Lose The Flab Now!: June 2009

Lose The Flab Now: Empowered Nutrition Meal Plans Launches TODAY

What could buying a wedding suit have to do with losing body fat?

A lot more than you think.

Especially when it comes to *Fat Loss Nutrition.*

I was just chatting with muscle and six-pack author, Vince DelMonte and he discovered some interesting similarities to help you BLAST YOUR FAT FASTER while he was shopping for a wedding suit.

Here's what Vince had to share:

"I always believed that creating a custom tailored wedding suit was an extremely complex, ultra expensive and required an overly experienced and skilled tailor. Yet, I found a tailor who made the process SIMPLE.

I discovered that every custom suit begins with a SINGLE TEMPLATE. Over time the and multiple fitting and modifications, eventually the suit becomes exquisitely tailored.

=============================
My revelation can be plainly put,
the perfect suit begins as NOTHING
MORE than a one-size-fits all template.
==============================

Nutritional perfection (fat loss and muscle building), requires the same.

You need to begin with a simple, basic nutritional template and test it out; tweaking it according to the results you experience, and only you.

Only by beginning here can you arrive at the final destination - a perfect nutrition and eventually a perfect body.

=====================
There is NO magic diet plan
=====================

As you probably know, there is no magic diet book or test or "eat right for your blood type" kind of solution.

In our combined 20-years of experience in the nutrition field, the best way you can get your best body ever is to follow a meal plan that is based on concrete nutritional principles plus your own informed trial-and-error.

In other words, you begin with a BASIC NUTRITIONAL PLAN, based on the best nutrition information available, test it and modify the nutritional plan based on if you're gaining muscle or losing fat.

The problem is that the 90% of the nutrition info available is CONFUSING, CONTRADICTING and CONSUMING.

Which is completely unnecessary and ridiculous.

============================
Getting the perfect body and perfect
meal plan must begin with an ORIGIN
============================

If you're not prepared to put in some time, effort, discipline and pay attention to a few details, then getting and keeping a rock hard body (forever) may NOT be in the cards for you.

Sorry.

But if you agree that you need a BASIC TEMPLATE that you can begin with from which to depart, a simple "done-for-you" template that start, test and modify (if even necessary).

Today I want to DIRECT YOU to the best FAT LOSS MEAL PLANS I've ever seen. Vince DelMonte and Empowered Nutrition want to give you a complete 3-phase system called, "Done-For-You" Fat Loss Meal Plans.

Every caloric amount is included. 84-days of variety for each plan. Grocery lists, delicious recipes and more.

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--> http://EmpoweredNutritionMealPlans.com

Today is the first day of a 72-hour HALF-PRICE special because these plans just went LIVE today. I highly recommend you pick up your 84-day meal plans if you're ready to lose your gut and love handles and get ripped!

P.S. Hurry! The half-price sale ends Friday night, July 3rd, at midnight and I know Vince, John and Pat have some cool fast-action bonuses to nail down your fat loss nutrition and perfect your body even faster.

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Lose The Flab Now: Say goodbye to diets. Make permanent weight loss a reality!

It’s time to say goodbye to diets forever! Yes, it’s true. At last, permanent weight loss can be a reality. There’s a new weight loss system that’s getting lots of attention. It’s new, it’s revolutionary and it’s called ‘The Slim Habit’.

What’s new about The Slim Habit? Well, it’s all about habits. It’s not a restrictive process like a diet, instead it concentrates on helping you to change your behaviour by learning new habits, Slim Habits.

The number of people who are either overweight or obese is rising rapidly, but so are the numbers going on a diet. Clearly diets aren’t working.

The sad fact about diets is that they fail to deliver permanent weight loss. A recent study by psychologists at UCLA which analyzed the results of 31 long-term studies which followed people on a range of diets for between 2 and 5 years, found that you can lose between 5% and 10% of your weight on a diet, but in all but a few cases the weight reappears – with interest. In another report, the failure rate was put as high as 99%!

