What should your body fat percentage be?

Body fat percentage is talked about a lot in the fitness industry these days.  Here is my way, and the best way to find a body fat percentage you will be happy with!

This is one of the most common questions, I get asked. What should my body fat percentage be?  Does this question concern you?  Do you think you should be at 10%, maybe 12% or even lower than, say 7%.

A lot of people ask me this question. They also ask me what my body fat was when I did my first show on the picture below. Do you know what my body fat is in this picture? No?  Me either! Do you know why? When I was training for my first show (the Natural Caribbean Grand Prix) in the Cayman Islands and before I become a personal trainer, I met the president of the Natural Bodybuilding Federation of the Cayman Islands.  I asked what my body fat should be for the show.  I knew at that time that I asked the right guy because the year before he had won the Natural Federation Mr. Universe competition.

His answer to my question was a big “I don’t know”! I was shocked.  How come he doesn’t know? He is Mr. Universe! My second question was, “What was your body fat when you won Mr. Universe?” His answer: “I don’t know.” Wow, I almost fainted!  He simply told me, “This is all ‘BS’. Do you know how to check if your body fat is right for you? It’s when you look in the mirror and you are happy with what you see.”

Wow, that is simple! I have a member at the gym ask me almost every 2 weeks if his six pack is good enough. He lifts his t-shirt every time and asks me, “So what do you think? Do you think it is good enough?” I told him what I learned in Cayman and asked him if he was happy with what he saw? If yes, just maintain it, if no keep working on it.

For all of you who are trying to reach a number for your body fat, forget it and look in the mirror. See how you look. Some people look great at 15%, others don’t.  You don’t need fancy equipment. Look in the mirror and keep track of your measurements on a regular basis (every 4 to 6 weeks). This is the best way to look good and be happy with what you see.

But remember, you need the 4 wheels of the Express Fat Loss Program to be able to reduce your body fat and to keep the weight off for good. If you miss one wheel, you may lose your chance to ever be happy with what you see.

To read more on the express fat loss program visit: www.expressfatloss.com

How to Stimulate Your Muscle Fibres?

What’s the secret to getting the most from your strength workouts and fat loss exercises?  It’s not a piece of equipment, it’s not a new exercise.  In fact, the secret has been yours all along!

When I go to the gym, I see many members there who are working hard, trying to build a better, more athletic physique (fat loss).  Some are lifting heavy weights, some are lifting weights higher, some are lifting faster.  Some display good form and technique, while others abandon good form to lift a weight that is really too heavy for them.  I would like to give them some advice, because if you can follow some simple principles, your chances of building lean muscle and fat loss will be greatly improved.

I’m going to give you one of the best tips that for building a great athletic physique. You are probably asking yourself what kind of tip it could be and whether it is simple and easy. Always remember that you need to concentrate on getting the right nutrition on top of physical exercise for fat loss. But what is this magic piece of advice?

It’s not a piece of equipment, it’s not an exercise…it’s much more important than that: it’s your technique and your attitude. To be able to gain lean muscle you need to push yourself enough in order to stimulate your muscle fibers. Most people know that.  Next time you go to the gym, look around and see how people work out, just like I did. I’m sure you will see some good technique and a lot of technique that is not so good!

The reason I’m telling you this is quite simple: when you perform exercises, you need to stimulate your muscles so that you actually cause microscopic damage to the muscle fibers. With proper nutrition and the right amount of rest, your body will repair these damaged fibers, and this is what leads to muscle growth. I know that you probably already know already this, but remember: muscles don’t grow at the gym, they grow while you rest and sleep.

The most important point is your attitude. When you are trying to gain muscle and achieve fat loss, you need to lift heavy. But remember to always maintain the right technique for the movement you are performing.

Let me ask you a question… do you think your muscles know which dumbbells you are using for your Incline Chest Press? Of course not! Your muscles have no idea how much weight you are trying to lift. Your muscles will ONLY react to how you stimulate your muscle fibers. It doesn’t matter if you use 25 lb, 50 lb or 75 lb dumbbells. How you stimulate your micro-fibers will depend on how you do your workout.

The important factors are how many sets you do, how many reps, and the ‘Time Under Tension (TUT). TUT depends on the speed you do your reps. You can lift a heavy load a little bit faster in your reps, and then during the next set, use a lighter weight and go little bit slower.

Make sure you remember this for your next workout. Your muscles don’t react to the number on the dumbbells, the bar or the machine. Your muscles will react to how you train and stimulate your muscle fibers.

One more very important piece of advice: if you train, for example, your biceps, make sure you feel the pump in your biceps and nowhere else. Feel which muscle you are trying to work out. If you cannot feel it very well, try to modify your technique. Maybe the angle is not right, or maybe you are moving your elbows too far, working your shoulders more than your biceps.

Building a great physique with fat loss is a fine line. It is like an artist who paints. Sometimes he needs a broad brush and sometimes a small one. Make sure you don’t use only the broad brush to build your physique!

