10 exercise and nutrition experts

weighed in on 3 questions.

1.  What is the best way to build muscle?
2. What is the best way to burn fat?
3. What supplements would you recommend?

Based on their answers, there were some common principles that surfaced.

continue reading and I’ll fill you in.

Dynamic Duo Training Post

Last week I wrote a post about experts weighing in on the above questions, you can read it here.

These were experts in the exercise physiology and nutritional science fields.  Some still in the student stage while others with doctorates in their chosen profession.

The experts all have a major interest or are currently directly working on solving the first 2 questions (building muscle and burning body fat).

Just to refresh your memory these questions were asked by Chris and Eric Matinez, identical twin personal trainers from Dynamic Duo Training.  This is their post  here if you have not  read it .

1. Now lets get to those key principles I was talking about which are listed below in no particular order.

Expert’s key Principles

Muscle Building

1. Progressive overload through resistance training to stimulate muscle growth.
2. Adequate protein intake to nourish the stimulated muscle tissue. (1 gram of protein for every pound of body weight)
3. A calorie surplus (consume more calories then you normally would to maintain your current body weight).

Burning Body Fat

1. A calorie deficit is needed, wether it be accomplished day to day or with in a one week period.  This can be done through diet and/or exercise.
2. Resistance training to maintain muscle mass during calorie restriction.
3. Moderate to low carb intake to help facilitate the active metabolic properties of muscle rather then fat being the active tissue.  As well, carb cutting will aid in the overall calorie deficit.
4. Adequate protein intake to help with muscle mass maintenance .

Supplement Recommendations

1. Multivitamin
2. Protein powder (Whey in particular)
3. Creatine
4. Fish Oils
5. Branched Chain Amino Acids
6. Vitamin D3
7. Beta Alanine

Also some points worth mentioning,

1. Focus on compound exercises for resistance training.
2. Integrate higher reps (8-12) bodybuilder style which creates muscle fullness along with lower reps (2-6) power lifter style to increase muscular density.
3. You need the right mind set (attitude), consistency (you don’t want too much planning and not enough action), and plain old hard work.
4. Don’t crash diet yourself into no results.
5. Some other supplements were Leucine, HMB, caffeine, and a greens drink.

So there you have it, a nice framework to build around in respects to building muscle and losing fat.

Now it’s your turn to implement some of these principles.

Let me know what you think of the most popular answers given by the experts and if there may be others you would add.  Comment below as well as Facebook and Twitter.

Talk to you soon.

Scott Ward

Also if you would like regular email updates and a FREE report just sign up below.

I was checking out Twitter the other day,

and ran across an interesting post.

It was dealing with fat loss and building muscle.

Definitely topics that go well with AthleticAbs.com thinking.

Yes, I know there are a lot out there, but this was a bit different.

the twist and most intriguing idea around this post and what made it stand out was where the underlying info was coming from.

What the author did was get several experts to weigh in on the topic.  10 to be exact.

Keep reading to find out what principles seemed to repeat themselves.

The blog is called Dynamic Duo Training and the authors are Chris and Eric Martinez from Santa Rosa, California.

The crazy thing is that they are identical twin personal trainers!

I know, you don’t see that everyday.

Anyway here is the link to the post. Enjoy.

=====>  Want to build muscle and lose fat? <=====

What did you think?  There is definitely a few points that seem to resonate from  several of the experts.

Next post I will discuss some of these points and how you can apply them to your diet and training right now.

Let me hear from you in the comments and also Twitter and Facebook.

Talk to you soon.

Scott Ward

Make sure you sign up for my Free Report and email updates below!

There are 3 major principles to fat loss.

Everyone who is looking for results should pay attention!

Failure to abide by even one of these ideas could put you well behind in your quest for a healthy, lean and athletic body.

What are these 3 pillars of knowledge you ask?  Read on.

To say that there is controversy in the world of fat loss is an understatement.

However from studying a lot of the research, I wouldn’t say there is a clear cut winner.

Just to let you know I’m am totally disregarding any of the quick fix mumbo jumbo.

From what I have seen two predominant camps seem to have the most popular views on the subject.

The Two Camps

1. Calorie deficit is a must.

2. It’s all about the type of calorie (Protein, Carb, Fat) and the Metabolic advantage.

I will dive into these two camps in a future post or 5.  There is a lot of information involved with both camps.

