Personal Trainer North East- Mort's Thoughts

How to get your body back after your hols!

2009-09-22T02:31:00.001-07:00

How to get your body back after your summer holidays!

So that’s it then, the last bank holiday past last week and with it, the so called summer.

You’ve had your summer holiday abroad but the clothes you went out there in are a little tight. Has the flab monster paid you a little visit?

Your thighs that once fitted comfortably into those jeans are now busting out of them and you now have a new and improved pair of love handles perched comfortably on top of that waistband.
Yep- that darned summer fat monster has struck again!

Sound pretty familiar?
I’ll bet it does!

You see, I recently visited Rhodes for a wedding and experience this myself- (shock, horror!)
1 or 2 weeks of spending most of your hours lazing in the sun around a scorching poolside or a blazing beach consuming ice creams, cocktails, beer and the odd mouthful of stray ambre solair can really wreak havoc with your figure.

In fact, if you aren’t careful, that blubber you didn’t work that hard to gain can become a permanent fixture on your body.

Now, ideally we’d avoid these scenarios altogether by eating sensibly on holiday, (Its always amazed me how people will diet and train for 6 months prior to their holidays then render it all pointless but gaining all of that lost bodyfat back in a matter of days) but if its too late for that then read on because I’m going to share with you one of the simplest, yet most effective ‘get your body back’ programs, that if followed to the letter will have your pre-holiday body back in no time and possibly looking even better!

The program is divided into 3 simple steps that if followed individually produce pretty cool results for the people that follow them but when all 3 are combined they become incredibly powerful.

Please do me a favour though- don’t pick and choose the bits you like the sound of and discard the bits you don’t- you’ll be absolutely ROBBING yourself of those incredible results I spoke of.

Here’s a couple of other DON’T DO’S before I take you through the 3 golden rules.

1) Don’t waste your time doing endless amount of cardio. Cardio Sucks for fat loss. Period. Sure it burns calories but does nothing POST workout. Take a look at the cardio area in your gym and compare it to the free weights area- where are the best bodies? take a look at sprinters bodies- you think they bother with jogging? TRUST ME ON THIS ONE.

2) Don’t bother with crunches either. If crunches burned fat from your stomach area, wouldn’t they be the only exercise we did? And wouldn’t the people who spent the most time doing them have the best abs? Put it this way- I haven’t done a crunch for 6 years yet have gone from chubby trainer to a visible 6 pack.

3) STOP making excuses and start NOW. Not tomorrow, not Monday, NOW.

Okay, enough of the build up.

Here goes, you ready to get your body back?

RULE NUMBER 1:
CLEAN up your diet. For the next 14 days I want you to COMPLETELY cut out certain foods.

As you know, one of the reasons holiday are so great is the fact that we can let our hair down a little right? Actually, now that I think of it, it’s probably the main reason most of us take a holiday.
We have a lot more booze than we normally do more ice creams, more desserts. Just more ‘treats’ in general. Things that we only save as an occasional treat at home become almost a daily habit and can take a huge toll on not only our metabolism, our figures and our immune system. Ever wondered why you feel run down or ‘fluey’ when you get back? Or need another holiday straight after the one you just had?

I’ve recently heard people coming back from week long booze binges complaining of swine flu, when it fact its bloody WINE flu they have!

So before we go into the ins and outs of training, we’re gonna look at something that your body REALLY needs- Supportive Nutrition.

By supportive I mean we’re providing our bodies with foods that give support to the metabolism and immune systems and avoiding things that tax, stress and weaken them.

For 14 days you MUST avoid:
Alcohol- Quite simply a liquid sugar that your body can’t do anything with other than store it as bodyfat. Booze makes you fat- simples.

Don’t give me your pathetic excuses as to why you can’t. You’ve just spent every day of your holiday and probably every weekend since knocking them back, so surely a couple of weeks of the sauce isn’t going to kill you? You want results right?

ALL wheat and gluten products.

This is MASSIVE. After training literally HUNDREDS of people in my years as a fat loss expert this is by far and away the most powerful thing you can do. You’ll drop pounds very quickly and feel better than you have done in years!

Seriously, bread, crackers, pasta, pastries and most sauces- wholegrain or not could be the VERY thing that’s keeping you from getting the body you REALLY, REALLY want.

ALL processed foods- Processing food actually renders it as a ‘non-food’.
‘Fake’ foods such as microwave meals, pre-packaged foods and anything with numbers and words you can pronounce in it wreaks havoc with our digestive system and metabolisms.

We don’t have time to get into too much detail here but take my word for it, avoid processed rubbish and you’ll not only feel great, but will start to look much better too!

So if it’s canned, tinned, freeze dried, has numbers or anything unpronounceable in it then avoid it, PLEASE.

RULE 2- Drink ONLY water and green tea for the next 14 days
Yes, I know the water thing has been done to death but bear with me
on this for a minute.

Water is an absolutely critical component of achieving great health
and the firm, toned and strong body that goes with it.

Decrease your hydration levels by just a percent or two and your
metabolism changes dramatically causing you to react differently to
the foods that you eat, hold more fat and stress your immune system.

This is not conducive to looking great!

Yet, the converse is also true too.

Maintaining optimal hydration has a positive impact on everything
from metabolism and fat retention to immunity and general health.
That's why I want you to drink a litre for every 50lbs you weigh.

So, if you weigh ten stones or 150lbs then you should be drinking
just under 3 litres of plain, clean water a day and yes green tea can be included in this.

Now, I know that for many of you this will seem like a lot. I also
know that some of you will retort with claims of over-hydration or
the latest catchphrase 'hyponatremia' which has been in the new recently.

To each I say ‘PANTS’.

You WILL NOT over-hydrate because you will be eating very nutritious and mineral dense
foods that will maintain everything in correct proportion.

If you find yourself rushing to the bathroom every five minutes
then simply add the smallest pinch of pure sea salt to help you hold onto some of that (not table salt) to every litre you consume, you shouldn’t be able to taste this, if you can you’ve put too much in.

RULE NUMBER 3-
Do some form of RESISTANCE training 5 days a week.
Like I said at the start, don’t waste your time with cardio work.

Apart from all of the things I stated earlier, cardio can cause you to get rid of the ONLY tissue in the body that burns fat- MUSCLE.
Yup, that’s right. Muscles are the things that give your body its shape; muscles are the things that consume most of the calories you take in and the very thing that gets rid of fat.

Sounds pretty obvious we want to hang onto it right?

Then why are so many people wasting their time and energy jogging, cross training and hitting every machine possible?

So I want you to perform strength exercises daily that will challenge your muscular system and metabolism. Not only will these make you stronger, more supple and help you function better, they’ll also improve your body shape and burn more body fat than any Cardio machine ever would.

The exercises you choose should follow the ‘600’ rule. That is, as many of the 600 muscles in your body should be involved as possible. Exercises like squats, push ups, lunges, deadlifts and pull ups will work best.

In fact I’ve even put together a short video you can follow if you like- check this out- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8u64CdCN0vk

I do appreciate that it might be a little different from your gym programme, but hey- you’re probably bored with that and the lack of results it’s bringing.

So- you no know EXACTLY what you need to do.

What are you waiting for? Go get your body back!

Will Power SUCKS?

2009-09-22T02:28:00.000-07:00

I have a confession to make. I have ZERO willpower. That’s right, Me, Paul Mort, The leading fat loss speciailist in the UK has NO willpower, absolutely none.

‘But you have a 6 pack, you must have some?’

Nope, I have none. I have a problem saying no to things I enjoy. Food talks to me.
I HATE denying myself the things I really really want. I LOVE indulgence.

I bet you’re the same. Denial is just not my style.
You wanna know my secret to staying lean WITHOUT willpower?

Lack of Opportunity.

Simple as that.
Do not give food or drink the opportunity to tempt you.
Don’t keep chocolate and sweets in the house and then try to deny yourself and commence a battle of will with the fruit and nut- itll be you that ends up nuts!

As ridiculous as it may sound, will power is completely over rated.
Heres a recent example.

A few of my friends were going out for a drink one Saturday afternoon and I knew they’d end up heading into the town centre to get ‘merry’.
In fact, scratch that they were going to get p*ssed.

So, as I was in training for a photoshoot I drove down had 1 ‘drink’ (a blackcurrant and soda) then told the lads that I would be dropping the car off and meeting them in the town centre.

KNOWING that I’d struggle to avoid having booze and KNOWING that booze has one use (it makes you fat and gives you MEGA carb cravings the day after) I turned my phone off!
Yes, I know that’s a bit naughty but do you see my point?

Willpower is just not my forte, so its easier to take myself out of the situation and if there’s an occasion where I can have a drink- I have a few voddies or amarettos, simple.

Need more examples?

When I eat out and it isn’t my ‘cheat meal’ I eat out with friends who have similar goals to me and don’t just binge at any given opportunity (see my article ‘are your friends making you fat?').

Politely ask the waiter not to bring the bread basket out.

Don’t even bother tempting yourself.

If its not the bread that gets you, it might be the desert.

Tell the waiter you don’t want to ‘see if the dessert menu has anything healthy’ it wont and you probably don’t even need desert.

Girls wanna come over for a girly night in with a bottle of wine?
Your on antibiotics- they’ll never know! ;-)

This is an obvious one, but NEVER EVER, EVER go food shopping when your hungry.
When travelling plan and pack your meals in advance.

I can never understand you guys that eat well and train for 6 months to get in shape for a holiday that eat junk food at the airport- before you’ve even took off??!!?
Exercise in the morning if you cant motivate yourself to go at night. You have less time to lie to yourself that you have too much to do.

Get yourself a motivated gym partner. They’ll drag you there when you cant be arsed!

Join a group training program. Bootcamps are awesome. RAMMED with people who have a similar goal and want to get healthy.

A little different from your pisshead friends who always try to tempt you to make themselves feel better?
So, just a little tip but potentially crucial to your fat loss success.

Lack of opportunity will ALWAYS trump will power.

Fat Loss Supplementaion

2009-09-22T02:26:00.001-07:00

Do You Really Need to Use Supplements? My Top 3 for fat loss!

Touchy subject…..

Now, this article will no doubt cause huge debate and a few raised eyebrows. That’s awesome!

Let me start by saying that I have nothing to gain by advising for/against certain supplements or strategies. I’m sharing with you what has WORKED with the 100’s of clients who’ve had tremendous fat loss results both with myself and some of the WORLDS top fat loss experts and what’s backed up by what I ‘consider’ to be great research.

In essence I’m giving you my complete unbiased OPINION on what I truly BELIEVE works and what doesn’t.

So let’s get cracking!

While it’s true you CAN get good results with a good nutritious and clean diet containing your 5 servings of fruit and vegetables a day, plenty of lean protein and lots of clean FILTERED water why not get GREAT results by supplementing (and a wagon full of other benefits too)?!

Let’s get one thing clear though. There is no MAGIC PILL for fat loss! In fact, I’d say around 95% of supplements out there today are a complete waste of your hard earned money!

Despite what the major supplement companies say, you won’t get 6 pack abs by taking 2 ‘lard blasters’ first thing in the morning on an empty stomach and 3 before your gym session.

Supplementing is EXACTLY that- ‘Supplementing an already clean, nutritious diet and fat loss program’

So with that in mind, I don’t want to go into to much detail about exercise and diet this week, you’ll find my thoughts on those here- http://personaltrainernortheast.blogspot.com

The supplements I’m going to recommend are ‘general’ Supplements. For example, when I work with 1-1 clients we take 12 skin fold sites which help us determine exactly which supplements they need for THEIR bodies. Having said that, the supplements below WILL WORK FOR EVERYONE!

So let’s take your results from GOOD TO GREAT by looking at my top 3 supplements for body composition NOTE: a good multi vitamin/mineral complex isn’t including as we should ALL be using this. Email me if you’d like my recommendation paul@precisionfitness.co.uk

1) A good quality fish oil-
Notice the word quality. This is absolutely vital. If you’re buying from a high street store- that includes that very popular health food store with h and b in its name the fish oil is of VERY POOR quality. Fishy burps? Good quality fish oil doesn’t cause that. Fishy taste in your mouth? Yep, that’s the quality too. Fish oil, is THE BEST fat loss supplement out there today. Apart from helping every disease known to man. Its main roles in fat loss are to help control blood sugar levels (THE key to fat loss- from the love handles especially), to turn OFF fat storage enzymes and turn ON fat burning enzymes. Simply put, if you’re not taking at least 9g of fish oil a day you’re missing out on some tremendous benefits. http://alimentnutrition.co.uk do one the best fish oils available in the UK at an affordable price! Take 3x3 a day WITH food.

2) Whey Protein- This one isn’t ESSENTIAL but I believe if you’re looking to get the most from your diet and training you need to be using some form of whey protein. Without boring you with too much science, they are many different types of whey- each different in quality. My personal recommendation is the VERY reasonable but the GREAT quality myprotein.co.uk.

Lets look at protein and its benefits (Whey ISOLATE is always the best choice NOT concentrate, a mix is fine though)
FACT: low REFINED carb diets ALWAYS outperform ANY other diet when it comes to fat loss
FACT: Protein releases the hormones that make you feel fuller for longer
FACT: Protein helps repair, maintain and build lean muscle the ONLY tissue that can burn fat.
FACT: meat, nuts and fish aren’t always available or handy
FACT- putting some whey powder into some water and mixing doesn’t take much time and is a GREAT snack but AWESOME with breakfast.
FACT- Whey Protein provides TREMENDOUS support and is a huge boost to your immune system
FAT- Protein powder DOES NOT make you ‘bulk up’ or ‘get bigger’ it’s almost the same as eating a chicken breast-last time I checked they don’t give you guns!
FACT- if shakes turned you into arnie wouldnt all the WEEDS at your gym be huuge now? i know they arent at my gym!
FACT- the hour after you train its VITAL to get protein and amino acids into your system or your fat melting workout could have been a complete waste of time. Protein powders are THE best option for this.
FACT- I LOVE chocolate orange flavour true whey by myprotein.co.uk- its not Terry’s its mine!

3) Green Tea- we all know green tea is good for fat loss right? Wanna know why?
Seriously there is sooo much evidence supporting the use of green tea that it should be compulsory to drink it!

Green tea has a boatload of benefits especially linked with preventing cancer but as usual we’ll focus on fat loss.

Green tea contains a fair amount of caffeine- which if used correctly is AWESOME for fat loss (notice the use of the word ‘correctly) however, the green stuff also contains L-theanine which stops the caffeine ‘spike’ that can end up in the jitters, sweating etc, so we get a 1-2 combo of a boost in our metabolism by increasing our energy expenditure without the so called ‘side effects). Just two cups a day have proven to have some benefit too

That combined with the potent catechin ECGC and it’s a knockout combo for fat loss!!
You can either drink it on its own, with lemon or peppermint or use the concentrated form, again, myprotein.co.uk do a superb one!

Obviously there are other great supplements out there such as my favourite Fenugreek, Magnesium, Branched Chain Amino Acids, glutamine, creatine, and if you have any questions about any of them please don’t hesitate to contact me!!

The Swedish Furniture Diet

2009-07-21T01:32:00.000-07:00

I don’t know about you but I dread trips to IKEA almost as much a visit to the dentist for a root canal.

After running out of excuses that range from football matches to courses to the final not quite valid ‘I’m washing my hair’, this past Saturday I decided- sorry FORCED into visiting Ikea to purchase some new furniture for my office.

Storage for all of my books, journals and manuals was a priority (basically a book shelf with doors to hide the clutter) and after 4 hours of humming, harring, measuring and designing (not to mention battling with my willpower over those darned hot dog) we finally got we wanted.

On Monday, I attempted to build this thing and the more I realised that flat pack furniture is very much like fat loss.

You’re shaking your head now aren’t ya?

Stay with me on this…..

Let’s look at how the two are VERY closely linked, of course we’ll do it in numerical order- just like those ikea instructions do!

1. When you’re trying to drop fat its VITAL you have a crystal clear goal, in fact you want a picture in your head of your ideal body (some of my clients even have a photo or a cut out of their ideal body- wether its realistic or not you NEED that goal)- EXACTLY like I did when I got my unit, I had a very good idea of what I wanted for my office and what I wanted it to look like.

2. Measure up. Just like you measure the space where you want that furniture to go you need to measure your body before you go. I had to measure heights, lengths and depths. You need to measure waist, hips, chest and thighs.

3. Pay the Price- That may be trawling round ikea for 4 hours and buying something fairly pricey just as you may have to get a trainer who can write you a QAULITY program or join a fitness bootcamp such as ours. Either way, just get a plan, don’t just wander around the gym hopping from machine to machine or ‘do your own thing’. That’s akin to buying a few bits of wood and ‘doing your own thing’ with them! Even bank robbers have a bloody plan!

4. Now is when the fun starts. Get your tools, and I must admit, I didn’t have a hammer! Guess what the first tool I needed was?

Yup, you guessed it! Your friendly fat loss expert had to use a MEAT TENDERISER to hammer the first parts in.

So- you may have to join a gym to do your programme or buy a swiss ball and a set of dumbbells BUT that’s not the be all and end all- you can always borrow some or use your initiative if your supposed to use a barbell, you can use 2 dumbells.
If you don’t have a kettlebell, you can use a dumbbell.

If you don’t have a stop watch, use the one on your mobile or ipod!

5- Open the instructions. NOTE- if you’re a fella you may have problems with this one as we always think we know best.

Okay lets get one thing straight, when you get a programme, follow it TO THE LETTER.
If it says 20 reps- you do 20 reps.
If it says you cant have bread then you shouldn’t be eating bread!
It it advises you to train every other day- you train every other day.
If it says no crunches- don’t do bloody crunches

Imagine If I ignored the ikea ‘build-by-numbers’ manual and decided not to put the screw where the told me or if I couldn’t be bothered to tighten the door on properly?
Its exactly the same!

