In training myths part 1 I covered the myth that women will get bulky muscles like men if they train with weights and in training myths part 2 I covered the myth that says if you stop training your lean toned muscles will turn to fat if you stop training.

If you haven’t read part one or two yet then click on the links below to be taken to those pages.

Click to read “Training Myths Part 1”

Click to read “Training Myths Part 2”

In part 3 I’m going to clear up the myth that says “Specific Exercises Are Great For Toning Muscles”.

Having toned muscles is really a slang term that’s come from having really low levels of body fat. The lower your body fat percentage the more visible your muscles are under the skin.

Muscle is active tissue, it does not hang down or hang off your bones and it cannot be “un-toned”. The un-toned appearance comes from too much fat covering your muscle and not having enough muscle under the skin to give your body any shape. Poor posture can also give the appearance of “saggy” muscles.

In order to develop the lean toned appearance you need to train with progressive resistance. Whether that resistance comes from lifting dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells or even your own body weight, you need to challenge the muscles to become stronger while at the same time reducing your body fat.

The most effective way to do this is to train with a weight that allows you to perform 8-12 repetitions per exercise in supersets, tri-sets or indeed a circuit. The benefit of training like this is that you can get more done in less time than traditional weight training where you would say do a set of press ups, rest one minute and then repeat. The idea of resting is so you can achieve the same number of reps per set.

One of my favorite ways to build lean toned muscle is to use trisets or mini circuits of 4 exercises.

For example:

The beauty of doing this is that the legs are resting while you are doing press ups and recline rows meaning that you should still manage all you reps. An added benefit to this is that because you are doing three exercises back to back you are getting a high intensity cardiovascular workout. So it pays to train hard!

Add to the above exercise protocol some smart nutrition and you will be well on your way to reducing your body fat so you get the “toned” look.

I’ll be back in a few days with Training Myth 4: Specific Exercises Are Great For Spot Reduction

Train Hard, Eat Smart!

Marc

Ok, I’m back again to kick some more fitness myths in to touch. If you missed training myths part one where I went into depth on the myth that “women who lift weights get big bulky muscles” you can read it by clicking here

So straight into it with

Myth 2: Your lean toned muscles will turn to fat if you stop lifting weights

Muscle cannot be turned into fat, just as water cannot be turned into wine! It’s as impossible as trying to turn water into metal or plastic into wood!

If you stop training you willl naturally lose muscle strength and size, its a case of use it or lose it with muscle. Fat on the other hand is a source of energy, it can be stored or burned in muscle tissue.

This is what actually happens when you stop training: You will begin to lose muscle tissue and as you do so are going to set your self up for a bit of a weight loss nightmare!

You see, the amount of muscle tissue you have on your body has a direct link to the speed of your bodies metabolism. Your metabolism governs the amount of calories you will burn on a daily basis. In basic terms, the more muscle tissue you have, the faster your metabolism, the faster your metabolism the more caloires you burn on a daily basis.

To look at it another way, losing muscle would be like putting a smaller engine in your car! The smaller engine is going to burn less fuel.

One of the reasons fat diets result in such rapid weight loss is because of not eating enough to support your bodies current muscle tissue. Starving your self thin only ends up in a rapid weight gain once you fall off the diet. The same can be said for doing endless amounts of cardio, sure you’ll lose some weight, but you’ll be burning more muscle tissue resulting in a slower metabolic rate. This all makes it harder to keep the fat off in the long term.

So if you stop training you could get fat but not because your muscle has been magically converted to fat. You will likely get fat if you continue to eat the same amount of food you did while you exercised and because of your slower metabolism. One cannot be turned into the other.

I will be back in a coupe of days with Myth 3:  Specific exercises are great for toning muscles

Train Hard, Eat Smart!

Marc

There are a lot of people who would give a lot to increase their metabolism. Having a high level of metabolism enables one to maintain fat burning and lose weight fast with the least amount of activity. Metabolism is the rate by which the body produces and consumes energy and calories to support life.

There are several factors that affect the metabolism of a person, such as the amount of muscle tissue, the frequency of the meals one consumes, genetics, stress levels, personal diet and activity levels. Metabolism slows done due to the following: loss of muscle because of not enough physical activity, the tendency of the body to cannibalize its own tissue because there is not enough food energy to sustain it, and the decrease of physical activity that comes naturally with old age.