I do lean slightly to one  of the camps views currently, but that’s not to say that the other camp does not have merit and that as more studies come out my thoughts could change.

However as it stands now I strongly believe for fat loss to occur there needs to be a calorie deficit.  Which leads us nicely into Principle numero uno.

Principle One:     Create a Calorie deficit

1. Create a calorie deficit by reducing your calories by 200-500 calories a day.  I discussed this topic briefly here.

2. This deficit can be created by calorie restriction and by burning more calories through exercise.

Principle Two:     Exercise

1. Exercise for health –  Mark Young, a well respected Exercise Physiologist

(known for looking at the research) has a very good list of some of the health benefits from regular exercise here.

2. Strength train to help maintain your muscle mass well under going a calorie restricted diet.

3. Exercise also helps with the calorie deficit as mentioned above.

Principle Three:     Nutrient Quality

1. Increase protein consumption to aid in muscle mass maintenance.

2. Decrease refined carbohydrates.

3. Strive for a moderate level of healthy fats.

There you have it.  Whether you stake your tent in the calorie deficit camp or your a firm believer in the metabolic advantage.  I believe these principles would be advantageous to both parties.

Where do you begin?

Well, probably the first action step would be to:

1. Decrease refined carbohydrates which should help decrease your calorie intake and help initiate a calorie deficit.

2. Once you have accomplished this, add exercise to the mix for the health benefits, Maintenance of muscle mass, and increased calorie burning.

3. Finally throw some extra protein into your diet to fuel the muscle that you are trying to maintain.

I wouldn’t suggest tackling all the recommendations discussed in the three principles at the same time.  The chances of success goes down considerably the more changes you try to make at one time.

I discuss this more fully here and here.

If you have any other thoughts please leave a comment below or tweet me.  Also don’t forget to follow me on Facebook .

Talk to you soon.

Scott Ward

If you haven’t signed up for my email updates you can do so below.

It’s human nature for people to want to solve problems.

To come up with a reason why certain things happen.

They want to figure out the cause or calprit.

The increase in the waistlines of North Americans over the last several decades is one of those problems.

Opinions on why we are in this predicament and body fat loss options vary.

Some have solid backing while others seem to miss the mark.

Some of these opinions look at certain food groups as the culprit.

Products have also been developed from these ideas.

For instance The Atkins Diet created by Dr. Robert Atkins in 1972 has been very popular. 

Lately the South beach Diet created by cardiologist Dr. Arthur Agatston and Dietitian Marie Alman has also been extremely popular for years.

Both single out carbohydrates as being the main reason for North America’s obesity epedimic.

Before the South Beach Diet and shortly after The Atkins diet, Low fat diet’s were also very common in the 1980′s.

As the name implies, limiting fat intake was what was needed to maintain or improve a healthy body composition.

This was mainly pushed by the USDA.

There are numerous other diet’s limiting the intake of certain food groups or putting emphasis on others all with a similar objective.

Which is portraying a single food group, nutrient, or combination of foods as being the soul reason for everyone’s weight issues.

There seems to have been something forgotten in all the hype of the new fad diet on the market.

It’s the reason why some of these diets are experiencing short bursts of success in the first place.

The underlying reason the majority of these diets are producing some short term positive results is mainly because they are CREATING A CALORIE DEFICIT! 

This is usually what happens when you start limiting the intake of whole food groups, you naturally start eating fewer calories.

Throw some exercise into the mix and you’re on your way to body fat loss.

So when you take a good look at everthing out there, it all seems to come back to a tried and true method that has stood the test of time.

That method or rule is “you must burn more calories then you consume“.

So what do you need to do?  

• Eat real food!
• Limit processed products as much as possible.
• Get your carb intake mainly from plant sources.
• Reduce your daily intake of calories per day, slightly (200-300 cal.).
• Burn some calories through exercise, which will create more of the calorie deficit as well as added health benifits.

There you have it, a solid plan for long term body fat reduction while still maintaining a well balanced diet.

If you have had long term success with any paticular diet let me know.

I’d love to hear about it.

I will get a bit more in depth with this concept in future posts.

Talk to you soon.

Hi everyone!