Those who have tried lots of diets will understand how depressing and damaging it is to your self-confidence and self-esteem to constantly fail to achieve permanent weight loss. Serial dieting is bad for your health – mental and physical.

There’s no need to be caught in this dilemma. The way out is to get The Slim Habit.

Learn to change your behavior and by learn new habits, new Slim Habits, you’ll make a permanent difference to your life. No short-term diet-fix, but a lasting solution which will allow you to enjoy a slim, healthy life, free form diets.

The Slim Habit is a very comprehensive program. It answers the ‘why’ and delivers the ‘how’. It helps you to gain control of your life through learning and development. Through a Personal Exercise Plan it helps you to establish your own exercise program and it offers huge support through the Cycle 9 Journal and the online Slim Habit community, SlimPals.

Find out more about The Slim Habit here:

http://www.SlimHabit.com

The Slim Habit is revolutionary in its concept, but also in its simplicity. It is straight forward and easy-to-follow. It is revolutionizing weight loss. If you want to lose weight permanently, join the revolution and get the Slim Habit!

http://www.SlimHabit.com

Lose The Flab Now: Losing Weight... Without Starving Yourself!

According to recent surveys done, over 66 percent of Americans age 20 and over are overweight by at least 20 pounds. Obesity is at an all time high as America becomes the fattest nation on the face of the earth! If you’re like me, you think that’s troubling!

Most of us could stand to lose a few pounds, or at the very least start down the road to a healthier lifestyle. We have become a nation dependent on fast food chains and quick-fix pre-packaged foods in order to accommodate our busy lifestyles.

If you’ve found yourself with a couple of spare tires around your mid-section, you probably know you should go on a diet. But you dread doing that because you don’t want to have those hunger pangs that you think inevitably come with diets and weight loss.

Change Your Thinking Today...

You don’t have to be hungry when you diet. In fact, you might find yourself enjoying the kinds of foods you never thought you could while on a weight loss program and never feel like you’re starving yourself. How can you do that?

Read on...

Here's an amazing new book that can unlock the mystery behind dieting, losing weight, and never feeling hungry while you’re doing so.

Inside these pages is a wealth of information about losing weight and still feeling like you’re cheating on your diet. What can you find?

Information about metabolism and why it controls your weight loss

Putting yourself into the right mindset to lose weight

What foods you can eat

What foods you CAN’T eat

How to shop for the right foods

And much, much more!

This book takes the advice of nutritionists, diet experts, and even the Mayo Clinic to offer YOU the best advice around on how to lose weight and not feel hungry in the process. After all, that’s why most people hate the thought of dieting.

Some people think that eating salads every day is the only way to lose weight. Well, it’s a good start, but, really, truly, how long do you think it will take before you dread the mere sight of a lettuce leaf?

The truth is that salads alone just can’t satisfy the needs of the average person. It’ll work for a while, but you run the risk of falling hopelessly off your diet – and quickly at that!

Believe it or not,

You Can Enjoy Regular Food And Still Lose Weight!

It’s true! I didn’t think so either until I read this book! The secret to losing weight without starving yourself is right here inside these pages. Plus it gives you some excellent advice on what foods you should eat, portion sizes, number of meals and exercise regimens. In fact, you will read about

A great fat burning exercise workout

Toning exercises

Exercise to banish cellulite

Walking for weight loss

And other forms of exercise to help you along!

>>Ready to get started? Get your own copy now.<<

When there are over fifty percent of our fellow Americans who are out there struggling with their weight, there’s really no reason NOT to buy this book.

Weight loss remedies bombard us on a daily basis. It’s difficult to open up a magazine or watch a television program without seeing an advertisement or commercial for the next great thing in weight loss. Do they work?

Shedding those extra pounds is no easy task. It takes determination, willpower, and a little work. How do you do that? By being committed to your health and your weight loss goals. But first, you need the tools.

What I liked best about the information this book gives you is the tools you are given to help you along the way. What kind of tools are there?

