Hi,

I've been doing this certain exercise routine on my cardio days and have found great results so I though I'd see if anyone else has been doing these same set of exercises and if not maybe someone might want to try them.

It has to be done in a gym as I use the rowing machine, treadmill and bike.

I start off with a walk and jog for 10 minutes on the treadmill, after 10 mins I then rack up the treadmill to full speed or 11.5 to 12 miles per hour, do this for 1 minute and then down to around 6 mph for 1 minute and then back up to 11.5/12 mph for 1 minute, do this for 10 minutes simultaneaously.

Then go on to the rowing machine and at the highest level row 2000 metres as fast as you can, you reall yhave to put this in and it is very tiring especially on the arms.

Finally do 10 minutes on the bike going from speed 6 for 30 seconds, then speed 14 for 1 minute, down to speed 6 for 30 seconds then speed 12 for 1 minute, then 6 for 30 secs, then 10 for 1 minute, do that set again twice.

You will hopefully come off the bike sweating buckets and aching for breath but it is worth it as you will see the pounds drop off. And as I always say, make sure your diet is right as you will only end up putting the weight back on and all that hard work will be for nothing.

Thanks

John

Calories

Excess bodyfat is simply a matter of overeating and under training.    By increasing your training and deceasing your your calories, you'll lose weight. In some circumstances, thyroid problems and hormonal imbalances may be the cause of excess bodyfat, making you feel very tired and drowsy when reducing calories. If you eat very little and all your work in the gym seems to be going to waste, you could have a thyroid problem. It is recommended by experts such as maximuscle that getting a blood test would be a good idea. However 95% of people just suffer from lack of willpower and lack of knowledge.

Avoid the wrong carbs

When reducing calories, its vital to reduce not only the fat content of your diet but your carbohydrates also.                                            Avoid simple sugars, such as glucose, sucrose and maltose unless taken as an after session energy/rehydration drink. You should aslo try to limit your intake of processed and manufactured foods. Limit your carbohydrates from rice, pasta and wheat. Instead, try and get your energy from veggies, salads and porridge oats. By avoiding simple sugars you'll reduce blood sugar fluctuations which cause the insulin spikes that stores excess bodyfats. Cutting down on fats doesnt mean reducing good fats, such as Essential Fatty Acids (EFA's). These essential fats, found in fish, seeds and nuts, are responsible for hormone balance, optimum healthand actually speed up your metabolism.

Protein - your fat loss key

While reducing your calories, it is vital to increase your protein intake. If not, you'll end up burning muscle tissue for energy.                    Extra protein intake whilst dieting helps burn bodyfat better and preserves muscle tissue. This will ensure you get the sought afterlean and toned look, and the not the thin and saggy look, which low proteindiets cause. Stick to high quality whey protein that is easily digested and absorbed. Avoid or limit your protein intake from casein, egg, milk powders and soya. These proteins are most likely to cause stomach upsets, wind and bloating; (soya, although a low quality protein, can be suitable dairy tolerant individuals)

Do the right training

Start weight training, you only need to do 3 seesions a week. Make sure they're around 60 minutes - maximum and intense.                Keep the reps to around 12 to 20 and no more than 3 sets per exercise. Stick to compound movements, like squats, deadlifts and bench presses, not movements like tricep kickbacks. Use a weight that stresses the muscle, not one that doesnt do anything . The last rep should be very tough, if not impossible. Remember that increased lean muscle/tone, requires more calories. Therefore, for every pound of muscle you gain, you'll need more calories, making your body into a calorie-burning furnace that keeps the fat off.

Aerobics

Do your aerobics first thing in the morning if you can, 2 to 3 days per week, on the days you're not weight training.                                    Ensure that each session lasts between 30 to 45 minutes (When doing intense exercise such as running or cycling, the first 25 minutes will use the energy levels in your body, after that it will start to burn the fat in your blood cells and then after approx 45 minutes of exercise your body starts to eat into the muscle tissue for energy). Dont do less. It is preferrable to stick to jogging, cycling or boxercise. If you're walking, ensure you're going for 1 to 2 hours due to the lower heart rate reduced calorie expenditure.

When intraining for abs firstly realise that you have to have a low fat percentage to be able to see the shap of your abs, a good percentage is 9 to 12% body fat.

I have researched this topic as it is something that comes up time and time again, and from what I've read there does seem to be a pattern, what I found out that you dont do is crunch after crunch after crunch using just your own body weight, you would have to do 200,000 crunches to lose 11 pounds of fat off your stomach so crunches are not designed to lose fat, you have to have a good diet and carido workout for that.

Resistance training for abs is best, doing 10 crunches with a weight is similar to doing 100 crunches without. Try movements with barbells and weight plates, try chin up ab crunches. Using weights and performing slow movements will build up your abs in no time. 

