The Top 10 Benefits of Kettlebells

Kettlebell training is accessible and practical for all. From the elite athlete looking for an edge, to the sedentary person looking to discover fitness for the first time. And everyone in between. All can benefit.

Top Fitness Trends
The American Council on Exercise (ACE), America’s leading authority on fitness, included kettlebells among the top ten fitness trends for 2009:

“ The reason for the surge in kettlebell training is that it gets back to basic training that requires functional, whole body fitness. . . . a great way to get a whole body workout in a relatively short period of time. ”
—– Press Release, December 9, 2008

1. Combines "cardio" and “strength” trainingAs one of the best kettlebell coaches once said, “life doesn't respect the difference." Try sprinting to catch a train while carrying a heavy package or pushing a stroller, did all that "cardio" training you did in "step class" or on the recumbent bike really help that much? The continuous movments of the Kettlebell gives you a "resistive cardio" workout. This ensures that you burn the   maximum amount of calories, burn fat and improve lean muscle......... all in one!!!

2. You won’t bulk up.... Just slim down!Women get the svelte, lean, firm shape that enhances the best of the female body. Think Penelope Cruz, or Jennifer Lopez, both firm advocators of Kettlebell training!

3. Build a lean, muscular physiqueMen see that coveted wedge shape emerge as the training creates broad shoulders, defines abdominals, builds up their arms and pares down their waists. It's a lean look, more like Bruce Lee than Arnold

4. Develops core strength Kettlebells require you to engage the core in almost every lift. Being a real stickler of technique really pays divedends when using Kettlebells, as you start working all the deeper glute & core muscles that can often get neglected. This is why they have a reputation for strengthening backs and abs like nothing else before

5. Better posture— the real thingBecause of the increase in core strength and the postural muscles, KB’s strengthen you from head to toe. This is not only key to athletic performance, but for staying injury and pain free and having perfect posture

6. The solution for busy peopleBusy people want to get the most from their time, as opposed to wandering about the gym for hours on end. Kettlebells are the solution to trying to squeeze cardio, strength AND flexibility training in an already overbooked schedule. Because of the intensive nature, the workout duration must be kept short. Best of all, they are so small and portable, training can take place in your bedroom

7. Very different from dumbbells, barbells & every other bit of equipmentAnyone who has picked up a kettlebell has felt the difference. The off centered weight of a KB recruits more stabilizer muscles and works the targeted muscles through a wider range of motion. It’s because of the off-center design of the KB. Isolation exercises such as those done with dumbbells and barbells do not hit those stabilizing muscles to the same degree

8. Don’t confuse kettlebells with conventional weight training or bodybuilding.

We focus on (a) movements, not muscles, (b) whole-body, functional training, (c) strength as a function of mobility, (d) cardio and strength combined

9. Easy to learnMovements are simple and you can start using them right away. No matter how old or out-of-shape you are, everyone can do it and should be doing it

10. And most important.............. It’s fun! KB exercises and movements are simple, fun, unique and you can combine it with other exercise modalities. You can make it as fun as you want it to be. No more reason to be in a sweaty gym. Come along to our kettlebell classes here in Richmond and have the workout of your life. Save on gym membership fees and do your training where you love it the most

Exercise May Encourage Healthy Eating Via Brain Changes

Exercise may encourage healthy eating by changing parts of the brain that influence impulsive behaviour, according to a new review of the available literature by researchers from Spain and the US published in Obesity Reviews. The researchers conclude that in a society where we are surrounded by temptations and triggers that facilitate over-eating and excess, the part of the brain responsible for "inhibitory control" undergoes "relentless strain" (they note it has limited capacity anyway), and doing exercise on a regular basis enhances it.

"By enhancing the resources that facilitate 'top-down' inhibitory control, increased physical activity may help compensate and suppress the hedonic drive to over-eat," they report.

Obesity has been rising at an alarming rate in Spain in recent years, so much so that in some parts of Spain, the proportion of the population that is obese is higher than that in many parts of the United States, the country traditionally considered as having the highest obesity rates in the western world.

Also, in line with other countries in the Mediterranean, Spain has one of the highest rates of childhood obesity in Europe.