Today I’m going to mix things up a bit, and let you listen to a very interesting interview about some on the popular nutritional trends that are being utilized by athletes and the general public alike.

While surfing around a few of the blogs I follow, I stumbled upon this great interview on exercisesforinjuries.com with Brian St. Pierre.

Brian St.Pierre Is a Certified Sports Nutritionist and a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist.

He is also the owner of BSP Training and Nutrition.

Brian has worked with all levels of athletes as well as the general public.  The Interviewer and creator of exercisesforInjuries.com is Rick Kaselj.

Rick is a Kinesiologist who focuses as the name of his web site implies, on injuries and corrective exercises.

He also has put out numerous informational products related to injuries.

In this interview Brian talks to Rick about:

• Food recommendations
• Eating frequency
• Supplements
• Intermittent fasting
• Nutrition Bars
• and the benefits of coffee just to name a few of the topics

So without further ado, just click on the link below and enjoy.

=====> Brian St. Pierre interview by Rick Kaselj <=====

Anyone have any thoughts about one or more of the topics discussed by Brian?  Let me know in the comments.

Thanks.

Talk to you soon.

Scott Ward

In today’s post I just wanted to give you some advice about choosing a method of weight training.  Whether you decide to use free weights or weight machines there are a few points to consider.

Lets take a look at free weights.

This is probably the method of training for muscle strength and mass which gives you the most bang for your buck.

Barbells, dumbbells, kettle bells, and functional cable machines have one thing is common.

They all force the individual to stabilize an object and give that person free range of motion to move that object.

By allowing this freedom, the individual is capable of training muscles and groups of muscles through very specific functional ranges of motion.

The great thing about this is that these specific exercises can be customized to fit a sport, job or any everyday activity that you may perform.

Free weights are also a really good option for maintaining muscle mass while trying to loss body fat through metabolic training.

Some cons to free weights would be the need for a lot of stability and control that may not be ideal for someone beginning a rehab program with a fairly acute injury.

Also free weights may be to advanced for an elderly individual without the capability or strength to stabilize the weights safely.

When we take a look at weight machines, which I personally don’t recommend anyone utilize to often.

The pros you can probably figure out from taking into account the cons of free weights.

Someone who is coming off of an acute injury and lacks the strength to safely control the resistance.

Weight machines would definitely fit the bill in this case.

The elderly individual as well would benefit from the balance and stability that machines have to offer.

Weight machines would be a safe alternative which allows strengthening without the need for stabilizing an implement or balancing yourself for that matter.

However, a quick transition from the use of weight machines to free weights should be the objective of anyone.

Just keep in mind, safety first.

So there you have it.

The main reasons why I tend to lean towards the use of free weights as opposed to weight machines.

how ever as you can see there is certain times when machines are appropriate.

Let me know in the comments section below, what some of your favorite free weight exercises are or why you may prefer weight machines.

Hope to hear from you.

Ok, lets get right into the topic of goal setting.

Goal setting for weight loss to be more specific.

We talked a bit last week about why goal setting via a New Years resolution, flat out doesn’t work the majority of the time here.

I also touched on habits and behavioral changes that need to be applied before any transformation can come to fruition.

Lets take a closer look at weight loss.

You can jump in blindly, cutting calories, exercising, restricting certain foods and so on, without any clear outcome in mind.

This method usually ends up in disappointment.

What your missing is a goal with a path of smaller mini goals along the way to keep you going.

What you need to do is pick the goal weight that you would really like to obtain and then DON’T FIXATE ON IT!  

This will only get you discouraged when you haven’t been able to get there in a week or two or three.

Your next step is to plot mini goal weights which can be accomplished in 2-4 weeks.

The purpose of these is to keep you motivated and on the right track.

Also along the path to your ultimate goal and along side your mini goals are the habits and behaviors that need to be applied.

These habits and behaviors are what will keep your plan together.

There are a few points worth noting to assure your weight loss success.

Firstly, once you begin your weight loss journey, you can not just put everything on autopilot.

There will always be circumstances that arise, it’s called life.  What you need to do is make minor adjustments here and there to keep everything on course.

Secondly,  don’t get so involved with the plotting of your plan and all the systems you’re going to use, that you never take action!

And lastly, enjoy the process.

This is something that you won’t be doing for just a few weeks and your done.

These are changes that will need to become part of a new lifestyle.