*A chart outlining the caloric content of certain foods
*How many calories you can burn during specific activities
*Over 15 delicious recipes for weight loss

You don’t have to spend hours counting calories anymore. Just follow the advice in this book, and you will lose weight. But you have to be serious about it!

You Owe It To Yourself.

So don't starve yourself in pursuit of weight loss. There's absolutely no need for it. Get used to the idea that losing weight does not require being hungry. Losing weight in a healthy way does not involve starving or deprivation. That's why it is permanent -- if you lose weight in a healthy way, you're likely to keep it off for good.

Lose The Flab Now: Why Some People Quit And Some People NEVER Give Up

By Tom Venuto, CSCS, NSCA-CPT
www.BurnTheFat.com

Throughout my 18 years in the fitness industry as a trainer, nutrition consultant and motivational coach, I have noticed that some people who start a nutrition and exercise program give up very easily after hitting the first obstacle they encounter. If they feel the slightest bit of discouragement or frustration, they will abandon even their biggest goals and dreams.

On the other hand, I noticed that some people simply NEVER give up. They have ferocious persistence and they never let go of their goals. These people are like the bulldog that refuses to release its teeth-hold on a bone. The harder you try to pull the bone out of his mouth, the harder the dog chomps down with a vice-like grip.

What's the difference between these two types of people? Psychologists say there is an answer.

An extremely important guideline for achieving fitness success is the concept that, "There is no failure; only feedback. You don't "fail", you only get results."

This is a foundational principle from the field of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), and the first time I ever heard it was from peak performance expert Anthony Robbins back in the late 1980's. It's a principle that stuck with me ever since, because it's a very, very powerful shift in mindset.

A lot of people will second-guess themselves and they'll bail out and quit, just because what they try at first doesn't work. They consider it a permanent failure, but all they need is a little attitude change, a mindset change, or what we call a "reframe."

Instead of saying, "This is failure" they can say to themselves, "I produced a result" and "This is only temporary." This change in perspective is going to change the way that they feel and how they mentally process and explain the experience. It turns into a learning opportunity and valuable feedback for a course correction instead of a failure, and that drives continued action and forward movement.

It's all about your results and your interpretation of those results

Dr Martin Seligman, a professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, did some incredible research on this subject and wrote about it in his book, Learned Optimism. Dr. Seligman noticed that the difference between people who give up and people who persist and never quit is what he referred to as "explanatory style." He said that explanatory style is the way we explain or interpret bad events or failures.

People who habitually give up have an explanatory style of permanence. For example, they hit a plateau in their progress and explain it by saying, "diets never work" or "I have bad genetics so I'll always be fat." These explanations imply permanence.

Other people hit the same plateaus and encounter the same challenges, but explain them differently. They say things such as, "I ate too many cheat meals this week," or "I haven't found the right diet for my body type yet." These explanations of the results imply being temporary.

People who see negative results as permanent failure are the ones who give up easily and often generalize their "failure" into other areas of their lives and even into their own sense of self. It's one thing to say, "I ate poorly this past week because I was traveling," (a belief about temporary behavior and environment), and to say, "I am a fat person because of my genetics" (a belief about identity with a sense of permanence). Remember, body fat is a temporary condition, not a person!

People who see challenges and obstacles as temporary and as valuable learning experiences are the ones who never quit. If you learn from your experiences, not repeating what didn't work in the past, and if you choose to never quit, your success is inevitable.

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a lifetime natural bodybuilder, an NSCA-certified personal trainer (CPT), certified strength & conditioning specialist (CSCS), and author of the #1 best-selling e-book, "Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle.” Tom has written more than 200 articles and has been featured in print magazines such as IRONMAN, Australian IRONMAN, Natural Bodybuilding, Muscular Development, Exercise for Men and Men’s Exercise, as well as on hundreds of websites worldwide. For information on Tom's Fat Loss program, visit: www.burnthefat.com

Lose The Flab Now: The Truth About Abs

DO NOT BE MISLED ANY FURTHER.

Read more about

The Truth About Abs

Lose The Flab Now: Grab your FREE 7-day Fat Loss Meal Plan

Sorry!

