Flat Abs - Are They for Everyone?

Flat Abs - Are They for Everyone?

Many People think that flat abs are a myth, and that they are something that only the elite of fit people can have. Anyone can achieve flat abs, as long as they adopt certain principles in their lives for them to be able to accomplish this.

If you are the sort of person who dislikes exercising excessively, or if you would prefer to be flayed alive than be seen in a gym or doing anything that even vaguely looks like an exercise, then you might find that it's a little harder to get the flat abs that you are desire.

On the other hand, however, if you don't mind the rigors of exercise and if you are okay with perspiration dripping down your face and your muscles aching from abominably because you just had a great day getting down and dirty with your abdominal exercises, then there is definitely hope for you yet.

You will find it easier to get into the groove of exercising and eating a healthy diet in order to get your flat abs, because make no mistake, it will require exercise and you will need to alter your diet to something that is remotely resembling healthy into order to get flat abs.

Having said that, if all you want is to lose that belly fat, and not necessarily to have flat abs, you should be able to considerably cut down on the abdominal exercises that you need to do, but remember this is only if you want to lose the tummy fat, not if you want to achieve gorgeous looking flat abs.

To reach this goal, sorry to say, you will need to exercise and you will need to eat in a healthy way, and this includes the quantity of alcohol you drink on a daily or weekly basis too. Once you have come to terms with all of this of course, you have the option of getting yourself down to your doctor and getting a routine physical done, or you also have the option of just winging things and taking it slowly to begin with. The choice is entirely up to you.

Then the next thing on you agenda is that you need to find an abdominal exercise program that will suit your physical fitness level as well as your goals. If you want flat abs, then you certainly won't have to do as many exercises as you would if you wanted six pack abs. And when this is all sorted out, you can then set about the mission of acquiring your flat abs today, without any more delay. For more information on this subject go to http://www.firm-abs-secret.com

by LESLEY KNOWLES
Flat Abs - Are They for Everyone?

A Simple Guide To Getting A Ripped Chest

A Simple Guide To Getting A Ripped Chest
However long ago it was that you began working out, you must have had a certain muscle or muscle group that you decided to develop the most attention and dedication to. For a lot of people it was the chest (as well as abs). We would overtrain and work out to the extreme to try and accomplish the best chest possible. Even though all muscles are important, for men, other men see you by your arms and women see you by your chest and abs.
Throughout the duration of this article, you will be informed on the basics of how to accquire the perfect chest that you always dreamed of having.
What puts together your whole work out routine for your chest should be the flat press. Flat presses will help you work out your whole chest and likely will help build the mass the best out of all other exercises. Dumbbells are better then barbells for working out the chest as they offer a better range of motion for your training as well as working out each side of your chest individually if wished. You should use barbells occassionally still though. As well, the incline and decline bench presses are great. The incline bench works the top part of your chest and the decline bench works the lower part of your chest. A lot of people have developed their lower part of their chest already so your main focus should be the incline bench press. A personal suggestion is to do decline instead of incline press once every two weeks (replace incline with decline...).
Another good way for you to get your chests bigger is to do dips. Dips will let you move the weight from one side or the other if you have to make your chest look more even. Dips also work your whole pectoral region as well as help your shoulders and triceps. Dips basically do the same for the upper body as squats do for the lower, in a nutshell. You have to be sure that you go down far enough that you feel the stretch in your chest to assure the full burn is occuring. The lowest point of your rep is where your chest gets its work out from.
As well, there is another exercise referred to as the flies. Flies help you stretch your chest muscles and make them look even wider. Because it is an isolation exercise, it is a great way to end your chest work out on any given training day or to get the chest worked out already for presses.
You should see a personal trainer and create the best work out possible for you to get the perfect chest that you always wanted.
by Terry Bytheway
A Simple Guide To Getting A Ripped Chest

The Best Time For and Types of Post Workout Meals

The Best Time For and Types of Post Workout Meals
I am sure you have heard previously that your post-workout meal is actually the most important meal of your day (aside from breakfast of course).
I would have to agree with that assertion for the most part because refueling your body with the right combo of nutrients is so vastly important to repairing your muscles from the breakdown of a workout, and keeping your metabolic rate sky high.
From recent research on post-workout meals:
"A recent 12-week study says that those who failed to consume a post workout meal immediately after their workouts suffered a lower metabolism, loss of fat free mass, and had clear indications of muscle loss - while their counterparts (those who consumed a post workout recovery meal) significantly lost more fat, increased lean muscle, improved their metabolism, and increased dynamic strength."
I have noticed that many people are confused as to what actually makes a good post-workout meal. A couple common questions I receive about post workout meals:

1. Aren't post-workout meals only important for muscle building? Do they matter at all for fat loss goals?

2. Is it best to use one of the fancy post-workout drinks or shakes that you see in the magazines or is a whole food meal better? What's the best combo of carbs to protein to fat in a good post workout meal?

3. How soon after a workout is best to have my post workout meal?
Answers:
1. Post-workout meals are actually important for BOTH muscle building and losing body fat!
Always remember that one of the most important considerations of long term body fat loss and maintaining a lean body for life is raising your overall metabolic rate by building and maintaining adequate lean muscle mass throughout your entire body.
By consuming a good post workout meal after every workout, you assist your body in repairing and building lean muscle throughout your whole body. The more lean muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate (even when resting)... hence, you lose fat easier and faster, and it is MUCH easier to stay lean in the long term.

