Booze
Limit your alcohol intake to one drink a day; two or more can increase your risk for dementia later in life. After you’ve downed your daily allowance of tequila sunrises, try nipping an unsweetened iced tea instead.

Brush, floss, and rinse with mouthwash Yes, again. On nights when you’d rather just collapse into bed, chew on this: According to an article in the The Journal of the American Dental Association, your mouth harbors 400 to 800 species of bacteria–and they’re making a beeline for your tooth enamel.

Turn off the TV and close your laptop an hour before bed. The glowing screens emit a blue light that keeps you up by suppressing melatonin, a hormone that regulates your body clock.

Crank Corinne Bailey Rae, take a warm bath, or slurp a cup of herbal tea: Calming pre-bed rituals like these can help you decompress both mentally and physically. Do them every night and they’ll start to cue your brain that it’s snooze time, making you nod off faster.

Set your coffeemaker Java is the No. 1 source of cancer-fighting antioxidants in our diets, and studies show that a good brew can help you perform better on tests that measure concentration, memory, and learning and even help protect against ovarian cancer. Limit yourself to two or three cups a day–or decaf–to avoid jitters and late nights staring at the ceiling.

Work out before work
Early workouts are easier to squeeze into your hectic schedule, and they save you the need to shower twice. That saves up to 72 gallons of water each year. And the good news continues: Studies also show that AM exercisers are more likely to stick with the program than those who hit the gym later in the day.

Unplug
Researchers from the University of Minnesota found that people who spent five or more hours of free time each day working on the computer, watching TV, or playing video games exercised 11 fewer minutes a day than people who didn’t. Pulling the plug may help you downsize not only your ass but your carbon footprint too: 25 to 40 percent of all electricity used to power home electronics is consumed while the products are plugged in but switched off.

Mash up your workouts
Logging 20 minutes on the elliptical, then 20 minutes in the weight room, then 10 minutes on a yoga mat may sound like a kick-ass workout, but it doesn’t mimic how we use our bodies in the real world. (Shoving that heavy box of winter boots into the upper reaches of your closet, for example, requires you to use balance, flexibility, and strength…at the same time). So make your workouts like your favorite DJ Shadow CD and mix them up: Try a short burst of cardio exercise, then jump right into a quick power strength move, immediately followed by a flexibility drill. Repeat. You’ll see results sooner.

Add intervals to your cardio
Interval training (alternating short bursts of high-intensity activity with lower-intensity activity) has been proven to fry body fat and boost cardiovascular fitness more quickly than working out at a constant, moderate pace. Try a 30-second sprint for every five minutes of treadmill time, or in the pool, one lap of speed after a few laps of slower strokes.

Reach for it
If you spend your days stuck in Cubeville (Population: You), you’re losing mobility, and that sets you up for muscle strains and tears when you finally get out from behind the desk. Your hamstrings, calves, and pectoral (chest) muscles tend to be the most drum-tight. Abide by the wisdom of the American College of Sports Medicine and stretch them out two to three days a week. Aim for four 10- to 30-second reps per muscle group.

Sidestep knee injuries
Studies show that women are more likely than men to be weak in the knees. Your joint-saving solution: hips of steel. The stronger you make the muscles around your hips, the better you can control your femur (the thigh bone), which helps stabilize your knee. One easy hip-strengthening move: Tie a resistance band around your ankles, squat slightly and step side to side with as wide a stride as you can manage.

A multivitamin
While national surveys show that up to 80 percent of Americans think they eat well, only 1 percent actually meet minimum standards for a balanced diet. Choose a multi that contains at least 100 percent of the daily value of vitamins A, C, and E and folic acid.

Vitamin D
Studies show that popping 1,000 IU each day cuts your risk of breast and ovarian cancers in half.

Fish oil
Your breath may smell like the seafood counter at Kroger for a while, but these gill pills work wonders on the body–inside and out. Fish oil not only keeps your skin and hair healthy but also reduces the risk of heart disease and helps squelch inflammation. Experts suggest one gram per day.