This post has been removed

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Lose The Flab Now: How to Lose Belly Fat

Almost everyone wants to lose some excess fat on their body somewhere. For the vast majority, they're looking to lose belly fat and they want to lose belly fat fast! Whether you want to admit it or not, most of us spend far too many months of the year overeating and then scramble at the first sign of warm weather in order to remove what's accumulated over the time. Unfortunately, if you're trying to learn how to lose belly fat, it's not exactly a quick fix.

The problem most individuals run into is they overlook how difficult it can be to lose belly fat off their body. If the truth be told, a fat belly is probably one of the hardest areas to successfully remove because it's made up what is known as 'stubborn' fat.

You're body is actually physiologically slightly different when it comes to fat around the abdominal region. What's the reason for this? Primarily, it's the first place we tend to store fat and where body fat is needed for protection the most - to protect the organs and internal structures.

As such, your fat belly is going to do everything it can to hold onto it. Not a good situation in your quest to lose belly fat.

In order to outsmart this, you're going to have to work really hard. That's not to say it can't be done - it most certainly can, you just have to have realistic expectations about the time line you will achieve this goal over and how much effort you'll have to put in.

First things first, lets talk about exercise to lose belly fat. First, hit the weights. When lifting, be sure you are lifting as heavy as you possibly can, as this is what will ramp up your metabolism the highest. You want to shoot for the 6-10 rep range, as this is most appropriate for metabolic effects.

Second, get that cardio up there. Don't do hours on end though, focus on doing sprints. In fact, better yet is to sprint first, then do more steady state cardio afterwards. This will help to release the fatty acids from the tissue (mobilize them) and then burn them off during the steady state cardio. This type of set-up can be far more effective at getting that stubborn fat off your body than doing a typical cardio session is.

Lastly, check over that belly fat diet. Too many fat or carbohydrates calories will slow your progress, while protein, generally speaking will help due to the fact the body burns more calories just digesting it.

This can be taken too far though - there is no need to exceed 1.5 grams per pound of body weight, but keeping it up around that level is your best approach. Then, fill in the remainder of your calories with carbohydrates around the workout period and fat during the other times.

As long as you are patient with the process and continually push yourself in the gym, there is no reason why within time, you can't be sporting your own set of six-pack abs.

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About the Author:

Vince DelMonte is the author of Your Six Pack Quest found at http://www.YourSixPackQuest.com

He specializes in helping chubby guys and gals get six pack abs without gimmicks, supplements or dieting.

Lose The Flab Now: Is Your Protein Bar, Energy Bar, or Nutrition Bar Actually Healthy, or Are They Just Candy Bars in Disguise?

by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer

The Truth May Surprise You...

There are so many types of "health bars" on the market today, how do you know if you're actually buying something healthy or junk food in disguise?

Again, just as I've talked about grocery store food choices, you really need to know how to read labels if you're going to stand a chance at finding a truly healthy food bar.

To be quite honest, most of the nutrition bars out there are pure junk food... candy bars disguised through labeling as a health food bar.

Just recently, I was going on a mountain bike ride and needed a quick nutrition bar to make sure I had enough energy for the ride.

Well, I didn't have any of my usual healthy food bars on me, so my friend gave me an extra Slimfast bar he had.

Keep in mind that this Slimfast bar is marketed as a "health food", that is supposedly appropriate for someone trying to lose weight.

What a freakin joke these bars are! In my opinion, these Slimfast bars are WORSE for you than a candy bar!

The 1st ingredient in these "weight loss" bars is corn syrup! Then the 2nd ingredient is sugar (yay more sugar!), followed by hydrogenated oils (trans fats), and then the list went on with nothing but junk such as artificial flavors, colors, more hydrogenated oils, nasty artificial sweeteners, and rounded out with some highly processed soy protein isolate just to give your body some more junk.

*By the way, you should stay away from processed soy products like the plague if you care about your health... I can't go into detail on this today, but I'll dedicate a full newsletter in the near future to the dangers of eating too much processed soy. Just remember when it comes to soy that this is a HUGE multi-billion dollar industry, so they have a lot of power in trying to portray soy as a "health food" so that most people are eager to devour this fake food in almost every form... in reality, it couldn't be further from the truth.