Here are several ways to fire up one’s metabolism:

1. Build up on lean, mean body mass. It is only natural that metabolism decreases along with age, but it is possible to counter the effects. The amount of muscle a person has is a very strong determinant in the ability to burn calories and shed fat. So it goes without saying that exercise is essential. Build strength and resistance by working out at least twice a week, preferably with weights. Do easy exercises in between workouts. Simple tasks such as walking the dog and using the stairs in place of the elevator can already take off calories. The key is to match the amount of eating to the amount of activity one has. Here are some guidelines in getting the right exercise:

For strength training

-Increase the amount of repetitions of a particular exercise.
-Increase the level of resistance
-Utilize advanced exercise techniques if possible

For cardiovascular training

-Insert intervals between exercises
-Perform cross-training and combine the exercises
-Add up on resistance and speed

2. Eat breakfast. A lot of people are ignoring the fact that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Surprisingly, the ones who eat breakfast are thinner than the ones who do not. Metabolism can slow down considerably if breakfast is taken during mid-morning or if one waits until the afternoon to eat.

3. Avoid sugar. Sugar enables the body to store fat. It is recommended that a person consumes food that helps sustain an even level of blood-sugar. Additionally, progressive execerise 2-3 times a week should be in order to stabilize blood sugar.

4. Eat spicy foods. Hot cuisine with peppers can increase metabolism.

5. Sleep more. According to research, it is riskier for people who do not get enough sleep to gain weight. Also, muscles are regenerated during the last couple of hours of slumber.

6. Increase water intake. Water flushes out toxins that are produced whenever the body burns fat. The majority of bodily functions involves water, and lack of water causes the body system’s operations to decrease its speed, and produces unneeded stress as a result.

7. Eat smaller meals. It is advisable to consume 4 to 6 small meals that are timed 2 to 3 hours apart.

8. Never skip meals. People tend to skip meals in order to lose weight, which is a big mistake since it slows down metabolism.

9. Plan meals in detail. Always prepare the right amount of food to be consumed at the designated intervals. Do not commit the mistake of eating meals in sporadic patterns.

9. Ditch the stress! Stress, be it physical or emotional, triggers the release of a steroid hormone called cortisol, which decreases metabolism. Also, people tend to eat excessively when stressed.

10. Guzzle up on green tea. It can be used as a substitute for coffee. Green Tea has the ability to stimulate metabolism, and unlike coffee, it has no undesirable side effects when too much is consumed.

11. Include more energy foods in the diet, such as fruits and vegetables, beans and whole grains.

Achieving the desired body weight is never impossible if one has the determination and patience needed to stabilize the metabolism level, which plays an important role in weight loss. A person needs to realize that eating right and working out is not just a passing fancy, but a way of life.

Train Hard, Eat Smart!

Marc

It seems as though many are living a life that leads to high blood pressure or hypertension. As people age, the situation gets worse. Nearly half of all older people have hypertension. This disease makes people five times more prone to strokes, three times more likely to have a heart attack, and two to three times more likely to experience a heart failure.

The problem with this disease is that nearly one third of the folks who have hypertension do not know it because they never feel any direct pain. But overtime the force of that pressure damages the inside surface of your blood vessels.

However, according to experts, hypertension is not predestined. Reducing salt intake, adopting a desirable dietary pattern losing weight and exercising can all help prevent hypertension.

Obviously, quitting bad habits and eating a low fat diet will help, but the most significant part that you can do is to exercise. And just as exercise strengthens and improves limb muscles, it also enhances the health of the heart muscles.

Heart and Exercise

The exercise stimulates the development of new connections between the impaired and the nearly normal blood vessels, so people who exercise had a better blood supply to all the muscle tissue of the heart.

The human heart basically, supply blood to an area of the heart damaged in a “myocardial infarction.” A heart attack is a condition, in which, the myocardium or the heart muscle does not get enough oxygen and other nutrients and so it begins to die.

For this reason and after a series of careful considerations, some researchers have observed that exercise can stimulate the development of these life saving detours in the heart. One study further showed that moderate exercise several times a week is more effective in building up these auxiliary pathways than extremely vigorous exercise done twice as often.

Such information has led some people to think of exercise as a panacea for heart disorders, a fail-safe protection against hypertension or death. That is not so. Even marathon runners that have suffered hypertension, and exercise cannot overcome combinations of other risk factors.

What Causes Hypertension?

Sometimes abnormalities of the kidney are responsible. There is also a study wherein the researchers identified more common contributing factors such as heredity, obesity, and lack of physical activity. And so, what can be done to lower blood pressure and avoid the risk of developing hypertension? Again, exercise seems to be just what the doctor might order.

If you think that is what he will do, then, try to contemplate on this list and find some ways how you can incorporate these things into your lifestyle and start to live a life free from the possibilities of developing hypertension. But before you start following the systematic instructions, it would be better to review them first before getting into action.

1. See your doctor

Check with your doctor before beginning an exercise program. If you make any significant changes in your level of physical activity – particularly if those changes could make large and sudden demands on your circulatory system – check with your doctors again.

2. Take it slow

Start at a low, comfortable level of exertion and progress gradually. The program is designed in two stages to allow for a progressive increase in activity.

