There are so many fat loss myths out there in "exercise-land" that I was hired by a fitness magazine to write about one myth each month. After all, by now you've probably heard that if you don't do 60-minutes of cardio in your fat burning zone on an empty stomach while Venus is in line with Jupiter, you'll never burn fat.
The problem with myths is that not only are they wrong and give false hope to millions of people trying to lose weight, but they also waste your time and mental effort. I have also seen these myths used as justification for cheating on a diet, watching countless men and women justify their "treats"because they believe they are on some type of magical exercise program or nutrition plan. I could go on for days about fitness myths, but I cut my list from 30 down to the Top 5 Fat Loss Workout Myths today.
I'll save theother 25 for future newsletters.
Myth #1: You have to do cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. Relax. You don't have to hop on the treadmill at 4:30am every morning. Let's allow common sense to dictate when and how you exercise. If you want to work out first thing in the morning, and I know that is the best time for many TT readers, by all means, go ahead and do it. There's nothing magical about this time - although it is often the only time many of day many people have to themselves. We need to think "outside of the hour" of exercise and realize that calorie burning and fat burning goes on for 24-hours. Forget about the theories and look at the big picture. It doesn't matter when you exercise - as long as you exercise intensely and consistently. Focus on relatively high-intensity workouts to increase your metabolism for as many hours after exercise as possible. That is best done with interval training and resistance training.
Myth #2: You have to do your cardio in your "fat burning zone".Again, nonsense. While you might burn a larger proportion of total calories as fat when you exercise in your fat burning zone, you burn fewer calories overall by exercising at such a low intensity. When you increase your workout intensity and get out of your so-called "fat burning zone", you burn more total calories, and as a result, more fat. In addition, the "fat burning zone" training doesn't put "turbulence" on your muscles...so you don't burn many calories in the post-exercise time period. But with interval training, you burn a significant amount of calories for hours after training, and that leads to more fat loss. I've worked with hundreds of people that have avoided the fat burning zone while still managing to lose dozens of pounds of fat.The "fat burning zone" is one of the biggest fitness myths of all time.
Click here to stop the cardio & lose fat with Turbulence Training workouts:=> TURBULENCE TRAINING
Myth #3: You have to do cardio for 20 minutes before you burn fat. When I hear this, I picture a fat-burning switch in my body that turns on only after I've been doing "cardio" for 20 minutes. But what if I only exercise for 19 minutes and 59 seconds? Areyou telling me that I won't have burned any fat? That's ridiculous. What if I did it on an empty stomach in the morning and in my target heart rate zone? (read that one sarcastically!) I'll say it one last time. We need to be more concerned with our 24-hour metabolism, not how much fat or even how many calories are burned during the workout.
Myth 4: Drinking ice cold water will help you burn calories and lose fat. Standing in line at the grocery store is a great place to pick up the latest fat loss myths. You'll also find this one all over the Internet.This myth often comes along with some calculations showing that by drinking 8 glasses of ice-cold water you can burn 70 calories per day. I don't believe that actually holds true in real life. Regardless, drinking cold water is not going to burn any more fat off your body than drinking room temperature water.Don't get me wrong, I strongly believe you should drink 12 glasses of water per day, but the temperature of your water won't have any effect on your overall fat loss success.
Myth #5: Adding one pound of muscle will burn 50 extra calories each day.Uh-oh, now I'm cutting down a myth that supports my use of strength training in a fat loss program. But I have an obligation to set the record straight about this extremely prevalent myth (even though I just saw a big name fitness expert perpetuate this myth in a recent article!).This myth sounds so good. Add a pound of muscle, boost your metabolism 50 calories. That doesn't seem out of line at all.But do the math for a guy that puts on 30 pounds of muscle. Does his metabolism really increase by 1500 calories? Absolutely not. For an average guy, that would require his resting metabolism to increase from 2500 calories to 4000 calories per day. How would he be able to keep any of that muscle with a metabolism like that? He'd have to eat like a pig forever. So when you look at the big picture, you can see this little myth start to fall apart.That's not to say you should stop your strength training, but just don't use this myth as an excuse to cheat on your diet.
Bonus Myth: Negative Calorie Foods Cause You to Lose Weight According to the "experts", a negative calorie food requires more energy to digest than it provides you when you eat it. And included in the negative calorie food list are apples and bananas. So by this logic, I would actually starve to death if I had nothing to eat but apples (because I would have a net energy loss fromeating a so-called "negative calorie" food).There is no such thing as a negative calorie food. It's a shame “experts” are out there promoting this stuff, and that so many people fall for it. Instead, let the common sense fat loss principles apply. It's going to take consistent effort, working hard at your workouts and with your nutrition to get the results you want.
I guarantee you that Turbulence Training will successfully guide you to the fat loss you deserve and desire.