Back to these "worse for you than candy bars" Slimfast bars... not only are they a disaster nutritionally, but the bar tasted horrible... it tasted like chemicals and was way too overly sweet (not a surprise with all of the corn syrup, sugar, sugar alcohols, AND artificial sweeteners). This is a prime example of "over-engineering" of food.

So how do you determine a healthy nutrition bar?

I look for simplicity in a good bar. Many of the healthiest and tastiest bars I've found have only a couple basic ingredients such as nuts, seeds, and fruit. I also look for organic ingredients and raw ingredients if possible.

A couple of my favorite truly healthy bars:

1. Organic Food Bars - This is actually the brand name.

Depending on which flavor, these are usually a base of organic almond butter (or cashew butter) with a certain type of fruit, organic seeds, organic biosprouts (quinoa, etc), and some organic rice protein. Some flavors include an organic dark chocolate as well. They also have a line of bars that use exclusively raw ingredients.

Not only are these food bars extremely nutritious, but I think they are delicious as well and have a lot of flavors to choose from such as blueberry, cranberry, chocolate chip, high protein, and more.

You won't find these bars at your local grocery store, but I have found them at Whole Foods, Trader Joes, and several health food markets.

2. Lara-bars - These are even simpler in ingredients than organic food bars. Usually larabars are just 2 or 3 ingredients, and mostly raw... a blend of crushed nuts along with a type of fruit is the usual combination, but they have a lot of different flavors so it can vary.

These are also delicious and you will NEVER see a list of chemicals a mile long in their ingredient list... usually just nuts and fruit, and that's it! Simple IS better. I don't know who this Lara is, but she made a great product.

Again, I've found these bars at various health food markets.

3. Prograde Cravers - These are made by Prograde Nutrition. I know the founders of this company personally and am good friends with them, so I have a high level of trust in their nutritional products.

These are definitely some of the tastiest nutrition bars I've ever had (especially the peanut butter flavor!)... and they are also made with all organic ingredients using nut butters, rice protein, organic dark chocolate, etc.

You actually can't get these in any stores, but you can get these online at the following site:

Prograde Cravers - a Healthy Snack Bar

When you actually find truly healthy nutrition bars like these examples above, they make great quick snacks while you're traveling or while you're at work or just need a quick pick-me-up energy bar at any time.

I carry some on me almost at all times, just to make sure I have healthy options to eat whenever I need a snack, so that I'm not tempted by fast food joints or junk food vending machines.

That's it for today. Please feel free to copy/paste this link and email this article to your friends, family, and coworkers if you think it would help them make healthier food and nutrition bar choices.

Don't be lazy... be lean.

Mike Geary
Certified Nutrition Specialist
Certified Personal Trainer
Founder - TruthAboutAbs.com & Busy Man Fitness .com
AvalancheSkiTraining.com

Lose The Flab Now: Foods That Burn Fat - The Top 10 Lists

By Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS
www.BurnTheFat.com

Anytime the topic of discussion in my blogs, articles or newsletters has turned to my own personal grocery shopping list, there has always been a spike in interest. It seems that many people are not only curious about what foods a natural bodybuilder eats to maintain single digit body fat, but they also want to be taken by the hand and told exactly what foods to eat themselves while on fat-burning or muscle building programs. That’s why I decided to put together four separate “top 10” lists of healthy foods that burn fat and build muscle.

Exact quantities and menus are not listed, just the individual foods, and of course my food intake does vary. I aim to get as many different varieties of fruits and vegetables as possible over the course of every week and there are a lot of substitutions made, so you are not seeing the full list of everything I eat, only what foods I eat most of the time.

I also want to point out that while I don’t believe that extreme low carbs are necessary or most effective when you look at the long term, research has shown that there are some definite advantages to a low to moderate carb and higher protein diet for fat loss purposes. These include reduced appetite, higher thermic effect of food and “automatic” calorie control.

