Don't forget your fat!

Many searching to better both their health and bodies fear fatty foods, but they shouldn’t. The basics for muscle growth and keeping body fat within reason are calorie control and a proper provision of nutrients. Although fatty foods can be caloric, they provide nutrients that many other bodybuilding foods do not. These healthful fatty foods can be excellent choices during mass-gaining cycles and, by making some adjustments in total calorie consumption, they can even be a crucial part of a cutting cycle.

If you want to provide your body with all it needs to stay anabolic and keep body fat in check, you should make certain you’re taking in the proper balance of all the fatty foods you need.

Good sources:

Eggs
Salmon
Flaxseed
Red meat

Fit Firefighter? Maybe not!

The Firefighter Combat Challenge is held around the country in many regional events. Thousand of spectators witness the best of the bravest, in full bunker gear and breathing apparatus performing the physical demands of real-life firefighting in a linked series of five tasks: climbing the five-story tower, hoisting, chopping, dragging hoses and rescuing a life-sized, 175-lb. "victim" as they race against time and their opponents.

The event inspires many smoke eaters to a higher level of physical conditioning. Unfortunately, those who need to be inspired most, rarely hear the call.

Many of America's firefighters are not up to the standard of passing CPAT, never mind the Combat Challenge. There is resistance within the ranks to embrace physical conditioning programs because of general laziness and fear of reprisal. Both union and management see only the risk and expense, but not the long term benefit, reduction of risk, and saving of millions in health care and workmen's comp costs.

The Challenge helps bring the concept of the fit firefighter to the forefront, for all to see. Getting the boys out of the back room and into the weight room is the clear message. With that in mind, I'd like to offer a training program, designed to improve abilities and work capacity, within the five events featured in the Challenge.

Years of long shifts, intense stress, and downtime spent filling up on five-alarm fast foods have taken their toll on the bodies of America's Bravest. So AbFitt sounded the alarm--and came to the rescue. First stop: Chicago. With the help of personal trainer Dave Gould; nutritionist Brian Jackson and trainers Carrie Smith and Arnold Perez, of 24HR fitness Clubs, we designed an intensive diet-and-exercise program to manufacture muscle and burn fat. Next, we took the same challenge to New York and some flabby members of the FDNY. Then on to the home of AbFitt the Allentown FD. I want to thank those fire fighters who took part in this year long study. Great job guys!!! AbFitt is Americas firefighters first tool in living a fitness lifestyle.

After just 5 weeks, firefighters in both cities saw remarkable results. Some cut their body fat by a third. Others layered on lean muscle. But the best result? These strategies can help you build a body of heroic proportions, too. I continue to work personaly with each of these Fire eaters as we move forward with more intense training and zeroing in on the proper diet and supplementation. Stay tuned for individual stories to come.

1. Direct your efforts

Most resistance exercises require you to move only forward and backward or up and down. But if you train in additional planes--side to side and diagonal--you'll burn more fat and use more muscles with each move, according to Hays. The following multiplanar moves were staples of the firefighters' program.



MULTIPLANAR LUNGE

Lunge forward with one foot and back to the starting position, then step out to the side. Return to the middle and step to the other side with your other foot. Next, pivot on your right foot to lunge back at a 45-degree angle with your left foot. Then pivot on your left foot and step back diagonally with your right foot. Do one or two sets of 12 reps in each direction.



MULTIPLANAR JUMP

Standing on one foot, jump out to the opposite side and land softly on your other foot. Immediately jump back in the same fashion. Repeat the same type of jump forward and backward, as well as diagonally. Do one or two sets of 12 repetitions in each direction.



MULTIPLANAR SQUAT

Perform a standard squat, then step forward with your left leg and squat again. As you rise out of the squat, bring your right leg forward so it's even with your left, then take another step forward with your right leg and squat. Next, take a step back with your left foot and turn it at a 45-degree angle, so your toes are pointing to the side, then squat. Bring your left foot back and repeat the move with your right foot. Do one or two sets of 12 repetitions in each direction.



2. Drill your core

The firefighters did core-stabilization moves like the Swiss-ball long-lever crunch while adhering to a strict tempo: Crunch forward for a count of 2, pause for a second, then lower your body for a count of 4. "The core is slow to fatigue," says Perez, and this slow tempo provides the necessary stress. Perform core exercises early in your routine, when your energy is high.



3. Hit the floor

Once you've mastered the multiplanar lunge, start the move holding weights at your shoulders. As you lunge, lower the weights toward your toes and touch them to the floor. Then, as you push back to the starting position, press the weights overhead.

We call this move a multiplanar lunge matrix, and the benefits are as cool as the name. By bringing the weights to the floor, you stretch your lower back, hamstrings, and glutes. You also increase the amount and intensity of work you do by moving the weights through such a large range of motion.



4. Snack smarter



5. Keep your balance

As with their snacks, the firefighters' high-protein "diet" meals weren't the flab busters they seemed. "Eliminating things like fruit, whole grains, and yogurt is not a long-term solution to weight maintenance. What's more, by cutting out certain foods, the firefighters were also handicapping their health. "Yogurt is full of good bacteria, which can aid your immune system. "These guys are in such stressful, dangerous conditions that they need all the help they can get to stay healthy. Bottom line: Stick with a ratio of 50 percent vegetables and fruit, 25 percent whole grains, and 25 percent lean proteins.