Munch wet snacks, not dry ones Water-rich, fiber-packed foods like fresh fruit, cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, corn on the cob, broth-based soup, or baked potatoes pack fewer calories into bigger servings so you feel full on less. On the flip side, dry foods like chips, crackers, candy, bagels, pretzels, and granola bars cram lots of calories into itty-bitty servings. Can you say snack attack?

Toss salads with Romaine, not iceberg. It may not provide the same satisfying crunch, but the darker leafy green has twice the fiber, B vitamins, folic acid, calcium, and potassium and seven times the vitamins A and C of iceberg.

Sip a skim latte, not black coffee Studies show that caffeine may contribute to osteoporosis by increasing calcium loss. But you can sidestep this risk by adding milk to your brew: Even two tablespoons will offset the negative effects on calcium. Sneaky, eh?

Drink coffee, tea, and red wine between meals, not during them These beverages all contain tannins, which compromise your body’s ability to absorb iron from food.

Use regular, not antibacterial, soap It KOs just as many germs, and some scientists argue that using too many antibacterial cleansers may tamper with the effectiveness of some antibiotics.

Men’s Health has great content is well written and provides it’s readers with a all
around health advice. But man the site “sucks”.  I  prefer the magazine over the
site any day. The content on the site is truly hard to navigate .
I subscribe to Men’s Health Eat this, Not that email newsletter which gives you some teaser content than drive you to their site to learn more.  I found this email to  be partially interesting because I am always looking for advice on food. 12 Foods for 6-Pack Abs hey I am all about maintaing what I have worked so hard for. When I went to the site I was confused on how navigate  through the content. Some one thought that it  would be cute to design a navigation based on “ABS DIET POWER” phrase. Each letter in the phrase is associated with a piece of content. ie A is for “ALMONDS”.Awwwee that is so cute, last time I checked  nursery school was out. Despite the pain in the ass content the content was worth dealing with the nursery navigation.

Below is a list of the 12 food all with different properties that will help you with your
6 pack mission.

“A” Almonds -
“B” Beans and other legumes
“S” Spinach
“D” Dairy
“I” Instant Oatmeal
“E” Eggs
“T” Turkey and other lean meats
“P” Peanut Butter
“O” Olive oil
“W” Whole-Grain Breads and Cereal
“E” Extra- Protein Powder
“R” Raspberries and other berries

To get the reasons why, recipes and advice on each food click here.

Originally this was supposed to be part of my newsletter; But reality kicked in and said “you can’t do it.” So in an effort to keep things fresh and share what I learn as I go, I decided to be more aggressive about my blogging.

I get a ton of questions regarding getting a flatter stomach.

I am presently in the best shape of my life. In my twenties I had a flat stomach but didn’t have a six pack; Probably from all of the beer I was drinking ;o) I did work out and was training heavily in martial arts. I would practice six times a week, two hours a day and jogged four miles three times a week.  I didn’t know what I know now, which is getting a six pack or flatter stomach has a lot to do with type of training and alot more to do with of what you eat.

Diet and Nutrition

Here is a  basic over overview  from Men’s Fitness -
Cut the junk food out of your diet, along with starchy carbs (pasta,*bread, potatoes, white rice etc.). Replace them with vegetables and fruits. Aim to consume 1.5 to 1.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight each day. (Divide your weight in pounds by 2.2 to get it in kilograms.) The best protein sources are lean meats, beef, chicken, fish, pork and dairy.

*Breads I eat  wheat, multigrain or sprout varieties. In general, whole grains are better for you as the body breaks down whole grains much easier.  It’s refine enriched flour stuff like white bread or wonder bread that can do you in.

Protein - Protein in your diet is essential whether you’re trying to gain mass or lose weight. The body actually burns calories to digest it. So if a piece of meat is a hundred calories, you will burn thirty calories digesting. Leaving you with seventy calories to deal burn off with exercise.

To lose weight  you should consume 1,500 -2000 calories a day. Cutting 500 calories out of your diet a day it should help you lose a pound a week without exercise but its not something I would suggest. Subway’s Jared is a great example of eating healthier. My only issue is he doesn’t necessarily look healthier.