I hear it all the time- “Paul I;m following your program but I’m jogging a couple of times a week”

B**lsh*t!

Its not my program now its YOUR program Mr Fat Loss Expert!
I better not tell my girlfriend I didn’t bother fastening the shelves down properly then! ;-)

6- Admire the finished product. Granted building a better, leaner, sexier body might not take you 2 hours, well 6 if you’re me! (hey I’m fat loss expert not a joiner!) but either way, you follow the plan you get the results!

So there you have it!
Follow the IKEA fat loss program this summer and get yourself a Swedish body- without the extra shelves!

How to be UNSTOPPABLE at dropping fat!

2009-06-22T03:51:00.000-07:00

What if I told you this next part could DOUBLE, in fact TRIPLE the rate at which you ACHIVE your goals?

All of you will have heard about goal setting, you may already have some goals set , either in you’re head or you may have written them down at some point, chances are you’ve forgotten about them now or other ‘stuff’ just got in the way!

Personally, I have read over FOURTY goal setting and personal development books and done several courses on the subject and quite frankly, most of them are a load of fluff!

After reading this many books you’d think I may have learned something, well yes I have but the following strategy I actually picked up in a FREE download from my friend Dax Moy that I popped onto my I-pod by chance and let me tell you it works an absolute treat!

I have come across THE most powerful goal ACHIEVEMENT strategy that I have ever seen and used to great effect!
Without bragging, this strategy helped me earn 10 grand in 1 MONTH, the same amount as I used to earn in a YEAR!
Here goes: Grab a pen and paper and get ready to write some powerful stuff.
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT AND WILL MORE THAN TREBLE YOUR CHANCES OF ACHIEVEING YOUR GOALS!
The Science of goal achievement Part 1

THE WHAT

Simple- Know EXACTLY, PRECISELY what your goal is. Put up your dart board so to speak, so you have something to aim for. Be CRYSTAL clear in what you want, no vagueness, don't be general. Be very, very specific. For instance I don't want to see you writing down: "I want to lose weight" - doesn't "I want to look and feel fantastic by the end of bootcamp by dropping a dress size” sound much more powerful? And believable?

Quite simply- If you don't name your goal, you won’t get your goal.

So.... take a piece of card (I like to use those little postcards from Ikea -mine has a plastic duck on the front!) or some paper and write down YOUR goal(s) and remember be CRYSTAL clear.

As an example and as a kick up the backside for me ( I have a TOPLESS photoshoot on Friday and go on holiday on Friday), here’s part 1 of my current fitness goal: “I want to drop 3-4lbs,get down to around 7% bodyfat and be absolutely RIPPED by 28th of June" you see, as a trainer helping others all day and running a thriving business I sometimes use the lack of time excuse too or I’m simply exhausted from training people for 14 hours a day! - No excuses now though!

Again, this science of goal achievement is absolutely brilliant and
will really turbo charge your motivation AND results!

So, your card or paper should look something like this:.." I want to drop 6lbs of body fat and see a ripped 6 pack by 26th of June"
Pretty precise, darn rite crystal clear.
Now we need to attach some meaning to it so let’s go to part 2

Part 2
THE WHY

So you're now pretty clear about what that goal of yours is , its time to get even more powerful. I want you to think about your goal and work out WHY you want it. This is so incredibly powerful. I want you to really think about what truly drives you, because you want to look better? Not good enough. Why do you want to look better? So you feel better about yourself? Again not deep enough, think about what’s truly, honestly driving you. Why do you want to feel better about?
Yourself? Do you want to look better on the beach? Are you trying to impress someone? Dig deeper, peel the onion.

Here’s mine (and believe me, this is VERY scary for me to let you in
on this!)

““I want to drop 3-4lbs,get down to around 7% bodyfat and be absolutely RIPPED by 28th of June because I want to challenge myself to see how lean I can get AND so I look absolutely awesome on the beach and in y upcoming photoshoot so that people actually comment on how good I look”

WOW... I can’t believe I just told you that- my reason is both vanity based and emotional and is acting as a true driver for me right now.

Okay go do it.. Write down your NEW goal with true reason attached to it, I guarantee you if you know the WHY you'll always find the HOW and stay motivated towards achieving it.

Go find your WHY
Wow- Pretty powerful stuff huh?

Hopefully, that goal of yours is really starting to take shape now and you're feeling really positive and exited about achieving it.
I for one can’t wait get you started on your quest for a better body.
Now for pat 3 which is often the most overlooked and underestimated phase of achieving goals and is also one of the main reasons people fail in their goals.

Part 3
KNOW THE COST
Now by cost, I don't necessarily mean financial cost, although sometimes it may, for instance, you've paid whatever to get a copy of my fabulous book. That’s just one of the costs, what extra food will you have to buy? Do you need supplements?

However, much more important than that what will you have to sacrifice; far for this as it’s located in the welcome pack. Are you prepared to give up alcohol for example? Are you prepared to mput in MAXIMUM effort at EVERY class?
If not, then do you really want to reach that goal?
So get out that pen and paper and write down the costs.... Here’s my revised goal achievement statement for you to grin at!
“I want to drop 3-4lbs,get down to around 7% bodyfat and be absolutely RIPPED by 28th of June because I want to challenge myself to see how lean I can get AND so I look absolutely awesome on the beach and in y upcoming photoshoot so that people actually comment on how good I look
The costs of achieving my goal are:
Complete 4 metabolic weight training workouts per week, complete 2 interval training sessions per week, cut out all processed foods, alcohol, wheat and dairy for the next 14 days leading to the holiday. Drink 4 litres of water every day. Take ALL of my supplements at the recommended times, get to bed by 10:30 pm EVERY night, complete two 24 hour fasts."

Again, take out your pen and paper, go to chapter BLANK where you’ll find out the cost, then start to shape your goal- I swear this stuff works! Remember that 10k in a month I told you about earlier? I went through this exact same process with it and it blew my mind!

Remember if you need help with any of this process.. Email me!!
ANYTIME.

Now you should be getting really fired up about starting to work towards that goal of yours
Okay this phase, part 4 is sooo simple but definitely the thing that holds most people back and keeps them away from their goals, both financially AND health wise

Part 4
PAY THE PRICE
This is easy, TAKE ACTION. As Nike have been saying for years- JUST
DO IT.

you see, this seems quite easy in theory but are you really prepared to pay the price? will you fall off the wagon after 7 days?

Can you really cut out the booze for the full 30 days?
Do you really want results or are you just kidding yourself?

Here are some of my top strategies for staying on course for the entire journey of achieving ANY goal

1. write down your goal on 3 sheets of card, put one next to your bed, one in your handbag and take one to work. Take time to look at these cards at EVERY opportunity you can, EVERY day.
honestly, this REALLY works wonders. At the VERY LEAST you should be reading them upon rising in the morning and before going to sleep at night.

2. Keep a food diary and fill it in, the results may surprise you. Log food, drink and times

3. When faced with a difficult situation- maybe you get offered some chocolate or fancy a drink- Ask yourself this " will this make me leaner or fatter?"The answer should take care of the decision. Every action will either take you closer or further away from your goal. Do you really want the cake or do you wat the results? You cant have both! Cake or a sexier, slimmer body? YOU CHOOSE.

An interview with Dublins Fat Loss Expert

2009-06-15T01:59:00.000-07:00

I recently had the pleasure to interview a fat loss expert who DEFINITELY walks the walk and practices what we preaches.
Without too much ‘fluff’ Bryan Kavanagh is someone who has REALLY impressed me with his ability to get people REALLY lean, REALLY fast. I should also mention, I;ve NEVER met anyone who eats so much broccoli!

Check out Bryan’s picture too- he’s not in bad shape himself either!
Anyway. Lets get into this!

PM-Bryan, can you tell my a readers a little about your background your specialization area?

BK -To be honest I used to pride myself on increasing sports performance. Making people stronger, faster and more powerful was first on my list. Maintaining strength: mass ratio was essential because of the nature of the athletes I was working with . . martial artists and boxers need to make weight…
So in essence I transitioned into experimenting a lot with fat loss and ‘making weight. . but the emphasis was always on performance. .
Thing is. . all the athletes I worked with underwent a complete body composition shift. They gained muscle and lost fat. . hmm . .
Isn’t that the goal of almost every trainee anyway. . ? I’ve had made the same observations on the track. . they were all in great condition . . and yet they spent so little time in the gym.
I spent the last few years focusing on performance and saw ‘bodybuilding’ and ‘fat loss’ as a separate entity! I actually didn’t notice what was happening right underneath my nose. . almost every single one of the athletes I worked with ended up really lean and really strong. .In the past I was asked on numerous occasions to help people lose weight and I would just respond ‘don’t eat crap and do some training. .’ simple as that!
I soon realized that the performance goals I set for boxers and martial artists were giving better ‘aesthetic’ results than anyone I worked with. . I was on to something. .

PM Whats the number 1 mistake people make when it comes to trying to lose fat?
BK-the number one mistake people make in the gym. . .hmm but there’s so many! (laughing)

I would have to say that the primary thing holding people back is they have no clue where they want to be or what they want to look like!

People set out with a goal like;

‘I want to be in good shape’

I know that may sound reasonable at first but when you take a closer look you will agree it is actually ridiculous! Lets use a little analogy for this one. It really is like you waking up in the morning and saying;

‘I think I will go somewhere today’. .

Where? ... Work? …To the shopping centre?

You could be going anywhere… lets get a little more specific than that people;

‘I want to lose 30lbs see my abs and do 20 chins straight. .’

Now there’s some goals I can relate to!

PM This REALLY grates on me but Why, Why, Why do people persist with jogging and sit ups?
BK- Why do people persist doing sit ups and jogging…? Next question please… : )

It actually is understandable when you really think about it;

They don’t know any different. They are being told to do it at every opportunity but idiotic ‘health writers’ in the newspaper ‘wellness’ section. . it wouldn’t surprise me if the editors themselves wrote them articles because some of them are hilarious. . one I seen the other day was openly telling people to take sugar with their tea if you are feeling tired because you may not be getting enough carbohydrates. . hmm

Getting back on track… I think people persist in doing long drawn out cardio because they equate long boring exercise with weight loss. They think in order to lose weight they must train for a long time. And the first thing that pops into their head is ‘go for a run’.

I reckon it’s the clowns on the infomercials that have poisoned people’s brains with crunches and their divine ability to sculpt you a nice 6pack with little or no effort on your part. . ab rollers, ab loungers and the likes. They really crack me up. Rocky films may also have something to do with it. . I, myself am guilty of dangling out of a branch and doing upside down sit ups… they just look hardcore I guess haha
All jogging does is make you efficient at doing that particular movement. i.e. you burn less energy less time you do it. So in essence every time you go for that jog you teach your metabolism to perform on less calories. The run you done yesterday is burning a hell of lot less calories than the run you started doing a month ago. You are more efficient now and burning less fat. Period.

But seriously your probably better off doing nothing… there I said it …

Too many people think they can train hard 3 times per week, eat well twice per week and they will be in great shape in no time. This simply is not the case. You have to dedicate at least 90% of your time to eating sensibly and training hard. That’s it. Even at that you still have to be careful for the other 10% of the time. Being lean is a full time job. It is not a 4 hours per week all out assault on the gym and then for the other 164 hours of the week you eat crap and laze about.

PM- finally, what are the 3 TOP TIPS you could give to anyone looking to get lean?
BK The top 3 tips I have for your readers are;

1. Have a plan. I know I sound like a broken record but you need a plan, write down where you are now and where you want to be and get cracking on it. Start where you are now, take measurements, weigh yourself, test your fitness and come back in two weeks and do it again (with witnesses).
2. Get a stop watch. I see people all the time that don’t time their rest periods. . I really don’t understand it. . it looks something like this

Set 1.
Rest 60seconds
Set 2.
Rest 3 minutes
Set 3.
Rest 2 minutes 22 seconds.

I’m exaggerating but you get the point right? How on earth can you measure your progress if your recovery is undulating all over the place?

3. I know I said ‘weigh yourself earlier in the post but I really would suggest you do yourself a favor and throw the scales out the window. I’ve had to explain to dozens of women in the past week alone that they are in-fact losing bodyfat even though the scales is only showing small differences. In weeks of intense training you will put on small amounts of functional muscle and this is a must. You will lose fat at the same time. Increase muscle and decreased fat. . weight will either stay the same (for now) but bodyfat will drop and clothes will fit better and you will look and feel better.

Is that not the goal anyway? Look and feel better? Not be a certain number. .

You can read more about Bryan's AWESOME fat loss programs at http://paulmort.absystem.hop.clickbank.net/

Confessions on an F.F.B (former fat boy)

2009-05-21T11:43:00.000-07:00

I know what it’s like to be fat, really fat. At just 19 years old I weighed in at a scale tipping 16 stone and had an alarmingly rotund 42 inch waist.

I was tired, unhealthy, uninspired and a downright slob. I skipped breakfast after hitting the snooze button 5 or 6 times. When I arrived at work I’d order the aptly named ‘belly buster’ and then I’d spend the next few hours looking forward to my next ‘meal’.

4 years later I was 4 stones lighter, 4 trouser sizes smaller and I thought I’d won the battle of the bulge but the war of the wobble had only just begun!

You see, I now realise I did it all the wrong way. You see I was lighter, fitting into smaller clothes but still looked like crap, but dammit at least I wasn’t fat anymore!

Another 5 years on and am now one of the leading fat loss experts in the UK and have lectured other trainers, doctors and private plastic surgeons on fat loss.

I learned the hard way about the difference between ‘ugly skinny’ and ‘buff lean’. I’ve spent around 9 years doing so! If only I had known then what I know now!

The most important thing I learnt along the way is that an FFB or Former Fat Girl for that matter can’t play by the same rules as everyone else when it comes to getting and staying ‘ripped’.

My best mate and my girlfriend are both carbohydrate ‘bitches’ and you probably have friends or relatives who are the same.

You know the ones; they can eat pizza, pasta and bread and not put on an ounce of fat. Yet you so much as look at a wholemeal bap and you start bloating up on the spot!

The Former Fat Person DEFINITELY has a low genetic tolerance to carbohydrates of the refined variety. More importantly, eating that bread will results in your waist DIRECTLY expanding. The Bio-Signature Protocol, developed by the worlds leading authority on all things fitness, Charles Poliquin shows us that your supra-iliac (love handle) skin-fold measurement has a DIRECT correlation to your carbohydrate intake.

You may have lost some serious fat but you just can’t eat or train the same way as a naturally lean person. I hate those guys, with a passion!

ARE YOU AN FFB OR FFG?
You could be an FFB or FFG if:
• You’ve lost 2-3 stones (roughly) of fat
• You can gain fat at a rapidly alarming rate
• You have the urge to smack around the head those skinny people who say ‘I need to go on a diet’
• You’re a male and you feel like murdering with your bare hands anyone that’s a ‘hardgainer’ and finds it difficult to gain weight

There actually isn’t much info out there for Former Fat People. But what follows is a short guide to what I’ve learned over the years as both a former fatty and a fat loss expert. Some of my evidence is based on actual research, some of it is based on my own experiences with many, many clients and of course with my own lard loving frame.

The FFP’S main problem is his accumulation of fat cells and storage of fat cells.
You see, when you gain fat, you gain fat cells. When you lose that fat, the cells remain there, albeit ‘shrunken and empty’. These HUNGRY cells are just sitting there, waiting, ready to pounce, just itching to expand again. In just a few, short weeks of poor eating habits or lowered activity levels, those nasty cells can cause the FFP to blow out those lovely, new 32 inch wait jeans faster than you can say ‘ Pass the garlic bread’

The FFP’s body is a walking time bomb, or should I say a walking fat bomb, able to blow up with just a few little slips. It DESPERATELY wants to get fat again. It LOVES being fat.

I have a Fat Lad living inside me everyday just bursting to get out.

I crave pizza, I’d love to sit down every night and watch the soaps. I love a few bottles of stella, a papa johns and a barbecue on a weekend.

I sometimes can’t be bothered to go workout. I have a list of excuses as long as my arm.

This Fat Lad is with me, chewing at my ear EVERY single hour of EVERY single day.
Here’s how I keep him at bay, these are all MUST DO’S.

1) The FFP must select his carbohydrates VERY CAREFULLY. Carbs are very tricky for the former fatty. Because of list of physiological issues too long to deal with here. Yes, we do need carbs, but we need the right carbs and at the right time. Veggies, especially green, are fine at any time. But carbs such as oats, whole-wheat bread etc are only good at two times in my eyes- around training and at breakfast. Carbs taken in at these times aren’t likely to be stored as fat.

2) Those two times aside, the FFP must REALLY control his carb intake the rest of the day. As a former fat person you must toss most bread and cold cereal products out forever. Soft Drinks and Juices? Never again! Your’’re an FFP and your relationship with flour is over…boo-hoo. Get a tissue!

3) Breakfast for the former fatty should be the largest of the day and the last meal of the day should be the smallest. Calories and carbs should be tapered down along with portion size. Us FFP’s are storage monsters. Eating too much late in the day will lay on the fat for sure. Protein only on a night-time.

4) The FFP MUST LIFT WEIGHTS. This is a no-brainer. The FFP must also train harder than the average person, both resistance and cardio and do it FOREVER. We can’t even slack off a little. Where most people can cruise along and maintain, the FFP will immediately begin laying on the lard.