Personally, I reduce my carb intake moderately and temporarily prior to bodybuilding competitions. Specifically, it’s the foods that are on the starchy carbs and grains list that go down during the brief pre-competition period when I’m working on that really “ripped” look. I keep the green and fibrous veggie intake very high however, along with large amounts of lean protein, small amounts of fruit, and adequate amounts of essential fats.

This list reflects my personal preferences, so this is not a prescription to all readers to eat as I do. It’s very important for compliance to choose foods you enjoy and to have the option for a wide variety of choices. In the past several years, nutrition and obesity research - in studying ALL types of diets - has continued to conclude that almost any hypocaloric diet that is not completely “moronic” can work, at least in the short term.

It’s not so much about the high carb - low carb argument or any other debate as much as it is about calorie control and compliance. The trouble is, restricted diets and staying in a calorie deficit is difficult, so most people can’t stick with any program and they fall off the wagon, whichever wagon that may be.

I believe that a lot of our attention needs to shift away from pointless debates (for example, low carb vs. high carb is getting really old… so like… get over it everyone, its a calorie deficit that makes you lose weight, not the amount of carbs).

Instead, our focus should shift towards these questions:

* How can we build an eating program that we can enjoy while still getting us leaner and healthier?

* How can we build an eating program that helps us control calories?

* How can we build an eating program that improves compliance?

Here’s one good answer: Eat a wide variety of high nutrient density, low calorie density foods that you enjoy which still fit within healthy, fat-burning, muscle-building guidelines!

Here are the lists of foods I choose to achieve these three outcomes. This eating plan is not difficult to stick with at all, by the way. I enjoy eating like this and it feels almost weird not to eat like this after doing it for so long.

Remember, habits work in both directions, and as motivational speaker Jim Rohn has said, “Bad habits are easy to form and hard to live with and good habits are hard to form but easy to live with.”

These are listed in the order I frequently consume them. So for example, if oatmeal is on the top of the list, it means that is the food I am most likely to eat every single day.

My 10 top natural starchy carb and whole grains

1. Oatmeal (old fashioned)
2. Yams
3. Brown rice (a favorite is basmati, a long grain aromatic rice)
4. Sweet potatoes (almost same as yams)
5. Multi grain hot cereal (mix or barley, oats, rye. titricale and a few others)
6. White potatoes
7. 100% whole wheat bread
8. 100% whole wheat pasta
9. Beans (great for healthy chili recipes)
10. Cream of rice hot cereal

My Top 10 top vegetables

1. Broccoli
2. Asparagus
3. Spinach
4. Salad greens
5. Tomatoes
6. Peppers (green, red or yellow)
7. Onions
8. Mushrooms
9. Cucumbers
10. Zucchini

My top 10 lean proteins

1. Egg whites (whole eggs in limited quantities)
2. Whey or Casein protein (protein powder supplements)
3. Chicken Breast
4. Salmon (wild Alaskan)
5. Turkey Breast
6. Top round steak (grass fed beef)
7. Flank Steak (grass fed beef)
8. Lean Ground Turkey
9. Bison/Buffalo
10. Trout

My top 10 fruits

1. Grapefruit
2. Apples
3. Blueberries
4. Canteloupe
5. Oranges
6. Bananas
7. Peaches
8. Grapes
9. Strawberries
10. Pineapple

Note: I DO include healthy fats as well, such as walnuts, almonds, extra virgin olive oil, flaxseeds, flaxseed oil (supplement - not to cook with), avocado and a few others.

Also, I do eat dairy products and have nothing against them, nor am I lactose intolerant. I simply don’t eat as much dairy as the rest of the stuff on my lists. When I eat dairy, its usually skim milk, low or non fat cottage cheese, low or non fat yogurt and low or non fat cheese (great for omelettes).