Sincerely, Nathan Barrett,
Owner, Abdominal Success
P.S. Here's the truth on fat loss from TT users..."I Coach busy women with no time to look in the mirror, let aloneadopt a whole foods lifestyle or exercise yet already! And yet,your Turbulence strategies show almost everyone that everyone hasall of the time they'll ever need to include exercise as a fun,performance-promotion essential to their lives. This program isamazing and plenty challenging because it is simple. Clear but letsno one off the hook. I'm thrilled to say this is a great additionto any woman's arsenal of "what to do." Ann G. Burgess, President, Pathfinders' Fitness by Design,Arlington , MA
Get your very own copy of Turbulence Training & the Nutrition Guide here: => TURBULENCE TRAINING
"I have been in possession of TT for a several weeks now; Iabsolutely enjoy the program. I can get in to the gym and ripthough the supersets work up a great sweat and pump my energylevels up before I even get to the cardio portion of my work-out. II have recommended this program to both beginner and veteran alike.Since starting TT I have dropped almost 2% of body fat and lookforward to making my goal of 10% body fat in no time. This programis absolutely one of the best anywhere on the Web." Alejandro B. Villalobos
Read Turbulence Training Review
Showing posts with label Best exercises for fat loss. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Best exercises for fat loss. Show all posts
Monday, October 17, 2011
Best Exercises for Fat Loss
In the 80's and 90's workout magazines that I read, recommended isolation exercises, like the leg extension machine and the chest-fly machine as being best exercises for fat loss and helping you sculpt your body. But we've come a long way since then...Today I want to show you how to choose the best exercises for fat loss, and even the right exercise order, to get the most fat loss and body-sculpting in the least amount of time.
Let's start with some simple rules on how to pick the exercises.
1. Exercises should always work multiple muscle groups.
2. Exercises should be done standing, whenever possible.
3. Exercises should be effective for fat loss even if only thebodyweight version is used (i.e. squats).
4. The hardest (most intense) exercises should always be first.
Before I explain the rules in detail, let's first cover the warm-up.
Every Turbulence Training workout starts with a general warm-up. By now, you should know that I don't like the traditional 5-minute cardio workout (excluding those who need it for injury purposes,according to their health care professional). The purpose of the warm-up is to specifically prepare your muscles for action. Walking on a treadmill for 5 minutes does little interms of preparing your body for strength training. Therefore, I start every workout with a general, total body circuit.
When putting together total-body workouts and warm-ups, I think about 4 "hot zones" on the body. And I have to address all four hot zones with exercises in the warm-up. The hot zones are:
a) Back of Legs
b) Upper Back
c) Chest
d) Abdominals
Why do I only worry about the back of legs? Because almost allmulti-joint movements that train the back of the legs will alsostress the quadriceps, even if only in a static contraction. Take for example, this general warm-up (to be used in place of thetreadmill):
A) Y-Squat (hold your hands over your head in a "Y" formation) - 15reps
B) Close-grip Pushups (kneeling or advanced) - 8 reps
C) Stick-up - 8 reps
Hopefully you can see how that hits all 4 hot zones through dynamicand static contractions. If you don't, let me know. Ok, now we are ready to move on to the meat of the workout. As stated above in the rules, we must pick our hardest, most intense exercises first, and perform them in sets of low reps.
Here's a Turbulence Training bodyweight-only, body-sculpting workout routine that I've designed to show you the correct exercise order, and the types of exercise that are best for changing your body. I'll be using this exact workout with one of my high-profile movie stars this afternoon. She needs to keep her body sculpted without bulking up. But she still needs to be strong, lean, and athletic for her fight scenes in the movie she is filming.
1A) Split Squat (8 reps) [Advanced use the Bulgarian Split Squat]
1B) Elevated Pushup (8 reps per side) [Kneeling or Advanced)
2A) Step-up (12 reps)
2B) Bodyweight Row (8 reps) (Beginner or Advanced)
3A) Stability Ball Jackknife (15 reps)
3B) Back Extension on Ball (15 reps)
Each superset (i.e. 1A & 1B) is done 3 times with no rest between exercises A and B, but with a 30 seconds rest after B, before you repeat the superset. Following the strength portion of the workout, complete the workout with Interval Training.
Each exercise uses multiple muscle groups, so that more calories will be burned during and after exercise.We also design each superset to use two intense, non-competing exercises. We use low reps where possible. We train for strength at the start of the workout when we are fresh. What do I mean by non-competing? That means, you should be able to perform the two exercises back to back with minimal fatiguing effects from the prior exercise.
You have to pair exercises that don't use the same muscle groups. The rules of exercise selection and exercise order will allow youto get lean, boost your metabolism, and to train with a high-intensity through out the entire workout. So when I put the exercises together, it is all about putting themin the right order to get you lean.
Click here to get the Turbulence Training workouts:=> TURBULENCE TRAINING
Full body workouts sculpt a better body faster,Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MSCreator, Turbulence Training
P.S. You've asked, "Can women use Turbulence Training"?
I'll let these female clients answer...
