ABS are built in the kitchen not the gym!!!

Most iconic image of fitness!?

We want one, we all see celebrities coming out of the sea on holiday with one! Are you one of those sit up and crunch obsessive’s in the elusive search for a six pack?

Hours and hours of crunches and you end up with nothing but a bad back and sore abdominal muscle! Are you a believer that to rid yourself of abdominal fat you must work your abdominal muscles? This stems from the myth that fat is eliminated from a part of your body if you engage the muscles underneath the fat. It’s simple you cannot out train a bad diet.

Abs are made made in the kitchen and not the gym, with 80% of the work done whilst we prepare and eat our food. Its all about diet choices. You can never run away from a bad diet, get that right and unlock those hidden ab's!

All those hundreds of crunches and still no sign of your six pack? That’s right you heard YOUR SIX PACK because EVERYONE HAS A SIX PACK hidden under layers of fat. To unlock your potential follow these simple yet effective principles of this blog, put them alongside a Body Aid MRT workout and you are on your way!!

If you want to reduce body fat, you need to start consuming fewer calories than you expend on a daily basis, simple maths energy output > energy input, in other words calorie deficit. In time, your body will start converting fat into usable energy and by doing so fat stores will begin to vanish across your body. But they won't just magically disappear from one particular place, you can’t spot train!!

Alongside a BODY-AID MRT fitness programme, tailored specifically to your needs and circumstances, nutrition is key; you will begin to see results and recruit muscle whilst burning your way to your potential and achieving the body you have always desired.

You can work as hard as you want in the gym trying to burn away the guilt from your over indulgence, but this will simply lead to over training and injury. The first step is to make sure you are eating often enough, when the body goes too long without food, your body kicks into starvation mode and holds onto those unwanted calories.  It is vitally important that you make breakfast your primary meal of the day in order to kick start your metabolism and turn your body into a fat burning machine.  

Using brekkie as a starting block you should continue to eat during the day, aiming to eat 4 -5 further small meals containing roughly 300 calories in each, at 3 – 4 hourly intervals. This will ensure that you are letting your body reach its fat burning potential each time you eat, turning it into the ultimate furnace.

Alongside training mean with a BODY-AID prescribed exercise programme you must also eat clean and be prepared. Fail to prepare, prepare to fail! Plan a menu weekly for your 5 – 6 meals per day and shop only for what you PLAN. Tip: cling to the aisles with all the fresh produce and don’t venture in towards the processed rubbish, straying will destroy your dreams and goals.

Example:

Breakfast – 3 eggs (Poached, scrambled, boiled, omelet)

Fish oil, nuts or berries should be added if possible

Snack – Nuts, fruit or Whey Protein shake

Lunch – Chicken/Tuna/Turkey available at stilton butchers (£25.00 for 5kg!)  (Lean protein source) with Salad or vegetables

Snack – One of previous options (change it up)

Evening meal – Lean meat or fish with Salad or vegetables

Final Snack – a remaining snack option

IMPORTANT: Stay well hydrated with 2 – 3 litres of water a day

This is a high protein low carb plan, if you wish to increase your carb intake to support your body’s needs in the gym quinoa or brown rice are great clean sources of healthy carbs, low in simple sugars (preventing lows in energy levels) easy for the body to break down. 

Any further questions on this subject contact us for our 1 –2 – 1 nutrition assessment, advice and personal training.Keeping you healthy

MRT SHOWS ITS A HEAVYWEIGHT VS FAT!!!

Sick and tired of spending ridiculous amounts of time doing cardio with little or no results? Welcome to a way of thinking that will blast that stubborn fat and help you reach your potential quicker – the first step- read this blog!

You ask, what is metabolic resistance training?

Barbell Squats, hard working when burning fat!

Metabolic Resistance Training (MRT) isn’t for the faint hearted, it’s an intensive workout that brings a cardiovascular element into resistance training. What’s even better is that this can all be achieved in as little as 45 minutes. MRT workouts encompass the entire body and increase your calorie burn by tenfold, accelerating your metabolism. MRT spreads improvement across multiple desired targets and when properly used in a training programme, MRT can help you build muscle, burn fat and gain strength at the same time.

There are different types of MRT which we will cover later in the blog for now looking at the super set method which you can be very imaginative with and pair two contrasting body parts (agonist/antagonist) or go with two complete separate body parts such as dumbbell chest press followed immediately by barbell squat. Each exercise should be 15 – 20 reps at about 60 – 65% of your single rep max [1RM]; the key to optimising results is to train at maximal or near-maximal levels of effort and the short recovery periods.

The idea is to take most sets to muscular failure or close to it (equating to a Rated Perceived Exertion [RPE] of 9 or 10 on a scale of 1-10). If you aren't sufficiently pushing yourself to complete each set, you will not reach your fat burning potential. In order to ensure the maximum gains Complete the superset, rest for 30 seconds and repeat 3times before finally resting for 1 minute and moving on to a new superset use around 5 – 6 supersets per workout, the fitter and stronger you become the shorter the rest period can become. 