5) Stick to big, basic exercises for boosting that crappy, FFP metabolism. Exercises such as Deadlifts, Squats, Rows, Pull Ups, Dips, Push Ups. These exercises build the most muscle and burn the most calories therefore must form the core of any training program.

6) Supplement wise the FFP must take a fish oil supplement. Take a handful every day to switch off the fat storage hormones and switch on the fat burning hormones.

From FFP to PLP
Studies show that the majority of people who lose a lot of fat will eventually gain it back.
It doesn't have to be that way!
With the right nutrition, training and supplements the former fat person can become a PLP- permanently lean person. It’s not easy and you’ll have to work even harder than regular people to stay lean and mean but as an FFB myself, its definitely worth it!

The TRUTH about "Alli" Tablets

2009-05-20T06:40:00.000-07:00

The Truth about Alli tablets!

So the new magic pill is making a killing in the weight loss market huh?

Guess what though?

It DOESN’T WORK!

Yep that’s right, this huuuge media hype and MASSIVE profit making pill doesn’t work
I absolutely 100% guarantee it. In fact if you drop bodyfat (not the same as weight) whilst using it, I’ll pay for a years supply for you.

How it works

Before you can buy the pill over the counter you have to have a BMI of 28 upwards.

My take- first off, BMI is a load of tosh. I’m walking round at 9.5%- my leanest ever and guess what my BMI is? Yup 28!

The products active ingredient is Orlistat. The makers claim that taking the tablet can increase weight loss by up to 50%

What does Orlistat do?

Oh this is where we have a REAL rant and wake a few people up!

The Alli tablets dissolve in the stomach, where the active ingredients orbital binds itself to the enzymes in the body that are responsible for breaking down fat.
In essence, orlistat ‘blocks’ the absorption of the fat you eat and you excrete it (more on that later)

Here in lies the problem.

1-Fat DOES NOT make you fat. That’s right FAT DOES NOT make you FAT.
Sure the excess calories from a high trans fat diet can cause you to gain some extra weight, but its actually excess CARBOHYRATES that are causing the obesity problem in this country and are the reason I see so many love handles spilling over jeans on a Saturday night!

You see, the body actually want to use bodyfat as energy, but taking on as many refined carbs such as bread and pasta and all of the sugary products that most of us do, causes the pancreas to release huge amounts of insulin to deal with all of this.
This, repeated over time leads to a condition known as insulin resistance, where your body will just keep releasing insulin over and over again, many times overshooting the mark of how much you need.

So the fat you currently have stays where it is and all that excess insulin is stored as extra bodyfat!

2- It blocks ‘good fat’ too!
It’s a well known fact that ‘good’ fats such as oily fish; nuts and fish oil tablets are GREAT for helping people to get lean. Well, this great healthy fat is also excreted! GREAT!

Fish oil is actually THE BEST supplement when it comes to trying to drop fat. Click this link for more info-http://personaltrainernortheast.blogspot.com/2009/03/do-you-really-need-supplements-for-fat.html

In fact good quality fish oil actually helps EVERY disease known to man and has MANY great benefits apart from the fat loss thing. It lowers blood pressure, increases cardiovascular health, decreases inflammation, decreases stress and depression; helps treat diabetes so it REALLY concerns me that people are wanting to take this out of our already unhealthy diets!

The side effect of Alli-So now that I’ve convinced you there’s no way it can help you get leaner, lets looks at some more stats.
That fat that was blocked earlier?
Around about 25% of it in fact, is excreted, which of course means GREASY POOS. NICE!
Oh and those greasy poo's can come at ANY TIME, such as when you’re in the gym or on a night out! EVEN NICER!
So unless you want to fill your pants with an oily stool, I’d avoid this at all costs!

What to do instead for fast fat loss
A VERY brief overview!
1) Limit your carbs to only fibrous vegetables such as broccoli, spinach, watercress, cabbage and cauliflower!
2) Eat protein with EVERY meal (meat, fish, chicken etc)
3) If it comes in a packet, box or tin, don’t eat it! Think like a caveman/woman.
4) Take fish oil- this really is a no brainer!
And lastly 5) exercise WITH WEIGHTS. I seem to touch on this every week but going jogging, doing aerobics and suing a cross trainer SUCK for fat loss. Please lift weights- or get fatter!

fat ass and thighs?

2009-05-19T12:18:00.000-07:00

Hip and Thigh Fat- A womans nightmare?

After last weeks look at muffin tops and love handles I though tit best to move on to a problem that affects mainly you ladies out there.

Accumulation of fat around the gluteals and thighs. In other words- fat ass syndrome!
It’s important to say here that this is only relative if you’re fairly lean everywhere else and you have problems with fat and cellulite in the buttock and thigh areas.

A J-lo butt might be the must have beach accessory this summer but all the ladies I work with find it a great source of frustration. I’ve literally met females with 6 pack abs yet who still carry a fair bit of stubborn fat around the rear!

Why does this happen?

Well, whereas last weeks topic was insulin, the source of this ‘stubborn’ fat is the female hormone estrogen
.
We all make estrogen, even men can create it (think man boobs or ‘moobs’) but it’s what happens to it once it’s been produced that matters.
More importantly, the amount of man made estrogens (named xenoestrogens) has increased frighteningly in the past 30 or so years.

Did you know for instance that the following things can actually mimic estrogen INSIDE your body from the OUTSIDE?

Plastic Bottles, Birth Control Pills, Teflon Coating and commercial meat injected with hormones (most of the meat in your supermarket!)

Whilst the liver tries to detoxify estrogen to eliminate it from the body it sends it via the bloodstream to the local adipose tissue (fat stores) - in the case of females, this is in the lower body.

Why is in only women? How come men get off Scott free?

In a nutshell, females, as well as producing there own estrogen, they also have a greater number of so called alpha-2 receptors in there lower bodies than men do (men’s ‘stubborn’ area tends to be lower abdominals)

Alpha-2 receptors basically block or inhibit fat from being taken from the fat cell and being used as energy- hence the ‘stubborn fat’ phenomenon.

The Bad News for Fans of Spinning.

Being a spinning instructor myself, I found this difficult to grasp but it makes complete sense and our results here speak for themselves.

Now before you get your Lycra covered knickers in a twist, let me clarify that there’s spinning and there’s spinning!?! Spinning SHOULD be taught with A LOT of resistance, resistance is what causes fat loss. Simple as that. If your class is based around intervals (periods of maximal work followed by periods of recovery) then you’re fine.

HOWEVER- if you working at low/medium resistance at high speeds (over around 65pm) then your in trouble.

Spinning at high speeds/low resistance can cause the calcium plates of the body to tire. This, repeated over time will cause the increased storage of fat IN the muscles of the hip and thigh region to provide a more readily available source of fuel for the muscles. UH-OH!!!

Now that we’ve kicked spinning's ‘ass’ (see what I did there?) lets look at what we need to do to effectively get rid of that troublesome butt and thigh fat for good!

How to Spot Reduce from The hip, thigh and butt
1. Detoxify estrogen levels by consuming A LOT of vegetables high in Indole-3-carbinol. Watercress is the number one choice here as well as broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and kale. Estrogen binds to these foods and is ‘excreted’ LOVELY!

2. You can also get indole-3-carbinol in supplement form, although I prefer it in its natural state in food.

3. As with last week DO NOT microwave food as it destroys 97% of the flavanoids than can help get rid of this excess fat. Oh and boiling destroys 66%- that means STEAM!

4. Organic Flax Seed HULLS are great for speeding up the ‘excretion’ process. Take one teaspoon mixed with water upon waking.

5. Bin the low resistance/high speed spinning.

6. Make sure you lift your weights- a resistance training plan of 10-15 reps, 3 sets with short rest periods of 30 seconds is VERY effective. Choose compound movements such as squats, lunges and pushups. If you’re doing the 3 things listed above you will NOT bulk up.

7. You must get off you fat ass to lose your fat ass!

If you’re still reading I assume I haven’t offended you, if you have any questions please feel free to email me at paul@precisionfitness.co.uk

Paul Mort is one of the UK’S most exciting, in demand and respected fat loss experts in the UK.

With a no BS approach to fat loss he is currently one of only a handful of trainers in the UK who can offer an iron clad, 125% money back guarantee on his services and systems.

Paul has featured in several national newspapers and magazines as well as on terrestrial TV and Radio with his hard hitting and controversial approach to fat loss. He was recently described by Men’s Health’s Craig Ballantyne and Dax Moy as one of the UK’s top personal trainers and by world renowned fitness expert Alwyn Cosgrove as a ‘superstar trainer’.

He is also the creator of the revolutionary M.E.L.T method. The most effective fat loss system in the UK today and the only one of its type that can guarantee results- drop a dress size in less then 28 days or your money back

Why you have a 'muffin top' and how to lose it!

2009-05-18T02:12:00.001-07:00

this article is actually a re-run but it still applies, especially with the holiday season coming up!

For years now, exercise and diet ‘experts’ had been telling us that ‘No matter how much you exercise a particular area you can not lose bodyfat directly from that said area’

While this is quite true of exercise- (Nope, sorry no amount of sit ups and crunches will give you a flat stomach), is it necessarily true of diet? Can you lose bodyfat from ‘problem’ areas by making changes to your diet?
The answer is a resounding YES!

Here at precision fitness, we use a system called bio-signature.

Bio signature Modulation is a scientific approach to spot reduction developed by world renowned strength coach Charles Poliquin, from over 20 years of performing blood, urine and saliva tests while working with world record holders, professional athletes in all the major sports and Olympic medallists in 16 different events. His entire professional life has been devoted to finding ways to improve athletic performance among the elite, and along the way, he has found innovative and amazingly effective ways to help the non-athletic population in the area of fat loss.
Based on his testing, the reason so many people have stubborn problem areas is due to imbalances in their body biochemistry, especially with hormones.

Over the next few weeks we’ll be taking a look at these hormones and how they relate to fat storage in specific areas. Starting with-

The Muffin Top

Just what is Muffin Top? A muffin top is that layer of fat that ‘spills’ over the top of the wearers waistband. More visible when wearing Jeans and a shorter top- see pic above!

I see them all the time, alarmingly more so on teenage girls than anyone else.
The lady in the picture doesn’t have a particularly fat bottom or legs- in fact they look pretty shapely!
So how does this happen?
Quite Simple. TOO MANY CARBS.

You see, the supra-iliac or ‘LOVE HANDLE’ area is DIRECTLY LINKED to your carbohydrate intake.

I’ve written in the past about ‘carb bitches’ but lets just say you’re friend who can eat all the carbs he/she want’s doesn’t have a problem with insulin but if you have love handles- you do. It really is as simple as that; some people have the genetic ‘gift’ of being able to tolerate more carbs. The Chinese for example.
Let’s take a closer look at how this works:

The hormone in question is INSULIN.
Contrary to popular belief, the body actually WANTS to use fat as energy. However doing anything that causes insulin levels to rise rapidly, causes the body to shuttle blood sugar to the liver, muscle tissue and most importantly, to the adipose tissue (bodyfat!). Insulin, in essence is a STORAGE hormone.
Guess where it loves to be stored?? You guessed it!
Around that waist!

I must clarify however. It’s REFINED carbs we need to AVOID AT ALL COSTS and anything with a High Glycaemic Index reading. Things like pasta, bread, rice YES wholemeal versions count too if you want to get REALLY lean. Obvious things like cakes and biscuits too. However I would say its alcohol that is the biggest cause of this muffin top syndrome.

Alcohol is quite simply liquid sugar, a useless nutrient that the body struggles to deal with:
I recently came accross the explanation below by Nick Mitchell of Ultimate Performance http://www.upfitness.co.uk/ and he sums it up perfectly.

“The body absorbs all of the above carbohydrates as quickly as it would a tablespoon of sugar, which means that the body is forced to release waves of insulin to dispose of the large influx of carbohydrates. These surges of insulin, repeated over and over again, lead to a condition called insulin resistance. The cells that normally respond to insulin get desensitized. The pancreas — which produces insulin — has to "shout" louder and louder for the cells that handle insulin to "hear." The pancreas has to produce more and more insulin to metabolize all that rapidly assimilated carbohydrate.

To make matters worse, these large surges of insulin tend to overshoot the mark, and more is released than is needed. As such, it then causes temporary low blood sugar (insulin takes sugar out of the blood and puts it in storage, remember), which sends your brain a signal that it's time to eat again. One biscuit is never enough is it?”

Ready to lose the love handles then??
Let’s get one thing straight- you will not die if you don’t have carbs and this is not the Atkins diet. We just need to choose our fruit and vegetables carefully.
If you want to lose that muffin top quickly then here’s my advice for maximum results!
1) Eat ONLY green vegetables. Eat them 4 times a day. Eat them steamed or raw. (Micro waving destroys 97% of the flavanoids, boiling 66%, steaming only minimal).
2) Try to stick to berries for your fruit intake- they have a pretty low GI but have lots of anti-oxidants due to their thin skin.
3) Never eat fruit on its own. Have a handful of organic nuts with the fruit- this can help slow down the insulin ‘spike)
4) If it comes in a packet or tin- Don’t eat it. FULL STOP.
5) If it’s ever had a face- you can eat it!
6) Supplement with a good quality fish oil. Don’t buy store bought crap. You get what you pay for. Cheaper brands contain alarmingly high quantities of heavy metals, most notably mercury.My PERSONAL choice and recommendation is from http://www.alimentnutrition.co.uk/ - superb quality, no ‘fishy burps’. Phone them, tell them that I sent you and they’ll get it out to you superfast!
7) Look to insulin stabilisers such as the herbal products fenugreek and gymnema sylvestre – they can work fantastically well in leaning up a carb intolerant person. Again, dont buy store bought rubbish, click the link below for the one we reccomend!- http://www.revital.co.uk/Metagenics_Fenugreek_Plus

EAT OUT and still drop fat?

2009-05-11T06:03:00.001-07:00

So, you’re on a ‘diet’?

That means no life right?

You tell your friends who are having a nice meal that you can’t eat out because you’re on a diet and trying to lose weight.

You might not even do that; I’ve heard all manner of reasons for avoiding situation like this from ‘I’m on antibiotics’ to ‘the dog is ill’.

Yup it’s true, but it DOESN’T HAVE TO BE LIKE THIS.

While it can be quite tough socialising while you’re trying to drop some excess bodyfat there are some things you can do, which means you can get lean AND still have a life!

I LOVE eating out, I eat out once a week AT LEAST. (Not sure whether that’s because I hate doing dishes)

Take this weekend for example, my calendar was CRAMMED!

It was my girlfriends birthday on Friday night and she wanted to go for a meal somewhere I’d never been before, Saturday and Sunday we were going to be in Leeds to celebrate her passing her solicitor exams (they probably aren’t called that but she wont be reading this- so its all good  ).

I’m in a pretty critical phase of my target bodyfat percentage of 6-7% therefore I knew I had to be prepared.

Those of you, who know me, know that I’m a big fan of ‘strategic’ cheat meals. That’s eating right for (let me do my maths here. 6 meals a day x 7 days =42 meals – 1 cheat meal) 41 meals a week and eating WHATEVER the hell I want for this 1 meal (oh and ‘missed’ meals count as a bad meal too).

That was 1 meal taken care of (I chose a visit to Gourmet Burger Kitchen, if you must know ;-))

Now, I made sure I packed some nuts, fruit, boiled eggs and some protein powder with me for snacking on.

So without beating around the bush and assuming you REALLY, REALLY want results before the summer hits us and you suddenly have to put summer clothes on here are my top tips on being prepared and staying on track when eating out when it’s NOT a cheat meal.

1) Choose your restaurant carefully
I recommend going Italian. Italian restaurants ALWAYS have a healthy option- without even knowing it. More on that later.

2) Check out the Menu in advance
This is easy, most restaurants have websites now. If not, ask to look at the menu a few days in advance or even better, call them and ask if they can post you one.

3) Remind yourself of your ‘end goal’ before you leave the house.
Want to look incredible on the beach? Want 6 pack abs? Wanna be a jean size smaller? Sorry but a blow-out on the dessert menu just aint gonna cut it.

Use this for ammo “every single decision I make, every tiny decision, takes me either closer or further away from the body I desire. Therefore EVERYTHING I CHOOSE to eat and drink will either make me fatter or leaner”

Sure, a few chips with your steak wont kill you, but its hardly taking you closer to your beach body is it?

4) Drink a BIG glass of water before you leave the house
This will not only hydrate you but will also make you feel a little fuller so you don’t go too wild on….

5) Avoid the bread, AT ALL COSTS, that’s- AVOID THE BREAD AT ALL COSTS
Bread makes you fat- simple as that. No explanation required. Eat bread- stay the same. Yes that INCLUDES brown and wholemeal bread. Unless you’re an athlete!

6) You booze, you lose.
Another easy one. Alcohol is a useless nutrient, a liquid sugar that the body has no use for other than to store it as fat ( oh and give you beer goggles! ). Choose water or sparkling water if you prefer something fizzy.

7) To start or not to start?
If available choose a salad without a high calorie dressing, oil and balsamic are awesome, lemon juice is even better. Most restaurants do a tomato and red onion salad, or a Greek salad. You could also go for something like asparagus tips with butter (butter does have a fair few calories in, but most of them you can use). If I can’t find a suitable starter I just stock up on

8) Side orders
Ordering side orders isn’t always for the greedy amongst us. I use it VERY SNEAKILY. I order extra veg, sometimes asparagus, red onion salad, garlic sautéed spinach or something similar (oh and not all of them)

9) Choose a ‘meat and veg’ meal
You KNOW to stay away from pasta and pizza right? Pasta and pizza are both GUARANTEED to make you gain bodyfat- especially in the love handle area- Muffin top? That’s down to your carbohydrate intake. No question.

