwing and even climbing his way through a typical day so he could hunt food and eat to stay alive.
This tells us a few things about our modern day existence.
1. We don’t need to do any form of exercise in order to make it through a typical day.
2. We have unlimited supplies of calories at our disposal without needing to exert our bodies for them.
3. The food choices we have are not all from nature.
4. The most convenient foods we eat today and over consume are man made. These contain added artificial concoctions, which are almost impossible to pronounce.
Compared to our ancestors we move less, eat more, have higher stress levels and eat poorer quality foods. The majority of us do very little exercise daily, sedentary lifestyles take over our day to day existence leaving our bodies under worked and over fed with the wrong fuels. Put all this together and you have an obesity problem.
Taking a leaf out of a castaway like Tom Hanks would dramatically reduce body fat in no time at all. Doing a little daily exercise and eating natural food is the quickest way to a six-pack and reduced fat on the body. But above all it is a healthier way to live your life.
Eat natural & become slim - push, pull, bend, squat, lunge & twist to burn fat!
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Want Fat Loss Results? The Questions You Need to Answer
The guidelines for successful fat loss are all free!
Ever wondered why diets never seem to work for permanent results? Have you tried and failed to lose weight or shift stubborn body fat in the past by counting calories, weighing food, eliminating food groups and exercising like mad? I recommend the first and one of the most important actions to take to fight the fat is to set goals and ask yourself the reasons why you want fat loss.
If you want guaranteed results in a speedy fashion you need to know which direction to take and avoid making the same mistakes other dieters make by not setting clear goals. After all you wouldn’t dream of going on a road trip to a brand new destination without turning on the Sat Nav in your vehicle would you? So why should it be different when embarking on a body transformation journey?
These are the main questions you need to ask yourself in order to succeed.
1. What Do You Want To Look Like? Write this down; describe everything in the finest detail and compare it to where you are now, don’t forget to describe your feelings now and how you will feel like once you reach your goal. Once you write down the changes you would like to see it is easier for the mind to accept and become comfortable with in order to make the steps to make it happen. I believe if you do this you will be using a very powerful psychological leap forward and according to my research is a routine almost all self-made millionaires and successful people have used.
2. What Time Frame Do You Want This To Happen? Be realistic but don’t be too conservative, a bit of pressure is good. If you fail to set a time on your goal you are less likely to accomplish what you set out to achieve because you haven’t any need to rush which could make you lazy. Never throw away the chance of an extra motivational tool. Weeks and months up to a wedding, birthday or holiday are all great targets to aim for.
3. Who Are You Doing This For and Why? Is it for your health & happiness, family/partner or for your career? Once you find the trigger point you have another motivational tool. There is no better motivation for doing something than to do it to impress someone you care about. But the bottom line is if you don’t want fat loss for yourself then you are not ready to take the steps needed to succeed. You must genuinely want it enough to take the action required.
The above guidelines for successful fat loss are all free. They are overlooked by the quick fix culture but very powerful when used and applied to your goals.
The guidelines for successful fat loss are all free!
Ever wondered why diets never seem to work for permanent results? Have you tried and failed to lose weight or shift stubborn body fat in the past by counting calories, weighing food, eliminating food groups and exercising like mad? I recommend the first and one of the most important actions to take to fight the fat is to set goals and ask yourself the reasons why you want fat loss.
If you want guaranteed results in a speedy fashion you need to know which direction to take and avoid making the same mistakes other dieters make by not setting clear goals. After all you wouldn’t dream of going on a road trip to a brand new destination without turning on the Sat Nav in your vehicle would you? So why should it be different when embarking on a body transformation journey?
These are the main questions you need to ask yourself in order to succeed.
1. What Do You Want To Look Like? Write this down; describe everything in the finest detail and compare it to where you are now, don’t forget to describe your feelings now and how you will feel like once you reach your goal. Once you write down the changes you would like to see it is easier for the mind to accept and become comfortable with in order to make the steps to make it happen. I believe if you do this you will be using a very powerful psychological leap forward and according to my research is a routine almost all self-made millionaires and successful people have used.
2. What Time Frame Do You Want This To Happen? Be realistic but don’t be too conservative, a bit of pressure is good. If you fail to set a time on your goal you are less likely to accomplish what you set out to achieve because you haven’t any need to rush which could make you lazy. Never throw away the chance of an extra motivational tool. Weeks and months up to a wedding, birthday or holiday are all great targets to aim for.
3. Who Are You Doing This For and Why? Is it for your health & happiness, family/partner or for your career? Once you find the trigger point you have another motivational tool. There is no better motivation for doing something than to do it to impress someone you care about. But the bottom line is if you don’t want fat loss for yourself then you are not ready to take the steps needed to succeed. You must genuinely want it enough to take the action required.
The above guidelines for successful fat loss are all free. They are overlooked by the quick fix culture but very powerful when used and applied to your goals.
The guidelines for successful fat loss are all free!
Friday, September 10, 2010
How to Train to Look Lean & Strong
Combining circuit workouts with bodybuilding workouts for fat loss & shape!
I thought I’d write a quick article about the workouts I’ve been doing lately. I have got some awesome results training in the circuit style with a few modifications to suit my goals.
Three and a half weeks in and I had gained six pounds with a noticeable difference to my physique. The six pounds have come from increased muscle tone and not body fat. I have to tell you these workouts are aerobically tough and challenging for me.