I read all the time and dont really watch TV or play consoles or do anything that means I am lounging about idly (I regard reading as a worthwhile pastime but yes it does mean I am stationary, not neccessarily idling around) and the majority of my reading is aimed at health and all things associated with this, I do sometimes come across information that is contradicted, one book says one thing the other book contradicts what I've just read, to get around this I research that particular topic until I find identifying proof that brings me to a satisfying conclusion.

One of the topics that I come across a lot is the thought that by missing meals people actually believe that they are losing weight, and that it must be healthy. It is a huge misconception!

Think of your body as a living breathing organ, it needs to fuel to be able to carry out every day functions and certain fuels are required for the body to be able to repair itself and run healthily.

When you miss meals your body craves food as it needs a constant supply of small meals through the day to keep itslef ticking over and its metabloic rate level, it is you're metabolic rate that burns the food you consume. If you have a high metabolism you will find it easier to burn calories hence losing weight is easier. If you miss meals your metabolism will be low which means burning calories will be very difficult causing your body to hang on to calories rather than burn them off, this is beacuse you're body panics as it does not know when the next meal will be coming.

You may find that you will lose weight over a longer period but at a very slow rate, the problem is that once you fall back into your old routine it will be harder and harder to lose the weight because you're body will hang onto the fat.

It is important to have a balanced diet, eat around 5 to 6 small meals a day, you wont need to snack as your body will feel fulfilled.

Carry out 2 to 3 cardivascular sessions a week maybe 3 to 4 if you really want to get the weight off, you will see the weight fall off but at the same time you will feel healthier and have a healthier appearance and you wont put the weight back on.

Try to eat natural foods such as veg (steamed), nuts, fruit, pulses, wheat and fibre based foods, lean meat and drink lots of water.

Most people hace cravings for all things weet and juicy, here I have a healthy option for this craving;

Slice carrots up into thin slices and put them in the fridge, when you want a nibble you can chew on these. The inner part of the carrot is juicy and sweet and very healthy.

Just a note for those that spend a lot of time doing Cardio workouts, Isotonic refreshments are very important as they replace your body what you have lost during exercise.

Isotonic means having the same salt concentration as in blood cells.

I have a simple recipe for Isotonic that you can just plonk in your fridge and have after every training session, plus its cheaper than those at the shop.

750ml water

250ml Orange Juice/Squash

2 tablespoons of sugar

1 large pinch of salt

At work I hear a lot of people talking about fats and how to avoid them and low fats etc, it seems that there is little understanding on how fats are important to us and what fats to consume and avoid.

When looking at food ingredients it is important to know that certain foods are high in fat such as nuts, seeds and pulses to name but a few, these foods are high in HDL (High Density Lipoprotein), this is very good for you as it basically helps break down bad fatty build ups in your arteries and helps carry vitamins and minerals through your system. HDL is high in monounsturates and polyunsaturates

Because Nuts are a natural food the fat is a healthy natural fat that your body requires.

That is where we come onto the bad fat LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein) this fat is a slow working fat that basically clogs up your arteries and has very little goodness if any, this fat is common in snack food such as buns, cakes, biscuits and other foods.

The fat that is absolutely no way healthy or has any nutritional value at all are trans fats which means transformed from its natural state, these fats are mostly found in hydrogentaed foods, the reason for this is for a longer shelflife on supermarket shelves, t is an additive so avoid these fats altogether.

Obviously it is difficult to know what foods have these ingredients as the nutritional table does not show this information.

Always remember that natural foods are untouched by human hand and will have some form of goodness, foods that are high in sugar and fat have to be able to sustain the taste on the supermarket shelf so they will mostly have trans fats in them.

Poultry, fish, veg, nuts/seeds/lentls, brown rice, wholemeal pasta, wholoemeal bread (from the bakery is best).

Always try to read the ingredients if you can as there will be some information on the packets.

Looking at the weight of fat in foods, remember that if it says 12g fat and 6g saturated fat that would not be as healthy as an item that says 18g fat 3g saturated fat.  Even thought the fat amount on the latter is greater it is lower in satruated fat.

Just a little more info, do you know that your organs have lining on the outside that is made up of saturated fat, this is to protect them, which measn that saturated fat is good for you IN MODERATION.

Always remember that foods are as important as anything else, your lifestyle will reflect how you look.

Hi, I have been serious about health and fitness now for almost 2 years have found the benefits to be fantastic, not only for the way I look and feel but also how much I have learned and have come across a lot of myths and unsupported advice. I am studying to become a Sport's Nutritionist and Personal Trainer and although I have rwad a lot about all factor's to do with the fitness industry I would like to find out more from anything to do with personal routines that people benefit from to nutrition advice so if anyone out there feels like sharing advice it would be gratefully appreciated.