Instead check out the steak any cut will do for me (the leaner the better of course, check out the chicken options, the restaurant I went to on Friday had some awesome cod, salmon and Tuna steak options (I chose the tuna steak with salsa, pic above).
Choose the veg/salad over the chips! Come on, this is simple right!?!

10) Skip dessert
Dessert is not a necessity, it’s a bad habit. Break it. If you must choose something to ‘finish off’ your meal, choose a nice black coffee

11) Oh and one last tip as you WILL have a friend that will say….

“Go on, live a little” or “just have one”

if you have ‘friends’ like this then you MUST check out this article- http://personaltrainernortheast.blogspot.com/2009/02/are-your-friends-making-you-fat.html

So there you have it, you can have your social life back now!

Will you catch swine flu?

2009-05-05T07:37:00.000-07:00

Its all over the news, you can miss it, and I PROMISE not to make any bad jokes about it. I’m sick of them too.. Yep I know which word I could have stuck in there.

Here the fact of the matter: don’t panic.

I genuinely think there’s a LOT of media hype about this.

Sure, I feel sadness for the ONE PERSON that’s died from this flu.
But let’s look at the alleged facts, 36 THOUSAND people die of FLU every year.

Yup, that’s ‘the flu’ flu.

Now tell me this, would you run a mile if someone sneezed next to you now?

How many papers are running FRONT PAGE stories on that actual figure?

Exactly. Because that doesn’t sell papers!

Remember bird flu? How many people do you know who died as a result of that ‘epidemic’?

Yup, I know they’re saying that they don’t think we have an ‘immunity’ so it so to speak, but we should all do our best to make sure we’re strong enough if ‘it’ does hit us!

Ok, that’s my rant at the media over, here’s the reasons why me and my clients won’t catch swine flu, in my opinion of course!

1) We follow a low REFINED carb diet.
That means we don’t eat bread, pasta or rice 95% of the time, we don’t booze 95% of the time. We fill up on lots of lean protein and Low GI carbs such as green veg and berries. We also eat a fair bit of good fats such as nuts and oily fish. Why? This nutritional philosophy not only strips away fat by improving your insulin response it also decreases inflammation in the body, which in turn will strengthen your immunity to such viruses.

In addition, foods containing wheat and dairy, which are major causes of food intolerances and will also cause undue stress on the digestive system, taxing the immune system in the process.

2) We don’t do endless hours of boring cardio.
Okay, without ‘trashing’ cardio too much. We now know that aerobic exercise sucks for fat loss. Intervals are the future. Long, slow duration cardio such as jogging also places a lot of stress on the adrenal glands because of the secretion of the stress hormone cortisol.

Adrenal health is VITAL for a whole host of reason including, carbohydrate metabolism, thyroid function, inflammation and of course immune system health.

3) We use resistance training as the MAIN element of our training.
Without making this too much about fat loss, resistance training will get you lean, strong and fit much quicker than anything else but it also doesn’t stress out your body in the same way aerobic exercise does. You see, although resistance training does trigger the release of SOME stress hormones, it would take FOUR resistance training sessions to do the same amount of damage as ONE 30 minute aerobic session!

4) We don’t microwave our foods
Nuking your food sucks. Full stop. Using a microwave to heat/cook food actually renders all food nutrition less. It destroys 97% of the flavanols found it vegetables. DO NOT use a microwave. END OF.

5) We use whey protein to supplement our diets.
As said in a previous article, you can get good results WITHOUT supplements but why not get GREAT results? Anyway, as well as the many other fat loss benefits of whey protein it’s also provides POWERFUL support for your immune system. You see, whey is the best method to obtain the building blocks of the ‘master antioxidant’ glutathione. Glutathione destroys free radicals and is used by the liver and white blood cells to detoxify poisions in the body- AWESOME huh?

6) I HOPE we all wash our hands and catch our sneezes in a tissue!

I could add more to this list but you and I will both get sick of hearing the words ‘immune system’ and the swine flu PANIC will probably be over by the time I’d be finished writing!

4 ways to Screw up your metabolism

2009-04-16T05:51:00.000-07:00

4 ways to Screw up Your Metabolism

Hey again,

This wasn’t my original article, but after spending HOURS writing one on some great fat loss supplements I went ahead and clicked DELETE by mistake.
So without the necessary willpower to write it again, I came up with the ‘angry rant’ below.

Metabolism

Every body knows what this is right?
Hm… maybe not.

Metabolism or Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) is, in a nutshell, a very small nutshell, your body’s ability to burn calories whilst at rest. In effect, our RMR is our fat burning furnace

A few things can affect RMR such as hormones and activity levels but NOTHING comes close to effecting RM as much as lean muscle tissue.

You see, muscle tissue is the only tissue in the body that can burn BODYFAT as energy
Therefore the more muscle tissue we can add or at least MAINTAIN, then the more calories AND bodyfat we have the potential to burn right?

It would make sense then to ‘stoke’ this fat burning furnace?

Then we are so many people who are looking to lose fat doing the exact opposite?

And why are weight loss experts, fitness instructors and liquid bloody diet companies ENCOURAGING us to LOWER our RMR? Do they want to make us fatter?

So rather than having us stimulate our RMR by weight training, eating regularly and eating foods that stimulate our fat burning furnace they’re telling us to NOT do those?

Here are the top5 mistakes that are WILL screw your metabolism and halt your fat loss potential dead in its tracks.

1- Not eating enough calories
This REALLY narks me. Limiting calories UNDER 1200 a day (some horrendous liquid diets go as low as 700, yep even the ‘advisors’ are still ‘skinnyfat’) will make you fatter in the long run. As soon as you go back to ‘normal’ eating you’ll gain ALL the excess weight back PLUS more. Ever heard of yo-yo dieting?

Sure, most of us could do with cutting a few calories but let’s look at it this way. Every time you eat your fat burning furnace if ‘stoked’, meaning your metabolism increases, so the less you eat, the less fat you burn. Those muscles (remember those things that keep fat off) need calories to survive and thrive.

Oh but you lost 10lbs in a week on ‘the oxford diet’- guess what my friend? That’s almost all muscle NOT fat. Sure you’re lighter but you’ll still look like a sack of puke

SERIOUS NOTE: you could eat just 2 mars bars a day totalling 700 calories and lose weight- NOW do you think you’re losing fat?

2- Doing endless of cardio.

I seem to touch on this DAILY, so let’s get it straight once and for all. Aerobic exercise SUCKS for fat loss. The studies prove it, the top trainers in the world prove it, the hundreds of people I’ve trained prove it and now I’ve dropped 3.5%bodyfat is just 5 weeks without ANY.

Cardio does NOTHING to increase your metabolism, sure. Its burns calories, but does NOTHING post workout. In fact, do too much and it’ll actually make you catabolic- which means it’ll use your muscle tissue ~ (the very thing that keeps fat off, remember) as fuel!

Think about this, as you get fitter, your body becomes better at doing cardio, so to burn the same amount of calories you have to do MORE, right?

This means your body is ‘efficient’ at burning fat. Sounds awesome huh?

Same as that car that is more fuel efficient? Yup, you got it man, it burns LESS!

To burn fat through exercise you must mobilize fat from the cell, get it into the bloodstream and transport it to the muscle to be used as fuel.

Erm, slight problem here, aerobic exercise CANNOT mobilize fat from the cell, only HIGH INTENSITY exercise will do this for you.

So to recap a) it doesn’t increase your RMR and can actually DECREASE your RMR
b) It makes you efficient at using fat
c) It doesn’t mobilise body fat
d) Its boring as hell
E) Why on earth are you still doing it?

3- No weight training
If you wanna drop bodyfat and sculpt a lean. Sexy body, weight training is KEY.
Adding or at least maintaining lean muscle tissue is the easiest and most effective way to drop bodyfat. Lifting weight will increase your RMR for between 24 and 48 hours! WOWESERS!
Simply put, if you’re not lifting weights- you WON’T drop fat. Guaranteed.

4- Not eating enough protein
Okay now I understand some of you may be vegetarians, that sucks! (Unfunny joke time)
On a serious note though, even vegetarians can get lean if they eat enough protein- you guys will already know the best sources.

Protein has what we call a higher ‘thermic’ effect. The Thermic effect of food is a term used to describe the energy expended by our bodies in order to consume (bite, chew and swallow) and process (digest, transport, metabolize and store) food.

Protein foods have a thermic effect of 25-30%, whereas carbs have a measure of 5-10% so as you can see, replacing some of the carbs your eating with more protein would have an effect yep? So swap the bread or jacket potato for an extra chicken breast and you’ll see the difference

Protein also has the ability to make us feel fuller for longer. It has uncanny knack of causing the brain to release those ‘feel full’ hormones that so many junk foods don’t. Ever notice how you can eat a huge 16% pizza on your own but can’t eat more than two chicken breasts in one serving?

So there you have it- the top 4 ways to make sure you GAIN fat rather than lost it this summer!

fancy fat loss kit?

2009-03-31T08:39:00.000-07:00

Keeping it simple in all that’s fat loss

This morning whilst doing my own training I noticed a trend that seems to be RED HOT in the fitness world at the moment.

Using modern, fancy equipment to train with or ‘on’.
Here are a few examples.

Bosu Balls, vibration plates, flexibars, bodyblades speed agility and quickness ladders, small hurdles, and even kettlebells.

It might come as a surprise to some of you, but I’m actually trained in all of these apart from the vibration plate- hey but I have squatted on my tumble dryer- that’s functional right?

I’m trained and qualified as a Russian Kettlebell Instructor, Bosu Master Trainer, an S.A.Q coach and attended 2 fliexibar certifications.

But after spending almost 10 years studying FAT LOSS, I’ve came to this conclusion- we don’t NEED any of these, in fact, some of them are pointless- in my humble opinion. I’ll give kettlebells a wider birth due to the fact they're just plain heavy and have some uses awesome exercise such as the ‘swing’ exercise (the best butt exercise out there), but even that can be done with a dumbbell for those of us who are on a limited budget.

Yep- that’s it I said it. A DUMBELL.

ALL you need for a GREAT fat loss program is a set of dumbbells, preferably adjustable. (your own bodyweight is fantastic too)

You see, the whole point of ANY fat loss program should be to produce what we call metabolic disturbance or EPOC.

Basically, EPOC or excess post exercise oxygen consumption is the period of time it takes your bodies’ metabolic rate to return to normal after exercise. This is several minutes for low intensity exercise and several hours for higher intensity exercise.

So therefore it makes sense to create as much EPOC as possible right? To burn calories for as long as possible AFTER we work out right?

Well guess what the best type of training is to invoke that response?

YEP- Simple, basic, been around since the dark ages- RESISTANCE TRAINING.
A few weeks ago we spoke about PROGRESSING every session- guess what the best way to progress is? Increasing the RESISTANCE you use.

Sure, we can increase reps, sets, time under tension and decrease rest periods but the first progression tool should be weight/resistance

So if you really think standing on a half rounded ball and squatting on one leg with no weight is better for fat loss or shaking a bar so it vibrates and squatting instead of deep squatting with some heavy weights gets you lean. You might even think that taking really small steps through ‘ladders’ rather than sprinting uphill or just downright sprinting will create that metabolic reaction then keep on ‘rocking’ but don’t expect a lot of fat loss!

So don’t be ‘dumb’ (see what I did there), get out the dumbbells add some weight, work with intensity and you won’t be ‘weighting’ (wow!) too long to get lean!

Do You Really Need Supplements for Fat Loss?

2009-03-25T08:02:00.000-07:00

Do You Really Need to Use Supplements? My Top 3 for fat loss!

Touchy subject…..

Now, this article will no doubt cause huge debate and a few raised eyebrows. That’s awesome!

Let me start by saying that I have nothing to gain by advising for/against certain supplements or strategies. I’m sharing with you what has WORKED with the 100’s of clients who’ve had tremendous fat loss results both with myself and some of the WORLDS top fat loss experts and what’s backed up by what I ‘consider’ to be great research.

In essence I’m giving you my complete unbiased OPINION on what I truly BELIEVE works and what doesn’t.

So let’s get cracking!

While it’s true you CAN get good results with a good nutritious and clean diet containing your 5 servings of fruit and vegetables a day, plenty of lean protein and lots of clean FILTERED water why not get GREAT results by supplementing (and a wagon full of other benefits too)?!

Let’s get one thing clear though. There is no MAGIC PILL for fat loss! In fact, I’d say around 95% of supplements out there today are a complete waste of your hard earned money!

Despite what the major supplement companies say, you won’t get 6 pack abs by taking 2 ‘lard blasters’ first thing in the morning on an empty stomach and 3 before your gym session.

Supplementing is EXACTLY that- ‘Supplementing an already clean, nutritious diet and fat loss program’

So with that in mind, I don’t want to go into to much detail about exercise and diet this week, you’ll find my thoughts on those here- http://personaltrainernortheast.blogspot.com

The supplements I’m going to recommend are ‘general’ Supplements. For example, when I work with 1-1 clients we take 12 skin fold sites which help us determine exactly which supplements they need for THEIR bodies. Having said that, the supplements below WILL WORK FOR EVERYONE!

So let’s take your results from GOOD TO GREAT by looking at my top 3 supplements for body composition NOTE: a good multi vitamin/mineral complex isn’t including as we should ALL be using this. Email me if you’d like my recommendation paul@precisionfitness.co.uk

1) A good quality fish oil-
Notice the word quality. This is absolutely vital. If you’re buying from a high street store- that includes that very popular health food store with h and b in its name the fish oil is of VERY POOR quality. Fishy burps? Good quality fish oil doesn’t cause that. Fishy taste in your mouth? Yep, that’s the quality too. Fish oil, is THE BEST fat loss supplement out there today. Apart from helping every disease known to man. Its main roles in fat loss are to help control blood sugar levels (THE key to fat loss- from the love handles especially), to turn OFF fat storage enzymes and turn ON fat burning enzymes. Simply put, if you’re not taking at least 9g of fish oil a day you’re missing out on some tremendous benefits. http://alimentnutrition.co.uk do one the best fish oils available in the UK at an affordable price! Take 3x3 a day WITH food.

2) Whey Protein- This one isn’t ESSENTIAL but I believe if you’re looking to get the most from your diet and training you need to be using some form of whey protein. Without boring you with too much science, they are many different types of whey- each different in quality. My personal recommendation is the VERY reasonable but the GREAT quality myprotein.co.uk.

Lets look at protein and its benefits (Whey ISOLATE is always the best choice NOT concentrate, a mix is fine though)
FACT: low REFINED carb diets ALWAYS outperform ANY other diet when it comes to fat loss
FACT: Protein releases the hormones that make you feel fuller for longer
FACT: Protein helps repair, maintain and build lean muscle the ONLY tissue that can burn fat.
FACT: meat, nuts and fish aren’t always available or handy
FACT- putting some whey powder into some water and mixing doesn’t take much time and is a GREAT snack but AWESOME with breakfast.
FACT- Whey Protein provides TREMENDOUS support and is a huge boost to your immune system
FAT- Protein powder DOES NOT make you ‘bulk up’ or ‘get bigger’ it’s almost the same as eating a chicken breast-last time I checked they don’t give you guns!
FACT- the hour after you train its VITAL to get protein and amino acids into your system or your fat melting workout could have been a complete waste of time. Protein powders are THE best option for this.
FACT- I LOVE chocolate orange flavour true whey by myprotein.co.uk- its not Terry’s its mine!

3) Green Tea- we all know green tea is good for fat loss right? Wanna know why?
Seriously there is sooo much evidence supporting the use of green tea that it should be compulsory to drink it!

Green tea has a boatload of benefits especially linked with preventing cancer but as usual we’ll focus on fat loss.

Green tea contains a fair amount of caffeine- which if used correctly is AWESOME for fat loss (notice the use of the word ‘correctly) however, the green stuff also contains L-theanine which stops the caffeine ‘spike’ that can end up in the jitters, sweating etc, so we get a 1-2 combo of a boost in our metabolism by increasing our energy expenditure without the so called ‘side effects). Just two cups a day have proven to have some benefit too

That combined with the potent catechin ECGC and it’s a knockout combo for fat loss!!
You can either drink it on its own, with lemon or peppermint or use the concentrated form, again, myprotein.co.uk do a superb one!

Obviously there are other great supplements out there such as my favourite Fenugreek, Magnesium, Branched Chain Amino Acids, glutamine, creatine, and if you have any questions about any of them please don’t hesitate to contact me!!

Wanna lose fat? STOP exercising!

2009-03-19T03:51:00.000-07:00

STOP exercising, START training!
We’re now 78 days into 2009. How are those ‘resolutions’ holding up?

From what I gather from most people, not very well. Hopefully the sun that’s had its hat on this week has ‘shocked’ you into action.

Those comfortable, warm, baggy clothes will have to be put back in the wardrobe for a while methinks. So, how will you feel this year when the sleeveless tops, shorts and dare I say it- bikinis come out this year?

Food for thought huh?

So back to progress. Looking back on your results over the past 8 weeks, how have you got on? Now doubt your fitter? Leaner? Hopefully.

What’s next in your program?

Oh- you don’t have a program.

I have actually touched in this before and for those of you that are’ doing your own thing’ and ‘exercising’- would you put your own dental plan together? Would you do your own filling or root canal?

Nope. So why on earth are you planning your own exercise!
Here in lies the problem.

At my local gym- I see people in there 6 maybe 7 days a week, doing the same thing over and over again. Seriously, some of these guys and gals have been training there for 3 years and have NEVER changed shape and look exactly the same, there’s one ‘bodybuilder’ there who I swear is getting fatter!