Spread those wings when it comes to your training.

Cross training incorporates multiple elements of physical fitness-strength, flexibility and cardio, among them-into a routine that helps you take your fitness to the next level. As gym memberships and personal trainer use continue to rise in popularity, new and long-time fitness buffs are increasingly turning to cross training as a way to increase overall physical health, reduce the risk of injury and breathe new life into stagnant workouts.

What is Cross Training?
A standard cross training routine blends cardio, strength and agility and flexibility exercises into a multi-day workout program, effectively working the entire body. The rationale behind cross training is simple: the more fit you are overall, the better you'll perform in any activity.

Additionally, if your body is both strong and flexible, cross training means you're less likely to sustain serious injury during workouts and more likely to recover faster if you do get hurt. And when you're recovering from an injury, cross training provides the added benefit of helping you maintain your fitness level until you can resume your favorite activity. Runners who need to lessen impact on their joints for example, can continue cardiovascular training on an elliptical trainer.

Total-body Workout
While sports like rowing and skiing come close, no single form of exercise truly provides you with a total-body workout. Cross training does just that.

Think of it this way: if you're an avid cyclist can easily ride 50 miles, you might think that you're in peak form. But then you get into the swimming pool and you find after a few laps that your arms are tired and you're feeling all-over body fatigue. Despite having great leg and cardiovascular strength, you've discovered weakness in your upper body you didn't realize was there.

With cross training, you might add swimming to your cycling routine, and by doing so you'll begin to work all of your major muscle groups, and improve your overall health, strength and fitness level. Professional athletes have long been fans of cross training: football players take dance classes to improve their footing on the field, while baseball players look to increase their leg strength in order to maximize their overall power when they swing the bat.

What to Include in a Cross training Routine
With cross training, you can mix and match activities to create a workout that suits your body and keeps your interest.

If you're a runner, you might add strength training with weights to the mix; if you're a devoted yogi, incorporate jogging on the treadmill or hit the trail outside. The best cross training programs include at least one cardio, one strength and one flexibility component, but as you grow stronger and more fit, consider adding in additional exercises from each of these areas.

Good cardio exercises to include in your cross training program include walking, jogging, running, skating, cycling, skiing, rowing, swimming, hiking, dance or aerobics or using elliptical trainers and rowing machines.

When it comes to adding strength-building exercises to your cross training routine, look to free weights or weight machines, and good, old-fashioned calisthenics like push-ups, chin-ups and sit-ups. Some forms of yoga, like Ashtanga and Power Yoga, require you to bear your own body weight and are good additions to your cross training routine.

General stretching is a great way to incorporate flexibility exercise into your cross training routine. Yoga and Pilates, in particular, also focus on helping you develop your core strength, which helps protect your back from injury.

Glutamine is a rock-solid choice for workout recovery, muscle growth and a stronger immune system.

guest model: farleybasset



After a weightlifting session, one of your first concerns should be recovery. The faster you can recover, the faster your muscles can start the growth process. Glutamine is, hands down, one of the best supplements on the market today for aiding recovery.

In a study presented at the 2004 American College of Sports Medicine national conference, male subjects underwent an exhaustive training session and then took either glutamine or a placebo for six days. After six days, each subject had his power measured and then performed the same exhaustive training session. Subjects who received the glutamine supplements experienced no drop-off in power from the first to the sixth day. The placebo group was found to have a decrease in power after six days, indicating their muscles were not fully recovered. Additionally, the glutamine group was able to train longer before becoming exhausted on the last day compared to the first, but the placebo group showed no improvement.

The lesson? Taking glutamine supplements between training sessions may help speed recovery so you can start growing faster and get back into the gym quickly.

Cotto back on top!

Former two division world champion Miguel Cotto (35-2, 28 KOs) has taken over another division, dethroning previously unbeaten WBA super welterweight champion Yuri Foreman (28-1, 8 KOs) in nine rounds on Saturday night in the first fight card at New York City’s famed Yankee Stadium site in 34 years. Now trained by Emanuel Steward, Cotto looked extremely sharp outboxing Foreman over the first six rounds and in the seventh stanza Foreman’s right knee buckled compromising his mobility. Someone at ringside threw in a towel in the eighth round and people entered the ring, but referee Arthur Mercante Jr. threw everyone out and resumed the fight. Cotto continued to batter Foreman dropping him with a left to the body in round nine and the bout was then waved off. Time was :42.

Back to basics. Happy Memorial day!

Back training is very important for the following reasons:

1. It adds to side-view thickness.
2. It enhances the all-important V-taper.
3. It creates muscle balance with chest musculature.
4. It gives the body a symmetrical appearance
5. It prevents shoulder impingement issues by playing an integral role in preventing forward shoulder.