Whichever method you choose will increase your energy expenditure from normal training regimes and can approach as high as 600 – 700 calories in a single 45 minute session whilst building muscle as well. The calorie count will also increase during the “after burn” the period which the body is attempting to return to a normal state and continues to have an elevated metabolic rate which can last depending on the intensity of your work out between 12 – 24 hrs.

Body Weight Exercises are great!

MRT should be a total-body routine that works all the major muscles each session. Since the energy expenditure of an exercise relates directly to the amount of muscle(s) worked, incorporate multi-joint exercises whenever possible. Involve more muscle, and you expend more energy. Use big compound movements such as squats, rows and presses will work the muscles of the torso and thighs.

Repetitions should be performed at a moderately fast tempo, particularly on the concentric portion (the "positive" half) of the movement. Aim to perform concentric lifts as explosively as possible without sacrificing clean technique. The eccentric part of the movement (the “negative” half) should be performed slower 3-4 seconds to make the muscles working resist the gravity pull on the down phase of each rep which will have significant effect on energy expenditure during the workout. 

As previously touched on there are different types of MRT routines 2 of which are explained below.

Supersets

 As previously explained you can pair two contrasting body parts (agonist/antagonist) i.e. chest then back or go with two complete separate body parts. Personally my preference is with pairing two complete different exercises which work separate body parts usually one upper body with one lower body allowing you to be far more imaginative, anything goes! An example of a superset MRT workout is as follows:

1a) Alternate dumbbell bench press (can use gym ball for optimum expenditure)

1b) Barbell squat

2a) Barbell squat thrusters

2b) DB single arm row

3a) Arnold press

3b) DB Alternate forward lunge

4a) Straight arm Lat pull down

4b) Jack knife with push ups

5a) Tricep dips (weighted for extra expenditure)

5b) DB Split squats

Metabolic conditioning training (MCT)

MCT is a method in which you increase the amount of exercise without rest; this can be anything from 4 exercises back to back through to insane workouts of 15 different exercises without rest. The exercises can be performed for desired amounts of reps or time. They can be bodyweight or resistance based or a mixture of both with the added intensity of aerobic exercises. 

The idea is to keep the near maximal effort and the longer periods of fat busting work ads to the intensity and the burn achieved heightening the metabolic rate even further.

This method is recommended for those people who are looking for that extra burn and increased aerobic capacity whilst still recruiting and building muscle (MRT is for greater muscle recruitment). This is probably the most demanding of all the MRT techniques; it's sure to leave you physically beat by the end of your session but with awesome results. I've used this extensively with clients and can guarantee that it takes your fat burning potential to a whole new level.

The exercises can as previously touched on be a mixture of resistance and bodyweight with the added intensity of aerobic exercises in between. As with the previous principles you are looking to perform multi joint large compound movements to create a whole body workout. As your fitness increases you can add to the number of exercises performed each round. To start with I recommend a round of 5 exercises followed by a minutes rest and repeat 3 to 4 times.

Example of MCT as follows:

1) Barbell clean and press

2) Burpees

3) Inverted row

4) Walkouts with mountain climbers and push up

5) Barbell or bodyweight squats (optional jump squat)

Complete circuit for desired reps or time (15 – 20 reps) (45 seconds – 1 min) using 50% - 55% 1RM then repeat 3 or 4 times.

So to unleash your fat burning potential jump on the MRT train today be imaginative and ditch the long boring cardio sessions to reach your goals. Be sure to keep us posted and let us know about your results.

Why BBQs are GOOD for you!

It's that time of year and for once the British summer has not let us down this weekend! The Olympics have been fantastic and we are all motivated to keepfit and be healthier! So why not crack on the BBQ and get the music on.

As if we don’t need any excuse already!? BBQ’s are fun and let’s be honest make us feel good. Foods that we all serve at our BBQs are generally grilled meats, vegetables, salads and for a few of us grilled fish. These foods not only taste fantastic they are comfort foods. Making us feel better, get rid of everyday stress, makes us feel welcome and less lonely! It’s actually proven in recent studies. Being outside also makes feel more relaxed and more like we are not at work! All making us feel better. So its no wonder I ask myself, should everyday be BBQ day!?

The meat that we serve is grilled, which have less fat than other cooking methods such as frying! As it cooks you here that sizzles on the BBQ as the fat is released from the meat being cooked. Ensuring our meat is healthier and carrying less calories.  In turn reduced fat intake also helps to control and lower bad cholesterol levels in our body, basically the fat you can’t see which is called visceral fat. This fat causes cardiovascular disease, stroke, heart attacks and type 2 diabetes! Grilled meat also retains more riboflavin basically vitamin B2, which helps to produce red blood cells and helping with body growth!

Great Value for money at Stilton Butchers!

Also one thing we haven’t mentioned is time! Never seems like we have enough of it. So why waste it cooking? Well BBQs are a quick why of cooking. By grilling your food it also helps preserve many of the nutritional value of the meat and vegetables that you cook. The quicker cooking time ensures fewer vitamins are lost. Making the actual nutritional value higher!

All in all BBQs are a great way to have fun, stay healthy and relax! Everything should be eaten in moderation so BBQs don’t come free! But there still not a bad way to enjoy food with loved ones and friends!