Co-author Dr Miguel Alonso Alonso, a Spanish neurologist working at the Harvard-affiliated Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in the US, told the press on Wednesday that many studies suggest "physical exercise seems to encourage a healthy diet. In fact, when exercise is added to a weight-loss diet, treatment of obesity is more successful and the diet is adhered to in the long run".

However, in order better to inform and improve current approaches and treatments for obesity, he and his co-authors, from the US and Spain, thought it might be useful to bring together what these "somewhat disparate, yet interrelated lines of literature" may have to say about the neurological underpinning of the link between exercise and weight loss.

"Designing effective weight-loss interventions requires an understanding of how these behaviours are elicited, how they relate to each other and whether they are supported by common neurocognitive mechanisms," they write.

There is evidence that regular physical exercise changes the working and structure of the brain. From their review, the researchers conclude these changes seem to support the idea that regular exercise improves the results of tests that measure the state of the brain's executive functions, and increases in connections in the grey matter and prefrontal cortex.

One of the brain's executive functions is "inhibitory control" which helps us keep check on impulsiveness, or to suppress inadequate, excessive or inappropriate behaviour toward a goal.

The researchers conclude that regular practice of physical exercise, in time, produces a "potentiating effect" on the brain's executive functions, including the ability for inhibitory control, and this helps us "resist the many temptations that we are faced with everyday in a society where food, especially hypercaloric food, is more and more omnipresent".

Exercise also brings other benefits, such as making the brain more sensitive to physiological signs of fulness. This helps not only to control appetite, but it also modifies the "hedonic" response to food stimuli, say the researchers. Thus the benefits of exercise occur in the short term (these affect metabolism) and in the long term (these affect behaviour).

Alonso Alonso and colleagues suggest it is important that social policies help and encourage people to practise sport and engage in physical exercise, whether at school, in urban settings, or daily life, with the help of public transport, pedestrianized areas and sports centres.

Fend Off Colds with This Vitamin

Of all the powders and pills that promise immune-boosting powers, one might actually work: vitamin D. People with the greatest vitamin D levels in their blood were the least likely to suffer respiratory infections, says a recent study of nearly 7,000 adults in the British Journal of Nutrition

“Vitamin D is believed to have a powerful effect on the immune system, and there are many different mechanisms by which it can have effects on respiratory health,” says study author Elina Hypponen, Ph.D., of London’s UCL Institute of Child Health. “For example, vitamin D has properties that help fight viruses and bacteria in the body.”

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Each 10 nmol/L increase in vitamin D levels was associated with a 7 percent lower risk of reporting an infection in the 3 weeks prior to taking the study questionnaire. (Low vitamin D is defined as less than 50 nmol/L.) People with high vitamin D levels also scored better on measures of lung function than D-deficient folks.

It’s difficult to get all the vitamin D you need in the winter, since the sun isn’t strong enough to trigger D production in many northern regions. As a rule of thumb, vitamin D production happens as long as your shadow is shorter than your body during the middle of the day, Hypponen says. And while many foods have vitamin D, it’s hard to get enough unless you eat plenty of D-rich foods like salmon every single day.

"How come I'm not losing Weight?" - 10 Habits of Unsuccessful Dieters

What could be more frustrating than not seeing the scale drop despite days or weeks of doing everything right? After all that hard work—all the chocolate you didn't eat, all the willpower you maintained, all the time you logged at the gym—how could you not have lost any weight? It's enough to make even the most determined person throw in the towel.

Before you swear off exercise and declare yourself as someone who "will never lose weight," stop, take a deep breath, and remember this:  Weight-loss may seem simple (eat fewer calories than you burn), but often, there's a lot more going on than a simple calorie equation. Our bodies aren't calculators after all!

What's more likely is that you've made some innocent mistakes in your quest to lose weight. Don't feel bad about it—it's extremely common. These bad habits may be preventing you from getting the results you want. Instead of giving up, make some of the smart changes outlined below, and you'll see that scale drop in no time!