Last but not least, I usually follow a compliance rate of about 95%, which means I take two or three meals per week of whatever I want (stuff that is NOT on these lists - like pizza, sushi, big fatty restaurant steaks, etc)

I hope you found this helpful and interesting. Keep in mind, this is MY food list, and although you probably couldn’t go wrong to emulate it, you need to choose natural foods you enjoy in order to develop habits you can stick with long term. In the fruits and vegetables categories alone, there are hundreds of other choices out there, so enjoy them all!

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a natural bodybuilder, certified strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS) and a certified personal trainer (CPT). Tom is the author of "Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle,” which teaches you how to get lean without drugs or supplements using methods of the world's best bodybuilders and fitness models. Learn how to get rid of stubborn fat and increase your metabolism by visiting: www.burnthefat.com

Lose The Flab Now: How To Get Washboard Abs

If you're getting ready to bare your mid-section for the summer months or potentially escaping the cold for a warm vacation, getting washboard abs is probably something you would love to take with you. Potentially the top request personal trainer's hear everywhere is with regards to tightening these muscles. Face it, washboard abs not only look great, but, they also signify the holy grail of fitness.

One big misconception that some people have regarding getting a washboard stomach is that you should be working all these muscles separately. Because these individuals often envision the so-called '6-pack', they think that you can divide this muscle up, working on it section by section.

Without a clean diet, six pack abs will never be yours. One thing you must realize is that while exercise is important, it's only going to take you so far. No matter how many crunches or sit-up variations you perform, if you've got a solid layer of fat covering your stomach, your muscles are not going to be seen.

Unfortunately, this simply isn't true.

While the abs definitely do consist of a few different muscles, all of these muscles are going to contract simultaneously, helping perform whatever movement is being asked of it. You can definitely target certain areas slightly more than others, but overall, you cannot solely isolate any one of the muscles in particular.

So, having said that, try not to do too many isolated ab exercises during your workout. While these can be nice in a sense that you'll likely really 'feel the burn', they aren't going to work as many muscle fibers as possible - which is your primary goal with any weight lifting session you perform.

The better thing to instead, is to do exercises that decrease your balance because that is what best calls your muscles into action.

Think doing ab crunches on the floor is good? Move those crunches onto an stability exercise ball.

This applies for other calisthenic exercises as well. Performing a set of push-ups? Why not move those onto an exercise ball as well? It's the perfect opportunity to really challenge those muscles and help develop washboard abs. Simply place an exercise ball under your arms or under your feet and push-up from there. If you're really ambitious, try both at the same time (note, use a spotter when doing this as there is a good chance you'll roll off until you gain the skill necessary to balance).

The only time when you don't want to decrease your stability too much, however, is when you're lifting very heavy weights in major compound lifts (such as squats for instance). This could prove to be very dangerous because one small movement in the wrong direction due to being off balance could cause your form to go and that could lead to a severe injury.

So, keep your destabilization work to exercises that are performed with your body weight or very light weights.

By following these principles though, you can be sure that washboard abs are on their way for you.

----------------------------------
About the Author:

Vince DelMonte is the author of Your Six Pack Quest found at http://www.YourSixPackQuest.com

He specializes in helping chubby guys and gals get six pack abs without gimmicks, supplements or dieting.

Lose The Flab Now: Dirty Trick Beats Fat Loss Plateau

By: Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
www.TurbulenceTraining.com

I once had a training partner that would put more weight on the bar than I expected. For example, if I planned to do 200 lbs for 8 reps, he would sneak on 210.

And the thing is, I often ended up doing it just as easily as I expected to do 200.

The point to his dirty trick?

He knew I was stronger than I let my mind believe.

(Note: Don't try this at home. He was also spotting me during each repetition.)

But how can you benefit from this dirty trick?

2 ways.

1) Change your mindset and self-image.

If you are stuck at a fat loss plateau and keep telling yourself you are meant to be fat, then guess what? You'll never win.

Instead, tell yourself you are meant to lose the fat. And believe it when you say it! Picture yourself with a better body. Picture yourself buying clothes for your new, better body.

Here's a great example of a fat burning mindset shift mentioned by SteveH on the member's forum...