Drink water! Water flushes the extra sodium out of your body which makes you retain water weight, making you look bigger. Making sure you get your 8 glass of water will help you shed 10 – 15 pounds.

Consume 5-7 small meals instead of three big ones. Eating smaller meals in the day will curb your hunger and increase your metabolism rate which burns more calories.

Fat - In order to see your stomach you need to eat low fat foods and fat burning foods.  Here are some examples of food that are low in fat or burn calories.
Eggs, Salmon, Dairy ( low fat cheese, skim milk ), Green Tea, Grapefruit, Chili Peppers, Almonds / Walnuts ( one ounce (22 almonds ) (14 halves walnuts) due to it’s high fat content one / two servings a day, Bananas, Oatmeal, Fat free yogurt / Greek yogurt,  Coffee, Cinnamon, Beans, Blueberries, Broccoli, Chicken, Lean Beef, Quinoa, Whey Protein, Red Bell Pepper, Low Fat Cottage Cheese, Shrimp, Apples.

All of these foods have different benefits which would take me forever to explain.  Basically they all are either high in fiber, have beneficial fat burning vitamins in them or are low in fat.
( Sources Men’s Fitness and Muscle & Fitness)

Lastly, if you’re going to cheat save it for one day out of the week. Its called “The Cheat Meal,” but I call it keeping my @#$! sanity meal. I plan my keeping my @#$! sanity meal out for the week or break it up into two days. I always make sure that I am going to work out the day after I cheat.

The  May 2010 Muscle and Fitness has some of the food above and great meal plans. Here is an example:
Diet for 180 lb man
Sample Rest Day -
Breakfast 1: 1 Scoop of Whey protein, 1 apple
Breakfast 2: 3 eggs, 1 cup of oatmeal, 2 scoops of whey protein, 1 cup of green tea
Morning snack; 6 oz. plain Greek yogurt, .5 cup of blue berries
Lunch: 1 Slice of sprouted bread ,1 oz of salmon, 2 cups of spinach, 1 cup
of read bell pepper
2 tsp. olive oil, 1 cup of black coffee
Mid afternoon snack: 1 scoop of whey protein, 1 cup of milk
Dinner: 6 oz. chicken breast, 5 cup black beans, 1 cup of broccoli
Bedtime snack: 8 oz. low-fat (1%) cottage cheese,1 oz. walnuts.
Total : 2,547 calories, 291 protein, 182 carbs, 79 g fat

In order to make this type of meal plan work for your goals, adjust the food to the calories you need to consume keeping in mind 5-7 small meals a day and protein that you need for the weight you want to achieve.

I use meal plans as I guide to give me an idea of what to eat. Planning your meals in advance really helps you focus on the calories that your consuming.  That’s why diet meal plans work because it forces you to plan you meals ahead of time. Leaving you little room to deviate to eating bad food. Also it takes the “I am hungry but I don’t know what I want to eat” out of your diet. By planning ahead you will become more aware of what your putting into your body.

I am still learning about food and diet, and I will keep sharing food and meal plans as I find them.

Presently I am reading The Body Fat Solution by Tom Venuto
It’s a great book so far a full review is coming soon.

Exercise:
To get rid of fat with exercise you want to start with circuit training. Circuit training burns fat faster  because it is generally a full body workout utilizing all of your muscle groups.

The Spartacus workout is a great example of this.

Spartacus is brutal, if your just starting out do 15 – 20 reps of each
exercise instead of using time for measurement.

Here is another example of Circuit training. Found in the Jan/ Feb. issue of
Maximum Fitness.
Do 10-12 reps, 2 minutes of rest at the end of the circuit. Do 3 Circuits.

Wide-Stance Dumbbell Squat

Push-Up

Walking dumbbell lunge

Two-arm dumbbell row

Stiff – legged dumbbell dead lift

Medicine ball crunch

Dumbbell reverse – grip bicep curl to shoulder press

When you’re lifting weights it’s good to mix up what you do every four weeks.  By doing this your muscles don’t get lazy and used to what your doing.  Keeping your muscles guessing will keep them burning.

Ab workouts -
Now from what I have been reading if you want great abs you should work them
out three times a week.