10 Habits of Unsuccessful Dieters

Bad Habit #1: Going "on a diet" in the first place.
Since when did the word "diet" refer to something good? The word itself implies restriction, limitation, and a short-lived effort to get some quick results and then return to a "normal" way of eating. In our experience we found that people who consider themselves to be "dieting" lose less weight and encounter more problems (such as plateaus, lack of motivation, mood swings and a huge food bender due to too much restriction) than people who are trying to lose weight by creating a lasting healthy lifestyle. Plus diets usually mean giving things up: favorite foods, dining out, desserts—even your social life. You don't have to be a psychology expert to know that when you tell yourself you can't have something, you usually want it more. This way of thinking could directly be sabotaging your efforts.
 

Smart Fix: Ditch the diets for good and focus on creating a healthy lifestyle based on nutritious food and small, realistic changes that you can live with for the long term.

Bad Habit #2: Overhauling your eating habits overnight.How many times have you gone crazy eating all the "bad" foods you know you shouldn't, only to promise to swear them off starting next week or next month or next year? How often have you decided to suddenly clean out your kitchen, throw away all the "junk" and then shop for only healthy food?

How's that working for you? No one can expect to change a lifetime of eating habits overnight—and no one should have to! To lose weight successfully and keep it off, you have to adopt a way of eating that you can stick with for the rest of your life.
        
      

Smart Fix: Eating healthy isn't about taking food away; it's about eating MORE of the things that are good for you. To be successful, you have to implement small and realistic changes to your diet. Next week, swap that 2% milk for 1%, and switch out your usual bread for a healthy whole-grain variety. Once you get used to that, you can set a small goal like eating one serving of fresh fruits or vegetables each day. The point is to start small with changes that fit into your lifestyle, and making permanent lifestyle changes, not to do temporary diets!

Bad Habit #3: Giving up certain foods altogether.We've already touched on the idea that labeling certain foods as diet no-no's can make you crave them even more. Whether you feel out of control when you're around certain foods or you've read about a certain diet plan that promises results if you were to just cut out wheat, gluten, carbs, sugar, or dairy, a lot of people think that to lose weight they have to give up specific things—including foods that they love.

A truly healthy diet that you can stick with forever will include all the foods you love. Unless you plan to give up ice cream or bread forever, then don't cut anything out temporarily. Generally, people can give up foods like that for a while and see some weight loss success (usually because they're eating fewer calories, not because anything about that specific food causes weight problems). But as soon as that food is let back into your life, the weight tends to come back with it.
 

Smart Fix: All things in moderation. Instead of focusing on the foods you can't have, set goals to eat more of the foods that you know are good for you. This is a much more positive way to think about your goals and get results. Plus, allowing yourself portion-controlled servings of the food you're thinking about banning will keep you happy and content, but also prevent crazed binges that can occur when you're feeling weak.

Bad Habit #4 Only caring about calories.
Calories are key to weight loss. In fact, balancing your calorie equation (what you eat and what you burn) is what results in successful weight management. However, there is more to weight loss and a healthy lifestyle than calories alone. Some foods that may be higher in calories per serving are actually healthier for you than foods that may be lower in calories (think a heart-healthy avocado vs. a processed 100-calorie pack of pretzels). So while calories count, nutrition matters, too.
 

Smart Fix: While tracking your calories, don't forget to look at other key nutrients like protein and healthy fats (both of which can keep you full) and key vitamins and minerals that are important for your overall health. Ideally, you want to use a little trial and error to balance not only your calorie equation, but make the kinds of choices that meet your protein, fat, carbohydrate and micronutrient (vitamins and minerals) goals.

Bad Habit #5: Focusing on the scale.
You want to lose weight, so you weigh yourself, right? Yes…and no. Weight is an easy way to measure your progress, but it doesn't tell you the whole story. Even if the scale isn't budging, that does not mean that you're not making major progress toward losing weight and getting healthier. You can lose inches, get fitter, gain lean muscle mass, drop body fat, become better hydrated, look better and feel more energized without the pounds budging at all.
 