"Yesterday's eating went well. I even resisted a plate of fries and didn't order the burger I was wanting. I used the mindset that Craig mentioned - "I am a healthy person. Healthy people don't eat Burgers and Fries". So I got a turkey sandwich with steamed veggies."

Having a strong, positive thinking attitude will put you on the road to success.

2) Break a new record in the gym each workout.

Your body won't change if you aren't improving. My friend's dirty trick ensured that I was always doing more each workout, and therefore, always making gains.

So for your fat loss workout, pick one area you can improve on each workout. Whether it's one more push-up, a faster interval, or 5 more pounds on an exercise, break a record and you'll bust your plateau.

Train for performance, and the fat burning will follow.

Sincerely,

Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training

About the Author

Craig Ballantyne is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and writes for Men's Health, Men's Fitness, Maximum Fitness, Muscle and Fitness Hers, and Oxygen magazines. His trademarked Turbulence Training fat loss workouts have been featured multiple times in Men’s Fitness and Maximum Fitness magazines, and have helped thousands of men and women around the world lose fat, gain muscle, and get lean in less than 45 minutes three times per week. For more information on the Turbulence Training workouts that will help you burn fat without long, slow cardio sessions or fancy equipment, visit www.TurbulenceTraining.com

Lose The Flab Now: Hoodia - Does Hoodia Really Work For Fat Loss?

If you are anxious to get fat loss going, you've likely looked into the diet supplement, hoodia. Hoodia gordonii is a plant that was used in South African many years ago by hunters who would need to go for long durations of time without food and grows very slowly in harsh conditions and needs to be harvested for four to five years before it's ready.

But how well does Hoodia really work for fat loss? Many people turn to hoodia thinking it is the answer to all their prayers. Never hungry? Sounds like a dietary dream. After all, following a diet should be easy if you never have any feelings of hunger, shouldn't it?

Unfortunately, it isn't so simple.

First off, if you are a trying to get a lean, sexy midsection, not eating is the last thing you want to be doing. Sure, you definitely will need to eat less in order to lose body fat, but if you aren't eating enough, you'll actually just lose muscle rather than body fat. Since muscle tissue is your calorie burning engine, destroying it would be counterproductive to getting the results you want.

Who wants a slower metabolism at the end of the day? That'll just make further fat loss next to impossible.

If hoodia is affecting your natural hunger signals, it will be hard to get in the foods that you do need - the foods that will work with your body to lose the body fat while still keeping muscle tissue intact.

Secondly, you must understand that hoodia is not a thoroughly tested product and cannot be deemed safe. If you take enough of it, it can actually damage your metabolism, causing a variety of thyroid issues that will be stuck with you into the future. While fat loss and getting abs is important, you must do it a healthy way so that you don't do anything disrupting to your health.

Finally, hoodia diet pills are by no means a proper method to losing abdominal fat. In order to lose abdominal fat, you're going to have to find a method that will be sustainable over the long term. If you think that you're just going to skip eating for the years to come, you are very mistaken. You will not get the proper nutrients you need to sustain life, therefore, to put it bluntly, using hoodia as a means to help you maintain fat loss could very well put you in the hospital with severe malnutrition.

What you need is a diet that supplies all the nutrients you need, while still being affective with stomach fat loss. Then, you'll also need to make sure this diet is something you can work into your lifestyle so that your abs aren't going to be just covered up by more body fat again once you move off the diet.

The more time you waste chasing after gimmicky supplements that only hurt you in the long run, the more time you spend without the results you are after.

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About the Author:

Vince DelMonte is the author of Your Six Pack Quest found at http://www.YourSixPackQuest.com

He specializes in helping decipher the truths and myths about all the supplements such as hoodia that are marketed for helping you achieve a six pack.

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Find out more about Hoodia:

www.HoodiaDietReview.com - Find out all you need to know about Hoodia
www.HoodiaGordoniiPlus.com - Get your FREE Hoodia Gordonii Plus bottle
www.HoodiaBalance.com - Suppress your appetite NATURALLY

Lose The Flab Now!

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