Your Goals: Lose
Fat & Tone Up
Fat Loss:
Low body fat is always desirable!
Words such as ‘lean’, ‘toned’, ‘defined’ and
'cut' are
all terms associated with the perfect body, and
having a low body fat level
not only looks great, but improves
sports performance too.
Eat the right types of food
Meal Frequency could be the most important aspect of your
nutrition program. If you do this right you will build
muscle, burn fat, and with a proper resistance training
program, be well on your way to achieving the body of your
dreams. When you eat small meals, insulin and blood sugar
remain stable. This facilitates weight loss because keeping
insulin and sugar-levels balanced helps drive amino acids
into muscle, carbohydrates into the liver and muscle glycogen
storage and helps us to utilize the fat we eat - and more
importantly the fat we have stored. Meal-replacement products
are a convenient way to make sure you're supplying your
body with enough nutrients and also a good way to keep
your body burning calories whilst maintaining muscle.
Eat
enough protein
Without adequate protein, synthesis
of new muscle tissue comes to a standstill. Furthermore,
inadequate protein intake will eventually compromise your
immune system and will certainly result in muscle tissue
losses. Eating protein is crucial and you should aim for
at least 1g per pound of bodyweight for males and 0.8g
per 1lb for females. In order to get the amount you need,
we recommend using protein supplements such as USN's 100%
Whey or USN’s Pure Protein
Perfect Abdominals
Abs are not only about the washboard stomachs we have grown
accustom to seeing on the professional bodybuilding stage.
There's a lot more to it then meets the eye. The actual
anatomical make up includes the Rectus abdonomis, the external
abdominal oblique muscles, serratus anterior and the internal
abdominal oblique. Most of us tend to train our abs as
a finishing touch on our overall appearance but we forget
the main function of the abdominals. The abdominals are
responsible for permitting our bodies to bend forward and
back as well as to the side. Their main function is keeping
our posture but they also aid in keeping our body stable
when partaking in different activities and of course in
both upper body and lower body lifts while bodybuilding.
By
fully understanding the functions of our abdominals we
can then implement effective ways of training them. As
you read earlier our abdominals allow us to "flex
our trunks" or
in other words bend forward. The best way to effectively
train them is to replicate this movement while in the gym.
The reason most bodybuilders train their abs is definitely
to increase the overall definition of the abs. There are
a number of ways to go about obtaining this. One theory is
to eliminate the fat that covers the abdominals. This can
be achieved through both dieting and cardiovascular activity.
Another way to help define your abdominals is to do abdominal
exercises intensely with very high repetitions. The reason
for this is that you don't want to add any unwanted mass
to your abs. Cardiovascular conditioning is easily the most
important aspect used to help a bodybuilder achieve defined
abdominals. Bodybuilders use cardio as a tool to help shed
unwanted fat.
The most misunderstood and under utilized tool
for bodybuilders looking to obtain shredded abs is definitely
dieting. I would go as far as saying that dieting alone
is responsible for over 80% of a bodybuilders overall physique.
If you look at it as, what you put in your body will either
dictate whether your body gets bigger or smaller you'll
certainly understand what I mean. The general rule of thumb
is that your body needs to have 4-6 small meals that are
high in protein, spaced out over a 2-3 hour span to keep
your metabolism high and prevent fat storage.
If you follow
these simple guidelines you will achieve the washboard abs
you've always dreamt of.
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Fat Loss Training
Train with weights
When you train with weights, two things happen; first by
positively stressing your muscle through exercise, you
stimulate growth of new muscle tissue. This results in
you burning more energy, which means you also burn more
calories. Secondly the body will burn additional energy
to maintain the muscle tissue that is being regularly stressed.
Many women worry that by weight-training they'll get big
muscles - this is not the case. By weight-training, you'll
tone, tighten and shape your physique!
You can find some great
routines here »
Do cardiovascular
exercise at least twice a week
Low intensity cardiovascular exercise plays an important
role in any fat loss program. Of primary importance, low
intensity cardiovascular exercise stimulates the release
of fatty acids from tissue. This has two benefits - first,
you're actually burning fat, second, your body will up-regulate
the enzyme systems necessary for burning fat more efficiently.
So you burn more fat and you burn it faster.
The second reason why you want to do some regular cardio
work is that it helps protect your heart. Good cardiovascular
health is vitally important to your long term condition and
longevity.
Find out the most effective
fat-burning exercise tips here »
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Diet & Nutrition
Eat the right types of food
In order to build lean muscle mass you need to combine an
adequate calorie intake with a solid muscle strengthening
program. A large number of calories are needed to fuel
both workouts and muscle tissue building. Whilst eating
enough calories is important, it is also important to eat
the right kind of calories.
Carbohydrate - this is
the predominant energy source for strength training. Stored
as glycogen in the muscles, it is the fuel used to supply
energy for short, intense bursts of power or long duration
exercise. Consumption should be around 2g per 1lb of bodyweight.
You can
find out more about carbohydrate here »
Protein - this
is the basic building material for muscle tissue, and is
critical for anyone engaging in high-intensity resistance
exercise since increased amounts of protein become necessary
to support muscle growth. Try to eat at least 1 gram of protein
per pound of bodyweight daily. This daily requirement can
be easily achieved by supplementing your diet with protein
supplements.
Essential Fats - After taking care of your carbohydrate
and protein needs, there is a little room left for healthy,
essential fatty acids. The right kind of fat is an essential
nutrient, however, you only require a small amount of it
to remain healthy. Less than 30% of your total daily calories
should come from unsaturated fat sources.
Eat Several Small
Meals A Day - Eating this way ensures you are providing
your body with adequate nutritional support. Frequent, small
meals provide a consistent supply of nutrients for efficient
muscle growth, and also helps maintain a faster metabolic
rate. To gain muscle, you should be consuming at very least,
about 500 calories above your daily requirements.
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