Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Do Fat Burners Work? Separating The Facts From The Myths!
In this post I want to talk about fat burners. Walk into any vitamin or supplement store and you'll find whole sections dedicated to fat burners and weight loss products. It's easy to get sucked into the idea of an easy fix for weight loss or fat loss through supplementation, but like always there are some truths and some myths concerning supplements that people need to be aware about before spending their hard earned cash. So in this post I want to discuss the question do fat burners work? I
Thursday, November 3, 2011
I had a guy in the gym come up to me the other day and ask me if our muscles plateau as we age. It's a great question and something that a lot of people don't think about often. He was a kid (around 20 years old), and wondered if I was following a workout routine to build muscle or just following a routine to stay lean considering I am around 40 years old. He also wondered if his routine should differ from mine considering our age difference. Lets talk about what we discussed in this
Workout Routines To Build Muscle - Do We Need This As We Age Or Do Our Muscles Plateau
I had a guy in the gym come up to me the other day and ask me if our muscles plateau as we age. It's a great question and something that a lot of people don't think about often. He was a kid (around 20 years old), and wondered if I was following a workout routine to build muscle or just following a routine to stay lean considering I am around 40 years old. He wondered if his routine should differ from mine considering our age difference. Lets talk about what we discussed in this post.
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Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Bulking And Cutting - Do We Need To Do This To Look Our Best
When we go to the gym we enter a different world. I remember when I first heard the term bulking and cutting and thought what a great idea. You pack on the muscle in the off season when your wearing a shirt and coat - so no one can see the excess fat that you've gained, then you drop body fat quickly when spring and summer approaches to show off all that muscle you've gained. In theory it was a great idea....I mean this is what body builders did when they entered a competition right, so
Monday, October 17, 2011
The Best Lower Ab Workout Ever!
Achieving lower abdominal definition isn't easy. It requires a lot of focus, discipline and sacrifice for these muscles to become highly visible and defined. When I look around the gym what I mainly see is guys with slight definition of their upper and middle abs. But what I hardly ever see is someone who has defined and deep lower abs and obliques. It's a shame because women have told me for years that the lower abs, the obliques, and the "V"that forms where the hips and lower abs meet,
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
The Health Benefits Of Coffee! & Why Adding It To Your Daily Routine Is Good For You
Have you ever wondered whether coffee was bad for you? I have drank coffee for years 30 to 60 minutes prior to my workouts and have never had any adverse affects whatsoever. What it has done is help me burn off a lot of unwanted body fat over the years. Even though I've been drinking coffee for years I still had no idea whether it was a good thing or a bad thing. So I decided to do some research and come up with some facts explaining the health benefits of coffee as well as how coffee affects
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
The Afterburn Effect - Using Afterburn Training to Burn Fat!
A secret way the body burns calories is with Exercise Post-Oxygen Consumption (EPOC), or what most of us refer to as the afterburn effect. When we employ afterburn training, we throw the body into a form of chaos. Once the workout is over, our bodies expend calories to get the body back into its pre-exercise state. Achieving this state, in my opinion, is the single most important factor when it comes to getting lean.
(Is there anything better than looking at palm trees with the red sky
(Is there anything better than looking at palm trees with the red sky
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Gluten Free Diet Plan! Do You Have Yeast Allergy Symptoms?
I've been seeing the term "gluten free diet plan" all over the internet lately and thought a brief overview was needed to determine if we need to take this seriously. I've been feeling a little tired and been getting blood shot eyes a bit lately after a big meal and the research I did said that it could be yeast allergy symptoms related to gluten. Lets take a look at what could be going on.
(No breads, no pasta, no beer, say it ain't so!)
What is Gluten?
Gluten is a protein found in
(No breads, no pasta, no beer, say it ain't so!)
What is Gluten?
Gluten is a protein found in
Monday, September 19, 2011
The Herschel Walker Workout And Diet, Advice From A Ripped 49 Year Old!
I was watching television the other day and saw a new show on ESPN about the life of Herschel Walker. Herschel played for the University of Georgia from 1980-1982 and was a force to be reckoned with - I still think he was the best college football player of all-time. I can still remember sitting in my Grandmothers living room as a ten year old watching him run past and over everyone that got in his way. He eventually went on to have a succesfull professional football career, and now at the age
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
How Much Creatine Should I Take? Breaking Down The Best Muscle Building Supplement!