Why?

They don’t TRAIN, they WORK OUT or EXERCISE
.
Here's the difference- people who TRAIN, have a detailed plan, including, progressions, recorded weights, reps, sets and rest periods. Even down to how fast they need to run on the treadmill.

Sorry but just because your exercising doesn’t give you the devine right to get results.

People that exercise, hop from machine to machine haphazardly, Their program is usually something that looks like 10 mins on the treadmill, 10 mins on the cross trainer, 10 mins rowing and a few sit ups in the useless ab cradle.They do every 'class' going. Or for the guys, chest Monday, back Tuesday. Arms Wednesday etc etc with no timed rest period, the ‘magic 3 sets of 10’ all year round!

The top and bottom of it is- one gets results, the other doesn’t!

You see, you guys that ‘exercise’ do actually get fitter. When you exercise, your body adapts by getting ‘fitter’. Great right?

There’s a downside though. This makes the exercises easier to perform.

BUT because the exercise is now easier to perform, the body uses less energy to do it, which in turn means fewer calories used each time you do it.

So a challenging workout that once burned 400 calories now only burns 200.The answer- you then start exercising for longer, 2 hours instead of one, 3 classes in a row. QUICK TIP- training for longer than one hour is counterproductive do dropping bodyfat and is a sure fire sign that what you're doing isnt tough enough.

It doesn’t matter whether its Pilates, spinning, walking, running or a bodypump class, this applies to ALL exercise.

One of the main principles of TRAINING is progression or progressive overload.
Stay with me on this.

The ONLY way for a programme to work is to KNOW that you are constantly improving in EVERY session.
Can you do 1 more rep? Can you work at an extra intensity? Can you decrease the rest period? Are you even timing the rest period? You get my point.

Every session MUST be uncomfortable and intense.

Low intensity exercise DOES NOT WORK. The only thing you can improve then is the amount of time spent doing it. Really wanna do that?

If you’re serious about getting results, you must have a plan and you must continue to improve with every session.

Here’s my top tips for getting results with a plan

1) You MUST have a program written by a professional. No that doesn’t include your boyfriend- unless he’s a trainer. If you’re a trainer yourself, this is also true. I’m considered one of the top fat loss experts in the UK and I have a program by someone better than me. Us trainers think we’re great but we SHOULD NOT be writing our own programs, there’s ALWAYS someone better then you. What would you say to a client if they wrote their own program?

2) You MUST record what you do- intensity, rest period, weight, reps, sets. How can we progress and improve if we don’t have a record?

3) Set a personal best every session- can you lift 1k heavier? Can you run 1km/hour faster?

4) If you’re looking to lose fat you MUST get uncomfortable. If you don’t get out of you comfort zone nothing will happen.

5) You MUST NOT do the same fat loss program for more than 4 weeks. The body is a master of adaptation.

6) If you can train for longer than 60 mins- the program isn’t hard enough and it will end up being counterproductive

For my FAVOURITE fat loss and muscle building plans plan check out http://turbulencetraining.co.uk
I really do want to help you. I really feel sorry for the guys in my gym who are slaving away for 2 hours EVERY DAY and not getting results.
Please don’t be one of those.

What my diet looks like..

2009-03-10T08:00:00.000-07:00

What my Diet looks like..

‘Can you do me a diet sheet?’ is a question I here over and over again every week.
As I don’t really understand that question, my answer is normally. ‘Eat good quality, nutritious and CLEAN food. Have protein and every meal with some fibrous vegetables and avoid refined carbs as well as booze’

That’s normally followed with ‘can you not just tell me exactly what to eat and when to eat it?’

I then promptly refuse as I know fine well that the person in question is lacking the will power and discipline to follow it!

Anyway, a lot of people seem to be interested in how I eat from day to day when I'm trying to get lean so I thought I’d give you brief overview of how eat for fat loss and how I advise my clients to eat for MAXIMUM fat loss results. I eat slightly different in the winter but always eat the same when I’m leaning out for summer.

I first of all have a few ‘ground rules’ or principles I follow.

1/ Always drink AT LEAST 2 litres of water a day
2/ Always eat breakfast WITH protein, ALWAYS
3/ Allow myself ONE cheat meal a week, that’s ONE meal, ONCE a week.
4/ No wheat, dairy, sugar, alcohol or processed foods UNLESS (see above) it’s a cheat meal
5/ Eat protein every 3-4 hours
6/ Take the required supplements for my biosignature 'type'- in my case i need fish oil 3x a day and magnesium before bed.

That’s about it, in a nutshell.

So here’s a typical day.

I usually wake up at around 5:30 in preparation for my first client or fitness camp of the day.

Meal 1- 30 grams of whey protein mixed with water and a little cinnamon. Two big tablespoons of Greek yoghurt, flaked almonds, blueberries and pomegranate seeds (it’s really important to get some protein in first thing in the morning to stimulate your neurotransmitters to NOT crave carbs all day)

NOTE- EVERY type of cereal is processed CRAP that will hinder fat loss. Yep, that includes special K and All Bran. Porridge is OKAY but if you want MAXIMUM results, I’d stay away)

Meal 2- Depending on what time I have a break- I’ll have a MUCH bigger meal here. Usually a mix of red onion and mushrooms (both low GIycaemic foods which means I wont crave sugar later), mixed with prawns and chilli with two eggs folded in or leftovers from the night before's evening meal.

Meal 3- this is usually a lunch consisting of a serving of protein (generally chicken, mackerel, or turkey) with lots of spinach, tomato, cucumber and ground flax seed. Sometimes with a dressing of olive oil and balsamic. TIP- to lower the glycaemic index even more use a little lemon juice to dress the salad!

Meal 4 this is normally my post workout shake consisting of whey protein (to repair muscle), glutamine (also to help recovery and to strengthen the immune system), glycine (to help blunt cortisol) and creatine (for recovery, muscle growth and strength)

Meal 5 is normally my evening meal- which is again made up of lots of protein on non starchy carbohydrate. Favourites being peri peri chicken stir fry, lean beef meatballs with quinoa, pizza style turkey breast with broccoli, tandoori turkey with salad or green veg.

Meal 6 is either yoghurt with flaked almonds of a casein protein shake. It’s important to get protein in a later on at night to release amino acids into the bloodstream whilst we sleep.

There you have it, nice and simple, nice and clean!

Questions? Please don’t hesitate to post them on here!

4 food villains you thought were healthy!

2009-03-04T06:48:00.000-08:00

So you thought it was ‘healthy’ huh?

Ever since I started getting serious about training and nutrition for fat loss, I’ve read and studied CONSTANTLY about which foods, where they come from and how they affect not only health but what they do to they body with regards to fat storage.
That’s me, I’m pretty darned positive about what ‘helps’ and what ‘hinders’
You guys out there though. You may get a little confused about what hot and what’s not in the world of nutrition.

There are some foods that are CONSTANTLY pushed as ‘healthy’ and REALLY aren’t.

Some foods that people are having ‘instead’ of the full fat versions, ‘instead’ of the dairy version and are actually doing more harm than good.

Lets cut to the chase though, I’m going to have a full on, no holds barred rant at the 3 most ‘oh I thought it was healthy’ food villains!

The 3 foods you REALLY should avoid if you’re looking to drop belly fat.

1. Skimmed and Semi skimmed milk.
Okay, this is a tough one that not many people know about. Milk makes you fat, end of story. Unfortunately, everything that’s ‘good’ about milk stops almost as soon as it comes out of the cow’s udder! This is because most dairy produce is heavily processed and uses pasteurisation and homogenisation in order to maintain is ‘shelf life’
Unfortunately, these processes kill of ALL of the enzymes required to properly digest them meaning that your body has to work overtime to digest them, causing the body to release toxins into the bloodstream which are later stored as fat.

What’s worse than this is the whole ‘low fat movement’ semi skimmed and skimmed milk has a higher Glycaemic load than full fat milk, meaning your pancreas will release insulin in large doses, causing A LOT of fat storage- primarily around the hip or ‘love handle’ area.

Oh and before you go down the ‘I need my calcium’ route- Greek yoghurt, full fat bio-live yoghurt and even broccoli contain a boat load of calcium! YOU DO NOT NEED MILK!
Soy Milk? Think again….
2. Soy Products
A lot of people think soy is ‘healthy’. Its NOT. Soy is heavily sprayed with pesticides, increasing your toxic load. Soy products stop fat loss dead in its tracks. Most of them contain a boatload of salt and/or sugar and has an estrogenic effect on the body, bad news, unless you WANT to store fat on your butt and thighs, or if you’re a guy Soy can help you develop the dread man-boobs.Stick to rice milk.

3. ALL breakfast cereals.
Sorry guys but ALL breakfast cereals are process JUNK. Yes, that includes special K, All bran or whatever super-cereal that promise you’ll drop a jean size having just 2 bowls a day with.

You see, After being rendered into a kind of slurry paste, the grains that were used to make the flakes that you eat every morning were passed under high pressure and high heat through a pipe (a process that renders the grains mildly toxic) before being sprayed with synthetic chemicals and cut into their desired shapes. This process, known as extrusion, basically removes much of what was once nutritious from the food.

Haven't you ever wondered why your cornflakes turned to mush when you leave it too long? Real food doesn't do this!

4. Low fat yoghurts- This is one that REALLY grates on me!
You see as with most low fat produce, the goodness of the original food is removed and is replaced with the mother of all body fat causes- SUGAR!. You see, full fat live yoghurt contains lots of Good bacteria, the type which your body requires to help you digest food. Low fat yoghurts have NONE of this good bacteria and instead our old enemy sugar is added in pretty large quantities. One very well known low fat yoghurt contains a whopping 18 (yes eighteen!) grams of sugar per small pot!

There you have it, take these 4 ‘villains’ out of your diet and replace them with REAL food.

Are your 'friends' making you fat?

2009-02-17T08:33:00.000-08:00

Are your ‘friends ‘making you fat?

If you’ve ever been on any sort of diet or training programme in the attempt to shed a few pounds of blubber, lean out and finally see those abs you haven’t seen since middle school then I guarantee you’ll have heard one of these phrases:

“Oh go on, just have one, it won’t kill you!”

“Oh you may as well, no one will know”

“I don’t know how you can be bothered”

"Come on live a little"

Or my personal favourite:
“You’re obsessed”

Now my own personal response to all of these would be this: " I make the choices i make because i really want to get into the best shape possible, and i don't want to end up with a belly like yours"

But hey, I appreciate not every one can say that without laughing or getting a right hand to the jaw!

I can see myself going on a little rant here. I see it A LOT with my clients, the female ones especially and although I’m strong enough to cope with those situations myself, some people find it VERY difficult to grit their teeth and bite their tongues in situations like these:

*You know, the girl who sits opposite you at work who’s tried very quick fix diet going and offers you a biscuit EVERY SINGLE DAY- when she KNOWS you’re trying desperately hard to cut out refined carbs?

*Your friend, who always seems to be out on the booze, who can’t understand why you want to take the car and drink water all night?

*The guy at work who’s actually been known to wave packets of crisps and cakes on ‘cake day’ in your face whilst referring to you as a health freak?

*Your spouse/partner who almost forces you to eat dessert or order a take away even though your full and don’t want to blow your nutritional responsibilities for the week?

Everyone seems to think you’re obsessed.

Why do people do this?

Well, for a couple of reasons.

The first is believe is because they want to make themselves feel better, they KNOW fine well they shouldn’t be eating the garbage themselves but if YOU- the person who’s trying to get the best body they can, can eat a biscuit or a chocolate, then THEY won’t feel as guilty.

The second is because some people are just born as saboteurs (thanks to Chris Shugart of T-nation.com for the heads up on this)

Again, they say and do the things they do, sometimes without even realizing it to make themselves feel better.

Usually, this strange behaviour is down to jealousy and fear
.
Let’s take a look at case 1, jealousy- Your co-worker/friend who keeps offering you crap. He/she sees the hard work you’re putting in at the gym or at home, how disciplined you are at preparing your food and bringing it to work rather than gorging on sandwiches from the local store or the canteen. She watches in sheer envy as your body is changing shape. She’s tried diets, the gym and failed at fat loss many times over and is jealous of your accomplishments.

Isn’t it funny when you hear this one” your losing too much weight” or “you’re looking too skinny”, “ you may as well live at the gym you”

“Yer, whatever fatty” SHOULD be your response, BUT that would just be rude, not to mention politically incorrect, so please don’t do that!

Some of these guys will actually be offended by you, you make there ever expanding excuses (not to mention waistline) look lame and pathetic.

Now case 2 may touch a few raw nerves.

Case two is the spouse/partner situation I see ALL the time.

Your husband/wife/partner (usually who hasn’t been bitten by the fitness bug) sees you losing fat and building a better body. You’re body is looking better than it has done it years.

Then BAM suddenly this comes out “Do you have to go to the gym tonight, I haven’t seen you all day/week”

And/or the big bad boy “ Oh baby I love you just the way you are, you look great, you don’t need to diet or work out” or any of the other comments at the top of this article.
Okay- here’s my take and I this is my opinion so I’m not going to apologise for it as I believe it to be true.

“I love you just the way you are” is their polite, insecure way of saying “Please don’t keep dropping fat and looking in great shape, I feel lazy and inadequate if you get into shape and I don’t and I REALLY don’t want other men/women to check you out and find you hot, in case you leave my lazy ass”

food for thought?

So what you gonna do about it?

1. Surround yourself with like minded people.

Well, THE top trainer in the world Charles Poliquin often says: “You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with”
AMAZING advice. Surround yourself with fit people whoa re after the same goal as you; this is one of the keys to the success at our fitness camp (http://thefitnesscamp.co.uk). Hanging around with serial junk food loving boozers will definitely not help you with your fat loss mission, will it?

These ‘new’ fat loss allies could come from people at the gym who are at your level, friends that you already have who have a physique that you’d like, hell, you could even find someone online who shares a similar goal to you.

Enquire about getting yourself a mentor or role model who can bring you up to their level. I couldn’t emphasize this more.

Relationships with friends, gym buddies and workout partners can often insulate you from the negativity that comes from your family, friends and colleagues who aren’t on board with your quest for a sexy body.

2. Temporarily become arrogant, incredibly arrogant.
This is a trait that I seem to have developed sub conciesssly and I really hate to admit this but it WORKS and its works VERY WELL.

See yourself as stronger than the person who questions you; develop a certain sense of superiority. Don’t hold the excuses makers and weak willed weeds around you in contempt but remind yourself that you’re mentally and physically more powerful than people who skip workouts and who have never said ‘no’ to seconds.

Sure this superiority complex may seem a little unrealistic and heck it’ll probably make you feel quite guilty.

So, use it only when you need to, use it for all its worth then drop it like a sack of hammers

Wrap Up-
People will always try to bring you down. Just remember these two quotes.

“Obsessed, is the word that the lazy use to describe the dedicated” AND
“People who succeed in getting lean are simply willing to do what the ‘tryers’ aren’t”

Why You're Gym Programme Isn't Working Part 3

2009-02-11T06:57:00.000-08:00

Cardio could actually be making you fatter!

Okay, let’s clear one thing up here.
I have nothing at all against aerobic training. I have no vested interest in writing it off.In fact, you may see me jogging along the beach in the summer but only for pleasure NOT for rapid fatloss results.

A quick recap on my background, I’m a former fatty who’s now a fat loss expert and the only one in the UK who can offer a double your money back guarantee that clients will drop a clothes size in under 28 days.

I have worked with hundreds of clients in the trenches and read almost 80 research papers (scroll to the bottom of the article to see the best ones) that show me time and time again that when it comes to FAT LOSS, aerobics isn’t the answer.

So, what I’m saying is you can choose whether to believe me or not but If its results your after and you want to stop wasting your time then listen up! 

You’re bound to have some misconceptions and resistance to change so let’s look at some of the most common ones I ‘encounter’:

1- I’ve never seen a fat runner
I’ve never seen one that looks healthy either!
Question. Who’s leaner-a long distance runner or a sprinter? You’d bet it was the one that did the most cardio right? NOPE. That’s a NOPE. Sprinters- who never run longer than 30 seconds at a time are much the leaner of the two athletes. We’ll look at why later.

2- But Cardio Burns Calories
Yep, I won’t argue with this, steady state cardio DOES burn calories WHILE you’re doing it, but what about the other 23 hours of the day when you’re not exercising. This is where we’re falling down. Other types of exercise can burn calories LONG after training

3-What about the fat burning zone?

Total myth. FULL stop.
Okay the fat burning zone is a concept that states that the body your body will become more efficient at burning fat. Sounds great huh? Well actually, it’s the opposite. Think about it, if your car is efficient at burning fuel, doesn’t that mean it burns less?

So why would we choose an exercise that means we end up using LESS fuel.
You see the ONLY tissue in the body that can BURN fat is muscle. Aerobic exercise actually DECREASES muscle mass.

So the very thing that keeps your metabolism high and your body burning calories ALL DAY LONG, is the very thing that your losing- Skinny runners anyone?

I’ll quickly explain how this works with the help of my friend Dax Moy.

The longer we engage in higher-level aerobic activities, such as those typically included in a workout, the more we secrete a nasty little group of hormones called 'glucocorticoids', with the stress hormone 'cortisol' chief amongst them.
One of the lesser-known qualities of cortisol is that it is catabolic in nature, meaning that it breaks down muscle tissue along with fat in order to metabolise this stored energy for immediate fuel.

Why is this bad?

Well, it's our muscles that give shape and definition to our bodies. If we lose muscle faster than we lose fat, then proportionately we're fatter, even if the scales tell us we're several pounds lighter! In a society that places a higher priority on what we weigh, this is a difficult concept to grasp, but nevertheless it's true just the same.