2. Are whole foods or supplement shakes best? This can actually be done either way, but I am going to show you some guidelines why some post-workout shakes are better than others and some whole foods are better than others. Either way, it can work.
First, keep in mind that your goal throughout the majority of each day is eating small whole food meals frequently that digest slowly with high fiber and a controlled glycemic response (blood sugar). These normal daily meals should also contain healthy fats and slowly digested proteins to maintain a steady supply of amino acids.
When it comes to post-workout meals, you can just about use the exact opposite strategy of your normal meals. With post-workout meals, you actually want a faster digesting carb source to stimulate an insulin response. This helps to push nutrients and glycogen back into your muscle cells for repair. Remember, this is not just important for building muscle, but also for losing fat.
So while I always preach high fiber for most of your meals, with post-workout meals, you actually want lower fiber, higher GI carbohydrates, and quickly digesting protein as well to kick start muscle repair.
Another consideration to keep in mind... while I always preach healthy fats at most of your meals... with the post workout meal, you actually want almost all carbohydrates and protein, and very little fat. Fat in the post workout meal just slows the absorption and glycemic response which is not what you want at this key time.
What about the best ratios of carbohydrates and protein?
I have reviewed dozens of studies on this subject and most seem to agree that a ratio of approx 2 to 1 carbs to protein is optimal. This seems to be the best combo to maximize muscle repair to boost that metabolic rate for long term body fat loss.
I usually make my post-workout shakes using a frozen banana, whey protein, water, and some real maple syrup (not the cheap high fructose corn syrup based maple syrups at most stores) and aim for about a 2:1 ratio of carbohydrates to protein in the shake.
If you want to make things a little simpler, one of the best post-workout shakes that I've found that is already mixed in a 2:1 carb:protein ratio is Prograde's Varsity Post-Workout mix. You can find it at the bottom of this page.

3. How soon should you eat (or drink) your post-workout meal once your done working out?
As soon as you can after your workout (the sooner the better)!
Studies have shown that the sooner you consume your post workout meal following your intense workout, the better your muscle recovery will be, and a higher quantity of the carbohydrates ingested will be used for muscle glycogen replenishment instead of other uses.
The first thing I do when I get back from the gym is make my post workout shake, and this is about 10 min after finishing my workout. Below is one of the best post workout shakes already formulated in a 2:1 carbohydrate:protein ratio. See the details at http://natural.getprograde.com/varsity
by MIKE GEARY
The Best Time For and Types of Post Workout Meals

Advanced Workout: Sets & Reps

After you have figured out your form and become more than a beginner, it’s time to re-vamp your routine. The number of sets and repetitions (reps) may be considered more important than the exercises being performed. In the avenue of bodybuilding there is a variety of routines that can be effective. Effectiveness of a routine usually lies in the ability of your workout to put as much strain on a muscle without over working it. This is done much easier when keeping most of the factors in a workout constant and only making one change. This leads to the explanation on how to choose the number of sets and reps to do and how it affects your muscles. The goal of bodybuilding is to increase size and mass of a muscle. This means every set is going to be to what is called muscle failure (except the warm up). Muscle failure being the point at which you can’t move the weight anymore. Having a spotter is essential for this type of workout. For the most part the reps are going to stay consistent, meaning the variable is the number of sets. The ideal number of times your muscle needs to go to failure per exercise is four. Meaning four sets per exercise. For the purpose of this article it’s assumed that there is a proper warm up and stretching before the first four sets. The next step is to determine the number of reps per set. Each set will be to failure so technically you don’t need a number of reps to do because you are going to push the weight until you can’t anymore. This means the proper amount of weight is more important. Rather than trying to complete a certain number of reps, use an amount t of weight to hit a target range of reps. The first set’s range is 10-12. This means you want to stack enough a weight so that your muscles need to stop at 10 or 11 reps. If you can do 12 that’s ok. If you can do more than 12 you need to increase the weight. If you can’t do 10, you need to decrease the weight. The second set’s range is 8-10. The third and fourth set’s range is 6-8. The only factor left is the number of sets to do per exercise. You want to do between 12 and 20 sets per muscle. This is 3-5 exercises per muscle. In all honestly doing less than 4 exercises (16 sets) will be significantly less effective. At first glance it looks like 3 muscles would be 60 sets, which would take hours. Remember though some exercises use more than one muscle. For example 4 sets of chest press would go toward your chest sets and your triceps sets. You still want to isolate muscles when possibly. This helps track muscles so you don’t overwork them. Certain muscles can be worked as secondary muscles and primary muscles on different days. For example the biceps have a fast recovery. A lot of back exercises involve the biceps. You can work back on one day and then isolate biceps on the next day and that muscle should be able to take the extra strain. Learn your muscles to find out the right range for you. Find your body type and work with it to build massive lean muscle. Use the range suggestions for sets to fit a number of sets to each of your muscles. Because of the way your muscles are used in your body, you shouldn’t need to change the number of reps or sets you do unless your goals change. For the most part once your body adjusts to your new workout you will only need to change the actually exercises you do. This will work the muscles from different angles activating dormant muscle fiber, while still pushing them to failure so that you can gain the maximum amount of muscle.
by TOM BISHOP