Smart Fix: Remember that the scale tells you only one thing: the total mass of all your body parts at a given moment. Don't put too much stock into it. Weigh yourself less frequently (about once every 1-2 weeks), and track all the other signs that amazing changes are happening in your body, such as, measurements of your arm, waist, hips and leg even if the scale doesn't move. This is the best way to stay motivated for the long haul.

Bad Habit #6: Only dieting and not exercising.
This may be one of the most common reasons your weight loss is stalling. Yes, you can lose weight through diet alone, but it will be a lot harder. You can only cut so many calories without feeling overly hungry, lethargic or miserable. Yet by exercising along with making dietary changes, you can eat more (and feel more satisfied) and still lose weight. Plus, you'll get all the amazing physical and mental benefits that come from exercising, including improved appearance, better muscle tone and a healthier body overall.
 

Smart Fix: Add exercise to your weight-loss plan. It doesn't have to be boring, strenuous, or time-consuming either. Even 10 minutes a day can make a huge difference in your results. For tons of fun, easy and effective workout ideas, check out our website: http://www.exclusivetrainingrichmond.com/  You're sure to find something that you enjoy!

Bad Habit #7: Trying to eat as little as possible.
If cutting calories is good for weight loss, then eating as little as possible is better, right? Wrong (especially if you're also trying to fuel your body for regular workouts). You need to eat a certain calorie level to function optimally and get all its essential nutrients your body needs to stay healthy. Eating much less than that can cause serious problems in the long term and damage your metabolism, making weight loss even harder.
 

Smart Fix: Don't just guess how many calories you need, and don't eat what someone else eats either. Eating within that range (even at the very top of it) will help you reach your weight loss goal. There is no reason to go below it. Remember: You have to eat to lose!

Bad Habit #8: Giving up too easily.  
No person who ever lost weight successfully reached that goal because they were perfect all the time. Setbacks happen to everyone, even the most successful people. We've all had days where we made a poor food decision during a meal—or even for an entire day. We've all missed workouts, forgot the lunch we packed, or been too busy to cook a diet-friendly meal at home. But those who continue dropping the pounds pick themselves up, forgive themselves from their mistakes, learn from their slipups, and just keep right on going.
 

Smart Fix: Remember that perfection has no place in a weight loss plan. When you do make a mistake or feel like you're not making enough progress, don't give up. Change requires time and old habits die hard. When you feel yourself ready to give up, reach out for some support, and don't wait until next week or next month to get back on the wagon. For the first month use a "cheat day" as a treat. This will allow you your favourate indulgances without going over board.

Bad Habit #9: Confusing "healthy" with "low-calorie."
Research shows that when shoppers see "healthy" buzz words or claims on food packages (think: gluten-free, organic, all-natural, sugar-free, low-fat, etc.), they automatically assume the food is low in calories. This couldn't be further from the truth. Food manufacturers will plaster all sorts of enticing lingo onto their packages, knowing that you'll think exactly that. But none of these words really tell you much about the healthfulness of a product; and none of them actually have any affect on a food's calories.
 

Smart Fix: Read front-of-package labels with a discerning eye, and always turn over the package and look at the nutrition facts (and ingredients) to get a full picture of what a food is really like. This goes for restaurant menus, too. Don't let healthy-sounding words make you think a food is actually low in calories. Know your menu watch words or look up nutrition facts before you place your order.

Bad Habit #10: Unrealistic expectations.
These days with news stories, weight-loss advertisements and reality shows alike touting fast and extreme weight loss as the norm, it can be easy to think that you are capable of those kinds of results, too. But in truth, these are extreme and abnormal results that most people cannot expect to replicate. If you're expecting to drop a lot of weight fast—and to do so consistently—these unrealistic expectations could be setting you up for failure. There's nothing worse than expecting to lose 10 pounds in your first week, but to only lose one.
 

Smart Fix: Change your expectations and your mindset. If you expect to lose 10 pounds in one week, then losing 1 pound is a major letdown. But if you expect to lose 1 pound and you did, you feel successful and inspired to keep working toward your goals. Losing 1-2 pounds per week—even half a pound—is major progress that should be commended. This is a healthy and realistic rate of weight loss that you can expect if you're sticking to your nutrition and fitness goals.