So what do we need to do?

Well, apart from the resistance work I spoke about last week (see below) to catch up .

There is also anaerobic exercise- Basically, the opposite of aerobics.

Anaerobics are activities that are carried out 'without oxygen' (note: in anaerobic exercise we're never truly without oxygen, it's just that oxygen cannot meet the demand of the activity) and involve higher-intensity, shorter-duration bursts of activity to produce the training effect.

Some of the benefits of this type of training include:
Massively increased metabolism,
Shorter, more effective workouts
Higher calorie consumption
It is anabolic in nature, meaning it actually promotes lean tissue- remember the very thing we need to get and stay lean!

Try sprinting for 1 minute, recovering for 2 minutes repeating 6 times. You can do this on a bike, rower, treadmill, whatever you like.

AND FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT DON’T BELIEVE ME:

Here is what some of the best studies I’ve read have said- thanks to the awesome Alwyn Cosgrove for the heads up on most of the stuff I’ve read.

• A 2004 diet study that shows a simple change can increase dietary compliance and fat loss (by 96%) -- (and it's not "eat less"!)

• A 1998 study that showed that the addition of 45 minutes of hard aerobic training, 5 times a week for twelve weeks - had no effect on fat loss

• A 2007 study - that showed the addition of 50 minutes of aerobic training, 5 times per week for six months - also had no effect on fat loss

• A 2008 study showing 40 mins of aerobic exercise three times per week for 15 weeks actually resulted in the participants gaining fat!

• A study from 1994 showed a specific cardio training method that actually reduced body fat (actual skinfold measurements) nine times more than traditional cardio training -- despite taking less time, and actually burning less calories per session!

• Another study (1999) showed that the addition of a specific resistance training program increased fat loss by 35% over diet and aerobic training.

• That same study also showed that 3 aerobic sessions of up to 50 mins, for 12 weeks (36 sessions) only increased fat loss by one pound over dieting alone

• A 2002 study on metabolic resistance training-type approach to training - and showed an elevation of metabolism for 38 hours post workout.
Please feel free to post any comments!

Why You're Gym Programme Isn't Working Part 2

2009-02-03T06:24:00.000-08:00

Why you’re gym programme isn’t working- Week 2, Machines SUCK

So here we are at week 2 of my mini series looking at why most people gym programmes wont work and why. If you missed the first week you can check it out here: http://personaltrainernortheast.blogspot.com/2009/01/why-youre-gym-programme-wont-work-new.htmlIn part 1 I covered the ‘I like to do my own thing’ theory and my favourite ‘I’m following the programme but...” theory.

This week I’d like to expand a little further on the ‘types’ of programme you’re following at the gym whether it be written by yourself or by a trainer/instructor.
First of all let me clarify the difference between a personal trainer and a gym instructor and once again if I offend anyone I apologise in advance. (I’ve been BOTH of these by the way)

A gym instructor typically has a level 1 or 2 qualification in fitness, meaning that they can work in a gym and provide basic programmes for free to gym member and is paid somewhere between 6 and 8 pounds and hour (correct me if I’m wrong here). A personal trainer is usually self-employed and is at level 3 or above with their qualifications and charges around 25 pounds an hour for their services.
Here's the difference, the personal trainer is judged on results, the fitness instructor gets paid either way and is usually (but not always) sick of doing appointments for free and people not following the programmes they write.

However, going slightly off topic on this, I have a theory. A POOR personal trainer will earn more money.

Why?

Let’s take two trainers and twin females. The girls both want to drop a dress size. The trainers both charge 25 pounds an hour. Trainer 1 helps the girl 1 achieve this in only 4 weeks with 1 PT session a week, Trainer 2 takes 8 weeks with girl 2 , again with 1 session a week. Both girls stick to what they’re told to do
So… trainer 1 is the better trainer clearly, but trainer 2 earns more money? Hmmm surely this is where we’re going wrong?

Anyway, back to the topic at hand and why your programme isn’t working. Part 2.
1-You’re stuck to machines
Ever noticed how every resistance (weight) machines, have a seat? Guess what guys, sitting down is lazy- the only thing that I would say is different is the bike but we’ll cover that later.

Machines not only have seats- because none of us are capable of doing stuff standing up right?

They also do most of the work for you… you see, you actually do work and isolate the muscle(s) you’re looking to isolate but nothing else, meaning we're missing out on some important metabolism stoking!

You see, when we work with our own bodyweight or with free weights we recruit a whole number of ‘other’ muscles, known as stabilising muscles.

The fact that most machines can only move in one direction is a hindrance and can cause Repetitive stress injuries due to the limited range of motion- yes guys that includes the smith’s machine!

Let’s compare the fantastic-at-burning-fat squat and shoulder press combination.
To get the same effect this exercise has on your body and its calorie burning furnace using machines you’d have to do around 6 machines! (Leg extension, leg curl, inner thigh, outer thigh, shoulder press and even the ab machine!)

Got time for that? I know I haven’t.

And you guys that are using all the weight in the gym to stack the leg press REALLY need to start squatting!

Unless it’s an assisted pull up machine or a lat pull down. Avoid machines and master your body first, then start using dumbbells.

After all, what’s the point in being able to push your legs together really hard (like on the ‘inner thigh’ machine) when you can’t even get off the loo without holding onto anything?

Stick to the basics- they’ve been around for hundreds of years, because they work.
Here’s a short list of my favourite fat burning, metabolism boosting exercises.

1. Squat
2. Deadlift
3. Pull Ups- assisted if needed
4. Push ups
5. Lunges and split squat variations
6. Plank

Seriously, stick to these basics; work on form before you build up to adding weight and you’ll see results MEGA fast compared to using those darned machines!
2- You’re doing crunches and sit ups

Ok. Let’s put this to bed once and for all. NO AMOUNT OF CRUNCHES WILL GIVE YOU A FLAT STOMACH. That’s it, I’ve said it.

See that fat covering you’re 6 pack? You need to get that off by turning you’re body into a calorie burning furnace. How many calories do you think you’re burning lying on the floor nodding your head?

Yep. Zilch, zero, zip.

Further more, crunches and sip ups are now PROVEN to cause back problems. Thanks to my buddy Jay Ferrugia for this one-

Repeated, loaded spinal flexion is one of the leading causes for disc herniation. In fact, the traditional old school, slow speed sit up has been shown to place 730 pounds of compression on the spine! Other commonly used ab exercises place over 1,000 pounds of compression on the spine.

So even if you don’t believe that research and have no back pain.
Let’s get this straight- you CAN NOT spot reduce with exericises.The body just doesn’t work like that

If it did, the people who did the most crunches would have the most
visible abs and this is clearly not the case. In fact, it's
probably the other way around!

When the body burns fat it takes it molecule by molecule, gram by gram from the whole body, not just from the area you're exercising.

That muscle you think of as 'the six pack', the one that runs from
your groin all the way up to your ribs is called the Rectus
abdominis and is just one of several very important muscle groups
that create your waist or 'co re' as is now popular.

Every single movement you make, from standing to sitting, walking
to running, bending twisting, pushing and pulling all originate
here and so, far from requiring even more training, your core
muscles are already there and already looking like that six-pack
you've got your heart so set on.

Again, the only thing that’s stopping you from seeing those abs is that fat that you’ve worked hard over the Christmas to accumulate

Before I sign out think about this- If sit ups worked at flattening your stomach and unveiling that fat- wouldn’t they be the only exercise we did?

So… follow the advice laid out above for your exercise and stick the basics and you’ll get MUCH better results.

PS Make sure you don’t miss next weeks update on why cardio is making you fatter, sure to cause much debate!

PPS. The program I recommend for GREAT fat loss results is http://turbulencetraining.co.uk

Why You're Gym Programme Won't Work- New Mini Series

2009-01-27T08:07:00.001-08:00

PART ONE

Is it just me or is EVERYONE in your town in YOUR gym at EXACTLEY the same time?
Seriously, I know it’s January but please, do you January-Only exercisers have to hog ALL the kit?
Anyway, enough of me complaining
.
This article is the first part it what could be a never ending rant/debate/ argument/me putting the world to right but it has to be done.

PLEASE NOTE: I am writing about fat loss ONLY in these articles not on general health and fitness, I have no vested interest in whether some of the things I talk about work or not- all I’m bothered about is they get results for the hundreds of people I work with each year.

So if for instance I say aerobic training sucks, then it does, if it worked- great, I’d use it. If it got faster results than resistance training and intervals I’d use it, but it doesn’t, so I don’t.

I see so many people in the gym, night after night, month after month and even year after year and still they look the same.

Why is that?

Last year a study was published that showed that my local area, Newcastle, had the 2nd highest gym subscriptions in the UK but was still the 3rd fattest city in the whole country!

This astounded me and I came to some conclusions.

1. People are paying a gym membership and not going
2. People are exercising and still eating more calories than they burn
3. The programmes people are following suck!

Let’s go a little deep into this mini series of articles I’m going to call:

Why you’re gym programme isn’t working Part 1

I’m going to try to keep this article very simple but if you’re easily offended then you may want to stop reading now!
So… you’re hitting the gym 3, 5 or god forbid 7 days a week and you still haven’t got the body you’re happy with?

What’s going wrong?

First of all I want to look at what I’m sure you’ve heard ’I like to do my own thing’.
This is something I see a lot.

Now let me ask you something- would you take out your own teeth? Would you prescribe your own medication? Or do your own knee reconstruction?

I sincerely hope you wouldn’t. So why are so many of you writing your own programs?

Hire an expert, buy a great fat loss book from a world class fat loss expert; you can even pick up free programs from many of the great websites out there. My faveourite program is http://turbulencetraining.co.uk

Even a gym programme for the fitness instructor on 6 quid an hour is better than doing one on your own? Isn’t it? Hmm food for thought.

General rule of thumb:
If your goal is to drop fat and get leaner and you have a program that looks like this:

10 minutes bike, 10 minutes cross trainer,15 minutes treadmill ,10 minutes bike/rower, followed by some inner thigh exercises, the pec deck and a roll in the ab cradle- YOU’RE GOING NO-WHERE FAST MY FRIEND!

In short, your program is a waste of time and effort.

I shall explain over the coming weeks about why this program is so bad and why it WON’T help you reach your goals but I need to move onto something that is almost as bad.

I give clients of mine programs, I recommend programs from WORLD CLASS trainers on the web to my friends and family and here’s what I hear A LOT.

“Oh yes, I’m following that program but….”

Instead of doing squats I do the pec deck instead.

I changed up the jacknifes on the ball for crunches on the floor.

Okay dumbass, guess what? It’s no longer my program, or Alwyn Cosgrove's program or Craig Ballantyne's program.

Its YOUR program, YOU wrote it- like I said before- are you a top class trainer who’s worked with hundreds of people and spent thousands learning how to get incredible results?

Nope
That’s why the program isn’t working my friend.

So, unless you read a lot of research papers, help people get rapid results every day of your life or you’re in GREAT shape then stick to your day job!

So what should you be doing?

Oh you want my help now huh?

Okay apologies for the sarcasm :-)

Like I said earlier, I’ll be covering the exercise portion in much greater depth in the next few weeks but keeping it simple here’s what you should be focusing on.
1. A program that consists of a mixture of resistance training exercises designed to increase your metabolism) squats, lunges, press ups, deadlifts etc.) And interval training designed to keep you burning calories for hours AFTER your workout.

2. You should be training no more than 5 days a week.

You see, most of our results from exercise come from when we’re repairing and regenerating.

3. Keep your sessions 45-60 minutes MAX .If you’re in the gym longer than 60 minutes we have a problem.
After 60 minutes of exercise, the body tends to run out of fuel to use. Keeping it simple, it tends to want to use a readily available source-protein from the muscle.

Essentially, you’re body will start ‘eating’ into its own muscle mass.

Guess what is the most important thing on any fat loss program?

Yep, calorie burning, metabolism boosting, fat melting MUSCLE.

NOTE: the number ONE program I’d recommend for fat melting, body transforming workouts is my friend Craig Ballantyne’s program that has helped THOUSANDS of people http://www.turbulencetraining.co.uk

It’s one I’ve followed myself and gotten superb results from!

There you have it. Week 1 down. Please feel free to comment or ask any questions in the comment section!

Is Saturday still FATTERDAY? or is it the New Monday

2009-01-21T01:56:00.000-08:00

Could Saturday really be the new Monday?

For a long time now I’ve referred to Saturdays as FATTERDAYS simply because of how much we tend to eat. Here’s a new look at weekend eating!

It’s a dark, cold Friday night and you’ve had a tough week at work. You’re willpower on your ‘healthy eating’ regime is at mega low.

You’re tired, stressed and you can’t be bothered to cook. All you want to do is fall off the wagon and order a Chinese.

I could go on all day about strategies to avoid this and stay on track but that’s for a different article.

Today though, I want to cover a new theory that I recently came up with, one that I tested a few weeks ago and has worked INCREDIBLY well.

Let’s got back to the Friday night thing..You’re still contemplating whether to order the Chinese then that old chestnut of a statement kicks in and its one of my favourites “Oh I’ll start again on MONDAY”

If I had a pound for every time I’ve heard this I’d be typing this from my outdoor pool. Geez, I’ve even said it myself!

How about this for something wacky?

Drum roll please..

“I’ll start on SATURDAY”

WOW!
As simple as this may sound I think it could be a breakthrough for so many of us!
You see, it’s been proven that most people consume the same amount of calories over the weekends 2 DAYS than they do over the previous 5 weekdays!

Amazing huh? I know in the past that’s certainly been the case for me.
It’s well known to most people that through the week it’s actually pretty easy to stay on track. You prepare meals in advance, you have food in the fridge and in the cupboards, you drink you’re required water intake at your desk and you get to the gym/classes either before or after work.

Then Friday comes and it’s a whole new ball game right?

The invites to parties and meals out start coming, the text asking if you fancy a drink, you’re out shopping and can’t find anything remotely healthy and suddenly ‘I’ll start on Monday’ is being repeated like episodes of friends!

So how about that Saturday start?

Let’s look at it this way, the weekend thing is a vicious circle. So, on average you probably get 5 days of clean, lean eating in before that tough Friday, Saturday and Sunday test of determination.

Starting on Saturday gives you 7 days of clean eating, gives you a chance on a Saturday morning to prepare meals for the whole weekend and make you a dab hand in the kitchen cooking up something delicious and healthy for the Saturday night dinner party- I promise you, most of your friends and family will be thanking you for this!

However THE main thing to take from the ‘Start Saturday’ theory is that once you’ve ate very well one weekend, the next one is a whole lot easier, you’ll feel great after 7 days, you’ll have dropped much more fat come the first Friday and you’re also developing a new habit.

So, put my FATTERDAY theory to bed and make Saturday the new Monday! Without the Blues!

PS. For great, diet friendly, fat burning recipes I strongly recommend you check out my good friend Dax Moy’s Elimination Diet Cookbook- check it out here-http://paulmort.elimdiet.hop.clickbank.net/

New Years Resolutions- Waste of Time?

2009-01-14T06:57:00.000-08:00

Its took me a few days to get back into the swing of things after 3 weeks in Thailand and a 36 hour delay on the way home but here goes:

Here we are then. January the 14th.. How are those New Year resolutions holding up? Great I hope!

More than likely though, you’ll have broke one or even all of them in a week or so's time and end up back at square one.
Why?
Because they don’t work!

Sure a few of you reading this may have succeeded with a few over the years but this whole ‘new year, new year’ thing is a complete crock of ‘crap’.

I don’t normally mince my words so I won’t.

It really narks me when I see gyms, health clubs and magazines using this concept to sell more ‘product’.

Back to why it doesn’t work. Quite simply, it goes against the whole concept of successful goal setting IE. Goal ‘getting’.

Every year my friends and family tell me “this year will be different, I’m determined this time; I’m really going to do it!”

Yep.
Whatever!
It all sounds great when the bell rings midnight but why is it that come February it’s the same old story? In fact come Friday, the same goal that you were ‘determined’ to hit this year might be out the window and the next thing you know you’re skipping workouts and cheating on the diet.

Why? Because the strategy is the same and would you believe it? 2009 is the same as 2008 and so on and so on. You know, that 8 or 8 lbs you lost last year then gained back? Those 3 months you spend working out followed by 3 months pigging out? This is such a common pattern.

Let’s take a look at a couple of typical resolutions that I’m sure will resonate with some of you.

“I want to lose weight and get fitter this year”

Now that is a RUBBISH goal, sure you want to achieve it but put like this you have ABSOLUTELY no chance.

It sounds like a wish, its wishy washy, it’s a throwaway statement.

However a wish can become a true goal just by putting it in writing.

Zig Ziglar, a superb motivational speaker said: “A goal that is casually set and lightly taken will be freely abandoned at the first obstacle.”

However, following a formula can lead to GREAT things and take us from goal setting to goal getting.

Doesn’t” I will drop around 4% bodyfat and 8lbs of fat and have visible abs by December 22nd 2008 so I am in great shape and confident for hitting the beach in Thailand, and feel amazing doing so. In order to do this I must commit to working out 4 days a week, follow a 95% clean eating rule, consume AT LEAST 3 litres of water and 200grams of animal protein a day “

Sound better than “I want to lose weight and get fitter?”

The above goal is actually the true goal I set my self 6 weeks before I went on my last vacation.

Wanna know the formula?
1. Know EXACTLY what you want
2. Know when you want it by
3. Know WHY you want it (this is the MOST IMPORATANT part)
4. Write it down
5. Know the price- i.e. how much, how often, what you need to abstain from
6. Pay it

Very simple huh?
Seriously though, although simple, you won’t get a more powerful goal setting process on the planet!