The most important thing to remember from this blog article is this:

Your Muscles Have No Idea Which Weight You Are Trying to Lift. Your Muscles Will React Only To How You Stimulate Your Muscle Fibers. So be precise to get the results you want!

Keep a Workout Journal

Today I want to tell you about the importance of keeping a journal when you do your workout training. By keeping track of your workouts, it’s easy to see your progress or if you plateau.

You can always go back through your old workouts and see your progression. This is one of the best motivators for you. I still write down each of my workouts in my log book. I think it is essential to a good fitness program.

It’s easy to see if I am making progress. You can also write some notes on the side. For example, if you did not have the usual energy for a workout and what the reason is: did you sleep well the night before, or perhaps it’s your nutrition.

By keeping a journal you will reach your goals faster. Do not skip this part. It’s important for you. I always found mine at the dollar store – composition book- and it’s work well for me and it’s cheap.

Write your program in your book and keep track of  the weight you use and number of sets and for how many reps.  Next workout try to do better. Don’t forget to write down  what time you start your workout and what time you finish it. It’s another key to keep your workout not too long and the next day or next week try to beat the time.  Keep your heart rate high.

Another great tips from ExpressFatLoss.com

Why am I sometimes weaker during my workout?

I received an interesting question by email this week – from Dave in Tennessee, USA.  Dave asked about how I design my clients’ programs, or even my own. Yes  I am still working out too!  Honestly if I don’t train at least 3 or 4 times a week I don’t feel good. It’s my lifestyle now for more than 20 years, and I feel great!

Dave’s question is:

I would like to know why sometime I feel very strong for my chest workout and the next program I’m not able to lift the same weight. This thing happened almost for every body part (chest, back, shoulders and arms).

My answer:

You have to take a few factors into consideration when you design your own program.

First, make sure you have enough rest in between workouts. You cannot train the same muscles group two days in a row. Your muscles need to rest at least 48 hours to be able to fully work the same muscle again. This is why if you like to do circuit training for a full-body workout, you are better off training every other day. On the days you do not do any strength training, you can do your cardio.

Now that you understand the importance of rest, we can take a look at how you introduce each body part into your program. Here’s an example.

If you train your chest on Monday,  and Tuesday – the next day- you are planning to train your shoulders, this is not a good program design.

Do you know why?  When you work your chest, your shoulders and triceps are also involved and getting a workout. Trust me, you will not be able to push too much weight with your shoulders the next day with this program because your shoulders don’t have enough time to recuperate from the chest workout. It’s that simple.

So you really need to understand body anatomy, and when you perform an exercise you need to know and understand which muscles are involved with the exercise.

To help you with your program design, here’s a few recommendations for you:

• Ÿ  When you perform a chest workout you also target your triceps and your shoulders.
• Ÿ  When you perform a back workout you also target your biceps.
• Ÿ  When you work your shoulders you also work your triceps.

Next time you design your program make sure to pay attention to those muscle groups, and really think about how the muscles work together.

For your program design, try to follow these different split workouts for 3, 4 or 5 workouts per week.

5-Day Split

Monday: Chest & Abs (Hit Shoulders and Triceps indirectly)

Tuesday: Back (Hit Biceps indirectly)

Wednesday: Shoulders & Abs (Hit Triceps indirectly)

Thursday: Quads, Hamstring & Calf

Friday: Arms & Abs

4-Day Split

Monday: Back, Biceps & Abs

Tuesday: Shoulders & Hamstring (Hit your Triceps indirectly)

Wednesday: Off – Give a break at your Triceps for the next workout

Thursday: Chest, Triceps & Abs (Hit your shoulders indirectly)

Friday: Quads & Calf

3-Day Split

Monday: Chest, Shoulders, Triceps & Abs

Tuesday: Off

Wednesday: Back, Biceps & Abs

Thursday: Off

Friday: Quads, Hamstring & Calf

Try out one of these plans, and I bet you’ll see a difference.  With enough rest in between, and alternating muscle groups, you’ll be more energetic, able to lift more weight or do more reps, and your technique will be better.  It all adds up to a better workout and better results!

Your Fitness Routine should continue after 12 weeks

Where are you with your program to get back into shape? When you decided to get back into shape, that was probably when you requested your F.ree E-Book or when you purchased the Express Fat Loss program.

A lot of people decide they want to make a body transformation for a special event like a New Year’s resolution, a wedding, a trip to the beach, a family reunion etc. But what happens after this is over?  Are you going to give up everything you achieved? Give up all your good work and go back to your old habits, feeling sluggish with no energy, increasing your body fat and then starting the same pattern over again for another event in a few months or next year?

Are you like that?  Can you recognize your behavior in that scenario?

Now that you have been in your routine for a few months, the trick is to keep going. So many people work hard to pass the 12 week point and after that, if something happens, they cancel their exercise time at the gym.  They think it’s probably not a big issue.  It’s only one time, but next week the same situation will come up again, and again the following week, and they end up missing more workouts.  I’m sorry to tell you that this usually signals the beginning of the end.