How Fish Oils Help Balance Your Nutrition For Optimum Health

You may eat clean or you may eat junk food...but if you aren't eating fish then your diet is out of balance! Discover why fish oils are essential in your nutrition plan for optimal health!

The Standard Bad Diet

The bad/unhealthy diet that most people tend to follow can be lumped into two main areas: something that is fast and terrible for your body; or something that is fast and really terrible for your body.

I am not saying that there are not people out there who eat healthy, and I know that eating healthy is a hard thing to do. Not to mention, it is expensive at times when you compare it to fast foods and how cheap and easy they are.

For the people out there who eat a double cheese burger but add a "diet" coke to the meal, let me break your heart for a minute: that is not eating better. All you are trying to do is either fool the people around you, or you are trying to fool yourself that what you are doing is OK. Well it isn't, and trust me the people around you know it.

Omega Fatty Acids

What can help? Healthy fatty acids can. There are omega-3, omega-6, and omega-9 fatty acids that the body uses, but for the purpose of this article, I am only going to talk about the omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.

Your diet should consist of a ratio of 1:1 for both omega-3 and omega-6. Most of the foods that Americans put into their bodies would probably be closer to a 10:1 up to 25:1 ratio of omega 6 to omega 3. This, just like anything else that you put into your body in excess, will cause problems.

Just like the old saying: "If you abuse it, you lose it. If you don't use it, you lose it".

When your body has an abundance of omega-6 fatty acids, it initiates either an anti-inflammatory or an inflammatory response in your body. A little bit of this is natural and has many uses when it is only in small amounts temporarily.

       Beneficial Inflammatory Response

The inflammatory process really gets a bad rap in this area, because it is really the healing process of an acute injury. Without inflammation tissue healing would not happen. When you sprain your ankle, the inflammatory response kicks in and causes swelling that helps to splint the joint and keep you from doing any more injury to your ankle. It is your body's way of putting a cast on the area.

The more the swelling continues the more tissue damage has occurred, and the injury will just take longer to heal. Weight lifting is another example of temporary and acute inflammatory process. It is this inflammatory process that builds muscle.

We should encourage this acute inflammatory process for it is this that heals the body and makes us stronger. This usually occurs within the first 72 hours.

Chronic Inflammatory Response  

What we want to avoid is the chronic inflammatory process, which is the process where there is no stoppage of the inflammation, and tissues and organs will eventually become damaged. The increase in omega-6 fatty acids can make problems with inflammation even worse.So right now you are probably eating foods that are high in omega-6 fatty acids, and your body is in a constant state of inflammation. Your body is trying to rebuild the muscles and tissues that are being damaged over and over again each time you eat. Your body will send a substance called fibrin to the area to rebuild and will not stop as long as there is a constant inflammatory process that goes on. It continues to lay down the fibrin until your muscles are not soft and pliable like they are supposed to be. They end up being stiff and sore. Your body will ache all over, and you will be constantly tired.

Why Equal Amounts Of Omega 3 & 6?

Remember the 1:1 relationship that omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids are supposed to have? The reason for this is that omega-3 fatty acids shuts off the over-rebuilding of the muscle and tissues via fibrin. [Thus a more normal healing process may be possible by limiting the amount omega-6 fatty acids consumed.] Please note: Omega-6 is an essential fatty acid. Trying to take it out of your diet entirely is not something that I would advise, and I am not sure just how you would do that anyway. The easiest thing is just to increase the intake of the other essential fatty acid: Omega 3. Fish oils contain those omega-3 fatty acids known as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) plus docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). The American Heart Association's dietary guidelines recommend that healthy adults eat at least two servings of fish per week, particularly fish such as mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon.

Risks Of Fish Oil Consumption

Depending on your stage of life, consumers need to be aware of both the benefits and risks of eating fish. Children as well as pregnant and nursing women may be at increased risk of exposure to excessive mercury from fish, but these groups of people also are generally at a lower risk for [certain health problems]. For middle-aged and older men and postmenopausal women, the benefits of fish and fish oil supplements far outweigh the risks. The only negative thus far from consuming fish or fish oil supplementation is that the FDA has noted that high intakes (above the 1 to 3 grams per day) could cause excessive bleeding in some people. Current dietary intakes of fish oil in North America are well below those recommended by the American Heart Association. How About diabetes? The American Diabetes Association recommends two to three servings of fish per week, in order to obtain adequate amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, which correlates directly with the same recommendations set by the American Heart Association.