These are the guidelines I’ve been following:
I rest 30 seconds between exercises and 120 seconds between rounds.
I keep the reps between 8 and 12, dropping no lower than 6 on the last round. I’ve been keeping the weight the same for all the rounds so I don’t lose technique and this also helps me keep the reps in the bracket I want. I always perform a warm up round with lighter weights prior to beginning the main workout.
I do 3 workouts per week and change the workouts after 3 weeks.
These are some of the workouts I did for the first 3 weeks:
Monday:
Rack Chest Press
Weighted Pull Ups
Weighted Dips
One Arm Cable Row (in a lunge position)
Dumbbell Squats
Wednesday:
Deadlift
Incline Dumbbell Chest Press
Wide Chin Ups
Split Squats with Dumbbells
EZ Bent Over Row
Friday: (2 smaller circuits)
Squats
One Arm Dumbbell Row
One Arm Standing Dumbbell Press
Calf Raises
EZ Reverse Curl
Rope Pushdowns (single arm) – I keep the movement at the side of my body doing it this way instead of in front. With this second circuit I don’t rest 120 seconds before repeating- I get straight in to it.
Week 4 to 6 went like this:
Monday: (5 rounds) – I increase weight on this workout as I go along.
Deadlift
Weighted Dips
Weighted Pull Ups – I keep the reps at around 5 on this exercise only
Wednesday: (2 smaller circuits - 3 rounds on each) – I keep the weight the same and reps 8-12. When I get 3 rounds of 12 - I can increase the weight.
Squats
Flat Dumbbell Chest Press
Wide Pull Ups
Shoulder L Raise
Arnold Press
Upright Row
Friday: (2 smaller circuits - 3 rounds on each)
Romanian Deadlift - into a Shrug and Calf Raise at top of the movement
Lunges
Leg Curl
Incline Chest Fly
Swiss Ball Preacher Curl
Decline Dumbbell Triceps Extension
I’ve started doing 2 circuit workouts a week now i.e. Monday & Wednesday. On Friday’s I do an isolation workout that involves single joint exercises. I do this in a non-competing superset fashion in the 8-12 rep bracket with 30-60 seconds rest between the two. I feel that this type of workout focuses more on feeling the movement and squeezing the contraction more than the circuit workouts. I limit the exercises to single joint movements only and choose the areas I feel get missed with the circuits. Combining the two types of workouts is proving to be a winning formula for achieving results.
Combining circuit workouts with bodybuilding workouts for fat loss & shape!
I thought I’d write a quick article about the workouts I’ve been doing lately. I have got some awesome results training in the circuit style with a few modifications to suit my goals.
Three and a half weeks in and I had gained six pounds with a noticeable difference to my physique. The six pounds have come from increased muscle tone and not body fat. I have to tell you these workouts are aerobically tough and challenging for me.
These are the guidelines I’ve been following:
I rest 30 seconds between exercises and 120 seconds between rounds.
I keep the reps between 8 and 12, dropping no lower than 6 on the last round. I’ve been keeping the weight the same for all the rounds so I don’t lose technique and this also helps me keep the reps in the bracket I want. I always perform a warm up round with lighter weights prior to beginning the main workout.
I do 3 workouts per week and change the workouts after 3 weeks.
These are some of the workouts I did for the first 3 weeks:
Monday:
Rack Chest Press
Weighted Pull Ups
Weighted Dips
One Arm Cable Row (in a lunge position)
Dumbbell Squats
Wednesday:
Deadlift
Incline Dumbbell Chest Press
Wide Chin Ups
Split Squats with Dumbbells
EZ Bent Over Row
Friday: (2 smaller circuits)
Squats
One Arm Dumbbell Row
One Arm Standing Dumbbell Press
Calf Raises
EZ Reverse Curl
Rope Pushdowns (single arm) – I keep the movement at the side of my body doing it this way instead of in front. With this second circuit I don’t rest 120 seconds before repeating- I get straight in to it.
Week 4 to 6 went like this:
Monday: (5 rounds) – I increase weight on this workout as I go along.
Deadlift
Weighted Dips
Weighted Pull Ups – I keep the reps at around 5 on this exercise only
Wednesday: (2 smaller circuits - 3 rounds on each) – I keep the weight the same and reps 8-12. When I get 3 rounds of 12 - I can increase the weight.
Squats
Flat Dumbbell Chest Press
Wide Pull Ups
Shoulder L Raise
Arnold Press
Upright Row
Friday: (2 smaller circuits - 3 rounds on each)
Romanian Deadlift - into a Shrug and Calf Raise at top of the movement
Lunges
Leg Curl
Incline Chest Fly
Swiss Ball Preacher Curl
Decline Dumbbell Triceps Extension
I’ve started doing 2 circuit workouts a week now i.e. Monday & Wednesday. On Friday’s I do an isolation workout that involves single joint exercises. I do this in a non-competing superset fashion in the 8-12 rep bracket with 30-60 seconds rest between the two. I feel that this type of workout focuses more on feeling the movement and squeezing the contraction more than the circuit workouts. I limit the exercises to single joint movements only and choose the areas I feel get missed with the circuits. Combining the two types of workouts is proving to be a winning formula for achieving results.
Combining circuit workouts with bodybuilding workouts for fat loss & shape!
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