I have been in this business for so long that I know that at some point you will probably feel bored with your exercise program.  Maybe you will reach a plateau, and you may not see any obvious improvement in weight loss or muscle gain. You might start to lose your focus.

The other day, I read something by Mark Joyner. Mark Joyner is a 4 times best-selling author, and this phrase made a lot of sense to me. Make sure you apply this to your goals: he said, “Hit it until you hit it”. Whatever your goals are, apply this to your focus and you will ‘Hit It’ for sure.

If you have lost focus lately with your fat loss program, make sure you are still doing what you need to do to be successful. Here’s a few ways to get back on track:

Ÿ  Establish a routine – Make exercise part of your daily lifestyle. Exercise should come naturally like eating, sleeping or brushing your teeth.

Ÿ  Schedule – Make sure you set up some time in your agenda for time at the gym. Choose the best time for you and KEEP IT! This time slot is yours. It’s your time to think about your health.

Ÿ  Pay attention to your nutrition – Without monitoring your nutrition closely, it will be very difficult to achieve what you want. It’s a package deal: you need all of ‘wheels’ (Nutrition, Strength Training, Cardio/Flexibility and Rest)

Ÿ  Goals- Look back to the goal setting you did a few months ago and see if your goals were realistic.

Ÿ  Start keeping your nutrition and exercise journal again – Make sure you stay on track with both.

Ÿ  Push yourself little bit more at each workout session, perform maybe one extra rep or increase the weight of your lift.

Ÿ  Change your routine every 4 to 6 weeks to keep you interested and your muscles learning and getting fit.

Your fitness program should go beyond the first 12 weeks. First make a commitment for the first 12 weeks and then re-assess and make another commitment for another 3 months. Use a small time frame (12 weeks at a time) and aim to get fitter and stronger every time you set up fresh 12 weeks goals.  Remember what you learned about goal setting – keep it realistic, and measure your progress regularly to stay motivated!

7 Tips to Reduce fat in your nutrition

When you are trying to lose weight, eating anything with fat in it is bad right?  Wrong! Fat contains vital vitamins and nutrients that your body needs to function properly.  Here are 7 great tips on how to reduce fats in your diet, while consuming the right amount of good fats that your body needs.

By now you know that too much fat- especially saturated fat- is not good for you. Your body can easily store excess calories ingested from fat as body fat. Plus, saturated fats can clog your arteries and contribute to heart disease.

But be careful. Although reducing dietary fat is important, eliminating all fat from your diet is not at all healthy. Fat is an essential nutrient that produces energy for daily activities and supplies the body with vitamins A, D and E, which are needed for healthy skin and optimal growth. The body cannot produce fat on its own; it must be provided through dietary intake.  For these reasons you should enjoy some fats in your diet, especially monounsaturated fats like olive oil. The key is moderation.

Here are 7 tips to reduce the unhealthy-Saturated- Fat:

1.    Use evaporated skimmed milk instead of cream when preparing sauces or desserts.
2.    Create your own nonfat salad dressing by mixing balsamic vinegar, mustard and herbs. If you really prefer an oil-based dressing, try using three parts vinegar to one part oil.

3.    Sauté foods in chicken broth, vegetable stock or tomato juice  instead of frying them in oil or butter.
4.    You can make your own taco shells. Hang soft corn tortillas directly over the oven rack (with the sides of the tortilla hanging down) and bake at 400 degrees until they’re crisp. (Taco shells sold in supermarkets are usually fried.)
5.    Sweet potato fries. Place 1/4-inch-thick potato slices on a nonstick baking pan, and coat with a light spray of olive oil. Sprinkle with paprika or salt, and bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes. Turn once during baking.
6.    Substitute six egg whites plus one whole egg for every three eggs in your favorite recipes.
7.    Substitute applesauce or any baby-food fruits for up to half of the total oil in your favorite dessert recipes

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Advantages of Express Fat Loss Program

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Control Sugar Level:

Because of balanced nutrition plan, Express Fat Loss Program not only helps you to lose weight. But it also controls the sugar level of your blood.

Fit Body:

Those who perfectly follow the guideline of Express Fat Loss Program will be able to get slim and fit body shape in no time.

Lowers Cholesterol & improves Blood Circulation:

Usually people who are over weight have some other problems as well like higher cholesterol level and heart problems, which are definitely not good for anyone’s health. Express Fat Loss Program lowers the level of cholesterol and improves blood circulation.

Improved Digestion & Metabolism:

Digestion process will be improved after applying Express Fat Loss Program in your routine. Due to the well balanced diet you will get energy and also your metabolism gets better.

Popularity & Performance:

After having healthy and smart body, you will be popular among the relatives, colleagues and in your friends circle. When you dress up people will appreciate you for what you are wearing and how you are looking. Also you will feel a huge difference in the performance of your work. This change only occurs because of the better confidence which can only be achieved by Express Fat Loss Program.

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