How To Find The Best Fish Oil Supplement 

Most of the product labels that you read are very misleading. So here is the easiest way to figure out what is the best for you. When looking at all of the different Fish Oil brands on the market today, forget the front of the label. Turn the bottle around and look at the ingredient listing on the back. Somewhere close to the bottom will be two lines: EPA and DHA. Add those two numbers together and find the bottle with the highest two number total and that is the one you need to choose. Forget if the front says 1000 mg and the total EPA/DHA only adds up to 650 mg. The 650 mg are all you are getting per serving size. I have seen some as low as 420 so you would have to take quite a few just to get the 1-3 grams you should have during a day.

Conclusion

As always, do as much research as you can about the health topics that concern you, but be careful about what you read on the internet. A safer bet is to just go talk to your health care provider.

There are some conditions that will prohibit you from taking fish oil supplementation. If you are on some blood thinners like Warfarin or Aspirin then you should not start taking fish oils without approval from your physician.

Hopefully, most of you that are reading this article already eat a healthy diet and really don't have any worries if you are taking in more omega-6 fatty acids than you need.

I am just trying to get to those people who are either starting out or who have a terrible diet. Start supplementing some omega-3 fatty acids into your diet or take a supplement.

Now, get up and go workout.

Great Tool to Help Set Realistic Weight Loss Goals

Many people grossly underestimate the time it is going to take them to reach their goal weight, which generally results in frustration, disappointment, and a fall from the diet wagon.

Sometimes a 1000 cal per day diet will NOT always = 1# weight loss... <-- this generic calculation fails to take into consideration the many differences seen in individuals (gender, age, race, starting weight, impact after prolonged dieting, etc).

I encourage you to check out the link, and take advantage of this funky timeline tool here: http://bwsimulator.niddk.nih.gov/ which should give you an understanding of realistic timelines associated with weight loss.

Be sure to use the 'advanced tools' when doing so, as these allow you to enter things like your RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) calculations and % carbs calories and bodyfat and what not. Also check out the visual stuff (easier to understand) - as it gives you lots of different options when assessing data (check out the different timeline graphs / tabulated data etc).

Even with that said - at the end of the day it is still just 'another prediction equation' that isn't always going to be accurate. There will always be people who fall outside of these results.
So remember to maintain some common sense!
1/ Use the sticky to roughly calculate your required calorie intake
2/ Be ACCURATE and HONEST with what you are doing
3/ Be PATIENT
4/ Watch your results - if you are not changing, change something!

Alan

Toned Tummy and Rock Hard Abs?? 3 Steps to get you there!!!

Whether you are after the elusive 6-pack, or just looking to lose a bit of extra luggage you're carrying around the mid-section,there are 3 "key" areas you need to focus on to achieve maximum abdominal development.

Strong abs not only help strengthen your lower back, but also improve upon your posture. Most lower back injuries occur, believe it or not, due to weak abs. Focus on these three areas and over time, you will see improved results.

Key # 1- Proper cardiovascular work
You can have the greatest, most muscular set of abs in the world, but if they are blanketed by a layer of body fat, who cares. In order to rid yourself of the extra body fat around your midsection, you need to incorporate effective cardio sessions into your fitness plan. You cannot spot-reduce the midsection by doing extra ab exercises like crunches or sit-ups. You first must burn off the body fat through proper cardio to properly define the area.

Abdominal training by itself will not do much. Cardio needs to be intense enough to do the trick. Three to four sessions a week of intense jogging, running, the Stairmaster, the elliptical, jumping rope, or biking should be enough to get the process in gear. Swimming, hiking, and taking aerobics classes are beneficial as well. Nothing beats jogging or running. It is the most intense, efficient, and effective method of burning calories. If running outside hurts your joints, try running inside on a treadmill or outside on a dirt path. It definitely is easier on the body.