Here is example of a routine:
2-3 sets, 12-15 reps

Dumbbell V-Up: ( Do these with or without weight)

Hanging leg raise:

Weighted swiss ball crunch

Shotgun

oblique crunches

twisting leg raises

Bird Dog no reps use time 60 seconds

Check out my Maximum Fitness video review 3000 Abs Workouts for more Ab exercises.

Work has me swamped so I haven’t had a chance to blog or make any
videos. Going to hopefully review some products and a routine or two this
weekend.

At the moment I have been following this workout from
Muscle and Fitness the T-Shirt Workout.
Basic exercises with a solid rest time allowing the muscles to grow.
I had to switch some of the exercises because of the type of equipment
I have at home. For the most part it still covers all the same muscles.
I also incorporate three days  of stomach exercises after the work out.

Day 1
Chest
Incline Bench Press -  4 sets – 8-12 reps
Dumbell Bench Press – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Incline Flyers -4 sets – 8-12 reps
Pullover- 3 sets – 8-12 reps

Shoulders
Overhead Press – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Upright Row – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Lateral Raise (Bosu Ball) – 3 sets – 8-12 reps
Rear Delt Row ( Bosu Ball)-3 sets – 8-12 reps

Triceps
French Press – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Dips ( Weighted) – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
KickBack  – 3 sets – 8-12 reps

Day 2
Back
Bent Over Row – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Pull Ups – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Push Up to Row – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Self Row – 3 sets – 8-12 reps
Stiff Arm Pull Down – 3sets – 8-12 reps

Biceps
Standing Barbell Curl – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Seated Alternating Dumbbell Curl – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Preacher Ez Bar Curl – 3 sets – 8-12 reps

Day -3-Rest
 

 Day 4
Legs
Back Squat  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Front Squat  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Dumbbell Lunge  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Step Up  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Stiff Leg Deadlift  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Lying Leg Curl  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Leg Extentions  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps

Day 5
Traps
Shrug Barbell  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Shrug Dumbbells  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
CorkScrew  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps

Forearm
Reverse Curl  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Behind the back Curl  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Wrist Flexition  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps

Calves
Calf Raise  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Seated Calf Raise  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps
Single Leg Calf Raise  – 4 sets – 8-12 reps

Day- 6 – Rest
Day -7 – Rest

Stomach exercises that incorporate,  I perform these as circuits.

3 sets – 10-12 reps each no rest between circuit with 30 seconds to 60 seconds rest between circuit.
Below are the types of exercises I do. I like to mix and match the exercises as well.

Example  combinations
Leg Raise
Swiss Ball Weighted Crunch
Shotgun

Side Crunch
Swiss Ball leg Raise
Bosu Ball Crunch

Jack Knife
Side Bridge Reach with Dumbbell
Rollout

Swiss Ball Torso Rotation with weight
Hip raise
V-up

Workout Muse creates cutting edge custom interval workout music. They put together a free Spartacus workout soundtrack, this is a great way to keep timing while you workout with the Spartacus rountine. You no longer have to worry about how much time you have left with each exercise  or how much time to rest. The Spartacus Workout Soundtrack  lets you know every step of the way. It even lets you know how many circuits you have done and what is left to go.

The sound track will help you stay more honest and true to the workout.
Download it and try it out. Thanks Workout Muse for creating a awesome soundtrack to go with this killer routine.

Taking pictures of before and after is a great way to boost your confidence. It also helps to drive you to maintain focus and stay driven. We are all visual creatures and seeing is believing. Below are my latest gains while working out with Spartacus and eating right. I have to get some better lighting, these images are loosing some definition that really shows the difference in the comparison.

When you see this icon on my site it means that I have it programed into the iPhone app FitnessBuilder. FitnessBuilder is one of most comphresive exercise apps for the iPhone.
I reviewed it for 60 days and lost 16 lbs. using it. 

I can share the workouts through FitnessBuilder iPhone app or a downloadable pdf. Please contact me and let me know the email and workout you are interested in.

My advice for anyone starting out is, lift light at first trying to do as many reps within a minute.  Men’s Health suggest that if you cannot complete the exercise for the full minute do 15 to 20 reps instead. The amount of weight you should lift according to Men’s Health is weight that is challenging, which basically means you should be able to lift it for a minute.