Continuting the theme from my previous post about supplements I would like to take a look at another supplement called Creatine. Here is a supplement that has a good reputation in the fitness world and gets talked about all the time. As i've said in previous posts I am not a huge fan of supplements, however Creatine is one that I 've taken with some great success over the years. In this post I would like to examine a few of the popular questions that I get about Creatine such as: How much
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
L-Glutamine Benefits! Is A Glutamine Supplement Worth Your Investment?
I usually don't review individual supplements on this site, but since l-glutamine is being talked about so much throughout the fitness world I thought I give it a review. A couple of questions I want to discuss in this post are: Do the l-glutamine benefits outweight the negatives? And is a glutamine supplement worth your time and money?
(We need to make sure we do the proper research before we take a supplement. It's a billion dollar industry because of supplement marketing, not because of
(We need to make sure we do the proper research before we take a supplement. It's a billion dollar industry because of supplement marketing, not because of
Thursday, September 1, 2011
How to Have Good Posture & Exercises to Improve Posture!
Before we get into the nuts and bolts of improving our posture I just want to tell you that improving my posture was one of the best things i've ever done. I look 2 or 3 inches taller, my physique looks way better, I have no back pain or discomfort, and I am just overall a more confident person. Now, how to have good posture isn't the easiest thing in the world to obtain - just look around you, but it is possible. In this post I want to discuss exercises to improve posture and also how and why
Thursday, August 25, 2011
How Much Cardio to Lose Weight?
Losing weight can be tricky in the beginning especially if a person has never been able to do it successfully before. They read all the books and magazines without any success. They see all the people in the gym pounding away on the different cardio machines. Because they see so many people hitting the treadmills and elliptical machines, one of the more common questions to get asked is how much cardio to lose weight? Performing cardio should be on your list if your looking to lose weight. But,
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
How to Get a Ripped Body Using the 5x5 Workout Routine Method!
Finding the right set and rep range is important when trying to get lean. A lot of people work their butts off in the gym and never get the results their after. The reason for this lies in the fact that people confuse some basic concepts when it comes to lifting weights. Basic concepts such as, can I tone a muscle? How many reps per set to get lean? How many reps per set to get strong? How do I get ripped? There is one basic workout method that I use to get lean and stay lean year round. I am
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Best Time Of Day To Workout! How To Create A Training Plan That Works For You!
One of the most common questions I get is, what is the best time of day to workout? Should I workout in the morning, afternoon, or night? And my response to them is always the same, it depends on your situation. In this post I want to talk about the advantages and disavadvantages of working out at different times of the day, while teaching you how to create a training plan that works for you.
(Just got back from Vegas and stayed at the Bellagio. If you have never stayed here I highly
(Just got back from Vegas and stayed at the Bellagio. If you have never stayed here I highly
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
The Health Benefits Of Eggs & Egg Yolk Nutrition Facts Explained!
I can remember 15 to 20 years ago flipping through a Muscle and Fitness magazine and seeing articles recommending 10 egg whites for breakfast. Were eggs this important? What was wrong with the yolk? Like most people, I just did what they advised and ate 10 eggs every morning without ever learning about the health benefits of eggs. So here we are 15 years later and I think it's time we did. Lets take a look at some of the benefits of eggs and also look into some egg yolk nutrition facts which
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Omega 3 Health Benefits - Should You Be Taking Fish Oil Supplements?
Whenever you turn on the tv or flip through a health magazine you continue to hear about omega 3 health benefits. It's a popular health trend in today's society for sure. Doctor's and Researchers both continue to preach about how a daily dose of fish oil will provide you with all the essential omega 3's you will need for good heart health and a slimmer waistline. But is a fish oil supplement all its cracked up to be, or is there something better out there? Research time baby!
(Omega 3
(Omega 3
Friday, July 15, 2011
Add Muscle With Bodyweight Exercises!
I am a huge fan of bodyweight exercises but there are times when exercises like push ups or bodyweight squats can become to easy. When you can perform 20 reps or more per exercise than you need to find ways to make these exercises more challenging. I found a great way of doing this.
(Push ups are great but when you can do to many reps per set you need to find ways to make them more challenging.)
What happened to me
Last year I hurt my knee playing volleyball and decided to do just
(Push ups are great but when you can do to many reps per set you need to find ways to make them more challenging.)
What happened to me
Last year I hurt my knee playing volleyball and decided to do just
Saturday, July 9, 2011
What Is The Best Muscle Building Workout?