So take the time to enjoy the journey and learn what works best for you.

Now go out there and crush it!

With the singing of Auld Lang Syne comes reflection on the past year.

Also a look forword and hope for better things to come.

This brings with it, the ever so popular and often alcohol influenced New Years resolutions, be it fitness related or not.

The time when many people pledge to improve themselves and be BETTER then last year.

Now this is  all fine and dandy, but does anyone ever really think they are really going to follow through with any of that stuff.

Not many!

Why, because it’s just something we say.

Everyone else is proclaiming to commit to some form of transformation, you might as well join the pack.

I know this sounds pessimistic, but you’ve got to admit you see it all the time.

People pile into the gyms and fitness centres thinking this will be the year of washboard abs and muscle bulging shirt sleeves.   When in reality, mid February hits and all those same people with great intentions fade beneath a ton of excuses.

Wait a minute, I haven’t totally given up on mankind.  I know we still need to set goals.

What I do think is that the majority of people are just going about it the wrong way.

What I feel is the key to setting a goal and achieving it is the transformation of bad habits into good habits.

I definitely think this is the number one reason people succeed or fail.

And by the way we should never be afraid to fail.

Now I know this may sound like common sense, but believe me you would be surprised.   A simple example of this would be drinking more water then pop.

Another one could be switching from white processed carbs to whole grains when cooking.

Creating a good habit from a bad habit will take time.

Experts have found that it takes roughly 40 days to learn a new habit.

If you can stick to the transformation for a solid 2 months you should have a great chance of success!

You know what else can sabotage a lot of people?   Trying to change too many behaviors at once.   All this seems to do is overwhelm us.

It eats away at our will power until we break.

What so many people do is change their eating habits, training routine, recreational activity, social life, family life, and a host of other behaviors at the same time.

It’s too much for most people.

What I find works best is taking one action every couple of weeks and concentrating on that single behaviour.   It’s less stressful and gives us the feeling that we can do this.

There is not the pressure of trying to change everything all in one shot.

All these changes will add up.

The result being less fat, more muscle, and a highly functioning body.

Again the key is changing these habits one at a time, over several weeks.

This will definitely give you a much better chance of making these behaviors  part of a new and improved lifestyle.

I hope this tip will help you make New Years Resolutions the goal setting ritual it was intended to be.

Make 2012 your best year ever!

Next up I’ll dive into some goal setting tips to get you off to a good start.

Talk to you soon.

Hi everyone, I would just like to begin today’s post by welcoming you to the site and hoping that this will be the first of many more like it.

I’m new to the whole blogging thing, but the training thing I’ve been doing now for almost 16 years.

Now to just quickly explain what this site is all about in a nutshell is simple: I want to help you get a great looking body along with the function and performance of an elite athlete.

The title focuses on one body part, the ever sought after abs, but it will discuss much more than that.

 The sure sign that someone is in exceptional peak condition can easily be discovered by looking at their abdominal region.  If they have a set of ripped abs you generally know this person has a fairly high degree of fitness.

The abs being, probably the most pinnacle of all body parts when it comes to health and fitness.

After 16 years of training people the definite consensus of the majority of my clients work out goals has been losing the belly.

Getting a good looking set of abs, whether they are male or female has always been a top priority.

Everything you need to obtain a ripped set of abdominals will be in this site.

 You will learn about how to get an aesthetic good looking set of abs.

You will also gain insight into creating a functional athletic body, ready for anything and everything you dish out.

As you know elite athletes have great bodies, but they aren’t just for show.  Athletes push their bodies to perform to their absolute limits. They rely on those abdominals, as well as all their other muscles to get the job done.

 This site will give you the real deal, not a bunch of filler.  Everything you get here will be quality, usable tips and information to take you to the highest level of health and fitness.

So there you have it, what you will get out of AthleticAbs.com is the abs you want, the glut’s you want, the arms, shoulders, and quads that you’ve been dreaming of.

 You will also get the performance and function of an athlete that will take you anywhere you want to go.  I’ll give you everything you will need, the rest is up to you!

Just sign up for the newsletter in the sidebar and immediately receive as a bonus, 5 TIPS FOR AMAZING ABS along with periodic posts, tips, and the most up to date quality information available.

Thanks, and hope to hear from you.