The keys to developing an awesome back are shrugs, rows, and pull-ups. Good trap development comes from heavy barbell shrugs and the indirect effect of overhead shoulder presses and upright rows. However, to directly stimulate the traps for mass and to develop shoulder thickness, one needs to shrug heavy at times and at other times, shrug for the "feel."

I like to do traps with back training. For my back day, I train my mid-back mainly and the two key priorities in my back days are lat width and upper-mid back definition. Find what works best for you, however don't over-complicate things, keep it simple.

Richard-

The positive effects on strength, size and even fat loss.....Branched-chain amino acids.

Before creatine, arginine and whey protein ranked supreme as popular bodybuilding supplements, the branched-chain amino acids were the hot ticket for bodybuilders. Today, BCAAs are back on the must-have list of supplements because bodybuilders have found that they work well to enhance muscle growth, strength, energy and even fat loss. If you're not using them, here's your guide to why you should.

THE THREE AMINOS The BCAAs comprise three essential amino acids--leucine, isoleucine and valine. The name "branched-chain amino acids" is derived from the structure of these aminos--each has a forked outcropping that looks a bit like a branch. How essential are these three aminos? Well, although there are about 20 amino acids that the muscles use for muscle growth, the three BCAAs make up one-third of the total amino acids in the body's muscles.


What's really special about these three aminos is how the body handles them. When you ingest amino acids (as individual aminos or as protein), they first travel to the liver, which immediately breaks them down and uses them for fuel if the body needs them for energy rather than for rebuilding muscle and other tissues. Yet, the liver tends to spare BCAAs, sending them directly to the muscles to be used for building muscle or for fuel.

The muscles can use BCAAs, unlike other aminos, directly for fuel. This gives BCAAs two unique properties. First, during workouts, muscles readily use BCAAs for fuel. Second, during rest, such as after workouts, BCAAs are used for building muscle. These are two important considerations when it comes to the timing of supplementation: they make pre-and postworkout the critical time periods for taking BCAAs. ENERGY BOOST BCAAs are readily used for fuel by the muscles during workouts; thus, intense and longer workouts will rob more BCAAs from your muscles. To counteract this, take a BCAA supplement right before you train--because supplemental BCAAs are readily available to the muscle as a direct source of energy, your energy levels will be higher during the workout than if you had not done so.

Foreman vs Cotto 6-5-10

Yuri Foreman,




WBA Super Welterweight champion, spars during his workout at Gleason's Gym in New York, Tuesday, May 25, 2010. Foreman, from Brooklyn, N.Y., is the first orthodox Jew to win a world championship in 75 years. He will defend the title against former three time world champion Miguel Cotto June 5, at Yankee Stadium.

Food for thought!

Guest model: Rachel Aust
http://www.rachelatkcfit.com/


As you proceed along the fitness lifestyle, it is inevitable that at some point you will desire to display your physique in the best way possible. Whether your goal is to compete, look better at the beach, special occasion, be more attractive to the opposite sex or to simply take pride in your hard work and accomplishments. Nutritional manipulation through dieting as well as dedication to a rational plan–remains the best route to revealing the fruits of your labor.

The Role Of Protein

Of the three sources of energy (carbohydrates, protein and dietary fat), protein has the least impact on fat storage. Overeating calories from carbs and dietary fat will lead to their accumulation as bodyfat. That’s not to say you can, or should, gorge on protein. It means you should add more protein from chicken, turkey or fish instead of snacking on additional carbs or fat to satiate hunger.

Ratios Are Important

Calories count, and so does the source of the calories. Check out this study. Two groups of women followed a 1,600-calorie daily diet that included 50 g of fat. The difference was that one group went with higher protein and fewer carbs, while the other followed a higher-carb, lower-protein menu. After 10 weeks, both segments lost a similar amount of weight, but a closer look reveals that the higher-protein group had higher thyroid levels and metabolic rates, lost 18% more fat and retained 27% more muscle. The takeaway message: the type of calories affects fat loss. When in doubt, the way to go is more protein and fewer carbs.

Frequent Meals

If you are eating fewer weekly calories than your body is accustomed to, nothing beats eating at least five times a day. Small meals impact fat loss by preventing the metabolism from slowing. They also keep energy levels more stable and ward off feelings of hunger.

Glutamine Boosts Recovery & Conserves BCAA’s

Glutamine spares the burning of branched-chain amino acids, which are used in greater amounts when calories decline. Glutamine has also been found to increase metabolic rate and fat burning. Try 5 g of BCAAs before training and another 5 g after training, as well as with breakfast and before bed.

Abfitt-

Rich Fit / Tip of The Day. Less cardio, please.

Despite what the masses tell you, limit your cardio! Yes that's right ease up a bit on all the steady state cardio. Science tells us after about 20 minutes your body has used up all stored carbs for energy. what happens next is the body then begins to tap into fat stores and your most important fat burning tool, muscle!!!

Muscle is what shapes our bodies and keeps our metabolism moving efficiently if you are constantly using it to fuel your cardio habit you simplyare never going to achieve the body you desire!!! Answer....build lean muscle tissue and keep it by limiting your cardio to short intense 20 minute bursts.

Richard