I know the name of my site is titled the lean look but that doesn't mean gaining muscle isn't a necessary part of the equation. The problem lies in the fact that too many people use muscle building routines year round (men's fitness, muscle and fitness, etc.). When this happens you end up putting on to much muscle year after year creating a big, bulky, soft, look, that just looks unnatural. What I want from you is to change your thinking about how to gain muscle, and also when it's appropriate
Friday, July 8, 2011
Recommended Diets
Here Are What I Have Found To Be The Very Best Diets Available Online - Enjoy!
There are so many diets out there that sometimes it's tough to decide which one's to try. However, there are a couple of diet books out there that i've used with great success. Here are the only diets I would recommend for now.
Eat Stop Eat
A great diet book by Author Brad Pilon. Brad did his Doctorate on this approach to intermittent fasting. The book recommends 1 or 2 24 hour fasts per week. By doing this you
There are so many diets out there that sometimes it's tough to decide which one's to try. However, there are a couple of diet books out there that i've used with great success. Here are the only diets I would recommend for now.
Eat Stop Eat
A great diet book by Author Brad Pilon. Brad did his Doctorate on this approach to intermittent fasting. The book recommends 1 or 2 24 hour fasts per week. By doing this you
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Why I Like Being Lean Over Being Big!
With summer upon us, I wanted to write a post about why I like being lean over being big and muscular. I spent years in the gym trying to get bigger and bigger and it left me looking and feeling lousy year after year. I can't believe I never realized that my body just didn't look right. I guess it's a mental thing when we get into the gym. We just want to be bigger and stronger than the other guy. It's a combination of evolution and hormones I guess. But once we make that mental switch in our
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Does Muscle Burn Fat? The Mistake I See In Gym's All The Time
A few years ago I moved into a new neighborhood. I decided that the long drive to my previous gym wasn't worth it (15 miles) and that I would start looking for a gym in my area. After looking for a while I finally found a gym close to my home and signed up. When I signed up they told me that I would get 3 free training sessions with one of their personal trainers. When I met my personal trainer the first question I asked him was, does muscle burn fat? This is one of the most common questions
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
5 Summer Style Tips To Maximize Your Time In The Sun
You have been working hard all winter to prepare your body for summer. Now is the time to show off that body when you hit the beaches, barbecues, clubs, parties, etc. Athough summer is upon us, and that means less clothes than usual, it's still vital to dress the right way. No matter what kind of shape you're in, if you aren't dressing right and giving off that cool, confident, vibe, your summer might not goes as planned. With yesterday being the first day of summer I thought now would be a
Monday, June 20, 2011
5 Exercises you should Add to your Routine
I am always trying to learn. Whether it be a new diet, a new strength building routine or a new exercise. Learning is what keeps me moving forward and what also allows me to share with you guys new things. One of the things I try to do is incorporate a few new exercises into my routine each month. This allows for diversity (beating boredom), muscle confusion (hitting the muscles from different angles) while finding the right exercsises that work for you. So here are 5 exercises you should add
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Yoga Benefits For Women! Is it Worth Your Time And Effort?
I recently tried a few yoga courses at the local gym after years of putting it off. I thought it was ok, but I just don't believe that my time spent there was as beneficial as the time I could be spending hitting the weights and treadmill. However, this is coming from a man's perspective - I think men should be more muscular and leaner than a woman. I believe a woman wants a more slim, fit, physique that incorporates an overall wellness approach to fitness. So what are some of the yoga benefits
Monday, June 13, 2011
Finding a Fasting Plan that Works for You!
Eating healthy all-day everyday is possible but can be overwhelming. I've tried many diets that work if you follow them exactly as layed out. The problem occurs when life gets in the way and throws that diet out of whack. What then happens is people get discouraged and say to themselves they can't do this and quit. This is the magic of fasting! A good fasting plan will allow for wiggle room and diet mishaps throughout the week.
(When you choose the right fasting plan you can enjoy foods
(When you choose the right fasting plan you can enjoy foods
Thursday, June 9, 2011
What is Circuit Training? And Why Adding it to your Routine will Increase Muscle Definition!
It's funny that when I talk to people about working out and bring up the term Circuit training I always get a similar response. What is curcuit training? Most people have an idea but just can't explain exactly what it is or how it works. Well, it's pretty simple to define. Circuit training is a form of conditioning combining resistance training and high-intensity aerobics. It is designed to be easy to follow and target strength building as well as muscular endurance. An exercise "circuit" is
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
The "Quick Workout" - Is it Getting you the Results you're After?