I have done this workout with two other gym mates, one threw up and wasn’t able to complete the  routine. The second almost fainted three exercise in.  As for myself …When I first started this routine I was able to complete some exercises for the full minute. Other exercises I would revert to reps instead.

Other tips to getting the most out of Spartacus Workout.
1. Rest – Men’s Health suggests that you do this routine three times a week taking a day off in between workouts.
2. Keep pushing yourself if you can do a minute at ten pounds move it up to fifteen.
3. Stretch before you do this workout
4. Maintain form over reps

By the second circuit I am soaked in sweat and pumping to the music to get through.

To date I have done this routine 12 times.
Here is where I am at from the date I started till the present.
I am amazed at the results.

Goblet Squat –  
1/2/10
1st / 20 reps  Weight 40 whole minute
2nd/ 20 reps  Weight 40 whole minute
3rd/ 20 reps  Weight 40 whole minute
Present
1st / 40 reps  Weight 50 whole minute
2nd/ 35 reps  Weight 50 whole minute
3rd/ 35reps  Weight 50 whole minute

Mountain Climber
1/2/10
1st / 20 reps  
2nd/ 20 reps  
3rd/ 20 reps  
Present:
1st / 50 reps  whole minute
2nd/ 30 reps  
3rd/ 30 reps

Single-arm dumbbell swing
1/2/10
1st / 15 reps  Weight 30 each arm
2nd/ 15 reps  Weight 30 each arm
3rd/ 15 reps  Weight 30 each arm
Present
1st / 20 reps  Weight 35 each arm
2nd/ 20 reps  Weight 35 each arm
3rd/ 20 reps  Weight 35 each arm

T-Pushup
1/2/10
1st / 16 reps  Weight 15  whole minute
2nd/ 12 reps  Weight 15 whole minute
3rd/  12 reps  Weight 15  whole minute
Present
1st / 16 reps  Weight 20 whole minute
2nd/ 14 reps  Weight 20 whole minute
3rd/ 14 reps  Weight 20 whole minute

Split Jump
1/2/10
1st / 20 reps  
2nd/ 20 reps  
3rd/ 20 reps  
Present
1st / 40 reps  almost the whole minute
2nd/ 30 reps  
3rd/ 25 reps

Dumbbell Row
1/2/10
1st / 15 reps  Weight  30
2nd/ 15 reps  Weight 30
3rd/ 15 reps  Weight  30
Present
1st / 30 reps  Weight  35 almost the whole minute
2nd/ 30 reps  Weight 35 almost the whole minute
3rd/ 25 reps  Weight  35

Dumbbell side lunge and touch
1/2/10
1st / 10 reps  Weight  20
2nd/ 10 reps  Weight 20
3rd/ 10 reps  Weight  20
Present
1st / 18 reps  Weight  20 whole minute
2nd/ 16 reps  Weight 20 whole minute
3rd/ 14 reps  Weight  20

Pushup – position row
1/2/10
1st / 10 reps  Weight  15 each arm
2nd/ 10 reps  Weight 15 each arm
3rd/ 10 reps  Weight  15 each arm
Present
1st / 26 reps  Weight  20 each arm whole minute
2nd/ 25 reps  Weight 20 each arm whole minute
3rd/  20 reps  Weight  20 each arm

Dumbbell lunge and rotation
1/2/10
1st / 20 reps  Weight  20 whole minute
2nd/ 20 reps  Weight 20  whole minute
3rd/ 20 reps  Weight  20 whole minute
Present
1st / 20 reps  Weight  30 whole minute
2nd/ 20 reps  Weight 30  whole minute
3rd/ 20 reps  Weight  30 whole minute

Dumbbell push press
1/2/10
1st / 20 reps  Weight  30
2nd/ 15 reps  Weight 30
3rd/ 15 reps  Weight  30
Present
1st / 30 reps  Weight  35 almost the whole minute
2nd/ 30 reps  Weight 35 almost the whole minute
3rd/ 25 reps  Weight  35