In fact let’s go even deeper, when you’re writing down those goals, think about this:
How can you measure it?
How will you feel when you achieve this goal?
What are four obstacles that could come up and stop you from reaching your goal?
What structures will you put in place to make sure you stay on track?
Adding to my goal:

“I will measure my progress by taking weekly photographs and having my fat tested fortnightly. I will keep a food log and a workout log. When I achieve my goal I will feel VERY confident, proud of my body. The main obstacles for me will be time, tempting food, and alcohol on nights out with friends and eating out. I will make sure I schedule my workouts into my diary. I will prepare my meals in advance. I will make better choices when eating out and I shall tell EVERYONE about my goal in order to get support from friends and family who may try to ‘tempt’ me.”

I’m getting fired up just writing this!
In fact, I’m going to work on a new one right now!
I’ll share it with you next week.

So there you have it, a simple but amazing strategy and you’ll have a real goal, not just a wish or a want, a real POWERFUL goal that you WILL achieve.

Email me your goal now and make it even harder to fail and easier to succeed!

Avoiding Winter Weight Gain

2008-11-25T05:58:00.000-08:00

Hi Again,

A few weeks back after causing a little stir with my views on fat loss I realised that I do spend a lot of time almost ‘telling you off’. While I wont apologise for this, as I don’t agree with a softly softly approach to helping you achieve your goals I will be focusing a little more on giving you ‘use now’ advice over the next few articles.

How to Avoid Winter Weight Gain

Whilst driving back from a short break in Leeds at the weekend, I encountered SNOW on my return to my hometown of south shields (see picturesque seaside resort J). SNOW!

My first thoughts were slippers, warm fire and covers on the settee. I’m getting on a bit you know!

Anyway, whilst this winter chill sets in there something else that comes with the frost, sleet and snow- The Winter Weight Gain.

The average person puts on around 11lbs of dreaded, ugly, wobbly body fat between now (the end of November) and new year’s day- yup 11 POUNDS. Even though it only takes 4 weeks to pack that lard on, I betcha you won’t be that quick to take it off!

Whilst lying in bed instead of exercising because its dark and cold outside or going straight home from work and ‘snuggling’ (is that word allowed?) may seem VERY tempting, I urge you not to give in to this silent killer this winter!

After all, you’ll have your work Christmas night out, your friends Christmas night out, your couples Christmas night out, your old school pals Christmas night out before we even get to Christmas week.

Why not make this year different?

When most of your friends and family are covering there wobbly bits under warm, baggy and ‘comfortable’ clothing wouldn’t you rather be the one that everyone’s talking about at the various festive functions you attend- and for the RIGHT reasons this year ;-)

“Have you lost weight (insert YOUR name here)?”

“Have you seen ….? He/She looks incredible”

“You Look HOT, what’s your secret?”

Imagine that?

Whilst everyone around you is talking about new years resolutions and which faddy detox diet they’re going to try in the New Year you already have it sown up?

Here are my top 5 tips for avoiding Winter Weight Gain whilst not missing out on any of the festive frolics!

1.Make A commitment to exercise for just 4 minutes a day. Yes, 4 minutes is enough to burn a pretty good amount of fat and once you’ve started those 4 minutes, you’re more than likely gonna want to do more! Check out my 4 minute workout video here: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=EqfDJHlNHdc
2. Lose the booze.
From a nutritional perspective, alcohol is a non-food and toxic at that! Alcohol is the highest form of concentrated sugar; quite simply, it is liquid sugar and is very, very easily converted into body fat.

I know that for most of us total abstention over Xmas is unlikely but consider giving yourself a limit and sticking to it, or using a tipple as a reward for 14-28 days of none booze.

You could also try alternating between an alcoholic drink and a simple water, this will not only save you lbs but ‘pounds’ too!

If you must have a drink or two stick to red wine, red wine contains a super anti-oxidant known as resveratrol, which is known to help cardio vascular disease.

3.Go easy on the sweet stuff
Many people think that it’s the eating of rich, fatty foods that give the winter weight gain but the truth is that sugar is more likely to make you fat than eating fat itself! You see, like alcohol, sugar ingestion causes large insulin secretions that encourage your body to hold fat. Where possible try to include a small amount of fat or protein when you’re eating sugary foods as this will slow down the speed at which your body creates insulin. Fat does not make you fat. Period.

4.Trick your body with protein
Ingest 30 grams of protein (roughly 2 chicken breasts) around an hour before you go out. Protein will satisfy your satiety (make you feel full) meaning you wont go crazy when your out. It’ll also help slow down the effects of those demon cocktails you plan on having!

5.Get ‘Back on track’ INSTANTLY
It’s a very well known fact that the day after a night out you’re gonna be rough and with all the nights out around this time of year, your probably going to end up looking rough too (bear that in mind when your ordering those sambucas). Anyway, the day after is also notorious for ‘making’ your body crave starchy, stodgy carbohydrates- for me its bread and crisps- both of which are renowned for pretty quick weight gain.

This again is down to the booze- sugar makes you want more sugar, hence why we’re a country of sugar addicts and the HUGELY high number of diabetics and insulin resistant people.

Compare you situation to a flat tyre (the night on the tiles). Are you going to simply get back on track and replace the tyre/wheel or are you going to stay off track and smash up the whole car- it really are your choice.

Come Christmas your either going to have a result or an excuse.

Make sure you’re not the one in the ‘comfortable’ clothes talking about ‘that skinny bitch in the black dress’ who’s worked hard to get like that!

Hard Versus Easy

2008-11-10T06:28:00.000-08:00

Hard Versus Easy
After several debates with fellow trainers and clients this week over how to get amazing fat loss results I couldn’t wait any long to get this out to you guys. It TRULY inspired me!

I must give credit for some of this e-mail to my friend Shondelle myles over in LA who first introduced me to motivational speaker and Guru Les Brown. (You must check out some of his stuff on youtube by the way!)

He recently made this AMAZING statement that is so, so true!

'If you do what's hard, your life will be easy. If you do what's easy your life will be hard'
WOW!
This is soooo simple, yet totally inspires me. It applies not only to EVERYTHING in life but HUGELY to our health, fitness and fat loss goals.

Everything you’ve ever wanted really is just outside your comfort zone but what are you REALLY prepared to do to make your goals a reality?

Getting up in the morning to train is HARD
Doing interval training rather than power walking or jogging is HARD

Motivating yourself to exercise after a long day at work is HARD

Avoiding the many tempting foods that make you gain fat is HARD

Writing down what you eat and eating every 3 hours is pretty HARD

Drinking 3 litres or more of water a day can be HARD

Endless reps of push-ups, lunges and squats are HARD.

Making better choices when you eat out is HARD

Skipping dessert and the glass of wine at dinner is often HARD

However, in the bigger picture, pushing yourself to do these HARD things DEFINITELY make your life easier and all together more enjoyable by:

• Giving your confidence and self esteem a massive boost
• Turbo Charging your metabolism making it EASIER to burn fat
• Boosting your energy making everything you do a little easier
• Eliminating many medications you might be taking for diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol

The bottom line is, eating right, exercising regularly, and taking time for yourself to IS sometimes HARD, but the benefits you will reap will FAR outweigh the discomfort you feel in the moment.

Do what is hard and reap the benefits

After all- Everything You Have Ever Wanted IS Just Outside Your Comfort Zone

Readers Q and A

2008-10-27T06:01:00.000-07:00

Hi there,
Hope you’re well on this fine day.

Last week I told you all about the launch of my first book and offered any one who asked a question about stubborn fat the chance to get there hands on the first chapter of my new book ‘the stubborn fat challenge’ for free.

I got a lot of great questions so I though I’d share with you some of them along with my answers!

I’ve refrained from adding the askers name so as not to embarrass them but trust me on this one- these are REAL QUESTTIONS from REAL PEOPLE.

Don’t forget, you can still get your hands on a copy of that chapter by asking a question over at http://www.thefitnesscamp.co.uk/stubborn-fat.html you only have until Friday though so get your skates on!
Here we go:
Question: Is there really such a thing as middle age spread. I am a lady of a certain age (47 in body years, 27 in mind). I exercise but the stubborn belly fat just doesn't want to budge. I am not overweight I don't think 10st 2lbs but after having been 9 st for years, I feel like I am.

Answer: The term middle aged spread is a myth. However, it is true that as we age our metabolism slows down. This is due to various factors but muscle loss or atrophy as its commonly known is the main culprit. Therefore although you are exercising, the exercise you choose is vital. Aerobic exercise such as walking and jogging is pretty much pointless for fat loss and is actually COUNTERPRODUCTIVE.

Aerobic exercise is now proven to release cortisol, the hormone that eats into muscle tissue. (Cortisol also causes fat storage in the abdomen area. You MUST be working out with resistance 3-4 times a week. Whether that be bodyweight or with dumbbells, the choice is yours but for metabolism and especially as you get older, resistance training is ESSENTIAL.

Question: My burning question is...what is better for fat loss: Short workouts (maybe two 20 min workouts in one day) or long workouts of 40min to 60 min at one time. OR two longer workouts broken up throughout the day?

Answer: Okay, let me clear this up. The amount of time you spend training isn’t actually important at all. It’s all about intensity and the TYPE of exercise you do. As stated in the question above, aerobic exercise is a really poor choice for fat loss. Choose exercises that work a lot of muscles at the same time and are what we like to call ‘metabolically demanding’ IE
Big, compound movements such as squats, pull ups, lunges, push ups. These require LOTS of effort and work lots of muscles at the same time. Bicep curls, tricep extensions and ab crunches just won’t cut it I’m afraid!!
In short, keep the workouts between 25 and 45 minutes but choose the right exercises and keep it intense. Long workouts SUCK for fat loss.
I’m actually working out for 7 MINUTES a day 5 days a week at the minute and seeing some pretty awesome results.

Question: Do I have to do exercise everyday for the rest of my life to have a flat stomach. I have two kids is that why this stubborn fat does not go away?

Answer On the contrary you probably SHOULDN’T be exercising every day. You see, if we’re doing the right type of exercise the results come in the RECOVERY. When resistance training, we’re actually creating tiny micro- tears in the fibres of the muscle. When that muscle is repairing, we burn serious calories doing so. In its new, stronger, repaired form it requires more calories than it did before, just maintain this new state. If we don’t give our muscles this chance to recover, we’re actually doing more harm than good.

Look for 3 to 4 intense workouts a week maximum.
Also, whilst you do gain weight whilst being pregnant, unfortunately you can’t blame the children for your current shape and condition, you can drop all the weight gained from pregnancy within 14 days! I’ve seen it done in 6.
With the right exercise choices and the correct dietary protocol, you can get in better shape than you ever thought possible.

So that’s that for this week, I hope this q and a article has given you some ideas
For those of you that submitted questions, the first chapter of my book is currently being proof read.

I’ll drop you a line when we’re ready to go!

pasta hut= bigger gut?

2008-10-16T04:32:00.000-07:00

Healthy eating my a**e!

I’m just back from my first ever yoga class (I was the only man in there!) and I just had to write this as soon as I got home!

Yep, you guessed it! Its time for a Paul Mort style Rant again this week… it’s been a while I know!

So, “Pizza Hut” are changing 30 of their restaurants to “Pasta Hut” in order to promote ‘healthy eating’. This is utter garbage.

Unless gaining weight is healthy?

Let’s cut to the chase. As far as fat loss goes- Pasta is an absolute NO-GO.
If you want to gain bodyfat rapidly- eat pasta.

Yes marathon runners eat pasta. They run upwards of 100 miles a week. YOU don’t. I don’t.

Pasta is low fat. So what? Petrol is low fat.

Fat doesn’t make you fat. Too many calories and more importantly sugar make’s you fat.

Pasta is very calorie dense.

Here’s the real deal with Pasta.

It’s made from wheat.

This makes it bad, bad news if you’re trying to drop bodyfat.

For many people, wheat and gluten products are simply indigestible or place stress on the digestive system leading to a sluggish metabolism and intolerances, not to mention bloating, gas, lack of energy and weight gain.

In addition, modern wheat, especially after processing is barely distinguishable from simple white table sugar, leading to all of the same problems!

Sugar is the NUMBER ONE PROBLEM when it comes to gaining bodyfat.

Before I have a coronary, let me just say that by all means, if you’re on a cheat meal, or a treat, go eat pasta. (Its all you can eat at ‘pasta hut’ too!)

However, if you’re serious about getting or staying leaner then avoid at all costs!
Stay on the lean protein, and lots of green vegetables and you’ll get to where you want to be

That’s it for another week
Paul

Whats in my shopping bags??

2008-10-07T05:37:00.000-07:00

See what food i buy to stay healthy and lean... no holds barred!!

Hotel Room Workout!

2008-10-02T05:56:00.001-07:00

Amazing how many calories you can burn in ONLY 4 MINUTES!!

Before and After Photos

2008-10-02T05:53:00.000-07:00

BEFORE and AFTER PICS

Amazing results in only 7 days!!

2008-08-18T06:30:00.000-07:00

Guest Article- Why Marathon Running Sucks for Fat Loss

2008-07-16T05:23:00.000-07:00

One of my clients was asking me the other day why even though she had trained for a marathon, she had not lost any weight, or more importantly not seen any significant change in shape. This throws up a whole discussion on the effectiveness of aerobic type workouts, and what your overall goal is. Once again I’ll try not to bore you with the science of this but hope to clarify what happens to the body when you are training for an endurance event like a marathon.

Your body is more clever than you, it does everything in its power to survive despite its owners best efforts :o)

If you starve yourself, your body does everything to economize, holding on to all energy, and breaking down all substances that use fuel too much.

When you run a little your body burns fuel of which you have a limited amount.

If you run for a long time your body will burn all its immediately available fuel as well as some of the stuff that is reserve.

If you keep eating into your reserves your body will start to go into that economy mode as if you where starving yourself, breaking down substance that uses fuel(muscle), and start trying to store more of the fuel that goes into your reserves(fat).

Prolonged training of this nature over a period of 6 months, whilst great for burning calories whilst doing the training, causes massive damage to your metabolism, breaking down all that muscle, thats why elite marathon runners are all skin and bones and really low levels of muscle mass.

As a side thought, it is very common to see retired elite marathon runners, cyclists etc pile on huge amounts body fat when they stop their doing the huge number of kilometers training each week.

For the ordinary guy and gal on the street training for a marathon may be a great goal, and something that I am happy that people do. BUT, and this is a BIG BUT! Unless you are training to go and do the Olympic marathon, I would certainly advise you to do other styles of training that promote fat loss and boost your metabolism, otherwise you will be disappointed.

Recipe of the Week- Tremendous Turkey Koftas

2008-07-16T05:20:00.000-07:00

Ingredients
450g/1lb fresh turkey mince
1 medium onion, peeled and grated
2-4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
2.5ml/½ tsp ground coriander
2.5ml/½ tsp ground cumin
15-30ml/1-2 tbsp freshly chopped coriander
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
15-30ml/1-2 tbsp olive oil
8 wooden kebab skewers (soaked in water for 30 minutes)

Method
1. Preheat the grill just before cooking and line the grill rack with tin foil.
2. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and whiz for 1-2 minutes or until the mixture comes together (or knead the mixture in a mixing bowl until it forms a ball in the centre of the bowl).
3. Divide the mixture into eight and then carefully mould round the drained kebab sticks, pressing the mixture firmly onto the sticks.
4. Brush the koftas with a little of the oil then place on the foil lined grill rack and cook under a preheated grill for 8-10 minutes, or until thoroughly cooked. Turn occasionally during grilling and brush with a little oil as necessary.

If liked, the koftas can be cooked on a barbecue. Light the barbecue at least 20 minutes before barbecuing or according to manufacturers instructions then cook the koftas for 8-12 minutes or until thoroughly cooked.

Please DO NOT do this diet!

2008-07-16T04:54:00.000-07:00

" Two bowls a day for two weeks- lose x amount of weight"

Apologies for the language but please- Do me a F-ing favour!!

I'm sick to death of the media and large companies such as Kellogs filling peoples minds with crap and hype. In fact its downright FALSE guidance on how to lose bodyfat.

Lets get this straight now. Eating two bowls of cereal plus one 'sensible' meal a day will not help you lose fat. FACT.

You'll lose 'weight' in the form on fat burning muscle but my god you'll look like crap.

Eating ANY cereal weather it be Bran or not twice a day WILL NOT satisfy your hunger.

It WILL NOT give you the required amount of protein and healthy dietary fats that are actually the very things that help you melt stubborn fat.

It WILL NOT provide you with the essential vitamins and minerals to keep you vibrant and healthy.

And finally IT WILL NOT satisfy your hunger cravings... that one sensible meal your allowed- do you honestly think you'll get home and NOT binge eat at night- which co-incidentally is the WORST time to consume large meals.

If you intend on doing this diet- go ahead and eat the darn box too- it ll be just as exciting!

DEEP BREATH................

The ONLY reason you'll lose WEIGHT (fat is totally different), is because of the severe calorie restriction.

Guess what? eat any of these crappy cereals a day and a sensible meal at night and you'll lose weight.

Packaged Breakfast Cereal is NOT healthy- He res a bit of background info on them-

After being rendered into a kind of slurry paste, the grains that were used to make the flakes that you eat every morning were passed under high pressure and high heat through a pipe (a process that renders the grains mildly toxic) before being sprayed with synthetic chemicals and cut into their desired shapes. This process, known as extrusion, basically removes much of what was once nutritious from the food.

Haven't you ever wondered why your cornflakes turned to mush when you leave it too long? Real food doesn't do this!