I am always looking to tweak my routine and find out what works and what doesn't. And over the past few years the brief workout trend has taken over in many of the mainstream fitness centers. I see it everyday where personal trainers are giving their clients these fast nonstop workouts that last only 30 to 40 minutes. Now, if it's summer and you're active, a couple of 30 minute workouts per week could suffice. But in my opinion, I think people need to step up their game a little if they want to
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Using the Power of Blender Drinks to Help You Get Lean!
One of the biggest changes I've made over the past couple of months was to introduce blender drinks into my diet. It's quick, healthy and tastes great when you find the right mix of ingredients that satifies your taste buds. I feel like this minor change to my diet has really made a big difference in my physique and my energy levels.
(Add this to your daily diet routine and watch the weight fall off like crazy)
The inspiration behind this diet tip
I've been thinking of new ways to add
(Add this to your daily diet routine and watch the weight fall off like crazy)
The inspiration behind this diet tip
I've been thinking of new ways to add
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Top 5 Fat Loss Tips
By: Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
=>Burn Fat and Build Muscle
This is a guest article written by Men's Fitness magazine writer and fellow fitness blogger Craig Ballantyne
(Here is Craig looking lean and mean with his dog Bally)
Men's Fitness magazine recently asked me for 3 of my best fat loss
secrets. Since most times the magazines just don't have enough space
to run my full tips, I thought I'd give you a more detailed
explanation of my secrets here (plus a few extra bonus tips that
=>Burn Fat and Build Muscle
This is a guest article written by Men's Fitness magazine writer and fellow fitness blogger Craig Ballantyne
(Here is Craig looking lean and mean with his dog Bally)
Men's Fitness magazine recently asked me for 3 of my best fat loss
secrets. Since most times the magazines just don't have enough space
to run my full tips, I thought I'd give you a more detailed
explanation of my secrets here (plus a few extra bonus tips that
Friday, May 27, 2011
Truth about Metabolic Resistance Training Exercises
What's with all the buzz going around about these metabolic resistance training exercises and workouts? Well, the term is becoming popular because rumors have that a workout like this will burn fat and build muscle better than any other type of workout out there right now. Is this true? Lets take a look inside to all the goodness...
(I love walking on the beach during sunset with my wife and two kids. One of life's great pleasures. Bring on summer baby)
The days of slow cardio are
(I love walking on the beach during sunset with my wife and two kids. One of life's great pleasures. Bring on summer baby)
The days of slow cardio are
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Ab Workout Machines! Are they Worth Your Time and Money?
Ab workout machines. You see them advertised every night on late night infomercials when you can't sleep. Are these machines worth the time you will put in using them, or the money you will invest into them worth it? The answer is plain and simple. Absolutely NOT!
(Trust me when I tell you, this guy didn't use ab machines to get this look)
Where ab workout machine buyers go wrong
I hate to say it, but the people who invest in ab machines are trying to take the easy way out. They don't
(Trust me when I tell you, this guy didn't use ab machines to get this look)
Where ab workout machine buyers go wrong
I hate to say it, but the people who invest in ab machines are trying to take the easy way out. They don't
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Warming Up! Is it Necessary and Are You Doing it Correctly!
Back when I was in my early twenties I would go into the gym focused on my workout never really thinking about how important the warm up was. It was just a quick five minute walk on the treadmill then over to the workout area to hit the weights. Boy was this a mistake!
(Here is Matt showing doing a psoas stretch. Someone who wants to be fit and athletic has to incorporate a proper warm up and stretching routine into their program.)
Common Mistakes I see when People Warm Up
What I
(Here is Matt showing doing a psoas stretch. Someone who wants to be fit and athletic has to incorporate a proper warm up and stretching routine into their program.)
Common Mistakes I see when People Warm Up
What I
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Burn fat and Build Muscle using a Technique called "Ladders"
Working out can become boring and tedious if you let it. How to avoid this is to constantly look for new techniques and workouts and incorporate them into your routine. Whenever I come across one I like, I give it a try and see how it works then relay that information to you guys - I am your guinea pig so to speak. Let me do the research, try the workout, and all you have to do is decide whether or not it fits with what you are doing.
(In honor of the 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis
(In honor of the 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis
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