Again, you NEED three to four intense cardio sessions a week to help create a calorie deficit and help rid the body of the fat that covers your abs.

Key # 2- Proper Nutrition
Do not sabotage your results in the gym by giving yourself a passport to pig out. Ridding the body of fat once and for all is accomplished by proper nutrition more so than incorporating cardio. At the end of the day, if you have consumed more calories than you have expended, you add body fat. So you need to burn more calories than you consume.

Nutrition is important because you can reduce the amount of calories you take in, therefore greatly having an effect on the amount which you have to expend through cardio. Eat five to six small, well-balanced meals spaced apart about every three to four hours. Try to keep something healthy on hand. If not, when you become real hungry, you will opt for something that isn't as good for you. When you become overly hungry, all rational thinking goes out the window. But it is important to get something in you. Not eating on time or at all is almost as bad as eating too much. Keep protein intake high (approximately 50% of daily calories), carbs moderate (40%), and fats minimal (10%).

Muscle fiber is made of tightly-wound protein molecules that is damaged during a workout, so you need more protein than the sedentary person to help that muscle tissue repair. Carbohydrates have an important role in the body, but do not base your meals on them. Try to avoid simple sugars like cane sugar, honey, fruit juices, syrups, and even a lot of fruit.

Drink at least a gallon of clean water each day as well. It will help in nutrient absorption and digestion and will help flush toxins from the body.

Bottom line, make sure you are supplying your body with well-balanced, healthy food every three to four hours.

Key # 3- Weight training the abdominals
Here is where most people go wrong in their attempt to develop their abs. I often ask those I train, "Would you train your biceps with sets of 50 reps with no weight?" Of course, they say "no."

How about your chest, 50 reps with no weight? Another no. I then ask, "Then why would you do that with your abs?"

Here's an important key. If you want proper ab development, you need to add resistance (weight) to your ab exercises. Abs are muscles just like biceps, triceps, pecs, glutes, whatever. You need resistance to properly strengthen and build them. The same goes for abdominals.

Here are some effective ab exercises to incorporate for proper ab stimulation.

Weighted crunches. Grab a dumbbell, either hold it in front of your face, or let it lie on your upper chest, under your chin, and perform regular crunches. You are now using your abs more to work against the leverage the dumbbell has created. Stick with a heavy enough weight where you can handle 10-15 reps, but no more. Remember, you need to create enough resistance where your abs are forced to work.

Cable Rope crunches-grab the tricep rope, kneel on your knees, and bend downwards, forcefully contracting your abs on the way down. It's basically a crunch, only, you are on your knees. But the contraction is the same. Don't swing with the hips, you are not using the abs very much if you do. Just a slight, 30 degree contraction until you feel the abs contract, hold for a couple seconds, then back up.

Weighted leg raises- Lie flat on your back, with your hands tucked under your bum. Wrap your feet around a small dumbbell, and perform leg raises. Start with your feet about 6 inches from the ground, then raise them about 12-16 inches from the ground and then back down slowly. These can be done on the end of a bench as well.

Seated ab machine- once again, do not swing all the way down, just far enough (30 degrees) to fully contract the abs, hold for a couple seconds, then back up. This is very similar to Cable rope crunches.

Stability Ball Crunches- working on the stability ball will incorporate balance into your abdominal work. They are effective at strengthening your core region, which are your deeper Transverse abs and lower back.

You lie down on a stability ball like you are going to perform a crunch. Position yourself on the ball so your lower back is resting on it. Keep your feet close together on the floor making your body less stable (helps incorporate more balance on your part) and place your hands behind your head or folded on your chest. Crunch your upper body towards your knees, exhaling as you contract your abs. Under muscular control, lower yourself back to the original position keeping full tension on the abs.

Regardless of what exercise you do, the key is to add weight/resistance. If not, you will never increase the amount of lean muscle tissue in the area. You only need to train your abs twice a week for maximum results. Once again, treat them like any other muscle group (which means you wouldn't train them more often). Combine this weight training with proper diet and intense cardio and that elusive six-pack is yours to be had!

Alan