So PLEEEEEEEEEEASE do me a big favour- Eat lots of lean protein, green vegetables and fruit, limit your alcohol intake and stay away from refined carbs- 95% of the time.... THAT'S how you lose fat!!

Worry Less, Weigh Less ?

2008-03-19T03:29:00.000-07:00

Hello again, this week its time for me to get your violins out!

Many of you may already know that last week I was involved in a pretty serious car accident and was a very lucky boy indeed. A 3rd party came onto my side of the road and ploughed straight into me my 4 month old car. I was left with back and neck injuries and a written off car. See pic below-

OUCH!

Since the incident I have been pretty stressed, what with all the cancelled appointments, cancelled bootcamps, chasing insurance companies, interviews with the police etc etc but on Friday I took a step back and reminded myself that if I don't stop worrying, I'll start piling on the pounds!

Guess what? Worrying DOES actually make you fat!! Seriously...

"But Paul, when I'm stressed I lose weight, what are you on about!?"

Correct my friend, you will lose weight, in the form of muscle but you'll actually gain more fat.... around your belly too!

You see, stressing and worrying sets of a chain of chemical reactions in the body that basically commands us to store fat.

Your adrenal glands, (small glands on top of that kidneys that control stress and fluid balance) release the nasty little hormone cortisol (which some of you may have heard of) into the bloodstream, causing this chain of events to occur.

The body's response to this is quite amazing. Hunger increases, metabolism slows down and you gain weight, simple really.

How? The hormone cortisol really is an evil little beastie; studies have shown that the increased levels of cortisol in the bloodstream means you'll become less sensate to leptin, the hormone that tell you when you're full.

You probably know what happens then... you're gonna over eat. Yup, once you pop, you can't stop! Some of you will then worry about how much you've ate, thus setting of the same chain of events again.

Crazy huh?

This isn't the worst of it though. Cortisol actually gets nastier.

Yup, that's right, not content with making you demolish the all you can eat buffet or that whole packet of chocolate covered Hob-Nob's you keep in the cupboard 'in case you get company'.

Cortisol is also muscle tissue destroyer!

As you may know, muscle burns fat, a huge bucket load of fat. Therefore it makes sense that the more muscle you have the more calories your body burns, the less fat you have right?

Correct!

Cortisol has other ideas though!

When cortisol is secreted by the adrenal glands, it actually eats into this vital, calorie burning, metabolic furnace known as muscle.

Muscle is also 3 times heavier than fat my friend, hence the weight LOSS but fat GAIN. Not a good combination!

Can you exercise and get fatter? Yes you can, as you know, that horrible hormone cortisol is also released during aerobic exercise.

Study after study has shown that aerobic exercise is counterproductive to fat loss. To read more about this, click HERE

Does all of this mean relaxing will make you thinner?

YUP!

The good news in all of this is that relaxing can actually help you lose fat. The body has a system called the parasympathetic system. This system is responsible for the relaxation process. It helps you digest food and increases fat burning by lowering your blood sugar.

So, in effect, you switch off the genes that cause you to gain weight and switch on the hormones that help you lose weight. In other words, relaxing is a great fat loss strategy, on top of a good resistance training plan and a supportive nutritional protocol of course!

The Most Effective Relaxation Strategies to Help Burn Fat

1. Stop blo*dy worrying! - plan, prepare and chill out. Everything is fine and what you're worrying about probably isn't a life or death situation, put things into perspective.

2. Chillax a bit more- take saunas, steam rooms, get a massage, read some good fiction, meditate. Do whatever it takes to calm down and switch off those nasty stress hormones.

3. Try some stress reducing herbs- Some herbs can actually help you adapt to stress better by reducing the over activity. These herbs are called adaptogenic. They include-
Ginseng
Rhodiola
Siberian ginseng
Ashwagandha- beware the smell of this one!
Liquorice

4.Try adding proven supplements to your nutritional plan. Some of the best being:
B-complex vitamins
Magnesium- I've used this and got great results, particularly with improved sleep quality- a major factor in controlling cortisol secretion.
Vitamin C
Zinc

5. Eat more green veggies or try a greens drink. Disgusting as this may sound but eating green veggies can help control cortisol. Cortisol also makes your body more acidic. Green Vegetables, particularly broccoli, watercress, cabbage and spinach can help you become more alkaline. Therefore the more alkaline you are, the less damage cortisol can do.

So there you have it, relaxing more and stressing less can actually be a major factor in your body composition and whether your fatter or slimmer come the summer!

Worried?

Don't be !!

Paul Mort is a Personal Trainer based in the North East and is one of the UK'S most exciting, in demand and respected fat loss experts in the UK.
With a no BS approach to fat loss he is currently one of only a handful of trainers in the UK who can offer an iron clad, 125% money back guarantee on his services and systems.
Paul has featured in several national newspapers and magazines as well as on terrestrial TV and Radio with his hard hitting and controversial approach to fat loss. He was recently described by Men's Health's Craig Ballantyne and Dax Moy as one of the UK's top personal trainers and by world renowned fitness expert Alwyn Cosgrove as a 'superstar trainer'.
He is also the creator of the revolutionary M.E.L.T method. The most effective fat loss system in the UK today and the only one of its type that can guarantee results- drop a dress size in less then 28 days or your money back.

Does Milk Make You Fat/ Beware the Hidden Sugar

2008-03-19T03:21:00.000-07:00

I really couldn't decide which of the subjects to address this week so I thought I'd link them together and give you the classic 2 for 1 offer.....

So if I told you to sprinkle sugar all over your meal you'd think I was crazy right?
You probably do anyway! But that's exactly what some of us do when we're making food choices.

Anyway, most of you guys who are reading this probably know EXACTLEY how many calories and grams of fat are in each meal you consume, but how many of us control freaks no how much sugar we consume.

Even though we know that too much sugar is bad for us, we tend to underestimate just how much is hidden in things, because we're so obsessed with how much FAT is in things.

Did you know this?

The UK is eating LESS fat than it EVER has, yet is the FATTEST it's EVER been!

You see, fat gets a raw deal when it comes to gaining blubber, yet its sugar that is the enemy in our quest to sexiness!

Sugar comes in lots of different guises you see, that shop bought fruit salad you have after lunch- likely to be the equivalent to 4 tablespoons of the white stuff and that's without the sugary gloop that sometimes comes with it.

The truth is, our digestive systems, although brilliant (and gassy in many male cases!), simply cannot tell the difference between granulated, white table sugar and sugar from 'healthy' food.
We all look at labels on food, but even there not all they're cracked up to be.

The part on their that's labelled 'carbohydrate' is in fact, as far as our body is concerned, sugar. So it's not really good enough to check out the calorie and fat content and assume that something is healthy.

The unfortunate reality is that carb content could easily be the equivalent of munching through a bag of sugar, just without the teeth rotting that comes with it.

So where does milk come into it?

Milk is heavily processed and uses pasteurisation and homogenisation in order to prolong its shelf life. Unfortunately this process kills ALL of the enzymes required to properly digest them, hence all the intolerance to dairy and consequential weight gain.

Thought the skimmed milk you've had for years was healthy? Think again. Skimmed milk actually contains more sugar than semi-skimmed (over a tablespoon per pint!).

Before I get bombarded with emails about calcium, you can get all the calcium you need from full fat, live yoghurt as it is full of that good bacteria. Avoid low fat yoghurt though as this is good bacteria free and loaded with table sugar!

So forget about that skinny latte my friend! Oh and the vanilla syrup that goes with it!

And that fat free desert? Rammed with sugar. Lose it.

Those ready- made sauces? Read that label.

Booze? No need to answer this one, booze is basically liquid sugar. The Devil in disguise!

So why is Sugar so bad?

Sugar is responsible for increased fat storage, the very opposite of what you want right?
It does this by over stimulating insulin which commands triglycerides (fat) to move in and take up residence in your fat cells.

Sugar stops your body from using fat as energy, so essentially it takes you from a fat-burning mode to a fat-storing mode.

The consequence of all this?

Excessive fat, on the rib area, just below the armpit and more depressingly the love handle area, you know ,that nasty bit that sometimes spills over your jeans!

Enough said!

Paul Mort is a Personal Trainer based in the North East and is one of the UK'S most exciting, in demand and respected fat loss experts in the UK.
With a no BS approach to fat loss he is currently one of only a handful of trainers in the UK who can offer an iron clad, 125% money back guarantee on his services and systems.
Paul has featured in several national newspapers and magazines as well as on terrestrial TV and Radio with his hard hitting and controversial approach to fat loss. He was recently described by Men's Health's Craig Ballantyne and Dax Moy as one of the UK's top personal trainers and by world renowned fitness expert Alwyn Cosgrove as a 'superstar trainer'.
He is also the creator of the revolutionary M.E.L.T method. The most effective fat loss system in the UK today and the only one of its type that can guarantee results- drop a dress size in less then 28 days or your money back.

Wanted: 20 Female Volunteers Who Want to Banish Belly Fat in Time for Christmas

2007-11-06T06:24:00.000-08:00

Yup, you read that right. I, Paul Mort, personal trainer, body transformation and fat loss expert, am looking for 20 female volunteers who are sick and tired of feeling bloated, flabby and unfit and who'd like to learn the insider secrets on how to drop a dress size in 28 days- just in time for Christmas!

When: 26th November,7:15 PM
Where: The Sundial, South Shields
Cost: Absolutely free!! But hurry, places are STRICTLY limited to the first 20 ladies that take action

What the 20 lucky women will discover at this F.REE seminar:

The 7 habits of highly effective fat loss
How 'low-fat' food is making you fatter
How to turbo-charge your metabolism
Why jogging actually makes you store fat
The 'bottom line' for rapid and permanent fat loss
Why your gym program doesn't work
The 5 deadly mistakes 9/10 women make when it comes to belly fat

Whatever you've tried in the past I can absolutely assure you that what I teach you at this seminar works, and it works like nothing else you've ever experienced!

I am sick of health clubs, DVD's, gizmo's, gadgets and other trainers stealing peoples hard earned money with their hype and downright deception, it's time I finally destroyed these lies and myths and told people the truth and I will reveal EVERYTHING!

All you have to do is reply to this email with the subject line: "Volunteer" and if you're one of the first 20 to reply you're in.
I have 1000 people on my list, who will get this email, so please hurry if you don't want to miss out.

CLICK HERE TO APPLY

Guest Article: Don’t give up just yet on your 2007 body

2007-10-29T15:14:00.000-07:00

Check out this smashing article from my friend and colleague Tim Goodwin over at http://www.getfit.lu

Don’t give up just yet on your 2007 body.

Admit it you’ve given up on your body for ’07! You might as well just wait till the New Year’s resolutions come around to fix your bulging waist line!

Late October brings the first early morning frost, you wrap up warm to scrape the car window of ice and at that moment you go into hibernation for the next few months, waiting for the days to get longer again. The thought of a nice warm pub after work or you sofa and a cup of hot chocolate certainly seems more appealing than the gym!

I bet you have heard every excuse in the book from your friends and family, about why they can’t start training now! I’d hazard a guess that some have slipped from your lips too…

“It’s too dark in the evening to go for a run”

“I don’t have any workout clothes that fit me”

“I have too much work on this month”

“There are just too many social occasions in December that will spoil my efforts”

“I’ll be much more motivated in the New Year”

Will you??

The problem with conceding defeat now is that you’ll be in more of a bind in two months time, your frustration and lack of self efficacy will be many times worse. At which point many of us will turn to the infamous “infomercial” products that promise to burn just that bit of fat below your ribs and above your thighs. Or we get duped into a weight loss plan that gives you an expensive bucket of powder and pills to consume every day.

The change of the clocks seems to mark the time when it is just too late to achieve anything for this year, so why bother starting? There has probably been a number of psychological studies done that give fancy names to this phenomenon.

SAD or not, it is time to buck up your ideas because in the remaining 2 months of this year it is actually possible to achieve your usual New Year’s goals BEFORE new year!

The good news is that there are many things you can do today that will ensure your New Year’s resolutions have a different feel to normal. There are workout plans coupled with the right nutritional strategies to cope with even the heaviest of party seasons.

Action is required on your part, you can’t just sit there, nod and agree with my ramblings, So get off your butt and do the following 5 steps:

Either join a gym, or buy a stability ball, exercise mat and some small hand weights. This will allow you to do most exercises.
Get out your scheduler for the next 4 weeks and mark on 4or 5 30-40 minute slots that you can get to the gym and/or do a quick routine at home. (If this means sacrificing an episode of “The Simpsons”, then so be it. It will get repeatedJ )
Get a bit of paper and write down your 6 favorite and 6 least favorite bodyweight or free-weight exercises. Split them evenly into 2 workouts.If you don’t know any exercise, buy a copy of Men’s Health or Women’s Fitness and take some from there. Make sure you include some squats, lunges, overhead lifting exercises, and some exercises for the upper back and shoulders. Guys, stay away from the Bench Press(It is not big or clever!), Girls(and guys) steer clear of abdominal crunch exercises, your time is better spent elsewhere!
Alternate your workouts, so Monday do workout 1, Wednesday - workout 2, Friday – workout 1 again
On the days in between, and at any other time do a cardio workout. But make it short and intensive! After a 5 minute warmup, go really hard for 1 minute, then go slow for 2 minutes, repeat 5 times and finish with a cool down.This cardio method has been proven by many scientific studies to be far superior for burning body fat than the “traditional” fat-burning zone cardio workouts. So avoid long, slow, (and quite frankly boring) walking or plodding on the treadmill.

We have found this and similar methods of workout to be the most effective way to burn body fat, drop a dress size and maintain a strong, healthy body.

One of my clients recently emailed me to tell me she bought 2 new pairs of jeans that were 2 sizes smaller than her size before following this system of training. She told me she wanted to buy more, but was afraid her husband would notice them on the credit card bill! I was actually more pleased to see a complete turn around in her confidence with her body in just over a 2 month period.

So you see the action you take NOW, as soon as you are done reading this article, really can make the difference. Yes it is tough getting through the long dark winter months, but the solution is not beyond the realms of possibility is it?

In fact it is pretty straight-forward to plan in some short workouts into your busy week. You don’t need expensive equipment, and sacrificing a little TV time is a small price to pay for a whole different set of New Years resolutions.

What will be your New Years resolutions come January 1st, because it looks it we have got your weight loss covered already!!!

Tim

Tim Goodwin is a fitness professional specializing in help the busiest people achieve more with their amateur sporting interests, and at the same time ridding them of excess body fat. Visit www.getfit.lu/success.html to get a free 18 page report "How to lose weight even when you are really busy" containing a full 4 week program which you can start today!

Do Porridge Oats Make you Fat?

2007-10-26T03:58:00.000-07:00

Of course porridge oats don’t make you fat!!

BUT..............

For years now, many weight loss experts, dieticians, doctors and slimming consultants alike have been telling us how Porridge Oats or easily the best option for our breakfast.

Granted most of us now know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, followed closely by our choice of post-workout nutrition, but why?

Well, you see, porridge oats are what are know as a Low Glycaemic Carbohydrate, meaning that it enters the bloodstream and is converted into sugar quite slowly, thus providing a slow release of energy throughout the day.

Hopefully you all know packaged breakfast cereals that are so common in many cupboards are just processed rubbish that I guarantee will make you fat- yes even Bran Flakes, All Bran and the like are very poor choices

Don't let the fact that they have 'added vitamins and minerals' fool you into thinking your morning bowl of cereal is healthy. It's not!

After being rendered into a kind of slurry paste, the grains that were used to make the flakes that you eat every morning were passed under high pressure and high heat through a pipe (a process that renders the grains mildly toxic) before being sprayed with synthetic chemicals and cut into their desired shapes. This process, known as extrusion, basically removes much of what was once nutritious from the food.(Thanks to dax over at http://www.daxmoy.co.uk/) for this!

Haven't you ever wondered why your cornflakes turned to mush when you leave it too long? Real food doesn't do this!
So, what is THE best breakfast?

Well, believe it or not it’s a plain old omelette! And before you game me the ‘aren’t eggs bad for your cholesterol?’ line- the amount of cholesterol in eggs has an insignificant effect on your blood cholesterol. Eggs are an awesome form of protein… even if you’re vegetarian!

Anyway, here’s a study to back it up (you know I love my studies)

It’s a study done by Dr. David Ludwig at Harvard University; he studied three groups of overweight individuals. Feeding each group a breakfast containing and IDENTICAL number of calories. One group ate instant oats; one group ate steel cut oats (the type that take 45 minutes to cook); and the third group had a veggie omelette and fruit.
They then ate a lunch identical to the meal they had eaten for breakfast, then after lunch they were told to eat whenever they were very hungry for the rest of the day. Now the results here blew me away!

Many of you would think that the healthiest meal would have been the oatmeal right? It was actually the omelette!

The group that are the instant oatmeal ate 81% more food in the afternoon than the group that had the omelette. Not only were they hungrier but the omelette group also had lower levels of insulin, which means there body was using fat as energy!

The steel cut oats were slightly better than the instant; the group still ate 51% more food the rest of the day than the group who ate the omelette.

The conclusion here for me is that the TYPE of calories and not the AMOUNT of calories you consume have a HUGE impact on how much weight you lose or gain, because different types of food are metabolized in different ways- in short PROTEIN ALWAYS WINS!

Now I’m not an advocate of the Atkins diet which is little or no carbs but what I am a fan of is low REFINED carbohydrate, so eat your oats, your brown rice and your veggies but ALWAYS eat them with protein!!

So tommorrow make sure you get yourself an 'eggscelent' breakfast!!

Paul Mort
www.precisionfitness.co.uk