3. Know your limit

Determine your safety limit for exertion. Use some clues such as sleep problems or fatigue the day after a workout to check on whether you are overdoing it. Once identified, stay within it. Over-exercising is both dangerous and unnecessary.

4. Exercise regularly

You need to work out a minimum of three times a week and a maximum of five times a week to get the most benefit. Once you are in peak condition, a single workout a week can maintain the muscular benefits. However, cardiovascular fitness requires more frequent activity.

5. Exercise at a rate within your capacity

The optimum benefits for older exercisers are produced by exercise at 40% to 60% of capacity.

Indeed, weight loss through exercise is an excellent starting point if you want to prevent hypertension. Experts say that being overweight is linked to an increased risk of developing hypertension, and losing weight decreases the risk.

Train Hard, Eat Smart!

Marc

There are a lot of people who would give a lot to increase their metabolism. Having a high metabolic rate will enable you to burn fat and lose weight faster without starving yourself in the process. Simply put it is the rate by which the body produces and consumes energy and calories to support life. So it stands to reason that a higher metabolic rate will help your body burn fat faster.

So, how do I get a faster metabolism?

There are several factors that affect your metabolic rate, such as the amount of muscle tissue, the frequency of the meals you consume, genetics, stress levels, personal diet and activity levels. Your metabolic rate slows down due to the following three factors:

• loss of muscle because of not enough physical activity

• the tendency of the body to cannibalize its own tissue because there is not enough food energy to sustain it

• and the decrease of physical activity that comes naturally with old age.

Below are my sure fire tips to rev up your metabolism:

1. Build up your lean body mass. It is only natural that metabolic rate declines with age, but it is possible to counter the effects. The amount of muscle a person has is a very strong determinant in the ability to burn calories and shed fat. So it goes without saying that exercise is essential. Build strength and tone by working out at least twice a week, preferably with weights. Do easy exercises in between workouts. Simple tasks such as walking the dog and using the stairs in place of the elevator can already take off calories. The key is to match the amount of eating to the amount of activity you do.

Here are some guidelines in getting the right exercise:

For strength training

-Increase the amount of repetitions of a particular exercise.

-Increase the level of resistance or add more weight -Utilize advanced exercise techniques if possible

For cardiovascular training

-Insert intervals between exercises -Perform cross-training and combine the exercises -Increase the level of resistance and/ or speed

2. Eat breakfast. A lot of people are ignoring the fact that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Surprisingly, the ones who eat breakfast are thinner than the ones who do not. Your metabolic rate can slow down considerably if breakfast is taken during mid-morning or if you wait until the afternoon to eat.

3. Avoid simple sugars. Sugar enables the body to store fat. It is recommended that a person consumes food that helps sustain an even level of blood-sugar. Additionally, progressive execerise 2-3 times a week has been shown to stabilize blood sugar.

4. Eat spicy foods. Hot cuisine with peppers can increase metabolism.

5. Sleep more. According to research, it is riskier for people who do not get enough sleep to gain weight. Also, muscles are regenerated during the last couple of hours of slumber. Try to get eight hours of sleep per night.

6. Increase your water intake. Water flushes out toxins that are produced whenever the body burns fat. The majority of bodily functions involve water and lack of water causes the body system’s operations to decrease its speed and this produces unneeded stress as a result. If the body cannot flush out these toxins they end up being stored in the fat cells, cellulite anyone?

7. Eat smaller meals. Try to eat 4 to 6 small meals per day that are timed 2 to 3 hours apart. The body burns calories while it’s digesting food. By eating 4-6 means containing a lean protein, a starchy carb and a fibrous carb such as poached salmon, baked potato and broccoli your metabolism will be boosted longer throughout the day

8. Never skip meals. People tend to skip meals in order to lose weight, this is a big mistake since it slows down metabolism.

9. Plan meals in advance. If you plan your meals ahead of time you will always know you will be able to eat something supportive of your goals. Try to take a healthy snack in to work such as an apple and a handful of almonds so you don’t rely on the vending machine when you get hungry mid-morning. Do not commit the mistake of eating meals in sporadic patterns.

9. Chill out! Stress, be it physical or emotional, triggers the release of a hormone called cortisol. This hormone also breaks down muscle tissue which is the last thing you want if weight loss is your goal. Also, people tend to eat excessively when stressed.

10. Switch to green tea. It can be used as a substitute for coffee. Tea has the ability to stimulate metabolism and unlike coffee, it has no undesirable side effects when too much is consumed.

11. Include more energy foods in the diet. Foods such as fruits and vegetables, beans and whole grains.

Achieving the desired body weight is never impossible if you have the determination and patience needed to stabilize your metabolism level, which plays an important role in weight loss. Eating right and working out is not just a passing fancy, but should be a way of life.

Train Hard, Eat Smart!

Marc