"Everywhere I go, people who I haven't seen in a long time see meand are shocked at my transformation. For a 37 yearold, married, mother of 4 to hear that she looks "hot" or"terrific" is the ultimate compliment! Your program hascompletely changed me. I have tone muscles in places I neverthought would be tone again! Thank you for your sincere dedicationto those of us who want to make a difference in our lives."Terri Stuckey, Chardon, Ohio
Click here to get your Turbulence Training workouts:=> TURBULENCE TRAINING
"Wow! I have been a Certified Personal Trainer for 7 years and I have not seen any other program that works as quickly or effectively. Within 3-4 weeks of doing the Turbulence Training program, I lost the last 8 pounds, and am now happy to be at my pre-pregnancy weight- and stronger than I was before."Annette Allen
Read Turbulence Training Review
Let's start with some simple rules on how to pick the exercises.
1. Exercises should always work multiple muscle groups.
2. Exercises should be done standing, whenever possible.
3. Exercises should be effective for fat loss even if only thebodyweight version is used (i.e. squats).
4. The hardest (most intense) exercises should always be first.
Before I explain the rules in detail, let's first cover the warm-up.
Every Turbulence Training workout starts with a general warm-up. By now, you should know that I don't like the traditional 5-minute cardio workout (excluding those who need it for injury purposes,according to their health care professional). The purpose of the warm-up is to specifically prepare your muscles for action. Walking on a treadmill for 5 minutes does little interms of preparing your body for strength training. Therefore, I start every workout with a general, total body circuit.
When putting together total-body workouts and warm-ups, I think about 4 "hot zones" on the body. And I have to address all four hot zones with exercises in the warm-up. The hot zones are:
a) Back of Legs
b) Upper Back
c) Chest
d) Abdominals
Why do I only worry about the back of legs? Because almost allmulti-joint movements that train the back of the legs will alsostress the quadriceps, even if only in a static contraction. Take for example, this general warm-up (to be used in place of thetreadmill):
A) Y-Squat (hold your hands over your head in a "Y" formation) - 15reps
B) Close-grip Pushups (kneeling or advanced) - 8 reps
C) Stick-up - 8 reps
Hopefully you can see how that hits all 4 hot zones through dynamicand static contractions. If you don't, let me know. Ok, now we are ready to move on to the meat of the workout. As stated above in the rules, we must pick our hardest, most intense exercises first, and perform them in sets of low reps.
Here's a Turbulence Training bodyweight-only, body-sculpting workout routine that I've designed to show you the correct exercise order, and the types of exercise that are best for changing your body. I'll be using this exact workout with one of my high-profile movie stars this afternoon. She needs to keep her body sculpted without bulking up. But she still needs to be strong, lean, and athletic for her fight scenes in the movie she is filming.
1A) Split Squat (8 reps) [Advanced use the Bulgarian Split Squat]
1B) Elevated Pushup (8 reps per side) [Kneeling or Advanced)
2A) Step-up (12 reps)
2B) Bodyweight Row (8 reps) (Beginner or Advanced)
3A) Stability Ball Jackknife (15 reps)
3B) Back Extension on Ball (15 reps)
Each superset (i.e. 1A & 1B) is done 3 times with no rest between exercises A and B, but with a 30 seconds rest after B, before you repeat the superset. Following the strength portion of the workout, complete the workout with Interval Training.
Each exercise uses multiple muscle groups, so that more calories will be burned during and after exercise.We also design each superset to use two intense, non-competing exercises. We use low reps where possible. We train for strength at the start of the workout when we are fresh. What do I mean by non-competing? That means, you should be able to perform the two exercises back to back with minimal fatiguing effects from the prior exercise.
You have to pair exercises that don't use the same muscle groups. The rules of exercise selection and exercise order will allow youto get lean, boost your metabolism, and to train with a high-intensity through out the entire workout. So when I put the exercises together, it is all about putting themin the right order to get you lean.
Click here to get the Turbulence Training workouts:=> TURBULENCE TRAINING
Full body workouts sculpt a better body faster,Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MSCreator, Turbulence Training
P.S. You've asked, "Can women use Turbulence Training"?
I'll let these female clients answer...
"Everywhere I go, people who I haven't seen in a long time see meand are shocked at my transformation. For a 37 yearold, married, mother of 4 to hear that she looks "hot" or"terrific" is the ultimate compliment! Your program hascompletely changed me. I have tone muscles in places I neverthought would be tone again! Thank you for your sincere dedicationto those of us who want to make a difference in our lives."Terri Stuckey, Chardon, Ohio
Click here to get your Turbulence Training workouts:=> TURBULENCE TRAINING
"Wow! I have been a Certified Personal Trainer for 7 years and I have not seen any other program that works as quickly or effectively. Within 3-4 weeks of doing the Turbulence Training program, I lost the last 8 pounds, and am now happy to be at my pre-pregnancy weight- and stronger than I was before."Annette Allen
Read Turbulence Training Review
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